Winter Season 2025 Preview

New year, new shows making their debuts, what’s not to like? Or more to the point, what’s worth watching out of a record number of new titles and returning shows that’s caught the eyes of our reviewers at Anime UK News? With several well-loved titles like The Apothecary Diaries and Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun returning for a long-awaited second series – and Orb, Daima and Blue Box (to mention just three of the good ongoing Autumn series) is there anything new that might have slipped beneath the radar but deserves your attention?

Ian Wolf

Returning Champion

Of all the series coming out this season, the one I personally have been looking forward to see returning is the second series of Pokémon Horizons, having both enjoyed the first and been delighted by the fact that the BBC has been streaming episodes of the show even earlier than the USA.

This new season, The Search for Laqua sees a split in the Rising Volt Tacklers. With the airship needing repairs, Friede is doing more research in the legends involving the land of Laqua, several of the crew are off doing other jobs to earn some cash, while the trio of kids – Liko and her newly evolved Floregato, Roy and Fuecoco, and Dot and Quaxly, are at Naranja Academy in the Paldea Region studying terastallization. This results in the three of them going on a trip around Paldea to take part in a series of tests involving the Region’s Gym Leaders, before returning to the Academy to take part in battles against the Elite Four.

Thanks to this, within the first 11 episodes of the series so far available to us, a whole new bunch of characters make their debuts in the Pokémon TV series, including all of the Paldea Gym Leaders (Liko gets lessons from Bug-type leader Katy; Roy from Brassius, who appeared in the first series; and Dot from Iono, who has also already appeared) as well as the aforementioned Elite Four. I suspect quite a few people are excited to see the debut appearance of surprise hit character Larry. We witness characters developing, Pokémon evolving, and hopefully more episodes quickly following.

Pokémon Horizons is streaming on BBC iPlayer, with episodes being televised on CBBC.

Unexpected Diamond

While there are no series this season that I’ve been ‘hotly anticipating’ (mostly it seems to be more isekai titles that seem rather lacklustre), there are some oddities that have peaked my interest.

One such series is Ameku M.D.: Doctor Detective, which many viewers have already dubbed: “What if House was a cute anime girl?” It is hard to get away from such a comparison. The title character, Dr. Takao Ameku of the Investigative Pathology department of Tenikai General Hospital, is someone who investigates illnesses that other doctors have trouble diagnosing, and thus often gets into trouble with many other branches of the hospital. One scene sees Ameku having to dress up as a schoolgirl in order to examine a patient in the psychology department because she is banned from it. Comparisons to other western mystery shows are also easy to make. For example, Ameku has her own version of Sherlock’s mind palace.

Regardless, the series has so far had its entertaining moments. The two-part opening featured a patient with blue blood and half a leg missing, which Ameku manages to deduce was due to a dinosaur skeleton. While some might consider Ameku M.D. derivative, I doubt it will be boring.

A more controversial viewing choice is the BL romcom Babanba Banban Vampire. While many of the series on this seasons have plots you might find repetitive, I doubt they are going to cause as much consternation as a series in which a 450-year-old vampire working in a bathhouse is trying to stop a 15-year-old from having sex, so that when the boy turns 18 he can consume him.

Some reviewers have already described the scenario as grooming. Indeed, the vampire Mori Ranmaru is not exactly subtle when it comes to affection for 15-year-old Rihito, with Mori frequently getting erections during the course of the show. Mind you, series in which supernatural creatures get involved with teenage boys is nothing new (see Black Butler and the numerous doujinshi made starring its leads), and at least Mori is waiting for Rihito to become an adult before wanting to consume his blood. In terms of dodgy anime airing this season, there are certainly worse titles you can view.

While some of the humour in Babanba Banban Vampire is certainly broad, there are other elements I do like. For example, thanks to Mori’s age we learn that he has had relationships with several prominent figures from Japanese history. As for how the rest of the series develops, we will have to wait and see if it can avoid going into more problematic territory.

Ameku M.D.: Doctor Detective is streaming on Crunchyroll. Babanba Banban Vampire is streaming on Netflix.

Onosume

Hotly Anticipated

The idol dream is over. Once again, girls rock band shows are leading the way in the music genre as idol shows like Love Live! find themselves stuck and unable to evolve and give the same tense, high-impact drama that we are seeing from their grittier, rockier cousins. Why I am saying this? Well, I’ve been watching BanG Dream! Ave Mujica and blimey, these first episodes are wild.

