Spring 2025 Overview
It’s always a little sad to see all the buzz advertising the new anime season when the current one is only three-quarters through its run. Suddenly all the once-shiny Spring series are ‘so last season’ and we’re being urged to look forward to all the new Summer titles instead! And yet those last few episodes can result in a triumph of story-telling as a series fulfils its early promise and delivers a satisfying and moving conclusion. Has it been a memorable season? Which of the Spring series have earned their laurels by keeping us on the edge of our seats until the very end? Have any lost the plot and failed to deliver? Our reviewers are here to share their favourite titles from Spring 2025 – the ones that they can wholeheartedly recommend! Let us know if you agree…
HWR
As another anime season concludes and dust settles there’s been a solid enough variety here though for me there were some dips in quality for certain continuations (Aharen-san and Go! Go! Loser Ranger for me) but improvements elsewhere (Black Butler, SHOSHIMIN). The new seasonal offerings generally delivered familiar but fun storylines and welcome distractions from the current heatwaves.
Hotly Anticipated
Uma Musume: Cinderella Gray was a title that immediately stood out at the beginning of the season when I was researching which titles to watch – the franchise in anime format has been, mostly, consistently great, and now even the Mobile game has been released globally as of June 2025.
Early on the story of CG was familiar but mostly engaging as Oguri Cap (Tomoyo Takayanagi) took centre stage as an underdog protagonist initially outcast by her peers but finding friendship in Berno Light (Momoko Seto) and a supportive coach in the eccentric Kitahara Jou (Katsuyuki Konishi). As the story progressed and Oguri made waves (or should that be laps) in the world of racing, bullies soon turned to followers and the stakes ramped up as she worked her way up the ranks and estimates at Kasamatsu Training Centre Academy and the world of horse girl racing. Oguri herself remains a worthy lead to follow, being simultaneously over-serious but also rather silly which has resulted in some very humorous expressions and interactions, especially in her idol-esque post-race dance performances.
The finale episode was especially tense as Oguri races in the G1 Fall Tenno Sho, which pits her against some of the biggest rivals of her generation, and though she manages to outpace most opponents, Oguri meets her match in Tamamo Cross (Naomi Oozora), who in turn now sees Oguri as a rival and the only other racer to push her beyond their limit. The results of this race are predictable but also act as an important catalyst for the story that will follow, and with confirmation of a Part 2 airing in October, I can’t wait to see where the narrative goes from here!
Returning Champion
I mentioned before that certain continuations in this season were a tad underwhelming (controversially so perhaps for Aharen-san) but I am happy to say that the second season of SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary was a better all-round watch than the first. With the first season I came away with mixed feelings as I struggled to connect with either leads and the mysteries within the narrative didn’t grip me as I had hoped. In contrast, SHOSHIMIN’s second season feels stronger and I found Yuki Osanai (Hina Youmiya) a more interesting character, often lurking in the background, keeping tabs on the mysteries unfolding around her, with almost a menacing feel in some arcs. Her relationship with Jougorou Kobato (Shuuichirou Umeda) also kept my interest, as the two are seen separated and dating other students but never sharing the same chemistry (for better or worse) with others as they did with one another.
The two major cases here, one of arson and the other a hit-and-run, worked better than the numerous investigations from the first season as there was more time and episodes to flesh each out and build the tension as the clues and culprits were unveiled. I won’t dare spoil the outcomes of either case, and though I still wouldn’t rank this season as one of the greatest, the improvements from Season 1 made it more than worthwhile to highlight here.
I’ll also shine a spotlight briefly on Black Butler’s Emerald Witch Arc, which I felt was stronger in both manga and anime form than the preceding Public School Arc thanks to the fantastical elements and a bigger challenge for Ciel, and also to Fire Force Season 3, which ramped up the storyline nicely to what I hope will be a satisfying Part 2 next year. On a lesser note, we finally saw Season 2 of Our Last Crusade or the Rise of a New World conclude after a long delay from its initial July 2024 broadcast. I’d say this was slightly better than Season 1, but long delays are always going to hinder a series and the story ended on a more dour note which voided me of all enthusiasm for a third season – a shame really.
Though I don’t have any ‘Unexpected Diamonds’ for the season, Anne Shirley (which I discussed in the preview article) has been a solid watch, improving nicely on the iconic original anime, whilst comfy series like Food for the Soul and Mono were easy-going watches, and spin-off title My Hero Academia: Vigilantes could be a ‘Returning Champion’ of its own when it airs in 2026.
