Saturday, July 20, 2019

My First Impressions on 15 New Anime Series of Summer 2019

Fifteen.  Wow.  That’s the most number of new anime shows I’ve checked out at the start of a season so far.  Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m going to continue watching all of them down the line (but I have a feeling I will end up watching most).

As usual, I’ve listed them down from best to worst, per my impression of their first few episodes.  But this time around, I’ve also categorized them into three parts.

I’m following…
(These are the new anime series of the summer season that I’m absolutely watching on top of spring carryovers Carole & Tuesday, Kimetsu no Yaiba, and Fruits Basket.)

Dr. Stone
In a nutshell:
One day, a bright light engulfs the world and turns everyone into stone.  Thousands of years go by, and almost all vestige of civilization have been swallowed up by nature.  In the year 5738, high school friends Senku Ishigami and Taiju Ōki finally break free from their state of petrification, and with the former as “The Brain” and the latter as “The Brawn”, the duo kicks off humanity’s second journey out of the Stone Age.
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
Appealing science fantasy premise, interesting characters, amazing animation, and brimming with promise, Dr. Stone rocks (bad pun intended).

Vinland Saga
In a nutshell:
A badass Viking anime that features both fictional and historical characters and events.
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
It’s giving off Game of Thrones vibes – gritty, thoughtful, well-crafted, and addicting.

Fire Force
In a nutshell:
It follows an elite team of fire fighters who put out “Infernals” – victims of spontaneous human combustion who turn into fiery demons afterwards.
Number of episodes as of writing: 2
My initial thoughts:
It’s a fresh, exciting, beautifully animated shonen that seems to have as much heart and depth as quality action.

Actually, Dr. Stone, Vinland Saga, and Fire Force are interchangeable with their spots. Each one is the possible “Anime of the Season”, and all three can end up in my year-end top ten list.

Are You Lost?
In a nutshell:
It’s a short-form anime series about a quartet of high school girls who miraculously survive a plane crash but get stranded in a remote, desert island. Fortunately, one of them is a Bear Grylls-like survival expert.
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
It’s not necessarily great.  But the premise mightily intrigued me.  I’m also finding it quite educational.

Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks?
In a nutshell:
Basically a typical isekai.  But this time, the MC’s mother is also transported to the MMORPG fantasy world with him.  In addition, it’s not the MC who ends up becoming OP, but his mother.
Number of episodes so far: 2
My initial thoughts:
Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks? doesn’t necessarily offer anything notably fresh; the clichés are evident.  But among the four new isekai series this season, it’s the one that has the craziest spin on the formula, and thus, is the most distinct.  The comedy is also on point.  So, if I find myself in a situation where I only have the time for one isekai this season, this is my choice.  Also worth mentioning: the eponymous “mom”, Mamako, rivals If It's for My Daughter, I'd Even Defeat a Demon Lord’s Lalatina for the title of “most adorable character of the season.”

Speaking of If It's for My Daughter, I'd Even Defeat a Demon Lord

If It's for My Daughter, I'd Even Defeat a Demon Lord
In a nutshell:
While on a mission in the deep forest, a young adventurer encounters a little devil girl who oddly bears her kind’s mark of a criminal and who appears to have been recently orphaned.  Feeling compassion, he decides to adopt her as his own child.
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
Even though it doesn’t look like it will have anything remarkable to offer, it’s just too delightful and darling to skip.  And it’s mostly due to that “little devil girl” mentioned above – Latina – being so winsomely adorable.  It’s easily the feel-good wholesome show of the season. 

But wait a minute...

While Googling for an image of this show for this blog post, I came across the covers of the light novel series which suggest that it might not be so wholesome after all...

Uh-oh...
No...
NO!
NOOOO!

Oh, well.  Anyway, as far as the first few episodes go, it’s simply sweet and cute and heartwarming.  Who knows.  Maybe the anime won’t take the same direction.

How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift?
In a nutshell:
A comedy about girls going to the gym and lifting weights.
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
It’s not necessarily hilarious, but it’s probably the new anime this summer season that made me laugh the hardest so far.  The shtick with the girls’ trainer, Naruzo Machio, never fails to make me chuckle.  I also find the regular delivery of weight training exercise trivia fascinating.  The ED is pretty catchy, too.

I’m on the fence about…
(These are the new anime series that I may or may not stick with.  As of writing, I’m still going to watch a few more episodes before I make up my mind.)

