Spring Has Sprung: The Spring 2022 Anime Season Impressions (Part 1) - Renegade Animation #61
Tonight on Renegade Animation, Captain Kaye and The Animation Guru are joined by Haley and Teresa as they begin to review a smorgasbord of recent anime! For Episode 1, they look at those that fall into the genres of Action/Adventure and Comedy!
It’s THE STREAMIN DEMON here yet again to introduce you to the recent Renegade Animation episode! This time, Mike and Cameron are joined by Haley and Teresa to look into the most recent anime offerings! They’ve got a lot of ground to cover so let’s go right into it! Take it away, Mike!
The Greatest Demon Lord is Reborn as a Typical Nobody
“Oh wow, what a surprise! For this anime based on a light novel, I thought there might be a little more substance with this premise, but by the third episode, it really does just devolve straight into your typical fantasy harem anime. The animation is solid, and I like the actual visualization of the magic in this world, but the character designs are pretty basic, and the story is one we’ve seen plenty of times before. It’s not awful, and if this is as bad as things get for the genre, then it’s all uphill from here.”-Captain Kaye
Skeleton Knight in Another World
“A content warning must be issued for the first episode, as it depicts the attempted rape of two women. I promise though that the rest of the anime (from what I can tell so far) isn’t as intense. Yes, it’s based on a light novel, and yes it’s the millionth isekai, but it has a certain charm to it that I really enjoy, though maybe it’s just dub bias, because Brandon Johnson gives a terrific vocal performance as Arc, a gamer who finds himself in the body of his avatar. I’m not quite sure where the story is going, but as long as it maintains that laid back tone of the second episode, then I could see this becoming a sleeper hit.
UPDATE: As of episode 3, this show officially has a tone problem. It’s quite turbulent, in that some pretty risque shit is going down in this fantasy world, yet Arc is still kind of a bumbling idiot with a heart of gold, and it doesn’t exactly mesh all that well. I want to keep going, but I know I’m only going to get more frustrated by the imbalance”.- Captain Kaye
The Dawn of the Witch
“Full disclosure, up until a few days ago, I had no idea this was supposed to be a sequel anime to 2017’s Grimoire of Zero. That being said, I am still heavily invested in this world, its rich history, but most importantly, our four main protagonists. There may be better fantasy shows that I have to look forward to, and by no means am I saying this one is perfect; I just happened to be hooked by its premise, and want to continue exploring this mythology.”- Captain Kaye
I’m Quitting Heroing!
“Sometimes anime gets caught in a limbo state between comedy and drama, while never quite striking the right balance. What we have here is essentially a fantasy-based workplace comedy, where the hook is that our main protagonist Leo Demonhart turns away from his role as the hero in the hopes of finding a job for the Demon Queen’s army. I see what they’re going for, and it has its moments. But every season we get at least one show with a very similar premise, and unless this is a cry for help from people working in the anime industry, I really need to start seeing more variety.”-Captain Kaye
Don’t Hurt Me, My Healer
“I wasn’t sure exactly what I was getting into with this series, but I’m quite enjoying this chaotic buddy comedy between an incompetent hero and a ‘healer’ who only seems to cause pain and misery for the protagonist. Your mileage may vary when it comes to the show’s sense of humor, as it’s pretty dialogue-heavy with a lot of yelling. The dynamic between the two characters is a lot of fun, as are their encounters with the various creatures they come across on their journey. This reminded me of a lot of DnD campaigns that I’ve played where nothing goes according to plan, and our victories were mostly accidental. If that sounds entertaining to you, then this is an easy recommendation.”-Captain Kaye
The Executioner and Her Way of Life
“So far, this anime might have the most unique spin on the typical isekai formula that I’ve seen all season. As it turns out, these ‘lost ones’ that are brought into this fantasy world are given certain abilities that could be considered dangerous. It’s up to a young priestess named Menou to hunt them down and assassinate them before they become a threat. Perhaps I spoke too soon when I said The Dawn of the Witch was the best fantasy series, when that’s simply the bar. This show is awesome, the premise had me hooked immediately, while it’s the characters, the animation, and the worldbuilding that will keep me invested!”-Captain Kaye