Uma Musume: Cinderella Grey is streaming on Prime Video, Shoshimin: How to Become Ordinary 2nd Season is streaming on Crunchyroll (as are all other titles mentioned).
Ian Wolf
Hotly Anticipated
mono (or Mono, we’re still not quite sure how to stylise it) was a series I was mainly interested in because I’ve been reviewing the manga. This anime goes beyond what has been released in the print English edition so far, and personally I think it is all the better for it.
This is because for me, the finale of the series was the high-point, in which the members of the Cinephoto Club decide to make short film, with the help of the “shadow member” of the club, providing some of the best moments in the series when things go wrong when shooting.
However, aside from this and some great landscape artwork, overall the series felt good rather than great. There were a fair number of decent moments, but nothing that makes mono/Mono stand out from the rest of the pack. Not the worst series, but at the same time you feel it will be quickly forgotten. Could do better.
Returning Champion
I concur with HWR regarding the Emerald Witch Arc of Black Butler. While the previous arc, set in a public school, did provide some entertainment, this latest story appears to have more depth to it.
Many of the characters face their own challenges, from Ciel becoming traumatised to the point he couldn’t come into contact with Sebastian, to us learning more about Finnian’s background, and to the shocking truth that the Emerald Witch Sullivan has been tricked into creating something horrific. We also get to see something which is always a guilty pleasure among Black Butler fans – Ciel forced to do drag.
Elsewhere, I was pleasantly surprised when the BBC showed yet more new episodes from Pokémon Horizons: The Search for Laqua this season as I was expecting them not to pop up until later in the year. The highlights here were seeing some more development in the search for the mythical land of Laqua, as well as learning that Liko has a much closer connection to Lucius than she realised.
Unexpected Diamond
For me, the highlight of the entire season has been a title that truly deserves the title ‘Unexpected Diamond’. Apocalypse Hotel is a series that didn’t miss a beat, with its mixture of comedy and pathos.
The story of the last operational hotel on Earth after humanity fled the planet due to a deadly virus has been a delight, both from the comedy our characters experience, along with the tragedy as to humanity’s fate. Set over centuries due to the long life of the robots, led by acting manager Yachiyo, and a family of tanuki-aliens who have fled their home planet due to a war and made their home on Earth, there is plenty to enjoy as Yachiyo and friends try to make their hotel the best there is. This ranges from how it takes them 15 years to make a functioning whisky distillery, nearly a century to launch a satellite to both advertise and protect the hotel, and hosting a combined wedding and funeral.
If you have yet to watch Apocalypse Hotel I would seriously suggest that you give it a try. It’s wonderful mix of stories and characters have made it popular with critics elsewhere, and you can rest assured by that fact when the Crunchyroll Anime Awards come around next year, this Crunchyroll title will win… nothing, sadly. It would mean typical western anime viewers having to vote for something that isn’t a battle shonen or isekai fodder.
mono, Black Butler: Emerald Witch Arc, and Apocalypse Hotel are all streaming on Crunchyroll. Pokemon Horizons: The Search for Laqua is streaming on BBC iPlayer and being broadcast on CBBC.
Demelza
Hotly Anticipated
My hotly anticipated pick when we wrote the Spring Preview was The Dinner Table Detective, which I immensely enjoyed through to the final episode. I’m sure when we look back at the anime of 2025, it will be among my (if not the top) favourites of the year. However, since I rambled about that enough previously, for the Overview, I’ve decided to switch to Witch Watch!
Based on a Weekly Shonen Jump series by Sket Dance mangaka Kenta Shinohara, the story follows the human-looking ogre Morihito Otogi and his childhood friend Nico Wakatsuki, who has just returned from completing her magical training. Due to their families’ ancestral history, upon returning, Nico makes Morihito her familiar and moves into his house, where he’s tasked with protecting her from a terrible prophecy. The story may sound serious, but the majority of it is more focused on Nico’s everyday life and the tricky situations she and her friends find themselves in when she uses magic that inevitably goes wrong in comical fashion.
The storylines can be very much in the magic-of-the-week nature, which I have always felt hampered the manga somewhat, as stories ranged from being excellent to quite boring (Morihito has an obsession with jeans, and I have learnt way more about denim than I ever imagined…). Even now, more than 200 chapters in, I’ve never felt that Shinohara has managed to strike the balance. However, the anime, thanks to its longer runtime and the combination of animation and voice acting, has managed to overcome that issue surprisingly well. The more mundane subjects don’t stick around for long or get sandwiched between more interesting gags, which will ensure you leave each episode with a smile on your face.
