Summer Anime 2023 Season Preview

❄︎ Last Updated: June 27 2023 ❄︎

Seasonal Updates

This season will be a lot quieter for a couple of reasons. As writers retire, that leaves us with a much smaller team now, so taking that into account, we won’t be covering as many shows as we used to. The other thing is that some of us find this season to be particularly lacking. So Quietcupcake will be covering Slam Dunk Season 1 and Shadow will be covering SSSS Gridman. Entries should begin coming out within the first two weeks of July. We first want to see what the schedule of the Summer Season shows look like first so we can work around to prevent overlap!

Additionally we are currently in process of what we call a “transition phase” where we’re trying to figure out how we want to go about going forward. Do we want to take a more laid-back approach, or do we want to commit to a fun way of diversifying our content by trying something new? To find out, we’ve been taking our time to brainstorm and think things through. So now we are currently taking advantage of the summer season to undergo a process of trials and errors behind the scenes to gauge whether it’s something whether we have the time, the commitment and energy to do. How we plan to proceed will be announced once we have done enough to get a feel of which direction we want to take the site.

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Disclaimer: Due to how short the Preview is this season, we’ve decided to leave out categorizing by interests and go back to the basics. Please also note this Preview Impression does not include the entire catalogue of titles for the Summer Season. So if you wish to see what the full list of titles, please check MAL, ANILIST, AniChart! Thanks for understanding!

My Happy Marriage
わたしの幸せな結婚 | Watashi no Shiawase na Kekkon

Source: Novel | English Publisher: YenOn (Novel) | SquareEnix (Manga)
Animation Company: Kinema Citrus 
Website: watakon-anime.com
Premiere: July 5, 2023
Genre: Drama, Romance, Supernatural
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2 | PV 3
Synopsis: Born to a noble family, Miyo is married off to Kiyoka, a soldier so heartless his prior fiancées fled. With nowhere to go, Miyo slowly starts to open her heart to her cold husband-to-be… Could this be love?

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Eva: I’m not crying, it’s just raining on my face— LET’S FREAKING GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO~!!!! I can’t tell you HOW EXCITED I am for this series to be adapted– I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS NOVEL TO BITS! You have any idea how hard it is not to reread it just before it airs? AHHHHHH! I’m obsessed, that I even have the manga adaption of it too and I can’t get enough of it. This is hands down my absolute favourite on-going series at the moment. The PV looks absolutely STUNNING and as a fan, it makes me so happy and excited! I LOVE MIYO AND KIYOKA SO MUCHHHHHHH!!!!! [Takes out megaphone] MY GIRL MIYO DESERVES ALL THE HAPPINESS!!!! /Gets dragged away

Berry: Look I’m all for more shoujo and romance stories, and this seems to look like a more calm and mature story that I can get into. I’m interested to see how the two characters will fall in love with each other considering their personalities and circumstances, so I’ll be giving this a watch.

Possible Bloggers: Eva

The Duke of Death and His Maid Season 2
Shinigami Bocchan to Kuro Maid | 死神坊ちゃんと黒メイド

Source: Manga | English Publisher: Seven Seas Entertainment
Animation Company: J.C.Staff
Website: TVアニメ『死神坊ちゃんと黒メイド』公式サイト (bocchan-anime.com)
Premiere: July, 2023
Genre: Comedy, Romance, Drama, Supernatural
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: Second season of Shinigami Bocchan to Kuro Maid.

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Eva: I plead guilty for procrastinating on watching this title. I’ve been meaning to watch it for a while. Backlogs amrite?
[Frantically pulls up the first episode to prevent further delay]

Berry: I’ve come back from my rocky hiatus for this show. I’ve been iffy on how I want to proceed with the blog and have taken a nice break but I am glad to be back to cover this show again. This ended up being such a sleeper hit and I’m so happy that this show actually got another season. I’m looking forward to uncovering more mysteries around the Duke’s curse, and just seeing his romance with Alice blossom even more. It’s a great cast of characters I’m happy to see again, and it looks like there’s going to be even more romance! Love it!

