I kind of take the view that any season with something in the “Elite” category is a pretty good one. But overall Summer 2026 looks decent even beyond that. It’s a big season in terms of volume, both globally and locally (i.e. my own interests). And so far at least, the hit rate is high enough for me not to consider it a disappointment.

Two shows in “Outstanding” is nice too – average, but often that’s with nothing ranked above them. The weakness of the season might be “Very Good”, with only three shows – in some seasons there are more there, but not always. A total of six shows in the top three buckets? That’s certainly not bad. Seasons tend to be either “gourd-shaped” (middle-heavy) or hourglass-shaped, and this one probably leans towards the latter (though not in extreme fashion).

Last season was more the gourd variety. And that was reflected in the big bubble – the Patron Pick ballot had an abundance of candidates.There’s not much I can honestly say is a bubble series this summer – I’m either pretty firm on wanting to cover stuff or checked-out. As such finding more than two or three series for the ballot was a stretch.

On the sleeper front it’s been a decided mixed bag. Reiwa no Dara-san is a winner for sure, Iwamoto-san hasn’t lived up to my hopes, and Sayonara Lara is one of those few bubble series. I mentioned Uchi no Otouto-domo ga Sumimasen as an outside candidate and that too has turned out to be quite good. On the whole I’d say I’m satisfied.

 

Onward, then, to Summer 2026:

The Elite

World is Dancing
Episodes Watched: 5
Grade: A
Comments: In the words of Jerry Seinfeld, it’s so nice when it happens good.

I’m generally too lazy to check such things, but I was really curious – the last time I had anything in this category was exactly two years ago, Summer 2024. That supports my governing hypothesis that the trend is more good anime, less great anime (the real test of that would be if I do a “Best of the 2020’s” top 10 or 20 list). Of course it’s a totally subjective call, but I really thought World is Dancing fit the bill. Not only is it great, but it’s resolutely about something and in a very intelligent way. I had the highest of expectations for this series – that it would be a strong AotY candidate – and so far they’ve been met. I can’t possibly ask for more than that from the first month of a show.

 

Outstanding

Nige Jouze no Wakagimi Season 2
Episodes Watched: 2
Grade: A
Comments: By coincidence, here’s the series that last held the aforementioned status two years ago. Must be something about the 14th Century, I guess. Obviously I can’t really make an informed call on Season 2 after two episodes, but it’s off to another great start and I fully expect the same overall standard (though it wouldn’t shock me if we overall had a bit less budget this time).

Seihantai na Kimi to Boku Season 2
Episodes Watched: 4
Grade: A-
Comments: Same as above, pretty much, with the exception that we’re four episodes in and it’s safer to say we haven’t lost anything. You and I Are Polar Opposites is still pure charm – funny, smart, visually clever. Because these characters and this story are not static the series has evolved, but at a believable pace and interestingly. I suspect we’re going to see a fair bit of focus on the two B couples from here on out (Edit: that totally exploded in Episode 4) and that’s perfectly OK with me.

 

Very Good

Tenmaku no Jaadugar  
Episodes Watched: 5
Grade: B+
Comments: I do have some issues with A Witch in Mongolia. The good slavery trope is among my least favorite in animanga, and this series continues to have a flirtation with it. As well, it’s sugarcoating the brutality of the Mongols pretty hard – so far at least. On the other hard a series that gives the Mongols their due as a superpower is certainly welcome, and this is a fascinating setting for a drama. The visuals are distinctive at the very least, and the storybook look has grown on me over time, It’s a serious show about serious themes that looks like a children’s story, and that dichotomy is itself interesting.

Otome Kaijuu Caraméliser (Kaiju Girl Carmelise) – 04 
Episodes Watched: 4
Grade: B
Comments: I quite liked the manga chapters I read some time back, and this adaptation is doing an excellent job capturing the manga’s appeal. Yeah, the whole kaijuu thing is metaphorical and the series is about adolescence and self-loathing, but that stuff is fun in its own right. Kuroe is a really relatable protagonist and I think the series as a whole does a really nice job in portraying the coming of age experience from a female perspective (to the extent that I can speculate).

Reiwa no Dara-san
Episodes Watched: 4
Grade: B
Comments: This is a weird one, no question about it – very kinky and a bit perverse. But Reiwa no Dara-san is smart and funny, and I like the contrast between the horror side and the absurdist comedy. It and the show below it are by the same studio and director and air on the same day, which is the first time I can remember that happening.

 

Worthwhile

Super no Ura de Yani Suu Futari 
Episodes Watched: 3
Grade: B
Comments: As someone who finds cigarettes pretty gross, the way smoking culture is celebrated in this series doesn’t always sit well with me. And the central conceit that drives the plot requires a kaijuu-sized suspension of disbelief. But the bond between the two lonely souls at the heart of the story does have a certain poignancy to it. We’re getting to the point in the series where it shifted from a short web manga to a print version with longer chapters, and viewers can decide for themselves how they feel about that change.

Uchi no Otouto-domo ga Sumimasen 
Episodes Watched: 4
Grade: B
Comments: Uchi no Otouto is probably one of my favorite shoujo adaptations of the past several seasons, refreshingly light on tropes. I think the dynamic between Ito and her step-brothers feels pretty authentic. I’m concerned about the romance angle with the eldest, Gen, which seems an increasing inevitability. I also wonder where it’s headed with the 3rd brother, Syu, who conveniently disappears for episodes at a time. But overall I find a lot to like here, and I’d certainly like to stick with it.

