Spring 2021 Season Preview

Oh my god, what the fuck, what week is it? Week eleven of the winter season? Jesus fuck, these preview articles are supposed to go out on week nine, what am I even previewing at this point. The shows aren’t actually out yet, right? Okay, good, we’ve got some time. Great. I’m slipping, but we’ve got some time. We can work with this.

Hello everyone, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today, we’ll be turning our eyes towards the spring anime season, as I highlight the productions that most caught my interest. I am admittedly not that much of a seasonal anime watcher at this point – it basically takes something of Wonder Egg Priority’s caliber to truly demand my attention, so I’m not expecting to keep up with all these weekly. What I’m instead pinning down here is simply potential – shows that, through their source material or staff pedigree, seem like they might appeal to someone like me. If you’re looking for the full list of shows and synopses, you can check out anichart for all of that – this list comes pre-narrowed, and will mostly just cover what about each show stuck out to me. Without further ado, let’s preview the god dang spring season!

Continue reading

Winter 2021 Season Preview

Hello all, and oh my god, I can barely believe it. I nearly choked up just writing “Winter 2021” for this article title, as I was faced with the enormity of realizing 2020 might one day be over. It’s not even that far off, now! After a year that has simultaneously felt momentary and endless (as Isaac Brock says, “the years go fast but the days go so slow”), it’s at last time to look forward to next year. And though 2021 isn’t exactly promising a reprieve in terms of our global pandemic or political disenfranchisement, it is offering a bunch of cartoons to at least distract us from the end of the world.

Per usual, I won’t be breaking all of the season’s coming attractions here – you can check out a full list over at anichart, along with synopses and trailers and whatnot. Instead, I’ll just be covering the shows that actually grabbed my attention, be it via a strong staff list, impressive trailer, or noteworthy source material. I think that about covers the preamble, so let’s get into it, and see what’s in store in the winter season!

Continue reading

Fall 2020 Season Preview

Yes, yes, I know, it’s absurd. It feels like the summer season just began, and now we’re already looking towards the fall? Well, in spite of 2020 largely feeling like a torturous repetition of the One Eternal Day, the calendar has indeed been moving forward, and we now find ourselves with only three weeks until fall premieres descend. Whether we are ready or not, a new season is coming – so all we can really do is assess the far horizon, and gird our defenses for the storm to come.

As usual, my selections here won’t cover every single show in the new season – you can find a resource like that at anichart, along with straightforward summaries of everything that’s coming. Instead, I’ll be focusing just on the shows I think have genuine potential, and explaining precisely what about their staff or source material or whatnot got my attention. Without further ado, let’s explore some upcoming cartoons!

Continue reading

Spring 2020 Season Preview

Hello all, and welcome to Wrong Every Time! Today I am terrified to announce that it is some-fucking-how time for the spring previews, as the winter season is already drawing to a close. As is tradition, today I’ll be breaking down the most promising prospects of the upcoming season – though in this case, that process is somewhat complicated by the fact that spring is so entirely packed with sequels.

Seriously, just look at this friggin’ list. Re:Zero, Kaguya-sama, SAO, Fruits Basket, Food Wars!, Bookworm… heck, even friggin’ Jashin-chan Dropkick is getting a sequel. This is perhaps the point where my current policy of only continuing shows that genuinely thrill me starts to become a problem – when you combine that with the profound risk aversion built into the anime production system, you end up with over half a dozen “long-awaited sequels” to shows I dropped in their first or second episodes.

Fortunately, even if you set aside the majority of the major sequels, this is still looking to be a fine season – certainly more diverse than winter, at least, which mostly broke down into Eizouken and Everything Else. As usual, I won’t be highlighting every single show here – just the ones that I think have significant potential, either due to their staff, acclaimed source material, or whatever else catches my eye. Without further ado, let’s break down the most promising contenders of the Spring 2020 Anime Season!

Continue reading

Winter 2020 Season Preview

Hello folks, and welcome back to… what the fuck, does that actually say 2020 at the top of the post? As in, the beginning of an entire new decade? As in, I’ve been writing about anime for…

You know what, we’re just not gonna think about that. Instead, we’re simply going to appreciate the upcoming attractions of the newest anime season, a season which holds no greater temporal significance whatsoever, and which will solely be a source of animated joy, not existential career-focused dread. As usual, my picks here won’t include every single new anime production – just the ones I think already possess some obvious potential, be it due to strong source material, excellent key staff members, or whatever else catches my attention. I’ll also focus my descriptions on highlighting those factors, rather than offering a reheated synopsis; you can find synopses for everything over on anichart, and synopses rarely have much correlation with quality in the first place. If that dismissal of Plot As A Meaningful Concept raises your hackles, feel free to exit the building – if not, I hope you find something worth checking out in my rundown. Without further ado, let’s start the Winter 2020 Season Preview!

Continue reading

Fall 2019 Season Preview

You folks enjoying this summer season? ME NEITHER. FUCK this summer season, we deserve better than this, we’re throwing it out and starting over.

