Like a breath of fresh air, Spring 2014 is soon upon us and with that comes a new slew of anime. Spring has always proven to be a solid to great season of anime year in year out and this season looks to be no different in my eyes. As I do each season I’ll be listing off the series that look most promising going into Spring 2014. This looks to be a ripper of a season and I for one can hardly wait to feast my eyes on a bunch of these series. With a sweet mix of sports, action and slice of life, I’m looking to have my cake and eat another one too. So without further adieu, these are the series that I will be watching this season of anime:
Haikyu!!
If you’ve read any of my previous anime picks this would come as no surprise to you. I’m a sport anime lover through and through and Haikyu!! ticks all the right boxes for me. It is a sports anime based upon a great Shonen Jump manga series, it is produced by Production I.G, it is about volleyball. How could I resist this series?
As a fan of the manga which this series is based off, I know how very good Haikyu!! is and I am simply ecstatic to see that it is being animated. I cannot wait to see Hinata and the rest of the Karasuno team in action. It may be shonen sports anime at its purest form, but what’s wrong with some simple and exciting fun? This looks to be the sports anime hit of the season.
Baby Steps
Yeah I know, another sports anime. But damn this one looks good. I’ll admit that I wasn’t aware of the Baby Steps manga until just recently, but the critical acclaim and rabid fandom that the series is known for has coloured me intrigued. I’m a huge Prince of Tennis fan and have played tennis competitively myself in the past, so with a great deal of love and appreciation for the sport I’m eagerly anticipating Baby Steps take on the tennis tale. That being said, I do have some reservations about the series, mostly the fact that it is being animated by Pierrot, a studio that has seen a steep decline in quality in my eyes. But I’ll hold opinion until I see Baby Steps in motion. For now I’m quite optimistic about what looks to be another great sports anime this coming season.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders
This has been one of my most anticipated anime series for quite some time. After the long wait following the conclusion of Part 2 of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, the arrival of Part 3 is a godsend. After taking a gander at the trailer for the new series, it is evident that the manga I adore so much is getting the treatment it rightfully deserves and getting another superbly animated season from David Production. This is undoubtedly the most popular arc in the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure series and I for one cannot wait to see Jotaro and the gang kick some vampire ass. Yare yare daze!
One Week Friends
It’s 50 First Dates animated! Well not quite, there no goofball Adam Sandler in sight, but the story itself is pleasantly familiar. One Week Friends follows two high school students, one girl who forgets all her memories every single week and the boy who becomes her friend over and over again every single week. It is a sweet story to say the least and I feel that it could be the real sleeper hit of the season. The potential here is boundless and I’m looking for something a bit more emotion-driven and this seems like it will be that series for me.
Ping Pong
I love noitaminA and this looks weird as can be. That can be a winning combination depending on who you ask. If you asked me, Ping Pong could be quite good. But it could also be very very bad. The art style is putting a lot of people off the series but to me it has an interesting allure to it. I’ve seen plenty of comparisons between the art here and that of Aku no Hana but I feel that this series fits this style whereas Aku no Hana didn’t fit its style.
At the end of the day the series looks to be a bit of fun, it is Ping Pong for god’s sake, how bad could it be? Regardless of all that, Ping Pong is a bit of an on the border series for me. The first episode could make or break this one for me. I have faith in the noitaminA brand and I feel that Ping Pong could be another sleeper series for Spring. I’m down for Ping Pong, baby.
Selector Infected WIXOSS
This will probably be an absolute train-wreck, but you know what they say about train-wrecks, you can’t help but watch. With the drama queen herself, Mari Okada, at the helm of the series, we can expect things to get pretty sappy. The plot of the series itself is pretty interesting, but Okada has a habit for grand dramatic moments and her track record for pacing and logic isn’t exactly the greatest. In anyone else’s hands a ‘survival game’ series such as this would be pretty straight forward but in Okada’s hands this proves to be something truly interesting. She has a habit for scattershot original anime series and the unfortunately titled Selector Infected WIXOSS will likely be the next in a long ling of them. Okada is by and large the type of creator who throws a lot of different colours on a canvas and hopes that it paints a picture. This kind of scattershot work has made her an interesting figure in the anime industry and Selector Infected WIXOSS is going to be one of two things, very good or painfully bad. Either way, strap me in for some Okada-madness.
Bokura Wa Minna Kawaisou
This is the one that has really caught my eye. It focuses on a bunch of eccentrics all living in the same complex. It is a simple premise no doubt but the potential for greatness is there. I love Brains Base studio and if any of their previous slice of life series is anything to go on we have something special in store for us here with this series.
For me the real hook here is that it comes from the director of Blood Lad, a series full of eccentrics in its own right. This series looks like all kinds of fun and I am looking forward to hanging out with the gang at the Kawai Complex. Crazy fun awaits!
Honorable Mentions: Mushi-shi Season 2, Mangaka and Assistants, Marvel Avengers: Disk Wars and Love Live 2.
