A DC anime series is finally happening with the official announcement of Suicide Squad ISEKAI, which will be an upcoming anime series from the collaboration of WIT Studio (Ranking of Kings, SPY x FAMILY) and Warner Bros. Japan.

Check out the teaser trailer here…

ISEKAI(異世界) is the term for “another world” in Japanese, and the series will include all your favourite Suicide Squad characters, including Harley Quinn and The Joker.

The series will be directed by Eri Osada, with screenplays from Tappei Nagatsuki (Re:ZERO – Starting Life in Another World) and Eiji Umehara (Vivy – Fluorite Eye’s Song).

The main artwork (above) is from renowned manga artist Akira Amano (Reborn!), who is the character designer for the series, while the music will be from Kenichiro Suehiro (Fire Force).

“Japanese anime has attracted widespread popularity among global audience in these days and “ISEKAI fantasy” now is one of the most popular genres,” said Shinya Tsuruoka, animation producer Warner Bros. Japan. “What if DC characters such as Harley Quinn and The Joker rampages in ISEKAI? This is truly an outrageous anime project we deliver for a global audience from Japan.

“I am thrilled to work with WIT STUDIO for this dream project which only Warner Bros. Japan could produce. Please look forward to the original story and DC characters’ blast in ISEKAI.”

The release date Suicide Squad ISEKAI is yet to be confirmed, but you can keep up to date at its official website here and stay with SciFiNow for all your genre news, reviews and interviews.

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The Anime Expo 2023 has been taking place this week and with it a bunch of exciting anime news. The event also had an Industry Panel from Crunchyroll and boy did we learn a lot…

First, the Crunchyroll panel showed a new, never-before-seen trailer for exciting new series Solo Levelling, which will be heading to the streaming platform next winter.

Watch it here…

That wasn’t the only trailer revealed at the panel. The world premiere of the new trailer for A Returner’s Magic Should Be Special also debuted during the panel before its October 2023 launch.

Check it out here…

Crunchyroll also revealed they have acquired several new anime titles.

Find out more about them and check out their trailers here…

The Apothecary Diaries

Maomao lived a peaceful life with her apothecary father. Until one day, she’s sold as a lowly servant to the emperor’s palace. But she wasn’t meant for a compliant life among royalty. So when imperial heirs fall ill, she decides to step in and find a cure! This catches the eye of Jinshi, a handsome palace official who promotes her. Now, she’s making a name for herself solving medical mysteries!

Studio: OLM

Launch Timing: Coming Soon 2023

The Faraway Paladin: The Lord of Rust Mountain

Two years had passed since he left the City of the Dead, and Will was seventeen by count. As a lord, he developed “Torch Port, a river port of light”, and gradually the people’s activities and smiles returned to “Beast Woods”. However, out-of-season flowers bloom profusely, and an abnormality is discovered in the forest. Will and his friends head into the depths of the forest to solve this problem, and receive an ominous prophecy from the king of the forest. “In the Iron Rust Mountains, the ‘Fire of Black Calamity’ will occur. The fire will spread, or it will burn everything in this land.” What is the calamity that sleeps in the ruined dwarven city of Tetsusabi Sanmyaku…!?

Studio: OLM and Sunrise Beyond

Launch Timing:  October 2023

GOBLIN SLAYER Season 2

“I’m not saving the world. I just kill goblins.” Rumour has it that, in a certain guild in the middle of nowhere, there is an extraordinary man who has climbed all the way to the Silver rank just by killing goblins. At the same guild, a priestess who’s just become a new adventurer has formed her first party… and the man who ends up rescuing that party when they get into trouble is none other than the Goblin Slayer.

Studio: LIDENFILMS

Launch Timing: Coming Soon 2023

The Kingdoms of Ruin

Witches once blessed the human race with wisdom and peace. But the Redia Empire’s “Gear Expansion” brought about a culture of science that far surpassed magic, and witches were viewed as enemies impeding the progress of civilization. Thus began the witch hunts. One human named Adonis, who was raised by a witch named Chloe, swears revenge against the human race that took his beloved mentor from him. What salvation can be found at the end of a bloodbath fueled by utter despair?

Studio: Yokohama Animation Lab

Launch Timing: October 2023

I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince So I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability

The qualities valued most in the study of magic are bloodline, aptitude, and effort. There was one sorcerer who, despite his deep love for magic, was born a commoner and thus lacked the bloodline and aptitude for it. As he died an unnatural death, he wished he had studied magic more while he had the chance. Then, he was reincarnated as Lloyd, the seventh prince of the Kingdom of Saloum and one blessed with a strong magical bloodline. Reborn with all his memories intact, along with the perfect bloodline and immense talent, he was determined to enjoy his new life, using his extraordinary magical abilities to master the study of magic that was beyond his reach in his previous life!

Studio: Tsumugi Akita Animation Lab

Launch Timing: April 2024

To Be Hero X

In this world, people’s beliefs create heroes. The hero that gains the most belief is named Hero X.