Picking up straight after the end of It’s MyGo!!!!!, we turn our attention to Ave Mujica’s world of gothic doll-inspired theatrics, where there’s as much drama off the stage as on it. With each of the band’s members carrying major personal issues along with ambitions that are far over their heads, the quickly put-together competitor to MyGO!!!!! soon begins to crumble amid arguing and manipulation. Will the band be able to survive, or is CRYCHiC’s history about to repeat itself?

The opening episodes here are dark, fractious and tense, yet are great for both setting the tone of the series and filling some gaps from its predecessor. We finally see the whole story around CRYCHiC’s epic breakup and it’s even more miserable than we knew, so that’s something. Yet it gives a drive and sense of purpose to Sakiko’s actions through this BanG Dream! generation, as she strives to make it in music because it’s all she has left. There’s a lot of character development for the other members of the band too, particularly focusing on the snide Nyamu and the delicate Mutsumi, with probably more to come on the other members later. If you wanted to see more of MyGO!!!!! then you may be disappointed as it looks like they are taking a back seat for now, but honestly I don’t think they’re needed in the way the story is currently playing out as the Ave Mujica members are strong enough on their own.

The animation is fantastic as you would expect from Sanzigen at this point, and some of the live concert set pieces really impress. It’s a shame they have to cut things short for story purposes because I could watch an entire live like this. The music is stellar so far too, and I like Ave Mujica’s theatrical style of gothic rock. Despite adding a violin, Morfonica’s music wasn’t dark enough to hit my favoured symphonic metal vibes, but Ave Mujica just nails that darker theme – with these girls and Roselia we’ve got a good pairing here.

So far, BanG Dream! Ave Mujica is continuing to make strides in the franchise’s latest generation with a dark and tense story you can’t take your eyes off and some impressive theatrical musical numbers. If you’re a music fan this is definitely one to watch.

Returning Champion

The last season of Blue Exorcist fulfilled my want for it to turn the spotlight back onto Rin and Yukio. Now with Yukio turning to the other side, Rin looks to the past to uncover the story of their birth and the dark history of the Knights of the True Cross.

Blue Exorcist -The Blue Night Saga- is proving a very interesting series to watch so far, even though in tone it is vastly different to what we’ve just sat through. This is Shiro and Yuri’s story seen through Rin’s eyes (as he’s effectively there to take us as the audience through their lives), and it effectively upturns everything we thought we knew about Shiro, while giving us our first real look at Rin and Yukio’s mother. There are some surprising revelations, yet you can quite easily see these two characters’ trajectory over these first few episodes – Shiro’s transformation from rebellious wild child to respected exorcist, and Yuri’s affinity for demons putting her on a collision course with Satan.

The pacing here is deliberately slower as it takes us through the pair’s key moments, yet it doesn’t feel like it’s dragging its feet as we see different snapshots that are obviously key turning points in their lives, whether that’s a battle, a graduation, or even a more romantic moment. It still has its shonen manga heart though and has plenty of your typical Blue Exorcist goofiness sprinkled in too.

Overall though, I’d say this is a strong continuation of a fan favourite, exploring the questions anime viewers have been wanting answered for years. Strap yourselves in and let’s see where this one goes!

BanG Dream! Ave Mujica and Blue Exorcist -The Blue Night Saga- are both streaming on Crunchyroll.

HWR

Returning Champion

Dr. STONE Science Future was one of the few titles I was activity anticipating from the season, following a strong two-cour run with New World, which saw Senkuu (Yuusuke Kobayashi) and his comrades duke it out with a greedy Minister, Ibara, and his device ‘Medusa’ which could turn people to stone at will. Now, our allies are back at sea and headed towards what’s left of what we know as the continent of America.

Science Future presents us with the concluding season for Dr. STONE, and will be three-cours’ worth of content, and has so far leant more into the fun side of the story with the gang unwinding and drinking (non-alcoholic) cocktails in a Las Vegas-style set up on their ship. During the voyage we learn that former antagonist Hyoga (Akira Ishida) and his associates Homura (Aki Toyosaki) and Mozu (Kazuyuki Okitsu) were retrieved in their petrified states by Senkuu, who revives the former to train his crew to utilise more modern weapons and fighting techniques, in return for also reviving the latter two. Naturally, we also get some tension between Senkuu’s crew and Hyoga’s, though I’m hoping Hyoga takes a path of redemption here rather than falling into old ways. In any case, with three cours to cover I hope this arc shapes up to be as enjoyable as the previous ones, as Dr. STONE has been one of the stronger continuing anime in recent years, ranking highly in my estimates.

