The spring season anime that we loved

The spring season of anime is coming to a close, and it’s about time that I go over some of the specific series that stood out to me throughout the last three months or so. I will be going over three series in particular which I was either pleasantly surprised by, or series that I feel have been good adaptations. Without any further delay, let’s talk about some anime!

The Spring Season Anime That We Loved

Ijiranaide, Nagatoro-san 

Back in my “Looking forward to the best anime of the spring season” piece I talked about Nagatoro and how I thought this series was going to do something similar to Uzaki-chan with regards to riling up the Internet and causing some chaos… I was unfortunately right, but that quickly died off and people got back to enjoying the series for what it is — fun!

I am a fan of the Nagatoro manga and I actively seek out series similar to it as I find them easy to read and relax to, as they avoid all the emotional torment of more dramatic romance series. As much as I love my shounen and seinen manga, romantic comedies are a weakness of mine; I especially love series similar to Nagatoro such as Gal Gohan, Yancha Gal No Anjou-San, and Hajimete no Gal — it’s a bit niche, but I love wholesome “Gyaru” series. 

Nagatoro has been nothing but fun for the entirety of its seasonal run and even though there are times when I’m screaming at the male lead Naoto (better known as Senpai/Paisen) to have a damn backbone and tell this girl to shut up, I find myself happy at the end of every single episode and looking forward to the next one. The main feelings and parts of the show that needed to be perfect — aka Nagatoro’s iconic expressions — were spot on and I hope we can see more of her antics in the future.

The Spring Season Anime That We Loved

Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song

When highly evolved AIs set out to eradicate mankind, the carnage that ensues fills the air with the stench of fresh blood and burning bodies. In a desperate bid to prevent the calamity from ever occurring, a scientist bets everything on a remnant from the past.

Vivy, the first-ever autonomous AI, is a songstress tasked with spreading happiness through her voice. In a theme park where she hardly ever gets a proper audience, she strives to pour her heart out into her performances, bound to repeat it day after day — that is, until an advanced AI from the future appears before her and enlists her help in stopping a devastating war a hundred years in the making. With no time to process the revelation that flips her world upside down, Vivy is catapulted into a century-long journey to avert the violent history yet to come.

You most likely haven’t heard of the series, but you most definitely know the studio that animated it — that being Studio Wit. They are best known for their absolutely astonishing work on the majority of Attack on Titan’s seasons plus other popular series such as Vinland Saga and Great Pretender. 

Not only is this a Wit production, but it is also an original anime series and it’s been a joy to watch every week. The series focuses on Vivy, a songstress AI who is carrying the fate of humanity on her shoulders as she comes to terms with the responsibility that has been thrust upon her. Vivy is an incredibly interesting character as she’s an AI who, despite her programming, is constantly in search of what it means to “put your heart into something”.

The Spring Season Anime That We Loved

Tokyo Revengers

Tokyo Revengers has probably been my favourite out of all the anime this season and there are a few reasons as to why that is. Our main character, Takemichi, presumably dies after being pushed into an oncoming train, when all of a sudden he wakes up 12 years in the past. After reliving his high school days, Takemichi encounters Naoto, the younger brother of his high school girlfriend, and when the two shake hands, Takemichi is thrust forward in time and finds himself back in the present day. 

There is a twist, however: the present has changed. Before going back in time, Naoto and his sister were fatal casualties in the ongoing battle between rival gangs, but after Naoto’s encounter with Takemichi in the past, he is now alive and searching for Takemichi. After talking about this ability to travel through time, they set out on a mission to save Naoto’s sister by traveling back in time and stopping the crucial events that cause this gang rivalry. 

The start of Tokyo Revengers seems somewhat typical, with the main character being filled with regret about how he went about his school days, which resulted in him moving into adulthood still being a spineless wimp whose most repeated word is “sorry”. I thought the story was just going to be Takemichi having a second chance at doing things differently, but Tokyo Revengers is much more than that.

Takemichi must still return to the present to ensure that events have changed. While in the present day, Takemichi meets people from his past and learns more about how the gangs have caused so much pain for those around him. We see Takemichi grow from being a complete crybaby into someone fighting to protect those he cares about in order to make a brighter future. 

Honestly, there has been a great selection of good shows this season. 86 is another series that I have kept up to date with, as well as HigeHiro, and a couple of others. These three I mentioned specifically, however, have been real standouts for me and are shows that I have eagerly waited for each week. The Summer Season is coming up soon, so expect some thoughts on those soon as well!

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Conor Evans
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