I wasn’t expecting a whole lot going into this one due to my experience with the manga, but with the first cour finished and the show continuing into Summer, I find myself oddly taken with it now. The team at Bibury Animation Studios clearly understand what makes this one popular and has brought their A-game when it comes to adapting it. You just need to watch the first opening to see how passionate this team are about this one. It’s one I look forward to seeing more of over the next three months!
Returning Champion
Honestly, this season I was happy just to see Wind Breaker and Shoshimin back on our screens, so I didn’t need anything else. But I was, of course, overjoyed to see the cast of Lycoris Recoil return for six short episodes in the form of Lycoris Recoil: Friends are Thieves of Time.
And when I say short, I do mean short. These episodes ranged between 2.5 to 5 minutes each, so they were very compact. Rather than being focused on action like the main series, instead the team showed us small glimpses of everyday life at Café LycoReco, and that was the best decision they could have made!
I find short-form anime like this is rarely successful at conveying everything it wants to and I don’t watch a lot of them because of that. However, in this case, while each storyline is very compact, it is wonderfully delivered in a way that encapsulates everything that makes the cast of Lycoris Recoil so much fun to spend time with. Each short was handled by a different director at A-1 Pictures, and their individual influence is felt throughout in terms of the execution, and that’s partly what makes them so interesting to watch. It’s fascinating just how polished and consistent these are, despite the time constraints. But perhaps most importantly, they’re also absolutely hilarious and capture the personality of the characters wonderfully. I was left completely satisfied after every instalment.
There’s still more Lycoris Recoil to come in the future, so the shorts are a way of tiding us over in the meantime, which I am perfectly fine with.
Unexpected Diamond
Okay, let’s talk about Lazarus. Shinichiro Watanabe’s latest work has certainly not had a great time of it here in the UK. Only available through Channel 4 and with no Japanese audio option (despite a prolific cast over there), fans have been left with very little in the way of options for watching this one. And even if you are fine watching the dub, the overall reception to the show has been mixed.
The story takes place in the utopian year 2049, where neuroscientist Dr. Skinner discovered a miracle drug that completely relieves you of any pain, which went on to be called Hapna. This was, of course, administered to humanity en masse, but now, three years later in 2052, it has been revealed that the drug only has a three-year half-life, and everyone who took it will soon die. With only 30 days until people start dying, a task force called Lazarus is formed, made up of skilled agents who are perfect for locating Skinner (who has disappeared). It’s very much an ensemble piece, but largely revolves around Axel Gilberto, a 23-year-old Brazilian man who is on the team for his fearless and intelligent nature, as well as his parkour abilities that have allowed him to escape from numerous prisons (he was once jailed on minor charges, but racked up several life sentences due to jailbreaks…).
The story is futuristic and serious in a similar way to Watanabe’s Terror in Resonance, but the execution ends up being more episodic than not. In the hunt for Skinner, the Lazarus team travels the globe and ends up embroiled in all kinds of difficult situations that aren’t inherently even related to Hapna and are more often a by-product of how society has developed generally. The show is very flashy, with some of the best action scenes I have seen this season (perhaps unsurprisingly when Chad Stahelski, who directed the John Wick films, was involved in designing these), but it can feel like style with no substance at times. And that is primarily where the audience has become divided.
On the whole, I enjoyed Lazarus, but I figured out early on that the quality of the episodes was going to vary, based on which characters were the focus and the individual storylines. The best bits of the series were always when the Lazarus group worked as a team, and despite being a task force, that happened infrequently. Still, I liked all of this ragtag group, and they were all reasonably well developed (except for Doug), so I was perfectly content watching over their adventures, regardless of how the bigger picture unfolded. I do think we could have benefited perhaps from having two cours, as after every episode there are lengthy after-talks by the writing team that discuss all kinds of things that would have been great if they’d made it into the series. Allegedly, the one for the final episode fleshes out the ending, too. They’re all available on YouTube, but aren’t subtitled in English.
But what hurts this series most of all is how it has been released here. On the whole, I feel Lazarus is well suited to being dubbed, given it’s not a Japanese setting nor are the characters Japanese (most are from some part of America or Europe). However, the dub acting and direction pale in comparison to the Japanese.
