Anime of Spring 2021, Ranked

Spring 2021 ended two months ago already.  But even though it’s now very late, I still decided to make my usual end-of-season rankings for its anime, especially since I failed to do a “first impressions” post.  Besides, this isn’t the first time I was this late with my seasonal ranking.  Lol.

Anyway, just like Winter 2021, Spring 2021 was an excellent and jam-packed season.  Sadly, I haven’t gotten around to watching some of the most popular titles of the season – namely Don't Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro, Vivy -Fluorite Eye’s Song-, and Odd Taxi.  But I really want to catch up with them, especially the last two, which garnered “Anime of the Year” buzz.

But for those I got to watch, here’s how I ranked them from least to best.

Wonder Egg Priority

Note: This ranking concerns only the disappointing finale, the only part of the show that aired within Spring 2021.  Here is my review for the series as a whole. 

'Fruits Basket' Is a Melodrama Masterwork

I didn’t expect to love Fruits Basket.   A shojo about a homeless, orphaned, working-student teenage girl who meets and befriends a clan that’s cursed to temporarily turn into animals when weak, stressed, or embraced by the opposite sex isn’t exactly an instantly intriguing hook for me.  But I gave it a chance when it debuted two years ago, and the 63 episodes it brought about since then turned out being some of the most investing anime I saw during that span.  Wrapping up its run with its third and final season last Spring 2021, Fruits Basket has proven itself to be a melodrama anime masterpiece.

In ‘Record of Ragnarok’, Historical Figures Go Mano-a-Mano With Mythological Deities in One, Giant Tournament Arc

If Record of Ragnarok is to be described in a nutshell, it’s Mortal Kombat between historical figures and mythological deities to determine the fate of mankind – whether they will be allowed to go on existing or should be wiped out.  That’s a pretty cool premise, and if that doesn’t sell you on the show, I don’t know what will.

'So I'm a Spider, So What?' Is Decently Fun, but It Doesn't Measure Up to Its Epic Plot Twists

So I'm a Spider, So What? is an isekai about an entire high school class being killed by a mysterious explosion and then reincarnated into a fantasy world.  Most of them are reborn as humans or humanoids, but a few are reborn as monsters, including the main character, “Kumoko.”

Waking up in a dungeon filled with high-level monsters as a newly born Taratect, a weak, dog-sized spider monster, she remembers being the socially withdrawn high school otaku Hiiro Wakaba in her past life, and quickly realizes the RPG isekai nature of her new existence.  Drawing from her wits and gamer instincts, she sets out to face her daily life, which is an unending fight for survival.  But she perseveres, and gradually, she becomes stronger and stronger, gaining more powerful skills and evolving into more powerful spider forms.  Eventually, she gains the notorious reputation of “Nightmare of the Labyrinth.”

'The Slime Diaries' Is Inconsequential, but Wonderfully Chill

The Slime Diaries: That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime is a spin-off anime series of – well, pretty obvious what.  It’s a slice-of-life comedy that’s presumably set between season 1 and season 2 of the main series.  Taking place across a year, it shows the day-to-day activities of the citizens of Tempest, as they work for the sustenance and development of their nation, as well as enjoy the seasonal holidays and activities that Rimuru adapted from his previous life in Japan.

‘Wonder Egg Priority’ Ends Up as a Trainwreck, but Before Becoming So, It Was an Awesome Ride

Wonder Egg Priority was an original anime that debuted last Winter 2021.  I didn’t initially pick it up, but I eventually did, for it seemed like it was going to be the best new anime of the season, based on the buzz it was generating.  Catching up with it, I came to agree that it deserved the hype.  It was that good.  If I had given it a review after the season ended (March), I would have raved about it.  However, I didn’t review it then, since it wasn’t technically finished yet, as the finale was put off until June – a move that’s atypical for a seasonal anime.  And, sadly, the finale disappointingly failed to nail the landing.

'Moriarty the Patriot' Is 'Sherlock Holmes' Mixed with 'Death Note' and 'Code Geass'

Moriarty the Patriot is the latest anime reimagining of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes.  A split cour, it ran during Fall 2020 (episodes 1 to 11) and Spring 2021 (episodes 12 to 24).  And as usual to a Sherlock Holmes fanboy like me, I was along for the ride from the get go.

The anime is set during the Victorian Era, the same time period of the original Sherlock Holmes series.  But this time, as the title implies, the story focuses on Sherlock Holmes’ nemesis, Moriarty.  However, this version of the character is portrayed as an anti-hero.  This series tells the “real story” of Moriarty, as the story that we have come to know through Dr. Watson’s accounts (information for those who haven’t read the original Sherlock Holmes series: it was written in way as if Dr. Watson wrote the stories) is supposedly just a “fictional” rendition of what really transpired.

