2020 is finally winding down, and most of us will say good riddance to what has been one of the saddest and most stressful years we can remember. One of the few brights spots was being told that the best way to keep society safe was to stay in our rooms and watch anime for weeks on end, a task many of us were born for. Despite all the challenges to the industry, anime studios brought us many fantastic shows, like Interspecies Reviewers, Keep Your Hands of Eizouken!, Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out!, and the glorious resolution to Oregairu. The upcoming Winter 2021 anime season is a real monster, with more must-watch series arriving than I’ve ever seen in a single season. Let’s take a look at what series from the upcoming monster anime season J-List will be watching next season!
Did COVID-19 Cause a Golden Age of Anime?
Just as the crisis turned into a huge opportunity for certain companies such as Netflix and Disney+ to add millions of subscribers who suddenly found themselves trapped at home, I wonder if the challenges posed by the virus have in any way been beneficial to the anime industry. In a world where production crews can’t film live-action, suddenly a medium where stories can be told by animators, writers, and voice actors who don’t necessarily have to be close to each other might just be a good thing. An influx of new streaming customers will hopefully mean bigger budgets for the studios.
We sure have it great as anime fans. In addition to the *50* new anime series airing as part of the Winter 2021 anime season, there are 12 major film releases (including the fourth Evangelion movie and the Space Battleship 2205 film. As terrible as 2020 has been for most of us, at least a lot of amazing anime series are getting produced for us to watch and stay occupied.
The Top Shows to Watch in the Upcoming Anime Season!
Attack on Titan Final Season
First, we have the final season of Attack on Titan, which has already started airing. Although this show has had its ups and downs, it’s proven itself to be a thoughtful and well-written series, setting up huge questions about how people came to live in such a bizarre land, surrounded by terrorizing giant monsters, then satisfyingly answering the questions we have all been asking.
We’ve got less than 4 copies of the 2021 Attack on Titan calendar in stock, grab yours here.
Quintessential Quintuplets Season 2
One of the most popular harem series in recent years is Quintessential Quintuplets, it’s the story of five quintuplets that are so smart that they can score a perfect 100 points on a test… if you add all their scores together. Each girl is in love with the main character Fuutarou… which one will he pick? Let’s hope they don’t blow their entire budget on seiyu to the point that the animation suffers, as it did in parts of season 1.
See Quintessential Quintuplets figures, doujinshi, and the 2021 calendar here.
Part 2 of Re:Zero – Starting Life in Another World Season 2
I was surprised how much I loved the new season of the returned Re:Zero. It was extremely dark, had great new characters and plot twists, and fans had tons of fun watching it together online. The continuation of the second season part 2 starts in January 2021!
We’ve got tons of official and doujin Re:Zero products, including “special toys” based on Emilia and Rem in stock here!
Yakusoku Neverland Season 2
Something I write a lot about is that anime is wonderful, yet is often surprisingly bad at telling well-structured stories that build tension that ends in a crescendo at its resolution, like the three-act story structure employed by most Hollywood films. One exception to this observation was The Promised Neverland, which told a horrific story about orphans who discover they’re being raised so they can be sold and eaten by monsters. I’m looking forward to the continuation of this bone-chilling story.
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Season 2
One of my favorite isekai stories about an average Japanese salaryman who gets killed by a random passer-by with a knife and ends up reincarnated as a slime in a fantasy world. But not just any slime…he’s basically in God Mode the whole show, allowing him to do anything he pleases, so he creates the happiest society in which all the magical beings of the land can live side-by-side. It’s an incredibly relaxing and stress-free show to watch, and I can’t wait for season 2 that will start to air during January 2021!
BEASTARS Season 2
A show I evangelized pretty heavily is BEASTARS, which told of a society in which herbivores and carnivores have come together to create a happy society together, kind of like Zootopia without the “Utopia” part. Ostensibly a show about a school drama club, it’s a deep exploration of what kind of society different kinds of animals would create together and is fantastically written. It features innovative computer animation by Orange, the top studio in Japan, and has fascinating characters and a story that doesn’t shy away from including sex.
Read my original post on five reasons you should watch BEASTARS here.
