Forum - View topicThe Best Anime of Winter 2024
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v1cious
 Posts: 6202 Location: Houston, TX |
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Gushing Over Magical Girls is definitely my guilty pleasure anime of the season. This show had me in stitches almost every episode. The story was also surprisingly good. |
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tywhoppity
 Posts: 199 |
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Not counting the two juggernaut carryovers from the Fall, I was really hoping for Tomozaki to be as good/better than the first season, but I think they had to much material from the LNs. Dangers is nearly as good as Frieren and Apothecary, so that's my choice. A Sign of Affection got too cringy at times(though I loved the blossoming romance between the second couple).
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Oggers
 Posts: 366 Location: Ontario, Canada |
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For me, it's a three-way tie between Frieren, Apothecary Diaries, and Delicious in Dungeon. Admittedly, I wasn't quite as into Frieren's mage exam arc since I've sat through so many shonen tournament arcs before (and it feels like they really dragged out the part where the characters discuss how to defeat the Frieren clone), but there were still a lot of great moments.
Runner-up is Bang Bravern, since I started watching it rather late but I'm enjoying it so far. |
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Connor Dino
Posts: 297 |
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What? |
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InfiniteNothingness
 Posts: 107 |
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I didn't check out almost any of the big lightningrods of discussion this year: Frieren, Apothecary Diaries, Bravern and Delicious in Dungeon I'd sooner read the manga/LNs first where applicable, and divorced from seasonal discussions (and especially, more tiresome chatter). I recognize what merits I've seen described for these -- I've been loving weekly responses to the show for robot perverts for example -- though I'm not going to force a viewing if the energy isn't there. I'm sure they'll be fun later, though.
Catching up on The Dangers in My Heart has been an absolute treat and even more than the visuals or story independently, I'm impressed with how this show manages to make every crucial little step in both romantic developments and growing up as a bit of a loner feel as impactful as they did as a kid. Coming-of-age stories frequently enjoy the idea of every new development being this shocking development, and really, that's because it just kind of can be like that. It's been rare so far though for me to find a show that captures that without missing a beat, including -- as it's smart enough to recognize -- when it isn't a cause for alarm but just natural growth. The punctuated emotional shifts feel both definitive, and implicitly cognizant of how much more there is to come, and how valuable every step is even if you stumble (and sometimes precisely because you have); in this respect it reminds me of another recent favorite in Skip & Loafer, both shows that managed to lovingly blend visual storytelling with their respective story beats to be more than the sum of their parts and more than by-the-books adaptations. I still need to finish S2, but it's been lovely. Healing Magic hasn't been anything grand, but it also hasn't needed to be to tickle my neurons in the exact ways I picked it up for in the first place. Middling as it is there's a cute heart to every character, and our main four have stayed believably endearing as they travel their own paths while keeping buddy-buddy. It's inoffensive, the dynamics are just textured enough to be pleasantly fun. Sort of like a violent sub-iyashikei energy, for me personally. I'm not surprised BUCCHIGIRI?! is coming up short as we enter the final arc, so I can't technically say I'm disappointed, and while there's still a lot I like that's meaningfully baked into what it could be rather than what it's been. So much time has been spent spinning its wheels, or dragging out subplots longer than necessary, to say nothing of how late Arajin's growth and how suddenly and quickly Asamine's fall have both been. I don't even necessarily mind how repetitive it is in ways (the cafe, the 'virginity' thing, Arajin being a dense asshole slow on the uptake), because the way in which Asamine has clearly been idolizing Arajin as a way to cope with his own struggles does do something for me, and the landscape being slowly thrust into a pretty pitiful state essentially because of our ostensible hero's negligence, is a compelling throughline. It's just not been convincing. To say nothing of desiring more homoeroticism (a desire I understand as not uncommon for fans of Utsumi but it is my first time with a work led by her all the same), or that it's some truly gorgeous and bombastic animation tied to lackluster characterization, more wrapped up in interesting ideas then interesting (even if imperfect) execution. Still one of my most favored, technically, although it's complicated. Yam Shibai 12 is cozy, though I think I should really just play indie