Anime seems increasingly to be following the laws of groundwater flow.
I wish I could say this was the season preview that was going to break the cycle of increasingly pessimistic ones, but (sorry to spoil the ending) it’s not. Objectively speaking summer tends to be pretty weak historically (though there have been a couple of notable recent exceptions), so expectations should be modest to begin with. But context matters. And the context here is a very weak anime year, coming off anime’s weakest year of the decade. Like climate change, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for deniers to ignore anime’s decline in diversity and creative ambition. The evidence is the product itself.
That’s not all that’s changing, though. As I noted in the spring preview, we saw a large decline in overall production for both spring (about 27%) and winter (about 36%) compared to their 2016-17 counterparts. Those are mighty big numbers to write off as a statistical blip, but it was only two seasons. So how does summer stack up? We have 34 series on the schedule. That’s in contrast to 2018’s 56 and 2017’s 52. If you do the math, that’s a whopping 38% decline – even bigger than winter and spring. We’re at the point now where it’s clear something is happening here – this is not a coincidence.
As noted in March, both the “what” and “why” of this are important. Why is TV anime ramping down production drastically when it’s supposedly making more money than ever, and anime has never been more popular internationally? I’ve seen it theorized that the problem is a lack of source material, but I have reservations about that explanation. If you want quality, the list of superb manga and novels crying out for an adaptation is embarrassingly long. And if it’s just a matter of making more of what constitutes the bulk of an anime schedule these days, let’s face it – that kind of generic piffle is a dime a dozen. Walk through the light novel section of any major Japanese bookstore and you’ll see that for yourself.
Why else might this be going on? We know animators are working obscenely long hours for little pay, but the infrastructure in Suginami-ku has never given production committees pause before. It may be that brutal working conditions have caused a decline in new talent joining the industry (and who could blame them), making it literally impossible for the studios to keep up with a heavier production schedule, no matter how much the industry was happy to continue exploiting the talent.
The upshot, though, is that this is absolutely happening – whatever the reasons. And while theoretically this is not a bad thing with studios being so overwhelmed and underpaid, we seem to be seeing exactly what I feared – as the number of shows in production declines it’s not the isekai and CGDCT McShows that disappear, it’s the ambitious and risky ones. I can honestly say there hasn’t been a new series announcement in at last three months that’s genuinely piqued my interest, never mind excited me. While there are a couple of shows premiering in summer and fall that do interest me, in volume terms it’s historically barren. And with nothing new of interest having dropped for months, projecting beyond Fall 2019 it looks even worse.
Mind you, as bad as summer looks that would have been hard to imagine under historically normal circumstances. I’m previewing 12 shows this season, which while a historically small number isn’t far off my usual 1/3 rate (it’s another small schedule). But among those 12, there are really only two that I have any sense of enthusiasm about, and one of them – Kanata no Astra – is a series that doesn’t offer potential greatness. It’s just that the source material is solid and straightforward enough that it’s hard to imagine the anime screwing it up too badly.
I don’t even see the uncertainty factor that spring at least brought to the table here. There are no auteur directors helming new shows (unless you count Andou Masahiro, but he’s been slumping), no intriguing super-sleeper candidates. One or two shows will probably overperform and be unexpected keepers, as usually happens. But if it weren’t for the carryovers (Gegege no Kitarou, Fruits Basket, Mix – probably – and Kimetsu no Yaiba) it’s a season where I could easily see myself only covering 2 or 3 series. And that’s right there with Winter 2013 in “worst season ever” territory.
With only 12 series in the starting pool it’s almost impossible to even try to spot trends – the sample size is just too small. The trends that matter are that isekai and harem (and both) LN adaptations and cute girls shows are making up a bigger share of a smaller pie than at any time in recent history. We have another mid-table WSJ series, a couple of originals, another BL show on NoitaminA, a bit of sci-fi, another ancient property being remade – not enough, really, to paint any kind of a picture. With a pool of potentially decent series that’s this shallow, you don’t worry about genre or demographic, you just hope they don’t suck. And pray to whatever God you choose to that the one series with real upside – Vinland Saga – doesn’t disappoint, because if it does the bottom really drops out.
With the preliminaries dispensed with, let’s get on the preview itself. As usual, the poll is in the sidebar – please go vote!
