With every new anime season comes an undeniable list of titles that fans are eager to watch and remember. Whether it’s an original series or a long-awaited adaptation, the start of a new anime season means gearing up for excitement. Unfortunately, not every series will deliver on its promise.
Some seasons might deliver rock star lineups, while others may sadly be filled with new series and seasons that fail to live up to expectations, leaving them to quickly fade from fans’ minds. Here are some of the Fall 2022 titles that managed to live up to or breed hype, and others that just fell short.
Urusei Yatsura Captures The Magic Of The Original With a Modern Flair
There was plenty to be excited about when the Urusei Yatsura reboot was announced in 2021. The series launched Rumiko Takahashi’s career and is an anime classic that spawned many films and OVAs. Given its legacy, though, that also meant there was plenty to fear should the reboot fail to capture the same charm as the original.
Thankfully, the reboot retained Takahashi’s signature comedy and successfully set itself apart from other recent anime reboots. Given the original series aired in the 80s, its sleek update in visual design and animation — while maintaining the style of the series — is an instant plus for fans of the original, Takahashi’s body of work, and even newcomers who want to take a stab at her work with this reboot.
The unique premise and setting are maintained, along with the absurd rom-com hijinks that make the series iconic. The protagonist Ataru’s perverted nature is toned down a notch, but the overall charm that helped make Urusei Yatsura a hit has so far been well-maintained.
Chainsaw Man Lives Up to Its Reputation as One of the Year’s Most Anticipated Anime
Without a doubt, one of if not the most anticipated anime this season was Chainsaw Man. The award-winning manga has skyrocketed in sales to become one of the best-selling manga in history, setting a high bar for its anime adaptation. With MAPPA at the helm — the same studio responsible for Kakegurui, Yuri!!! on ICE and Jujutsu Kaisen — there was at least no doubt the animation would be high-quality.
Chainsaw Man is known for its dark humor and characters, as well as its high-octane violence. Though it’s not uncommon for these kinds of attributes to be shaved back in an anime adaptation or get executed in a way that falls flat, the anime has so far managed to remain an exciting and faithful adaptation. It captures the standout shonen manga’s action and energy that has kept fans hooked.
Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Revitalizes the Franchise and Welcomes Newcomers
The Witch From Mercury is the latest installment in the long-running Gundam franchise. As the first mainline Gundam anime in a few years, it’s rightfully had a lot of eyes on it.
Gundam has been pumping out media since 1979, but anyone looking to tune in will be happy to know that The Witch From Mercury takes place in a continuity separate from the main ones established across most of the anime in the franchise. This means it’s a fresh start for new and old fans alike. It also continues to shake things up by being the first mainline Gundam anime to feature a female lead, as well as having more colorful visuals compared to many of its predecessors. The Witch From Mercury tells its own compelling story while still embodying the familiar themes that have defined the Gundam franchise to this day.
Do It Yourself! Doesn’t Delve Deep Into Its Defining Feature
One of the more disappointing installments from this season is the slice-of-life series Do It Yourself!. The original anime mixes elements of DIY and edutainment with slice-of-life and comedy to create a story that attempts to use DIY crafts and technology as a metaphor for mending and growing friendships. The character design and genre-blending make the series intriguing — not to mention its relatively light-hearted story — for some laid-back viewing. However, the lack of depth in the characters and the show’s themes make the show quickly forgettable.
Technology is juxtaposed with traditional craft to parallel the rift formed in Yua and Miku’s friendship when they go off to different high schools — one traditional and one an elite vocational school — with a more technologically robust curriculum. The old vs. new mentality isn’t explored much beyond the surface level and as the means of establishing a precedent for the DIY aspect that contributes to its somewhat iyashikei vibe. The clumsy integration of an otherwise interesting setting and premise will leave viewers wanting more.
Beast Tamer: An Isekai That Fails to Make Itself Stand Out
Right from the jump, there’s little that makes Beast Tamer stand out from other isekai-ish fantasy series. Like The Rising of the Shield Hero, Beast Tamer’s protagonist Rein is deemed weak and kicked from his party. Rein’s seemingly useless beast taming skill, however, allows him to form contracts with members of the most powerful beast races, slowly forming a harem of beasts.
What makes Beast Tamer bland is that Rein lacks depth and much of the story is predictable. The series is filled with tropes; while not unusual for the subgenre, the lack of significant character development across the growing cast fails to make the story all that engaging. Beast Tamer is perhaps comfortable in not being anything extraordinary, but that just means it’s easy for viewers to lose interest if there’s no one thing it’s going to do particularly well.
Akiba Maid War Manages to Undercut Its Unique Edge
Akiba Maid War is a surprising black comedy to arrive in Fall 2022, with its yakuza take on working in a maid café. The initial premise, if anything, sounds at least like there might be a wry subversion at play, but the series is nonsense for the most part.
Every episode is filled with wanton violence as the rival maid cafés often find themselves going head-to-head in some bizarre challenge to stay in business and reign as the best maid café. Akiba Maid War is understandably over-the-top because of what it is, but instead of letting viewers accept that, it constantly calls attention to its own antics in a manner that feels awkward and overdone. While there’s not much for plot, it could succeed as a campy binge if it weren’t for the botched execution of its most interesting elements.
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