Astra Lost in Space
In a nutshell:
While on space camp, nine youngsters encounter a mysterious orb that teleports them into deep space, floating in orbit around an unknown planet.  Fortunately, there’s an abandoned spaceship nearby, and they pull themselves in.  To their shock, they learn that they are 5,012 light years away from home.  Left with no choice, they decide upon using the ship – which they named Astra – to cross the expanse, hoping to replenish their limited supplies from the planets they come across along the way.
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
It’s okay.  It reminds me a bit of Vandread, Farscape, and Star Trek: Voyager. But going into it, I was kind of expecting something more.  I’m somewhat particular when it comes to hard sci-fi.

Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest
In a nutshell:
An isekai in which an entire class is summoned to a fantasy world where they need to save humanity from being wiped out by demons.  But while his classmates get cool job classes with powerful magical abilities, the MC – an otaku-type character, an isekai cliché – is stuck with the job class who’s only capable of a low-level transmutation skill.  During a dungeon raid, he’s betrayed by one of his classmates, and he plummets to the bottom of the dungeon, where strong monsters lie.  He survives, and while on his a way to escape his predicament, he gradually becomes stronger, learns new skills, creates powerful weapons, and meets and frees an imprisoned vampire princess, who becomes loyal to him.
Number of episodes as of writing: 2
My initial thoughts:
It’s apparent that, despite having a character arc that’s somewhat similar with The Rising of the Shield Hero, it’s based on a very intriguing isekai source material.  Unfortunately, even though I haven’t read the manga, it’s also rather apparent that this anime has botched up adapting it.  You can sense it.  It looks rushed.  It’s seemingly made without any intention of being a worthwhile anime on its own but just to serve as an advertisement for the manga.  That being said, it seems like that the mere glimpse of how good it could have been is enough to keep me watching… for now.

Hensuki: Are You Willing to Fall in Love with a Pervert, as Long as She’s a Cutie?
In a nutshell:
A high school boy finds out that his wish of getting a girlfriend might finally be coming true soon when he receives a love letter from an anonymous sender.  However, strangely accompanying the letter is a pair of panties.  As he investigates the girls whom he suspects of being the sender, he discovers that each one is hiding hilarious fetishes.
Number of episodes as of writing: 2
My initial thoughts:
I don’t know.  It could end up being an entertaining, hysterical trashy ecchi.  But I find the tone to be distractingly uneven at times.

Wasteful Days of High School Girls
In a nutshell:
A slice-of-life comedy centered on a class of quirky girls who have just entered high school.
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
It’s funny.  It has made me chuckle a couple of times.  But it hasn’t had me in stitches yet… which I hoped it would consistently do when I picked it up.

Demon Lord, Retry!
In a nutshell:
A young working adult is transported into a fantasy world as his video game character.  Now, with the abilities and appearance of a gangster-like “Demon Lord”, he saves the life of a lame girl ostracized by her village.  He befriends her, and they set out on a journey in this world, encountering various challengers who want to take on this “Demon Lord.”
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
The script is a hodgepodge of isekai concepts.  And it’s visually dull because a lot of short cuts were made with the animation.  It’s objectively mediocre at best.  However, there’s a hint that the MC is going to undergo a “expanding his influence, collecting subordinates, and building a kingdom” arc that’s similar to Overlord and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime.   And, at this point, that’s somehow keeping me slightly curious of what’s going to happen next.  But, yeah, this is the likeliest of being dropped.

I’m dropping…
(These are the new anime series that I’m no longer watching beyond their pilots.)

Maidens of the Savage Season
In a nutshell:
An American Pie-ish coming-of-age comedy following the members of an all-female high school literature club.
Number of episodes as of writing: 3
My initial thoughts:
It’s actually pretty good, and an argument can be made that it’s better than many of the anime listed above.  Still, it’s just not my cup of tea.  Also, if ever I stick with Wasteful Days of High School Girls, following both shows seems redundant.  I only have room for one high school girls-centered anime comedy.

The Ones Within
In a nutshell:
Eight teenage “Let’s Play” streamers are abducted and forced by a strange man in an alpaca mask to participate in a multi-stage reality game.
Number of episodes as of writing: 2
My initial thoughts:
The pilot has parts that intrigued me.  But it hasn’t given me much to make me add it on my watchlist.

Isekai Cheat Magician
In a nutshell:
While on their way to school, a high school boy and a high school girl are magically transported to another world.  After a group of adventurers save them from a monster, they decide to work as adventurers themselves while they are in this world.  But when they are being tested for their aptitude, it is discovered that they actually possess remarkable magical gifts.  If this had been a game, it would be as if they have “cheats.”
Number of episodes as of writing: 2
My initial thoughts:
It’s the blandest and most basic of the four new isekai series this season.  Hence, it’s the least worthwhile of watching.  The pilot’s clichés and lazy writing made me groan a lot that I almost stopped watching midway through.

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