I have not watched much anime lately, other than going to see “Your Name”, so thought I might check out some of the new season.
The hero moves to a new school, and on the first day a girl collides with him and then accuses him of taking an upskirt photo. She smashes his phone before taking off. Later, he discovers that this girl, the hyper-energetic Fuuka, attends the same school. After some more misunderstandings, Fuuka sees something to like in him and they go on a sort-of-date. There is nothing very original here – boring boy meets dream girl has been done before – but it is quite pleasantly done.
Onihei:
In this period piece, a thief is captured and tortured by the Arson Theft Control section of the Edo police. The section is headed by Heizo, also known as Onihei. Heizo sends the thief out to look for a gangster called Tanbei who is commmitting a series of robberies and murders. The thief thinks that Tanbei, his former boss, is being impersonated by someone else. This series is adapted from a novel, and is done in the style of a 1960’s police procedural. The story is rather dark in theme, and the animation is also rather dark. It’s not bad.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid:
Kobayashi gets drunk one evening and invites a dragon-girl to stay with her. She is considerably put out when the dragon turns up next day asking to stay. The dragon-maid tries to do the housework with amusingly destructive results. I’m not a great fan of maid anime and it did not do much for me.
This is set in an alternative world, where an empire similar to Germany under the Kaiser is battling the surrounding nations, as if WWI never ended, and using magical forces. On the Empire side is Tanya, a 10-year old magical soldier who can fly and use magical weapons. Tanya has the personality of a middle-aged person and is ruthless and totally devoted to warfare, sending disobedient underlings to their deaths and finishing off enemy detachments single-handed. Whether you like this depends on how you respond to Tanya’s deliciously evil personality.
Drifters:
Shimazu Toyohisa, whilst involved at the Battle of Sekigahara on the losing side, manages to mortally wound Ii Naomasa, but is critically wounded in the process. As he walks from the field broken and bleeding, Toyohisa finds himself transported to a corridor of doors, where a bespectacled man at a desk waits for him. This man, Murasaki, sends Toyohisa into the nearest door where he wakes up in another world. There, Toyohisa meets other great warriors like him who have been transported as well, to be part of a group known as “Drifters.” These warriors turn out to be from different eras and (in later episodes) from different countries. They are in a magical world populated by elves and magicians.
The first episode is basically the set-up, but it looks as though it might be interesting. Odd-looking character designs.
Dagashi Kashi:
Kokonotsu and his father YÅ live in a countryside town where they run a small sweets store. He aspires to be a manga artist, an ambition that puts him at odds with his father who wants him to inherit the store which has been run by the family for eight generations. Also in the story are Hotaru Shidare, an eccentric rich girl and daughter of a sweets factory owner who wants to hire father YÅ. YÅ will not agree unless Kokonotsu agrees to take over the store. Also involved are twins who run a cafe: Saya Endo, a girl who has a crush on Kokokatsu and her brother TÅ Endo. It is quite amusing, and the girls are cute.
Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju:
The Rakugo series continues. By far the best series this season.