Possible Bloggers: Berry

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale Part 2
シュガーアップル・フェアリーテイル

Source: Novel | English Publisher: YenOn
Animation Company: J.C.Staff
Website: TVアニメ『シュガーアップル・フェアリーテイル』公式サイト (sugarapple-anime.com)
Premiere: July 7, 2023
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Romance
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: Part two of Sugar Apple Fairy Tale.

After winning Silver Sugar Master, Anne faces Challe’s sudden departure. Anne’s next journey begins as she is determined to have Challe back by her side.

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Eva: Although I chose to drop the coverage of the first cour, I still continued watching it. Truth to be told, I’m not sure how I feel about the adaption at the moment, which was a big part of the reason why I found it hard to write about on a weekly basis. I also found that I enjoyed reading the novel more, and perhaps it has to do with the the transition time of the crafting process and my slight pet-peeve about some details in the process of delivery. That said, as a fan of the series, I am still really glad it got a second cour and I’m really excited to see what’s in store for us after that nasty cliffhanger! Only up to Volume 3 as been translated so far, and the 4th Volume won’t be out till September, which means I can’t just dive into reading the book I binge read it in a night!

NOW GO AND GET YOUR MAN ANN!

Berry: This was a show I had been meaning to watch so eventually I’ll get to it!

SYNDUALITY Noir

Source: Mixed Media Project
Animation Company: 8bit
Website: TVアニメ「SYNDUALITY」公式サイト (synduality-noir.com)
Premiere: July 10, 2023
Genre: Sci-Fi
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis:

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Eva: Not gonna lie, I have an itch for sci-fic/mecha at the moment and I’m hoping this will be able to scratch that for me.

Possible Bloggers: Eva

Jujutsu Kaisen 2nd Season
呪術廻戦

Source: Manga | English Publisher: Viz Media
Animation Company: MAPPA
Website: TVアニメ「呪術廻戦」公式サイト (jujutsukaisen.jp)
Premiere: July 6, 2023
Genre: Action, Supernatural
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: Second season of Jujutsu Kaisen.

A boy fights… for “the right death.”

Hardship, regret, shame: the negative feelings that humans feel become Curses that lurk in our everyday lives. The Curses run rampant throughout the world, capable of leading people to terrible misfortune and even death. What’s more, the Curses can only be exorcised by another Curse.

Itadori Yuji is a boy with tremendous physical strength, though he lives a completely ordinary high school life. One day, to save a friend who has been attacked by Curses, he eats the finger of the Double-Faced Specter, taking the Curse into his own soul. From then on, he shares one body with the Double-Faced Specter. Guided by the most powerful of sorcerers, Gojou Satoru, Itadori is admitted to the Tokyo Metropolitan Technical High School of Sorcery, an organization that fights the Curses… and thus begins the heroic tale of a boy who became a Curse to exorcise a Curse, a life from which he could never turn back.

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Berry: So people that actually read my reviews knows I was sick of the show but I did watch until the very end. And…it was whatever. I have people around me hyped up for it and I’m probably just gonna pass on it. BUT…if the people I trust tell me it gets better, then I guess I’ll give it another shot. But I won’t make promises lol

Shadow: Unlike everyone and their grandmothers, I actually was never particularly taken by this series. It’s fun to watch, but I never felt incredibly invested in it and if I hadn’t watch it with friends, I probably would have never finished the first season. That said, A LOT of manga readers have sworn that this upcoming arc is going to change the series. To which, still doesn’t really hype me up for the season, but I am curious to see where it will go. And me being me, knows a little bit of what happens to specific characters because of my habit of reading TV tropes too much lol. But I don’t know what leads up to the moments or the specifics, so still don’t know exactly what is going to happen or how it happens. Unless you want a less enthused coverage of a popular series again, I probably won’t cover it but I’ll definitely be watching it with friends because I do feel like I enjoy this series more watching it with others rather than just myself.

