[Spring 2019] Currently Watching (Spring 2019 Edition)

[Buckeye]

The temperatures are rising, the flowers are blooming, and everything starts anew in Japan as it's now time for the spring season. This season will see a lot of changes as the number of shows has substantially dropped (and hopefully it's for the better seeing that the number of shows coming out recently has just been ridiculous), all while the streaming landscape has changed now that Funimation is starting to put both subs and dubs of their licenses on their service after their breakup with Crunchyroll.

The link to the Winter 2019 Edition
Spring 2019 Anime Chart
Spring 2019 Anime Lineup Thread

Note
- Change the title of your post to reflect the contents.
- Do not use the Reply to Thread button; instead, click quote on the post you wish to reply to, or on this post if you're starting a new subthread.
- Edit down the quoted section to the relevant bits, nobody needs to read someone's epic list of watched stuff twice.
- Be nice to one another.
- Please discuss only what you are watching this season in this thread. Stuff watched during other seasons should be discussed in their respective threads.

Also, I'd like to add the following. The Currently Watching Thread is mainly meant for a general overview of how you're currently feeling about shows. It is not supposed to be a replacement for actual discussion threads. Try to keep heavier discussion (if possible) in the more specific discussion threads.

In addition, try to be careful of spoilers here. It's one thing if it's properly tagged and such. However, I don't want people to have to worry about someone randomly posting "Wow, X died in episode 17 of Y". Just a randomly made up example, but you get the idea.

[Buckeye]

Simulcast Interest Levels for Spring 2019

As usual, I am starting things off with my simulcast interest list. Once again, here are the tiers for how likely I will watch certain shows this season using NFL injury report statuses to categorize the shows:

• IN: It's on the watchlist no matter what. This mostly applies to continuing shows and sequels.
• PROBABLE: I'm checking out, and it has a very good chance of making the cut. I have dropped shows in this category in the past, so it's not automatic.
• QUESTIONABLE: I'm checking out, and impressions will dictate its fate. Pretty much, it's for shows I have moderate interest in at the beginning.
• DOUBTFUL: I may or may not check it out, and if I do, it must really impress me in order to make the cut.
• OUT: I'm not bothering with it at all.

So it's onto assessment. Now that just about all the shows are spoken for in terms of where they are going to stream, I can now do this assessment. The only show whose prospects are unknown is Magmel of the Sea Blue, which is a bilibili show that is pretty much either going to Funimation or nobody. Last season was unusual as there were new shows that were in from the start, but not this season as is usually the case with the In category mainly being used for continuing shows and sequels.

IN
[FTL-3] Fairy Tail Final Season (continuing from winter, simuldub)
[DRO] Dororo (continuing from winter)
[CQK] Karakuri Circus (continuing from winter)
[RSH] The Rising of the Shield Hero (continuing from winter)
[AOT-3] Attack on Titan season 3 (continuing from spring)
[BSD-3] Bungo Stray Dogs season 3
[FRB-N] Fruits Basket (2019)
[OPM-2] One Punch Man season 2
[FIL] Fight League: Gear Gadget Generators (short, continuing from winter)
[IDM-CT4] The [email protected]: Cinderella Girls Theater Climax Season (short)
[MGT-O3] Zoku Owarimonogatari (second half only)

PROBABLE
[KYB] Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
[FGN] Fairy Gone
[SKS] The Helpful Fox Senko-san
[MLA] Operation Hangyakusei Million Arthur season 2
[ISQ] Isekai Quartet (short)
[SRG] Senryu Girl

QUESTIONABLE
[SMT] Afterlost
[HBS] Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu
[KOT] Kono Oto Tomare! Sounds of Life
[MOC] Midnight Occult Civil Servants
[MIX] Mix
[SZM] Sarazanmai
[WNL] We Never Learn: Bokuben
[KMA] Wise Man's Grandchild
[YUN] Yu-No
[JKS] Joshi Kausei (short)
[STW-501] Strike Witches: 501st Joint Fighter Wing Take Off! (short)
[WHT] Why the Hell are You Here, Teacher!? (short)
[YGC] Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki (short)

DOUBTFUL
[CTU] Carole and Tuesday
[CL9] Cinderella Nine
[KPS] King of Prism: Shiny Seven Stars
[MML] Magmel of the Sea Blue
[MSG-ORT] Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin - Eve of the Red Comet
[NAB] Namu Amida Butsu! Utena
[RHC] RobiHachi
[ODG] Amazing Stranger (short)
[AOC] Ao-chan Can't Study (short)
[NOZ] Nobunaga Teacher's Child Wife (short)

OUT
Ace of the Diamond Act II
Bakumatsu Crisis
Cardfight!! Vanguard: High School Arc Continued
Hey, Your Cat Ears are Showing! season 2
I'm From Japan
Kiratto Pri-chan
Neko no Nyahho
Shonen Ashibe Go! Go! Goma-chan season 4

This season is a bit of an oddity with a show not starting until the second half of the season all while there are a lot less shows and a number of shorts with half-length episodes. So with this reduction, I'm also scaling back to the usual of 18 standard-length shows and up to 30 minutes of shorts, but with the number of shorts up that I'll increase that quota to 60 minutes. As usual, this is going to be a drawn-out process where the majority of the list is decided on rather quickly, but the last few slots take time to settle on.

[Buckeye]

Buckeye's Spring 2019 Anime Viewership Plan

As I do every season, I outline a plan for shows that I plan on watching this season. As always, this is merely tentative as there will always be shows on the list I won't get to, and shows not on this list that I end up watching. This is all post-simulcast stuff as I keep it separate from the simulcast shows. I have been quite disorganized lately in regards to this, but nevertheless I have a bucket list down. Now, I just need to watch through as much as I can get to.

