Just like last year, there are a ton of things to be excited about in the coming year. In fact, there are so many things that are either already scheduled or might get added to the release slate (cough cooome on Yuri on Ice movie! cough), that it’s hard to keep track of them all. Between the many, many sequels and brand new adaptations that seek your attention, who knows where to even look anymore?
For this year’s list of reasons to be excited about the new year, I focused on things that we can depend on to deliver quality, which means there are a lot of sequels. However, I did choose some standouts that will make their anime debut in 2022, so don’t go away quite yet as one of your favorite series might get a special mention somewhere along the way.
With all that out of the way, here are my reasons you should be excited about anime in 2022!
Belle
In a December 2021 article, I stated that while I had little experience with Mamoru Hosoda movies, the dubbed trailer made me want to change that, starting with this movie. I’m including it in this list because, while it might have already had its Japanese theatrical run, it’s premiering widely overseas in January 2022. Will this movie change anyone’s perception of what a Hosoda movie should feel like? The man himself says that this movie is the ultimate culmination of his previous works and that this is the movie that his previous works led him to. That’s quite a powerful statement and one can only hope that fans turn out to support the latest effort from the acclaimed director.
Fruits Basket – Prelude –
For a large segment of the anime community around the world, the last three years have been absolutely blissful thanks to the presence of the rebooted Fruits Basket in our lives. Over the course of three seasons, Fruits Basket absolutely swept the world away with emotional highs and lows. For over 70 episodes, the series played with our hearts before finally delivering us to what we thought was the final destination. How foolish and naïve we were.
In February 2022, a special will be released which will not only tell the story of Tohru’s parents (which was left out of the television series) but will also give us all the closure we need by showing us a special epilogue starring Tohru and Kyo. This epilogue is set after the events of the television series. If you’re a fan of this series, this new piece of animation from TMS Entertainment will be a “can’t miss” release. It’s just a shame that no international release date has been revealed for this one at the time of this writing.
Attack on Titan Final Season Part 2
No matter how you feel about Attack on Titan personally, you have to salute the franchise’s fans. They have been some of the most patient in terms of waiting for new seasons to be released and more recently, all the Japan-only OADs to be streamed legally. Finally, though, we’re getting to the final part. The grand conclusion. The big finale. While I have admitted that I’m not a fan of this franchise, seeing it finally all come to a head is exciting for those who have been faithfully following this story for the last decade.
Kaguya-sama: Love Is War – Ultra Romantic –
I can admit it, I wasn’t a huge fan of this series when it was first released. Even after reading the first volume of the manga and watching the first episode of the anime, I was convinced that it was going to go absolutely nowhere and drive me insane so I opted to just pass on it until a friend of mine forced me to watch it… and that first season absolutely turned those preconceived notions right around!
What makes this series so amazingly fun to watch is that it is a true ensemble comedy. Absolutely nothing in this series would work if it weren’t for the perfectly balanced cast of supporting characters who revolve around the two main characters.
That said, I’m excited to see where the next season of this series goes. While I’ve already been spoiled on the last couple of volumes to be released in Japan (don’t worry, my lips are sealed), I don’t know what happens in the middle volumes so I’m excited to see where Kaguya-sama goes next in order to reach the grand conclusion.
Tiger & Bunny 2
We can argue until we’re blue in the face about if this upcoming sequel for the hit 2011 series Tiger & Bunny will tell a story worthy of its predecessor or if it’s just a nostalgia project which coincidentally was announced during the ten-year anniversary of the television series. That being said, I’m choosing to look at this as a chance to get reacquainted with the characters that I loved so much a decade ago.
Tiger & Bunny was quite the fun romp back in its day and while the shine might be a bit tarnished thanks to a couple of quite mediocre movies, this is a sequel that fans have been waiting to see.
The Devil is a Part-Timer!!
This second season is one of the primary reasons I’m writing this feature, to begin with. This is another sequel that, I’ve said before, many fans had long since given up on, myself included. Like a ray of light, however, the production committee took pity on us and granted us one of our greatest desires. I never really thought that this sequel would come our way, but I’m certainly not going to complain!
Chainsaw Man
Created by Tatsuki Fujimoto, Chainsaw Man has been absolutely tearing up the sales charts since its debut. Not only has it already topped the Kono Manga ga Sugoi! list as the best manga for male readers, but it also already has twelve million copies in circulation as of December 2021. Fans have been waiting not so patiently for this one to get green-lit for an anime adaptation and finally hearing that announcement accompanied by the news that studio MAPPA would produce it has lit a fire under this fanbase that cannot be extinguished.
Spy x Family
This is flat-out one of the best manga currently running. Fight me.
Between its thrilling action sequences and heartfelt family moments, Spy x Family has made me smile from ear to ear since the beginning. Now it’s finally getting an anime adaptation produced by two of the hottest studios in the business right now, WIT STUDIO and Cloverworks. I will stake what little reputation I have on this one; this will be an anime of the year candidate when we’re tallying up the votes in December 2022.