In events before the show’s release, Mamoru Miyano (Axel) and Yuma Uchida (Leland) discussed how they were impressed by the recording directions they received and that they felt the directing was a lot closer to live action than anime. They also commented that the end result was something they never expected in terms of the high quality and how it sounded compared to other projects they’ve worked on. As a viewer, that’s something that came through to me as well – the acting was a lot more naturalistic than anime usually is. Of course, I was always going to prefer the Japanese audio due to the charismatic Miyano being at the helm, but generally, I just don’t think the dub has managed to capture the same atmosphere or direction at all. I went out of my way to watch the (legal) Japanese releases for this show, but ultimately, I know the language to some extent, so I have that option. Those waiting on a subtitled release are out of luck and unable to enjoy the better option here.
Lazarus might not have lived up to the expectations many held for it, and the disastrous way of releasing it put off many, but I hope in the future it will be more readily available in a format that suits everyone. It was an imperfect show, but it was fun, and sometimes that’s honestly all I ask for.
Witch Watch and Lycoris Recoil: Friends are Thieves of Time are available on Crunchyroll, while Lazarus is on Channel 4.
Cold Cobra
As mentioned in our Spring Preview, all three of my shows are new (though all three are based on existing franchises…) but which one was the most hotly anticipated?
Hotly Anticipated 1,2 & 3
The first show I’m going to look at was the one I was most interested in at the start of the season, the really annoying to type Mobile Suit Gundam: GQuuuuuuX (for the record: it’s pronounced “Gee Qwucks”, just in case you didn’t see the preview article!). Created by the same team that brought us Evangelion, it promised a lot, including an interesting look at an alternate timeline spun off from the original Gundam show where the “bad guys won”, though obviously with these Gundam shows, it’s rarely black and white and we do see that while the Republic of Zeon’s leadership is very much evil, the average soldier is perfectly normal, and they actually treat the Earth Federation better than the “Feddies” did to Zeon in the original timeline. Amate “Machu” Yuzuriha is our main protagonist, and she starts off as just a regular girl looking for somewhere to fit in until she finds Nyaan, a refugee having similar issues, and together they meet up with a group of “Clan Battlers” as well as Zeon’s new experimental Mobile Suit, the GQuuuuuuX.
So “young protagonist ends up in the pilot seat of an experimental Gundam and is a natural pilot” is a pretty standard affair, although Machu and Nyaan’s relationship is quite different, especially when they meet Shuji Ito, a young man who pilots the “Red Gundam” and both develop feelings for him. All three exhibit Newtype abilities as well, which further complicates things and gives us plenty of psychic visions which Machu refers to as the “Kira-Kira”. While this is happening, we see plenty of flashbacks to Char Aznable and how in this timeline he stole the original Gundam prototype instead of Amuro Ray (who is completely absent from this series) leading to the completely different set of events. These were really fun for this long-time fan, but I can see why some might be left scratching their heads if they’re not familiar with the 70s TV show. That’s something that continues actually as one of the other main characters is a man called Challia Bull who only had a cameo in the original series but is a fully fleshed-out and interesting character here. By the end of the show, his admiration for Char and his own goals are legitimately interesting and how he treats Machu with respect rather than the inexperienced child she is unusual for a Gundam show, but a welcome change.
The art, animation and voice acting were all good, and I checked out the simuldub as well and that seems like it’s of a high standard if you want the English language version. The OST mixes new tracks with remixes of classic Gundam tunes, which makes sense ,given the premise of the show, and it works really well as a result.
As the show starts heading for a close, things get weird. As mentioned, the show was created by the Evangelion team and while at first that was just obvious by the mobile suit designs, as the story started moving towards its end, we got multiple timelines, characters crossing said timelines, and a showdown with a copy of the original Gundam from the 70s show that grows to the size of a small moon. Weirdly, it wasn’t hard to follow, and the ending was good, but things certainly took a turn for the weird. The whole Clan Battle angle is dropped roughly halfway through the show and pretty much any character related to it vanishes as well (beyond our main cast, obviously) so the story takes a sharp turn compared to how it looked when I previewed it, but it’s definitely worth going out of your way to see, especially if you’re a long time Gundam fan, and honestly, even if you’re not, there is plenty to like here, especially with a very relatable main protagonist.
My Hero Academia’s spin-off was next on my “looking forward to” list, and thankfully, it mostly lived up to the promise. It’s based off of a spin-off manga that ran for a decent amount of time and is set a few years before the main show/manga. It starts with a familiar setup as our main protagonist is Koichi Haimawari, who always dreamed of being a hero like All Might but lacked the power. However, unlike Midoriya from the main show, Koichi was born with a Quirk (superpower), it’s just not very helpful for crimefighting as he can glide along the floor at a decent speed so long as at least three of his limbs are touching the ground, but that’s about it. A bit older than Midoriya as well, Koichi struggles with university life and a dead-end job at a local shop, but things change when one of his nightly acts of kindness leads to him meeting two other would-be crime fighters in the viral pop star Pop Step, who has a leaping Quirk, and “Knuckleduster”, who doesn’t actually have a Quirk at all, he’s just built like a brick and punches villains with his, well, knuckledusters. The trio become a vigilante group and start to fight crime around their neighbourhood without a license, which leads to some fun “of the week” storytelling, though your mileage may vary if you want the show to “get a move on” with its characters and world.