horror titles instead for the same feeling, alongside being able to directly communicate with people if the works really hit the spot. I am far, far behind Wonderful PreCure though not out of a lack of excitement for it. Silverman already described what I've been liking about it, as have, surely, all of the fans rightly praising its "chase" framework for subduing foes instead of fisticuffs. And much more. There's a lot to like here even a few episodes in and I wholly expect to groove with it more and more. Ninja Kamui came late and has been a lot of spectacle, and more-or-less filling the niche I wanted and nothing more. That's perfectly acceptable, it's still been fun seeing some of the flashier sequences, even if I struggle to care for the actual characters. I also need to catch up on Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard?!. I've found it to be slotting into a similar space as Dangers; it covers a lot of emotional ground and beats, but unfortunately unlike the former can't quite cook long enough on any of them to draw out their best. It also is not nearly as gorgeous, which is especially frustrating since I was highly anticipating this. Still, it possesses a strong heart, has shown itself to have firm directorial chops where it matters and works those nicely with a just expressive enough sense of space and coloring, and again, it covers a lot. Angst, yearning, feeling like you're going too fast and not fast enough, the peaks and nadirs over something as simple as sharing the same space and being with someone you love, that developing sense of what might actually be love, outright declarations of love! It's not lacking for aspects to appreciative narratively, so I look forward to wrapping it up. Altogether, a surprisingly "Decent" season. I'd have to describe either Dangers or Metallic Rouge or both as my actual favorites, I think. Last edited by InfiniteNothingness on Tue Mar 26, 2024 5:07 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Ryuji-Dono
 Posts: 1210 |
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Eh, it's just an opinion anyway. |
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pi8you
 Posts: 140 Location: Minneapolis |
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For continuing series, Urusei Yatsura continued doing its thing and looking great, but my favorites in no particular order were: Freiren, Undead Unluck, The Apothecary Diaries, The Dangers in My Heart, and Shangri-La Frontier.
Out of the new stuff, the top spot handily goes to Brave Bang Bravern! (what a ride), but I also really enjoyed Delicious in Dungeon, 7th Time Loop, Hokkaido Girls, and Sengoku Youko. Honorable mention to Witch and the Beast because I love the manga, but the production wasn't quite up to snuff. |
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Cardcaptor Takato
 Posts: 4826 |
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I think for brand new shows this season my favorites have been A Sign of Affection, Delicious in Dungeon, and Bravern. I give a runner up to 7th Time Loop because I really like the relationship dynamic between Rishe and Arnold and the political intrigue but I fear this is going to be one of these shows we never get a conclusion to and you have to read the source material. For continuing and sequel shows The Dangers in my Heart s2 continues to be one of the best recent modern romance anime and I'm not ready for it to end. I'm also of course continuing to love Frieren and Apothecary Diaries. My runner up is for Shangri-La Frontier which isn't like the greatest show ever but I'm just along for the ride enjoying these gaming dorks goofing around and I appreciate it's more of a lower stakes slice of life MMORPG show than there being some grand plot twist and for me it's just really enjoying the character dynamics and the animation.
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Mikan-box Glasses-kun
 Posts: 57 |
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My favorite was definitely The Apothecary Diaries, which was consistently great throughout its run. Maomao is an absolute treasure of an ace gremlin.
Runner-up is far more difficult, however. I loved Frieren, Bravern, Cherry Magic, and Delicious in Dungeon, and it just feels plain wrong not to give any of them the slot. So I guess I'll just give up and give all of them my runner-up award instead, lol. Also, I'm definitely with you on the WanPre love, Rebecca! It's been a really funny and fun entry of Pretty Cure so far, and I've been really enjoying the animal rescue theme of the series. |
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SaneSavantElla
 Posts: 223 |
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My #1 Pick: I initially had misgivings on Delicious in Dungeon, as I am not enthused by the premise of cooking up vaguely recognizable meals from monsters (and indeed, that is the aspect I liked the least about the show) plus Trigger is not a studio I would associate with medieval fantasy anime even if I enjoyed their more whimsical work, Little Witch Academia. But with such a thoughtful production, charming cast, the subtle unravelling of the story's mysteries, and the bonus belly-aching laughs from time to time, I found myself looking forward to Fridays the most!