Seriously though, this summer season’s actually been pretty great, but time’s cruel grinding of gears creaks ever onward. With only three weeks left in our current season, it’s time once more to turn our gaze forward, as we examine the approaching highlights of the fall season. Some anime seasons are defined either by larger-than-life creators or ambitious new productions, but for Fall 2019, the biggest stories for me are a pair of long-awaited sequels. My Hero Academia’s fourth season will finally be arriving, and even more importantly, friggin’ Chihayafuru is at last getting its third season! Chihayafuru is one of my absolute favorite recent anime, and having never gotten the chance to watch it as it was airing, I’m absolutely thrilled to experience season three alongside all of you.

Those two shows are likely the biggest stories, but as always, there are plenty of other properties with strong potential or talented creators attached, and every season ends up offering some welcome surprises (like the excellence of this summer’s Granbelm). Per usual, I won’t be summarizing every single upcoming show here – you can check out a site like anichart for something like that. Instead, I’ll just be highlighting the shows that actually catch my attention, with an explanation of what element of their production team or source material or whatnot caught my eye. Without further ado, let’s preview the top prospects of the upcoming season!

Continue reading

Summer 2019 Season Preview

How the fuck is it already time for another season preview? It was February like three weeks ago, the spring season can’t possibly be ending now. What did I even do this spring? What am I doing with my life?

Yes folks, it’s time again for a season preview, and all the existential dread and recrimination which accompanies it. This season has gone by in a flash, and though our endless secession of days is certainly a cause for concern, we can at least console ourselves with the prospect of new cartoons to enjoy. While the spring season concentrated its highlights into a small number of shows, and was defined mostly by the titanic presence of directors like Shinichiro Watanabe and Kunihiko Ikuhara, the summer is looking to be much more diffuse in its highlights. There are fewer sure hits, but plenty of shows with at least a dull glimmer of potential, giving me a whole bunch to talk about. As usual, I won’t be highlighting or summarizing every single upcoming show – there are plenty of sites you can check for that, and not much for me to add. Instead, I’ll just be emphasizing the shows I’m genuinely looking forward to, as well as my generally staff or source material-related reasons for that excitement. Starting with the season’s brightest prospects, let’s break down the stars of the coming season!

Continue reading

Spring 2019 Season Preview

As impossible as it seems, the winter season is already starting to wind down. Final battles are being prepped for, title matches are commencing, and adventures are approaching their end. This is normally a somewhat melancholy time, and it’ll be sad to see this excellent winter pass, but it’s simultaneously impossible not to be excited for the coming season. Every season has both obvious and hidden gems, but in the case of Spring 2019, we’ve got a pile of titans clear from the very start. Spring 2019 is going to kick ass anime-wise, and I’m excited to share all my most anticipated titles with you!

As usual, my list won’t cover every single upcoming show, and also won’t really focus on base premises – you can check out anichart for all that stuff, and I don’t tend to find straightforward synopses particularly useful, anyway. Instead, I’ll be highlighting just the shows I personally have some expectations for, as well as the presumably coherent reasons for that enthusiasm, be it staff or source material or something else entirely. It’s not hyperbole, nor even particularly controversial to say Spring 2019 will be offering shows from some of the best anime directors of all time. Starting with a few of those legendary figures, let’s run down the highlights of the coming season!

Continue reading

Winter 2019 Season Preview

It’s a miracle, folks – for once, I can’t really say “how are we already approaching the winter season.” By all accounts, 2018 has been one of the longest years on record, spanning for actual decades and leaving us all withered and creaking. Remember Violet Evergarden? That actually came out this year. Hell, remember Planet With? That only ended a couple months ago! With each new day in the real world offering some fresh disaster and further hastening the End of History, it feels like I’ve lived fifty years over the last ten months, and 2018 still isn’t over. Fortunately, though the real world may be perpetually on fire at this point, anime seasons have maintained a welcome solidity, and given us all something to look forward to.

On that note, let’s get to the shows! Winter anime seasons seem to have a tendency to have the lightest schedule and fewest heavyweight releases, but this one’s actually looking pretty rich on potential pickups. And with both JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and Run with the Wind continuing into the new year, we’re certainly not going to be having an anime shortage any time soon. As usual, I won’t run down every show of the new season here – you can check out anichart for a list like that. Instead, I’ll just be covering the shows I’ve got genuine expectations for, along with whatever tipped me off to their potential quality. Starting with my most anticipated new shows, let’s see what winter 2019 has to offer!

Continue reading

Fall 2018 Season Preview

Well folks, the fall season’s approaching, and I could not be happier to for once actually have good news. After two relatively light seasons in a row, it’s looking like fall will be delivering us a genuine bounty, offering a handful of obvious can’t-miss productions and plenty of other potential favorites besides. Contrary to what you might believe, I don’t really enjoy being negative about media – I’d much rather celebrate good things than sneer at failures, and this coming season offers plenty to celebrate.

As usual, my preview list here won’t be including every single coming show – you can check out anichart for that list, along with all their various synopses. Instead, I’ll specifically be highlighting the shows I’ve got high hopes for, and explaining whatever caught my attention, be that a strong staff, excellent source material, particularly impressive PV, or whatever else. The right execution can make any narrative compelling, and an intriguing premise doesn’t mean much if the staff can’t follow through on it, so I’ll mostly be leaning on production-side resources to guide me here. Starting from my most anticipated prospects, let’s run this exciting season down!

Continue reading