Spring Cleaning the 2023 Spring Anime Season Part 1

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keep the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this editorial!)

2023’s spring season was fascinating to watch unfold. While not feeling as thrilling as 2021 or 2022’s spring season, I would argue it’s more diverse and experimental with its ideas of what adaptations got put into this released chunk of the year. While it definitely had its share of big titles to be hyped about, it also had a slew of surprises that came with some of the underdogs. Even the big hype machine titles had something going on with them more so than previous titles that everyone was looking forward to seeing in previous seasonal anime drops. It’s a more provocative lineup of anime titles that even the lesser ones were, at some points, trying to be different in some way shape or form. Now then, let’s get started! 

Action/Adventure

Summoned to Another World for a Second Time (Crunchyroll)

Just wouldn’t be an isekai or fantasy adventure without some isekais that don’t do enough to stand out. This is based on the light novels and manga by Kazuha Kishimoto. It’s directed by Motoki Nakanishi, written by Yukihito, and produced by Studio Elle. As usual we have an isekai that has a potentially interesting premise of our lead getting summoned into a fantasy world, but the twist being is that he has been here before. You think this would lead to fun or interesting commentary about the isekai genre, and crafting some great jokes, but instead, it plays it straight with no thrills or chills to call its own. Even some of the gags it has have been done better in much more lovable shows. These authors can’t seem to get past the elevator pitch with their ideas, and that sucks since this had so much more potential to be something special, but isn’t. The characters fall flat, the action isn’t stellar, the setting is boring, and it’s just a reminder of how most isekais need to start doing better.

The Marginal Service (Crunchyroll)

We have one of the few original anime this season and it’s sadly not one of the better ones. This show is directed by Masayuki Sakoi, written by Kenta Ihara, and produced by Studio 3HZ and Cygames. You think a mix of Men in Black and Power Rangers-themed construction suits/weaponry fighting cryptids and aliens would be fun, but the show, at least for its first three episodes, spends too much time explaining its world instead of showing it. The characters are one-note and annoying, the gags aren’t funny, and the animation isn’t as personality-driven as the show feels like or wants it to be. It’s a creative idea with a lot of potential possibilities to get better as time goes on, but it has left a really underwhelming taste on my anime-watching palette. It’s a shame since original anime should be supportive, but just as there are bad adaptations, there are also bad original anime.

The Legendary Hero is Dead (Crunchyroll)

Well, the premise for this one is interesting enough. This is based on the manga by Subaruichi. The anime is directed by Rion Kujo, written by Yu Sato, and produced by Liden Films. For a dark comedy fantasy anime, the hook of the setting is a fun one. Our lead is a dirtbag who accidentally gets the legendary hero killed and now has to take on not only the mantle of the hero but also his body via his spirit. This could’ve led to some very fun jabs at the genre and to some funny jokes. Well, too bad it’s not as creative as the elevator pitch for this show is. The leads are all very forgettable. Our main lead is a skeevy dirtbag, our female lead is there for the sake of fanservice, and the necromancer is the most well-rounded character, but she is inconsistently written, and that results in a party of characters you don’t really want to hang out with. They even introduce a villain who is way worse as a human being that is only there to give you a reason to root for our unlikeable lead. Having mean and nasty characters isn’t the constant deal breaker, it’s the fact that everything else around those leads doesn’t balance it all out. 

Dead Mount Death Play (Crunchyroll)

This anime is adapted from the manga by Ryugo Narita of Durarara!! and Baccano fame. It’s directed and written by Manabu Ono and produced by Geek Toys. Instead of being a normal isekai, we have a reverse isekai of a necromancer getting sent to the modern day. While it doesn’t have the same quality or charm as the author’s previous work, the show is, at the very least, more compelling than most isekai/action shows with our lead being more compelling and likable than most leads. Heck, a lot of the characters here are more likable than most isekai casts. It helps that the source material and the author have turned out good work in the past that relied heavily on good character chemistry. It’s just a shame that the animation is underwhelming and the show is only a bit more polished when it comes to the fanservicey aspects. I mean, that seems to be a consistent problem with a lot of shows this season having lackluster animation, but it’s frustrating because the rest of the show is good, and amazing animation isn’t always needed, but when the clunkiness is on screen, it’s hard to not have it detract from the show. Still, anytime an isekai can do better and be more creative than the rest, then I’m down to be more supportive of it as long as it keeps up the rest of the story, and the show is compelling. 

Magical Destroyers (Crunchyroll)

While I am not always down for chaotically trashy anime, this is one of the few exceptions to the rule. This original anime was created by Jun Inagawa. It’s directed by Hiroshi Ikehata and Masao Kawase, written by Daishiro Tanimura, and produced by Bibury Animation Studios. This feels like an anime that was made by Studio Trigger or later down the line Studio Gainax that has the passion and spirit of early to mid-2000s anime. It’s pretty much nerds with the help of their leader and a group of magical girls having to defeat the government which has quarantined and made otaku culture a bad thing to preserve Japan’s morals and honor. It might be another “we love otaku culture and this world is set in a world where otaku are targets of the government” anime, but unlike a lot of them, this one feels like it took a more unhinged and unapologetically nerdy approach to this action show and it is full of life because of it. It’s trashy, horny, thrilling, confusing, loving, and partly hateful of otaku culture, and feels mostly like it’s a team of people who want to see something a bit deranged, compared to a lot of the more “normal” anime out this season. It’s out to have a fun high-octane time, and whether that holds up over 12 or so episodes has yet to be seen, but at least it has one of the most exhilarating opening sequences of any anime this season. Seriously, even if you don’t watch this show or don’t like it, you can’t deny that the opening is just pure anime in the best way possible. Whether it sticks the landing or not is beside the point. Or at least, it’s beside the point with this show. 

Mashle: Magic and Muscle (Crunchyroll) 

We have yet again another alternative piece of art that has wizards and isn’t created by a horrible transphobic author. This anime is based on the manga by Hajime Komoto. It’s produced by A-1 Pictures, written by Yosuke Kuroda, and directed by Tomoya Tanaka. It’s basically what if Saitama from One Punch Man was thrown into a better version of Harry Potter? Well, this is what you would get. While our lead is intensely strong and can pretty much beat anyone into submission if need be, he is unfortunately in a world where everyone but him has magical powers. What makes this show fun is how they figure out creative ways for our lead character to get around the school’s curriculum by using his brute strength and quick if inconsistent smarts to pass classes like using “magic” to unlock a key or using a broom to fly. The ways they play with our protagonist’s strengths and his sometimes dense wits drives this into being one of the best comedies of the year so far. The sheer ways they come up with gags and solutions to problems never stop being amusing and it has a lot going on underneath the comedic shenanigans, but it so far from what I have seen balances it out perfectly. It results in a show that might not get everything about the manga right but is a consistently fun show to watch.

Hell’s Paradise (Crunchyroll)

And here we have the big Studio MAPPA anime of the season that shows that while this studio needs to get its act together with how they treat their animators, and stop taking on so much work, they are the only studio in the anime industry that could tackle something like this project. This is based on the manga by Yuji Kaku, is directed by Kaori Makita, and written by Akira Kindaichi. What makes this thrilling action/horror anime so exciting to watch are the stakes of a bunch of criminals and their handlers being sent to an island to find an elixir of life that happens to be populated by horrific plants and grotesque monsters are how the stakes are raised by the third episode. A lot of characters that are introduced are not going to make it past this point, and while it’s frustrating to see such fun designs end up not making it past the first three episodes, it makes for a sign of how brutal this show can be. The danger is around every corner and that isn’t counting the inhabitants of the island itself, but all the other criminals and the handlers that are ready and willing to kill one another to get off the island. Heck, who says the monsters are the only human-based things to worry about? With MAPPA’s usual polished animation, exciting action set pieces, and a more human study-based story about life, death, and what makes these characters thrive results in an easy frontrunner for one of the best anime this season in a season full of really strong contenders. 

Slice of Life/Drama

My Clueless First Friend (Crunchyroll)

Sometimes, what ya need is a spoonful of sugar to make the medicine go down. This anime is based on the manga by Taku Kamamura. It’s directed by Shigenori Kageyama, written by Takafumi Hosikawa and Shogo Yasukawa, and produced by Studio Signpost. While this anime doesn’t do anything new with it being about a girl who is constantly bullied for looking “like a grim reaper” the one person to befriend her is a boy who doesn’t quite get the memo and thinks she is cool. It is an intensely sincere anime. The act of being kind to one another really is what drives this show into being a fun lightweight watch with some goofy antics, sweet-as-sugar moments, and some solid story beats and character growth from the cast. Sometimes, you just want to watch something to escape from the cynical and harsh world for a few episodes. Definitely an easy watch and one to recommend. 

Otaku Elf (HiDive)

Who knew the slice-of-life genre would be full of super charming shows? This one is based on the manga by Akihiko Higuchi. The anime is directed by Takebumi Anzai, written by Shogo Yasukawa, and produced by C2C. What starts off as a simple gag anime with an elf that was sent to Japan centuries ago and who now is seen as a goddess can almost feel one note. The only real gag is that now that the elf is aware of geek and pop culture fandoms and memorabilia, she has become reclusive like most nerd-like characters seen in anime and other forms of media. But then they start sprinkling in little payoffs to why she is so reclusive, and while a lot of it is played for laughs and to poke fun at merchandise stuff, it does show a more sincere reason as to why she shuts herself off from the world. How being alive for so long and seeing the world literally change around you, and experiencing the people that you love and know pass on while you still live can really affect how open you become to people in the world. And that is all just in the first episode where we see her learn to be more social and friendly towards other people. It also is nice that this show got some of the better-looking visuals and character animation, though that might be because they have an official Red Bull sponsorship. This is funny because they have some well-known brands and then parody brands, which makes you wonder how they pick and choose what brands they could use. Still, the rest of the cast including the elf’s handler, her sister, and her classmate, and I definitely want to see who the other characters are to find out how they fit into this very quirky world. 