My Runner-Ups: Frieren is without a doubt the star of the last season for me, but I am in agreement with a lot of viewers that the exam arc is not Frieren at its strongest. On the other hand, I was not very fond of Apothecary Diaries' introductory arc last season, but with the second cour finally getting into the meat of what appears to be an overarching plot, complete with the introduction of potential main antagonist(s), I couldn't be any happier when the S2 production was confirmed. Pleasant Surprises: I was expecting to drop The Witch and the Beast at some point, but it proved to be the sort of stuff that is right up my alley, despite the clear limitations in its production. If the anime ends at an unsatisfactory point, I'll be sure to pick up the manga. Another one I didn't expect to enjoy as much as I did was High Card S2, and indeed while it does appear like it's headed towards a bland resolution, this season has a pretty strong first half. Ones Worth My Time: While not surprising or impressing me in any way, some of the shows that were still pretty enjoyable to watch week after week are: Dangers in My Heart, A Sign of Affection, 7th Time Loop, Surgeon Elise, and Cherry Magic -- which, now that I see it are all romances, which I find amusing as I'm often lukewarm towards these. Disappointments: Metallic Rouge and Solo Leveling just got frustrating to watch week after week, despite both shows getting a lot of hype, and upper tier production values to match. One for aiming too high and falling short, and the other for ticking all the checkboxes of a wish-fulfilment fantasy, of which I'm definitely not the target market. |
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stevey
Posts: 2 |
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Sengoku Youko was no doubt amazing show I just started watching. |
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akitainu
 Posts: 115 Location: SATX |
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I only ended up completing nine shows this season after starting with thirteen. A couple of them turned into a bit of a slog, though.
Frieren easily came out on top for me. Solid all the way. Not much else I can say that hasn't been covered already. Gushing Over Magic Girls (still hate that title) and Dangers in My Heart split second place. I love both of the manga and looked forward to both each week. I wish GOMG would have had better production values, but I never thought it would get an anime in the first place, so I'll take it. And Apothecary Diaries was just behind them. Honestly, it's not a story that would usually be my thing, but Maomao and specifically Aoi Yuki's performance of her kept me coming back. |
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Glordit
 Posts: 461 |
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I as always, watched far too much.
Fun: Akuyaku Reijou Level 99 Ao no Exorcist Boku no Kokoro no Yabai Yatsu S2 BUCCHIGIRI?! Chiyu Mahou no Machigatta Tsukaikata Dungeon Meshi Gekai Elise Hime-sama, "Goumon" no Jikan desu Isekai de Mofumofu Nadenade Suru Tame ni Ganbattemasu. Ishura Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun S2 Kyuujitsu no Warumono-san Mahou Shoujo ni Akogarete Majo to Yajuu MASHLE Meiji Gekken: 1874 Ore dake Level Up na Ken Saijaku Tamer wa Gomi Hiroi no Tabi wo Hajimemashita. Sasaki to Pii-chan Sengoku Youko Snack Basue Sokushi Cheat Tsuki ga Michibiku Isekai Douchuu S2 Urusei Yatsura (2022) S2 Youkoso Jitsuryoku Shijou Shugi no Kyoushitsu e S3 Yubisaki to Renren Yuuki Bakuhatsu Bang Bravern On the fence: 30-sai made Doutei da to Mahou Tsukai ni Nareru Rashii Dosanko Gal wa Namaramenkoi High Card S2 Loop 7-kaime no Akuyaku Reijou Shin no Nakama S2 Boring: Hikaru no Ou S2 Kekkon Yubiwa Monogatari Metallic Rouge Momochi-san Chi no Ayakashi Ouji Oroka na Tenshi wa Akuma to Odoru Saikyou Tank no Meikyuu Kouryaku Synduality Noir Part 2 Not counting Frieren & Kusuriya since it is technically Fall 2023 Last edited by Glordit on Tue Mar 26, 2024 11:46 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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njprogfan
 Collector Extraordinaire Posts: 1161 Location: A River Named Toms |
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This ^ And add Dangers in My Heart 2 Very honorable mentions: Gushing Over Magical Girls - I never thought the manga was going to be adapted AND as well. It went up to the that line not reached often in that nether region of ecchiness and stared into the sexy yuri void with humor like no other. Shockingly good! (and Man, it almost crossed that line often) 'Tis Time for Torture, Princess - An online manga I read a few chapters of and dropped it because of repetitiveness. Oh, if I only knew! Once the series went outside the walls of the dungeon it opened up the world like I never would have thought. At times side-splittingly funny and cute at the same time it took me by surprise and was a show I couldn't wait to watch. I love the designs and voice acting and am so happy to see a second season announced for the simple fact of seeing the Demon King's family again; such heart, such an overall huggable vibe. It's visual food for the soul! Last edited by njprogfan on Tue Mar 26, 2024 7:12 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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JustMonika
Posts: 967 |
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I didn't watch any of these except A Sign of Affection, lol. I am going to watch Frieren, The Apothecary Diaries and The Dangers in My Heart (once it's dubbed) soon. My favorites of the season -
Hokkaido Gals are Super Adorable The Foolish Angel Dances with the Devil Tales of Wedding Rings A Sign of Affection Tis' Time for Torture, Princess Solo Leveling Bottom Tier Character Tomozaki S2 |
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