'Nomad: Megalo Box 2' Is Much Better Than Its Predecessor

Unlike with SSSS.Dynazenon, the sequel to SSSS.Gridman, I knew going into Spring 2021 that Megalo Box was having a continuation.  Nevertheless, Megalo Box getting a sequel was a surprising development.  It was a self-contained story, and it already wrapped up nicely.  So, nobody was expecting a sequel.  Hence, I was stunned when Nomad, the title of this sequel, was first announced.

Then I remembered that Megalo Box is a science fiction reimagining of the classic boxing anime Ashita no Joe, which ran during the 1970s and 80s.  In the ending of Ashita no Joe (SPOILER), Joe presumably died after the final match.  That’s why when Megalo Box was ongoing, everyone was wondering if it would wrap up similarly with Ashita no Joe.  Episodes even closed with a “NOT DEAD YET…” title card, which understandably fueled assumptions that it was foreshadowing Joe’s fate.   However, in the end, Joe ended up winning – and surviving! – his final match – the opposite of what happened to the original Joe.  So, by having a sequel, it meant that the new Joe’s story was continuing, negating his “happily ever after” ending in Megalo Box.  That also meant the new Joe could still end up dying in his final match, like the original Joe did.

'Burning Kabaddi' Sputters Out

Burning Kabaddi follows Tatsuya Yoigoshi, a once well-renowned soccer star during middle school who has since been turned off of the sport and all sports for that matter.  Now a freshman in Noukin High School, he’s been constantly asked by the soccer club to join them, but he strongly refuses each time, adamant about renouncing sports forever, as he would rather put his time into his new hobby, livestreaming.

But then, another sports club starts recruiting Tatsuya – the kabaddi club.  After some bribery that benefits his livestreaming and some minor blackmail, Tatsuya is swayed to give kabaddi a shot, although he insists that he’s never going to join their club regardless.  However, after witnessing and then participating in kabaddi for the first time, he’s become intrigued of it.  In the following days, the more he hangs out with the club, the more he finds it intriguing.  Soon enough, he finds himself getting invested into this new sport, and becomes an official member of the club.  Rediscovering the competitive spirit and athletic talents he developed as a soccer genius, and repurposing them into kabaddi, he progresses at a rapid pace, that he soon becomes one of the team’s best players.

'Those Snow White Notes' Makes You Fall in Love with the Shamisen

Those Snow White Notes is an anime about the shamisen, which is probably Japan’s most iconic traditional musical instrument.  The story follows Setsu Sawamura, the talented teenage grandson of shamisen maestro Matsugorou Sawamura.  Setsu grew up idolizing his legendary grandfather, and has come to replicate the pieces that he’s heard from him.  However, Setsu has never been interested in showing the world his gifts, and thus, he’s never joined a competition or recital.

The "Gridman Universe" Delightfully Expands with 'SSSS.Dynazenon'

Prior to the Spring 2021 anime season, I was not aware that SSSS.Gridman was having a sequel.  It was only on the day the first episode of SSSS.Dynazenon was finally posted that I learned of its existence, and with just a glance at it, without reading any description or synopsis, I immediately knew that it was a sequel or spin-off series to SSSS.Gridman, since: a.) it has a “SSSS.” in its title; b.) I saw that it’s from Trigger, the same studio that made SSSS.Gridman; and c.) the poster/key visual (see above) has the same style as the poster/key visual of SSSS.Gridman.

'Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train' Is a Blast

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Mugen Train, also known as simply Demon Slayer: Infinity Train (“mugen” is Japanese for “infinite” or “infinity”; learned this one from High & Low), is the sequel to the first season of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.  The film immediately picks up the story where episode 26 left it off, so it’s very important to have seen season one first before watching this film.

'Beastars' Gets Even Better in Its 2nd Season

So, I’ve just caught up with Beastars season 2.  It ran last Winter 2021, but because I had so many anime to watch each week already, I wasn’t able to follow it.  Nevertheless, I meant to binge it as soon as I could, and I managed to get around to doing that a few days ago.

If I had seen Beastars season 2 last Winter 2021, it would have been one of my favorites.  Only Re:Zero and Attack on Titan would have ranked above it.   Beastars was one of my favorite anime during the year it debuted (it didn’t make the top 10, but it was either the 11^th or 12^th place), but great as it was, I believe season 2 has been better.

