Any anime fans?

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Kaguya-sama: Love is War and The Promised Neverland were my favorites shows of the season. Kaguya-sama: Love is War was one of the funniest romantic comedy anime I've seen, its characters are charming and the comedy is both well done and wholesome. Also it has the most adorable animated dance sequence since the Hare Hare Yukai.



The Promised Neverland has some really strong drama and mystery with interesting characters, and the pacing makes it one of those shows you'll want to marathon. It's satisfying as a self contained arc but has a good setup for another season.

That said, the best anime I watched over the last season was Fate/Stay Night Heaven's Feel 2: Lost Butterfly. Ufotable outdid themselves with gorgeous animation, and with what'll likely be the best action scene of the year. Like the original material, it's a fairly large tonal shift that isn't afraid to go into some dark themes, and to those anime only watchers it might be some surprise; not quite on the level of Evangelion or Madoka Magica, but close. It's also a rare exception in anime in that it straddles the line in portraying a story that has sex as a major theme without being overly coy or exploitative. It's at this point the best release in the animated Fate franchise and I'm excited for the finale.



The only show I've seen so far from this new season is Fruits Basket, which had a great first episode, setting up an interesting premise. The main character is likable, with a seemingly sunny disposition that disguises her unlucky upbringing and insecurities. From what I gather it'll be a fairly faithful adaptation of a well established and complete manga. That's a plus for me even being unfamiliar with the source material, simply because of the number of shows that go off the rails because they get ahead of the material (ie. FMA, Berserk), or just have follow ups years in the future (Attack on Titan).



Apart from anime, I'm almost finished reading the first season of the Monogatari light novels. I'm halfway through Nekomonogatari Cat Tale (Black) and it's hard to put down.

Lmao Im the same way. Especially since some shows have like a million seasons. I get distracted and only finish a couple. Oh well. There are some shows I watch where you dont even need to watch them all in order.

I'm excited for the Fruits Basket remake.

Totally excited! I was looking for gifs when I saw the new art.

I finally got around to Eromanga-sensei, and halfway in they blew my mind completely. Evil Aoi-chan? I'm worried that I'll stay up all night, now.

Any fans of anime where the main character travels to another world with magic? Because this season has the ambitious crossover of Isekai Quartet, a joke series that sees the characters of Konosuba, Overlord, Saga of Tanya the Evil and Re:Zero clashing together.

Sorry about the way the video is, I might look for one that manages to look better and survive the copyright on YouTube.

The new season is on, and I expect to give a general overview of what catches my eye within the week.

I still have two episodes to go but I really enjoyed Isekai Maou to Shoukan Shoujo no Dorei Majutsu.

I really can't stand to see any more isekai. It's a horse that's been beaten well past death.

Not really a fan either. I kinda like Konosuba, but that does at least try something a little different. Ans I don't hate Log Horizon, but beyond that, it's all seems to basically just be the same characters and situations endlessly regurgitated.

My Gate DVD set is on the way, so I like the setting. I also enjoyed Log Horizon. I wish they'd animate more of The Twelve Kingdoms, too.

However, I dropped all my subscriptions a while back, and have been watching lots of Numberphile videos, and other Brady Haran productions. I needed to get back in touch with reality for a bit.

I've been watching discs that I own with a friend, occasionally, but we're limited by his need for a dub and his dislike of school settings. That eliminates about 80 percent of my collection. We finished Chobits. I may try Nana or Honey and Clover next. I'm still not often in the mood for darker stuff, but maybe Michiko and Hatchin or Paranoia Agent, eventually.

Looking forward to seeing what he thinks of Gate, and kind of interested to hear the dub.

Have either of you watched the other series, because it is not really random that these four get chosen, in that they are actually really good anime that don't really suffer from the problems of many isekai series.

Konosuba kind of makes fun of the whole isekai, especially in terms of power fantasy and perfect characters, being that the characters can be hilariously bad people.