Insomniacs After School (HiDive)

Even though I love the quirkiness of a lot of anime, at times, anime is at its best when it’s wholly unique and different from the rest of the shows that have come out during this season. This includes Insomniacs After School. This is based on the manga by Makoto Ojiro. Its adaptation is directed by Yuki Ikeda, written by Rintaro Ikeda, and produced by Liden Films. While not similar in any major way, this show reminds me of Call of The Night from last year’s summer season. It has a low-fi atmosphere to its slice-of-life antics about two teens who suffer from insomnia making their hang out in the school’s observatory which is rather quiet in its atmospheric tone. It’s a romantic experience as we see our leads bond over looking at the stars and fulfilling night-based activities together. They are two individuals who feel isolated and alone in the daytime period of the day but feel personally connected to one another as the night sky blankets over the earth, and the stars make themselves known throughout the far reaches of the universe as they hang over the leads observing them. Granted, what kind of money is a high school making to have its own functioning observatory, but I digress. What matters most is how this show really does have a great pair of protagonists, fantastic supporting cast members, and some lovely ethereal visuals to keep you hooked to the screen. 

Skip and Loafer (Crunchyroll)

Honestly, this and Insomniacs After School are tied as some of my favorite anime of the year. This is based on the manga by Misaki Takamatsu. It’s written and directed by Kotomi Deai, and produced by P.A. Works. This show reminds me a lot of Horimiya, where we dive more into the characters that have an outward persona that they show off but are way more complex individuals with reasons why they use the facade that they have, with the exception of our lead who is unapologetically themselves no matter who they are hanging with. It’s a show about acceptance and how we sometimes overthink situations and what we observe about people around us. It’s such a low-key show that really mellows you out and tells you to not over-complicate life and what you do with friends. It’s an absolutely wholesome show that is delightful from start to finish due to the incredible designs, animation, and probably the best opening song sequence of any anime this season. 

Other

Opus Colors (Crunchyroll)

This original anime is directed by Shunsuke Tada, written by Sayaka Harada, and produced by C-Station. You would think the story of the struggle of two creative individuals crafting AR/VR art would be both visually splendid and compelling. It’s neither of those things. This spring season has brought us some very ugly-looking anime and Opus Colors is very much one of the worst-looking shows of the season. Flat, lifeless characters, generic designs, queerbaiting through the roof, contrived drama to drive the plot, but not much else, and so much more. This should be a fascinating drama of what it’s like for two creatives, an artist and what is essentially their producer to struggle to be on the same page to make something powerful and evocative, but due to the underwhelming animation, it all falls flat. It’s a frustrating show to sit through due to how boring and drab it all is. Even though it’s not based on any preexisting manga or mobile game, it sure feels like it was made to advertise a mobile rhythm game with a bunch of good-looking guys, but the twist is that the game never came out and we are stuck with its ad campaign. A really tedious show to watch that is lacking any sort of cohesive artistic identity. 

My Home Hero (Crunchyroll)

This show, even with its faults, is so distinct that it feels like a miracle that it got made in the current anime landscape. This is based on the manga by Naoki Yamakawa. It’s directed by Takashi Kamei, written by Kohei Kiyasu, and produced by Tezuka Productions. When was the last time an anime had a lead character that was 47? Seriously, in a landscape that requires lead characters to be at most 16 years old, we rarely if ever get adult-focused main characters. This is one that is basically a drama thriller of the dad killing his daughter’s abusive yakuza boyfriend to protect her only to end up in the dark world of the yakuza. It is such a good premise, and it differentiates itself from most anime this season due to this. Watching the slow spiral of playing chess with the family dealing with the yakuza is a compelling watch. What sucks though is that the animation, once again, is lackluster. Again, the anime industry could improve the quality of everything if they just paid their animators better and stopped overburdening them among other things. Imagine if this show had the proper lighting and imagery a dramatic thriller like this needs. Sure, the story can be a bit melodramatic, but anime is melodramatic. A lot of media and dramas are melodramatic. As long as the show is making a convincing case for itself, then that’s all that matters. I could see this one probably spiraling out of control, but considering how many mediocre anime we get with teen characters, it’s okay to root for and support shows like this, because that’s how we get more shows like this and not the middling slop we tend to get that fill up every season. 

Heavenly Delusion (Disney+/Hulu)

Consider this one of the biggest surprises of the season. This anime is directed by Hirotaka Mori, written by Makoto Fukami, and produced by Production I.G. It’s based on the manga by Masakazu Ishiguro. What we have here is a fairly complex and mysterious dystopian sci-fi journey as we follow two different plots happening at around the same time. They are full of themes and commentary about life, sexuality, sex, relationships, gender, and gender norms/gender roles in society that are placed on certain people. It finds a way to balance it all out really well with some of this season’s best visuals and animation. Luckily, it doesn’t get too stuck in the mud or in the depths of its own hubris as it keeps you guessing what exactly is going on and how the two concurring plots connect to one another. It’s a sci-fi anime that isn’t afraid to step back from heavy-handed philosophical quandaries and dialogue being the focus, and instead lets you live in the world this show sets up and invests into the characters and their individualistic drives of what they are looking for in a scary unnerving world. 

The Winter 2023 Anime Season. The Winter 2023 Anime Season Never Changes Part 2

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keep the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this editorial!)

Here we are with Part 2 of the Winter 2023 Anime Season Impressions! If you have not seen Part 1, then please do so, since I covered the anime in that part that won’t show up here. This is definitely the area where the Winter 2023 strides with so many titles in this batch showing the best of the season. Now then, let’s get started. 

Fantasy/Isekai

Chillin’ in My 30s after Getting Fired from the Demon King Army (Crunchyroll)

You ever see a show just bail on its own title/premise so quickly it breaks the sound barrier? Yeah, this is one of those shows. This is based on the novels by Rokujuyon Okazawa. The anime adaptation is directed by Fumitoshi Oizaki, who directed last spring season’s Deaimon, written by Hitomi Amamiya, and produced by Encourage Films. If this anime is supposed to be about relaxing after getting fired from your overdemanding job, then why revert to a power fantasy anime? If the lead is having to do stuff that isn’t just relaxing, then that’s not really relaxing. Sure, they couldn’t make a show where all he does is relax and just help out around the village. They were probably worried that people would get bored, but due to how bad the entertainment industry is, novels, manga, and anime aren’t given time to be good, which sucks since it doesn’t all have to be bad. To be fair to this show though, it isn’t the worst of the season. It has some charm and humor about itself, and it at the very least seems to be pro-worker’s rights. It just suffers from a premise that isn’t all that different from other fantasy shows, a female lead that flip-flops between anime figurine fodder and a self-reliant and competent hero, and world-building that isn’t all that impressive. In a weaker season, this could have been a better title, but it sits in my bottom five for right now. 

Farming Life in Another World (HiDive)

I know video games have made farming a genre, but for some reason, anime has continued to struggle with this concept. This is based on the novel series by Kinosuke Saito. The adaptation is directed by Ryoichi Kuraya, written by Touko Machida, and produced by Zero-G. At the very least, this is better than Chillin’ in My 30s because it actually commits to its plot. It’s literally about a guy who starts a farming life in a fantasy world. No demon lord or saving the world. Granted, it has the harem element pretty early on by the 3rd episode, but it is at least trying to have some comedic personality, be about growing crops, and what you need to do to get into farming life. It’s still fairly boring though, with everyone having basically the same personality. It still should be focusing more on the details of growing certain plants and such, but overall, it’s fine. Just a low-key anime that isn’t the worst of the season. There are way more frustrating anime out this season that are more of a chore to watch than this one.  

The Fire Hunter (Crunchyroll)

It’s a shame this anime is the other poster child for the possibility that the anime industry really needs to take a moment and stop crafting so many hot messes. Consider this one of winter 2023’s biggest disappointments. Based on the novels by Rieko Hinata, this adaptation is written by  Mamoru Oshii, directed by Junji Nishimura, and produced by Signal MD. Listen, I know Oshii loves to make really dense scripts, and the fact that much of this show is focused more on the lore, history, politics, and world-building than the actual characters, is a sign of such. It’s a fascinating world about how humans can become easily combustible in the presence of fire, and now have to use a special liquid farmed from beasts to do things like light special fires and fuel their vehicles. This show has a lot going for it, and once again, it feels like it is an adaptation issue that the storytelling is so dense and easy to glaze over, due to how much people go on and on talking about the history of the world. Like, some world-building and exposition is needed, but not the entire script. It left a sour taste after watching the first three episodes, and from what I have seen from the episodes past that point, nothing is changing, but if you like the show that’s cool. Not every show will be for everyone, but if a majority of people are already turning away from it due to its choppy and wonky animation and dense storytelling more interested in background stuff than actually being about the characters, then that’s a bad sign. It’s a shame, but if this show wasn’t so committed to Oshii and his team’s worst aspects as a creative, then maybe people wouldn’t be ready to leave the show. Also, just because the source material has an explanation, if they weren’t able to give a clear answer in the anime adaptation, then that’s on the anime, not the audience members being confused or their eyes glazing over due to their being too much dialogue on which to focus. 

The Tale of Outcasts (Crunchyroll) 

Yeah, it sucks this show is coming out a season before much better alternatives of this type of story will be coming out in the next anime season this year. This is based on the manga series by Makoto Hoshino. It’s directed by Yasutaka Yamamoto, written by Kenichi Yamashita, and produced by Ashi Productions. The biggest problem this show has is its tone. It wants to be both a dark fantasy with a romantic escape for its young lead who makes a deal with a demon to trade her eyesight for his protection, and then lightweight at times with super quirky moments that don’t really mesh well with the rest of the show’s much darker storyline. The animation is fine and some of the action scenes are decent, but the design of our main demon bugs me due to his demon form, and the first episode is a really rough sit. Maybe some fans will find time to watch it, but most will be waiting to see the second season of The Ancient Magus Bride or  Sacrificial Princess and The King of Beasts in the spring season. 

Saving 80,000 Gold in Another World  for My Retirement (Crunchyroll) 

When an anime has a very creative premise, how much are you willing to tolerate its rougher edges? This is based on the novels by Funa. The anime adaptation is directed by Hiroshi Tamada, written by Akihiko Inari, and produced by Felix Films. There is some admiration to be had with how this is an isekai where our lead can travel to and from the real world and the fantasy world that she ends up in. The premise itself has some fun and creative opportunities, and I have heard some positive reviews of the light novels on which this show is based. Still, either a wonky adaptation, or what feels like a slow burn to see where this story goes, frankly hurts its chances to watch past episode 3. The second episode is more real-world prep for the lead to head back into the fantasy world, and the fantasy world seems more like a pseudo road trip than her figuring out how to make enough money to save for her retirement. It does feel more interested in the world-building and character dynamics than the antics of raising enough money to retire easily, but the execution feels uneven. Doesn’t help that the animation isn’t great, and there are definitely some aspects of the show that will maybe rub people the wrong way. Still, it at least has something going for it than most isekai that come out every season. It might not reach the heights of the best ones from this season, but it still deserves some admiration for its twists on the formula.