Kore Kaite Shine  
Episodes Watched: 4
Grade: B-
Comments: Draw This and Die is a CGDCT series basically. But I like the Teshima-sensei character (ported over from Toyoda Minoru’s better series, Love Roma). And if you love manga, the series’ love for it is pretty contagious. It’s also quite nice to look at and very cleverly adapted, not surprising given that it has Akagi Hiroaki and his Shin-Ei team behind it.

Toumei na Yoru ni Kakeru Kimi to, Me ni Mienai Koi wo Shita.
Episodes Watched: 3
Grade: B-
Comments: If a light novel adaptation is going to make the cut this season, Toumei na Yoru is the only one that has a shot. I love Miyu Irino’s performance as the emotionally-closed protagonist Kakeru, and the contrast with the free-spirited blind girl Koharu makes for an interesting pairing. LNs have a tendency to burn out with me after decent starts, and I strongly vibe that this show is about to go much darker. But for now, this series is pretty interesting.

 

Still Watching

Sayonara Lara
Episodes Watched: 4
Grade: B-
Comments: Kinema Citrus’ 15th Anniversary project perhaps isn’t quite as visually stunning as I might have hoped in that context. But that’s a big ask, and it’s still a very pretty show in a broadly Japanized-Disney style. Its take on The Little Mermaid seems more Andersen than Disney though, at least as far the the religious themes and same-sex romance undertones. It’s a bit hard to get a handle on even still and overall is more interesting than really engaging, but I’m still curious to see where it’s headed.

Nijusseiki Denki Mokuroku: Eureka Evrika
Episodes Watched: 4
Grade: C+
Comments: Sparks of Tomorrow is a show that relies almost totally on visuals for its appeal. That’s the bad news – the good news is it’s Kyoto Animation, so those visuals are absolutely stunning. And it’s by no means the worst of the almost always mediocre in-house LN adaptations the studio does – this series at least isn’t self-serious and melodramatic. It’s silly, sometimes fun, and great to look at but I can’t say much else about it really clicks for me.

Thunder 3
Episodes Watched: 3
Grade: C
Comments: There’s the kernel of something really interesting with Thunder 3. Even the CGI sort of works for the premise. But now that I know the anti-foreigner vitriol is coming it’s obvious even earlier in the anime than it was in the manga. Gantz mangaka or no, that’s a pretty big hurdle to get past.

Black Torch
Episodes Watched: 4
Grade: C
Comments: Black Torch had a very good premiere and this adaptation is quite competent. Overall though it increasingly comes across as formulaic and generic battle shounen as it progresses. I have no idea if that’s why it was cancelled, but there are certainly plenty of battle shounen meeting that description that weren’t.

Iwamoto-senpai no Suisen
Episodes Watched: 3
Grade: C
Comments: I had decent expectations for this series given that Shiibashi Hiroshi is the mangaka. But the first three episodes have failed to make much of an impression on me. I may try one or two more episodes just to see if something clicks on.

 

No Category

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War – The Calamity
Episodes Watched: 1
Grade: Incomplete
Comments: I’ve just finished the Bleach manga (which credible rumors suggest is about to re-start), for the purposes of the podcast. Given that it seems only right to watch my first-ever episode of the anime – which I did. it just premiered and this season is only going to run for ten episodes. First impressions are it’s fine, quite nice for Pierrot show production-wise. But Bleach will always be a black-and-white series in my mind – it just seems to suit Kubo’s aesthetic.

 

Dropped:

Koukaku Kidoutai The Ghost in the Shell, Sora wa Akai Kawa no Hotori, Tetsunabe no Jan!, Ibitte Konai Gibo to Gishi, Mebius Dust, Honoo no Toukyuujo: Dodge Danko, Oni no Hanayome, Grow Up Show: Himawari no Circus-dan

 

Here, then, is this season’s blogging prospectus:

Monday:
Definitely Blogging:: World is Dancing
On the Bubble: Toumei na Yoru ni Kakeru Kimi to, Me ni Mienai Koi wo Shita.

Tuesday: None 

Wednesday: None

Thursday:
Definitely Blogging: Reiwa no Dara-san, Super no Ura de Yani Suu Futari, Otome Kaijuu Caraméliser  

Friday:
Definitely Blogging: Kami no Shizuku, Nige Jouzu no Wakagimi Season 2
Probably Blogging: Uchi no Otouto-domo ga Sumimasen
On the Bubble: Kore Kaite Shine

Saturday:
Definitely Blogging: Mairmiashita! Iruma-kun 4th Season, Yomi no Tsugai,  Mao, Tenmaku no Jaadugar

Sunday:
Definitely Blogging: Seihantai na Kimi to Boku Season 2
On the Bubble: Sayonara Lara, Nijusseiki Denki Mokuroku: Eureka Evrika

Watching For Now: Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War – The Calamity, Thunder 3, Black Torch, Iwamoto-senpai no Suisen

Patron Pick Ballot: Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War – The Calamity, Sayonara Lara, Nijusseiki Denki Mokuroku: Eureka Evrika, Kore Kaite Shine, Toumei na Yoru ni Kakeru Kimi to, Me ni Mienai Koi wo Shita.

 

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