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Is bigger better where anime is concerned?

I confess, Fall 2024 kind of snuck up on me. I knew there were some big dogs in the pack, but it wasn’t until I started putting the preview together that I realized just how many formidable series there were. And it’s a really big season in the literal sense too, even by fall standards (it was the biggest last year too, but only had 61). I’m counting 67 series as I type this, and even in 2024 that’s a lot. Certainly too many given the production capacity of the industry (but I could play that pretty much on a loop at this point).

While I swear it’s never on-purpose, it’s eerie how consistently my previews end up covering one-third of the schedule. And so, as you’d predict, we have 22 shows in the preview this time. That’s a lot – one of the biggest previews I’ve ever done. And while I don’t think this projects as a legendary season on paper, that number isn’t entirely driven by sheer volume either. There are both sure things and super-intriguing wild cards on this list, and as such this season has a chance to be a very strong one.

Which 2024 could use, of course. It doesn’t look like a bad year – weaker than 2023, but that was the strongest for awhile. A huge fall could lift ‘24 pretty close to last year, though it’s not going to equal it. Still – I’ve got seven “Will Definitely Blog” series this season, and that’s on-par with some of the best seasons since I started LiA. If a few of those make a play for the top half of the year-end Top 10 list, that would obviously have a big impact on the year as a whole.

Looking at the fall slate, it’s certainly big on sequels (though that’s hardly unusual these days). As is often the case with a promising season, the preview may be strongest in the Mid-table category – it has a lot of series, including a few that were really on the borderline with “Highest Expectations”. That’s not to say the top tier isn’t strong too – there are elite sequels in there which are all as close to sure things as it gets. It’s also a season with a lot of top-class directors – and often working on shows where you wouldn’t necessarily expect to find them.

Genre and demographic wise, as usual nothing stands out to an extreme degree but I do see a fair number of romances and character dramas here. This may be a more “grounded” season than usual (at least within my narrow band of interest) – less driven by the usual modern anime formulas, with lots of seinen manga adaptations and stories about working adults. And while it will sound pretentious, there’s a lot of what look to be serious shows here – lots of Manga Taisho and Tezuka Award contenders and a couple of winners.

This is my 54th (I think) Season Preview here at LiA. Thanks to everyone who’s joined me for part of that ride. Here’s hoping efforts to make the site financially sustainable bear fruit, and these previews will continue to be free for anyone who finds them useful and entertaining. To everyone who’s pitched in to help that cause – you have my sincere gratitude.

 

Let’s move on to Fall 2024.  As usual, the poll is in the sidebar – please go vote!

 

Highest Expectations:

Rurouni Kenshin: Meiji Kenkaku Romantan – Kyoto Douran – LIDENFILMS: (PV) I have a long and extremely fond relationship with the franchise one spot farther down the list. As such there was some real competition for this slot. But given the historical nature of what the “Kyoto” arc means to shounen, I think Rurouni Kenshin has to get top billing.

It’s only a measure of just how humongous the pent-up anticipation over seeing the “Jinchuu” arc finally animated is that “Kyoto” isn’t the biggest deal is this reboot. We’ve waited 25 years for that, one of shounen’s greatest arcs from one of its most successful series, inexplicably never adapted. Assuming this remake gets there (and its existence would be pretty pointless if it doesn’t) that’s going to be the headline – period and end of sentence.

However, that said… “Kyoto” would be (and is, I did a post on it) on my short list for best shounen arc ever. Very short list, like one hand with fingers left over. It’s that great – both epic and intimate, full of great action and profound emotion and pathos. It incorporates a truly superb supporting cast and without question represents the pinnacle of Rurouni Kenshin and Watsuki Nobuhiro’s work, as great as “Jinchuu” is. The first season, covering the Edo section of the story, was very good without being transcendent of the source material. I think it’s a pretty good bet that will be the case here too, but given just how great this arc is that would still make Kyoto Douran an AOTY contender in any normal  year.

