The Stories and Novels By Derek Ward
This was a spin-off, but you don’t need to watch the original to enjoy this.
This one is good, but the “gag”, for lack of a better term, kinda gets long in the tooth by the end.
This one was a nice twist on the harem romcom format.
Really enjoyed this sci-fi, but disliked it was only six episodes.
Again for this year, I’m grouping all of the anime in my recommendations into “Best Of”, “Loved”, “Liked”, and “Meh”. Unlike last year, I have ten Best Of slots. I also am not putting the trailers here, because I am also debuting my new Anime Listings page which will let you see all of the anime I’ve recommended and the posts with the trailers.
As a Reincarnated Aristocrat, I’ll Use my Appraisal Skill to Rise in the World
Blue Box
Dan Da Dan
From Me to You
I’ll Become the Villianess Who Will Go Down in History
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation
Sakamoto Days
Solo Camping For Two
Solo Leveling
The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity
Aldnoah Zero
Chained Soldier
From an Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman
Gargantia on the verduous planet
Go go loser ranger
Gurren Lagan
Headhunted to another world: From Salaryman to Big Four
I Left My A-Rank party To Help My Former Students
Izetta: The Last Witch
Okitsura: Fell In Love With an Okinawan Girl, but I Just Wish I Knew What She’s Saying
Ranma 1/2
Real Girl 3D
RWBY
The Daily Life of a Middle Aged Online Shopper in Another World
The Too-Perfect Saint: Tossed Aside by My Fiance and Sold To Another Kingdom
Wotaki: Love is Hard for Otaku
365 Days to the Wedding
Ameku MD: Doctor Detective
Ascendance of a Bookworm
I May Be a Guild Receptionist But I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time
I Parry Everything
I’m Getting Married to a Girl I Hate in My Class
I’m the Evil Lord of an Intergalactic Empire
I’ve Been Killing Slimes For 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level
Kowloon Generic Romance
Kuromurko
Love Is Indivisible By Twins
My Stepmom’s Daughter is My Ex
Scooped Up By an S-Rank Adventurer
The Banished Former Hero Lives as He Pleases
The Gorilla God’s Go-To Girl
The Strongest Magician in the Demon Lord’s Army Is a Human
The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic
The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting
Welcome to Japan, Ms. Elf
Why Raelina Ended Up At the Duke’s Mansion
Date A Live
Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious To My Charms
To end the year, I have a quartet of romances that I really enjoyed.
This one I managed to get The Wife to watch. Those always make the recommendations list. And it is a cute romance.
This is a really slow burn, but watching the cast’s character development makes it worth it.
This one is good, but it took me a bit to get through it. The sci-fi and philosophy can be daunting, but it’s a good romance with an unusual mystery at its heart.
I enjoyed the ups and downs on this one, but the ending was a bit weak, in my opinion.
I’ve been enjoying the trope of a good-natured overpowered MC who thinks he is underpowered. My first two are good examples of that.
Next is an isekai that is very much in the light-hearted vein.
The last is a nice little rom-com. I really like stumbling on to the ones with adult protagonists.
I really liked the characters and how they worked together in this one.
This was an unusual isekai that was just hilarious. A very “yes-and” with some unusual twists.
This was a very good fantasy romance with a strong side of politics.
This one kept going in ways I was not expected in very intriguing ways.
I would say this is a solid fantasy romance with an interesting hook.
The best description of this one is “John Wick in a sitcom.” It doesn’t take it self seriously, and you shouldn’t either.
This one is kind of an isekai that goes both ways. Weird, I know, but cute.
I like this one because of the concept. There’s something about the master from an out-of-the-way place coming “to the big city” that I find appealing.
This came from the second season of Dandadan. Not only is it a damn good metal song, but for the English version, they got the lead singer of Dragonforce to perform. So, I’m posting both versions.
This one was a pretty decent fantasy / harem series. It goes some places I did not expect.
This one was surprisingly deep.
This is kind of a run-of-the-mill fantasy / comedy, but the premise is at least interesting.
This one kept showing up on listicles of good romances featuring adults, and it deserved its place. I finally found it on Amazon Prime.
This month’s a bit of a grab bag of series that caught my notice.
This one is best described as House reincarnated as a Japanese anime. Not a bad analogy.
This one has a pretty decent premise, but I wouldn’t recommend watching it with kids around.
This is another one that with a subversive take on the “power ranger” theme.
Another isekai with an interesting premise and strong protagonist.
I don’t know if it’s just the times we’re in or what, but I’m kind of drained on politics. So, for the time being, I’m going to post links here on things that interest me. Intellectually or feeds into one of my interests.
First, one of my favorite animes “Gate” is getting a second season 10 years after the first debuted.
The long-awaited second season, which is officially titled Gate 2: Tides of Conflict, will adapt the first two volumes of the Gate Season 2 sequel series, focusing on the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.
So, it feels less like a direct sequel and more of a “setting sequel.” Which I thinks sets up my expectations well.
Second, the new Transformers / Macross 7 collab toy was set up for pre-order.
Okay, I don’t hate it. I like how they merged Optimus and the Firebomber mecha. However, the more I watch of Macross 7, the more I really dislike the Basra character.