Studio: BeDream

Launch Timing: TBA

Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki 2nd Stage

With no written rules, the real world is hard for gamer Tomozaki Fumiya, but he’s about to get the experience he needs from a seasoned player.

Studio: Project No.9

Launch Timing: January 2024

Black Butler

A new season of Black Butler returns in 2024!

Studio: CloverWorks

Launch Timing: Coming 2024 from Aniplex and Crunchyroll

BUCCHIGIRI?!

When Arajin Tomoshibi reunites with his former best friend, Matakara Asamine, he finds himself involved in a battle among some of the strongest guys around. And then the shadow of a giant genie suddenly looms over them…

Studio: MAPPA

Launch Timing: January 2024

Find more anime news, reviews and articles at SciFiNow.

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The biggest award of the night was Anime of the Year, and with monstrously popular nominees like Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2 and Demon Slayer: Entertainment District Arc vying for the top spot, you’d be forgiven for thinking that it was forgone conclusion. That the simply superb Cyberpunk: Edgerunners won, then, was cause for celebration – to quote Senator Palpatine: “A surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one.”

Best Original Anime went to the action-packed Lycoris Recoil; it was a deserving win, with its biggest threats coming from Yurei Deco and, dare we say it, golfing anime Birdie Wing in that category.

Best Character Design had a fine selection of nominees, including Kazumasa Ishida for My Dress-Up Darling and Atsuko Nozaki for Ranking of Kings, but it was Akira Matushima and Demon Slayer that took home the award, and it was just one of many awards scooped up by the seemingly unstoppable Kimetsu no Yaiba that night.

Speaking of which, Demon Slayer’s Entertainment District Arc also took home the award for best animation, to the surprise of no one. Not even rival nominee Attack on Titan could come close to the sheer levels of eyeball-melting sakuga that Demon Slayer threw at us last year. Any other outcome would have been ridiculous.

Spy x Family was named Best New Series, and we have no complaints there. While we enjoyed other category nominees such as Call of the Night and Ya Boy Kongming! immensely, we thought that Spy x Family was the strongest show in this category and thoroughly deserved its win.

For Best Continuing Series, we could have seen perhaps Demon Slayer, Attack on Titan or Kaguya-sama taking home the win, but ultimately it went to the series that feels like it has been continuing forever, that being One Piece, and with 1053 episodes so far, it’s the epic that just keeps on giving.

Best Opening Sequence went to Attack on Titan’s ‘The Rumbling’, and while Spy x Family’s ‘Mixed Nuts’ was fun and Ya Boy Kongming! had the absolute bop that was ‘Chikichiki Banban’, AoT’s brutal OP shredded the competition here. The accompanying song “The Rumbling” by SiM also took home the award for Best Anime Song, and it’s simply too powerful to disagree with.

Spy x Family triumphed in the Best Ending Sequence category. While ‘Comedy’ was sweet, we can’t help but feel that Call of the Night was robbed here because ‘Yofukashino Uta’ is a certified banger that’s on our playlist, and we feel like it should have been the winner here.

Attack on Titan was back to trample the opposition in the Best Score category, with dream team Kohta Yamamoto and Hiroyuki Sawano taking home the award. But as epic as that soundtrack was, voters did Kevin Penkin dirty. We thought his score for Made in Abyss: The Golden City of the Scorching Sun was beyond beautiful.

Jujutsu Kaisen 0 was named best film, and to be fair, it didn’t have much in the way of competition, with perhaps only Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero and One Piece Film Red being its biggest rivals, but we felt JK0 was a deserving winner here.

Demon Slayer: Entertainment District Arc took home three more big awards for Best Director (Haruo Sotozaki), Best Action and Best Fantasy. The sheer intensity of its battles means it wholeheartedly deserved the former two, but when the Best Fantasy nominees included Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 1, 2nd Cour and Made in Abyss: The Golden City of the Scorching Sun, we can’t help but feel those were much stronger picks.

Attack on Titan’s genocidal wunderkind, Eren Jaeger, was named Best Main Character. That feels like a bit yikes, but he didn’t have much competition from the likes of Spy x Family’s Loid Forger or even David Martinez from Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.

AoT also took home the award for Best Drama, and only perhaps 86 Eighty-Six Part 2 could challenge it in that category, but Attack on Titan was truly in a league of its own here.

Spy x Family’s adorable pink-haired esper Anya Forger was named Best Supporting Character and the ‘Must Protect At All Costs’ Character, and you’d have to be heartless to even consider letting anyone else win. Waku waku indeed.

Spy x Family also won the Best Comedy Award; it had some strong competition from the likes of Uncle From Another World and My Dress-Up Darling, it was the most consistently hilarious offering here.

The final Grand Winner was Kaguya-sama: Love Is War -Ultra Romantic-, which can proudly call itself 2022’s Best Romance. Its category rivals included the unconventional vampire romance Call of the Night, the unbearably cute Komi Can’t Communicate (2nd Series) and the superb My Dress-Up Darling. But with Kaguya-sama’s fierce and near-feral fans to deal with, this was a foregone conclusion, but one we’re on board with. And not just because we’re scared of them.