Highest Expectations:
Vinland Saga – Wit: (PV) Somehow or another this extremely well-reviewed manga has managed to avoid crossing my path over these last 14 long years. I knew it existed, I knew it had won the Kodansha and been nominated for the Taisho, and sold over a million volumes. But I never got around to starting it, and for some reason it was never licensed in English ether. And when the anime was announced, it just seemed better to wait and go in fresh.
No pressure, but this is really the only series of the summer that seems to have the potential to be truly exceptional. That said, while director Yabuta Shuhei has worked on some very good series he’s mainly a CGI director by trade, and the previews are loaded with it. That concerns me, as does the fact that at 24 episodes for a manga that’s on 21 volumes, we’re probably looking at yet another incomplete seinen adaptation (Vinland actually starts as a shounen, then segues). Or worse, a horribly rushed one with an original ending. Vinland Saga is a popular manga, but not the sort of anime you’d expect to generate a lot of disc or merchandising revenue.
Given that anime is notably short on Viking epics, it’ll be interesting see what Wit does with this one. It’s easy to see Vinland as a sort of spiritual successor to Arslan Senki and Shoukoku no Altair – two quasi-historical military dramas which received somewhat troubled (and truncated) anime adaptations – but from what I’ve seen this seems to be somewhat more literary in tone than either of those series. All we can do is hope for the best, really – especially as there’s just not much else to pin my hopes on this season.
Mid-table:
Kanata no Astra – Lerche: (PV) It’s not meant as a dig at Kanata no Astra, but any season that has this series at #2 on my expectations list looks thin indeed. I actually like Shinohara Kenta’s manga quite a lot (more I expected to, given that I’m no fan of his more famous work SKET Dance), but it’s hardly a masterpiece – just a good, solid not too serious classic sci-fi dramedy.
And there’s certainly nothing wrong with that, What I like about Kanata no Astra is how it’s authentically retro without seeming clever-clever about it – this really does play like an anime of 25 years ago. It also strikes a perfect balance between goofy comedy, teen angst and genuine danger. The result is a modest but rock-solid package that seems like it would be pretty hard to mess up. And the experienced crew Lerche has in charge of this adaptation should be more than up to the job.
Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san 2 – Shin-Ei: (PV) This is a sequel I knew was coming sooner or later – both the manga and the first anime have proved commercially successful. Takagi-san – both the series and the character – always seem to be treading a thin line, but generally manage to avoid crossing it. It’s just a little mean and just a little too trope-driven, but this series manages to stay pretty winning most of the time despite that (and Kaji Yuuki).
Given – Lerche: (PV) I certainly can’t remember the last time Lerche had two series highly placed in a season preview here, but as always, it’s the staff and the material that matter most. This show lands on NoitaminA, which has seemingly made a conscious effort to target female otaku over the past year (and with some success). That’s actually a return to its roots as a vehicle for jousei adaptations that otherwise had trouble getting produced – though the recent picks have a decidedly more commercial bent than the ones from the early days, as a rule.
I don’t know much about Kizu Natsuki’s Given, the story of a pair of teenagers who become bandmates, and more. I don’t recall the manga being especially popular, but it does garner generally very positive reviews. Good anime that portray male-male romance without giving way to tropes and fetishism are distressingly rare, and there seems a chance at least by reputation that Given could be one of them. That the manga is ongoing is a concern; likewise that the adaptation has a virtual rookie director and relatively undistinguished screenwriter.
Dr. Stone – TMS: (PV) Dr. Stone inhabits roughly the same place in the Weekly Shounen Jump ecosystem as Kimetsu no Yaiba – more popular than most but short of the top tier, a potential next gen breakout, generally well-reviewed without being universally praised. Kimetsu is certainly the better seller but it’s also about a year older, which makes a considerable difference in building an audience when you’re talking about series only two and three years old.
Of course that raises the valid question of whether Dr. Stone’s adaptation came along a little too quickly, often a sign Shueisha is in “bleed it dry” mode, but at about 100 chapters Dr. Stone is roughly in-line with WSJ norms for an adaptation. The premise seems agreeably odd – a post-apocalyptic world where almost everyone has been turned into statues, and two boys’ quest to re-start human civilization. The choice of relatively neutral TMS and the B-list list staff seem to fit the notion of Dr. Stone as a classic middle-of-the-roader Shounen Jump adaptation.