Kaina of the Great Snow Sea (Crunchyroll)

It’s rather bizarre how this season has brought us two slow-burn original fantasy series, and that’s pretty neat. This is an original anime that is produced at Polygon Pictures. It’s directed by Hiroaki Ando and written by Sadayuki Murai and Tetsuya Yamada. While the CGI is the usual Polygon Pictures fare, they are improving upon their use of CGI animation, and boy howdy did they craft a really cool and unusual world. It’s definitely a pro-environmental world due to how everything is set up with this canopy made by giant tree-like entities. Luckily, the characters are likable and compelling enough so far by episode three to give you, the viewer, enough to want to see more past the third episode. Granted, it’s one of those shows that takes three episodes to get the ball rolling, but if you aren’t bothered by that, then you will want to find yourself traversing the snowy seas to see what mysteries are revealed about this world. 

The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady (Crunchyroll) 

Just when you think the isekai genre won’t have something to offer, a show like this comes out of nowhere and makes you remember why the genre can be good. This show is based on the novels by Piero Karasu. The anime adaptation is directed by Shingo Tamaki, written by Wataru Watari, and produced by Diomedea. First off, every other isekai? Take notes on this one. It actually shows you and tells you about its setting, world, and characters without having to resort to big and dense layers of exposition as we learn about the relationship between a princess who can’t use magic in a world where everyone uses magic, and a noble who’s upcoming marriage is broken due to political upheaval and brash decisions made by her ex-fiance. Sure, some parts may or could possibly lean onto more power fantasy aspects of isekais, but with the fact our lead was smart enough to craft something truly original and not just be someone set with a ton of magical powers and no stakes in any fights, it’s a really smart decision made within the story. The one lead makes her own combination of magic and technology to do things that others can do, due to the ability to cast magic. The show is also willing to let the characters be characters, and not just cheap promotional material for the merchandise. It’s also a gorgeous show, due to how much the team and production committee were obviously working on the same level as one another. With its visually splendid animation, complex characters, intriguing world, and killer music, this is easily in the running for one of the best anime of the season and an early contender so far for best isekai of the year. Well, it’s the best one next to another show you will see the impressions of soon. 

Other

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale (Crunchyroll) 

CW: topics and themes of slavery

Consider this to be one of the more loaded anime of the season that absolutely doesn’t sound like it would be a dark fantasy, but some spin-off of the Strawberry Shortcake franchise. This is based on the novels by Miri Mikawa. The director of this adaptation is Yohei Suzuki, written by Seishi Minakami, and produced by J.C. Staff. By the opening of the show and its cute, well-crafted animation, you think this would be something super, pardon the pun, cloyingly sweet, but it really isn’t. It’s rather impressive how this show is able to balance out its nuanced world with flawed humans. The slavery angle is handled better here than most, which is scary that hey, anime can actually tackle this topic and not be absolutely terrible at it. It’s not perfect though, and some parts can be a touch uncomfortable to watch. Still, the show does a good job of mixing all of the lore, world-building, drama, and character development into a show that will be a bit clunky, but an overall intriguing experience. 

Ippon Again! (HiDive)

It wouldn’t be an anime season if we didn’t have a show about a group of girls getting into some kind of sport or hobby. This is based on the manga series by Yu Muraoka. The adaptation is directed by Ken Ogiwara, written by Aya Satsuki, and produced by Bakken Record. It feels surprising to me that, as far as I’m aware, there aren’t that many anime about judo. You think with such a strategic and compelling sport, they would find ways to make it creative, but Ippon Again! It definitely aims for a slice-of-life and coming-of-age story about our characters taking the wheel and forming a judo club in their high school. It does the right thing and focuses on the drive our characters have for the sport and for their growing friendship to go the distance to win the nationals in judo. The animation itself looks good, but can be a bit clunky here and there. Otherwise,  it’s nice to start the year with a really charming and good sports anime, which isn’t always a given every year. 

Revenger (Crunchyroll)

This season has been chock full of original anime this season, and this is one of them. It’s produced by Ajia-do Animation Works, but is directed by Masaya Fujimori, and written by Renji Oki and famous writer Gen Urobochi. The adventure we set off on with this one has a real solid hook to it about an ex-samurai who is being chased by the government for murdering an important figure. He joins up with a group of hitmen who take down corrupt individuals and while it might not be the most original show in a lot of ways, it all comes down to execution. With its focus on the inner politics of our leads, the world around them is kept interesting and the action is well animated and the characters have a certain charm to them. As long as they can keep it in the same ballpark of being able to combine both a compelling narrative and action, then it can very much be one of winter’s best shows. 

Buddy Daddies (Crunchyroll)

Let’s get this out of the way first, this isn’t a rip-off or clone of Spy X Family. It is able to stand on its own. This is an original anime that is produced at one of the best animation studios right now, P.A. Works. It’s directed by Yoshiyuki Asai and written by Vio Shimokura and Yuko Kakihara. Yeah, the premise can sound similar to Spy X Family, due to how it’s an action comedy with a found family hook of two assassins who live under one roof who accidently encounter a little girl who may or may not be the daughter of one of the two hitmen. What it does do well is accomplish some high-octane action mixed with some very goofy hitmen who have to deal with 2023’s first extremely adorable kid character of the year. It doesn’t just rest on the dynamic of two dangerous individuals taking care of a super child-like, well, child. It does give everyone rather depressing backstories and how even though they are fairly different from one another, they all come together cohesively as a family. It has P.A. Works stellar animation, some sweet comedic timing, and touching moments that make this show a great alternative while we wait for Spy X Family Season 2. 

Campfire Cooking in Another World With My Absurd Skill (Crunchyroll)

It’s always nice to be happy when a show you are looking forward to is actually really good and just a blast to watch for three episodes. This is based on the light novel series by Ren Eguchi. It’s directed by Kiyoshi Matsuda, written by Michiko Yotoke, and produced by MAPPA. While most isekais struggle to try and copy, rip off, or be the next Sword Art Online or ReZero, here comes this delightfully unique take on the isekai genre where the lead, in fact, doesn’t want to save the world. Instead, with his superpower of being able to order groceries from his world to the fantasy world, has gained a powerful wolf-like deity who makes a pact with our lead, not because he’s the chosen one, but because he can cook delicious food. It’s a show with a light-hearted sense of humor and some really hilarious set pieces and punchlines with how they keep the story fun and worth investing time into. They even find ways to add in a little dark comedy and quandaries of how they eat certain creatures or even if they can, that adds so much flavor and spice to the overall journey. It’s such a breath of fresh air alongside the other amazing isekai of the season that it’s frankly insulting that this show, Faraway Paladin, The Saint’s Magic is Omnipotent and The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess, and Genius Young Lady aren’t the guides to how to make proper modern isekai series. Take a good hook, add a well-written script and cast of loveable leads, and a splash of splendid animation, and you have a recipe for success. It’s easily my favorite anime of the season and one I can recommend to anyone. 

Thank you all for checking out my impressions, and if I had to pick my favorite anime of the season to check out, I would watch in no particular order…

Anime Recommendations of Winter 2023: Revenger, Buddy Daddies, Campfire Cooking in Another World with my Absurd Skill, Sugar Apple Fairy Tale, Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady, Ippon Again, Endo & Kobayashi Live, Giant Beast of Ars, Tomo Chan is a Girl, and Trigun Stampede.

Chainsawing Through the Fall 2022 Anime Season

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keep the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this editorial!)

The fall 2022 season was a pleasant upgrade over Summer 2022’s anime season. It doesn’t reach all of the same heights as Fall 2021, but with its cast of new and returning anime, it still unleashes to the anime-loving audience a batch of amazing shows. Sure, some were bound to be new classics like Chainsaw Man, but there are other great shows this season and with Winter 2023 around the corner, let’s drop some impressions of a pretty solid season of anime. 

COMEDY

Love Flops (HiDive) 

(CW: assault and harassment jokes in the first episode)

One of the few original properties this season by Kadokawa Pictures. It’s produced by Passione, directed by Nobuyoshi Nagayama, and written by Ryo Yasumoto. Consider this one of the most middling mediocre harem anime to ever exist. Probably one of the worst anime of 2022 as well with the fact that the five girls and one woman who are fawning over this teenager, have no reason to fall for him. The way they are introduced to one another is laughably terrible and conceived, and the second episode’s reason behind them falling for him is yet another take on the vibe that they want anime viewers to start getting married and make kids. If it didn’t have Passione’s higher-than-usual production values, this anime would have fallen flat due to one-note love interests, and how it’s mostly interested in being male-wish fantasy nonsense. You all know you can not watch bad anime because it has cute anime girls right? You can go to other anime for cute anime girls that have more substance and personality to them. Heck, this season is full of them. You can do so much better than this one. Oh, and it dares to have a twist and become super meta when it doesn’t earn it or deserve it. 

The Little Lies We All Tell (Crunchyroll)

Man, it must be tough to be a comedy/gag anime that comes out the same season as Pop Team Epic’s triumphant return. This show is based on the manga by Madoka Kashihara. It’s directed by Makoto Hoshino, written by Megumi Shimizu, and produced by Studio Flad. The marketing for this show is weird. One poster and the title make it sound like it’s going to be some dark teen drama, but it’s a gag anime. It feels like it was put together by random or thrown-out ideas, and it is at least trying to be absurd and have that same high energy take as classics of the subgenre, but it never quite feels as cohesive or as absurd as others. It’s trying, and it has a laugh here and there, but it’s never as consistent as other shows like Cromartie High or Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle. The four, well, three girls and one cross-dressing boy who was forced to go to the school all have something to hide, and the different gimmicks never feel like they mesh. It’s a weird show, because I personally don’t think it’s good, but I can see someone vibing with this show. It needed to have a bit more balance or focus on making the characters have actual personalities rather than just relying on the gimmick and some tired anime tropes. Still, you can do worse with anime comedies. 