'Earwig and the Witch' Isn't Bad, but It's Still a Misstep for Studio Ghibli

Finally.  Studio Ghibli returns after a six-year hiatus!  For its comeback, the prestigious anime studio ventures for the first time into producing a computer-animated film.  Titled Earwig and the Witch, it is an adaptation of the 2011 book of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones, who is also the author of the novel that Howl’s Moving Castle, one of Ghibli’s best movies, was loosely based on.

'The Way of the Househusband' Is a Comedy Gem

Gokushufudou a.k.a. The Way of the Househusband is a slice-of-life comedy ONA anime series about a former mobster who became a full-time househusband.

Tatsu was once a notorious, formidable yakuza boss nicknamed “the Immortal Dragon.”  By his reputation alone, he makes others tremble in fear.  However, one day, he decided to leave the world of crime in exchange for a banal, homebody married life.  While his kyariaūman (a career woman) wife Miku goes to work, Tatsu stays at home to do the chores and other housekeeping tasks.  However, he may have totally retired from crime, but the yakuza boss spirit remains in him.  Amusingly, by employing his yakuza skillset, smarts, and attitude when carrying out his domestic duties, he actually turns out being an excellent, successful homemaker.

Anime of Winter 2021, Ranked

Winter 2021 should be in the running for best anime season ever.  It was so stacked with quality anime.  Sequels to several reputable anime titles simultaneously dropped this season.  On top of that, there were also a good deal of notable new titles to choose from.  I really had my hands full watching anime this season.  In total, I ended up watching 18 shows this season – the most since Fall 2019 (although, I did drop two, so I only finished with 16).  And those aren’t even all the anime I wanted to watch.  I never got around to watching Beastars season 2 (I hope to catch up to this soon) and SK∞, which is supposedly one of the absolute best new anime of Winter 2021.

Same as always, I will be enumerating here all 18 anime I watched, arranged from the worst to the best for me.

The Promised Neverland 2^nd Season

The second season of The Promised Neverland pulled off one of the most shocking twists in anime history: it sucked.

I haven’t read the manga, but I just knew that there was something off with it around episode 3 or 4.  Then, I learned from the Internet that its story had proceeded to dramatically divert from the manga, cutting off many of the things that made the manga special.  This made me lose any motivation to watch beyond episode 5.

Apparently, according to what I heard, it only got worse from there.  The version of the story that the anime opted for is not only radically condensed, but is also plagued by stupid writing – a far cry from the intelligent script of season 1, which was a bona fide masterpiece.

And I think that’s why the second season seems worse than it really is.  It’s because it betrayed one of the greatest single seasons of anime of all time.

The Promised Neverland season 2 will surely go down as one of the most atrocious anime adaptation botches ever.

'Jujutsu Kaisen' Is a Pretty Basic Battle Shonen, yet Brimming with Awesomeness

Jujutsu Kaisen was a huge hit when it debuted last Fall 2020.  In fact, many even considered it worthy of being Anime of the Year, even though its first season was only half-way done.  Personally, I preferred a couple of other anime over it in 2020, but I don’t necessarily think it didn’t deserve the hype.  And by remaining relevant in the loaded Winter 2021, in which it had to contend with many returning fan favorites and hot, new titles, Jujutsu Kaisen has cemented itself as a legit rival to Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba for the title of best battle shonen in recent memory.

'Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki' Is a Top-tier High School Anime

Powered by the hype of its manga fanbase, Horimiya turned out being the most prominent high school rom-com of Winter 2021.  However, while everyone was raving about it from the get go, I found myself gravitating toward Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki instead.  And though I ended up watching and liking Horimiya, too, I still believe Bottom-tier Character Tomozaki is the superior high school rom-com anime of Winter 2021.

'Horimiya' Is a Bit Overhyped, but Still a Genuinely Pleasing High School Rom-Com

Horimiya wasn’t one of the initial new anime I picked up at the start of the Winter 2021 season, but along with Wonder Egg Priority, I just had to start watching it mid-season, because it’s generating much buzz.  In the end, even though I thought it was a bit overhyped, I did thoroughly enjoy it.

Horimiya follows a group of high schoolers experiencing the usual stuff from your conventional high school drama anime – developing friendships, goofing around, bantering, the occasional angst, and of course, romance.  The title of the show is derived from the portmanteau of the main couple, Kyoko Hori and Izumi Miyamura.

'Heaven’s Design Team' Makes an Argument for Intelligent Design

Heaven’s Design Team is a fictional twist on the Creation story.  God, after creating the Earth, decides to outsource to a team of designers the task of creating the animals that will populate the planet.  For every job order, the designers must make a particular animal that meets the vague or enigmatic requirements that their Client has given for it.  A rookie angel named Shimoda serves as their liaison, and provides them invaluable emotional support.