Welcome to Anime Rants! The seasonal anime for Winter 2024 will start within the next week or so. Compared to usual, I will be covering fewer shows for my episode reviews. There just aren’t many options that interest me this season. Regardless, I’m fairly excited for the ones that I chose.
In addition to the 5 on this list, I’m also eagerly waiting to watch the fourth Madoka Magica movie, which is due to be released sometime in this season. Speaking of magical girls, I liked the premise of the new series, Gushing Over Magical Girls. I liked it until I saw the trailer, which made it clear that this anime is nothing at all but an excuse to sexualize young female characters. I won’t be touching that.
If any other series pop up that look good to me, perhaps I’ll watch that and write about it later in the season. Otherwise, this is my list for the season.
1) The Apothecary Diaries
Start date: N/A (Continuing from Fall 2023)
I’m enjoying The Apothecary Diaries a lot, although I’m a few episodes behind. The story follows Maomao, a young apothecary in a country loosely based on China in the Ming era. After being kidnapped and sold as a servant to the Inner Palace, Maomao tries to keep a low profile to finish her work contract ASAP. However, at times, she just can’t help but use her knowledge of medicine and herbs to make a difference. The visuals in this anime are beautiful, and Maomao has a unique and entertaining personality.
2) A Sign of Affection (Yubisaki to Renren)
Start date: January 6th
This shoujo-targeted anime focuses on an adult cast. The protagonist, Yuki Itose, is hearing-impaired, so I hope for some interesting commentary on people with disabilities. (Though mine is considered a psychological disability, I am interested in learning about an advocating for those with physical disabilities, too.) A Sign of Affection is listed on MAL as a romantic comedy, so it will hopefully be funny at times.
3) Blue Exorcist: Shimane Illuminati Saga
Start Date: January 7th
Blue Exorcist takes place in a world full of demons, spirits, and mythical creatures. After his surrogate father was killed by demons, young Rin becomes an exorcist. There’s just one major problem: Rin is the son of Satan, one of the demon rulers with the highest death count of humans on record. Nobody in the exorcist world is keen on welcoming the son of Satan. Rin’s difficult life as a student of exorcism begins.
It’s been seven years since the last season of Blue Exorcist. I wasn’t very impressed with the second season. Nevertheless, I plan to watch Blue Exorcist S3 because I loved the first season many years ago. The characters and the world they live in are interesting to me.
4) Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End (Continuing)
Start date: N/A (Continuing from Fall 2023)
Frieren the Elf is the last survivor of the group of adventurers who defeated the Demon King. She outlived everyone because Elves live so long. The only thing she has left of her old friends is a task entrusted to her: to train a young girl in the ways of magic.
This anime is set in a fantasy world of adventurers and bosses like so many other anime series in each year. But Freiren feels a bit different from the average, overused fantasy anime. I’ve only seen three episodes so far, and yet I’m already seeing that this is a fairly good story. I’m excited to get caught up and start writing about this series!
5) Metallic Rouge
Start Date: January 11th
The year is 2128, and androids known as Neans populate society along with humans. Like in many sci-fi settings, these “robots” are programmed so they can never harm humans. Rouge is a Nean with an important mission given to her by the government: to fight against the Immortal Nine, dangerous Neans who could overthrow humanity. Along with her partner, Naomi, Rouge is in for a world of battle and discovery.
The premise of this anime is simple and fairly basic for a sci-fi anime, but I’m still excited for it. The visuals looks great, the opening song is a banger, and I’m optimistic about the two female protagonists being cool characters.
Thanks for reading~
PATREON
