We’re halfway through the Spring season, and it’s almost time to get on with the list for Summer 2013. A few excellent titles are in the mix for this season, and a few other promising leads. This season caught me up with so many titles I didn’t initially include in the chart, so I am going to try to get everything seated properly this time, even if that means making a post-chart after the first week. Anyway, let’s see what we have in store based on charts from these fine sources:
Anichart – Summer 2013
Neregate – Summer 2013
Unilaterally Confirmed for My Watching Pleasure
Rozen Maiden
Studio Deen
Although the show originally premiered in 2004, it wouldn’t be until 2006-2007 when I would watch this absolutely amazing piece of work, having been blissfully unaware of its presence for so long, despite the fact that 4chan was built on DESU DESU DESU DESU. It continues to remain one of very few titles on my MAL list to ever receive a 10, which I’ve only given to shows that were my all-time favorites, or that I considered the best of their time. Will this iteration of Rozen Maiden withstand that test? Honestly, I’m not sure. The standards for anime today versus 2004 are pretty low, and the chances of Rozen Maiden returning to those glory years, especially considering Studio DEEN’s recent work, it’s going to be a tough sell. Is this a remake? A sequel? That’s going to be the kicker here. DEEN was not part of the original shows, rather, they were animated by NOMAD, who, as it turns out, is doing Kitakubu KatsudÅ Kiroku this season. Haw. I’m also a bit concerned they’re going after the Higurashi no Naku Koro ni crowd, since that was in DEEN’s wheelhouse before.
Senki Zesshou Symphogear 2
Satelight
I can see a few people now saying “What the fuck, son? I am disappoint?” because it was just a half-baked anime made to promote songs. I know, but fuck man, I had a pretty damn good time with Symphogear. The characters, the enemies, the plot, and the twist, they were all blantently obvious and worthy of trope and song. It’s like dragging out an old gaming system and playing that game that you loved and couldn’t put down when you were ten, but now that your thirty, it wasn’t as much fun as you remembered, but it was still a good time for a couple hours.
Highschool DxD S2
TNK
After having to suffer through Yuuki Kaji’s unfortunate voicing of Shoe in Guilty Crown, having him voice a character that is not afraid to use his demon powers to rip clothes off of girls, form a demon harem, and bury his face into Rias’ tits (thank you based Yoko) Highschool DxD turned out to be more awesome than I originally thought it by the end of the first season. The manga really helped me reinforce my overall opinion though, it is much better constructed, despite the story and characters being nothing special to bat home over. I’m all in for another season of RiasXAkenoXKonekoXAisa awesomeness.
Genshiken Nidaime
Production IG
When I was in high school, I joined the Japanese Club in my senior year. The few who ran the club wanted it to be about Japanese culture, but everyone else just wanted to watch anime. I had a Dell I9000 P3-800Mhz (woooow) at the time I used for taking notes in classes and downloading anime off IRC during lunch, and I was watching something off of it while everyone talked and did whatever one afternoon. People came up around me and were shocked that you could watch anime as it was airing in Japan, albeit a week late, since digital fansubbing was still new in 2001/2002 and not instant-fucking-tanious as it is now.
Genshiken always reminded me of those old days, high school, post-high school, right up to about 2006. Me and friends would hang out, bullshit about anime and games, go over to each others’ houses, and waste our lives where we should have been doing something with them. Now when I think of it, it was a shitty idea, but I still often wish I had a few people I could bullshit with face-to-face about this stuff. Being an adult sucks.
Kami nomi zo Shiru Sekai
Manglobe
TWGOK. A few years ago, I thought it was the title to something boring. Then I watched it as part of my Saimoe-inspired backlog, and found it was most excellent, especially the OP music. The show tries to foster a BEST GIRL mentality among the girls he saves, but they were so forgettable that I don’t even know their names, only Elsie and Haqua. Still, I summarize that it will be a fair amount of fun in the way it can only be.