^ indicates shows being rewatched

From the Beginning
^Darling in the FranXX
^Fate/Zero
^Full Metal Panic: Invisible Victory
^Gate
^Golden Kamuy
^One Punch Man
^The Promised Neverland
^Snow White with the Red Hair
^Stellvia
Baki
High Score Girl: Extra Stage
Ingress
Love Live!
Revisions
Seven Deadly Sins: Revival of the Commandments
Star Blazers 2199
Star Blazers 2202

Continuing Shows
^The Ancient Magus' Bride (from episode 13)
^Re:Zero (from episode 13)
^Sword Art Online: Alicization (from episode 5)
Dragon Ball Super (from episode 66)
Gintama (from episode 27)
Hunter x Hunter (from episode 131)
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable (from episode 21)
Naruto Shippuden (from episode 226)
Pokemon Sun and Moon (from episode 69)
Rurouni Kenshin (from episode 63)

Moving forward, I will stay subscribed to Netflix for the duration of the season after getting a gift card for Christmas, which doesn't allow me to binge one month at a time as I have been doing for Netflix shows. Now that the bingefest is over (and probably for the last time since I figure to not have enough titles for another one next year) that it's back to rewatches and BD watching at a much more relaxed pace.

So with that, first up is a rewatch of One Punch Man in preparation for season 2 as I work through my BD backlog.

[Buckeye]

Before I do my formal first impressions, which is a week away due to Attack on Titan's late start, I'll go ahead and do an informal one to let you know where I'm leaning in regards to my watch list. First of all, with the reduced number of shows coming out that I'm scaling back my list to what it was before this year's explosion of shows, and to compensate for that and because there are so many short series this season that I'm upping my shorts load. It used to be 20 standard-length shows and 30 minutes worth of shorts (and going over that limit will eat away at the standard-length total), and now it's 18 standard-length and 60 minutes of shorts. Anyway, let's begin.

First of all, the locks as four shows are continuing (Dororo, Shield Hero, Karakuri Circus, and Fairy Tail), while there are three sequels (Attack on Titan, One Punch Man, and Bungo Stray Dogs) and one that's in because it's a remake of a classic (Fruits Basket). So that's eight shows in so far, and the nice thing is that every day of the week is already covered by these.

Next are the shows that are in from the start based on favorable first impressions. Those are Demon Slayer, Senko-san, and Fairy Gone (though the last one isn't quite there with a strong story, it's there with everything else). Unfortunately this season, there aren't many heavy hitters out of the gate. So far, that's 11 shows.

Now, the shows that are falling out of favor with me and are unlikely to make the cut barring the unexpected. Those are Midnight Occult Civil Servants, Namu Amida Butsu (which has already been dropped), RobiHachi, King of Prism, and YU-NO. So cutting these shows out, that leaves me with seven slots to fill between AfterLost, Cinderella Nine, Wise Man's Grandchild, Million Arthur, Sarazanmai, Hitori Bocchi, Mix, We Never Learn, and Kono Oto Tomare for a total of nine shows to choose for seven slots. With the way things are falling with the reduced schedule, I don't have to think as long as hard as I usually do.

Lastly, there are the shorts. Senryu Girl (13) and Isekai Quartet (13) are locked in as they were two of my most anticipated shows, while Fight League (10) is continuing and Cinderella Girls Theater (5) is a short. So that's 41 minutes so far with 19 minutes remaining in my allotment. Things are falling into place nicely as I pretty much have Ao-chan, Why the Hell are You Here Teacher!? (mostly because of the censorship), Amazing Stranger, and Nobunaga Teacher (which I have dropped) as shows not likely to make the cut. That leaves Strike Witches (13), Joshi Kausei (4) and Yatogame-chan (4) left, and one of these three shows is the last short out.

[Momoka Kibi]

Cinderella Girls Climax
Cinderella Nine
Senryuu Shoujo
Yatogame-chan
Kiratto Pri-chan
Aikatsu Friends
Hitoribocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu
Star Twinkle Precure

Those are the anime i'm watching this season. Everything else has been skipped or dropped. Bocchi is the favorite of the season.

[Buckeye]

Post-Simulcast Report: April 1-15

Here's the first post-simulcast report of the season. This includes stuff from the previous season's simulcast lineup that finished up in April that aren't reviewed in this post.

Completed

*Mob Psycho 100 II: A

*Kemono Friends 2: C-

*Today's Menu for Emiya Family: B

^One Punch Man (1-12, Special ep. 1-6): A+
This show is simply a masterpiece in every way imaginable as everything about this show is great. The characters are great, the show is nicely animated, the action is amazing, and the story is simply genius.

*Double Decker! Doug and Kirill EX: B-

Ongoing

[BKI-N] Baki (1-7)
[DBZ-S] Dragon Ball Super (66-74)
[HXH] Hunter x Hunter (2011) (131-133)
[PKM-SM] Pokemon Sun and Moon (69-73)
[SVA] Stellvia (1-20)

[GingaDaiuchuu]

Spring 2019 First Impressions

All but one show this series was underway weeks ago, meaning that the rest of them have all had three episodes under their belt, with some approaching episode 5 in the next couple of days. But now that everything has finally started, we can dig into the season as a whole.