Sometimes they have to beat a specific villain, other times they’ll meet one of the heroes from the main show/manga, who don’t approve of their off-the-books antics. There is an over-arching plot that culminates in a big showdown in the final few episodes based around a drug called “Trigger” that is being dealt around the streets that can cause Quirk users to gain more power at the loss of their sanity. The main dealer is a girl called Kuin who has control of bees that can inject the drug into people even if they don’t want any of it. I think the highlight of the show though has to be a pair of episodes dealing with a vigilante who goes as far as to kill the villains he tracks and ends up getting Knuckleduster’d, an act that sends him off the deep end further and we find out that this whole thing was an origin story for a popular original series character.
The show has strong animation, good voice acting and a good OST very reminiscent of the first anime. Worth a watch even if you’re not into the main show, having a slightly older cast, and a focus on more street-level crime gives it a much different feeling compared to the main series, and the new trio are really fun to watch both develop as stand alone characters and bonding as a group.
The final show I watched was Guilty Gear: Strive – Dual Rulers, a sequel to the game Guilty Gear: Strive (well, apart from DLC Season 4, which is set after this anime, just to confuse things further…) Being a sequel to a game is already a hurdle if you’re not into the games in question, but the Guilty Gear lore is so … nuts that no amount of pauses for the narrator to tell the audience what was going on was going to help. The main plot-thread than runs throughout the series of games is that humanity had created monsters called Gears using newly discovered magic and eventually a humanoid Gear had the ability to control all the other Gears, so set them against humanity, leading to “The Crusades” where powerful humans had to travel around and kill Gears until the leader was stopped. Many, many things have happened since then and the few remaining humanoid Gears are starting to blend into human society, including one called Dizzy marrying Ky Kisuke, the King of a country called Illyria. This union was meant to celebrate the true end of the Gear/human conflict but instead certain people don’t want to see Gears get treated well and soon crash the wedding party.
The main would-be assassin is Unika, a girl created for the show (though she is playable in Strive via recently released DLC…) who claims that humans trusting in Gears will bring about a Second Crusade. Sin Kisuke, the son of Dizzy and Ky, doesn’t take kindly to this view but is willing to hear her out, but she has been raised to hate all Gears and sees this as the only way to stop them. If you couldn’t tell this is indeed a Terminator-style story as Unika has been sent from a doomed future to prevent it, but as the eight episodes move on, it becomes far less simple as evidenced when it culminates in a showdown with a giant moon-sized purple tentacle monster from the future, as you do (what is it with moon-sized final showdowns with this season’s shows?) Beyond Unika and Sin, the rest of the cast are all from the games and all have their personalities and movesets lifted straight from them, but that also means they don’t have any kind of narrative arc to speak of and so don’t develop in the slightest (which to be fair, they’ve rarely developed in the games either…)
What I’m saying is that if you have no exposure to Guilty Gear then I can’t recommend this show. It’s characters and world are very rarely explained in the show and as certain characters’ backstories would take several episodes to explain by themselves, I understand that. Also I have to say the animation budget isn’t great. Some fight scenes are really good, but they tend to last less than a minute and the rest of the fight is either 3D imagery badly inserted to look like traditional animation or still frames/hand-drawn style still shots with a camera panning across them to give the impression of movement or impact. I still liked the show, but I’m really into Guilty Gear as a franchise (even if I’m not particularly very good at the games…) so that got me through it, but if you’re not there isn’t anything here for you, I’m afraid.
Mobile Suit Gundam: GQuuuuuuX is available on Amazon Prime, while My Hero Academia: Vigilantes and Guilty Gear: Strive – Dual Rulers are available on Crunchyroll.
Sarah
This has been a very strong season for me after a lacklustre Winter season, containing several series that have that mystical quality to involve the viewer so intensely that they forget they’re watching an animation. How cheering to realize that these qualities that make anime at its best so memorable are still present in 2025 – and long may their creators be encouraged to continue their good work. Apocalypse Hotel and Gundam GQuuuuuuX have been absolute stand-outs for me (and are celebrated here by my fellow writers) and Anne Shirley and Witch Watch have been very enjoyable. As for my other absolute stand-outs… read on!
