The three shows I am most anticipating are Higurashi New, Irregular Season 2, and Moriarty.
Higurashi: When They Cry — NEW
VERY HIGHLY ANTICIPATED
Higurashi supernatural / psychological horror story which was initially released as a kinetic novel back in 2002 and was made into an anime in 2006. Despite the questionable quality of the sprites it gathered a significant following. Its a heavy / brutal story. Even after watching it multiple times there are some scenes I still want to fast forward (*cough* fingers *cough*). Unless they really screw it up, this will be an intense series to watch. I expect it will deserve its TV-MA rating.
The Irregular at Magic High School
Highly Anticipated
I thoroughly enjoyed the first season of Irregular. Its one show in which I definitely wanted a second season and now its arrived after six year. My memory of the series is rather vague after all this time, but still, I’m excited its coming.
Moriarty the Patriot
Highly Anticipated
Choosing a third series was tougher. I already know a lot about the first two choices, but the rest of the shows which caught my interest this season were new to me. This series takes Moriarty, the villain from Sherlock Holmes, and turns him into a hero who is trying to revolutionize the world. I’m not sure what to expect, but the premise makes me excited.
There are other series which I have moderately high hopes for, though I don’t really have enough opinion to judge yet. Wandering Witch, King’s Raid, and Talentless Nana.
Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina
Very Optimistic
I enjoy “journey” type stories. These stories tend to put a lot of detail into the world and setting and are often similar to anthologies where each episode is more or less self contained. The best example of this genre is “Kino’s Journey” which was an amazing, if rather dark, series. I’m expecting Wandering Witch to be a more light hearted journey story and expect fairly good things from it.
KING’s RAID: Successors of the Will
Optimistic
King’s Raid is a mobile game turned anime. I was excited about it because I enjoyed the game when I played it, or so I thought. Apparently I had gotten it mixed up with another game — oops. Still, my optimism about the series hasn’t faded though so I am looking forward to it. After all, its based on something which is already popular so it should be difficult for the producers to screw it up.
Talentless Nana
Fairly Optimistic
I was reading this manga for a while, up until the characters returned to the mainland. The story was fairly well done, and it was very interesting watching how the lead character outsmarted everyone. I would have kept reading except the Crunchyroll Manga app isn’t the most reliable, and I got too impatient waiting for updates. I have fairly high expectations for this series, and hope it will keep my attention better than the manga.
There are a lot of other shows I’m curious about but don’t have much in the way of expectations for.
Assault Lily BOUQUET (low expectations) — This sounds to be a standard “magical girl” series. I doubt it will stand out against the rest of the genre but its worth giving a chance.
Warlords of Sigrdrifa (low expectations) — A second “magical girl” series. Again I have low expectations as it needs to stand out in a very crowded genre.
Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon (low expectations) — Based on the description I anticipate a traditional fantasy series focused on finding oneself. With Isekai series being so popular these days, a traditional fantasy is a nice change of pace.
Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear (very low expectation) — These days we see Isekai series EVERYWHERE. Not only that, but “lit-rpgs” have become a popular thing. This genre is done to death at this point, but still some gems can be found. While I doubt this video game based Isekai series will be one such gem, I will give it a chance anyway. Unfortunately I fear it will be unbearable.
By the Grace of the Gods (low expectations) — This is the second new Isekai series of the season and focuses on a reincarnated individual. What caught my attention most about this series is that the “hero” doesn’t have a noble purpose. The gods simply felt bad for him. I expect a fun slice of life series and I admit, I’m really curious about the slime obsession.
Our Last Crusade or the Rise of a New World (very low expectations) — This is the last series which caught my eye this season (so far). The description immediately made me think of “Shironeko Project ZERO Chronicle” from earlier this year. Not only that, but the core visual is similar. I don’t expect much from it, though ultimately it depends on how they handle the Action and Romance aspects.
Those are my initial impressions on the Funimation Fall 2020 Anime season. What series are you most looking forward to? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