New For Spring 2019:

01. Shingeki no Kyojin Season 3 Part 2 (A) That straggler that started nearly a month into the season was one of the most anticipated continuations and a definite candidate for the best anime of the season. In fact, it essentially earned that distinction well before it even started, thanks to the total lack of other impressive offerings and the relative reliability of each season of this series compared to a certain other big name that will be addressed later. Still, the first episode made up for this starting so late into the series by blowing through more thrilling events than anything else this season has done in 3+ episodes. It was a hell of a return, though it's also true that the series tends to hit hard at the beginning of each new installment, helped by the anticipation building up to it. So I'm sure it will drop from this peak as it goes on, but the gap between it and everything else is so wide that it's hard to imagine it won't stay on the top of this list throughout the season. While the previous OP was good in its own regard, the return of a traditional Linked Horizon OP does feel more appropriate. The only thing I really don't like so far is that, with the Colossal Titan coming back into focus, we have to deal with more of the hideous CG applied to him starting in the second season. Still, that episode of the second season with the big reveal was such a highlight that I can handle that distracting element as long as the confrontations are anywhere near as gripping.
02. Bungou Stray Dogs 3rd Season (B+) It's been a few years since the first two seasons, so I wasn't necessarily expecting another season now, but I'm happy to have it. It wisely begins just like the second season did, spending its first three episodes on a serious flashback arc centered on Dazai in his time in the Port Mafia, this time going even further back in time. It's unfortunate that I find these side stories so much more engaging than the main material that encompasses at least three quarters of each season, but with that being my full experience of this season so far, it's a very positive first impression. The second season went in an interesting direction, bringing the Port Mafia onto the protagonists' side to combat a common foe, and worked quite well with it. I wasn't expecting that at the time, so I can't be sure that they'll be back to being the main antagonists here, but as long as the series continues to have strong character development, creative use of literary-based powers, and exciting battles set to quality Bones animation and an eclectic Iwasaki score, I'll be content.
03. Kimetsu no Yaiba (B+) Another series benefiting from strong visuals and music, this Jump series that I hadn't read any of is receiving a shiny adaptation with plenty of Aniplex money. It's rare that I see a non-Fate ufotable TV series that I actually like, but the obvious strength of the source material helps a lot, in addition to a number of elements that help any series, like ufotable, Yuki Kajiura, and LiSA. From a production standpoint, it has a lot in common with the likes of Fate/Zero, which never hurts your chances. It's one of the more compelling of the recent Jump series that stick pretty closely to standard formula (as opposed to, say, last season's Neverland), its seasonal approach helps keep the production values solid (especially since they're so ahead of schedule that they screened five episodes before the series even started airing) as well as the pacing, the animation is quite impressive on top of the usual strength of cinematography expected of ufotable, and we already have 26 episodes confirmed to get through a good amount of material.
04. Diamond no Ace: Act II (B+) It's hard to say much new about a series that I've watched well over 100 episodes of, but the fact that I've stuck with it that long and am very excited to have it back speaks volumes to its strength as a sports show. The only real difference here is that Production I.G has dropped out, leaving Madhouse to handle it solo, but being animated by my favorite studio by far isn't too much of a step down from another of my favorite studios co-producing it. So far, it looks very consistent with the previous seasons, and feels like no time has passed. The first episode understandably spends most of its time on recapping previous events, but I didn't especially mind the refresher, and I'm looking forward to seeing how far it goes. With another full year (52 episodes) for this season, we'll probably catch up to the manga at that point, but I hope we can continue to get more additional seasons for as long as there's material to adapt. It's definitely a top 10 sports anime overall.
05. One Punch Man 2nd Season (B) Here's where the big disappointment drops. It's not like this is a bad anime. It's not even the most disappointing adaptation of beloved source material in recent years; it scores several letter grades higher than the train wreck that befell the masterpiece that is the Berserk manga. But as a direct sequel to a solid A series, an easy candidate for the most well-animated of all time, after years of waiting... this is a major bummer. I was worried this would be the case when it was announced that J.C.Staff would be replacing Madhouse as the studio and one of their unknown lifers would be replacing Natsume as the director, especially as more years continued to pass by with so few updates and no actual footage until the very end. I still hoped they would try to pull out all the stops because of the bar set by the first season, but as those repeated delays indicated, the production schedule is way behind for some reason, and these negative factors combine to deliver a relatively mediocre production of something that should be outstanding at every turn. The direction is uninspired, the artwork is often messy and off-model, the lines are dull and inconsistent, the color design employs strange gradients that feel washed out compared to the richness of Madhouse's solid colors, amateurish filters are applied to mask inadequacies but only cause it to look cheaper and more distracting, and the animation not only doesn't live up to Madhouse's impossible precedent but goes as far as being less dynamic than some still panels of the manga. Even with all that lost potential, though, it's still a serviceable adaptation of one of my favorite manga, so it's not as if these detractors bring it down to the point of being bad or anything. The director occasionally nails some of the comedy, which is always an important factor, and episode 3 did pull off some animation that, while nowhere near as stellar as a single episode of the first season, gave a lot more hope for the future of this season. With the scheduling woes, though, there's a definite fear that it could totally fall apart before it's finished, so I'm hoping we don't see that, and instead get a lot more scenes like the ones in episode 3. Best-case scenario at this point, the next 9 episodes are much stronger and the original team takes back over for all future adaptations, but even if all of that were to happen, there's an unmistakable blemish in a series that was so perfect until now, and it's not like they're going to remake that just because it's of lesser quality. So as sad as it is with how much I was looking forward to another season of One Punch Man since 2015, I might have to end up recommending that people watch only those original 12 episodes for the optimal One Punch Man anime experience, regardless of how much more is produced later on. With Mob Psycho 100 II ending immediately before this began, the timing couldn't have been shittier to showcase how inferior this sequel is thanks to the people, companies, and production schedules involved.
06. Fruits Basket (2019) (B) Another very eagerly anticipated adaptation, this one isn't disappointing me as much as it just hasn't hit its stride yet. I never watched any of the original Fruits Basket anime, but knowing that the manga was considered infinitely better, I read through all of Yen's collector's editions a couple of years ago, and I certainly understood why it was so highly regarded. The announcement of a full anime adaptation (with at least one break, given the "1st season" indicator in the logo) staying faithful to the manga was extremely exciting. While the studio and other main staff didn't give me the most confidence, it's being written by Taku Kishimoto, my favorite anime writer and a master of adapting very emotional, character-driven manga series, which is exactly what this is. While it looks quite nice, I don't personally love the aesthetic, but once the story gets to the really dark, emotionally complex and heavy material that I never could've expected from what's introduced as a cute shoujo romantic comedy, it should shoot up the rankings. It could always be mishandled when the time comes, but I hope that at the very least Kishimoto will deliver well enough to earn yet another adaptation on my Top Anime list.
07. Sewayaki Kitsune no Senko-san (B-) Yes, the premise sounds like it could very easily be an extremely creepy anime. But so far, it has mostly stayed away from that path, instead just being very pleasant, to the point that I don't think it's any sort of exaggeration to call it an iyashikei show. However, it's not necessarily as "pure" as that designation generally implies, since it is very much intended as a self-insert experience. So yeah, it's a little more of pandering, escapist wish fulfillment than some, but that hardly makes it uncommon for anime. The protagonist being a software developer gives me an extra connection, though that's more of a novelty than anything. It's appropriate that this show focuses so much on fluff, because that's exactly what it is. And sometimes, it's okay for a show to just be light and comfy.
08. Kenja no Mago (B-) Compared to other recent and ongoing isekai series, this one is fairly unremarkable. I don't even know that I could point to many elements that make it particularly unique. But while it's not one of the best, it's also far from the bottom of the barrel that so many of them occupy, and even its common tropes don't annoy me too much. I appreciate that the nature of the isekai factor keeps it from leaning too much on "Well, in my world..." and that the visuals occasionally have a little creative touch from Silver Link. It's still generic enough that any misstep could lead to a drop, but I find it entertaining enough to for the moment.
09. Isekai Quartet (B-) I'm probably watching this due to obligation more than anything. I've seen and enjoyed all of the series that go into it and I'm a bit of a sucker for crossovers, so I'm glad it exists and isn't too bad so far. But as expected from a half-length chibi gag show, there's not much to grab onto, and it hasn't even done much in the way of actual jokes beyond acknowledging the characters and making some references back to their worlds. Even though it will obviously be nothing more than a comedy with very simplistic art, it could do a lot more with legitimately funny material. Like similar spinoffs in the past (just focusing on single series instead of crossing them over), relying on the fact that "You get this reference" can't sustain a series for long, so this is definitely the closest to being dropped if it doesn't come up with anything new.

