With the last of spring anime shows wrapping up this week, it’s time to look forward to summer! I usually have so much anime backlogged that my backlog is need of a backlog. So I scarcely have time to look at seasonal anime charts or read seasonal anime previews to see what we have to look forward to.
I’m amazed when people have the time to talk about the few dozen shows every season. I’m even more amazed at people who are able to follow most/all of mentioned few dozen shows. Alas, comes the agonizing process of separating the wheat from the chaff. Of course, the selection will change as the season takes its course due unexpected stinkers and hidden nuggets of gold.
My tastes tend to run mainstream so I know I’m in good viewing company. (For readers who have a phobia for long reads, each listing has been haiku-ed for your convenience.)
Akame ga Kill!
Boy, screwed by a “nice”
girl who he kills for justice,
Joins terrorist group.
Notes: Shonen popcorn. High potential for grey morality and really cool action scenes. Who doesn’t love a good assassin overthrowing the corrupt government story?
AldNoah.Zero
Urobutcher teams
Up with Fate/Zero guy for
Another mecha.
Notes: Seriously, I watched the trailer three times and still don’t understand what it’s going to be about. But I’m going to watch it anyway.
Bakumatsu Rock
Idol songs brainwash
Women in Tokugawa
Is rock the answer?
Notes: Always up for fantastical reinterpretation of historical periods. The more cracktastic the better. Solely watching this out of my academic interest in Japan’s interpretation of its own history. The pretty boys are just a bonus.
Free! Eternal Summer
With past drama solved
will it actually be
About real swimming?
Notes: I liked the first season, even if the ending was kind of a copout. But a properly finishing one. Which is why I don’t know a second season exists. Maybe Haruka becomes a merman or something.
Kuroshitsuji: Book of Circus
There was no season
two. Ciel and his demon
Join a strange circus.
Notes: This show makes me uncomfortable but damn, it is good to watch. Season 2 was a little too weird (not entirely bad though) but it’ll be good to see an attempt to return to the quirky, less dark humor of the manga.
Nobunaga Concerto
Schoolboy time-travels
commits fraud to help Oda
Unify Japan.
Notes: Two alternate historical Japan anime in the same season? Well, I’ll be darned. Christmas must have come early. Now to see if Santa’s given me presents or lumps of coal.
Sailor Moon Crystal
THE magical girl
Is back, much more sparkly now.
Very manly show.
Notes: Sailor Moon was my first exposure to anime, before I even knew what anime was. All I knew was that life would be so much cooler if I had fire powers like Sailor Mars did. With a 26-episode scheduled run, it’ll be interesting to see how they’ll spread out the story arcs.
Sword Art Online II
Boy goes through sex change
so he can keep on playing
cool video games.
Notes: I loved the SAO part of the first season. The Alfheim half can just go die a slow, agonizing death via Heathcliff’s administrative privileges. Let’s hope SAO II redeems itself.
Tokyo Ghoul
Boy dates girl who tries
to eat him but fails. The taste
for flesh isn’t rare.
Notes: After watching Shiki, my tolerance for horror anime has increased substantially. The premise of cannibals masquerading as humans is a chilling one and we need more nitty-gritty antihero protagonists.
Zankyou no Terror
Mentally troubled
teenagers blow up Tokyo
So what else is new?
Notes: This summer’s got a bit of a darker streak going, eh? Mental illness and gun violence are hot topics in the United States right now, and it’ll be interesting to see how this anime will discuss psychopathy and terrorism. Along with Tokyo Ghoul and Akame ga Kill! rounding out the three “thrillers” of the season, this is my most anticipated pick for the season.
With ten shows, this is my most ambitious watching season yet. Although dropping shows mid-season is nothing unusual, I hope none of these picks will disappoint. I’ll also, of course, continue following Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc V and Captain Earth from the spring season. Because card games and meandering plots make the world go around.
Any good haikus you come up, feel free to share them here!
Anime Monographia 
I’ll be watching nearly all of the above shows as well – plus a few more, no doubt. Actually, there seems to be a really great spread this season, with quite a bit more variety than usual. Bakamtsu Rock, Free!, and Tokyo Ghoul all look various shades of promising based on their first episodes, so it’s nice to get a good start at any rate. 🙂
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I’ve heard mixed things about Bakumatsu Rock and it’s not my usual cup of tea but it looks intriguing enough for me to try it. And yes, there seems to be a good spread this season.
Also, Tokyo Ghoul’s first episode was excellent.
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Not f*cking haikus!
In seventeen syllables
Show that you can count.
At least go for something fresh!
Even tankas would suffice!
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Why fix what isn’t
Broke? Haikus are shorter still
Much more efficient.
That said, as a scholar of English lit,
Nothing says home quite like iambic verse
Pentameter is great, though I admit
Staleness of rhyme is a bit of a curse.
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I saw this post ages ago, but I forgot to comment so I came back to do it. I just had to, because it is GENIUS. Love the haiku! Especially the Free! one, it’s hilarious, and so so fitting XD Diggin your creativity man (:
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Thanks for the comment. It was fun making them up though I understand haikus aren’t everyone’s thing. Glad you enjoyed the Free one in particular–definitely one of my more inspired ones.
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