Natsume Yuujinchou Shichi – Shuka: (PV) I’ve been a fan of Rurouni Kenshin even longer than Natsume Yuujinchou. But that’s been an on-again off-again relationship, where with this series it’s been pretty much steady (though this has been the longest gap between seasons). Natsume Yuujinchou has been a staple of LiA since the beginning, pretty much. It’s a show that’s easy to take for granted, but has a unique transportive quality. No matter how long it’s been, the minute an episode (or OVA, or movie) begins, I’m immediately back in the vibe as if no time at all has passed.

Why seven years between Season Six and “Shichi”, even though the manga continues to be a big seller? Who knows – Omori Takahiro doesn’t work as frequently as he used to, and it’s probably harder to get the team back together than it used to be. Some seasons have been better than others but on the whole this series is remarkably consistent, and there was really no noticeable dip in quality when Shuka split off from Brain’s Base and took their biggest property with then. The warm to Mushishi’s cool look at Japanese mythology, this series is a foundational one in both manga and anime, and I’m always glad to welcome more of it.

That said, S7 definitely needs moar Kogitsune. Seriously, I know he hasn’t showed up in the manga for ages but they already did one original episode for him (“The Little Fox’s Watch”) and it was one of the series’ best and most well-received. It’s long past time for another, Shuka – get on that.

Ao no Hako – Telecom Animation Film: (PV) Blue is the most popular color in manga titles by a long stretch, and this preview has a couple of “Ao no” series in it (and that doesn’t count a third on the schedule, the new Ao no Exorcist). This one, Ao no Hako, runs in Weekly Shounen Jump. And, it’s stood out as an unusual fit for the magazine right from the beginning. It’s stood out as a likely hit, too – there was something special about it that was impossible to miss.

Blue Box is a sports romcom that probably comes as close to any I know in balancing those two elements equally. That balance ebbs back and forth over the course of the series but the sum always seems to be about 50-50. The sport is badminton (not one about which I’m especially knowledgeable or passionate, but that’s never been a deal breaker). And the romcom mainly centers on Taiki, a first-year high schooler who plays the sport, and Chinatsu, one year older and the star of the basketball team. There are other important characters (some I like better than others) but those two are the clear axis around which Ao no Hako rotates.

This is not a perfect series by any means – it leans too heavily on tropes and some of the supporting cast is not great in my view. But Chinatsu and Taiki are great, and the sports side of things is realistic and well-depicted. There are elements of Adachi in here to be sure but more superficially than in substance. As for the adaptation, it has a solid if unremarkable cast at a solid if unremarkable studio, and that’s the vibe I get from the previews. It looks like a very competent and very faithful adaptation, and that should do the trick with this material. Blue Box is a series I suspect may be even better in anime form, and as commercially successful as the manga is (and where it’s published) it’ll be a major surprise if it doesn’t receive a complete adaptation in time.

 

Mid-table:

Ao no Miburo – Maho Film: (PV) In a season full of well-established franchises, some of which didn’t make the cut for this tier, a series I don’t personally know that gets middling reviews from an obscure studio with little track record does. It’s not entirely something I can justify with logic, but it feels right so I’m going with it.

The Blue Wolves of Miburo is set in 1863, on the cusp of the Meiji Restoration and in the dying days of the Shogunate. If you didn’t know, “The Wolves of Miburo” was the original name of the Shinsengumi, and this series marks a sort of origin story for the group, A young orphan with a hunger for justice crosses paths with two youths who will one day be commanders of the Shinsengumi, Hijikata Toshizo and Okita Souji. It’s fitting that this is airing during the same season as the Kyoto Arc of Rurouni Kenshin, as many figures will appear in both series.

As I said, there’s not much concrete to lean on here. Manga reviews are so-so, studio track record is iffy, and the staff is nothing special (though adapting writer Ihara Kenta has an outstanding resume). I’m basing this placement almost entirely based on premise, which sounds just about perfectly placed in my sweet spot. It’s rare for me to place so much stock in that – we’ll see if it proves justified.

