*Spoiler Warning*
This season for me has been filled with some pretty decent shows so far, I don't feel like any have been lacklustre or plain to watch. I will agree, however, that some of them have been a bit trashy, but I don't find that it hinders my overall enjoyment. Due to the way this season has been aired, for some of these anime, I have seen two or more episodes and others only one episode, so I'll try to give my ranking based on what I remember from the first episode of each. I will also mention that I'm not watching every single anime that's airing this season, so if I miss something off, just assume I haven't seen it or can't see it due to regional streaming locks. First up are my thoughts on the shorts available.
#5 - Breakers
I really like that this exists, we see a lot of sports anime all the time with characters that are capable of performing everyday activities with ease. Breakers, however, shows us how difficult it is to partake in sporting activities when you have some form of disability. I love that they've gone with this storyline and not sugarcoating it in any way as it gives us an insight on how these individuals work actively to overcome the hardships that come with sports.
#4 - Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki Nisatsume
What can I say, I enjoy cute things and this delivers. I'd love to see Yatogame actually open up more to Kaito and not treat him badly all the time, but then we'd be missing out on the comedic aspects her attitude towards him brings. It's also interesting to see the differences in dialect between Tokyo Japanese (which is what we hear in most anime) and the Nagoya Japanese, potentially learning a little along the way.
#3 - Isekai Quartet 2
I know that Isekai Quartet had mixed reviews when it first came out, but I was one of those that completely loved it. Seeing characters again from some of my favourite Isekai anime after so long delighted me. So getting another season already excited me when it was announced, to then find out we were getting new characters was pure joy and boy did get a good addition to the cast. If you enjoy the Isekai genre unironically, this is worth a watch.
#2 - Natsunagu!
To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect from this little short, the synopsis I read was a little bit wrong in explaining the premise of the show, so I went in thinking it was going to revolve around a post-earthquake setting. So far, the earthquake has only been mentioned once and it seems to have happened a few years in the past. The actual story of the show captivates me a lot more than I thought it would as I seem to identify with how Natsuna feels when she loses contact with a dear friend of hers and has to go searching for her. I highly recommend this, as it's only 4 minutes long and leaves you wanting more.
#1 - Heya Camp△
Here we are, of course this was going to be my number one. Heya Camp△
fully captures the image of comfiness, continuing on from Yuru Camp△, we get to see the girls up to their antics again. So far, in the safe space of the club room. I'd love to see more of the cast involved, but getting to see the main club members in the first episode was enough for now. This is the short I'm looking forward to the most each week. I implore you, if you haven't watched Yuru Camp△ yet, go and watch it, come back and watch this.
Moving on, I'll now be covering my thoughts on the main shows for the season.
#20 - 22/7
I'm not usually a fan of Idol anime, I've seen a few and the ones I enjoyed had some form of comedic aspect to them. 22/7 doesn't have that so far and I'm not sure it ever will, however, the premise of an Idol group being formed by an underground record label intrigues me slightly. I wouldn't say this anime is terrible, but it also isn't a masterpiece, the saving grace so far is that I really enjoyed the art style a lot.
#19 - Murenase! Shiiton Gakuen
A lot of people are comparing this show to Beastars from last year and personally I think it's wrong to do so. Murenase! is completely different as it focuses more on comedy rather than serious themes like Beastars did. I laughed my way through most of the first episode, enjoying the stupidity that came. I'd also say that it is quite faithful to actual animal behaviour. The only downfall so far is that male animal characters are depicted as bipedal animals, whereas the female animal characters are cute animal girls, clearly done for fanservice.
#18 - Nekopara (TV)
As someone that played the games, I was super excited for the adaptation to Nekopara. It's exactly what you'd expect from an anime adaptation to an ecchi game, cute girls wiggling their bits about. There does seem to be a decent-ish story evolving though with the addition of the anime-only character. I'm looking forward to seeing if this becomes anything more than just boobs and underwear.
#17 - Housekisho Richard-shi no Nazo Kantei
I'm definitely a fan of Housekisho Richard-shi no Nazo Kantei and desperately want this to be a yaoi. Richard and Seigi already have so much chemistry together after only one episode and I feel like Richard is going to teach Seigi a lot, if you catch my drift. All joking aside, the main rule that has been laid out, 'no judging people, no matter what', is a great message to push across. The world could use more non-judgemental people in it.
#16 - Koisuru Asteroid
For some reason, Koisuru Asteroid reminds me immensely of Sora yori mo Tooi Basho. I'm not sure whether it's the cute girls or the fact that the titles are space-related. In any case, it's more cute girls doing cute things, for now. Who knows, we might end up getting some over the top space plot but I really hope it stays as is. Again there are some love themes here, but it's not pushed as hard as in other shows this season.
#15 - Ishuzoku Reviewers
Going back a few seasons, Nande Koko ni Sensei ga!? came out and I highly enjoyed that show, not for its lewd nature but more for the hilarity aspect. When I saw that something similar was going to grace us this season, I had to jump straight on it. Similar to Nande Koko ni Sensei ga!?, Ishuzoku Reviewers is graphic as hell, especially the uncensored version, so be careful if you're going to watch it. I did show the more graphic scenes to my mum though and she found them as amusing as I did. I like that they're basically just going around reviewing how good the sex was with different species of women as it's not a concept I've seen before.
#14 - Darwin's Game
Another King's Game-esque anime, I really enjoy this type of show and like how they've portrayed the protagonist to be 'innocent', not wanting to kill anyone. Turning a death game quite literally into an app on your phone speaks volumes about the younger generation of today that spend most of their time on their phones or playing battle royale games. From other death game anime I've seen, only chosen people participate, but in Darwin's Game, anyone can be sucked in at any time due to the accessible nature of the app. I hope they can clean up the story a little, as it's currently a bit cheesy.