Overlord has the main character become an evil skeleton and all of his cohorts are pretty much evil monsters. The line of villain being blurry.


Saga of Tanya the Evil, main character also not really a good guy, kind of questionable from the outset of being set in totally not Germany in totally not magic versions of WW1 and 2. With the huge gap of the body of a young


And Re:Zero, lets just say it is not really a happy fun time adventure show, that it often gets compared to Dark Souls. And on top of utterly destroying some unhealthy aspects of otaku.

I've seen or read all of them except for Saga of Tanya the Evil, which is something I might read in the future given it's generally highly recommended. Konosuba I love, I think it's one of the best comedy series in years. Both its light novels and anime are top notch.

I didn't like the structure of both Overlord and Re;Zero, which have these small arcs that don't really feel like they're leading up to anything or part of an overarching narrative. Like when suddenly a whale attacks... it's such a random event that by its resolution continues to seem completely unrelated to the plot at large. But Re;Zero had an interesting premise, where it kind of riffs on the power fantasy of these types of shows, by having a main character have a super powerful ability that really sucks to experience.

Overlord I didn't like because it seemed like a cliche power fantasy with a completely uninteresting premise. I also didn't like how a lot of plot elements just seemed to be introduced only to never be mentioned again. And I never got a sense of the motivations of most of its main characters. I stopped watching it after season 2. The most interesting thing I found about it was the Dungeons and Dragons feel of the world. Maybe the source material was better, but based on the anime I'm not interested in consuming more of it.

If I have some understanding what the deal was, the main deal was the witch cult attack lead by Betelgeuse, where for some reason Emilia has a strong connection to, and the whale was mostly a way to lock off the surrounding area so they could do what they needed, without being bothered. The whale being another creation of the witch, Betelgeuse presumably could get it into the spot for defence, but its history made it a good target against that we could see different groups work together to stop it. Yeah the idea of a whale is strange, but was relevant to the plot at hand with the attack, and the wider story as a creation of the witch. Mostly theory, but I was thinking that there seems to be the cult thinking that they can cause havoc for the witch's favour, yet they don't actually understand what she really wants, and her connection to Subaru.



I thought that second season was bad, it took way too many detours, that it just was feeling really unfocused in what direction was. I was giving up hope to as it never felt like it was living up to potential. Third season got a lot better in my opinion, going back to the first village, and focusing more on what the plan was. And I think just a better look at the characters that matter, a better look at interesting side of Nazarick, as well as a clearer picture that looks like Ainz has lost a lot of his humanity that he could have empathy for humans.

Okay, I will give a list of what has jumped at me for the Spring 2019 anime season.

The 2019 version of Fruits Basket. I never watched the old version, I guess that just the idea of charm would not have been worth to me for something a little more graphically limited now, but I am more into a good shoujo now days, and so far this looks great.


Next would be Hitoribocchi no Marumaruseikatsu, probably for us socially anxious people, with the protagonist being such a character. I heard a little bit of a description that had it mentioned as a little bit relatable without the wanting to die from second hand embarrassment that you could get from Watamote. It looks like mostly just good fun.


Next one comes with a high recommendation, that is Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. It looks fantastic as a new shounen jump series given the treatment of a more contained series, and a lot of effort into its looks and atmosphere for the story. The trailer bellow does seem to maybe show a little too much, but maybe why it has many excited.


Next up is We Never Learn: BOKUBEN, and I would say it looks a little trashy as the sort of romcoms you see every season, being a little bit risqué but mostly fine. Strange that tutors for the setting seem to have been a little up lately.


Next is a P.A. Works original, Fairy gone, which can be as amazing as Shirobako and Sakura Quest, or as lack of life as Glasslip. I am kind of into it, because 1 it has fairies, and 2 those fairies look like dark monsters. Maybe some of it sounds a bit silly, but it is taking itself seriously, and I can kind of be into that.