Urusei Yatsura (HiDive)

Well, if it’s not broken…. This is based on the influential manga by Rumiko Takahashi. It’s directed by Hideya Takahashi, Yasuhiro Kimura, and Takahiro Kamei, written by Yuko Kakihara, and produced by David Productions. No exaggeration here, this new adaptation of the manga basically kept everything set in the 1970s without changing much outside of a new visual coat of paint. So be prepared to see somewhat tame by today’s standards mean-spirited gag stories with a somewhat overarching plot being weaved into the episodes. It can be loud, absurd, and funny, and whether its more heartfelt moments clash or not with the over-the-top and well-animated comedy, will be up to you. For me, I enjoyed the batch of episodes I have seen so far and it will at least be way better than that Inuyasha follow-up. 

More Than a Married Couple, But Not Lovers (Crunchyroll) 

I feel so betrayed and frustrated by this show. It’s based on the manga by Yuki Kanamura, directed by Takao Kato and Junichi Yamamoto, written by Naruhisa Arakawa, and produced by Studio Mother. If you don’t hear about the setting this story takes place in, it sounds like a real rock-solid rom-com. Two students who don’t care much for each other team up to actually hook up with the people they want to crush on. Now, if you have seen these romcoms before, you know our two leads are actually gonna fall for each other. The story focuses on their insecurities as individuals and, while it can be a bit horny since it’s anime, the show really does invest a ton of time to progress the story arcs between our leads. What makes this show fall flat is the premise. Our two leads are together because they are in a mandatory school course where they must learn to become good future husbands and wives. Oh, and the dorms the couples stay in, are wired with cameras all over, watching their every step. It’s intensely creepy and it’s maddening because this would be really cool if the premise didn’t sound like some weird conservative wet dream of the ideal school course students should be taking. I know some of the anime made every year will have some underlying political commentary about modern political topics in Japan, but no school should have a mandated “get a grade by being a married couple” course. You could easily have a better setting, because everything else is pretty okay! I wish I could recommend it full-heartedly, but there are better romcoms this year that don’t pull weird settings like this. 

I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss (Crunchyroll)

When you watch a terrible anime like Shinobi No Ittoki, coming back to watch a show like this one really shows how good some of the shows this season are. This is based on the novels by Sarasa Nagase. The adaptation is produced by Maho Films, written by Kenta Ihara, and directed by Kumihiko Habara. While we are about to slowly get flooded with isekai titles about characters playing the villain from a popular or just any random otome game, if they can keep differentiating themselves from My Life as a Villainess, then they are good to go. Here, the rom-com plot of our lead trying to propose to the demon lord has resulted in a rather delightful and quirky journey, as we see our lead break the game and shift reality around her beck-and-call and use her knowledge of the original game to her advantage. It focuses on a lot of diverse character interactions, and it’s an adorable show with so many characters being rather lovable. It might have wonky animation and CGI compositing, but this is an otherwise charming show that will warm its way into your heart. 

Do It Yourself! (Crunchyroll)

What a wonderful original anime we have this season. It’s directed by Kazuhiro Yoneda, written by Kazuyuki Fudeyashu, and produced by Pine Jam. What’s so delightful about this show is how it works on so many levels. You not only have the fun of seeing an anime about the joy of Do It Yourself projects, but it’s a show about rebuilding and repairing friendships old and new. It’s not just another “cute girls doing cute things” show. It also has a visual style that looks like the result of Cloverworks and Science Saru having a child. Pine Jam has truly crafted a fantastic watercolor visual style and some of the most expressive characters of this season of anime. It’s one of those shows that is a great gateway anime to introduce to newcomers, and it stands out as one of the best this season. 

Bocchi The Rock (Crunchyroll) 

While Chainsaw Man is probably the most obvious show this season to be popular, it’s nice to see a show like this stellar piece of rock and roll get popular. It’s based on the manga by Aki Hamaji. It’s directed by Keiichiro Saito, written by Erika Yoshida, and produced by CloverWorks. You can basically call this a combination of coming-of-age, music, and extreme cases of social anxiety. The journey of our nervous wreck of a lead character to join a blossoming band and to expand upon her social skills is one of Fall 2022’s biggest surprises. It also has some of the most expressive and vibrant animation seen all year. Not a big shock from CloverWorks, but just in general. It’s some of the most interesting visuals you will find in a year full of anime with distinct visuals. It’s also really funny and crushingly accurate as to how they capture social anxiety, and how it can feel for some people in certain situations. Just a splendid anime around, and it’s no wonder why it has become one of the fan-favorite anime of the season. 

ACTION/ADVENTURE

Shinobi no Ittoki (Crunchyroll)

Well, at least it’s trying to do more than most middling ninja anime. This is another original anime of the season that’s directed by Shuu Watanabe, written by Minato Takano, and produced by Troyca. This show has an odd balance of tones. On one hand, the story of a boy who’s suddenly forced into being trained in order to run an entire clan of ninjas is understandably compelling, but lordy, is this some of the worst written dialogue and storytelling I have seen all year. Yeah, let’s follow this one character who was never told until he was in high school about his ninja ancestry, never train him, and then throw him into a school full of other ninja clans that want him dead and not give him at the very least a rundown or heads up of who to avoid or what to know. This show wants to be this thrilling ninja story and it isn’t just due to how the characters are terribly written, and what could be interesting or fun with the rather solid action animation, is dead weight and stuck with a story that’s not fun to sit through. Just a really boring and unbearable series. It’s not a bad show because it’s poorly animated or problematic. It’s a bad show because at no point is it thrilling, at no point is the story compelling or giving you a reason to root for its characters. It has story beats that happen that aren’t earned, and it’s a sign of how bad certain original anime can be. 

The Eminence in Shadow (HiDive) 

(CW: Sexual Assault in the first episode)

What is with anime productions that want to botch their first impressions with anime-only first episodes? I swear these production committees never learn. This is based on the novels by Daisuke Aizawa. It’s directed by Kazuya Nakanishi, written by Kanichi Katou, and produced by Nexus. So, this show is weird, because the first episode is an anime-only story that sets itself up as an edgy power fantasy show, but when you watch past episode 1, it feels like it’s supposed to be a parody, or it’s goofing on the tropes and story beats of mediocre isekai. I would normally be all for that with how they crafted certain moments from the episodes I watched, but after a bit, I felt like I fell off on whether this was supposed to be a parody or they were just being very tongue-and-cheek with it when it comes off like every other power fantasy anime that comes out every year. I guess at least it has a sense of personality with how it’s trying to lay out its jokes, but I couldn’t personally vibe with this one. I get why a lot of people do, but it just wasn’t my cup of tea. 

Chainsaw Man (Crunchyroll)

I mean, we all knew this was going to be one of, if not the best new show of the Fall 2022 season right? It’s based on the hit manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto that has taken the manga world by storm. The anime adaptation is obviously produced by MAPPA, it’s written by Hiroshi Seko, and directed by the duo of Ryu Nakayama and Nasato Nakazono. This show is just a bit of everything. It has fantastic action, incredible film quality level animation, dark comedy, and it doesn’t just fall back on its popularity or the gore to keep you invested. It has everything an anime fan or a newcomer to anime could want with how it balances everything to pretty much perfectly. There is a reason why this is considered one of the best shows of the year and season. You can’t get any better than this in terms of anime, and hopefully, MAPPA is treating its animators well to craft such an exquisite experience. 

FANTASY/ISEKAI

I Somehow Became Stronger By Raising Farming-Related Skills (HiDive)

CW: Episode 2 has a really tasteless male getting assaulted joke. 

Is anyone else getting really sick and tired of shows having a solid elevator pitch, but then completely bailing on it for no reason? This show is based on the light novels/manga by Shobonnu. It’s directed by Norihiko Nagahama, written by Touko Machida, and produced by Studio A-Cat. A super-powered farmer in a fantasy world where he doesn’t want to be the hero sounds like it could lead to a really creative comedy about a farmer who just wants to farm. The first episode has the lead character literally throwing a carrot at the speed of light and killing a dragon with it. That’s so funny and yet, the rest of the show is actually not about that. It’s about a farmer who just gets roped up into being a hero because he’s got really good stats. It’s a really boring watch that doesn’t do anything new or really fun with the formula, gets way too dark for a show that isn’t advertised as such, and of course, it will slowly have a colorful cast of female love interests and some non-threatening male friends that don’t get in the way of our lead and his forced-together harem. If it focused less on being just another power fantasy with a harem with really shoddy animation, there could have been something special. Still, alas, it’s another mediocre fantasy anime in a year full of them. 

Management of a Novice Alchemist (HiDive)

Well, at least it isn’t boring. This is based on the novels/light novels/manga by Mizuho Itsuki. The show is directed by Hiroshi Ikehata, written by Shigeru Murakoshi, and produced by ENGI. I mean, it’s a “cute girls doing cute things” alchemy/fantasy edition. It doesn’t do anything truly unique outside of focusing on the crafting side than the magic, but it also has to fit in stuff like action and possible romance baiting between the four characters. It’s got a solid visual look with some better-than-usual animation, but it’s mostly just okay. If it looked a bit worse, I would rank it lower, but its aesthetic is what’s saving this run-of-the-mill anime. Not that originality is the end all be all, but after a bit with how much anime is coming out, doing the bare minimum while other shows are hitting it out of the park is going to bite some on the backside in the long run. 

Beast Tamer (Crunchyroll)

Some of the toughest anime to give impressions on are shows that are just so committed to being down the middle in terms of quality and story execution. Beast Tamer is kind of that show but with enough charm to it that makes it hard to be hateful or angry towards it. This is based on the novels by Suzu Miyama. The anime adaptation is directed by Atsushi Nigorikawa, written by Takashi Aoshima, and produced by EMT Square. The funny thing about these “I got kicked out of the hero’s party” fantasy anime is that the reason for getting kicked out is so petty, and that might be the intention, but it’s never believably done. What’s more interesting is despite it being what will essentially be a harem anime with multiple cute fantasy girls, the show as of what I have seen, was not interested in fanservice. Or, at least not to a distracting degree where the show halts in its tracks to give you some cheesecake. The main cast has decent chemistry with how our lead is gonna save the day with kindness with his monster-taming skills, but it’s just okay. Nothing super obnoxious, but nothing all that stellar either. It could definitely fill the void of comfort food anime watching, but your tolerance for certain harem tropes will be the deciding point, or if you can truly utterly believe the igniting point of the overall story in the first place. 

