01. LAZARUS (Ep. 1-10) – The world is going to end for humanity, after a scientist reveals his widely used pain-relief drug, Hapna, is actually a ticking time bomb. A group of misfits is tasked to find him, with the goal of obtaining an antidote.
I really like that Axel’s parkour and prison breaks are believable because his inability to stay still for long is so well-demonstrated. Miyano Mamoru is a natural fit in the lead role here. In general, the characters and voice acting are great. And the action scenes – wow, truly phenomenal!
I wish they would give Hersch a more generic outfit though. Her usual clothes are too distinctive (and ugly) to wear every day.
Other criticisms: There are maybe a few too many coincidences. And there is a strange, dreamlike, lack of urgency to everyone. Why would people go so out of their way to protect their own agendas when everyone is going to die?
Regardless, this sort of anime is my jam, and I look forward to it every week!
02. TO BE HERO X (Tu Bian Yingxiong X) (Ep. 1-11) – The narrative consists of individual story arcs with no clear connection so far. Additionally, the order in which they are presented is not even linear. Anyway, the stories are good, and intriguing, though I fear I may need to re-watch once I know what’s actually going on.
Going in, I was a bit unsure about the CG animation, but there was no need to be wary as it looks really good.
The soundtrack, including the OP and ED, are great! Sawano Hiroyuki delivers again!
(Streaming at Crunchyroll)
03. KOWLOON Generic Romance (Ep. 1-10) – The retro setting seems at odds with the modern-day devices and futuristic object floating in the sky. And the main character might be a clone? Kowloon Generic Romance is definitely unique and mysterious and very interesting.
(Streaming at Crunchyroll)
04. The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto 2nd Season) (Ep. 33-46) – The sheer amount of medical and scientific knowledge that Maomao possesses defies credibility, in my opinion. And it’s also quite the stretch that she’s kept her blinders on for so long about Jinshi’s secret, when she’s so morbidly curious about literally everything else.
Regardless, this show is consistently well-written and Maomao is a great lead. I am not personally watching for the potential romance aspect; but for those who are, there’s finally some development here.
(Streaming at Crunchyroll)
05. Anne Shirley (Ep. 1-10) – Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery. Classic Canadiana, countless publications, TV and movie adaptations. Despite growing up in Canada, it all somehow eluded me. Typical story of my life: it took Japan to make a modern anime to reel me in!
Anne is really charming. This is basically a slice-of-life tale, but the story moves fast – each episode finds her about a year older!
(Streaming at Crunchyroll)
06. Rock is a Lady’s Modesty (Rock wa Lady no Tashinami deshite) (Ep. 1-11) – A pretty fun show about proper young ladies letting loose and being true to their heavy metal hearts. Also, because of how repressed they usually have to be, it’s understandable they find it refreshing to be able to cuss each other out too. However, I will posit that there’s a difference between blunt honesty and verbal abuse!
Real life metal band BAND-MAID not only provides the OP song, but also the music played by the girls; so it looks and sounds really authentic!
(Streaming at HIDIVE)
07. Apocalypse Hotel (Ep. 1-9) – The world has ended for humanity long ago, but the Gingarou Hotel in Ginza, run by robots, continues to operate, eventually providing hospitality to extra-terrestrial guests.
(Streaming at Crunchyroll)
08. The Gorilla God’s Go-To Girl (Gorilla no Kami kara Kago sareta Reijou wa Ouritsu Kishidan de Kawaigarareru) (Ep. 1-9) – I tend to have a soft spot for anime featuring super strong, female, reluctant heroes, and Gorilla God fits the mould. The supporting characters are sufficiently pleasant too.
I love that Sophia routinely gets different hairstyles and outfits depending on the situation. However, it is hard not to notice the increasing use of recycled footage otherwise.
The most annoying thing, well maybe it’s just a personal pet peeve, is that most of the characters’ names are derived from the animals they are blessed by. It makes no sense, since the blessings are not hereditary, and are not received until one is in their teens. It goes so far as to be a spoiler, since the show doesn’t reveal everyone’s animal god right away; but you know.
(Streaming at Crunchyroll)
09. The Shiunji Family Children (Shiunji-ke no Kodomotachi) (Ep. 1-9) – Okay, incest/harem anime are pretty far off the beaten path for me! If it weren’t for Umehara Yuuichirou in the starring role of Arata, I never would have found my way here. Surprisingly, it’s not nearly as trashy as I anticipated, partly because Arata is a decent guy and a good brother to his siblings. He is rightfully weirded out when his sisters start thinking of him as potential romantic partner material once they learn they are not blood-related.
Pure speculation, but don’t tell me Lala, the girl he actually likes, is his blood-related sibling for real. That would be groan-worthy; but it would serve as an ironclad reason he cannot end up with her, and he has to consider looking in-house instead!
(Streaming at Crunchyroll)
10. I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire! (Ore wa Seikan Kokka no Akutoku Ryoushu!) (Ep. 1-4 + select episodes only) – This isekai sci-fi comedy is gratuitous and somewhat misogynistic. It does have its humorous moments, but I really cannot recommend this show! I only started watching because of my sister. And she only watched because Hirose Yuya plays a bit part. It got to the point where she was checking the end credits for his name before deciding whether or not to continue each episode.
I expected Shiunji Family Children to be trash, but it was not even close compared to I’m the Evil Lord.
(Streaming at Crunchyroll)