AniMAY Celebration

Greetings Fantasy Nerds and welcome to the aniMAY celebration! In this post, we’ll review our favorite animes of last season, currently or recently aired, and animes we’re looking forward to! Most of these will be fantasy or isekai, but we have added in some other anime genres when we think the show is really worth a watch. We hope you find a new anime to watch, and let us know what your picks are in the comments below!

Last Season Favorites

The anime below are the ones we have watched and loved from last season!

• Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End (Crunchyroll) – This anime was easily our favorite of last season. The premise was unique and offered a refreshing take on the fantasy anime genre. The story begins after the big adventure and the defeat of the demon king. It follows what happens to the Party of Heroes after their journey is over. The characters are relatable, the world-building is incredible, and the action scenes are beautifully animated. This show put me in my feels countless times, and the setting is breathtaking! We highly recommend it to all Fantasy Nerds.
• Apothecary Diaries (Crunchyroll) – This is a great anime for those who love mysteries, history, and political intrigue. It follows MaoMao, a girl who worked as an apothecary before being kidnapped and sold to the palace. Those at the palace soon discover her gifts for healing and problem-solving and enlist her help in solving a number of mysterious illnesses or deaths. Though the premise sounds a bit dark and heavy, the quirky main character makes it a humorous and light-hearted show.
• Witch and the Beast (Crunchyroll) – This is an action-packed show for fans of dark fantasy. It starts off with a bang right from the beginning and keeps on delivering. The main characters work for an order that investigates magic-related crimes, but one of them has an agenda of her own – find the witch that cursed her and break that curse. This often complicates their dangerous missions. 
• The Weakest Tamer Begins a Journey to Pick Up Trash (Crunchyroll) – When I first saw this show I was drawn to it by the underdog character and adorable creatures she tames. However, about 3-4 episodes in the plot became more complex and made for a well-rounded show full of characters I came to love. I definitely still enjoy all the adorable creature moments, but I found this show had a lot to say about the world as a whole. It was the most pleasant surprise of last season for me. 
• 7th Time Loop: The Villainess Enjoys a Carfree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy (Crunchyroll) – If you are a fan of fantasy romance, then this is the show for you. The story follows a woman who has lived many lives, and in each one is killed by a certain Prince. However, in her latest time loop, that man falls in love with her. So she decides to live a carefree life as a Princess. Over time, she gets to know Prince Arnold and, of course, begins to fall for him too. 
• Solo Leveling (Crunchyroll) – This is a unique twist on fantasy while also being set in modern times, with characters you grow to love and hate, and full of exciting action in changing dungeons this anime does not disappoint!
• Delicious in Dungeon (Netflix) – This anime is about an adventuring party who, after having one of their members eaten by a dragon, must make it back through the dungeon with no funds. They come to the conclusion that the only way to do this is to eat what they can scavenge and kill in the dungeon itself…but it turns out to be delicious! Each episode focuses on the creatures they kill and what meals they make that day. It is entertaining and funny to see what meals they will create next.
• Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 (Crunchyroll) – This anime is an isekai where a boy is pulled into another world to be it’s hero, but the goddess who summoned him takes a disliking to him. She ends up banishing him to a wasteland, but he refuses to accept this fate. After meeting demi-humans, who are not beloved by the goddess, he decides to join forces with them. The show follows his journey to make a life in this new world that has rejected him.

Promising Current Season Anime

These are currently airing anime that we are really enjoying, so far!

• The Grimm Variations (Netflix) – This show provides a twist on the fairytales we know and love. What if there was more to the story, or those we thought were the heroes are actually the villains? The show retells classics like: Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, the Pied Piper and more. If you prefer the original Grimm tales over the Disney versions, this would be the show for you. But be prepared, this show is even more dark and twisted than the originals, and there will not be a happy ending.
• Mysterious Disappearances (Crunchyroll) – This is a dark fantasy anime that will intrigue you right from the beginning. It follows a struggling author who stumbles upon a magical book, which turns out to be one of a number of curiosities in the world. With the help of her co-worker, who has a mysterious past and supernatural powers, she begins to look into these magical phenomena.
• Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! Season 3 (Crunchyroll) – Konosuba is a great anime for those who enjoy a silly fantasy full of lovable misfits. The adventuring party initially came together because no one else wanted them, and it ended up being a great combo. You can’t help but love the characters, who are always screwing up but somehow still save the day. Not to mention how they drive each other crazy, but still have each other’s backs. 
• Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation Season 2 (Crunchyroll or Hulu)- After a recluse is reincarnated in another world, he becomes a boy with an incredible aptitude for magic. He has a kind close-knit family and begins to make friends, things he seemingly lacked in his former life. Although I am still only a few episodes into season 1, I am definitely planning to watch through season 2.
• Spice and Wolf (Crunchyroll or Hulu)- A traveling merchant finds an unlikely companion in Holo, a wolf god who is tired of being lonely. She ends up being wise and helps him in his bargaining and trading. They make enemies as they get mixed up in schemes and have to avoid the discovery that Holo is a wolf. It’s nice to watch their friendship grow and to see more of the anime’s world and politics as they travel. 
• The Irregular at Magic High School Season 3 (Crunchyroll) – This show interestingly presents magic, it has been cultivated as a technology one yields and studies similar to a job or trade. While I have not watched much of this anime so far, the fighting style animation is pretty cool and how magic is incorporated is intriguing, you have to master fighting techniques as well as magic! It follows a brother and sister as they enter a magic high school to hone their skills and become the best magicians. While the sister is an Honor Student, the brother is an Irregular, who are looked down upon and often bullied. This creates a lot of interesting conflict, as the sister is not expected to associate with a “Weed”, but she is constantly trying to defend and include him. 
• My Hero Academia Season 7 (Crunchyroll or Hulu)- My Hero Academia is a long-running popular anime! Our younger brother has held this in high regard since it aired, and I’ve watched most of it but am not caught up. I fell off of it for a time, as did our brother though he is caught up and said it picks back up again, but the anime is fantastic and we understand why there is such a fan base for it! If you enjoy superpowered heroes, relatable villains, action-packed fights, and excellent character development, you’ll like this show!

What are some recent animes that you enjoy? What is your current favorite? Let us know in the comments!

Thanks so much for reading!

-Clever & WTF