Kochouki: Wakaki Nobunaga – Deen: (PV) Is there any historical figure who’s been the subject of so many manga, light novels, games and anime as Oda Nobunaga? Japanese pop culture is absolutely obsessed with him and that obsession shows no signs of abating. This one is an original so we don’t know much, but it seems to be a straightforward adaptation of Oda’s adolescent years – which if so is certainly more interesting than the endless and silly hooks usually utilized in a Nobunaga series. The old warhorse Abe Noriyuki, whose resume is huge and stacked with a lot of very good series, is directing. Some definite sleeper potential here in a season (and year) that desperately needs it.
Modestly Interested:
Bem – Production I.G., LandQ.: (PV) And already, we reach the shot-in-the-dark stage of the preview. To be honest I probably know about Youkai Ningen Bem mainly through BECK (the talent show arc), but this is another of those nostalgia boom revivals that anime has become increasingly obsessed with in the last couple of years. There’s some overlap with Gegege no Kitarou here – youkai helping humans, etc. – though these youkai actually want to become human themselves. I’ve never seen Youkai Ningen Bem in any of its prior incarnations, but I’m always curious about these old chestnuts trying to transition to the modern era.
Nakanohito Genome (Jikkyouchuu) – Silver Link: (PV) This is against my better judgement, but this web manga adaptation actually looks semi-interesting to me. It cuts uncomfortably close to an isekai – a bunch of kids trapped in a virtual world – but it’s built around all of them being super-gamers with a wide range of specialties. It’ll probably suck, but there’s not a lot of other options out there so I’ll give it a shot.
Enen no Shouboutai – David Productions: (PV) Kind of a weird premise in this manga adaptation, which sees a bunch of firefighters in some future Tokyo whose job is to combat widespread spontaneous human combustion. Spinal Tap jokes aside, at least it’s different – and shows about any sort of firefighters are certainly a rarity in anime. The manga is by Ookubo Atsushi, whose Soul Eater is a pretty decent series on the whole (though NOT! is not).
Try Knights – Gonzo: Every Time I hear this title I momentarily think it’s some sort of mecha show but no, this is another rugby series. With the World Cup headed to Japan rugby is having a bit of a moment (the Japan Rugby Football Union is cooperating in this production), but as far as I know the manga isn’t especially popular. I wasn’t a huge fan of All Out!!, but sports anime are generally good for at least a trial run. There don’t seem to be any English translations and first-hand opinions about the manga are hard to find – I can’t even find a listing for director or series composition. A complete crapshoot in pretty much every sense of the word.
Cop Craft – Millepensee : (PV) It’s a LN adaptation (the only one to make the cut) but there’s some pedigree to Cop Craft. It was created by Gatoh Shinji, creator of Full Metal Panic and adapter of Hyouka, who’s also handling series composition here. And the director is veteran Itagaki Shin. Millepensee certainly isn’t a studio with a track record that inspires much confidence, though – they handled the almost unbelievably ugly Berserk reboot. Plot-wise it sounds like a pretty standard futuristic buddy cop/cute girls with guns anime premise, but Gatoh’s involvement is enough to convince me to give Cop Craft a shot.
Araburu Kisetsu no Otome-domo yo. – Lay-duce: (PV) If there’s any show on the schedule that has dumpster fire written all over it, it’s Araburu Kisetsu no Otome-domo yo. A bunch of sex-obsessed girls in a high school literature club climb the steps to adulthood, written by Okada Mari? Okada shows often have that rubbernecking appeal – you know it’s going to be gruesome but you have to look – but that can only carry a show for so long. This one also has Andou Mashiro directing, continuing his oddball partnership with Okada (which has produced decidedly mixed results). In a season this threadbare any show with those two names attached is going to get a look, but to say my expectations are mixed is an understatement.
Will Definitely Blog: Vinland Saga, Kanata no Astra, Karakai Jouzu Takagi-san 2
Sleepers: Woof. Kochouki: Wakaki Nobunaga, maybe Nakanohito Genome a little?
OVA:
Another desolate season on the OVA landscape. Not much encouragement to be found here.
Majimoji Rurumo: Kanketsu-hen – 07/09/19: (PV) Watanabe Wataru’s “other” manga got an anime adaptation several years ago, largely on the strength of Yowamushi Pedal’s massive popularity. It predictably tanked commercially, but surprisingly we’re back for a two-part OVA. The TV series was an absolute charmer, and the main staff and cast all return for this original story, which Watanabe-sensei was hopefully involved in writing.