Cells at Work! 2nd Season
The anime that made us think differently about the cells in our bodies, even winning praise from medical professionals for its accuracy, is coming back! There’s also a side-series called Cells at Work Black, which shows what happens in bodies that live unhealthy lives, abusing alcohol, drugs, and tobacco. I’m not sure I’m ready for that kind of judgment in my anime.
Yuru Camp 2nd Season
The anime that got otakus yearning to leave their rooms and experience solo camping at the base of Mt. Fuji is coming back, and I’m looking forward to more laid-back camping adventures with Rin, Nadeshiko, Inuko, Ena, and Chiaki. Maybe we can make more yuri memes about the girls that will be fucking in tents intense!
We’ve got adorable Yuru Camp figures and a 2021 calendar on the site here.
Non Non Biyori 3rd Season
If there’s a single better slice-of-life anime, I can’t think what it is. The story of a Tokyo girl who moves out to the rural inaka to experience the slower side of life, it’s simply adorable, and a show everyone should watch.
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation
The first completely new series to make our list! When a 34-year-old NEET with no motivation is hit by a car while saving a trainer, he gets reincarnated in a magical land, where he decides to start applying himself seriously and avoid his past mistakes…while using his new knowledge of magic to do ecchi things with cute girls.
Sounds like my kind of anime.
The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter
We can never tell ahead of time which anime series are going to become forgotten in the trashbin of history, and which will surprise us with delightful characters and good execution. Ore dake Haireru Kakushi Dungeon is an anime about a boy named Noir who can access a secret dungeon filled with rare and magical items…which includes a harem of busty girls. This looks to be the top fanservice-heavy show of the upcoming anime season, so I’ll naturally be tuning in.
World Witches Take Off!
When the third season of the classic Strike Witches was announced, I worried whether the magic of the original could truly be recaptured, especially after the so-so reception by fans for the Brave Witches spin-off. Happily, the new series has been perfect, with all the fanservice and excellent storytelling fans expect. I especially love the new story elements, such as the anxiety of Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke and Gertrud Barkhorn over their impending loss of magic as they approach the age of 20, and whether the war can be ended before that happens. I hope this new slice-of-life series finds popularity with fans.
Read my review of Strike Witches: The Road to Berlin here, and see a review of Fumikane Shimada’s newest artbooks here.
IDOLY PRIDE
I have no idea whether this anime will be popular, or whether any of the five other idol series that will air next anime season — Idolls!, Gekidol, I★Chu: Halfway Through the Idol, Show by Rock!! Stars!! and WIXOSS Diva(A)Live — will. I’m putting this here as a place-holder until we know which idol series, if any, will win popularity with fans. Based on Peter’s Pixiv Ecchi-o-Meter, which tries to predict the popularity of future shows based on what “rule 34” fanart is being shared on Pixiv, the prospects for IDOLY PRIDE seem quite low.
Redo of Healer: Kaifuku Jutsushi no Yarinaoshi
Redo of Healer started as a doujin web novel on the website Shosetsuka ni Narou (Let’s Become a Novelist), but because of the intense violence and sex in the story, the account was deleted by the site…which naturally brought lots of attention to the work and caused it to re-emerge as a hugely popular book series published by Kadokawa.
Keyaru is a healing hero who escapes years of torture, traveling back in time to get revenge on those responsible for his betrayal and imprisonment. It seems like it’ll be a cross between Re:Zero and Goblin Slayer…a great anime for the whole family, in other words!
Jimihen!!: Pure Heterosexual Exchange That Changes a Reserved Girl
Rena Yukuhasahi is a reserved office lady who is considered jimi (plain and average-looking) by the men in her company, but in reality she loves to dress up and become the most beautiful woman in the office. This is likely going to be one of those semi-hentai works that feature a censored version for broadcast and an uncensored version with the sexy parts left in.
Naturally, I’m going to watch this.
The upcoming anime season is going to be a monster one, and all of us at J-List will be on our toes, working hard to bring you the freshest and most awesome anime products. Did I miss any important shows from the upcoming season? Post them below, or tell us on Twitter!
2020 has been a stressful year for all of us, but happily there are some effective methods of managing that stress. Browse the huge number of official hentai ero toys and other fun products for guys we’ve got on the site now!
