Anime of the Season

[dr. b 492]

It's that time again. A season ends and about a week later a new season begins. There's something I find very satisfying about finishing a show and then removing it from my Crunchroll queue / download list. It's like finishing a book. So: What was your Anime of the Season? Was there a clear cut winner? If not, post a short list of your favourites. What did you like best about your favourite anime this season?

 

Spring 2019 - go!

[Vic Boss 612]

Probably Shingeki no Kyojin Season 3 - Part 2. So much crazy shit happened and we actually had Titans in it

 

Probably is because this cour of JoJo Part 5 isn't over, and that shit's been intense, but the finale airs later in the Summer season so it might fall just short because of that (might fall short anyways, goddamn Shingeki was a ride)

[dr. b 492]

SnK was indeed very good this season. I saw some articles the other day that the 4th and final season will begin Fall 2020. I think the end of the 3rd season covers up to the end of chapter 90 of the manga. The latest chapter is 118, and it's a monthly, so there can't be too many chapters left before it ends if they're already planning the final season of the anime. 

 

My dark horse pick for Anime of the Season is MIX: Meisei Story. But in the end Attack on Titan is probably the true AOTS. 

[Eizan 126]

Attack on Titan could pull a FMA: Brotherhood and almost end both simultaneously. 

[dr. b 492]

I wonder if the final season will be 1 or 2 cour...

[dr. b 492]

Just started watching the anime version of Gundam The Origin. I didn't even notice that this was airing this season. Definitely gonna enjoy this. I don't think I finished the last 1 or 2 movies. 

[dr. b 492]

I fucking love the Rals. Ramba Ral is the man. And Jimba Ral is a total nut

[Vic Boss 612]

I like how they had that small moment where Jimba is shown rantingly teaching Casval all of his father's teachings and you know that's the basis that eventually led to him going Messiah-mode in Char's Counterattack.

 

I think my favourite one was the first one, babby Char's eyes tell the whole story (and is an interesting contrast because he eventually covers them up with a mask)

[dr. b 492]

Finally getting to the bits I missed in the later movies. I loved the part where Sayla finally gets angry and starts wasting dudes as they try to attack her house. Also, the scene a bit before that where Crowly sings a song and then it cuts to the Eden Club's neon sign going out was low-key one of the saddest scenes in The Origin   Gotta wait now for the next episode though...  

[dr. b 492]

Finished The Origin yesterday. Note I really want to rewatch Gundam. Maybe I'll do the compilation movies...

[Tassifox 418]

Demon Slayer is fucking totes gonna be on this Forum of Fame when it finishes. I think my heart almost stopped from that last ep

 

[dr. b 492]

It was once again time for us to select our ANIME of the SEASON!

 

If the list isn't too long, list off all the shows you watched during the Summer 2019 Season and then name your pick for AOTS - or a short list if there isn't a clear cut winner. Also free to discuss AOTS-adjacent things like "pleasant surprise" shows, disappointments, or whatever else comes to mind.

 

gogogo

[Psycho666Soldier 283]

I think the only new anime I've properly watched this season would be Dr. Stone and Black Clover.  I've been watching Demon Slayer, but I'm only like 3 episodes in, so that's obviously not current season stuff.

 

Between the two, I definitely give the nod to Dr. Stone.

[Vic Boss 612]

Vinland Saga. Violent viking revenge story, badass animation during fight scenes, strong characters who will also self-reflect (similar a bit to how Guts will self-reflect on his life and actions in Berserk). Though, not completely the blow-away anime of the season, there is shit going down in Black Clover (it steals a lot of plot-patterning from Naruto, we're in the Chuunin Exams where the Hidden Sound just launched their sneak attack), Yaiba's second cour has steadily built and expanded to where I'm really interested in seeing where it goes (and some of the best animation I've ever seen, god damn). Also the two episodes of Fruits Basket Season 1 that I liked the most happened during this cour and it was probably more emotional than anything else. Fire Force had the coolest style. So yeah, Vinland is AOTS but not runaway.

 

The surprise of the season for me was Araburu Kisetsu no Otome-domo yo/Maidens of the Savage Season. I never would've caught this if I had just judged it on the description. On the surface, it's about a high school literature club of nerdy girls who are starting to have crushes and sexual thoughts about boys (the first episode is fucking hilarious) but some of the subplots start getting mature and some of them started to get fucked up to the point where it's dipping in and out of adorable coming-of-age hijinx and "some of these people could go to jail if you called the cops right now" territory.