Midnight Occult Civil Servants kind of feels a little similar, being secret bureaucracy trying to keep supernatural beings under control. I was a little bit worried that it maybe could get a tad too melodramatic and the wrong type of implementing mythological creatures for my liking, but it pulled an interesting thing with points of view.


RobiHachi feels a little bit Space Dandy, a partnership of somewhat conflicting friends and a robot, the main character being a bit of a deadbeat. Only it does seem a bit more likable for a feminine audience.


One Punch Man season 2 is coming out, I will just let everyone find their own videos for that, since it was such a sensation. There has been a change in studios and people were worried that it might see a big drop in quality, but its first episode seemed fine.

Wise Man's Grandchild is the new overpowered coming back in another life in another world anime, a normal one unlike Isekai Quartet. I am kind of digging it to along with Shield Hero that is continuing. Looks like it is mostly just well done from its first episode, having some fun, and not quite being the laziness I have seen in others.


And lastly, I think is the one that everyone should be paying attention to Carole & Tuesday. A little warning first, that it seems to have its rights with Netflix, so legal English streams is going to take a while come out, maybe even 6 months when it is finished. But what is so cool about is that it has the director of Cowboy Bebop and Studio Bones, a setting a little sci-fi as being set on Mars, but a musical focus, with what seems to be a more western feel. I apparently missed the hype for this, which may go to say I had no expectations going into the first episode, but it kind of just blew me a way, but not by something bombastic, it was just a wave of feels from just being good. This is quality, the current frontrunner for anime of the season, if you will have to look alternate ways to watch it.

As long as the story quality is the same, I don't care much about the change in animation for One Punch Man. I haven't seen an anime season this small in quite awhile.

A trailer for the third movie of Made in Abyss, which continue from the manga beginning at the point the 13 episodes anime left off.



Edit:Forgot to post the link.

It is a few weeks into the anime season, so I am a little behind posting on it, but here are the Summer 2019 anime that have caught my eye. I actually feel better about this season.

First I am going to mention Wasteful Days of High School Girls, a sort of slice of life comedy anime that is centered around high school girls. Now, that might sound pretty uninteresting and or unoriginal, that you could find any season, I don't think that is quite the case, it has a kind of good quality that I don't think you see as often as you would like. There is not really a twist, it just more like I have seen it referred to as a more modern Azumanga Daioh, and indeed it could be familiar as it has things like a small girl character and an idiot a lot like Tomo. But I would also describe it as not as Asobi Asobase without as awful characters, or a female version of Daily Lives of High School Boys, especially that last one especially sticks in my mind, and I would like to use it for those familiar as an example of those familiar of feeling true to the teenage experience in teenagers messing around, sometimes idiots, embarrassing, more in the know than given credit for, and really just kind of goofy. Also my favourite OP of the season.


The next one is Demon Girl Next Door. It is essentially what you get when you have a magical girl story flipped upside down, with the protagonist being the villain who awakens to her dark powers from their ancient demon ancestor and has to defeat the magical girl to gain power. The extra catch being that she is kind of pathetic strength wise, not really evil, lives in poverty apparently from the lack of darkness ever winning, and has come into direct contact with a magical girl that incredibly overpowers her and let alone being her friend is actually helping her train. It is a comedy, and its demon being a little girl being kind of bad at doing evil, brings to mind recent examples of Endro and Gabriel Dropout with Satania and Mao-Chan-Sensei.


To give more equal gender ratio, I next recommend Astra Lost in Space, which probably had among the best first episodes, making good use of its double length. A sci-fi anime about survival, and although not horror its setting sort of reminds me of Dead Space in how it has a grounding to itself that you feel like you could be in it. Its focus is on character growth, some intrigue, and some well done moments of tension in survival situations.