Theatrical:
The brightest category on paper for this season, to be sure.
Tenki no Ko – 07/19/19: (PV) Any new Shinkai Makoto film is big news, now more than ever. His Kimi no Na wa (I was lucky enough to see the world premiere at Anime Expo, with Shinkai present) was the greatest international hit in anime history (Spirited Away still holds the Japanese domestic record). Kimi no Na wa was certainly gorgeous, though I personally think Shinkai has certainly done better work. You can pretty much bank on certain elements in a Shinkai film – a fantasy element (usually), star-crossed young romance, bittersweet endings – and Tenki no Ko seems to be packing all of those. The story centers on a teenager from a remote who moves to Tokyo and crosses paths with a girl who has the power to control the weather.
Not to overstate the case, but Shinkai-sensei is important now above and beyond simply the artistic merit of his films – however you feel about it, he’s become the face of anime to many people. Personally, I find him to be a flawed storyteller capable of moments of great profundity – most apparently in 5 CM Per Second and Kumo no Mukou, Yakusoku no Basho – and a visual artist of unparalleled brilliance in anime. In general terms, simpler is better with Shinkai – when he tries to go too big or too mainstream, that’s where he tends to lose his way. With Weathering With You he’s elected to go back to unknown teenagers for his leads, which I heartily approve of (as much as I love Irino Miyu). And he’s working with Ghibli veteran Tamura Atsushi as animation director this time, which may explain why the trailers seem to have a subtly Ghibli aura to them (and not in the blatant way that Hoshi o Ou Kodomo did). The floor is very high for a Shinkai movie thanks to the virtual guarantee of stunning visuals – with the story, you just wait and take it as it comes.
Ni no Kuni – 08/23/19: (PV) Ni no Kuni is about as close as a movie can get to being a Ghibli film without technically being one. Ghibli partnered with Level-5 on the original game in 2011 (though not the sequel), which went on to become a legend. Director Momose Yoshiyuki is a Ghibli veteran, and the music is by frequent Ghibli muse (and general genius) Joe Hisaishi. It’s a classic fantasy tale about a boy named Oliver who journeys to the titular alternate world to try and save his mother. The games are utterly beautiful, the music is sublime, and the previews look fantastic. If Ni no Kuni isn’t one of the best anime of 2019 it’ll be quite an upset.
Hello World – 09/20/19: (PV) Ito Tomohiko is directing this time travel romance set in Kyoto. Not too much is known about the plot, but the previews look quite nice. No idea what to expect here, really, but I get sort of a sleeper vibe from Hello World.
Miyu Fan
June 12, 2019 at 9:00 pmVinland Saga is currently my fav ongoing manga, and my dream adaptation were ufotable (because no way any studio are going to hand drawn the fights and Viking ships, so best CG studio) and Miyu Irino as Canute. Having Studio Wit and Kensho Ono as Canute (was afraid it’s going to be Yuuki Kaji) get a pass from me. But they better do it better than AOT, because as a whole AOT is not a very well animated series to me.
It’s also a 24 eps season, so it’s going to stop at a good point in manga as the next arc has totally got a different tone than the previous one. They might cut some scenes to reach that point, but it should be doable in the hands of a competent staff.
Guardian Enzo
June 12, 2019 at 9:33 pmAs I understand it, it basically transitions from a shounen to a seinen. But will we get a second post-transition season of the anime?
Miyu Fan
June 12, 2019 at 10:30 pmThe transition to seinen happened quite early in the manga actually since the first story arc. The theme still remained the same pre and post, just the art became more incredible and more violent. Now the arc after that which should be covered in a second season, is so different from the first season that I won’t be surprised if it won’t be greenlit for another season.
danilo
June 12, 2019 at 10:36 pmIt transitioned from shonen to seinen only because Yukimura could not keep up with the work rate, it always had seinen tone. The transition from from shonen to seinen magazine happened early on, so the tonal transition that commentator was talking about happens later on in the manga while it was solidly labeled as seinen.
Polpo
June 12, 2019 at 9:44 pmIs there any news about that Mitsuo Iso’s new series?
Guardian Enzo
June 12, 2019 at 10:01 pmNope, no date yet. But Akane Kazuki’s new one is probably my top pick for fall after HSG II.
