October is just around the corner, and that means that a whole new swath of seasonal anime is almost here. Some anime are continuing with new seasons, such as Spy x Family entering its third season and My Hero Academia reaching its final season. The new Ranma ½ is back, and so is To Your Eternity and Campfire Cooking in Another World. One Punch Man is also returning with season 3, but based on what we got in season 2 I’m not as excited for it. However, there are a bunch of new anime coming out this season that I am excited for over a whole bunch of genres, so there’s sure to be something for everyone.
1. Sanda
Originally a manga by Beastars creator Paru Itagaki, Sanda is set in a world where the government puts in place regulations to combat Japan’s declining birth rates, and children become more important than ever. Because of this, Santa Claus has been sealed away, and it is his descendant Sanda Kazushige that must use the powers of Santa Claus to the missing classmate of Shiori Fuyumura. With Science Saru, the studio behind DanDaDan and Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, behind the project, it’s sure to be a fun watch, with the insane concept of a boy transforming into Santa Claus being right up the studio’s alley.
2. Ninja vs Gokudo
Studio Deen’s adaptation of the manga Ninja vs Gokudo just might be the sleeper anime of this season. There’s a long-standing feud between ninja and the yakuza, and going off the synopsis there’s a sort of Romeo & Juliet-esque bromance at the center of it. The art style and action within its trailers feels like an homage to older anime and manga series like JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and Grappler Baki, with it being so over-the-top that you just can’t help but love it.
3. Digimon Beatbreak
Being a Pokémon fan my whole life, I’ve never exactly gotten into Digimon. However, Digimon Beatbreak from Toei Animation just might change that. From using human emotion as an enemy source, along with there being a team fighting and solving digimon-related cases in the shadows, it might scratch that same itch for me that early Jujutsu Kaisen or Demon Slayer does with a high-tech sci-fi style.
4. Gintama: 3-Z Ginpachi Sensei
Continuing with anime based on existing IP, we have the Gintama spinoff, Gintama: 3-Z Ginpachi Sensei from Bandai Namco Pictures. It’s an adaptation of the titular light novel, where the Gintama characters are in a high school alternate universe setting. I love the main Gintama series, so if this series is anything like it, it’s sure to be full of laughs.
5. Mechanical Marie
There are even more comedies this season, and one of the most interesting to me is the rom-com Mechanical Marie. It follows the relationship between the wealthy Arthur Louis Zetes, who wants nothing but a robot maid. However, the core of the anime that tickles me the most is that the titular Marie Evans isn’t actually a robot at all, but in fact a world-class fighter who is deeply in debt, and has to try her best to be found out. It’s possible that the joke could get old quickly, but the second I saw that Arthur thought putting a battery in her mouth for Marie to charge actually worked, I was sold.
6. Inexpressive Kashiwada and Expressive Oota
Inexpressive Kashiwada and Expressive Oota is another rom-com airing this season, with its cute concept being fully told in its title. It follows the relationship between the expressionless Kashiwada and the very expressive Oota, as Oota tries his best to make Kashiwada express at all, and along the way develop feelings for each other. So for those who are into cute, wholesome romance between the leads, this one is sure to satisfy.
7. May I Ask for One Final Thing?
LIDENFILMS’ May I Ask for One Final Thing? may seem to be the latest in a line of generic villainess shows, but it looks like it may stand out among the rest. Instead of the politicking route that other villainess stories seem to take, what our main character Scarlet decides to do instead is take matters into her own hands—literally—wanting to punch her former fiancé and those who’ve wronged her in the face, and looking great while doing it. For fans of villainess shows and even those who aren’t, I’d recommend giving this one a go.
8. This Monster Wants to Eat Me
Following in the steps of last season’s The Summer Hikaru Died of supernatural horror, This Monster Wants to Eat Me switches it up by being in the Girl’s Love genre. The mermaid Shiori vows to protect the main character, Hinako, because Hinako is uniquely delicious to monsters. Yet this protection comes with the looming threat that Shiori herself will one day completely devour Hinako. This show is perfect for those who love doomed yuri or are after that feeling of unsettling, existential dread.
9. Dusk Beyond the End of the World
On a lighter note, Studio P.A. Works is releasing a new original sci-fi romance series called Dusk Beyond the End of the World. The main character Akira Himegami wakes from cryosleep to a world ruined by an AI War, and must navigate this post-war world and love within it. This is especially true as Akira travels alongside an android named Yuugure, who looks eerily similar to Akira’s previous girlfriend, Towasa. The anime reminds me of another great show, Heavenly Delusion, but suited for a more general audience.
10. Wandance
Finally, we have Wandance from Madhouse. From its trailer alone it feels like it could be the anime of the season. Its 2D animation is beautiful, and the story about its characters learning about a specific subject like dance and expressing themselves is the kind of plot ripe with quality, like Madhouse has done before with Chihayafuru. The only thing I could see holding the anime back, however, are the motion-captured CG dance sequences Madhouse has collaborated with Cyclone Graphics to make. Based on how they look in the trailer they look fine—not terrible by any means—but it’s still jarring to see in comparison to how beautiful the rest of the show looks. If you can get past these sequences which are sure to be at the heart of the show, You’ll be met with a truly good story.