Hotly Anticipated
Kowloon Generic Romance (Crunchyroll) Warning: spoilers for those who have yet to watch/read the series!
Reiko Kujirai (32) is working as a realtor in a cramped office alongside Hajime Kudo (also 32) in the Old Walled City of Kowloon. She feels attracted to Kudo but his attitude to her manifests in a strange blend of joking around and deliberate baiting – and then unexpectedly kissing her. High over the walled city floats Generic Terra, a mysterious futuristic project funded by the powerful Hebinuma Pharmaceuticals Company. Reiko gets to meet the heir to the company, the constantly smiling young doctor, Miyuki, who takes a sudden interest in her. It turns out that she is the exact double of Reiko Kujirai who was Kudo’s fiancée and who took her own life three years ago – the same time the Old Walled City was demolished. But our Reiko has no memories of a life before Kowloon.
I was hooked by Kowloon Generic Romance from the first manga volume back in 2019, having fallen in love with Jun Mayuzuki’s first series After the Rain, both in the manga and the TV anime versions. And even though After the Rain is a slice of life and Kowloon Generic Romance is science fiction (probably) both are compulsively readable because of the Jun Mayuzuki’s ability to create memorable, relatable characters who find themselves in caught up in intriguing and perplexing situations. The extra spice (five spice?) in Kowloon Generic Romance is the setting of Old Kowloon/Generic Kowloon itself which is brought to life so vividly in the drawings (very faithfully reproduced for the anime) that you can almost smell the food stalls. It’s Reiko’s bubbly friend Yaomay who first realizes that one of the strange things about this Kowloon is that it’s always been summer since she arrived from Hong Kong – but she only realizes this when she leaves Kowloon to visit Hong Kong. Reiko was supposed to go with her but due to a fateful encounter, she realizes that her very existence seems tied to Generic Kowloon and if she sets foot outside, she’ll cease to exist. It’s these significant moments that make this story so addictive and meaningful: at the very core is Reiko’s ambition (after talking to Miyuki Hebinuma) to be her ‘absolute self’. Underlying the whole narrative with its twists and turns that are as complex and shadowy as the back alleyways of the old city are the fundamental questions about human consciousness that we all face: who are we and why are we here?
If you’ve been reading the manga from Yen Press (and I thoroughly recommend it) you’ll know that Volume 10 (out of a possible 12) is not due out until October. Therefore, the anime team (and probably the live-action film script writers as well because yes, that’s due out this summer too!) must have worked with the mangaka to deliver an ending that ties up many of the mysteries and feels right for the characters we’ve come to care about. In a series that – at quite a deep level – deals with consciousness, memory and identity, there should not be any shallow or facile solutions. Does everything hinge on who can ‘see’ and enter Generic Kowloon – and why others see nothing but rubble? The strong feelings that explain its continuing existence might be ‘nostalgia’ – but also ‘regret’. Yulong, childhood friend of Miyuki, who’s been working on the secret Genetic Terra project for Miyuki’s father, is one of those who grew up in ‘old’ Kowloon but now can’t see or experience it. Until…
If you don’t want to get caught up in too much analysis and just want to enjoy unravelling the mysteries, you won’t be disappointed! The anime looks very like the original manga and the music (including both OP and ED) has a retro feel to it to enhance the atmosphere of a city trapped in the recent past. The voice actors really get into their roles, especially Taito Ban as Tao Gwen, Miyuki’s lover and Kudo’s friend, and Aoi Kouga as Yaomay, Reiko’s staunch ally with a troubled past.
And can there be any hope of a happy ending for Kudo and Reiko? Well, you’ll just have to watch to find out how the anime resolves their story…
Returning Champions
SHOSHIMIN: How to Become Ordinary (Crunchyroll) is based on the mystery novels by Honobu Yonezawa (Hyouka) and concluded the second season with a really strong story (as described by HWR above): The Case of the Wintertime Limited-Edition Chocolate Bonbons. Throughout the series, we’ve seen the ‘unusual’ friendship between high school students, Jougorou Kobato and Yuki Osanai, wax and wane. But as the final story arc begins, the two have broken up with their respective girlfriend and boyfriend and are hanging out together once more. Which is when a genuinely shocking incident occurs; walking home on a road with no pavement, a van suddenly swerves and hurtles directly toward them. Kobato pushes Osanai down the bank out the way but is knocked down and as the van disappears, it’s obvious he’s been badly injured. Hospitalized with a broken leg and broken ribs, he has too much time to reflect on what’s happened and that he’ll miss the vital school examinations that will determine which university he attends. It’s Christmas too…but a mysterious visitor leaves him the gift of a plush toy and a box of delicious chocolates. It has to be Osanai!