Spencer
June 12, 2019 at 10:23 pmEnzo, you can adopt a doom and gloom attitude about the TV anime landscape all you like – god knows the prominence of production committees and suffering low-level staff (it’s not just animators) are terrible omens. But when you tie that attitude directly to your personal level of optimism about a new crop of shows, it comes off as blind. The length of your previews, the number of series you end up blogging, the amount of “sleepers” a season produces… These aren’t a direct result of anime’s decline, but a reflection of your own preferences, which the industry has moved away from. To thread the two ideas together makes you seem like some kind of arbiter.
If you want to talk about the damage that production companies do, or the overwork that’s forced upon young artists, why not try separating those things from a season preview and actually cover them at length?
Guardian Enzo
June 12, 2019 at 11:17 pmAnd that comment is obviously a reflection of the fact that my preferences differ from yours. Honestly, it rings hollow to me. But given that I’ve never pretended these previews were anything but a subjective impression of the upcoming season it’s a moot point anyway.
danilo
June 12, 2019 at 10:27 pmChildren of the Sea is gonna be the nest anime of 2019 for sure, maybe TV anime selection is slimming down but the anime movie market has been growing and every year we get some excellent offerings which was not always the situation.
Spencer
June 12, 2019 at 10:48 pmI completely agree. As the TV anime scene shrinks, the film side of things has been on the upswing for a few years now. I’d theorize that a number of talented animators and other creatives are getting out of the TV game and moving to a place where their work can breathe.
In the past four years alone, we’ve gotten three films from Yuasa and Science Saru, two from Hosoda, two from Shinkai, and two from Yamada (not exceptionally popular on this site, I’d imagine, but still an auteur making buzzed-about films). Ghibli has been reborn as Ponoc, who are likely to produce something great in the near future, given how much talent they made off with. Then there are excellent one-offs like Children of the Sea, In This Corner of the World, Maquia, and Doukyuusei. Even franchise films are better than they’ve been in a while (I’m thinking specifically of Psycho-Pass and GuP, though there are other examples, I’m sure). To me, we’re living in the best era for anime films since the late 90s and early 00s, when Ghibli and Satoshi Kon were creating new masterpieces every few years.
DukeofEarls
June 13, 2019 at 12:08 amLong time reader that hasn’t been around in a while now. I just saw there is a new season of Daiya no Ace and wanted to find your thoughts, but I don’t see any mention of it on your blog. I remember you had vowed to give up on the series, but I thought perhaps time had healed those wounds. Have you watched it at all?
gigaknight
June 13, 2019 at 1:56 amI asked about this last preview section – he is officially off the wagon, which is too bad. Always liked Enzo’s take on the games, and this season has been really nice so far.
I think it mostly boiled down to his dislike for Furuya and the head coach? I don’t get the Furuya issue as much, but the coach is a bit stereotypical effort beats all etc etc.
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 6:43 amit boils down to the way Terajima abuses Sawamura relentlessly, usually on behalf of Furuya (who’s one of the most unlikeable character I’ve seen in a sports shounen). I had a tolerance point – he went past it, I bailed. And any change now I would just assume to be a bait-and-switch on Terajima’s part.
“Never again”.
Earthlingzing
June 13, 2019 at 12:14 amI can vouch for Vinland Saga being good, but that and Takagi-san are the only things that seem remotely surefire to be decent. It is nice to have so many carryovers though, maybe anime is transitioning to a period with more long running series instead?
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 6:45 amNah. A few years ago 3-4 carryovers would be nothing. The overwhelming majority of new shows are still 1 cour (though spring and fall still have a few more multis than summer and winter).
Simone
June 13, 2019 at 5:26 pmI don’t know why Enzo is so diminuitive about Kanata no Astra, from the manga and the trailer I think it’s going to be excellent. I love Dr. Stone too but the adaptation seems like it will probably be very run-of-the-mill stuff, nothing mindblowing.
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 5:53 pmIs that a joke?
Simone
June 13, 2019 at 6:17 pmWhat? The part about Kanata no Astra? I’m 100% serious.
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 6:39 pmIt was my #2 choice for the season!
Simone
June 13, 2019 at 9:00 pmAh, yes, I didn’t mean you didn’t mention it, but still, “any season that has this series at #2 on my expectations list looks thin indeed”. My point is, I don’t think it’s just going to be good compared to the rest, I think it’s going to be *good*, full stop.