Trillion Game was a series from the previous season that I almost didn’t watch owing to having a fair amount of anime already laid out, but after giving its multi-episode premiere a go, I’m glad I did as it’s been a solid watch so far and returns here for its second cour.

So far, the story of Trillion Game has seen an unlikely pair in charismatic businessman Haru Tennouji (Takeo Ootsuka) and the socially awkward but technically able Manabu “Gaku” Taira (Shouya Ishige) forge a partnership which leads the duo to strike a deal with Kirika Kokuryuu (Mao Ichimichi), the board director of a major Japanese IT company for whom the duo left to pursue their ambition of generating a trillion dollars.

What sets Trillion Game apart from other anime as of late is its adult cast and business-focused storyline. It makes for a refresh away from the sea of isekai and sequels that have largely dominated seasons recently. In the latest episode, Haru is roped into a “date” of sorts with Kirika who uses this as a subtle reward for recent events that saw him winning an important challenge for the team but also takes the opportunity to probe him about a recent hacking incident involving her bank. What I found interesting was seeing how even without him around, Haru’s influence looms over Gaku, but that he also manages to keep his resolve and is rewarded with information that should be important for upcoming episodes, which I’m looking forward to getting into in the coming weeks.

Dr. STONE: Science Future and Trillion Game are both streaming on Crunchyroll. 

Demelza

Hotly Anticipated
In some ways my sights are firmly set on next season, eagerly awaiting the return of Wind Breaker, but that’s not to say Winter doesn’t have plenty to offer. Noemi10 has wonderfully covered one of my hotly anticipated shows Honey Lemon Soda in a dedicated review of its own. So instead I’m going to talk about I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time!

Our story follows Alina Clover, a receptionist for the Adventurers Guild. This offers excellent job security and benefits and should allow her to work a nine-to-five job with no concerns. However, there’s just one problem – when the adventurers get stuck clearing a dungeon, Alina is faced with dozens of hours of overtime and paperwork hell. Completely fed up with this situation, Alina takes matters into her own hands and dons a disguise to dive into the dungeon and defeat the boss the other adventurers are stuck on.

Unfortunately for Alina, her true identity is quickly figured out by Jade Scrade who is the leader of the Silver Sword party and witness to her latest boss fight. He couldn’t dream of anything better than Alina joining the group. Of course, our heroine flat out refuses and manages to scare Jade off but he’s not going to give up and now he knows her secret, Alina realises there might be others who have figured it out. Could her comfortable life be about to crumble?

As you may gather from the name, this is based on a light novel but it isn’t an isekai and with CloverWorks as the animation studio and Rie Takahashi (Megumin in Konosuba, Emilia in Re:Zero) leading the cast, it’s well worth paying attention to. On paper, it sounds fairly generic, but the execution so far has been hilarious. Alina is a character who is easy to sympathise with when it comes to her overtime woes and it’s entertaining watching how she deals with Jade. There’s quite an emphasis on the comedy side of things with a lot of comedic moments and great expressions for Alina, but it’s certainly well rooted in the adventure genre too with some impressive action scenes so far.

Although we’re only two episodes in at the time of writing, I think this is my favourite new series so far. The two episodes have been very consistent in terms of the quality and how much I’ve enjoyed them. And I really do love watching Rie Takahashi bring such a gremlin lead to life. It may not be the most original setup, but it’s playing with the tropes enough to prove entertaining.

Unexpected Diamond

There are not that many shows airing this season that I wasn’t already familiar with in one way or another. Like Ian above, one of the biggest surprises for me is Ameku M.D. Doctor Detective, but the other one which I’m here to talk about is I’m Getting Married to a Girl I Hate in My Class.

I will preface this section by saying that the lead character, Akane Sakuramori, is perhaps the most extreme tsundere I have ever seen, at least in recent years. So if that isn’t your thing then I would move along to other shows.

The story follows high school students Saito Hojo and the aforementioned Akane Sakuramori who are sworn enemies but are forced to get married by their parents. Suddenly finding themselves living together, the pair have to find a way to make peace and live their daily lives without killing each other (or letting anyone at school find out about their new situation). It’s not all too dissimilar to a series like A Couple of Cuckoos or to some extent even Toradora! given the sour feelings between the two currently.

This is a very over-the-top romantic comedy, but that’s ultimately what makes it fun to watch. There is a harem element to it which I’m not convinced the show needed, but at the same time, it’s very clear that Akane and Saito are the one true pairing here. That does mean the other girls are more of a distraction, but I’m hoping they prove good support for the two leads as opposed to characters that simply try to get in the way of their relationship. This is a show that’s certainly not perfect, but like with Guild Receptionist, it’s just entertaining to watch and that seems to be the theme for me this season.