Dropped:

10. Bokutachi wa Benkyou ga Dekinai (C) At this point, I feel pretty comfortable in saying that I genuinely believe my silly quintuplet harem show from last season to be a good series. This series has a superficially similar plot, but harem shows only really have five ideas or so that they shuffle around. To make them work, the characters really have to be likable, and that's the biggest distinction here. Sure, I only watched the first episode, but since this is another Jump series that Viz included in their online publication from the beginning, I read the first several chapters when they were released, and I'm pretty confident that nothing about this adaptation would make me care about the series any more if I had watched the next few. I will give credit to some nice animation in the OP, but the protagonist and the main girls are so equally one-dimensional that I can't get into their story no matter how cute the girls are or how nice certain elements of the show look.
11. Fairy Gone (D+) Other than some degree of the signature P.A. Works aesthetic, there's not much about this series I like. Okay, the music is a little catchy, but it tries just a little too hard to ape Sawano and gets kinda cringey as a result. The rest is basically a mess: the premise, the characters, the too-dark color palette, the hideous CG "fairies" (which are impossible to take seriously in general), and what the hell the series is trying to accomplish. I didn't take to Grimgar as much as a lot of people, but that was clearly much more competently written than this original series by the same writer.

I can't think of another case of a winter season being so much stronger than the spring season that follows it, but even with a very solid #1, I can't really consider this anything but a huge step down. Most of the good shows are sequels, which is fairly common, but even then, only one of them is great. Kimetsu no Yaiba is a good addition for a brand-new series, and hopefully this will appear to be a stronger season for having the new Fruits Basket once that ends. But with that still bubbling below the surface and One Punch Man taking a huge hit in its return, it's not a very exciting slate of new shows at this point.



Everything I'm Watching:

01. Shingeki no Kyojin Season 3 Part 2 (A)
02. Dororo (A-)
03. JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Ougon no Kaze (A-)
04. One Piece (A-)
05. Detective Conan (B+)
06. Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari (B+)
07. Bungou Stray Dogs 3rd Season (B+)
08. Kimetsu no Yaiba (B+)
09. Diamond no Ace: Act II (B+)
10. Fairy Tail: Final Series (B+)
11. One Punch Man 2nd Season (B)
12. Fruits Basket (2019) (B)
13. Sewayaki Kitsune no Senko-san (B-)
14. Kenja no Mago (B-)
15. Isekai Quartet (B-)

Dropped:

16. Bokutachi wa Benkyou ga Dekinai (C)
17. Fairy Gone (D+)

Weekly Schedule:

Sunday (1): Shingeki no Kyojin Season 3 Part 2
Monday (1): Dororo
Tuesday (3): Diamond no Ace: Act II, One Punch Man 2nd Season, Isekai Quartet
Wednesday (3): Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari, Sewayaki Kitsune no Senko-san, Kenja no Mago
Thursday (0):
Friday (3): JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Ougon no Kaze, Bungou Stray Dogs 3rd Season, Fruits Basket (2019)
Saturday (4): One Piece, Detective Conan, Kimetsu no Yaiba, Fairy Tail: Final Series

Numbers 2-6 being continuing series from last season or earlier really illustrates how little this new season is actually contributing, but it does mean that my overall slate is still plenty solid. 15 is a pretty average number for me, and Isekai Quartet is on somewhat thin ice. My Mondays from last season have shifted to Tuesdays this season; while Wednesdays also have three series, Tuesdays have one that I also review. At least Isekai Quartet is half-length.

[Buckeye]

Spring 2019: First Impressions

Now that I have had a chance to finally get through all the shows this season that I can now do my formal first impressions post. Like always, shows are grouped into three categories called Red Zone, Midfield, and Own 20 as football terminology to represent shows that have locked down a spot on my watchlist (or very close to), shows that could go either way, or shows that I have dropped (or very close to and unless I see a huge turnaround, it's as good as toast). Shows are in alphabetical order based on English name by tier with the full-length shows listed first (for the first tier, continuing shows, then sequels, then new shows), followed by shorts, now indicated with a # marker before the show's title.

Red Zone
Dororo - Continuing from Winter
Fairy Tail Final Season - Continuing from Winter
Karakuri Circus - Continuing from Winter
The Rising of the Shield Hero - Continuing from Winter
Attack on Titan season 3 Part 2 - Things pick up quite nicely from where it ended and it definitely continues its high quality storytelling mixed in with off-the-charts drama and intensity.
Bungo Stray Dogs season 3 - So far, the show has only done the backstory for two supporting characters, but it is nicely told all while the show continues to nail it with the action. I'm skeptical of the direction, but at least it does a great job with what has been decided.
One Punch Man season 2 - While the show's content and storytelling continue to be top-notch helped out by great source material, the animation takes quite a nosedive with the change of studio. While J.C. Staff is more than capable, unfortunately the person in charge of the artwork is puts in an amateurish product thus turning what should be an S-class product into a B-class product.
Demon Slayer: Kimestu no Yaiba - While the visuals are what stand out the most about this show, it has a great story to go along with it. Character development has been tremendous, all while the action does a nice job in complementing the story.
Fruits Basket (2019) - It's Fruits Basket that I remember, but with the comedy toned down significantly so that the storytelling can stand out. So far, the new adaptation is doing great justice to the source material, all while the strong character development that makes this a beloved classic is nicely emphasized.
The Helpful Fox Senko-san - This is a fun, laid-back show as it's all about improving one's outlook in life by having a fox spirit doing housework to make life better for the MC who is down on his luck. This show has been one of the most enjoyable ones so far as the characters are great and the relaxing atmosphere makes everything click.
Million Arthur - While this show is designed to advertise a mobile game, it's a show that does a solid job in making the characters stand out and bring some amusing antics. It still falls into the typical pitfalls as shows adapted for this purpose, but it's all about the characters as they are a fun bunch to watch.
#Isekai Quartet - This show is a lot of fun to see how characters from four different isekai shows interacting in a lighthearted comedy. While it's all about giving fans of Kadokawa's isekai shows something, it does a nice job at that. The comedy is hit-or-miss, but the content that hits provides for some great content.
#Senryu Girl - This is a cute and fun show to watch. The girls in this show are insanely cute, all while the senryu poems are really funny. This combination makes for a show that I eagerly anticipate each week.

Midfield
AfterLost - Being animated by Madhouse, it looks great with the visuals and action, all while the show has an intriguing mystery going on. That said, the storytelling has been sorely lacking, but all of the style elements are great as to be expected out of Madhouse, and seeing that it's intended to advertise a game that my expectations were pretty modest coming in.
Cinderella Nine - This show is a fun way to bring baseball and girls together, but in the end this is simply designed to advertise a mobile game, and not exactly doing a great job at it. While the story's execution is all over the place, at least it does the job for those who are into the cute girls doing cute things type of show.
Fairy Gone - With P.A. Works animating this show that as expected, it looks great, especially with the action sequences. That said, the storytelling has been all over the place, but even so I have hope that in due time things come together as I'm not sure what this show wants to be at the moment.
Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu - It's another one of those cute girls shows with the twist being the MC is socially awkward who is simply looking to make friends. While the story is pretty weak and it's nothing groundbreaking, the characters are a fun bunch and the comedy is in good tastes.
Kono Oto Tomare! - This is a show with solid drama and storytelling as it builds an interesting story about playing koto with a bunch of guys who aren't exactly the type of people expected to play such a serene instrument. While the storytelling has been nice, the show suffers from subpar animation and underdeveloped characters that are too hard to keep track of.
Mix - This is an old-school baseball show that does a nice job in sticking to its roots while modernizing the animation. Character development has been nicely done going to show that this family is tightknit despite it coming to be through widows marrying each other. That said, the baseball aspect has been lacking seeing that it hasn't spent as much time as I would like for the baseball, but I expect that to come in due time.
Sarazanmai - I give this show props for being outside the box, but man is this show just weird. While I can appreciate the art style and the craziness that Kunihiko Ikuhara is known for, the show is starting to feel repetitive, and it feels like one of those shows where by seeing one episode, I have seen it all. That said, it's still an entertaining ride so far.
We Never Learn - This show is pretty much Quintessential Quintuplets, but replacing the dumb siblings with three girls who are at least great at something, just not in the subject they want to make a career out of. The comedy is solid, the characters are a fun bunch, and the show is entertaining, but the way it was put together leaves much to be desired.
Wise Man's Grandchild - This is yet another cliched isekai show, but it's one that uses the tropes and stuff to make this show good and worthwhile to watch. The characters are an interesting bunch, and while the whole overpowered cliche has been overused time and again, it's used wisely in this show as the MC is weak in many ways making for a show that manages to be good in spite of the cliches.
#Amazing Stranger - This is easily one of the dumbest shows to come about easily as the whole concept is just stupid. And it doesn't exactly help that the animation is subpar, the characters are creepy, and the humor has a poor hit rate. But even so, this concept makes for a somewhat entertaining show.
#Joshi Kausei - This show has an innovative idea for a short with no dialogue, and while it makes for something that stands out, not necessarily in a good way. Still, it's amusing to watch stuff happening without words.
#Strike Witches: 501st Joint Fighter Wing Take Off! - While it's fun to see the Strike Witches characters again, the show suffers from really awful animation and dumb humor that really isn't worth making its own short series for. Even so, the antics are sometimes funny.
#Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki - It's another one of those shorts where not much happens. Even so, learning about Nagoya and stuff is fun.