#13 - Itai no wa Iya nano de Bougyoryoku ni Kyokufuri Shitai to Omoimasu
More cuteness, I feel like we're getting spoilt with cute shows this season. This ridiculously long-named adaptation of a light novel captured my heart straight away. Kaede, the protagonist, not wanting to get hurt in a game she gets invited to, puts all of her skill points in Vitality. Somehow, this makes her extremely overpowered as she doesn't seem to lose much HP even at a low level. I wish you could do this in actuality. Nevertheless, we get to see her adventures surrounded by cute but deadly animals that can't kill her.
#12 - Runway de Waratte
I really didn't expect to enjoy Runway de Waratte as much as I did. It's presented in such a way that even someone who knows nothing of fashion can understand what is happening. I think it helps that it feels like a shounen. I would love for her to get to Paris and show everyone up.
#11 - Rikei ga Koi ni Ochita no de Shoumei shitemita.
I am a sucker for love and science, so having a show like RikeKoi put both of them together is brilliant. I will admit, the execution could be a little better, but the premise is interesting. I know that scientists have actually tried to prove what love is but no-one ever gets to see or hear the results they find. Probably nothing to be honest because personally I don't think you can scientifically explain love, but it'll be interesting to see these two characters figure that fact out and hopefully succumb to their feelings rather than relying on data to prove their love.
#10 - Kyokou Suiri
I went into this completely blind, I hadn't even read the synopsis, so to find out it's about Kotoko, a girl that was kidnapped by youkai, having her leg and eye stolen to make her their 'god' shocked me. Seeing her then interact with Kurou, I had an inkling that something was up and by god, something was definitely up. I don't want to go into Kyokou Suiri because there will end up being spoilers. All I can say is, if you like youkai and mystery, watch this, I certainly liked it.
#9 - Haikyuu!!: To the Top
Well, I've rated this a lot lower than I thought I would. 'Why?' you may ask. To be honest I'm not too sure myself, I think I was so hyped and had waited so long for another season, that the first episode to Haikyuu!!: To the Top just didn't quite feel right. It's probably my fault for not having seen the OVA, Haikyuu!!: Riku vs Kuu, but I didn't feel the impact I was expecting from this coming back. We'll have to see as the season goes on, I'm sure it'll end up higher on my list towards the end.
#8 - Oshi ga Budoukan Ittekurtara Shinu
Another Idol show this season? And I'm watching it?! What is this madness? Oshi ga Budoukan Ittekurtara Shinu follows the story of Eripiyo, a fan of Maina, one of the idols in an underground Idol group. I've rated this so highly compared to 22/7 because you get to see what both parties are thinking, there's also a huge amount of comedy that had me laughing at parts.
#7 - Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun
I love, love, love the art style in Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun, I've never seen anything like it. So far, from what we've seen, this is going to be less of a creepy '7 wonders' story and more of a cute 'let's help the youkai' story. I'm extremely keen to see where this goes and to be honest, I don't mind if it does go down the creepy route. I also ship Hanako-kun and Nene so much, please be a thing.
#6 - Somali to Mori no Kamisama
Somali to Mori no Kamisama is just so sweet, it makes you want to protect Somali from harm. The world seems interesting, like a post-apocalyptic, humans have been wiped off the face of the Earth, kind of world. The soundtrack so far is also a huge factor as to why I've rated this show so high, it fits beautifully with the scenery.
#5 - pet
The first episode of pet confused a lot of people for some reason and I'm not entirely sure why. The concept is fairly simple, 'special' people can use some form of telepathic power to enter other people's minds and alter what their senses detect. Of course, the story looks to revolve around a criminal organisation that uses these people and their powers to carry out their plans. I loved the visuals in this and the theory that our minds are made of 'Peaks' and 'Valleys' where our most treasured memories reside.
#4 - Dorohedoro
Again, another premise that I really like the sound of. It reminds me a lot of how the world is today, maybe not in terms of setting, but the idea that those with power look down on and toy with the everyday man. A heavily 3D centred show, Dorohedoro still looks amazing. I never used to like 3D CGI, but in the past year or so, I've slowly come around to the idea that anime can still look good even if it has 3D animation. The world that has been created so far draws me in and drives me to want to see more.
#3 - Magia Record: Mahou Shoujo Madoka☆Magica Gaiden
Darkness emanates from this series as it did with the first. You don't know what you're watching as each witch fight causes you to feel as if you've been taking some kind of hallucinogenic drug. Mixed in is a constant reminder that the mental state of these magical girls is not in the best place. I loved the first series and really hope Magia Record: Mahou Shoujo Madoka☆Magica Gaiden lives up to it.
#2 - Eizouken ni wa Te wo Dasu na!
This takes me back to when I was a kid and would imagine scenarios when playing around with friends. Eizouken ni wa Te wo Dasu na! truly depicts what it means to have an active imagination in every sense of the word. I really hope they get to create an anime masterpiece and will be avidly watching this gorgeous show each week.
#1 - ID:INVADED
Murder mysteries are one of my favourite genres of tv, film and anime of all time. I enjoy trying to piece everything together and solve it at the same time as the characters or even before them. It's like a game to me to try and beat them. ID:INVADED fully encapsulates the murder mystery genre by adding an extra layer of mystery, delving straight into the mind of the murderer. I love the visuals and the mess that comes from being inside someone else's mind that may be slightly broken. I may drop this show down in ranking by the end of the season depending on the direction they decide to go in with the story, but for now, here is my number one anime this season from first thoughts alone.
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