Kobato recalls how when he and Osanai were in junior high, one of their sempai suffered a similar hit-and-run accident on the same stretch of road – and they tried to investigate to discover the identity of the perpetrator and the girl who was with him. Attended to by one nurse (always the same one) in a private room, he realizes that the hospital is eerily quiet…
The stakes are high in this story arc and it takes the brave move of showing that the younger Kobato was insensitive in his desire to unravel the mystery of what happened to his injured sempai. Several reaction images show him with a strange self-satisfied smile as he takes notes or asks questions, as if he’s forgotten he’s dealing with real people and is more interested in solving the case for his own satisfaction. Alone, injured and vulnerable in an empty hospital, he realizes his life is in danger. But Osanai, suspecting the worst, has been vigilant and comes to his rescue. For the first time her mask slips and we see that she really cares about him in a genuinely affecting moment.
But they’re both in danger and the last two episodes are real edge-of-the-seat watching. Cleverly constructed and well animated, this quiet but watchable series has held the attention throughout the second series. Everything comes together: well-scripted drama, music (by Takahiro Obata) voice acting, all combine to make this one of the best anime in a strong season. And there’s a brilliant parting shot from Osanai to Kobato toward the end of the last episode; don’t miss it!
The Apothecary Diaries has been the last (?) of the Spring titles to finish after a few delays but was well worth the wait (as hoped and expected). As Natsu Hyuga’s story turned darker and darker with discoveries about the late emperor’s paedophilic proclivities and trouble brewing in the north, the story thread about Maomao’s servant friends Xiaolan and insect-loving Shisui and the little cat was a ray of light in the gathering gloom – until it suddenly wasn’t.
And then there was the much-heralded scene in which Maomao discovers that Lord Jinshi is most definitely not a eunuch which, although played with humour (the infamous frog?) resonates with repressed feelings. The final arc of the season is the grimmest so far in which Maomao is kidnapped and Shisui’s true identity and her complicated family situation is revealed in their stronghold far away in the chilly northern wastes. Treason and plotting against the emperor can only end one way and as the snow begins to fall, the imperial troops, led by Jinshi in full martial regalia (and assuming his true identity as the crown prince) arrive to besiege the stronghold in which Maomao is being held.
With so many storylines in play, the adaptation does a fine job of unobtrusively keeping them all delivering at the ‘right’ moments to achieve the maximum dramatic impact. This is also achieved by a good standard of animation, mixed with the authentic look of the whole series which evokes an alternative medieval China in a convincing and consistently stylish way. (Although I was disappointed that Jinshi’s arrival with the army was conveyed in a still image as if the budget had suddenly run out.) But praise must also go to the voice actors for bringing all these colourful and endearing (in some cases!) characters to life: Aoi Yuki as Maomao, Takeo Otsuka as Jinshi and Asami Seto as Shisui.
And if the stark horrors of the last episodes, all too believable in a historical context, were somewhat mitigated in the final episode (#48) perhaps we can forgive the author for wanting to end on a more hopeful note, even if our rational selves know, deep down, that such an outcome is merely wishful thinking. Good news then followed that The Apothecary Diaries will return – although there seems to be some lack of clarity as to whether it will be a Season 3 (surely the best outcome) or a film… we shall see!
Kowloon Generic Romance, SHOSHIMIN Season 2 and The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 are streaming on Crunchyroll.
Onosume
Hotly Anticipated
Maebashi Witches I think was always going to be a weird one, combining notes of Magical Doremi with the character drama and song and dance of idol shows like Sunrise’s own Love Live! franchise, and I ended up coming out of this one feeling a bit bemused but also strangely satisfied by the way the show ended up.
At the beginning it heavily disguises itself as a magical girl/idol crossover piece, but it slowly reveals itself to be a psychological character drama that uses its mechanic of granting people’s wishes to get inside people’s heads and if not solve the problems of today’s youth, at least give a bit of commentary on them.
It took a little bit of time to get on board with, but I liked the overall approach here, as it goes into each of the main girls’ hang-ups and problems and slowly builds the friendship between them as they help both the magic shop’s customers and each other become better people. The expectations of the genre fling in some fake-outs, as you expect either the fluffy mascot or one of the main girls to be evil, but it’s a surprise that most of the series follows the straight and narrow. There is a twist of this sort to bring the series to its climax, but it comes from a different direction, and it caught me off guard at least!