Raven of the Inner Palace (Crunchyroll) 

Well, we have our The Heiki Story anime of the season, and I mean that in the way that we have a period drama that’s really fascinating. It’s based on the light novels by Koko Shirakawa. It’s written by Satomi  Ooshima, directed by Chizuru  Miyawaki, and produced by Bandai Namco Pictures. It’s a shame the first major story arc is split between two episodes because this is one of the rare few anime that would have been better as a one-hour premiere. It’s really slow to start out and build up the world-building, politics, and supernatural elements with the first episode, and by the second episode, it fully kicks into what the first mystery of the show is. By the third episode, you will be intrigued and compelled to see what the requests the Raven Consort get and how they unfold. It unwraps into a beautiful story of love, loss, and is full of political and royal drama/thriller elements to keep you in this gorgeously prepared world. Doesn’t hurt either that Queen Bee does a fantastic theme song for the show, and if you are down for something a bit different from your typical shonen action romps or the big league titles, then consider giving this one a shot. 

Reincarnated as a Sword (HiDive)

This is what happens when you make a familiar, but compelling isekai. This is based on the novels by Yuu Tanaka. It’s directed by Shinji Ishihara, written by Takahiro Nagano, and produced by C2C. While the lead being reincarnated as a sword doesn’t seem like it leads to a very compelling story, it actually stands on its own as one of the better isekai this year. The sword’s interaction with our cat girl lead that so far, the anime has tried to avoid sexualizing, is nice since anime is so bad at not making young characters look lewd. I get ya want to sell merchandise, but instead of doing most anime nonsense, the show does focus on the growing bond between our leads and it makes for a more pleasant experience when you are able to enjoy the show without so much nonsense getting in the way. With a fun premise, great animation, and well-executed action, Reincarnated as a Sword was a pleasant surprise in a year full of mediocre isekais. 

OTHER

My Master Has no Tail (HiDive) 

This was a sweet little title. It’s based on the manga by TNSK. The anime adaptation is produced by Liden Films, written by Touko Machida, Kei Shimobayashi, Aya Satsuki, and Yuho Togashi, and directed by Hideyo Yamamoto. What starts off as a cute little fantastical take on a period piece where our little tanuki lead goes into the human world to see what is going on, turns into a friendship drama about her wanting to work under a storyteller’s wing in a changing world. No longer can a tanuki thrive in a world with carriages, cars, and at the time, modern devices. It’s a show that tackles themes of dealing with the fear of the unknown in an ever-changing world, respecting the past, and finding that ambition to push through the tides of change. It’s well-animated, the characters are likable, and while there may be some cultural barriers that will get lost in translation, the show is easy to follow and only has a little bit of that anime nonsense that hampers it from time to time. 

Bibliophile Princess (HiDive)

This is where I wish this had a dub, due to how talkative it is. This is based on the light novels by Yui. This period piece drama/romance is directed by Taro Iwasaki, written by Mitsutaka Hirota, and produced by Madhouse. Listen, this show’s first episode is really slow, and you will only get the crumbs of what the drive of this show will be between a lovely prince and a bookish princess. Luckily, by the second and third episodes, the chemistry blossoms into a rather lovely romance with some gorgeous visuals. This is one of the few light novels where it’s not just an edgy male power fantasy isekai nonsense. Granted, even though I have watched plenty of episodes, I am worried about how much our princess has in terms of agency and how much development she gets from the story, since a lot of it is told from her perspective. Still, if you are in the mood for romance, period dramas, and something more slow and low-key, then you will probably like this show. 

Blue Lock  (Crunchyroll)

The one sports anime of the season comes in the form of one of the best sports anime of the year. It’s based on the manga by Muneyuki Kaneshiro with illustrations by Yusuke Nomura. The adaptation is written by Taku Kishimoto, directed by the duo of Tesunaki Watanabe and Shunsuke Ishikawa, and produced by Eight Bit. Instead of being another familiar but well-executed typical shonen-style sports anime, Blue Lock brings a more aggressive and sinister vibe to the sports formula by pitting teams against each other to become the best. With a more assertive and menacing art style to the players and the world itself, Blue Lock sets itself apart by being different and truly stands out among 2022’s mostly generic batch of sports anime. 

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury (Crunchyroll)

Never thought I’d see the day I talk about and love a Gundam series that wasn’t G-Gundam or the other series that Toonami and Adult Swim played back then. This is directed by Hiroshi Kobayashi and Ryo Ando, written by Ichiro Okouchi, and produced by Sunrise. Who knew that what we needed was not a group of angsty teenagers in yet another anti-war story that clashes with the sole money-making side of the Gundam franchise of selling a multitude of models and action figures? Yeah, war is bad, but look how cool the robots and action beats are. Thankfully, what ya get with this one is Gundam crossed with Revolutionary Girl Utena, which is already at this point, a tired and worn joke since one of the writers of Utena is writing the script for this show. On a more serious note, this show is just fantastic. It’s got its political upheaval and war is bad messages for sure, but instead of that stuff being in your face at all times, it focuses more on the characters and they are delightfully diverse and complex. It still weaves in themes of discrimination and corruption, but they are characters first and foremost. It also helps that they are pretty likable, on top of the fight scenes being pretty stellar. It’s the shot in the arm that this franchise needed and it just needed to have more LGBTQ+ elements. Who knew?

Akiba Maid War (HiDive)

Well, I found it, I found the most ideal trashy anime that I don’t have to feel guilty for watching. This original anime is directed by Soichi Masui, written by Yoshihiro Hiki, and produced by P.A. Works. Yeah, the show is basically John Wick, but here every woman wears a sexy maid uniform. It’s more of a trashy action flick mixed with some territorial crime/gang war drama where all of the maid cafes are actually competing against one another with shady underbelly stuff that you would find in most crime thrillers. It’s over-the-top and schlocky, but with how much personality is in this show and how it 100% commits to its premise of drama and over-the-top action, if you were a fan of Lycoris Recoil, then you will absolutely love this show. HiDive this year has gotten some of this year’s best shows and Akiba Maid Wars is one of them! 

And there you have it. If you had to know the anime I’d recommend before the Winter season starts, please check out these titles: Chainsawman, Reincarnated as a Sword, Do It Yourself, Gundam: The Witch From Mercury, Akiba Maid Wars, Bocchi Rock, Raven if the Inner Palace, I’m The Villainess so I’m Taming the Final Boss, and honorable mentions go to Not a Married Couple, but Not Lovers and Urusei Yatsura. 

The Other Side of Animation 257: Jujutsu Kaisen 0 The Movie Review

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keep the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this review!)

Heads up: I was able to watch this film via a screener sent to me from Crunchyroll/Funimation. I received no other form of monetization other than the screener. Thank youCrunchyroll/Funimation for this opportunity.

Well, here we are, we are talking about a shonen battle anime franchise film. For those that know this critic’s personal bias towards them, you know that these franchise films aren’t really all that good. Most of the time, these films are shallow non-cannon experiences that introduce elements that could have been useful in the main story and are never brought up again. You wonder why the showrunners never think about adding the film elements and making them canon, but no matter how good they are, they tend to be just shinier versions of the show with exclusive villains and storylines. There is a debate on which type of shonen franchise film is worse, the recap of an arc in film form, or the filler story that may introduce some new characters, villains, and story beats, but will absolutely not matter in the long run. Luckily, we are seeing a new trend where some franchises are adapting certain story beats into films. Like, why not pace out an arc for a film when it might not work in the form of a show? This happened with Demon Slayer: Mugen Train, even if they did then reanimate a chunk of it as a couple of episodes. Luckily, today’s review will not have that issue, since it’s a prequel to the overall anime! This is a review of Jujutsu Kaisen 0. 

The film is directed by Sunghoo Park, the director of the show, The God of Highschool, and Garo: The Vanishing Line. It’s written by Hiroshi Seko, and based on the manga by Gege Akutami. Our story follows Yuta Okkotsu, dubbed by Kayleigh McKee. He’s a high schooler who happens to have something looming over his shoulders in the form of a deadly and immensely powerful cursed spirit named Rika Orimoto, dubbed by Anairis Quinones. This spirit happens to be his childhood friend before she died and was cursed to stick to Yuta. After an incident where Yuta put some classmates into the infirmary ward, he is sought after by our favorite Jujutsu sorcerer/mentor Satoru Gojo, dubbed by Kaiji Tang. He decides to enroll him into the school where individuals who want to become sorcerers can train and save people from these curses. Unfortunately for Yuta and Gojo, the main villain of the series, Suguru Geto, dubbed by Lex Lang, wants to get Rika for his own desires to rule the world and kill anyone who isn’t a Jujutsu sorcerer. Can Yuta get a handle on his grief and save the day? I mean, obviously, something happens since this is a prequel story, but still. 

What’s so fascinating about this film is how it fits into the overall franchise. Unlike most films in battle franchises, this one is actually important to the story. You can literally start the franchise with this film and then watch the show. The film rewards you with watching it first by making a lot of the stuff that happens in the show have more substance to them. However, watching the show and then the film afterwards can also give you some rewards in a different sense by filling in those parts of the story that this film explains. It’s such a smart decision to adapt the prequel story into a movie due to how it really couldn’t work as its own small story arc due to how little substance there was in the original manga. The film itself has a rock-solid story of Yuta getting over the loss of his friend, and him metaphorically and literally holding onto his grief with Rika. There is also a part of the story dealing with the different ideals, and the ravine that separates two of the characters due to their backstory and philosophy. It’s a film with a lot more substance than “the heroes fight a movie-exclusive villain that doesn’t do anything for the main storyline”. 

