With the start of a new anime season I wanted to quickly give my first impression on the select anime I have started this season. It is important to note that Attack On Titan S3 has not started airing and won't start until later this month, and I won't be starting Overlord S3 until later into the season once I catch up on seasons 1 and 2, so I can't give my opinions on those shows in this article. I also am not confirming that I will be watching each show I talk about for the whole season, considering the amount of shows I am watching it is very likely I will be dropping some of them as the season goes on.
Continuing Series
My Hero Academia Season 3
Seen Episodes: 1-13
Up to this point I have been a huge fan of My Hero Academia, season 2 might of even been my favorite anime of last year. It has had such compelling stories and compelling arcs that have amazed me up to this point, but Season 3 has easily been the blandest season to me so far. Even though there definitely still is time for it to pick up (and it has been far from bad) this season has suffered from strange pacing and forgettable arcs. Deku has become a much less interesting character as the people around him have become less interesting, Deku is a character that relies on bringing out interesting stories and growth from the characters around him. Seeing him interact and bring the best out of characters such as Todoroki and Uraraka was the best part of Deku in season 2. In this season Deku has so far mainly interacted and had arcs with characters such as Izumi who have been much less interesting leading to a more boring experience, we also have had a lot more time spent just with Deku which has been disappointing. Whenever we have focused on just Deku alone he has produced weaker plots and that continues in season 3.
The general story has also just not clicked, from the overly long battle arc to kick off the season to the rescue of Bakugo which had its tension seriously hurt when they decided to play dress up in the middle of the serious situation. It's not that My Hero Academia can't be fun (the room decoration contest was one of my favorite things from this entire season and was great for character building), but season 3 has seriously messed up time and time again with balancing its serious drama and characters with the hope to please the tumblr community which is clear even from how they market the show, they consistently push the basic humor and fan service of the show rather than the deep story, and this switch in focus can definitely be felt. This show also has really suffered from its lack of self control, wether we are talking about action or emotion there are rare times when we don't jump from 0-60, which in return makes these moments less impactful when they do happen. I still do like the characters and am generally still invested with the plot (which is starting to have some bigger consequences which I enjoy), but I do fear that as My Hero Academia pushes on we are going to fall deeper and deeper into the fan service side of the show and the amazingly deep characters and drama will be lost.
The general story has also just not clicked, from the overly long battle arc to kick off the season to the rescue of Bakugo which had its tension seriously hurt when they decided to play dress up in the middle of the serious situation. It's not that My Hero Academia can't be fun (the room decoration contest was one of my favorite things from this entire season and was great for character building), but season 3 has seriously messed up time and time again with balancing its serious drama and characters with the hope to please the tumblr community which is clear even from how they market the show, they consistently push the basic humor and fan service of the show rather than the deep story, and this switch in focus can definitely be felt. This show also has really suffered from its lack of self control, wether we are talking about action or emotion there are rare times when we don't jump from 0-60, which in return makes these moments less impactful when they do happen. I still do like the characters and am generally still invested with the plot (which is starting to have some bigger consequences which I enjoy), but I do fear that as My Hero Academia pushes on we are going to fall deeper and deeper into the fan service side of the show and the amazingly deep characters and drama will be lost.
Major 2nd
Seen Episodes: 1-14
As a fan of sports anime I definitely want to eventually check out the original Major series which was one of the biggest sports anime of all time, but for now I was excited to check out the sequel Major 2nd which focused on his son's story. This has been an anime I have been very torn about as I watch it and even now I can't really give my full opinions on it. This is a show that seemed to be going in a very basic direction with it's plot when all of a sudden it surprised me by going into a diffrent direction by splitting up our two main characters who were on the edge of debuting as a battery, now even though I was excited for these two to take the diamond I also saw where this could lead, this could be a big moment seasons down the line so I was ok with the delayed payoff for a bigger moment later down the line, yet they then they ruin the potential by throwing the interesting plot away several episodes later and end up giving the battery anyway. It's not that the show is bad, the characters and sports elements are great, but to truly say that this is a special sports anime I am going to have to give it time to see where they go and what payoff it ends up having.