Okuni
June 13, 2019 at 1:27 amI am completely bewildered. This season is creating an opening for me to go back and get Maison Ikkoku and Kemono no Erin. I just cannot commit to such iffy story lint.
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 6:45 amYes, this is a good “vault” season to be sure.
gigaknight
June 13, 2019 at 1:59 amEven though it is about “firefighters”, Enen no Shouboutai is much closer to Soul Eater than something like Tokyo Magnitude 8. It’s enjoyable if a bit by numbers shonen.
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 6:46 amThanks for the input. Hope it’s at least watchable.
Marty
June 13, 2019 at 6:23 amI’m personally expecting (though “hoping” is the more appropriate word) that Vinland Saga will get the Golden Kamuy treatment, the visuals may not be great, but by GOD I hope they don’t butcher the story.
I may prefer Hosoda’s films over Shinkai’s, but I’d be a liar if I said Shinkai’s films weren’t beautiful.
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 6:46 amThat’s a tough call for me. The last couple of Hosoda’s films (since he ditched his screenwriting partner) have been his weakest for me.
Marty
June 14, 2019 at 10:50 amThe Boy and the Beast May have been his weakest film, but I really enjoyed Mirai. While it doesn’t reach the emotional ambitions of Wolf Children, I don’t think it was trying to. While Summer Wars was a far better action film, I think Mirai did a better job at showcasing the story’s respective family.
Mirai is a personal favorite and definitely a top 3 Hosoda film in my book, but as they say, different strokes for different folks.
Guardian Enzo
June 14, 2019 at 11:27 amIndeed – it all comes down to personal taste, and the baseline with Hosoda is quite high. I just feel like Boy/Best and Mirai lack the narrative discipline his earlier films had. They drift for me. Also thought the (Japanese) casting in Mirai was pretty subpar for a Hosoda film.
Snowball
June 15, 2019 at 7:59 amIs Momo no Tegami a Hosoda film? I liked that and Wolf Children better than Mirai. The choice of voice actor for the little boy was particularly poor and mismatched.
Guardian Enzo
June 15, 2019 at 8:49 amHiroyuki Okiura directed that one. No Hosoda involvement that I remember.
Yes, that was an especially unwise casting choice. I’m shocked Hosoda let that happen.
Marty
June 15, 2019 at 8:06 pmInteresting, I’ve only seen the dub for Mirai, but was kin voice casting that bad in Japanese?
Guardian Enzo
June 15, 2019 at 8:21 pmThe woman who played Kun was frankly terrible. Sounded like an adult woman making no effort to sound like anything but an adult woman.
wandering-dreamer
June 13, 2019 at 9:45 am“A bunch of sex-obsessed girls in a high school literature club climb the steps to adulthood, adapted by Okada Mari? ” Adapted? Oh no dear sir, she WROTE the original manga for this one!
wandering-dreamer
June 13, 2019 at 9:47 amAlso, I’m taking it that you haven’t seen Maquia? Because that was an amazing movie on all levels.
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 1:21 pmOy, so much the better (or worse),
Simone
June 13, 2019 at 5:28 pmI don’t know if I should check this out of morbid curiosity or just let it slide. The premise sounds great, but I’m sure Okada will find a way to make it disagreeable to me.
Panino Manino
June 15, 2019 at 11:19 pmI read part of the manga recently and liked a lot, but because I liked that I’m having mixing feelings about this anime. There’s a lot of potential for “controversies” there.
Simone
June 17, 2019 at 5:33 pmI don’t usually care much for controversies – I won’t get scandalised by something morally outrageous or anything. My beef with Okada is that sometimes she just seems to push the drama too far, but besides that, it’s something more ineffable. I just find her stories… annoying. I was annoyed by Anohana, annoyed by Toradora, annoyed by Dragon Pilot (which felt like a strangely aimless vehicle for someone’s very specific vore fetish). The least said about Mayoiga, the better; Kiznaiver may be the show of hers that I liked the most, and that was probably mainly because of the visuals and the early episodes. There’s simply something in her writing style that doesn’t click with me; it feels like her characters attempt to be realistic but still somehow manage to miss that in disturbing ways. Like the uncanny valley of psychological realism, if that makes sense.
Jindujun93
June 13, 2019 at 2:19 pmChances are that the Vinland Saga anime will cover the entire first arc – that’s 54 chapters in 24 episodes, or alternatively halfway into volume 8, which should be doable, I think. I’m expecting a lot of good things, though I fully expect that the best thing of the manga, the arc right afterwards, will never be animated, so think of that what you will.