Animation-wise, it does look fantastic. Despite the fact that MAPPA is overworking their animators like the rest of the anime industry when they shouldn’t, their animation is top-notch. The film might not look any different from the show, but considering how good it looked in the first place, that isn’t the biggest deal. The characters look great, the animation is fluid, and the action beats are incredible. There is a reason why most studios try to book MAPPA for action shows due to their incredible work. I am sure this is what the director is now going to be known for. The English dub cast is fantastic as usual, with a really good set of actors that are obviously in the show as well.  As I previously mentioned, we have Kayleigh McKee, Anairis Quinones, Kaiji Tang, Lex Lang, Allegra Clark, Xander Mobus, Matthew David Rudd, Bill Butts, Ryan Bartley, Sarah Williams, and Laura Post. The music hits all of those fun bombastic and action-packed notes, and they bring back the overall team of the show for the film. I mean, why wouldn’t they? They brought back composers Hiroaki Tsutsumi, Yoshimasa Terui, and Alisa Okehazama. Hiroaki is a well-known composer who also worked on shows like Tokyo Revengers, Dr. Stone, Orange, Children of the Whales, Monster Musume, and the infamously awful Koikimo. 

Now, criticizing this film is a touch complicated. Not that it doesn’t have any flaws, there are a few that could be leveled against this film, but some of those complaints are probably build-up for the second season coming out next year. For example, the side villains? They don’t get to do much. While a few of them have a lot more story importance with the upcoming season, it’s a shame some are simply introduced. Luckily, this show is tremendously popular and will have some story relevance in the future, but for the sake of this film, they aren’t really substantial to the story. There also should have been a lot more time for moments to expand upon the friendship and love between Yuta and Rika. The film does enough to tell you their backstories, but they really are the highlights. They were both kids with illnesses, they loved each other, and then Rika dies and gets cursed by Yuta and turns into this powerful cursed spirit. There isn’t much time for Rika to breathe as a character, and while a majority of this film’s story is about Yuta letting go of loss and the grief of cursing his childhood friend, Rika is used more like a prop rather than having her own actual character. Or at the very least, she isn’t as fleshed out as Yuta is, and that’s a shame. It’s essentially the big problem with shonen battle shows and Jujutsu Kaisen as a whole, where sometimes the story and writing aren’t taking time to give the characters time to breathe. 

Overall though, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is fantastic, and once again, it’s one of the rare franchise films where you can literally start with the film and then jump into the show, or watch the film after the show, and get rewarded in many different ways. It’s a fascinating film that mostly works as a perfect introduction to a franchise, and it has substance within the franchise. It’s actually mandatory that you watch the film, unlike so many franchise films that you can pretty much skip. The franchise is pretty good, and is a much better battle show than most that get released. Well, next time we will be looking at another Netflix feature from a prominent director. You will just have to wait for the review in the near future. 

Thanks for reading the review! I hope you all enjoyed reading it! If you would like to support my work, make sure to share it out, and if you want to become a Patreon supporter, then you can go to patreon.com/camseyeview. I will see you all next time!

Rating: Go See It! 

Summer 2021 Anime Season Impressions Part 2

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keeps the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this editorial!)

Here we have the second part of my impressions of the Summer 2021 anime season! As usual, these are just my subjective impressions of anime from a three or more episode viewing. The summer season has been mediocre, full of misfires that really didn’t connect to me or other viewers. It’s a sign of how there is too much anime coming out, and not enough time or people to properly flesh out the ideas. Who knows how good some of these could have been if they had proper time and talent attached to these projects. They also run into that problem of just because you can adapt something, doesn’t mean you can or should. Hopefully, the overly stuffed Fall 2021 Season will be better, but we will have to see. Let’s talk about these last few shows. 

Comedy/Romance 

Cheat Pharmacist’s Slow Life: Making a Drug Store in Another World (Crunchyroll)

Based on the novels, light novels, and manga by Kennoji, this anime adaptation is directed by Masafumi Sato, written by Hiroko Kanasugi, and produced by EMT Squared. This is the most middling mediocre isekai of the season. It’s not the worst one, but boy you had better be okay with watching a show that gets wildly repetitive. First off, we don’t know how the lead character got into this fantasy world or what he did beforehand. 

It’s a weird take, and while it is usually groan-inducing to see the lead character either die of being overworked or getting hit by a bus or a truck, the show, as of the episodes I watched, didn’t seem interested at all with telling us our lead’s backstory. 

Due to this being an EMT Squared anime, it’s more interested in having a male lead with a bunch of very young-looking women around him or falling for him than telling us a proper story. Listen, I’m not saying EMT Squared is a little sister or young girl harem anime studio, but after a while, you see a particular pattern in the shows they make. It’s luckily not directed by the guy who has made some of the studio’s more notorious shows like Assassin’s Pride or Master of Ragnarok, but it still has a few of those show’s worst elements. The little werewolf girl is meant to be this cute mascot for the character for the show, but her design is rough to look at, due to how it looks like she’s wearing just cotton panties/shorts and a vest that doesn’t cover her torso. Come on, anime industry, can we stop with these types of design tropes? I know you have to work hard and make your show look distinct from the other shows coming out, but let’s not cater to the creep crowd. It’s a shame this show is so mediocre, because an isekai all about potion making and health items sounds cool, and the visuals are decent enough to make for a different take on the isekai genre. 

It even has a few decent side characters that were enjoyable to see every time they are on screen. It’s a bummer they aren’t the actual focus of the show, since I don’t care for our main characters. It’s also too bad we already had a much better show all about this last season with The Saint’s Magic Power is Omnipotent. Oh, and Cheat Pharmacist doesn’t handle a character who has anxiety attacks very well, so, yeah. It’s one of the more notable misfires of the summer season, but I can at least understand why someone would turn on this show due to how lightweight and junk foody it is. Due to some elements that rubbed me the wrong way, I can’t say it’s harmless, but if we want to talk about shows that I find morally repugnant, well, I know a few that I would call the worst of the season.  

The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated (Crunchyroll)

This quirky little comedy is based on the manga by Wakame Konbu, is directed by Mirai Minato, written by Michiko Yokote, and produced by Silver Link. I think outside of an obnoxious first episode, the show mellows out by the second and third episodes. I even watched the latest episode and found the show to have a lot of charm. I don’t care for Jahy’s child form wearing a large shirt though and the fact they keep focusing on her legs. 

The show also has a lot of humor relying on Jahy being poor, and those jokes get tiring fast. The show was at its best when it focused on different types of jokes and introducing characters that play well off of Jahy, like her loyal servant, her unknown rival/assassin, the owner of the apartment, or her friend she works with at the pub. When it focuses on those elements, the show is decent. Granted, I kept thinking about The Devil is a Part-Timer while watching this anime, but that’s a huge problem with many shows this season, where I was constantly thinking of other shows with similar premises that I would rather be watching than the one I am watching now. However, I can’t say that this was one of the worst of the season. It’s straight down the middle. It has its moments, but it’s a show I can see myself skipping for other ones. 

Remake Our Life (Crunchyroll)

Based on the manga and light novels by Nachi Kio, this adaptation is directed by Tomoki Kobayashi, written by Nachi Kio, and produced by Feel. I will be honest about two specific things. One, I forgot to put this within the slice of life category for the first half, so I’m sorry about that. The second thing is that this show doesn’t get off on the best foot forward. It’s an hour-long premiere, and I felt like it focused too much on the front half of our lead getting sent back in time 10 years to go to a different art school to restart his life. It also dips too much into art school drama and cheap fanservice moments. 

With that said, when it starts to dive into the main character interacting with his classmates for projects and their drives for what they want to do, the series seriously picks up. It might not be the best-executed drama, but considering how mediocre a lot of the stories were in all of the anime this season, I am all for a show that does eventually by the second episode get the ball rolling, and tell a compelling enough tale for the audience to enjoy. 

The Duke of Death and his Maid (Funimation) 

Consider this the problematic favorite of the entire summer season. It’s based on the manga by Koharou Inoue, and the anime adaptation is directed by Yoshinobu Yamakawa, written by Hideki Shirane, and is produced by JC Staff. Seeing the team behind this series makes a lot of sense when you consider that the director was behind High Score Girl. The CGI visuals and cutesy gothic aesthetic will look familiar to the director’s previous work. 

It’s called the problematic fave, because on the outside and as a whole, there is a genuinely sweet story about a young man who is fated to be alone due to a curse put on him. Anyone or any living thing he touches will die, and the only people in his life are his loyal butler and his very anime-looking maid. The chemistry between the two leads from the title is extremely sweet and wholesome. They have some of the best chemistry out of any duo this season. The romantic feelings for one another are believable and cute. Some of the show’s best moments are when the two are together and speaking sincerely to one another. 

So, what makes it a problematic fave? It’s because the show’s tone and how it portrays the duke and his maid’s dynamic seems to be at odds with one another. It’s supposed to be sweet and cute, but the dialogue, how the characters act, and the tone play it up as harassment that’s played for comedy. Harassment is not okay, and it’s weird how the show uses dialogue and sequences that reinforce that, when the show is also saying it’s not that harassy. It’s a very odd tone to a quirky show, and to some degree, you can understand why they took this angle. Still, I don’t care much for the Duke’s sister’s quirk of falling for the butler. That felt tacked on and weird. 

Even then, with one or two rewrites and a fix to the tone of how these scenes are shot, everything would feel more cohesive with the rather expressive CGI animation. It’s an incredibly charming show that could have used one more run-through with the tone or maybe a female director or perspective on how to make it feel more cohesive. It’s still one of the better anime of the season though, and if you want to see a cute romantic comedy with a gothic twist, then this show will be right up your alley. 

The Dungeon of Black Company (Funimation)

This anime is based on the manga by Yohei Yasumura, and the adaptation is directed by Mirai Minato, written by our recurring writer this season Deko Akao, and produced by Silver Link. At first, the series shows its cynical dark comedy fangs with an isekai that’s all about tearing down and commentating on the infamous Black Company-style working conditions seen throughout Japan. Considering the definition of Black Company, I assume you can find this kind of problematic work ethics in any work culture from around the world. It has shades of Konosuba, where our main character is a real pain in the neck who, due to working around legal loopholes, was originally a human who raked in the cash by making a few questionable business decisions. The anime then sends him straight into the deep end by forcing him to work in inhumane working conditions. It then expands on the overall commentary about the flaws of workforces driven by capitalism.  

Sometimes, anime that wants to dabble in serious topics, using humor with commentary falls flat due to not being able to balance out the two, but Dungeon of Black Company tends to hit it out of the park with being creative with the fantasy setting, having a cast that are likably dumb and mean, and the commentary is spot on with how twisted some major corporations can be for the pursuit of the bottom dollar. Personally, I had to briefly stop myself from watching the show due to how much I was laughing and enjoying my time with the show. 