The 2023 Anime Awards took place on 4 March and you can watch the full ceremony here. Find out more anime news and articles with SciFiNow.

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Luckily for you, we’ve been sifting through this season’s best anime and have put together a selection of top-tier offerings, and there’s a little something for everyone here…

Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2

Attack on Titan is absolutely insane right now; there’s just no other way to describe it. We can hardly believe we started watching this show nine years ago, and now, with the second part of the fourth and final season, the near-decade-long journey is almost over.

If you don’t know AoT, you’re missing out on not just one of the greatest modern anime masterpieces but also one of the greatest anime of all time.

In a fantasy world, humanity is under threat from horrific man-eating humanoid giants, the titular titans. The show follows Eren Yeager and his childhood friends Mikasa Ackerman and Armin Arlert as they join the Survey Corps, an elite anti-titan task force, and seek to stop the monsters and uncover the secrets of the world they know so little about.

The action that follows is spectacular, and its violence is harrowing and horrifying. AoT is also blessed with top-tier visuals, an epic soundtrack, and a story that goes so deep and throws in so many twists and turns it’s almost too much to take in. Attack on Titan is an absolute masterpiece, and it’s something every anime fan needs to experience.

Why we love it: The conclusion to one of the greatest anime of all time

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll, Funimation

Demon Slayer: Entertainment District Arc

After its phenomenal first season, and the incredibly successful Mugen Train movie (plus the seven-episode extended TV remake, which counts as the first part of season two), Demon Slayer returns for its next instalment, and it’s simply awesome.

Set in Japan’s Taisho era (1912-1926), bloodthirsty demons roam the land, and it’s up to the Demon Slayer Corps to stop them. The series follows new recruits Tanjiro Kamado, Zenitsu Agatsuma and Inosuke Hashibira, each with their own superhuman skills, as they take on the horrific creatures.

Where Season One of Demon Slayer delivered multiple snappy story arcs and went big on variety in terms of locations and monsters, adapting the manga’s later, longer arcs means that the anime has now slowed its pace to better do justice to its source material. The 11-episode Entertainment District Arc (so short it’s already over, but that means you can binge it easily!) centres all the action in one location, Tokyo’s Yoshiwara red-light district, but that’s no hardship. The storytelling is as sharp as ever, the characters are even more entertaining, the action is just brilliant, and the calibre of the fights is simply out of this world.

Each episode feels five minutes long, the cliffhangers are just as infuriating as they were in Season One, and it always leaves you desperate for the next instalment. If people shouting out the names of special moves as they perform them and inner-monologuing mid-fight isn’t your thing, Demon Slayer won’t change your mind, but if you want a fast-paced and thrilling fantasy action anime, it doesn’t get much better than this.

Why we love it: The story, the fights, the soundtrack, the sheer awesomeness of it all

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll, Funimation

Sabikui Bisco

Where do we even begin with Sabikui Bisco (Rust-Eater Bisco)? In post-apocalyptic Japan, a rust wind ravages the land and infects humans, slowly killing them. There’s no known cure, but legend has it there’s a mushroom that can consume the rust and save the country, and Bisco Akaboshi is on a quest to find it. Also, he rides around on a giant crab, fights shady government agents wearing pink bunny heads, and his weapons of choice are arrows that cause giant mushrooms to instantly explode from wherever they land.

If that sounds weird, you don’t know half of it. You absolutely never know what this show is going to throw at you next: from hippos armed with machines guns, to a plane that’s part-snail, it’s absolutely insane at every turn. It’s also incredibly enjoyable. It looks so cool, Bisco is just a straight-up badass, and the soundtrack is one of the most eclectic we’ve ever come across, in a good way.

It’s not for everyone, but you owe it to yourself to give this a shot.

Why we love it: One of the wildest anime rides of this season

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll, Funimation

Ranking of Kings

Okay, we’re cheating a little bit because Ranking of Kings started airing in the autumn season, but as we didn’t do an autumn season list, we had to include it here because it’s just too good to miss out on.

On the face of it, Ranking of Kings seems like a simple and sweet anime with a touching story to tell. Prince Bojji was born deaf and, despite both his parents being giants, he’s tiny. His step-mother, step-brother and pretty much everyone in the kingdom thinks he’s useless, and even his only friend, the shadow creature Kage, started out trying to take advantage of him. But Bojji’s spirit is uncrushable, and he’s determined to prove everyone wrong and show them just what he’s capable of.

The show’s simple art and animation style gives it a decidedly old-school feel, and that, along with its seemingly slow pace, will put off a lot of people raised on flashier-looking modern anime offerings. But anyone who swerves Ranking of Kings is missing out on an absolute treasure of a show. Once the plot kicks in, it keeps you guessing until you don’t know who you can trust, and things get dark and violent very quickly, belying the show’s cutesy appearance. Ranking of Kings delivers a huge helping of heart, humour, with plenty of drama and mystery, and it’s a show that it’s impossible not to fall in love with.