New Pickups
Angels of Death
Seen Episodes: 1-2
Where psychological thriller is my favorite genre in general Angels of Death has failed to really work for me yet, based on a game I didn't play and I don't know anything about Angels of Death actually had a pretty good start. Where episode 1 was far from perfect or even really great it did have some intriguing elements (specifically with the workings of this world) that had me engaged and interested to learn more despite it's cringy lines and general lack of energy with its bloody gore. However episode 2 put this list very high on the list of possible drops this season, it was so boring and the story went nowhere while pushing the cringy negative elements from the first episode even harder. I will give this show another episode or 2 to see if it picks up, but as of right now this show is dangerously close to getting the boot.
Banana Fish
Seen Episodes: 1
Widely hyped as a potential anime of the season I was really excited for Banana Fish which follows a young gangster with a darker past, and where I won't be putting this anime on my best of the year shortlist from episode 1 alone it definitely has potential. It overall has a fantastic style and I really like most of the characters and their charisma. The story has also planted enough intriguing points for me to be excited to jump into episode 2. I am hopeful for this show going forward but I am a little worried that the plot will be average and that this anime will try to be style over substance and if I am being honest where the style is nice, it isn't good enough to carry the anime for this.
Cells at Work
Seen Episodes: 1
This anime is the only reason Angels of Death is not at the bottom of the list so far this season, I don't want to give the wrong idea by saying that this anime is terrible, but is has done nothing so far to make me think that I will be making it through all 13 episodes of this season. Sure at first seeing the cells of the human body and its inner workings displayed as anime characters is fun, but as the plot goes it is constantly bogged down by seemingly endless explanations that are needed to educate the audience. In this aspect it feels very much like an anime that was made to show made for young kids who are learning about the human body, yet there is also a really bloody side to this show that doesn't match this tone at all. Instead I realized that this show really would appeal to a tween demographic who can get through the educational sides for basic stories and over the top blood, but as someone who wants more out of a story it doesn't work for me. I will give it another episode just to see where this anime could even go but episode 1 was overall a really bland experience that gave me nothing to really look forward to in the future.
Free!: Dive to the Future
Seen Episodes: 1
There was no other anime I was dreading more than Free!: Dive to the Future, now I am a huge fan of the Free! franchise so far (especially Eternal Summer which is one of the best anime for young adults I have ever seen) but I had so many reservations going into this season. Not only was the conclusion at the end of Eternal Summer completely satisfying and there was no clear path to go, but also behind the scenes this was the first tv show of the series not to be directed by Hiroko Utsumi who has made the best parts of this franchise up to this point. Not only that but instead this show is directed by Eisaku Kawanami who has directed the past 2 Free! movies which have been utter garbage, (Free! - Take Your Marks is literally my least favorite movie of the year so far and made me even question watching this show). Judging by his films Kawanami looked to move Free! into a purely fan service direction and rid the show of the deep heart and characters that made the show one of my favorites of all time, luckily 1 episode into the new show and it looks like the series will be ok.
So far nothing in this new show has wowed me too much but it at least has been good, the story has been much better than I expected (even though just having Haru just join the college swim club like it was nothing kinda hurts some of the emotion from his character in Eternal Summer). It has pulled much more from the movies almost making them must watch and where I think they already are overdoing some of the cliched dramatic moments like Haru and Rei feeling each others energys in the pool and Haru literally stopping in his tracks as he noticed his former friend walk down the hall in front of him, I do think this show has potential and I am hopeful as the season continues.
So far nothing in this new show has wowed me too much but it at least has been good, the story has been much better than I expected (even though just having Haru just join the college swim club like it was nothing kinda hurts some of the emotion from his character in Eternal Summer). It has pulled much more from the movies almost making them must watch and where I think they already are overdoing some of the cliched dramatic moments like Haru and Rei feeling each others energys in the pool and Haru literally stopping in his tracks as he noticed his former friend walk down the hall in front of him, I do think this show has potential and I am hopeful as the season continues.
Hanebado!
Seen Episodes: 1-2
Finishing off the list we have the original summer sports anime that starts off with a lot of hype, last year it was the bomb that was Dive! but this year it is Hanebado which luckily is already a lot better. Technically this anime has been a masterpiece so far, the amazing animation and sound design has blown me away and pulls me into any game that they are showing, yet thats not to say this anime has been perfect so far. I am honestly a little worried about the characters and the actual plot of this anime as it has already struggled to interest me. The characters seem basic and the story already has some frustrating elements especially with its writing. If this show is able to pick up (maybe into a tournament arc or something that focuses on a story that can be told through technically fantastic games) I think this could be the newest hit sports anime, but only 2 episodes in I can only say that at this point this anime will go down as a technical masterpiece that could of been one of the all time greats.