For music and idol fans I don’t think there’s too much on offer here – the songs are nice enough but don’t stand out enough to be memorable, apart from maybe one that comes near the end. The animated dance sequences are cool and those familiar with how Love Live! does it will find their evolution interesting as it’s easier to frame these in your head when there are magical shenanigans going on.
It’s really in the story and characters where this series’ strengths lie (coming from the writer of Bocchi the Rock that may come as no surprise), and while it doesn’t hit all the right notes consistently, having everyone come out at the end as friends who acknowledge and surpass each other’s weaknesses is refreshing. It’s nice to have a series where characters that have these downsides of being annoying and unable to read the room, or struggling with their weight, or struggling to help at home, and have them completely accept each other and become friends.
It’s a little different – it’s a little obtuse at times – yet it comes out good at the end. If you can stick it out through some of its more awkward moments, then I’d say give it a go as this is a solid 7/10 show.
Returning Champion
Having enjoyed the first season of I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level I was excited to see it return for more comedic hijinks with Azusa and the gang, yet while it’s decent enough I can’t help feeling underwhelmed by what we got here.
While it’s meant to be a slow and relaxing show, I think this time it follows that path a bit too much and lacks the depth it needs to really put forward its ever-increasing cast of characters. The first season started small and gradually introduced new faces, giving each character time to breathe and really work over what makes them tick, but here I felt that it brought in someone new and they were gone in an instant without you really being able to get to know them. Some of the plot points used to introduce them are pretty shallow too, and it feels like there’s no conflict or repercussions to anyone’s actions throughout the show.
There are some stronger moments in the series with some good lasting impressions, the majority of which revolve around Sandra the Mandragora, as from Eno’s initial hunt for her, to Sandra and the Slime twins going to school, and the fertiliser incident later on, she is always a bundle of fun to watch and she works in a very different way from the rest of the cast. Additionally, Curalina’s gimmick of being able to see and portray the true monsters behind the cute faces was also a interesting touch, even though she’s only featured in the show for a couple of episodes, while Demon Lord Pecora turning into an idol was kinda cute (certainly not to be confused with Hololive’s Pekora!). Yet outside of these things, instead of feeling relaxed and enamoured by the cuteness, I just felt bored. Which is an absolute shame because there’s so much these characters can be doing, but it does feel like the series is just going through the motions.
Overall then this finishes up as a disappointing damp squib. If you’re looking for something similar I’d maybe shout out some older shows like Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear or Bofuri, which both have similar vibes but have a bit more going on in either the plot or action departments.
Unexpected Diamond
Rock is a Lady’s Modesty is undoubtedly one of my favourite anime of the year as it barrels through in a brash and unapologetic celebration of how rock music is a middle finger to the established order.
While this is very much in my wheelhouse, coming from people behind Aikatsu!, I’ve loved this show because of its wild and crazy examination of rock subculture and its core message of it always being better to be true to yourself rather than being something you’re not.
It’s exhilarating to see the show’s main characters, Lilisa and Otoha, go from prim schoolgirls to horny and potty-mouthed deviants, and a lot of the show’s comedy and laughs come from this switch between their two personas. Watching them go ham on drums and guitar really does impress, and Bandai Namco Pictures have done well to make this both beautifully fast -aced and sexually charged, in a way that reminds me of the approach Kakegurui took.
It’s not just played for laughs or shock value though, and as the series moves on, we see a really nuanced criticism of the world, as it goes on to call out people who fake it to try to be something they’re not. We don’t quite get it here, but I hope there’s some later reflection on Lilisa’s part that becoming the school’s so-called “Noble Maiden” isn’t worth sacrificing yourself for.
This is still a girls’ rock band show though, so there’s plenty of time to get into the music too. A lot of the middle part of the series is about forming the band, and I’m glad it sticks to its guns and brings another two weirdoes to the group with Tina on keyboard (prince in school, timid mouse outside) and Tamaki on bass (who turns out to be a secret masochist). Put four absolute nutters in a band and you get some absolute banging tunes it turns out! Huge props to BAND-MAID too for providing the awesome music and motion capture for the show and providing what is really it’s soul. I hope they had as much fun making it as I did watching and listening to it!
Overall though this is a fantastic and hugely entertaining show and if you haven’t seen this one yet you are really missing out!
Maebashi Witches, I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level are available on Crunchyroll, while Rock is a Lady’s Modesty is available on HIDIVE.