Why we love it: Cute on the outside, dark on the inside, and just so good

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll, Funimation

Life with an Ordinary Guy who Reincarnated into a Total Fantasy Knockout

If you’re the kind of guy who sometimes wishes they were a cute anime girl, or the kind of guy who has absolutely not ever fantasised about that sort of thing at all no way (uh-huh…), then we’ve got just the show for you.

Life with an Ordinary Guy who Reincarnated into a Total Fantasy Knockout tells the totally normal story of 30-something friends Hinata Tachibana and Tsukasa Jinguuji. After a night out in the city, a goddess appears out of nowhere and sends the two guys to a magical fantasy world with instructions to become heroes and defeat the demon lord. So far, so isekai. Except that Hinata is now a cute blonde girl and, after upsetting said goddess, the pair have been cursed to fall in love with each other, which they attempt to resist at every opportunity.

Tsukasa has been endowed with insanely OP stats, while Hinata’s only power is to make every man who looks at her (him…?) instantly fall in love and lose all self-control, which results in absolute chaos at every turn. You can already tell that this is not going to be highbrow entertainment, and it’s even more ridiculous than it sounds on paper, but it’s also ridiculously entertaining. It’s just so over-the-top and outrageous, and you’ll be sure to laugh through its sheer absurdity.

Total Fantasy Knockout knows exactly what it’s doing, and it does it so well, but it also has the occasional, surprisingly deep moment, which makes the show feel like it has just that little bit more to offer. Above all else, though, it serves up a heaped helping of dumb fun, and we can’t get enough of it.

Why we love it: The most fun you’ll have this season, whether you wish you were an anime girl or not

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll

For more anime, check out our top animes from the Spring here, from the Summer here and our interview with Jujutsu Kaisen Englsh dub voiceover actor Adam McArthur here.

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There have been plenty of stand-out shows spread out over the past 12 months, so choosing just ten for this list was no easy task. The only rule for inclusion is that it had to have finished this year – so shows that started in 2020 but concluded that season in 2021 count, but shows with split cours that are only halfway done at the moment don’t (which is why no Attack on Titan, for example).

We have made one exception to that rule (because we can…), but we will explain why later. Enough talk – let’s anime!

10. Fena: Pirate Princess

Four shows were gunning for the last entry on our list, but it’s Fena that sails into our final spot. The show begins with titular heroine Fena Houtman being rescued from a brothel, and this action- and humour-packed opening sets the scene for the frantic 12 episodes that follow.

There were ninjas, plenty of pirates, sea battles, a steampunk submarine, historical fiction, some straight-up fantasy and, of course, a little bit of romance for good measure. On top of that, Fena blessed our eyes with some of the most gorgeous animation we witnessed in all of 2021, and blessed our years with one of the best OPs of the entire year, too.

Unfortunately, the show tries to tell a story that’s far too big to fit into a dozen episodes, and it felt rushed in places, while the finale didn’t so much as go off-piste as yeeted itself off the whole damn mountain. It’s a shame, as it spoils the experience somewhat but, despite that, the show was as hard to dislike as its adorable and goofy heroine, and we really enjoyed our time with Fena.

9. Takt Op. Destiny

When anime studio giants Mappa and Madhouse join forces on a project together, you can guarantee that you’re going to get one of the best-looking shows of the year, and Takt Op. Destiny never disappointed when it came to sheer visual delight.

In the future, D2s (monsters enraged by music), have ravaged the Earth, leaving it songless and soulless. However, hope is not lost as Musicarts (magical young women, guided by their Conductors), fight against the D2s using the power of music that they hate so much. We follow unwilling Conductor Takt and his unconventional Musicart, Destiny, on their adventures across the USA, and the show is filled with spectacular battles set to a soul-stirring classical score.

Despite its short 12-episode run, Takt Op. Destiny was not afraid to slow down, sometimes swerving the combat entirely, to flesh out its story and develop its characters, which we really appreciated, and which gave it a little more depth. Delivering a near-perfect blend of action, humour and a sprinkling of romance topped off with awesome animation and an equally awesome soundtrack, Takt Op. Destiny hit all the right notes for us.

8. Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid S

Sometimes, when things are getting you down, all you need is a slice of life to cheer you up. If that slice of life happens to have three dragons (Tohru, Kanna and Illulu) in human female form living with an office worker (the titular Miss Kobayashi) in her apartment, all the better.

Dragon Maid S achieved the unthinkable by being even better than the show’s first season, something that seemed almost impossible considering how utterly endearing and entertaining that was, and it also came with an OP that you are never getting out of your head.

Dragon Maid S was at once utterly adorable, irresistibly charming and genuinely hilarious, while also being rowdy, raucous and raunchy in the best ways possible. The everyday misadventures of the human and dragon cast never failed to raise our spirits, but the show was also full of poignant, heart-warming moments that genuinely touched us, and yes, we did do a cry on more than one occasion. Dragon Maid S is an absolute joy, and for 12 weeks over summer, our Wednesdays felt that little bit brighter.

7. To Your Eternity

To Your Eternity was unquestionably one of this year’s big hitters, and while the hype around the show was almost unfair, it mostly managed to live up to it.