Spy X
“To nobody’s surprise, this one’s a winner on all fronts. It has a great premise, a fantastic core cast of characters, gorgeous animation, and probably one of my favorite anime openings of the season. I couldn’t even pretend to come up with any negatives, this show is just perfect! Imagine Mr. and Mrs. Smith, but with the added element of an adorable telepathic kid who binds this fake family together. If you’re in the mood for a good espionage thriller that’ll also make you laugh, Spy X Family will certainly hit the mark!”-Captain Kaye
Miss Shachiku and the Little Baby Ghost
“Maybe it’s just the fact that I’m sleep deprived, and almost certainly feeling burnt out from my day job, but I was already in a bad mood going into this anime. It’s a workplace ‘comedy’ that barely gets into the weeds of the main character’s actual job, and isn’t even all that funny except for the occasional giggle or two. There are ‘supernatural’ elements, but it’s more like magical realism, with the kuwaii turned uncomfortably up to 11. People tend to exaggerate when they say Seinfeld is a show about nothing, but I honestly feel as if Miss Shachiku and the Little Baby Ghost is actually a show about nothing. If there was any sort of social commentary in this series, it doesn’t really go beyond the general feelings of being overworked, which makes me wonder if this is just a cry for help.”-Captain Kaye
In the Heart of Kunoichi Tsubaki
“Literally the ‘best’ thing about this series is the animation. It’s Cloverworks, we know they deliver the goods, and it’s especially obvious during the OP and ED sequences. But as for the ‘story,’ this has about as much substance as cotton candy, and there’s a lot of uncomfortable subtext/just plain text(?) sprinkled throughout. For better or for worse, a reveal at the end of episode 3 kinda explains some things, but before that I just let my imagination run wild regarding their depiction of ‘men.’ Was the intention to make this the Ninja equivalent of Themyscira? Hardly anything about this world makes any sense, and a lot of these characters have air in place of a brain. Because this show is very character centric, your mileage may vary on this for sure.”-Captain Kaye
RPG Real Estate
“After watching three of these shows in a row, I’ve come to realize that I can only really tolerate the kuwaii aesthetic in moderation. That is 100% the reason I cannot comfortably recommend RPG Real Estate, even though on paper they have a really rock solid premise. On the one hand, I genuinely appreciate shows like this that put a different spin on the usual fantasy archetypes, but none of this can work without a sense of balance. In terms of the art style, I’m not completely opposed to this much cuteness, but they at least could have toned down the fanservice, especially in the second episode.”-Captain Kaye
Ya Boy Kongming!
“Yeah yeah, I know what you’re gonna say: “of course Mike is going to love an anime about the music industry that isn’t just an idol multimedia project!” But there’s more to it than that. Ya Boy Kongming puts a very clever spin on the fish out of water trope by sending a Three Kingdoms era military strategist into modern-day Japan, who discovers he has a deep affinity for music. And while the first episode gets most of the “obvious” FOW jokes out of the way, the next two episodes are actually quite wholesome, and the bond between Kongming and Eiko is incredibly infectious. This is easily one of the best shows to debut this season, and I can’t wait for more people to see it!”-Captain Kaye
Aharen is Indecipherable
“It’s probably just a coincidence that this anime has a premise eerily similar to last year’s Komi Can’t Communicate, but if it turns out that was even an indirect influence on Aharen is Indecipherable, would that really be a bad thing? Maybe it’s the dub bias, but I think ultimately the reason why I love this series so much is the absolute deadpan comedic delivery of all of the dialogue, paired perfectly with this stylized animation. If you’re a Shonen fan, there’s a gag in episode 3 that almost killed me, and just in general I doubt I’d survive a ‘do not smile’ challenge for longer than a minute. If that’s not a glowing recommendation, I don’t know what is.”-Captain Kaye