Dandadan – Science SARU: (PV) Dandadan is one of multiple manga that I follow receiving adaptations this Fall. I’ve read the manga since the very beginning, when it immediately received huge buzz and glowing recommendations from mangaka. It’s the work of Tatsu Yukinobu, one of many Fujimoto assistants to have a transformative effect on the modern manga industry (though it’s lately emerged that his assistants were often more mentors to him than the other way round). It’s a series that grabs you immediately with its stunningly detailed artwork, inventive paneling, and breathless narrative drive.

So what is Dandadan? Sort of a kitchen sink of anything fantastical and speculative fictional – aliens, Shinto Kami, ghosts, mecha, super sentai, youkai, cryptozoology. If you can imagine it and it’s probably not real, this series will get to it eventually. The structure, such as it is, features a bunch of teens, a sexy grandma mahoutsukai, and various other oddballs (and I do mean odd) battling a constantly evolving array of threats while searching for the protagonist’s… Well, I’ll let you get there when you get there, but you’ll have a ball with this one.

Truth be told, I’ve kind of grown indifferent with the manga lately. I still like and follow it (it’s currently on hiatus), but for me Dandadan is a series with more frosting than cake. It’s damn good frosting, though. And judging by the previews and reaction to the early episodes (which were leaked after hackers stole them from Netflix servers) Science Saru is really pulling out all the stops with this adaptation. This is a series that needs visual flair and, frankly, budget – more than almost any I can think of it would suffer badly from a mediocre adaptation. I’m expecting impact here – huge buzz when it premieres. If it can sustain it, Dandadan has a chance to be the most talked-about anime of 2024.

Chi.: Chikyuu no Undou ni Tsuite- Madhouse: (PV) In Chi Chikyuu, we’re talking about a seinen manga that won the Manga Taisho and Seiun Awards, and has been nominated for pretty much all the others. It’s being adapted by sleeping giant Madhouse, who can still bring it hard when they decide to. It has an outstanding director in Shimizu Kenichi, who directed Kiseijuu for Madhouse and has worked on classics at most of the major studios. It has Sakamoto Maaya as the male lead. If there were ever a series that should be full go for me, it’s this one.

I’m excited for Chi Chikyuu, but the hard truth is, I dropped the manga. Part of it – a big part – was that mangaka Uoto’s art never really worked for me. That’s rarely a deal-breaker for me with a manga, especially an otherwise really good one, but I couldn’t get past it. I also kind of drifted in and out of the story, truth be told, though I can’t say for sure how much of that was a result of my struggles with the character designs. This is basically a factionalized account of heretics in 15th Century Poland, struggling against the oppression of the Catholic Church as they attempted to discover the truths of the universe and bring them to the people.

It’s all there, everything I could want. Except with the manga, it just isn’t. Not really. But I’m hopeful that with a strong team behind it Madhouse can fix the elements of the source material that were broken for me. The manga is finished so there’s really nothing standing in the way of Madhouse telling the story they want to tell here, and there’s no question that it’s theoretically a fascinating and important one. Mid-table, but with a ton of upside.

Ooi! Tonbo 2nd Season – OLM: (PV) I don’t know that I’d call Ooi! Tonbo one of 2024’s unlikeliest success stories, because I’m not sure just exactly how successful it is. This second “season” was obviously planned as a second split cour before production even began. Still, there has been a bit of buzz around the series in Japan and the reaction among Western fans who gave it a chance (all six of them probably read this site) was very positive. It’s a manga that runs in a golf magazine and doesn’t feature a drop of power-ups or special moves – just golf and chatracters. But Ooi! Tonbo does all right for itself.