Of course, there is a reason why some people find the setting so disgusting, due to the real-life Black Company policies being used on actual people. Sometimes comedy has lines they shouldn’t cross, and that will be dependent on what that individual’s taste in comedy is. With that being said, with how many mediocre comedies and fantasy shows are out this season, anime fans should be happy there are a few isekai/fantasy shows that have more meat to their discussions. 

Action/Adventure



 Itaden Deities Only know Peace (Crunchyroll)

Content Warning: Rape is shown at the end of the first episode and is a constant thing in the overall show. I won’t blame you for wanting to bail after this warning. 

This anime is based on the manga by Amahara. It’s directed by Seimei Kidokoro, written by Hiroshi Seko, and produced by MAPPA. Honestly, while Gods of Highschool still might be MAPPA’s worst anime, Itaden Deities is right up there. This hot mess of a show feels like it was meant to be a dark comedy of fantasy action shows like YuYu Hakusho, mixed with the visual style of Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, which is not a subtle comparison due to how the illustrator, Coolkyousinnjya designed the look of both Itaden and Dragon Maid series. It also has a ton of that edgelord tripe from the late 80s/early 90s anime era, where rape and assault are played up as huge elements of the story and even as jokes, which, you know, aren’t great. It has a decent hook at the beginning about the morality tale of Deities. They were meant to protect the human race, but due to how the newest batch never had to fight demons until a few episodes into the show, they don’t know how to react. 

I can see that hook being a really solid bit of commentary. With that said, it doesn’t work because I do not like these characters. You can make flawed and obnoxious characters interesting, but the lead characters in this show are some of the most unlikable I have seen this season. Even when the villains are also complete garbage, I would rather invest time with the villains than the heroes who are insufferable. 

By the time I caught up with the rest of the episodes, the show got worse when the stakes became nonexistent. Why should anyone care about what happens when the humans suck, the villains suck, and the heroes are intolerable jerks? There is no balance with it being stupidly violent and edgy. Anytime it gets better, it takes five steps back. This is one of MAPPA’s worst shows, and easily one of the worst shows of the season and the year. I’m so mad this wasn’t better. If you like it, that’s perfectly okay, but for me, I just can not recommend this to anyone. 

Spirit Chronicles (Crunchyroll)

This wildly mediocre isekai anime adaptation is directed by Osamu Yamasaki, co-written by Yamasaki, Megumu Sasano, and Yoshiko Namakura, produced by TMS Entertainment, and is based on the novels and manga by Yuri Kitayama. Outside of an incredibly dark way of making our characters teleport, and a slight twist to the formula with some of the characters having to share a mind and body of a pre-existing individual in the fantasy world, everything else is awful. 

It has cartoonishly mean characters who are bordering on a parody of rich classist individuals. There are no real surprises in terms of what the roles of our main characters are, and the biggest problem is that it does want to be something distinct. It has moments where it either builds up the lore of the world and has proper character moments that expand on our otherwise bland leads. It then drops those beats and turns into another mediocre isekai fantasy series that wants to be another Sword Art Online in more ways than one. Seriously, it took me three episodes to realize that the lead in the opening looks exactly like the lead in SAO. It also has some of the EMT Squared blood in its DNA as the lead has a harem of really young-looking girls and it’s never not uncomfortable. I know the isekai genre is super popular, but maybe we should take a break from adapting them if they are going to be this bad. It’s easily one of the worst anime of the season. 

How a Realist Hero Rebuilds a Kingdom (Funimation) 

The title should be How to Not Have Fun in an Isekai or How To Take A Comedic Idea and Ruin It! This anime adaptation is based on the novels and manga by Dojyomaru, directed by Takashi Watanabe, co-written by Go Zappa and Hiroshi Onogi, and produced by JC Staff. I was looking forward to this anime, due to the premise of an isekai where the story and action take a seat on the throne of running a kingdom from a “realistic” perspective. It’s not so much about the action as it is more about running a healthy and fair kingdom.

That sounds great. Too bad someone decided to lean into the more “work” side of things, leaving me unimpressed with how seriously they are taking the “realist” part of the show’s title. This whole anime and story feels like an anime made for those smarmy individuals that made articles that kickstarted Disney’s live-action remake train, because no one ever accepts that a fantasy story should be full of, well, fantasy/fantastical elements. This show is a boring sit, but it’s not like I don’t get how this can gel with someone. 

It has a few decent jokes, and to be fair, I have heard the anime doesn’t do a great job at portraying the source material’s charm and appeal. Well, that’s too bad, but even if I at all cared about whether the manga was good or not, the anime has to stand on its own legs. Being bored in a pretty generic fantasy world with a few elements that bug me is what I got from watching the first few episodes of this show. 

It’s not the worst show of the season since it is technically doing what the title set out to do, but I think if this series leaned more on the comedy aspect of this show’s premise, I would have enjoyed it more. How much fun would it be if it took the One Punch Man approach to subversive comedy, taking full advantage of how goofy this plot is and then have fun with it trying to be as realistic as possible? I think I’m also a bit burned by this anime, because I was looking forward to it, only to find out the actual anime I was curious about was coming out two seasons from now in Winter 2022. If they didn’t fully commit to being so realistic with how a realist would run a kingdom, maybe I would have enjoyed it more. Check it out if you want, there is a dub available, but this show was not my cup of tea. 

Battle Game in 5 Seconds After Meeting (Crunchyroll)

Another battle royale? Must be a day that ends in Y. This one is based on the manga by Saizo Harawata, and the anime adaptation is directed by Meigo Naito and Nobouyoshi Arai and produced by SynergySP, Vega Entertainment, and Studio A-Cat. Well, it’s another battle royale. It doesn’t do a whole lot to differentiate itself from other anime in the genre, and that’s becoming a huge problem. Why adapt something when there is no real meaty hook to make you stand out from the rest? It has one interesting hook with the lead character’s ability, where he has to convince his opponents what his abilities are, but that’s it. 

I guess it’s nice that the lead character is not a pushover, and whimpering about not wanting to be there, but they did make him a sociopathic monster, so, I guess you pick your poison on which one is worse. The other characters don’t stand out much, and the only thing that is fun to look up about this show are the voice actors with the sadistic cat girl being voiced by Haruko’s voice actor from FLCL and the dude with the sword ability voiced by the Japanese voice of Zoro from One Piece. It is a show that wants to be super grimdark and edgy, and it keeps doing so in the most cartoonish of ways. By trying to come off edgy, it comes off as edgeless. It can be a pseudo-fun time during certain battles, but I can already watch much better battle royales and much better action shows from this and previous seasons. It’s a vapid show that is another low point for this season full of low points. 

D_Cide Traumerei the Animation (Crunchyroll) 

Based on the mobile game by Sumzap and Drecom, this anime adaptation is directed by Yoshikazu Kon, written by Hiroshi Onogi, and produced by Zanzigen. Do you know what we have here? It is yet another anime with something really good about it, but undermined by mediocre storytelling and writing. First off, this is probably some of the best CGI animation of the season. It looks incredible and the fight scenes are well executed. It has some of the season’s best action sequences! 

But then it comes to the story and how it tries to do the whole “we have social commentary” approach, and this is where it falls flat. I don’t hate it when shows try to cover tough topics, but if you are going to touch topics like abuse, drugs, and toxic fans, maybe you should handle them with care and not like some uneducated teenager who thinks they know everything. I’m so sick of shows this season with half-baked plots and half-hearted executions of themes and commentary. 

Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy (Crunchyroll) 

Who would have thought that one of the best shows this season would be an isekai? It’s based on the manga and novels by Kei Azumi, and the anime is directed by Shinji Ishihara, written by Kenta Ihara, and produced by C2C. It finally happened. We have an isekai this season that wasn’t complete garbage! 

While the comparisons to That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime are understandable, the novels came out a year before Slime got started, so technically, Slime should be thankful for Moonlit Fantasy. They even have some fairly similar elements of the main character getting warped to a fantasy world and befriending/making contracts with powerful individuals. Moonlit takes it in a more comedic direction where the lead gets two hot women who are loyal to him, but not in a horny fanservicey way. Even the lead getting sent to the fantasy world gets the raw end of the deal from that world’s goddess, and has to get bailed out by another deity to actually survive in the world. 

It has some real top-notch comedy, action, and character dynamics. It’s able to mix its comedic edge with sincere character moments and solid action. It’s one of the anime this season that feels the most cohesive, outside of Uramichi Oniisan and The Aquatope on White Sand. It stands as one of the best anime of the season and of the year so far.

Thanks for reading the review! I hope you all enjoyed reading it! If you would like to support my work, make sure to share it out, and if you want to become a Patreon supporter, then you can go to patreon.com/camseyeview. I will see you all next time!

Fall 2020 Anime Season Impressions Finale

(If you like what you see, you can go to camseyeview.biz to see more of my work on video game reviews, editorials, lists, Kickstarters, developer interviews, and review/talk about animated films. If you would like, consider contributing to my Patreon at patreon.com/camseyeview. It would help support my work, and keeps the website up. Thanks for checking out my work, and I hope you like this review!)

Here we are! We are at the finale of the impressions! If you have yet to see Part 1 or Part 2, I will hyperlink them in this sentence. Now then, let’s get started!

Good: These are the anime that may have their flaws, but are still really fun watches.

Adachi and Shimamura (Funimation)

Impressions: Based on the light novel and manga by Hitoma Iruma of Bloom Into You fame, directed by Satoshi Kuwabara, and animated by Tezuka Productions, this girl-on-girl romance anime starts on a bumpy first impression. It comes off like it wants to tell a super intimate teenage romance story, but is constantly fighting against a director who is too horny. The first episode is covered in so many thighs, butt, leg, and bust shots that it drags the intimate genuine parts down. However, once you get past the first episode, the character dynamic between the two leads is full of realistic angst and love. It’s a beautiful-looking anime as well, and I can see myself wanting to find out if it sticks the landing. We will just have to see.

