86 EIGHTY-SIX – Episode 1
Oh neat, a complex and melancholy anti-war spec-fic series with a messy approach to social commentary and diversity metaphors. And here I was worried that all my reviews were going to be easy this season!
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Battle Athletes Victory ReSTART! – Episode 1
ReSTART is a mostly newbie-friendly reboot of a 1990s series with good energy and strong yuri subtext… but my God, this show is obsessed with ass shots.
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Full Dive: This Ultimate Next-Gen Full Dive RPG Is Even Shittier than Real Life! – Episode 1
It’s not that the whole episode is a waste of time, although in some ways that’s more frustrating than if it was a complete ball of incompetence. It’s just that some pretty novel ideas are buried in a sea of titties and tonal inconsistency.
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The World Ends with You: The Animation – Episode 1
This is a stylish adaptation of an equally stylish game, but the narrative will need to slow down its breakneck pacing if it wants to garner an audience outside of the existing TWEWY fanbase.
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Fairy Ranmaru – Episode 1
While there are some bumpy spots that keep this from being an inclusively horny ray of personified sunshine, I did spend most of the episode with a slightly baffled grin.
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The Saint’s Magic Power is Omnipotent – Episode 1
Saint’s Magic Power, with a listless twenty-something as its heroine, represents a different kind of power fantasy, but it’s a fantasy nonetheless: the power fantasy of getting a job without qualifications or a complicated interview process, of having a “knack” for a new skill and picking it up quickly, and not having to tie your hair back when you do lab work.
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Let’s Make a Mug Too – Episode 1
Do I want to explore tree-lined old streets looking at antiques now? Maybe. Mostly, though, I want to talk about the unexpected emotional undercurrents that I think will really elevate this cute little hobby show.
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ODDTAXI – Episode 1
There are so many sociopolitical themes that can be explored through anthropomorphic animals, which can make it easier to have conversations about difficult topics that occurred either in the past or present day. As of now, ODDTAXI is sort of interested in talking about that, but it feels more like a low-key mystery that is gradually going to reveal itself in future episodes.
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SEVEN KNIGHTS REVOLUTION: Hero Successor – Episode 1
SEVEN KNIGHTS REVOLUTION: Hero Successor has all the good tidbits that make me want to engage, but after three unsuccessful successive watches, I’m not sure if I’m into the plot enough to eventually like it.
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Combatants Will Be Dispatched! – Episode 1
Come for the evil organization, Stay for the… well, I guess for the entertainment, if this kind of show’s your thing. As you can tell, it’s… not mine, but hey: maybe you’ll like breast jokes and… ah, breast jokes? Oh yeah, evil, too!
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Higehiro: After Being Rejected, I Shaved and Took in a High School Runaway – Episode 1
Higehiro has the potential to be a story about an adult helping a teenage girl , but still has too much rom-com veneer for me to trust it.
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Dragon Goes House Hunting – Episode 1
In a market so saturated with Generic European Fantasy Adventures that it’s practically dripping, it’s nice to see new series that really try to go niche and plumb the depths of more mundane, less-explored aspects of these settings. In this case, I’m very much looking forward to seeing the ins and outs of the fantasy real estate market.
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Farewell, My Dear Cramer – Episode 1
One episode isn’t nearly enough time to call this shot, but I’m calling it anyway: Farewell, My Dear Cramer is going to be the lady-led sports anime I’ve dreamed about for years.
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Vivy -Fluorite Eye’s Song- – Episode 1
If you were expecting this to be “A.I.dol,” you might be a bit disappointed by this premiere. Vivy barely sings at all. She’s way too busy saving politicians from assassination attempts and trying to change the future. It’s a busy first episode.
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Those Snow White Notes – Episode 1
Those Snow White Notes definitely captures those small sad quiet moments and I think that alone will make the series worth watching…but damn is this show overdramatic.
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BURNING KABADDI – Episode 1
Burning Kabaddi seems crafted entirely to combat the sport’s status as a punchline in Japanese media, going so far as to have Yoigoshi call out the trend before he’s inevitably sucked in. This, my friends, is an imaging campaign.
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SSSS.DYNAZENON – Episode 1
While fans of SSSS.GRIDMAN will immediately recognize the director/writer duo’s signature style, this premiere is perfectly friendly (and perfectly gorgeous-looking) for newcomers to the Gridverse.
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MARS RED – Episode 1
A quiet, not-quite pretentious historical horror drama that is extremely My Brand.