Needless to say I enjoyed the first cour very much, both on the golf and human side. Tonbo and Igaiga developed a really strong student and mentor relationship and the Tokara Islands setting was used beautifully. The finale had a rather jarring timeskip however, and this cour is going to be a very different show in every practical way. As such I’m withholding judgment a little until whether we see if the same magic exists with a (nearly) adult Tonbo and a mainland and even urban setting. I suspect the charm will still be there and I know the golf will be good.

Beastars Final Season – Orange: (PV) December is still the Fall season, remember. The Beastars ride concludes on Netflix, which probably means the entire season will be dumped all at once and the anime community will barely talk about it. Even if it were going out with traditional distribution I suspect my anticipation would be just a bit muted, however, as I found the second season to be meaningfully less successful than the first.

For all that, though, I’m still a fan of the literary ambition Itagaki Paru shows with this series. She takes a pretty unsparing look at racism and gender politics in Beastars, and the picture she paints is definitely not a rosy one. One problem I had with S2 is that Haru effectively disappeared from the story, and her relationship with Legoshi – complex and troubling as it was – gave this series most of whatever sense of hopefulness and uplift it had. Hopefully she’ll be back in force in the final season, because I’m fond of this series and I’d really like to see it finish on a high note.

Kimi wa Meido-sama. – Felix Film: (PV) It might seem odd to see this seemingly generic shounen romcom ranked ahead of some of the series you’ll see below it. In fact, on the surface it might seem odd that I’m previewing it at all. Indeed my initial thinking was that I wasn’t going to – former assassin takes a job as a maid to a high school boy and is a total dojikko. I mean, trite as can be. And it’s not like the manga gets great reviews or anything. But then I saw “Watanabe Ayumu” and that kind of trumped everything else.

It’s not as if I love everything Watanabe directs – that’s why Kimi wa Meido-sama. is mid-table. But he probably is the top director in TV anime at the moment, and anything he’s attached to immediately merits my full attention, no qualifiers. The fascinating question for me is why Watanabe-sensei, who can pick and choose his projects (his next is the far more high-profile Witch Hat Atelier) decided to direct what seems like a generic shounen romcom without massive sales, glowing reviews, or major awards. And Akao Deko is doing the scripts to boot. Part of me says there must be some reason why that happened, which is the biggest curiosity factor I  have going into this show.

Kekkon suru tte, Hontou desu ka – Ashi Productions: (PV) A seinen romance about a (soon-to-be) married adult couple? Sign me up please. I recently did a commission about married couples in anime and as you saw, it was pretty slim pickings. The director or Kekkon suru tte, Hontou desu ka is Ikehata Hiroshi, the one who helmed the series that dominated that list, Tonikaku Cawaii. And – Ashi Productions? Talk about a blast from the past. They’re a company with a very long history in anime (All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku, c’mon) but they sure haven’t been a lead production studio on much in recent years.

Kekkon suru tte, Honto desu ka is the story of a pair of twenty-something introverts working at a Tokyo travel agency (keep going, I’m listening) who are quite content with their solo existence. The company decides to open an office in Siberia (ROFL) and prioritize sending unmarried employees to staff it. I think you can see where this is going, and I have to say it’s a place I want to go. Ikehata is working with his ToniKawa writing partner Hyoudou Kazuho, and the manga is complete so there should be no issues with original endings. I’m not absolutely nuts for the two Wakaki Tamiki series (16bit Sensation, The World God Only Knows) that have gotten adaptations (though I didn’t dislike them) but apart from that this one has strong sleeper vibes.

Tsuma, Shougakusei ni Naru. – Studio Signpost: (PV) Here’s another one where a seemingly dodgy premise is elevated in the rankings thanks to a big-time director (that’s a bit of theme this season). The director in this case is Abe Noriyuki, one of the mainstays of the industry for 30 years who’s recently helmed the Kuroshitsuji projects and Oooku: The Inner Chambers. The story here is that of a widow for ten years with a daughter, and the young girl who shows up at his door claiming to be the reincarnation of his late wife.