It begins with a god-like being casting a sentient, unnamed orb to Earth. Able to take the form of any living being it comes into contact with, it must learn about the world it now inhabits, learn about the people it encounters, discover what life is about and learn what it means to be human, as the boy called Fushi. All the while, it has to deal with a monstrous alien species called the Nokkers, created specifically to hinder its progress.

The concept is great, and the story is big, filled with action, adventure, moments that had us on the edge of our seats, and moments that had us in floods of tears. Its characters are lovable and memorable – every death and tragic moment felt absolutely devastating – and Fushi’s growth and progress were truly endearing.

To Your Eternity never quite managed to reach the dizzying heights of its heart-wrenching first episode, and it felt like it lost its way for a chunk of the show, but it unquestionably remains one of this year’s anime highlights.

6. Jujutsu Kaisen

Jujutsu Kaisen slaps, simple as. If you want to watch a really good shounen where people with powers fight monsters while looking badass and firing off perfectly time quips, you have found your show-nen (sorry…).

Teenager Yuuji Itadori finds himself unwittingly dragged into the world of Curses, horrific creatures formed from negative human emotions, and joins the ranks of those that do battle with them – Jujutsu sorcerers. What follows are 24 awesome action-packed episodes filled with bad-ass monster battles that really get your blood pumping.

Jujutsu Kaisen is populated by a huge cast of characters, but they are all so varied (giant talking panda, girl with magical hammer, guy who claps…) that they never run the risk of blending into one another. While Jujutsu Kaisen went hard when it came to action, and its animation was truly top-tier, it also had moments of emotion and tragedy that it played very well, and it also knew exactly when it was the right time to crack a joke. Throw in the man with the sexiest eyes in anime (Satoru Gojou – swoon) as the final touch, and you’ve got yourself one of the most fun, exciting and well-rounded shounen we’ve seen in a long time.

5. Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation

We unashamedly lapped up a load of isekai this year, but Mushoku Tensei was one of our absolute favourites.

When a 34-year-old friend-less shut-in dies in an accident, he is reborn into a fantasy world as Rudeus Greyrat. Mushoku Tensei follows his life as he develops his magical powers, overcomes his trauma from his past existence, and tries to make the most of his second chance at a new life.

The show’s story feels huge and we love a big adventure like this. The main trio’s quest across its vast, rich and varied world threw them into so many different situations, and it delivered a near-perfect blend of thrilling action, light-hearted moments, and real drama and tragedy. Rudeus, his pupil Eris, and their travelling companion Ruijerd are three very different and flawed characters, but that made them feel all the more real, and their growth and development and the bond they developed with each other was truly heart-warming.

Throw in some A-grade production values, and Mushoku Tensei‘s quality never disappointed. It wasn’t all perfect, though; we never got on with the show’s seemingly relentless lewdness, and the fact that Rudeus is actually a lecherous adult man on the inside always felt a little creepy. However, despite this, in a sea of average isekai, Mushoku Tensei is a beacon of near-brilliance.

4. 86

86 started out pretty strong: a mecha show with intriguing insectoid war machine designs, a near-unstoppable robotic army on the march, and a corrupt nation segregating its people and sending those of different ethnicity into battle and certain death while concealing this from its populace. It looked good, we liked its characters, and we were intrigued by its story. And then, in the space of just a few episodes, it absolutely soared and hasn’t missed a beat since.

After spending a good while laying its foundations, 86 built an awesome show on top, with a thrilling story that feels big and crams so much in, populated by characters that all feel so different and so real, and you really care for them. It has moments of stillness, moments of heart-wrenching tragedy, awesome action sequences and a score that gave us goosebumps on more than on occasion. 86 breaks our rule because it’s not finished just yet, but if not for two weeks of filler and a two-week break between episodes, it would have been, and it’s so good that we don’t care.

3. Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song

We almost skipped Vivy, with the premise of an AI singer called Diva being called upon by a time-travelling robot to prevent a devastating uprising 100 years in the future somehow not sounding all that appealing on paper. But after just five shocking minutes of its opening episode, we were so glad we didn’t.

Cramming 100 years of story into just 13 episodes sounded rather ambitious, but clever time skips made sure Vivy never felt like it was trying to do too much, and frustratingly good use of cliffhangers meant each new episode could never come quickly enough. Wit Studio served up one of the best-looking shows of the year, with almost unhealthy amounts of sakuga practically dripping off the screen, and the kick-ass action sequences and dazzling details were a feast for the eyes.

Then there was the awesome soundtrack and the twisting, turning story, which made us cry more times than we can even remember. Perhaps the final act was a little sloppy, as can be the case when you’re playing with time travel, but it wasn’t enough to dull the Vivy experience, and we loved every single moment of this stunning show.

2. Sonny Boy

Sonny Boy started off weird and confusing, with a high school and its occupants – now manifesting bizarre otherworldly powers – floating in an empty void. It then dumped them on a desert island, and it only got weirder and more confusing from there as the schoolkids tried to work out how to get home. Magical cats that deliver anything requested of them? A flying school bus? Monkeys playing baseball? It’s just another episode of Sonny Boy.