Undead Girl Murder Farce
アンデッドガール・マーダーファルス

Source: Manga | English Publisher: Kodansha
Animation Company: Lapin Track
Website: TVアニメ『アンデッドガール・マーダーファルス』公式サイト (undeadgirl.jp)
Premiere: July 5, 2023
Genre: Mystery, Historical, Vampire
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: The 19th century — a world inhabited by vampires, golems, werewolves and other paranormal creatures. Immortal beauty and disembodied head Aya Rindo, along with half-human-half-demon “Demon Killer” Tsugaru Shunichi and her loyal maid Shizuku Hasei, travels through Europe as supernatural detective “The Cage User,” solving supernatural mysteries while she searches for her lost body.

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Eva: I want to watch this, but I’m also scared to ahahahahahahaha. I’m such a chicken. I’ll wait for the others and hear from them whether this will be too much for me or not.

Berry: I’ll wait to see people’s reactions to this one. I always love mysteries and detective stories but I’m not too sold yet.

Masamune-kun’s Revenge R
Masamune-kun no Revenge R | 政宗くんのリベンジR

Source: Manga | English Publisher: Seven Seas Entertainment
Animation Company: SILVER LINK
Website: TVアニメ『政宗くんのリベンジR』 (masamune-tv.com)
Premiere: July 3, 2023
Genre: Comedy, Romance, Harem
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: Second season of Masamune-kun no Revenge.

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Eva: Now that I think about it, I never watched the first season…. Why didn’t I?????? Eh I guess I better do that.

Shadow: …I don’t really have much of an excuse to having watched this and somewhat enjoyed it, except the ending to the first season. I did enjoy watching this series up until the ending, which they made some very questionable choices for the finale so thankfully it looks like they’ll actually continue the story despite that fumble. I don’t really remember the series all that well, but I do remember I really liked Adagaki and her development so I most likely will watch the series for that. It’s kind of a toss up to whether or not I’ll cover it, but I’ll see how the first episode goes.

Possible Bloggers: Shadow

Saint Cecilia and Pastor Lawrence
Shiro Seijo to Kuro Bokushi | 白聖女と黒牧師

Source: Manga | English Publisher: Kodansha
Animation Company: Doga Kobo
Website: TVアニメ「白聖女と黒牧師」公式サイト (shiroseijyo-anime.com)
Premiere: July 12, 2023
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Romance
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: Saint Cecilia is beloved by the townspeople—not only is she elegant and composed, she benevolently shares her wisdom with all who seek it. That is, until the last person has left—at which point she becomes totally hopeless! Only Pastor Lawrence is keeping the Saint put together enough to do her duties…and though she may test him, it’s all in a day’s work!

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Eva: I’ve seen the cover of this series here and there, but I’ve never actually read it. This strikes me as a very cute and chill-lax kind of romcom, so this is definitely on my watch list!

The Most Heretical Last Boss Queen: From Villainess to Savior
Higeki no Genkyou to Naru Saikyou Gendou Last Boss Joou wa Tami no Tame ni Tsukushimasu
悲劇の元凶となる最強外道ラスボス女王は民の為に尽くします

Source: Novel | English Publisher: Seven Seas Entertainment
Animation Company: OLM Team Yoshioka
Website: TVアニメ『悲劇の元凶となる最強外道ラスボス女王は民の為に尽くします。』 (lastame.com)
Premiere: July 6, 2023
Genre: Isekai, Fantasy, Romance
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: Pride Royal Ivy is only eight years old when she realizes that she’s been reincarnated, destined to become the future wicked queen and final boss of an otome game. She’s got it all in this new life: razor-sharp wit, boss-tier powers, and influence over the kingdom as crown princess. Determined to sow despair and destruction across the land, she… Wait, what kind of a rotten future is that?! Princess Pride decides to drop the maniacal villainess plan and protect the male love interests instead, cheating her way to saving everyone she can! Will this final boss end up earning the adoration of her kingdom?