My next recommendation is O Maidens in Your Savage Season, which I think is really interesting in going to be overlooked. Generally, it is about sex, specifically teenagers becoming aware of it, and mostly from the point of view of girls. I am sure a few of those things raise warning bells, what being about teenagers and sex, but it is not at all about titillation, there has been no nudity, and I think that we are unlikely to have any such act on screen, although something gets implied. I think that it is actually really good, and on a subject that is perfectly normal and natural, but can be treated so messily. It is not really sex-ed, but the emotional stuff, with all the embarrassment, transitioning to an adult, understanding yourself, and all that jazz. The main characters are also a bunch of girls from a literature club, as to explain the over dramatic name, and maybe being a bit behind some of their cohorts. It could have interest to some aspies for that reason.


Next I will pick an isekai, Arifureta: From Commonplace To World's Strongest, there being quite a few isekai or similar shows this season, those being ones where the hero transported from another world (ours) to a fantasy or some such, about a half dozen or so. I am choosing this one probably because its more darker, with terrible things happened, and the other world setting taken seriously, without going a bit too far. It does have the chance that it might fall apart, after all from the OP you cans see that the main character uses a gun and get a robot arm, but it has themes like betrayal and abandonment that feel similar to Shield Hero that finished recently.


The other isekai this season includes Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks?, which has a mum being thrown into the isekai journey. Isekai Cheat Magician is probably the most lazily written isekai I have seen, where there is no good reason they decide to become adventurers and just happened to be the best ever, but that can sometimes be an interesting watch. Demon Lord, Retry!, where a guy is transported to a fantasy world as his villain character and is thus dubbed a demon lord, kind of just jumping on the Overlord thing without being too dark.

Not quite isekai, but there is If It's For My Daughter I'd Even Defeat A Demon Lord, it having an adventurer adopt a little girl of the demon race. I think that it is just going to get attention for its cute faction, which tend to get positive reception as those father anime, a man adopting a young child (probably girl), and then just be oh so cute. I kind of feel like I have seen better versions like Sweetness and Lightning.


For a sequel season, there is Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? II (or Danmachi 2). The title sounds maybe suspicious, but those who have seen the first season should know that it is actually really good, with a main character is who is really sweet, a fun fantasy setting, and able to do some stories that are not always the prettiest (some hard themes). With questions of what makes a hero, how to make your dreams happen, and family, quite a few people have been happy to see the return of Bell and friends. The small character Liliruca is up there among my favourite anime characters.

What the hell, here is first season's OP too.


Speaking of sequels, there is Symphogear XV, which despite its name is not the 15th season, but probably its 5th, the seasons have really odd names. It is kind of like pseudo magical girls, with transformations but with a more technology flare, and fight while singing as to power themselves up. It sounds ridiculous, and it is a little bit, but it has been super fun, with all its action, moments of consequence (not afraid of showing blood and death), and catchy tunes. You probably should watch the earlier seasons first, but attention on this series has felt bigger than ever, I still use a song from the first season as my ringtone, the relevant character, Chris, being one of my other favourite anime characters. I could show the OP, but instead I will do one of the clips that Crunchyroll has up on their YouTube page.


Next I will bring up The Ones Within. Now, I say this while fully believing that is a bastardization of a survival game, where none of the characters will probably die, with a cast of a flavour of the week to younger audiences of supposedly Let's Players. And I think that it does a pretty poor job of bringing in the tension of consequences that it should, and characterizing these characters as Let's Players like it doesn't understand what people should be like. One of the character apparently specializes in stealth games and thus is super quiet and doesn't talk much, when you would think that would be the opposite of someone who is supposed to entertain an audience with a game that is about not coming into contact. But I think that the show is not without its merits, and might get its audience alright with teenagers, after all not everything has to be appreciated by adults who have seen it all already and have their ideas of what is good or not.


And there are others like a couple shounen in Dr. Stone and Fire Force, there is Vinland Saga for some Vikings, Are You Lost a comedy of girls trying to survive on a deserted island, Granbelm for magical girls with mecha, Cop Craft makes me think of Rush Hour but if Jackie Chan is a magical Elf girl from a fantasy world. And Magical Senpai for some magic trick fails, which is funny, while being a bit ecchi, I will choose that as the last video.