Honestly, the closest thing I could compare Vinland Saga to is probably Vagabond, so that alone should already be saying something.
Guardian Enzo
June 13, 2019 at 3:35 pmWell, you’re talking about something that would be for sure in my top 3-4 manga of all time, so that’s high praise indeed. Though it does make me sad by thinking again about how criminal it is that Vagabond has never gotten an anime.
If the season is that good, I’ll just pick up the manga – that’s what I did with Shoukoku no Altair (it’s not that the anime was sublime, but you could tell it was a phenomenal story).
Jindujun93
June 13, 2019 at 10:24 pmTell me about it, Vagabond is my #2 after Hourou Musuko, and it really is a damn shame that it never got an anime. Yeah, an anime might not be able to capture Inoue’s gorgeous art, but I’d still love to see it animated. Not to mention that the odds of the manga ever continuing aren’t all that high either (though I might hope a little, considering that Real recently resumed).
Vinland is somewhere in the top 25 for me (around #23, I think?), so it’s definitely not quite on the same level, but it’s damn good. I’d argue that it’s mostly the parts after the anime will end that’ll elevate it that high, while the anime will be around the level of the early Takezo days of Vagabond – damn good, but nowhere near what it’s capable of yet. Very much looking forward to reading your thoughts about it, though!
steelbound
June 13, 2019 at 5:08 pmI’ve been wondering if this recent decline in TV series can be partially attributed to Netflix.
I remember last year that they announced a big jump in anime acquisition. Many of these of shows have, so far, been ones that aired on Japan TV first, but, there have series that went straight to their service like Devilman Crybaby and B: The Beginning and going forward more and more of their series will probably be original to them. If that’s the case and they ordered a bunch of series last year then these series would be consuming the production time of series that would be airing now.
Also, Netflix may be paying a premium on their series so they’re produced in a timely manner which could be slowing other projects down. Remember Chihayafuru 3 was supposed air in the Spring and Madhouse had to push it back to Fall and Kabukichou Sherlock is an original series by Production IG that was supposed to air this spring and it got pushed back to Fall as well. When was the last time a large, established animation studio like Madhouse and Production IG had to push a series back? I can believe that a small or new studio might be having trouble finding staff, but, that shouldn’t be a problem at a big studio.
leongsh
June 13, 2019 at 9:36 pmWill be following these Summer series:
– Vinland Saga
– Enen no Shoubutai
– Dr. Stone
– Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san 2
– Given
The rest will be wait-and-see.
Otcho_Shogun
June 14, 2019 at 5:07 amIs there a reason why you didn’t mention Katsute Kami Datta Kemono-tachi e?
I have no Idea about the quality of the manga, but a mature dark-fantasy series by MAPPA seems quite promising to me. Seems like it has a lot of Staff from Bananna Fish and Yuri on Ice on it and the PV looks pretty good.
Guardian Enzo
June 14, 2019 at 6:41 amBasically what I’ve seen of the manga looks pretty mediocre.
Color2413
June 14, 2019 at 5:37 pmMissing in “theatrical” was “Fafner — The Beyond” (although the first ep has already played in Japanese theaters).
Sometimes I think I’m one of five Fafner fans in the U.S., but I’ve always related strongly to this show. For me, eps. 9 and 20 of “Fafner — Exodus” (both huge, ultra-high-stakes battles) are breathlessly exciting, and this is praise I give very sparingly. Exodus also looked gorgeous,as did the 2010 movie.
It’s amazing to me that the original Fafner started in 2004 and the franchise is continuing in 2019. By now, it has to be one of the longest-running mecha franchises; only Gundam comes to mind as being older and still being developed today.
Khalid
June 14, 2019 at 7:12 pmI only watched Fafner Exodus and gathered tidbits of the first season’s story by playing Super Robot Wars UX, but it’s a series I like very much, so I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on the latest movie. In the meantime, I should watch the first season and rewatch the second. It’s a shame this franchise isn’t more popular; I’d love to see model kits being made.
“By now, it has to be one of the longest-running mecha franchises; only Gundam comes to mind as being older and still being developed today.”