Returning Champion

Like Autumn, we’re doing great for returning champions. I’m of course overjoyed to have My Happy Marriage back for its second season, as well as The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You and The Apothecary Diaries. But most of all I’m pleased we can welcome back Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun!

Season 1 of Hanako-kun aired in 2020 and despite the huge popularity of the manga both here in the West and back home in Japan, we’ve been waiting a long time for any further instalments of the anime (although we have had some spin-off mini-episodes recently). But now we’re back and two episodes in it’s like Hanako-kun never left our screens.

Animated by studio Lerche, the series is still as eye-catching as ever with the beautiful bold colours and action-packed scenes. We’re immediately dropped back into the action as protagonist Nene hears about a new apparition called the Three Clock Keepers who can control time. After some disasters occur in the school that seem related to the Three Clock Keepers, Nene asks exorcist-in-training Kou and Hanako to help her investigate. Of course, the three soon find themselves in the middle of something more elaborate than they first expected and we find out a surprising secret about one of the regular members of the cast…

Having kept up with the manga (released by Yen Press) since the first season of the anime ended, I’ve been eagerly awaiting more of this adaptation. While Season 1 was often more comedic in tone, I know from reading ahead that the storylines to come are more dramatic and serious and I think that works better for the series overall. We’re already seeing glimpses of that here in these first two episodes, which shows that Lerche is more than capable of capturing what makes the original work so popular, even 23+ volumes in.

Given how many series change staff or studios between seasons with this much of a gap, I am relieved to find Hanako-kun the same as before. It doesn’t need to reinvent itself to prove a gripping supernatural series that’s offering something quite different to other shows airing right now. If you enjoyed the first season you will feel right at home with Season 2.

I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time!, I’m Getting Married to a Girl I Hate in My Class, and Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun Season 2 are all available on Crunchyroll.

Sarah

Hotly Anticipated – Medalist

Tsukasa (26) – who has stepped back from competitive ice-dancing – takes on his first student, diminutive Inori (11) who is so determined to skate that she earns her entry to the local rink by digging up worms to give to the rink manager to feed his birds. Inori adores ice-skating but her mother is against her pursuing it  because of the bitter disappointment Inori’s older sister went through after an injury meant she had to give up on her dreams. Inori is made of sterner stuff, though – and Tsukasa sees at once that she has real promise, although she also has a lot of ground to make up. But first he has to persuade Inori’s parents to give her a chance. Inori is a fast learner and although she’s come to expect the worst from other children her own age, she’s determined to succeed. And so the rookie coach and the would-be figure skater begin an unusual partnership…

There’s been a lot of positive buzz around the anime TV series of Tsurumaikada’s award-winning ice-skating manga Medalist – but has the anime captured the qualities that have endeared so many readers to young heroine Inori? Three episodes in (at the time of writing) and I think it’s doing a great job so far. The skating sequences are convincing; fellow fans of Yuri on Ice will want to check out the moment Tsukasa takes to the ice in Episode 3 to encourage Inori to do what she needs to do in her first routine to music. Nevertheless, this sequence also demonstrates that Medalist is very different from Yuri on Ice which has a specially composed score of original pieces for all the major contestants’ solos. Medalist is content to use Jupiter from Holst’s The Planets in the background; we’re treated to short sequences of skating but no more. Maybe later? The anime is faithful to the manga, introducing two of the other young female skaters: beautiful, mysterious, inspiring Hikaru and furious ‘Mittens’ who is always fizzing with energy and shocks Inori by being rude to her coach. Medalist is also very much about not giving up on your dreams – and not listening to those who try hard to dissuade you, even for the best of reasons.

Returning Champions Link Click: The Bridon Arc  

‘Using superpowers to enter their clientele’s photos one by one, Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang take their work seriously at “Time Photo Studio,” a small photography shop set in the backdrop of a modern metropolis. Each job can be full of danger, but nothing is more important than fulfilling every order, no matter the scale…or peril involved!’

‘To save the deceased Cheng Xiaoshi, Lu Guang returns to the beginning, retracing the path of destiny. However, a photo containing clues about Cheng Xiaoshi’s parents appears in the “Time Photo Studio.” To uncover the truth, Lu Guang nervously travels to Bridon with Cheng Xiaoshi. Friendly top model Xia Fei, the eccentric leader of Chinatown, Vein, and the mysteriously appearing Liu Xiao… Faced with people harboring different motives, can Lu Guang break the fated deadlock?’