Own 20
King of Prism: Shiny Seven Stars - This is another pretty boy idol show aimed towards the fujoshi fanbase. While I'm open to watching something that's well-done like Starmyu or Idolish7, this one is just boring, confusing, and just something I couldn't care less about.
Midnight Occult Civil Servants - This is pretty much a monster-of-the-week type of deal with the supernatural, and not much story or stuff to keep me invested in this show.
Namu Amida Butsu! Utena - This is pretty much just a ripoff of Touken Ranbu as it's just boring and unimaginative. Not to mention, it is animated by a studio that generally does shorts. I knew right away that this show wasn't for me.
RobiHachi - While this show is amusing, at the same time the humor just doesn't click well with me, all while the animation looks sloppy and it tries too hard to be like Space Dandy, but the content just doesn't do any favors for me.
YU-NO - This could wind up being an interesting show given that it's based off a well-received game, but the show is just painfully slow to develop all while I'm having a hard time understanding what this show is trying to be.
#Ao-chan Can't Study - The show has some amusing moments, but overall most of the comedy is in rather poor taste, all while the characters are just too much to bear with.
#Nobunaga Teacher's Child Bride - This show is just tasteless all-around as a child bride and other fanservicey trash makes for a show that's best left in the corners of history.
#Why the hell are you here, Teacher!? - The show does a nice job being the fanservicey guilty pleasure it set out to be, but the insane amount of censorship makes it unwatchable.

So with the way things are shaping up, I should arrive at my final watchlist sooner rather than later since I only need to cut two more shows out. 11 are pretty much in with 9 shows in the running for 7 slots. If I had to decide today, Cinderella Nine and Sarazanmai would be the last shows out.

[Buckeye]

Spring 2019 Simulcast Rankings: April

Time for my monthly simulcast rankings, and with this being the first of the spring season, that means football terminology is out and baseball is in for the tier names, but they mean the same thing. As usual with the first month, all shows are included while only those that remain on the watchlist take part in the next two rankings. Shows I'm watching are in black, shows I have dropped are in red, and shows I'm still on the fence about are in blue. Onto the simulcast rankings.

Home Run
Attack on Titan Season 3 Part 2
Dororo
The Rising of the Shield Hero
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
Fairy Tail Final Season

Base Hit
Bungo Stray Dogs season 3
The Helpful Fox Senko-san
One Punch Man 2nd Season
Fruits Basket (2019)
Isekai Quartet
Senryu Girl

Walk
Kono Oto Tomare!
Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu
Mix
Wise Man's Grandchild
Fairy Gone
Karakuri Circus
We Never Learn
AfterLost
Cinderella Nine
Cinderella Girls Theater Climax Season
Sarazanmai

Flyout
Ao-chan Can't Study
Midnight Occult Civil Servants
YU-NO
RobiHachi
Why the hell are you here, Teacher!?

Strikeout
Strike Witches: 501st Joint Fighter Wing Take Off!
Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki
Joshi Kausei
Amazing Stranger
King of Prism: Shiny Seven Stars
Nobunaga Teacher's Child Bride
Namu Amida Butsu! Utena

One thing to note is that while I'm planning to watch Million Arthur, I'm watching the first season as even though it's all completed, Funimation is releasing it weekly, all while they are releasing the second season. Since it's the second season that's being broadcast this season that it will be omitted. Overall, it's shaping up to be a weak season, and part of the reason is the reduction in the number of shows as there are far fewer shows to watch compared to last season.

[Buckeye]

Post-simulcast Report: April 16-30

Here is my next post-simulcast report of the season. While I have begun to watch Million Arthur, whose second season is currently airing but the first season is still coming out weekly despite being complete and out for quite some time now that I will roll it into my simulcast report seeing that it is a split cour that doesn't restart the episode counter. Also, I'm considering both seasons of Golden Kamuy as one for the same reason, so it's listed as ongoing rather than continuing.

Completed

^Stellvia (21-26): B-
This old-school sci-fi show is an enjoyable show to watch for the characters, drama, action, and comedy. While the individual parts are nice, the plot is uneven and while some parts are great, other parts are on the cringeworthy side. The show takes awhile to get going, but the things pick up really nicely in the second half to make for a solid show all-around.

