The Winter 2022 Anime Season

This is the first BL anime I’ve ever watched in my life. I chose to watch it after seeing the trailer and going “Oh this looks cute, definitely BL though.” I have nothing against BL, but it just isn’t my thing, however I had a fun time with this show, it was very cute, and I’m looking forward to the next season. The romance is very slow burn, and the premise of the show is very cringey to think about, so I try not to. This premise being that oh no cute feminine Miyano is a fan of BL and he's insecure about being a fudanshi, but it's okay because he becomes less insecure about it blah blah. The message of becoming less embarassed to share your interests is good, don't get me wrong, but the intentional irony of the fundanshi who uses his friends as "material" getting into a gay relationship is a bit too much, although Miyano seems aware of this and tries to differentiate his real life from fiction, so props to him, but he is still a BL protagonist and cannot escape that (tragedy). The show is very beautiful, big fan of the art. The characters are very lovable in some ways.

FINAL RATING: 7/10

A show that is allegedly based on some shakespeare? I don’t know, and I haven’t read the manga either, but the drama of it is very fun to watch at times. At times, it’s very easy to look away from the screen and forget about it, but I am looking forward to see how this tragedy plays out, and what happens to Richard.

FINAL RATING: 5/10

Attack on titan! The final season! No wait, there’s another part, again. Although I am pained that we have to wait another year to be free from the shackles of attack on titan forever, I did enjoy this season. It wasn’t as groundbreakingly-cool as the first part of the final season, but this still did a good job at adapting the story into an animated show, for sure. I really enjoyed Jean’s character in these episodes, and especially liked the final episode of the season. The scene where they are having fun and getting drunk, now that is gold.

FINAL RATING: 8/10

This is my favourite anime of this season, and maybe one of my favourite airing anime in recent years. I went into it expecting the usual romcom of ecchi variety, but got that and so so so much more. The show is incredibly wholesome and inspirational, I’m not kidding. Watching characters get to achieve goals, grow in skill and as people, and build relationships all at the same time makes for an incredibly enjoyable watch. The characters are definitely the strongest this season, of course competing against Attack on Titan. For me, this show is head-to-head with Attack on titan, I’m not kidding. I was expecting a fun time, but didn’t expect it to be this fun. I really want to buy the manga, I want to just immerse myself in this show, it’s so good. The animation and opening themes are also top notch. I have so much endless love for this show. Please chat with me about it

BONUS:

here’s a link to a scene near the end of the show, definitely sexual themes here so viewer discretion is advised. I really love this scene. The animation is beautiful. Especially how they animate her scooting off the bed lol.

FINAL RATING: 10/10

Was that ending all that platinum? I’d like to see how it ended in the manga. It wasn’t a bad ending, but something just felt off. I first encountered the series in my nearest chapters bookstore, it’s shiny “shattered” holographic cover caught my eye, and also I probably recognized Takeshi Obata’s art right away, I’m a fan. Plastered with “by the creators of death note!” On the cover, one would think this was bakuman haha. Being one of the three series co-created by the two, tsugumi ohba and takeshi obata, I was keen to check it out, but didn’t pick up the manga right away. Come fall 2021, the anime series had begun, well I have no excuse not to see what it’s about now…
Platinum end begins with us witnessing the tragic death of the main character’s family, and his struggle since said tragic event, leading to his suicide attempt. The attempt is thwarted by a being claiming to be an angel, explaining that Mirai Kakehashi, our protag., has been chosen to become a god candidate. He gets gifted angel wings, allowing him to fly wherever whenever, and crystals that allow him to control people by making them fall in love with him (red) or the white crystal, enabling him to take a life.
I’ll spare you the rest of my sub-par explanation, what did I think of platinum end? The reviews of this show are coming in harsh, which feels understandable, to what I can only blame on the second half of the show, mainly the episodes leading up to the end. It feels incomplete, which further peaks my interest in seeing how the manga went. The characters don;t feel that incredible, they’re okay. This sounds like I’m gonna give this a bad score, huh? Well no, I actually enjoyed seeing what happened next as the weeks went by, but the last 3 episodes seemed to me like the ending was rushed or something. The show explores a lot of fun topics, although sometimes it feels wonky, the way in which they do explore said topics, which may just be an anime issue, again. Such topics as love, suicide, beauty, god, science, human relationships, the meaning of life, etc. Fun little philosophies.

FINAL RATING: 6/10

The power was "sigma", Popp sigma male confirmed

Dragon quest has me for yet another season, and it looks as if it will continue into the next, after it’s current hiatus. A lot of intense moments, and beautiful moments for Popp as a character, lots of growth. Many deaths this season. The final battle!(?) has just wrapped up, and perhaps the show is coming to a close (I’ve never seen the original), all in all, a fun time this season, especially with Popp. I’ll talk more on the show when it finishes airing.

FINAL RATING: 6/10

Based on a manga, from the same creator of Pandora Hearts, comes Vanitas no Carte, a vampire fantasy story set in 19th century France. This show has lovable characters and looks beautiful, an easy watch all around, but has its intense moments too. This season was definitely more intense than the last, introducing new characters and new aspects to the story, it was a great trip. Looking forward to see where this story goes next.

BONUS:

A review I wrote about vanitas no carte episode 20:

Out of all the airing anime I’m currently watching, I’m also watching Vanitas no Carte. I liked reading pandora hearts back in the day, so I’ve been enjoying vanitas no carte as well. This episode, episode 20, takes a break from the action and mystery to show us two main character’s realizing they have feelings for each other, simultaneously. Both are shown to act out of character, seemingly possessed by their feelings, and the whole ordeal is quite comedic. I liken it to the comedic sections inbetween the more serious moments that are seen in fullmetal alchemist, but that could just be with vanitas no carte being done by bones (studio that also did both FMA anime series), I have the series on my mind. Anyways, I quite enjoyed it, shoujo romance.

FINAL RATING: 7/10

page coming soon, warning it will be negative. overall rating, maybe a 2/10 if I'm generous.