One thing I’m constantly impressed at is how open and dynamic the anime world can be, with many smaller anime genres helping to create a large and healthy overall “fan ecosystem.” This means that fans can always try new genres without leaving the overall umbrella of anime.
I’m a huge fan of science fiction, and love that it contains so many smaller sub-genres for me to explore. Want to read a saga about mankind’s future in space, told in the literary structure of the Canterbury Tales? Both Yuki Nagato and I recommend the Hyperion books. How about some military SF? My pick would be The Forever War, which is also the best story about time dilation. Social SF? The Beggars in Spain series explores what society would be like if we could engineer some members to not need sleep. How about Cyberpunk? Steampunk? Terraforming? Uplift? You’ve got hundreds of options in each category to choose from.
It’s the same with Japanese animation, which is not a single monolithic “fandom” but many smaller anime genres, a big tent with many smaller ones inside. Want to explore idol anime for a while, then switch to dramatic sports shows? Check out some isekai with a dollop of imouto for your guilty pleasure? Or jump into the magical girl genre and enjoy all those lovely transformation scenes? You’ll never run out of different genres to explore.
Browsing through the Fall 2018 Anime Guide we posted, I see there are many varied and interesting genres coming up in the new anime season. For example…
- Do you like isekai or fantasy genres? You might want to watch Goblin Slayer or That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, or the year-long Sword Art Online: Alicization.
- Like the romantic comedy genre? Go with Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai.
- For sports-related shows, we’ve got Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru for marathon fans, Tsurune for those curious about traditional Japanese archery, and Anima Yell!, a show about cute cheerleaders.
- Into dark horror/supernatural stuff? Zombieland Saga might be worth your time, or the upcoming season of Tokyo Ghoul:re.
- How about the “time-leap” suspense genre? I’ve got my eye on RErideD: Tokigoe no Derrida. If you guessed by the weird capitalization that Experiments Lain creator ABe Yoshitoshi is involved, you’re right!
- Do you like stories about imouto characters? You might want to give Ore ga Suki nano wa Imouto dakedo Imouto ja Nai a try.
- Want to take risk on something new? Try the new show about Romeo and Juliet told in a Japanese boarding school.
- I’m a huge yuri fanboy, so naturally I’ll be checking out the new girl’s love anime Bloom Into You.
What anime genres will you be checking out this season? Tell us on Facebook or Twitter!
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