Hi Score Girl: Extra Stage (1-3): A-
This does a great job in putting a wrap on the cliffhanger ending in the TV series as the show continues to use retro games as a driving engine for character development, as well as put the family issues in the limelight. It continues to do everything the TV series did so well in the second half, as well as set the stage for the sequel.

*A Certain Magical Index III (23-26): C

Ongoing

[BKI-2] Baki (8-10)
[DBZ-S] Dragon Ball Super (75-84)
^[GKY] Golden Kamuy (1-12)
[GKY] Golden Kamuy: Golden Douga Theater (1-12)
[HXH] Hunter x Hunter (134-138)
[JBA-DU] JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable (21-26)
[NAR-S] Naruto Shippuden (226-235)
[PKM-SM] Pokemon Sun and Moon (74-76)
[7DS-2] The Seven Deadly Sins: Revival of the Commandments (1-8)

[Buckeye]

Spring 2019: Finalizes Slate

It's that time of the season again where I finalize my watchlist. Just about everything except for the last spot was locked down pretty quickly, but I had to use the extended trial card to lock down that final spot. In any case, here is my finalized list of shows I'm watching this season, in order of when they were locked in for the watching list, and when they hit the drop pile for the dropped list with the last show listed first. As I did with the first impressions list, I'm going to use the # symbol to indicate shorts as those were determined by a separate process.

Watching

• Dororo (continuing)
• Fairy Tail: Final Season (continuing)
• Karakuri Circus (continuing)
• The Rising of the Shield Hero (continuing)
• Attack on Titan season 3
• Bungo Stray Dogs season 3
• One Punch Man season 2
• Fruits Basket (2019)
• Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
• The Helpful Fox Senko-san
• Fairy Gone
• Million Arthur
• AfterLost
• Wise Man's Grandchild
• Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu
• Mix
• Koto Ono Tomare! Sounds of Life
• We Never Learn
• # Fight League: Gear Gadget Generators (continuing)
• # Cinderella Girls Theater: Climax Season
• # Isekai Quartet
• # Senryu Girl
• # Strike Witches: 501st Joint Fighter Wing Take Off!
• # Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki

Dropped

• Cinderella Nine
• Sarazanmai
• YU-NO
• Midnight Occult Civil Servants
• RobiHachi
• King of Prism: Shiny Seven Stars
• Namu Amida Butsu! Rendai Utena
• # Amazing Stranger
• # Joshi Kausei
• # Why the Hell are You Here, Teacher!?
• # Ao-chan Can't Study
• # Nobunaga teacher's Child Bride

Pretty short drop list this time around as the number of shows this is down quite a lot. While the majority of shows locked down their spots rather quickly, I had to go into extended trial period to determine which two between We Never Learn, Koto Ono Tomare, and Cinderella Nine made the cut, and it was pretty clear after six episodes which one is the last one out. So to summarize by day of the week with the first number being shows total and the second counts only the full-length ones where applicable:

Sunday (3): AfterLost, Fairy Gone, Attack on Titan
Monday (2/1): Yatogame-chan, Dororo
Tuesday (3/1): Isekai Quartet, Strike Witches, One Punch Man
Wednesday (3): Shield Hero, Senko-san, Wise Man's Grandchild
Thursday (2): Million Arthur, Karakuri Circus
Friday (4/3): Bungo Stray Dogs, Fruits Basket, Senryu Girl, Hitori Bocchi
Saturday (5): Mix, Demon Slayer, We Never Learn, Kono Oto Tomare!, Fairy Tail (simuldub)

So it's a weekend-heavy schedule this time around while I barely have enough stuff for the week. But thanks to the continuing shows and sequels being spread out that I didn't need to include a show due to the lack of stuff on a particular day of the week. As usual, I explain the process some other time as it's quite a lengthy process.

[General Hentai]

CR got some old school titles added to the library, and as an old Tenchi Muyo fan from way back, I had to rewatch Photon the Idiot Adventures, a 6 episode OVA. A mixture of ecchi and idiocy, Photon tells a story brought to us by Masaki Kajishima, one of the major creators of the Tenchi Muyo! OVA series, the sole creative force since OVA episode 6, and the person who brought us Tenchi Muyo GXP! and Tenchi Muyo! War on Geminar.

And that story? It tells of various doings on about a power source throughout the universe, including a powerful young man named Photon, who is immune to it. But who's a simple guy, and simple-minded as well. Throw in a plot where Photon's home world of Sandy Planet is the setting for most of the adventure, as he's sent to chase after the village head's idiot daughter, Aun, as she chases her latest love, a roaming idol, with the notion of selling the village's Holy Object, a permanent marker, which we later see can be used to trace circuitry, so it's more than a Sharpie. But it's also something used by a man to draw his crest on the forehead of his wife, officially making them married. And after Photon stumbles across the sleeping capsule of a naked young woman, where after he realizes Aun had drawn "idiot" on his forehead, he draws it on the forehead of the mystery woman, Keyne Aqua, marrying her by galactic standards, and definitely by Keyne standards. Throw in an idiot villain, a unique squad of henchmen, plus 2 evil villains, a space princess named Lashara Moon, Photon actually being named Photon Earth, a Koro as a mascot type character personification of a ship, plus a great deal of fan service and the result is old school fun, including things I doubt they could get away with today. such as villain Papacharino Nanadan's misadventures resulting in him being bandaged like a mummy, including his very visibly though entirely wrapped, swinging in the breeze manhood.

Still, it's interesting to see how much of what was used in Photon would be used yet again in later series, from the name Lashara and the Koro, all whom we would see decades later in Geminar.