The show introduced so many weird concepts and characters and then never really explained any of them, leaving your brain in a constant state of bewilderment. And yet, and yet… we just couldn’t get enough of it. It looked like nothing else: every frame, every moment was like a piece of art that you could happily hang on your wall, while the sound design and soundtrack were simply stunning. The headache-inducing story, meanwhile, was so intriguing. You never had a clue what was coming next  but something it kept up right until its dazzling finale.

Sonny Boy is not for everyone: it’s slow, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, and it leaves you desperate for answers you know you’ll never get. But it’s also an incredibly special experience, and it’s genuinely unforgettable.

1. Re: Zero, Starting Life in Another World: Season Two

If it’s basic to like Re:Zero, then we are basic AF, and we don’t even care because it’s such a good show.

This phenomenally popular isekai follows the adventures of Subaru Natsuki after he is transported into a magical fantasy world with no explanation and with the power to reset to a certain point in the past every time he dies. Cue this magical adventure very quickly descending into psychological horror as Subaru has to experience the pain and trauma of some very gruesome deaths countless times, as well as seeing his friends killed over and over again.

Season Two dialled back the action a touch and instead went deep on the world-building and lore. It gave us masses of history for the main characters, answered a lot of questions from Season One, piled on the plot mystery, and cranked up the feels. It also never let us forget that it’s an action horror at heart, all while delivering awesome animation and a sensational soundtrack. While it perhaps didn’t hit quite as hard as Season One did (few shows ever will), it was an absolutely incredible ride from start to finish.

Each episode left us desperate for the next, and the conclusion left us desperate for Season Three. Season Two of Re:Zero wasn’t just our favourite show of 2021, it cemented Re:Zero as one of our favourite anime ever.

For more anime, check out our top animes from the Spring here, from the Summer here and our interview with Jujutsu Kaisen Englsh dub voiceover actor Adam McArthur here.

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We’re into the groove with the summer 2021 shows, so here are three that we’re really enjoying, plus one we’re seriously hyped for…

The Idaten Deities Know Only Peace

While no one can condone studio MAPPA’s habit of working its animators into the ground, it certainly knows how to put together an incredible-looking show. The Idaten Deities Know Only Peace is quite simply one of the wildest-looking anime we’ve seen since the likes of Kill la Kill or Gurren Lagann, with a visual style all of its own.

Psychedelic colour palettes, stylised action sequences, and absolutely over-the-top, balls-to-the-wall action succinctly sums up the visual roller coaster ride that your eyes will be taken on in every episode, and simply put this seinen slaps.

800 years ago, demons roamed the earth, and the only thing standing in their way was the Idaten gods, who sacrificed themselves to seal the evil away for good. 800 years later, Rin, granddaughter of one of the original deities, maintains her vigil over the seal, training new Idaten in preparation for the day when the demons will return, which just so happens to be the first episode.

If you’re looking for explosive action, bloody violence, and absolutely outrageous fight sequences on a spectacular supernatural scale, Idaten does not disappoint. It’s fast-paced, frenetic, and furious. However, while its overblown violence and slapstick comedy makes it seem like a Saturday morning shounen offering, there are some seriously dark undertones here, including a shocking scene right in the first episode, which makes it clear that this is an adults-only experience. Mix in a complex plot involving numerous different factions, political intrigue, and the unshakable feeling that we’re in for some serious surprises along the way, and you’ve got one seriously wild ride on your hands.

Why we love it: Eyeball-melting visuals, sheer badassery, and arguably the season’s best OP

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll

Sonny Boy

You only get to make one first impression, and MADHOUSE’s Sonny Boy makes a big impact from the moment its first episode gets underway.

Visually, this has got to be one of the most interesting shows of this season – and beyond – and its stylistic choices will constantly leave you in awe. The animation is at once fluid, realistic and yet the characters have a sense of minimal design to them; skies are clean, single-colour blank canvasses that really focus your attention on the action at the forefront. Some scenes look like oil paintings, every frame feels like a piece of art, and the show is truly special.

Sonny Boy doesn’t just rely on its visuals to get by, though, the whole concept is a fascinating one – without warning, a Japanese high school drifts through an endless black void while its occupants begin to manifest other-worldly superpowers, and the whole of the first episodes passes by without any BGM, emphasising that feeling of the infinite emptiness beyond the building’s now-broken windows.

As the series progresses, the location shifts, tensions rise among the teens, and stranger and stranger phenomena begin to occur, and it becomes clear what we’re seeing is just the very tip of the iceberg. It’s a twisting, turning mystery that sucks you in from the very first episode, and while it plays its cards close to its chest and keeps you as confused as it can, this is a show that is absolutely worth your time. Don’t sleep on Sonny Boy.

Why we love it: Inter-dimensional Lord Of The Flies with superpowers meets Lost

Where you can watch it: Funimation

Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid S

When Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid appeared in 2017, it could all too easily have been just another sweet and silly slice of life with a supernatural twist, serving up the sugar-coated comedy goodness we all crave, though ultimately ending up fun but forgettable.

