Time does fly. It only feels like it was a few weeks ago that we were all talking about the absolute banger lineup of anime that was coming for the Winter and Spring of this year. Alas, Summer is now upon us and unfortunately, the lineup of shows is not as densely packed or as exciting as previous seasons but there’s still some gold out there that is worth watching. Here are shows that I’m personally looking out for.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid Season 2
This is easily the most important anime of the year not because I think it will be amazing, I personally thought season 1 was good but not great, but because this is the first TV anime from Kyoto Animation since that god awful fire that nearly destroyed the studio in 2019 and claimed the lives of so many talented people. KyoAni is one of the best studios in the industry and has produced some of my favorite anime of all time ( Violet Evergarden, Sound Euphonium, A Silent Voice, etc).
They make great anime and treat their workers humanely and fairly, something that is lacking in other studios, which means that its rehabilitation is important to improve the industry. This show is going to be a demonstration to see whether KyoAni has recovered and is back on its feet. I hope that they produce an incredible show that will prove that they’re back in the game.
Magia Records Season 2
The sequel to the spin-off to one of the greatest anime ever made is coming back. Madoka Magica is easily in my top 3 favorite anime of all time. I could talk endlessly about how it a masterpiece from the story, characters, plot, animations, and soundtrack, and just the fact that this is in the same universe already has me very excited.
Although I personally felt that the first season was nowhere near as good as the original I still thought that it was pretty neat. The ending cliffhanger had me very curious about where this story is going to go and the vibe that it gave me made me think that it going for a theme and atmosphere that is much closer to the original. Besides that, the technical aspects, animations, visuals, cinematography, soundtrack, were all excellent. All of these combined have me very interested in the future of the franchise. Will this be as good as the original? Probably not but I still think this is going to be a great show based on what I’ve seen so far.
The Detective is Already Dead
I had next to no expectations going into this show but after watching the first episode I must say that this definitely has a lot of potential. It started as an action-adventure involving a hijacking and ended in this romcom. Personally, I don’t know what genre or theme this show is going for but what it does do it does very well. The fight scene on the airplane was amazing with gorgeous sakuga at the end while the rom-com part was hilarious and the two main leads and great chemistry in the scenes they were in. Combine that with the twist at the end and having who is already a contender for the best girl of the season and this show looks very interesting.
It felt weird with all the genre switching but at the same time was also very unique and was a delight to watch. Overall, the first episode felt a very good impression on me and I’m definitely looking forward to the next episodes. I have no idea where this show is going to go in the future but I’m very interested to see what comes next.
Tokyo Revengers
I know that this came in the Spring but it’s still airing and besides, it’s my list so I get to make the rules HAHA. Anyway, I absolutely enjoy Tokyo Revengers and think it’s one of the best of the previous season. It’s the classic underdog story mixed in with time travel science fiction in the same vein as Re: zero and Erased. I find the story of Takemicchi and his journey from zero to hero as he struggles through every obstacle to be so compelling because we see the sheer will and determination he has to overcome each and every challenge he goes through. He may go down but he always gets backs up which makes him so likable. Combine him with best boys Mikey and Draken and best girl Hina and you have a stellar cast.
After the fantastic Festival Arc, as well as the various twists and reveals made in the latest episode, I’m so eagerly awaiting the upcoming Vahalla arc which has been hyped up by manga fans. Takemicchi’s new goal of being the head of the Toman Gang as well as the reveal of the new bad guy just add up to my anticipation and curiosity as to where the story will go. If they can nail this second half of the show then this could easily be one of the animes of the year.
So these are the anime I’m looking forward to this season. As you can see, it’s really light compared to absolutely packed previous seasons although this could all change as more anime get more attention. Personally, this is kind of a good thing as it gives us a breather after the incredible Seasons of Winter and Spring and a break before fall which is already looking incredible with Demon Slayer 2, 86 Season 2, and Shield Hero Season 2. I’m going to be using this to catch up on shows from the past seasons that I wasn’t able to watch previously. What do you think? Are you also excited about these shows? What are you going to watch this season? Tell us in the comment section and thanks for reading.