We don’t seem to have covered Link Click from Bilibili before, even though The Bridon Arc is its third outing – but not yet the third season of the addictive time-slip donghua. Better late than never as it’s gripping viewing, especially as this arc seems to be set in London (‘Bridon’). Why these official Crunchyroll blurbs (above)? Because explaining this complex series is not a task to undertake in a couple of preview sentences! You’ll either love being baffled, confused and intrigued by the time-slips and double-bluffs constantly taking place or you’ll walk away with a shrug. If you love it, you’ll be beguiled by sympathetic characters, chilling villains and time-slip action that’s conveyed with dazzling animation. The VAs are good, the OPs and EDs are memorable and linked to meaningful animated sequences. But it’s the character dynamics which, mingled with the fight against destiny, make for a very powerful combination. No wonder this series has gathered so many fans – and there’s also a manhua available now (from ALOHA Comics). Only six episodes (so nearly over) but well worth your time.

The Apothecary Diaries is another welcome return as the story of Maomao (Aoi Yuuki) at the emperor’s court presents a fascinating, well-written picture of the lives of the women in an imagined version of ancient China. It’s also excellent at depicting the political machinations at court – and, let’s face it, we’re all rooting for Maomao to realize that Jinshi (ostensibly the eunuch charged with looking after the emperor’s concubines) is in love with her. But Maomao being the highly eccentric and intelligent young woman that she is, that’s probably not going to happen soon and she’ll happily go on experimenting, healing and investigating to her heart’s content. It’s still colourful and distinctive to look at and has yet another great OP in “Hyakkaryōran” (Splendid Bounty) by Lilas Ikuta. More on this later in our Overview…

Unexpected Diamond Tasokare Hotel

Amazon Prime started out so promisingly only a few years ago with new anime series such as After the Rain and Banana Fish but of late they have neglected to screen new series (with the odd exception) as if they had taken a step back and let Netflix and Disney+ overtake them. Which makes Tasokare Hotel all the more interesting a new series (compared to their choices for last year such as Tonbo! ). Based on a mobile game (that I know nothing about), it follows a young woman who suddenly finds herself outside a hotel in the middle of nowhere at twilight. Realizing that she has no memory of how she got there or who she is, she goes in and is greeted at the desk by the manager, a man with a mask of fire where his face should be. He tells her with great politeness that she has come to Tasogare Hotel ‘a place between life and death, where souls unable to decide whether to move on to the afterlife or return to the present world can rest.’ It’s always twilight outside, hence the name although it should really be ‘tasokare’ in the older sense, said at dusk when faces are difficult to make out, meaning ‘Who are you?’ She is shown to her room which contains items from her life that will help her remember who she is and what has happened to her. The rest of the first episode is devoted to the young woman regaining her memories – she’s called Neko Tsukuhara – but as yet, she doesn’t know why she’s in-between life and death. However, being an enterprising, curious person, she asks to become one of the hotel staff and is accepted! We then follow what happens when the next guest arrives and how Neko and the other members of staff help them solve the mystery as to why they’re arrived at the hotel.

So yes, this is an episodic series with an ongoing underlying plot – but it’s none the worse for that. Similar in some ways to Death Parade with a mystery guest of the week, one of the intriguing aspects is seeing what each guest arrives with in place of their head; in Neko’s case, it’s a Tarot card, and another guest arrives with a pansy flower. As soon as they remember who they are, their head and facial features are revealed – but it’s down to them to work out the true significance of the object and why it’s relevant to their being held between life and death. Meanwhile, the hotel continues to function as a hotel with a seductive horned lady running the bar and other staff members whom Neko is very eager to befriend (good-looking Haruto and tsundere Ruri). I love it so far and I can’t wait to find out what Neko (who has a wonderfully dry personality, just a little reminiscent of Maomao in The Apothecary Diaries, and voiced by Rika Momokawa) will discover about herself and the others.

Medalist is streaming on Disney+, Link Click: The Bridon Arc and The Apothecary Diaries are streaming on Crunchyroll and Tasokare Hotel is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Cold Cobra

Hotly Anticipated

For me, it’s another season, another adaptation of a popular Shonen Jump! property as Sakamoto Days was what had my interest going in, and despite a somewhat overblown response to the animation quality, I’ve enjoyed my time with the show so far.