Selected Based on Description and Submitted for Approval by the Midnight Society
Servant x Service
A-1 Pictures
Remember Working!!? See the studio who did that? Yeah. Another show about working, this time in a WELFARE OFFICE. I doubt this will be as awesome as working in an American DMV, but it should be damn close. As long as it has a POPLAR, we’ll be golden. If not, hopefully something similar.
Gin no Saji
A-1 Pictures
Huh, a city boy wanted to be a farmer, eh? This sounds like the story of every kid living in this state who thinks they’re from the South. Protip: Rednecks don’t drive Honda Civics.
Love Lab
Dogakobo
I’ve come to enjoy a lot of what Dogakobo puts out, and even though this is another Five Girls franchise, it looks interesting, and has a manga predecessor, so I will be sure to check that out in the coming weeks to confirm it’s viability.
Watamote!
TBA
So let’s put this into perspective, you know who Katsuragi Keima is, right? Now imagine a younger female version of that. Still with me? Is this awesome? I hope so.
Stella Jogakuin Koutou-ka C3-bu
Gainax
Every time you get a show from Gainax, you have to pause and think about what they’re going to do. They’ve made other shows besides Evangelion, many good shows for that matter, including Mahoromatic in the early 2000’s, but then they go and make shit like Panty and Stocking and you wonder if they are genius or insane. This show seems to mimic Upotte! in a way, but plot-wise, it sounds more like Girls Und Panzer. Military seems to be a hot-topic in anime, and so far, it’s been done pretty well, so it’s up to Gainax not to drop the ball.
Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya
Silver Link
I sadly have not really kept up to date with FATE/Stay Night since watching the original run back in 2006, but it’s always had a fun cast of characters, and a spin-off series featuring Ilya as school girl or magical girl just seems like stupid silly fun. What we’re really after though it just more Rin. Maybe.
Kitakubu Katsudou Kiroku
Nomad
Instead of animating Rozen Maiden, Nomad goes for animating a 5girls 1club series, based on that ol’ one-two punch of >Doesn’t want to join any clubs >JOINS A CLUB. Cliche aside, club shows are hit-or-miss, and after GJ-bu, it’s hard to trust anything else that doesn’t have a Kirara in it.
Call Kenny Loggins, Because You’re in the Danger Zone
Monogatari Series: Second Season
SHAFT
I’ve been a sucker for the Monogatari series, especially the characters, but the visuals and the way they tend to drag along at times makes it something I prefer to watch all at once and get the good bits out. When you realize that the character dynamics will never change, that Senjougahara is heartless, Suruga a lesbian, Sengoku pure, Hanekawa a cock-tease, and Hachikuji eternally lost, you know all you need to know and the rest is just an adventure.
Kiniro Mosaic
Studio Gokumi
It’s a five-girl short series, so this time, I am trying not to place too much hype in short series so as to not be disappointed by five minutes of animation.
Kamisama no Inai Nichiyoubi
Madhouse
It looks interesting, but there’s something about it I can’t put my finger on yet, and I’m afraid I am going to have to see more on Day One to feel this one out, even with the description given.
Inu to Hasami wa Tsukaiyou
Gonzo
The premise looks interesting, but it strikes me of two things, 1. >Gonzo and 2. >Kore wa Zombie. I dunno why, but it just does.
Fantasista Doll
Hoods Entertainment
It sounds awfully a lot like Angelic Layer, one of my absolute favorite shows of all-time, but the cards part is where it skewers. Angelic Layer focused on battle dolls, but it used space-future movement technology, where this seems more like Magic: The Gathering with props. So the jury will be out on this one.
Fuck No
Ro-Kyu-Bu! SS
TBA
I tried to give RKB that fair shot (haaaw) back then, but it wasn’t that interesting. Sure, the girls are cute, but they’re goddamn kindergarteners. I just can’t do it.
Milky Holmes S3
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