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t find that premise tired and kind of creepy. But Abe is good, damn good, and the reviews for the manga are solid (apparently it doesn’t go as low as one might expect). And it’s another completed manga, which we’re seeing more of in anime adaptation choices these days – a trend I wholeheartedly encourage. I’m more bemused than anything but there’s enough to suggest this might be more than it seems to give this show a chance.

Houkago Shounen Hanako-kun Part 2. – Lerche: (PV) Make no mistake, the main Hanako-kun event is the long – and I do mean long – overdue second season of the main series. That’s finally coming in January, and we have the second outing for the omake spinoff Houkago Shounen Hanako-kun to tide us over in the meantime. Again we’ve only got four episodes, and they’re half-length, so expectations for this comedy-driven outing should be tempered accordingly. But I enjoy it for what it is, and knowing the main course is just around the corner makes it much easier to enjoy this version as an appetizer.

 

Modestly Interested:

NegaPosi Angler – Nut: (PV): Yet another pretty big director, this time Umeura Yutaka – a  Gainax veteran with a pretty solid track record (though he did direct one of the FLCL sequel abominations). As you know my mantra is that on originals the most important staff member is the writer, however, and in this case it’s Suzuki Tomohiro. He’s only done adaptations that I know of but some very good ones at least. Here we have a story about a college student with a terminal illness who’s rescued from drowning by a couple of fishing aficionados who get him hooked (heh) on the hobby. A premise befitting the overall serious tint of this season, and possibly one with a bit of sleeper potential.

Goukon ni Ittara Onna ga Inakatta Hanashi – Ashi Productions: (PV)  Ashi is unstoppable! This time it’s a manga adaptation about a college kid invited by a female friend to a mixer. Once he arrives he realizes it’s all men, and ike-men at that. I certainly like the idea of more series about adults, and we’re getting several this season. I don’t know the source material here and the staff doesn’t immediately strike me as exceptional. But the manga seems to be quite well-regarded and it’s been nominated a few times on the awards circuit.

Ranma ½ (2024) – MAPPA: (PV) Ranma 1/2 is not a series I necessarily think needed a reboot. And there have been a few too many of those lately for my taste, given that production capacity is finite. But while I don’t consider Ranma a masterpiece of anywhere close, it was one of the first anime I really watched (whether on VHS or DVD I can’t remember), and I have fond memories for the most part. I’ll check it out but I have no idea if the current me will buy into this premise or not.

Raise wa Tanin ga Ii – Deen: (PV) I have a bit of an allergy to yakuza series, though maybe The Fable has eased the skepticism a bit. I know the seinen manga this series is based on is very well-regarded, with numerous award nominations and wins on its resume. Raise wa Tanin ga Ii is the story if a mafia princess who’s scared off every male in her life who gets married off to the grandson of a rival gang by her grandfather, the big boss. He seems nice (for a yakuza) but turns out to be a serious S&M freak. Staff is fine and very experienced – director Kawase Toshifumi did one of my favorite golden oldies, Pita Ten. But somehow I get a bit of an anti-sleeper vibe from this one – maybe just skepticism on the fit.

Trillion Game – Madhouse: (PV) Yep, it’s another seinen adaptation about grown-ups with jobs. And another Madhouse series to boot. It’s the story of a brilliant entrepreneur who spurns a chance to join a massive IT company in order to make it big (very big – the title is dollars, not yen) on his own. Eventually he gathers allies around him to that end. Yet another show with an old-school director in Satou Yuuzou and based on an award-winning manga (it won the 2024 Shogakukan Award).  I’m comfortable calling it a sleeper.

Touhai: Ura Rate Mahjong Touhai Roku – East Fish Studio: (PV) I’m sure there must have been a spokon Mahjong anime at some point, but I certainly haven’t seen it if so. Touhai is the story of a teenage Mahjong whiz who battles older players while hiding a girl in the country illegally (an interesting combo). I know nothing of the source manga and the staff and studio are seemingly unexceptional, but in theory this is a pretty good fit for my tastes.