[Buckeye]

Post-simulcast Report: May 1-15

Life has gotten pretty hectic lately, but in a good way this time around. Seeing that I'm about to switch cable services and lose my DVR that I prioritized the Toonami stuff, so most of my post-simulcast stuff is that. So with that, here is my latest post-simulcast report as it took quite a while for me to write it up.

Completed

^The Ancient Magus' Bride (13-24, specials): A
This show is a visual feast with a well-constructed storyline and strong character development. But above all, everything is perfect from the technical side of things. Just about the only major problem this show has is the ending as the storytelling was rough and had problems with its execution. In all, it's a great show with all the supernatural elements nicely constructed to tell a rich story.

Ingress (1-11): C-
While this show is visually impressive, the story was just lackluster as it is designed to advertise a mobile game. But above all, the characters were just a dry bunch that just didn't have much to offer. While the story was very weak, the show did have some decent drama and action to make it worthwhile. The show's story definitely could have been better, but it is what it is.

^Re:Zero (13-25): A+
This show does such an amazing job in combining great characters, a well thought-out story, and an ingenious concept all into one show. The animation does the job, and above all it brings about tremendous character growth. Just about the only issue is pacing as the show took a bit longer than I would have wanted on the arcs, but in all it leads to a great show with amazing drama.

Mecha-Ude: C+
Seeing that this is just an OVA that it does the job in setting the stage for something big to go down if this should get a TV series or another OVA episode. While the action was solid, other than that this show doesn't stand out as the story was alright, and the concept was at least a worthwhile one.

Ongoing

[BKI] Baki (11-16)
[DBZ-S] Dragon Ball Super (85-100)
[HXH] Hunter x Hunter (139-140)
[JBA-DU] JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable (27-32)
[NAR-S] Naruto Shippuden (236-244)
[PKM-SM] Pokemon Sun and Moon (77-83)
[7DS-2] Seven Deadly Sins: Revival of the Commandments (9-14)
[YMT-99] Star Blazers 2199 (1-13)
^[SAO-A] Sword Art Online: Alicization (9-13)

[Buckeye]

Post-simulcast Report: May 16-31

Another post-season report ready to go.

Completed

Star Blazers 2199: A-
This is a nicely constructed space drama that takes an old-school science fiction show and modernizes it with nice touch-ups and stuff. Above all, the story was just so strong, while character development and drama were top-notch. That said, it still has some flaws as the biggest one was just the pacing as I felt that things really dragged in the beginning while it was a bit rushed at the end. But in all, it's a great way to modernize a classic show.

Wataten! An Angel Dlew Down to Me Special: B-

Revisions (1-12): D+
While this show had great potential, it all went down the tubes with a totally annoying MC with a hero complex that is extremely irritating. Having such a terrible MC pretty much kills any chance this show might have had as it distracts from whatever story they were trying to craft. While the story was way too cliche, at least it was sound in concept. The action was nice, the drama was decent, and the last third of the show had a solid story as the saving graces for this show that totally whiffed on its potential. Nevertheless, a better MC would have gone a long way.

The Seven Deadly Sins: Revival of the Commandments (15-24): A-
This show continues to build on the first season as it does a great job in revealing character backstories and slowly revealing the truths and connections behind the Commandments. And of course, there are the fights that are the highlight of this show. While it continues to do most of the things the first season did, the ending was a bit of a letdown, all while there were certain parts that just didn't click. Nevertheless, it's a great way to follow up the first season and set the stage for a third that is coming.

Ongoing

[DBZ-S] Dragon Ball Super (101-107)
[HXH] Hunter x Hunter (141-143)
[JBA-DU] JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable (33-34)
[NAR-S] Naruto Shippuden (245-250)
^[PNL] The Promised Neverland (1-6)
[SAO-A] Sword Art Online: Alicization (14-16)

[Buckeye]

Spring 2019 Simulcast Rankings: May

Alright, this is quite late, but I finally got around to updating my rankings based on the episodes that aired during the month of May. I'll try and not be influenced by what I watched so far in June, so here it goes.

Home Run
Attack on Titan Season 3 Part 2
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba
The Rising of the Shield Hero
Dororo
Fairy Tail Final Season

Base Hit
Bungo Stray Dogs season 3
The Helpful Fox Senko-san
Fruits Basket (2019)
Isekai Quartet
Senryu Girl
One Punch Man 2nd Season
Kono Oto Tomare! (Promoted)

Walk
Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu
We Never Learn
Mix
Fairy Gone
Karakuri Circus
Wise Man's Grandchild
AfterLost
Cinderella Girls Theater Climax Season

Flyout
Fight League: Gear Gadget Generators
Yatogame-chan Kansatsu Nikki (Promoted)

Strikeout
Miru Tights
Strike Witches: 501st Joint Fighter Wing Take Off!

Rising

Kono Oto Tomare! - After a rough start, this show is finally hitting its stride as it's all about making broken characters better through playing koto as a club. Tremendous character development is happening in these episodes, and it's a sight to behold.

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - This show is doing an excellent job with character development, all while putting on action scenes that are just pure eye candy. This show is most definitely a winner.

We Never Learn - The comedy has gotten better, and that's good enough for me.

Falling

Wise Man's Grandchild - After a strong start, things start to come back to Earth in the way I was expecting for a cliched isekai show. Too much focus on all the wrong things.

One Punch Man 2nd Season - While the content remains strong, these episodes are some of the weakest so far in this franchise.

Bungo Stray Dogs season 3 - It's a show that has hit a rough spot, but even so the drop is not very big.