C’mon, you forgot Evangelion? :3
Color2413
June 19, 2019 at 3:30 amYup, definitely forgot “Evangelion.” While technically “mecha,” to me it almost defines its own genre.
leongsh
June 14, 2019 at 8:40 pmI like Fafner too but I’m not based in US. The lack of popularity in the US could probably be due to the character design because it’s by the same character designer as the Gundam Seed series and in the same style. It came out at roughly the same time too. For whatever its worth, Fafner seems to be generally unloved outside of Japan.
elianthos80
June 16, 2019 at 5:40 amSooo… Vinland, Astra and Given for me.
– It’s been years since I red the early VS chapters but I think the anime will cover one of my fav scenes from the manga ( it was the one moment that made me commit for good to the story ) and I’m looking forward to that. If done well it will be a nice introspective mono no aware moment in Viking sauce 🙂
– Astra is pretty decent, entertaining and I really dug the geeky science moments in the manga (NatGeo in space wooohoooo). I agree it should be hard to screw it up badly onscreen, unlike 7 Seeds which so far promises to be anything from underwhelming to generic to an utter disaster adaptation *weeps* . Also they might have toned down a couple boobs for the anime which would be good – space survival is hard enough without having to deal with all that extra baggage, those poor young Astra ladies – .
– Given and NoitaminA… I do wonder about the pacing but as a single cour it should be mora then enough to hit the (first?) big story climax. Also if they went at roughly 2 chapters per episode they’d have a good stopping point too. Pretty good story btw, there is only one ‘sensitive’ event imho that might raise concerns but depending on anime pacing we might or might not see it (and/or its denouement) on screen. Other than that I do hope they can do it justice and also I am curious about how they’re approaching the actual music ad songwriting bits :°D. Please let it be good music and nail the singer’s voice :°D .
elianthos80
June 17, 2019 at 9:48 amP.S. uh. Does Mo Dao Zu Shi s2 airs in summer already? If thats the case then that’s my #4 in the watchlist :D.
ArcT
June 18, 2019 at 5:52 pmIt does—in July. I can’t wait for Season 2 of Mo Dao Zu Shi. The trailer for season 2 looks AMAZING. The really, really angst-y parts of the book are finally going to be covered, which, tbh, makes it into an epic tragedy just like in Hunter x Hunter’s Chimera Ant Arc, but more personal.
Just in case you haven’t seen the trailer for Season 2 (hopefully links are allowed here for trailers in the comment section): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2bM2ETlGqA
Color2413
June 19, 2019 at 3:51 amAgree about looking forward very much to the second season. Although it didn’t resonate with Enzo, for me Season 1 was the #1 anime of Fall 2018, if for no other reason than its production values were substantially higher than anything coming out of the Japanese anime industry, and the whole thing looked like a series of classical Chinese watercolors come to life. I think that this series represented China’s challenge to Japan regarding anime production quality and they definitely proved their point. Its IMDb rating is 8.4, which is unusually high for an anime.
I hope that Guodongsubs will continue to sub it, or preferably that it will become available for streaming in the U.S.
dc22
June 18, 2019 at 8:17 pmHonestly, all that pessimism may just be you.
Seems like an average season at worst, with at least a handful of worthwhile manga adaptations.
What’s really missing is an original, ambitious show.
KisaChan
June 19, 2019 at 2:50 pmWill definitely be watching these summer show for sure:
1. Given (I absolutely love the story and the visuals are just breathtaking and I’m just so hyped to hear the music played in there ^///^ )
2. Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san 2
3. Kochouki: Wakaki Nobunaga
4. Dr. Stone
5. Fire Force
Guardian Enzo
June 19, 2019 at 3:01 pmWelcome! I’m very surprised Nobunaga has gotten no support at all in the poll. I didn’t think it would be hugely popular but I thought at least a few history buffs might be into it.
Snowball
June 20, 2019 at 6:34 amIf I’m honest the artwork looks like something out of an otome game.
Dominus
June 19, 2019 at 10:42 pmBy the way are you still keeping an eye on Yu-No (to do a series review maybe ) or is off the agenda for you.
Guardian Enzo
June 19, 2019 at 11:13 pmJust watched #12 an hour ago in fact. It’s gotten better – I’m mildly interested and I’ll probably watch it til the end unless it really goes south.
Ekin
October 18, 2019 at 2:13 pmIf you like Norse Mythology and tons of action then Vinland Saga is the one is for you. Quickly shot to my favorite