Uzumaki – Drive: (PV)  Maybe it’s sacrilege to say it, but I’ve never quite gotten the fuss with Itou Junji. Still, I’m the first to admit that may be because pretty much all attempts to adapt him to anime have been dumpster fires and I’ve only sparingly read his manga. Uzumaki is one of his most famous works, Miki Shinichirou is the male lead, and you’ve got the Mushishi director (Nagahama Hitoshi) at the helm. It must be said, Mushishi is the only thing he’s done that I liked but if you’re only going to have one on the resume, that’s a peach.

Youkai Gakkou no Sensei Hajimemashita! – Satelight: (PV) One of my core beliefs is that anime needs more series with Ohsaka Ryouta as the protagonist. I don’t think it’s a Miyu Irino thing where he’s focused on other things, because Ohsaka gets a fair number of supporting roles – he’s just not an it-boy anymore. And it’s a shame as he can be great in serious roles as well as really funny, which is what he’ll be tasked with here. Youkai Gakkou is a comedy about a timid teacher working at a school of monsters who love to prank him. A pretty good veteran director in Ono Katsumi, and the manga is purportedly pretty solid.

Tono to Inu – Live2D Creative Studio, OLM: (PV) Another shoujo web manga. This time it’s a chronicle of a daimyou who’s fallen on hard times and the dog (corgi?) he adopts who brings cheer to his miserable existence. Purely a shot in the dark.

MF Ghost 2nd Season – Felix Film: (PV) MF Ghost didn’t start off well for me. The character designs are pretty fugly and the gender politics are old-fashioned to say the least. But it grew on me, almost entirely because the racing sequences (with street vehicles on road courses in a post-semi apocalyptic Japan) were genuinely interesting and occasionally exciting. And the male lead is modestly interesting in an offbeat way.

 

Will definitely blog: Rurouni Kenshin Meiji Kenkaku Romantan, Natsume Yuujinchou Shichi, Ao no Hako, Dandadan, Houkago Shounen Hanako-kun 2, Ooi! Tonbo 2nd Season, Beastars Final Season. As noted that’s seven right there, which is on the high extreme of my usual range for this category. And there are so many other mid-table shows with promise that I’ll be very surprised if at least a couple more don’t make the cut.

Sleepers: Kekkon suru tte, Hontou desu ka, NegaPosi Angler, Trillion Game.

 

OVA:

Wow, an actual entry in the OVA category – that’s the first one in a while.

Shiguang Dailiren: Yingdu Pian – 10/2024: (PV) Specific info on this donghua is a little hard to come buy, including an exact release date and episode count. And the second season of Link Click was, for me, a huge step down from the first. But I’ll still go back in hoping that the series somehow recaptures the magic of that superb first season that t0ok the anime world by storm.

 

Theatrical:

Only one movie this time. Fall is not traditionally the biggest season for theatrical anime so that’s not necessarily a huge surprise.

Fureru. – 10/04/2024: (PV) Fureru. has been generating a fair bit of buzz, given that it’s more or less the latest reunion for the AnoHana creative team. That would be director Nagai Tatsuyuki, animator/character designer Tanaka Masayoshi, and superstar writer Okada Mari, who was the hottest name in the biz for a couple of years but whose star seems to have waned a bit. I’m certainly a huge AnoHana fan but I think the track record for this troupe since has been somewhat mixed.

Fureru. is the story of three 20 year-old (fittingly for this season) residents of the same island who now live in Takadanobaba, Tokyo (my old neighborhood, more or less). Since it’s Okada it’s pretty much a given that magical realism will have a say, and so it does. There are some sort of magical creatures from the island who allow these three to communicate telepathically (or something). It’s Okada – heartache and probably extreme emotional carnage will surely follow.