Tonikawa: Over the Moon For You (Crunchyroll)

Impressions: Out of all of the Crunchyroll exclusives I have seen so far this season, while flawed, Tonikawa: Over the Moon For You is the best one of the bunch. Based on a manga by Kenjiro Hata, directed by Hiroshi Ikehata, and produced by Seven Arcs, this romance anime begins on a rocky start, where the lead falls in love with a woman he barely knows and then gets married. Technically, when he asks her out, she says she won’t go out with him unless they get married, and then ironically, they don’t see each other for a few years. The entire base of their relationship is odd, and I don’t know if I still understand it. Even the fact that between the marriage offer and when they finally hook up, has a three or so-year gap doesn’t help covey to me why they should be together. Still, as the show has gone on, the relationship between our leads Nasa Yuzaki and Tsukasa Tsukuyomi is cute. They do love each other and they do bond as they work their way through being a young married couple. The side characters also have a lot of fun energy and add a bit of mystery to the situation. I’m honestly invested to see where this story goes and how it makes its landing. It might not be the most visually stunning anime of the Fall season, but it has a pretty great opening song. Still, if you had to check out a Crunchyroll exclusive, I’d recommend this one over Gibiate and Noblesse.

By the Grace of the Gods (Funimation)

Impressions: Based on the manga and light novels by Roy, the anime is directed by Takeyuki Yanase, and the animation studio behind it is Maho Film, this is another isekai where someone from our world overworked himself, died, and is now reincarnated in a fantasy world. All things considered, it’s cute and pretty laid back so far, but it also doesn’t have too much else to make it stand out from others. I do like the laid back nature of the show’s tone, and I like that this lead character helps not through fighting, but using slimes and magic to solve problems. It doesn’t have the best animation, and it’s pretty basic-looking. Luckily, the show has started to show some depths, and there was a scene in episode 4 that was heartwarming. It’s slowly becoming one of my favorites of the season.

Ikebukuro West Gate Park (Funimation)

Impressions: This show is based on the urban mystery novels by Ira Ishida, which was then adapted into a drama series by Tsutsumi Yukihiko, then a manga written by Ira Ishida, and now an anime series directed by Tomoaki Koshida and produced by Doga Kobo. So far, it kind of reminds me of Yakuza in terms of this more urban-set series, where we follow a young man named Makoto who helps out the G-Boys, a gang within Ikebukuro with different situations. He’s more of a middle man that tries to keep everything at peace within this city between the G-Boys and other gangs. It’s fun to watch the stories unfold as we watch Makoto and the G-Boys try and solve what the problems are, and why the clients came to them and whatnot. While maybe not supporting the best animation, it still looks pretty good, and the stories themselves are interesting enough to keep you, well, invested. I’m still waiting for the shoe to drop at some point, but I recommend this one if you are into some crime-solving with an urban flair.

Fantastic: These are the anime that may have a flaw here and there, but have stories and characters worth watching.

The Gymnastics Samurai (Funimation)

Impressions: This is fun, an original anime by Studio MAPPA, directed by Hisatoshi Shimizu, and a lot of the teams behind Zombieland Saga and Yuri on Ice about a gymnastics athlete who doesn’t end up retiring and wants to keep going for his daughter. Oh, and a wayward ninja is living with them as well, after the athlete saves him from immigration. So, yeah, this is a weird anime, but it has a surprisingly grounded and wholesome vibe with the main character being a single dad, which is something we don’t see a lot of in anime. Much of the cast is great. With that said, it is a shame that the show stumbled in the second episode by introducing a gay doctor character who reinforces toxic homophobic stereotypes. Hopefully, they dial him back and make him more endearing, because your first introduction of a character like this shouldn’t be groping the lead without his consent. It’s a shame because the rest of the show has been pretty fantastic otherwise. I love the drama, the internal battle the lead has with himself, and the other gymnasts he interacts with.

Yashahime: Princess Half Demon (Funimation/Crunchyroll/VRV)

Impressions: It is a sequel to the important and nostalgic fantasy action series Inuyasha, based on the franchise by Rumiko Takahashi, and directed by Teruo Sato. It follows the “next generation” storyline like Boruto, but instead of the maligned sequel to Naruto, Yashahime: Princess Half Demon is good. I honestly love the fact we have three tomboy protagonists who must save the day by traveling to the past and stop evil forces from taking over the world. It has pretty good action and animation from Sunrise, and the character chemistry and dynamics are interesting! It also has a pretty great opening song. If you have any nostalgia for Inuyasha, warts and all, I highly recommend watching this show. Just know it doesn’t make the best first impression with the first episode easing the old fans into this new batch of heroes.

Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina (Funimation)

Impressions: Based on the light novel by Jougi Shiraishi, the manga by Itsuki Nanao, directed by Toshiyuki Kubooka, and animated by C2C, this might be the most polarizing positive anime of the entire season. On one hand, the first two episodes have brought a different energy to the overall witch and magic world that is different enough from stuff like Harry Potter, and to a lot of degrees, better. I love the more laid back observant vibe the anime brings to the table, the lead is interesting, and I adore the less action-packed storytelling. On the other hand, after the first two episodes, the show and story go into, well, dark fairytale/Aesop stories with our lead more of a storyteller who journals her experiences in travel. I think this wouldn’t split people down the middle of it if it also didn’t make the lead look like a passive observer who could have saved some people or done something. Some of the stories are dark, and I don’t blame people getting miffed at the sudden tone change. I don’t agree with every part, of course, but I do get the divisiveness of the show. I think there is more to it than what the detractors are saying, but that’s just me. If you love and want a different take on magic and witches, then I recommend this show.

The Best: The best of the best of the season!

Dragon Quest: The Legend of Dai (Crunchyroll)

Impressions: Based on the hit video game franchise and the manga by Riku Sanjo, this new incarnation of the story is directed by Kazuya Karasawa and animated by Toei Animation. What’s so fantastic about this show is how earnest it all is. It’s not trying to do something new, be edgy, or go the mature route with the franchise. What it does do is be a very entertaining, compelling, and charming action fantasy series. It also has a great mix of 2D and CGI animation that matches well with one another and while it might not reinvent the wheel, it executes that wheel in style.

Akudama Drive (Funimation)

Impressions: An original anime directed by Tomohisa Taguchi, animated by Studio Pierrot, and written by Norimitsu Kaiho, this cyberpunk action/heist anime is oozing personality and originality out of every pore of its body. It also carries heavy Danganronpa vibes, which shouldn’t be a shock with how some of the team members that worked on this show, worked on Danganronpa 3. It might have characters that have one defining trait to them, but they take advantage of that one trait for each character and run with them. This ends up making the characters super likable and fun to watch, which is funny since they are all literal dangerous criminals. The character dynamics are fantastic, the action is intense, the world is fascinating, and it’s a show that knows what it wants to be and doesn’t sway from it. It’s easily one of the best anime of the Fall 2020 season, and if you have yet to watch it, please do.

Higurashi: When They Cry GOU (Funimation)

Impressions: So, it might be a pseudo-sequel to the critically acclaimed horror franchise by 07th Expansion and is directed by Keiichiro Kawaguchi, but you can easily drop into this show without seeing the previous one. Sure, you could probably get more out of it if you watched the previous series, but I never felt confused, which is more than I can say than when I watched Noblesse. Anyway, if you loved the horror/murder mystery franchise that is known for its memorable characters, unsettling scares, and an incredibly compelling story, then you should check out the newest show in the franchise.

Talentless Nana (Funimation)

Impressions: If I was organizing these anime on a list, then this anime, Talentless Nana, based on the manga by Looseboy, directed by Shinji Ishihara, and animated by Bridge, would probably be at the top of the list. This twisted take of My Hero Academia is so much fun to watch. Very much like Moriarty the Patriot, we might be following the villain around for this story, but it’s so compelling, that you are going to be okay with that. Not every show or film needs to have a heroic main character, they just need to be interesting and worth investing in. I can’t wait to see where the rest of this series goes.

Jujutsu Kaisen (Crunchyroll)

Impressions: Every season of anime has its shonen action show, and Jujutsu Kaisen is that show. Luckily, this anime based on the manga by Gege Akutami, directed by Sunghoo Park, and animated by Studio MAPPA is a cut above the rest. Think of it as a new generation Yu Yu Hakusho. I know some may be weary due to the fact that most anime fans were disappointed by God of Highschool, and how Kaisen has the same director, but I wouldn’t worry. Jujutsu Kaisen has more meat on its bones than God of Highschool. It’s more Yu Yu Hakusho and My Hero Academia, and less Black Clover. While both Kaisen and Highschool shows have amazing fight sequences, the characters so far seem to be way more weighted and interesting in Kaisen than most of the anime in this category of, well, anime. It has slick production values, endearing characters, great action, and if you need anything else to convince you to watch this show, it has a talking panda. I think that should make everyone watch it!

Moriarty the Patriot (Funimation)

Impressions: One of the funniest things my co-host of the Tooned Up (soon to be relabeled Renegade Animation) podcast brought up was the fact three of the best anime this season have antagonists as the main characters, and that’s no different here. Based on the manga by Ryosuke Takeuchi, directed by Kazuya Nomura and produced by Production I.G, this murder/mystery anime follows Sherlock Holmes’ most dangerous adversary with Professor Moriarty. Like Kilmonger in Black Panther, while not someone you should worship as a “hero”, you understand his motives. The world he lives in is run by rich corrupt individuals, and the people below them suffer. Who wouldn’t want to make the people that have made your life worse pay for it? Even if this anime didn’t come out at a very volatile moment in time, I would still consider this to be one of the season’s best anime. Also, the opening song is amazing.

Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle (Funimation)

Impressions: Finally, we have what is the funniest anime of the season, and probably of the year with Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle. This fantasy comedy is based on the manga by Kagiji Kumanomata, and the anime is produced by Doga Kobo with Mitsue Yamazaki directing, and Yoshiko Nakamura writing. Instead of being a traditional fantasy anime, we get a comedy, where the entire plot is the captured princess going on quests around the big demon castle to get a good night’s sleep. What works about this anime is the very universal and broad style of comedy. It has clever dialogue, but it uses more physical comedy to get the jokes across. It doesn’t hurt that the princess herself is adorable and delightful. Every joke lands, every joke is satisfying, and while it might not have the best animation, the animation is still fan-friggin-tastic. It fits with what the show needs, and the execution of the comedy is sublime. If it wasn’t obvious, watch this show.

Thanks for reading the review! I hope you all enjoyed reading it! If you would like to support my work, make sure to share it out, and if you want to become a Patreon supporter, then you can go to patreon.com/camseyeview. I will see you all next time!