But as hilarious as it was, with Tohru, a dragon from another world, ending up as a live-in maid for the titular Miss Kobayashi, and their exploits along with those of a whole cast of wacky dragon characters, what set it apart was its heart. We came here to laugh, not to feel, but Dragon Maid didn’t give us a choice, and there was real depth and emotion to its story, and more than once we found ourselves reaching for a hanky.

Dragon Maid S doesn’t break with tradition, and it’s even more lewd, crude, and downright raunchy and raucous than the first season, while once again not missing a chance to sucker punch you right in the feels when you’re least expecting it. And, once again, KyoAni is just straight flexing on other studios with the absolutely awesome action sequences that make sure you never forget these cute anime girls are insanely overpowered dragons beneath the surface.

Dragon Maid S adds a new dragon into the mix, spices up the storyline, and then piles on the comedy, delivering a show that’s impossible not to love and one we can’t get enough of.

Why we love it: Hilarious, heart warming and horny – your perfect anime date

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll

And one to watch out for…

Fena: Pirate Princess

Looking like a cross between Pirates of the Caribbean and Ninja Scroll, Fena: Pirate Princess looks like it’s going to deliver exactly what you’d want and expect from a show bearing that title.

When we first saw the trailer (below), we were instantly hyped to an insane degree because this show looks so good – seriously, these are some movie-level production values on display, and beyond the stunning visuals, it looks set to deliver a heaped helping of high-seas adventure.

The anime follows Fena Houtman: orphaned as a child and brought up as a servant in a brothel, she manages to escape to an island of pirates where she discovers the truth about her family, and you don’t need to be Detective Conan to work out where things go from there. Expect pirates, samurai and at least one princess, all wrapped up in a show that promises to deliver action, adventure and will leave no buckle un-swashed.

Airdate: Sunday 15 August

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll

Stay with SciFiNow for all the best in anime. Check out our Top Five Anime Spring selections here.

The post Summer Anime 2021: Our picks of the best anime this season appeared first on Sci-Fi Tips.

We were all probably hoping that spring might be a little less stacked, purely so we could all take a little breather, but with 30 new anime and a total of 64 shows airing this season in total, there was little chance of that happening. If anything, it’s been even harder to try and pick just a handful of shows to focus our attention on and our viewing schedule seems even more intense than ever before.

Any new season is always a little intimidating and it’s often hard to know where to start but we’ve dived deep into the spring schedule and surfaced clutching five fantastic shows that we really think deserve your attention. With many spring 2021 shows only hitting their second or third episode, now is the perfect time to get stuck in without feeling like you’re being left behind and have to binge as if your life depends on it, so let’s get started!

To Your Eternity

Arguably the most hyped show of the entire season, this manga adaptation has been awaited with bated breath by anime fans the world over. Manga readers had already warned us anime-only peeps to brace ourselves for an emotional journey like no other, and when the trailer dropped and hit us in the feels so hard we thought truck-kun had come to isekai us away to our new life, we could barely contain our excitement.

Thankfully, To Your Eternity does not disappoint and, after watching just one beautiful and absolutely gut-wrenching episode, we are 1000% in. The story follows a sentient, immortal orb, able to take the form of anything it interacts with, which is cast upon the earth – landing in a bleak snowscape it starts out as a rock and then takes the form of a dying wolf. The story really begins when it meets the wolf’s master, a boy called Fushi, and what follows promises to be an epic voyage of discovery that will have you questioning life and what it means to exist. It’s beautiful, deeply emotional and absolutely compelling. We simply cannot wait to see what kind of journey To Your Eternity takes us on – though we know it probably won’t be a happy one…

Why we love it: Epic emotional fantasy will leave your feels in tatters

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll

Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song

Real talk: we almost skipped Vivy because the synopsis just made it sound kind of meh. However, when we saw the buzz online, and we found out it was co-written by Re:Zero creator Tappei Nagatsuki and produced by Wit Studio, (Attack On Titan and Great Pretender), we figured it was worth our attention and, wow, were we glad we gave it a go.

One hundred years in the future, there is a brutal and bloody AI uprising and, in a desperate attempt to prevent it from happening, an AI named Matsumoto is sent back in time to find autonomous humanoid AI singer Diva, and together they must alter key events throughout the next century to try and change the future.

If that isn’t quite getting your heart racing then let us say this: Vivy is simply awesome. The first five minutes of the first episode had us shook and from that point on this show has soared to heights that we didn’t think were achievable in such a short space of time. Everything about it is just sensational: the style, the animation, the soundtrack and the emotion in its story – it ticks every box you could want it to. There are dazzling action sequences, awesome fight scenes, moments that will have you blubbing and it will keep you hanging on and desperate for the next episode. We literally paused the show more than once to shout to no one but ourselves about how good it is and we’re not even ashamed to admit that. We’ll be very surprised if Vivy doesn’t end up being our joint season favourite and even one of our favourite shows of 2021 – it’s just that good.