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Eva: Okay, while I am already sick of isekai’d into an otome game series at this point, not gonna lie, I’ve always had a bit of curiosity about this title. I glanced briefly of the manga adaption, but I didn’t really get far into it, so I’ll give this a go and see if it’ll be decent watch.

Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout
Ryza no Atelier: Tokoyami no Joou to Himitsu no Kakurega | ライザのアトリエ ~常闇の女王と秘密の隠れ家~

Source: Video Game | English Publisher: Koei Tecmo Games
Animation Company: LIDENFILMS
Website: TVアニメ『ライザのアトリエ 〜常闇の女王と秘密の隠れ家〜』公式サイト (ar-anime.com)
Premiere: July 1, 2023
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: Ryza is an ordinary girl. Tired of boring village life, she escapes the village to gather with her good friends in a secret location to talk of their dreams and plan thrilling adventures. One day, the determined Ryza and company decide to head for the forbidden ‘island across the shore’ as their first exploration trip.

Together with the alchemist and other friends they meet there, they have a ‘summer adventure’ that they will never forget.

Note: 1 Hour Premiere feature Ep 1 & 2

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Eva: I don’t have the game, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve THOUGHT about buying it hahaha! I’m actually surprised it’s getting an hour premiere, now I’m even more curious to see what they have in store for us! But alas, as for most game adaptions, the rule of the thumb is don’t hold your breath and keep your expectations in check!

Possible Bloggers: Eva

The Dreaming Boy is a Realist
夢見る男子は現実主義者 | Yumemiru Danshi wa Genjitsushugisha

Source: Novel
Animation Company: Studio Gokumi | AXsiZ
Website: yumemirudanshi.com
Premiere: July 4, 2023
Genre: Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2 | PV 3
Synopsis:

Sajou Wataru, who is deeply in love with his beautiful classmate Natsukawa Aika, is continuing to approach her without getting discouraged while having dreams about their mutual love. However one day he woke up thinking “I am not really fit to be together with someone as good as her, huh…” Upon realizing this, Wataru started keeping an appropriate distance towards her, much to Aika’s surprise. “Could it be that he hates me now…?” Did his intentions slip by her because she was getting impatient after arriving at the wrong conclusion!? This is the start of a romcom revolving around two people who just cant get their feelings across and both think their love is unrequited!

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Eva: Okay you know I love my romcoms, so it was inevitable that I’d check this one out. But we’ll see how it goes because this sort of game of unable to communication properly can be a hit and miss for me. It really all comes down to the execution!

Possible Bloggers: Eva

Reign of the Seven Spellblades
七つの魔剣が支配する | Nanatsu no Maken ga Shihai Suru

Source: Novel | English Publisher: Yenpress (Novel & Manga adaption)
Animation Company: J.C. Staff
Website: nanatsuma-pr.com
Premiere: July 8, 2023
Genre: Action, Fantasy
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: It’s springtime at Kimberly Magic Academy, and new students are beginning their first year. Among them are a skilled and studious boy, Oliver, and a headstrong samurai girl, Nanao. They soon form a unique bond in the halls of Kimberly, but this picturesque school isn’t what it seems. Dark secrets and endless danger lurk behind every corner. Can these wizards make it to graduation alive?!

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Eva: Okay so, I legit almost glossed over this one but color me intrigued. I do hear it will get darker over time (which I expected) but as long as it doesn’t freak me out too much I should be fine. Probably. I hope. I really do love these types of stories so I want to give this one a chance.