 

It's also a bit of a disappointment because they had a bad anime-only ending for the last two episodes. I may have to hit up the manga to see how this one ends.

 

Intro of the season goes to Vinland Saga

 

 

 

Outro of the season goes to Fire Force

 

 

[dr. b 492]

Nice picks. I've been lazy about acquiring Vinland Saga episodes, but I should check that out eventually.

 

I have continued watching MIX: Meisei Story, Ace of Diamond, and Fruits Basket; and started watching Dr. Stone, To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts, and The Case Files of Lord El-Melloi II (part of the Fate series, set between Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay night).

 

MIX is my pick for anime of the season. It's been very good since it started in the Spring. I like the characters, story, style, mix of sports / coming-of-age / slice-of-life-ish stuff. All around great. The beginning of the episodes gets me right into the mood every time:

 

Quote

It has been 30 years since the glory of that summer.

 

The Meisei baseball team that became champions on their first tournament is returning.

 

Not your ordinary battery in the same grade, these brothers and their younger sister have adventures in this story of love and youthful days.

Their goal is the same: Get to the Koshien Tournament!

 

 

Pretty much ticks all the boxes

 

 

---

 

Fruits Basket is a close runner-up. What a thing of beauty this show is. I'm going to miss it until it comes for season 2.

[Tassifox 418]

Cop Craft, Danmachi S2, Vinland Saga, and Given

[Vic Boss 612]

Vinland Saga and Dr Stone this time I think. Vinland for much the same reason as last season (and even more, the character development was top-tier great). Dr Stone because it was was somehow warm, spring-time of youth.

 

Best Intro

 

 

Two best EDs from last season

 

 

This always acted as a double "FUCK OFF" because episodes would alternate between Alliance (Space America) and Empire (Space Nazis), the outro would move to the next side of the next episode and you kinda hated the cliffhangers. This composer did Gundam Unicorn too, they have a way with space shit (I think they did some Attack on Titan composing too)

 

 

 

The song is whatever, but there's a visual at the end of it that I really like. The main characters have hacked up vikings in whatever battle it was taking place in, and a Viking is reaching his arm up to Valkyries descending from Valhalla. However in the anime itself, whenever any of the Vikings die, they're never shown hallucinating or thinking about or desiring Valhalla even if they still live by the "die in battle" code, they're shown thinking about Vinland, a place that's described to them as paradise (warm, rolling fields, grain as far as they eye can see, room for everyone etc) but really is just them mythologizing rumours they've heard of North America and treating it like some fabled paradise (Christianity is also depicted as seeping into Danish culture at the time, the first season/major arc is about the Viking Invasion of England by King Sweyn).

 

I hope the series does end up continuing, because there's a certain character who, assuming he dies, I'm curious about what he sees.

[dr. b 492]

I haven't watched anything in a few weeks as I've been away on vacation... trying to remember what I was even watching during the fall I guess it's probably Dr. Stone by default. Ace of Diamond has been a bit better lately to. I kept watching the new Gundam Build Divers even though it's mostly been very meh, but it got a bit more compelling recently so I will finish it.

[dr. b 492]

Almost that time again. Whatchu got for AOTS Spring 2020???

[Vic Boss 612]

Glepnir, as it's the only anime this season that I was watching that didn't get shut down by corona

[dr. b 492]

For me it's a tie between Fruits Basket and Wave, Listen to Me!

 

Honorable mention to Listeners which started out with a bang, started to lose me a bit in the middle, but ended strong. Anime original, 12 episodes, good story with an actual ending. Pretty much exactly what I look for every season

[Tassifox 418]

Fruits Basket, followed by Listeners, and Kagushigoto. Birdy I think you might actually like that last one be cause of the wholesome father/daughter relationship fluff in it. You too Web!

[dr. b 492]

I watched a few minutes of the first episode at the start of the season, maybe I'll give it another go.

[Tassifox 418]

It may be a bit slow paced for a slice of life genre but I honestly loved it be cause I have a couple of friends who are first time dads and I can totally see them doing the same thing Goto does for his daughter in some of the antics.