Why we love it: Time travel, a talking bear and singing. Also much ass-kicking

Where you can watch it: Funimation

Mars Red

Japan. The year is 1923. Vampires have existed for some time but now their numbers are increasing and an artificial blood substitute called Ascra has appeared which is making them more dangerous and aggressive. The solution? Code Zero, an anti-vampire military squad, itself made up of vampires. Sounds like a slice of full-on, vamp-on-vamp shounen action that’s going to deliver non-stop slaying in a period setting, right? Well, it couldn’t be further removed from that.

Based on a play that was then adapted into a manga, Mars Red is actually an incredibly grown-up tale; a slow-paced, emotionally charged, mysterious and beautiful show that gets under your skin and refuses to leave you alone. It looks stunning, really quite unlike anything else, with a delicate colour palette and a style all of its own. It brings its world to life beautifully, further aided by its soul-stirring soundtrack.

This show is quite the slow burn. It’s dialogue-heavy, building up its story at a measured pace and, honestly, we love it for that – it feels like an intelligent anime and one that will be worth sticking with to see what secrets it reveals to those willing to give it their time. If that makes it sound dull, it’s really not because while the action scenes might be few and far between (so far at least), when they do happen they are intense, exciting and awesome.

Mars Red won’t be for everyone but we reckon it’s definitely worth a shot if you’re looking for something a bit different – plus the ED goes hard, so that’s a bonus too.

Why we love it: Slow-paced and thought-provoking vampire thriller

Where you can watch it: Funimation

86

War rages between the Republic of San Magnolia and the neighbouring Empire of Giad, whose unmanned war machines, the Legion, almost decimated the Republic’s forces until it too launched its own unmanned drone counter-attack. Except San Magnolia’s four-legged, gun-wielding walking weapons of war aren’t actually unmanned at all. They’re piloted by the 86ers: humans stripped of rights and citizenship because they look different to the silver-haired, silver-eyed ruling Alba race. They are forced to live outside the safety of the world within the Republic’s walled 85 districts, and forced to fight in a war by a nation that refuses to acknowledge their existence, their deaths going uncounted by the news reports that the Republic proudly blinds its citizens with.

Major Vladilena Mirizé is determined that the truth is known and, in her role as a handler (a remote commander for squadrons of 86ers), is determined to treat her assigned soldiers as humans, and not as cannon fodder.

It’s a strong premise and 86 follows up on that by delivering a seriously solid and very grown-up mech show with enough interesting twists on the genre to keep things feeling fresh and exciting. It serves up spectacular action sequences, with top-tier animation courtesy of A-1 Pictures ensuring our eyes get a treat every week, while the soundtrack is suitably full-on and helps to make the battles feel even more intense.

But this isn’t just an all-out action anime. 86 also delivers everything you’d want from a futuristic drama, with a cast of characters that feel very real, plenty of tension and probably more than a few dark twists and turns as the series progresses. With its seamless blend of top-tier action sequences and a solid story packed with plenty of emotion and heart, 86 is an excellent mech anime that looks and feels fresh and different. This show definitely has our attention.

Why we love it: Bleak and gritty mech drama with heart

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll

I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level

After your feels have taken a beating, your brain has been frazzled and your eyes feel like they’re about to melt from all the other shows on our list, you need a break. You need something that’s going to wrap you up in a cosy blanket, give you a big hug and stroke your hair while it whispers daijoubu in your ear – I’ve Been Killing Slimes is exactly that show.

It’s not going to win anime of the year or even anime of the season and it might possibly run out of steam before its 12-episode run is up but, right now, this lighter-than-light light novel adaptation is giving us exactly what we need on a Saturday afternoon: a big fat hit of sweet serotonin.

After dying at her desk from overwork aged just 27, corporate slave Azusa Aizawa meets god – who turns out to be a slightly sapphic lady – and is promised a new existence where she can live happily ever after. Thus, she finds herself reincarnated in a fantasy land as a cute, ageless, immortal witch and proceeds to spend the next 300 years living a life of leisure, only killing enough slimes every day to earn her keep. However, over 300 years all those little slimes add up to an awful lot of experience points and when word gets out that Azusa has hit level 99 and is now the strongest being in the land, everyone from adventurers to dragons wants to come and have a go to see if they’re hard enough. Spoiler alert: they’re not.

With her once peaceful life ruined, things suddenly start getting a lot more interesting and exciting for Aizawa and, you know what? We reckon she might just like it that way. I’ve Been Killing Slimes is so saccharine you’re going to need fillings after every episode but we wouldn’t have it any other way because this hilarious and heart-warming isekai slice-of-life is a sheer joy to watch. You know exactly what you’re getting with a show like this – a heaped helping of dumb fun that makes you giggle like an idiot, and sometimes that’s just what you need.

Why we love it: Slice-of-life isekai delivers lols by the truck-kun-load

Where you can watch it: Crunchyroll

The post Spring 2021 Anime: Five Shows Worth Your Time appeared first on Sci-Fi Tips.