Possible Bloggers: Eva

The Masterful Cat is Depressed Again Today
デキる猫は今日も憂鬱 | Dekiru Neko wa Kyou mo Yuuutsu

Source: Manga
Animation Company: GoHands
Website: dekineko-anime.com
Premiere: July 8, 2023
Genre: Comedy, Supernatural, Slice of Life
Trailer: PV 1 | PV 2
Synopsis: When Saku took in a stray black cat, she never expected that he would become the equivalent of a housekeeping life partner. But Yukichi, a giant cat who towers over Saku, is not your ordinary feline. He takes great pride in his culinary skills, and a good sale at the supermarket always gets his whiskers twitching. Saku may not have her act together yet, but at least she has Yukichi!

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Eva: I was pretty interested in this one up until I watched the trailer and then I became worried. GoHands has it’s days when I enjoyed some of their shows, but it’s the motion of the “camera work” doesn’t mesh well with me who gets motion sick very easily. Still, I’m going to give this a try because I’m really interested in the story, but if it doesn’t pan out, I’ll just go and find the manga to read instead.

Shadow: At first I was going to consider watching this series just from how dumb the premise sounds and because of cat. HOWEVER, after watching the trailer I was like: …The camera shots, movement and character designs feels like GoHands animated this series. AND I WAS FREAKING RIGHT. After finding out just who is animating this series just about killed my curiosity for this series. Unless the popular consensus says otherwise, I probably will be skipping this series as to not get motion sick from their notorious camera movements. I remember when I tried watching W’z, the camera movements made me feel super dizzy after a while…

Overall Thoughts

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Eva: Although this is a very dry season this year (both literally and figuratively), I am happy to see a nice handfuls of romcoms I know I’m bound to enjoy. You don’t need a dozen titles to enjoy a season, sometimes just one or two are enough. That said, I can’t sugar coat the fact that this season isn’t exactly favourable in terms of the number of shows I’m interested in picking up to write about. I fear I might only end up covering one: My Happy Marriage (which is a guarantee. I won’t be dropping this in the middle like Sugar Apple Fairy– it’s my all-time favourite on-going series at the moment!). I find that a lot of the titles that do catch my eye are more of the types I’d rather binge-watch than write about, and sometimes that’s just how it is. Bearing that in mind, I must say I am a bit surprised this kind of situation hadn’t happened sooner considering how long I’ve been doing this hahaha, and lo and behold here we are, but I digress. Anyways, among my list of potential wild card pick-ups are SYNDUALITY Noir, Atelier Ryza, (I heard it’s supposed to have a really good story, so hopefully they’ll make the most of it!) Reign of the Seven Spellblades, and The Dreaming Boy is a Realist. We’ll have to see whether any of them reels me in within the first episode. As for Sugar Apple Fairy, I must confess, I have tickled with the idea of trying to pick it up again… but I won’t if I’m unable to finish the coverage of the first cour before the second one airs. So take that with a grain of salt. Otherwise apart from that, I’ll look to work on the things like finishing up YGO 5D’s, among other things I am working on behind the scenes.

Berry: This has to be one of the weakest seasons in a long time. There’s usually a few shows from each season that catch my attention whether I watch it that season or later. But there is VERY little from this season I care about, and because of that I’m back to give everyone a hand. And honestly The Duke of Death and His Maid is SUCH a great series that needs to be talked about more. So that’s all I’m going to be covering, and maybe watching a couple things though My Happy Marriage is really the only other show I’d want to watch weekly. Jujutsu Kaisen…ugh.

Shadow: In general, this feels like a very lack luster season and I’m sure the only one people will mostly be talking about it Jujutsu Kaisen because of how big of a shounen behemoth that series is. To which I still don’t quite understand why it’s so popular but to each their own I suppose. I’m not really excited for much this season and only feeling curious as to how Masamune-kun no Revenge R and Jujutsu Kaisen will go. I might end up watching more anime if there is a popular consensus about a series being really good. But as of right now, I don’t think anything really catches my eye. And if that is the case, I might cover a series that has already ended again.