Sakamoto Days isn’t your typical Jump! affair as instead of a straight-up gag manga, a more action-based story focusing on a super-powered and hyper-active pre-teen protagonist wishing to rise to the top of their chosen profession/location or a teenage protagonist being thrust into a supernatural world of demons via a  hidden/other-worldly organisation, our main protagonist is an older overweight gentleman who works at a small local shop with his wife and young daughter. The catch here though is that Taro Sakamoto was once the world’s best hitman with almost supernatural ability who retired when he met his now wife and has happily let himself go as he’s settled into retirement.

The story focuses on Sakamoto’s old employers finally catching up with him and sending one of their own after the so-called betrayer, but if you’re expecting a bloody John Wick affair then you’ve got the wrong series! Instead the person they send is a young man named Shin, who is not only a top assassin but also able to read people’s minds and was a former partner of Sakamoto who looked up to him. Episode 1 deals with Shin’s attempt to take out his mentor, which ends swiftly thanks to Sakamoto still having inhuman speed and reflexes, and ends with the young hitman joining his mentor as an employee at his tiny little shop after a large-scale warehouse shootout between Shin, Sakamoto and their former employers, though it has to be pointed out that our titular character has agreed to a no killing policy put down by his wife, so at least his side of the action involves more punches and tasering than shooting. The second episode deals with a similar situation involving the daughter of a famous mafia family, but future episodes will be less likely to have the hitmen-of-the-week join the shop, but will be no less fun to watch.

Now let’s address the elephant in the room. If you’ve been following news about this adaptation for a while,  you’ll know that a lot of controversy has been around its animation from as soon as the first trailer dropped, specifically that it’s poor in depicting the high-octane action scenes that the manga is famous for. Now, I’ll grant you if you look at some of the other recent and popular Jump! adaptations like Demon Slayer, Jujutsu Kaisen and Kaiju No. 8, then I do understand TMS Entertainment’s work here might come off poorly but honestly it’s not been too bad so far, certainly if such a big deal hadn’t been made about it both in English-speaking markets and in Japan itself, then I doubt I would’ve paid it too much mind. That being said though,  the true test will come later when we get to some of the more crazy and specifically choreographed action scenes from the manga, but for now the first couple of episodes have been a perfectly enjoyable mix of humour and action and I’m looking forward to more.

Sakamoto Days is streaming on Netflix.

Darkstorm

Returning Champion

My Happy Marriage is back for a second season, picking up where the first season (and the special OVA that came out late last year) left off. We’ve gone way past where we’re currently at in the manga, but the story picks up from Volume 3 of the original light novel – if you were keeping track.

Miyo and Kiyoka are now formally engaged and living peacefully; however trouble brews as summer turns to autumn, with reported sightings of ‘demons’ happening across the country, including right near Kiyoka’s childhood home. As the pair make their way to the Kudo house, it becomes clear that there’s danger inside and outside the house. Kiyoka’s mother takes an immediate dislike to Miyo, and Kiyoka discovers a cult that seems hellbent on not only turning locals into abominations, but also challenging the world order as they know it.

The season feels very different from the first so far, not just because we’ve moved past the Cinderella-esque side of the story, but this season is less an internal, character-driven story, but more external conflicts for both our heroes. Kiyoka has a more visible enemy, in the form of the cult, giving the anime lots of excuses to show magic battles and the Kudo power levels. Miyo on the other hand has first to deal with her new mother-in-law, who does not like Miyo one bit. I did like the parallels between Miyo’s first meeting with Kiyoka and his mother, with the same dialogue and cold first impressions, so you know where Kiyoka got that side of his personality from; however Mrs Kudo has none of Kiyoka’s tender side, and does everything in her power to kick Miyo out. I do love how Miyo deals with it; it would have been too out of character for her to suddenly tell Mrs Kudo to take a hike, instead she does as she is told when made to dress and act like a servant, but stays strong when Mrs Kudo demands she leaves the house at once. It shows how much more confident and emotionally capable Miyo has become, even if she doesn’t have the strength or power to really make her place known yet.

As for the themes of this season, I would be interested to see where they go with it, as the villains talk about inequality between those with power and those without, and Kiyoka seems unwilling to discuss it. I’ll be interested to discover how they explore that and how it concludes, and we haven’t seen much of what the world looks like outside the noble houses that have magic powers.

Animation-wise, the series is still as gorgeous as ever and the English dub is also very good, with the same actors coming back for the second season.

For Season 1 I knew where most of it was going, but this time I don’t, so I’m looking forward to seeing how Season 2 develops.

My Happy Marriage is streaming on Netflix.