The year is winding down, and soon we’ll all be saying goodbye to 2021, and looking hopefully to the new year. We all watched a lot of anime all year, and laughed and cried together. Now it’s time to look forward to the Winter 2022 anime season and see what new anime shows we want to focus on!
The J-List Winter 2022 Anime Guide
I closely watch the number of new series that are made each anime season as a bellwether for the industry, to see whether the number is rising or falling. Some anime seasons are absolutely insane, with so many top-quality shows fans can’t possibly watch them all. while others can be tamer. While we can never know ahead of time which shows will distinguish themselves with fans — who could have guessed that Ranking of Kings would become one of the most celebrated series of this current season? — it’s good to approach a new anime season with a flexible, unbiased and open mind.
Shingeki no Kyojin: The Final Season Part 2
I was floored at the quality of the first half of the final season of Attack on Titan, and am looking forward to the completion of the series probably more than any other anime this season. As an anime retailer, I respect their decision to put space between the two halves, too, which gives the studios time to sell more anime figures, which is important for the health of the industry.
Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san Season 3
We’re getting more teasing by Takagi-san! That makes me happy. I wonder if we’ll ever get an anime based on “the former Takagi-san” in her MILF days?
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Yuukaku-hen
The anime that became a cultural phenomenon continues, because Sony is unable to ever stop a thing once it makes money for them once. The show is undeniably quality, and I’ll definitely be watching, but is it always a good thing for anime to live on forever, like Sword Art Online? You tell me!
Akebi-chan no Sailor-fuku
A charming coming-of-age story about a girl’s fascination with the sailor uniform of a famous private junior high school for girls, and her drive to pass the entrance exam for that school…only to find that the school has changed from sailor suit uniforms to “blazer” uniforms instead. Maybe we’ll get some yuri shipping going with this?
Arifureta Shokugyou de Sekai Saikyou 2nd Season
In my post about the “worst” isekai anime based on My Anime List rankings, Arifureta: From Commonplace to the World’s Strongest makes a poor showing, which always brought pushback from fans who insisted that the show was outstanding, only that it made too many cuts to the original source material than it should have. Now it’s time for Arifureta’s “Revenge” — in Japanese, the English word is used to mean something like “a second chance at something after being denied the first time around” — as the show gets another chance to prove itself to fans.
Girls’ Frontline
The Girls’ Frontline series (called Dolls’ Frontline inside Japan due to another company holding that trademark) is a popular mobile game for iOS and Android which has outstanding waifus, and I’m happy to say, lots of gorgeous figures based on these characters. As often happens when a game is a hit, the creators use their profits to make an anime, reducing their taxes and potentially bringing a new generation of fans in. While sometimes this goes extremely well (Amagami SS, Fate/Grand Order, Idolmaster), other times it results in shows that are hard for non-players to appreciate, which get forgotten quickly (Touken Ranbu, Shin Sakura Taisen).
Time will tell how Girls’ Frontline’s anime plays out!
Fantasy Bishoujo Juniku Ojisan to
A middle-aged man gets summoned to another world where his body takes the form of a super-cute girl. Like most things, the execution will tell whether this show wins with fans or not. It’s funded by Cygames, a company I like to support due to their reputation for paying their staff well.
Slow Loop
A “cute-girls-getting-a-new-hobby” anime, Slow Loop is about three girls who discover the joy of fishing, the same way Asteroid in Love made us all want to buy telescopes and rock hammers, and Yuru Camp made us want to try camping in the winter!
Requiem of the Rose King
I love the way anime and manga can tell any kind of story, including portraying actual historical events. Requiem of the Rose King is a popular manga based on the War of the Roses era of English history, but with several twists. Looks like it has great potential!
CUE!
Another anime based on a mobile game, CUE! is a seiyu-raising game in which you train up-and-coming voice actresses and manage their careers. Normally I wouldn’t be interested in an anime based on a game I don’t know, but I’m fascinated by anime that show us the inner workings of the anime and voice actor industries, so I’ll give this a go.
I recently went drinking with an actual anime producer and got to hear a lot of dark secrets about the industry. Read the post here!
How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom 2nd Season
The previous season was enjoyable, as we got to watch how a man from our world used no-nonsense civic planning techniques to help a fantasy kingdom reach its potential, so I’ll tune in to the new season!
Vanitas no Karte 2nd Season
How can I say no to more Vanitas no Karte? I’ll totally be watching.
Princess Connect! Re:Dive Season 2
Finally, the second season to one of the most enjoyable based-on-a-mobile-game anime to come along in a while, Princess Connect. Of course, the real reason I might have been drawn to these characters is the tradition of making, ah, “Rule 34” type art by fandom.
Yabai desu ne! How crazy is that?
What New Anime Will You Be Watching in the Winter 2022 Season?
Thanks for reading this post exploring the new anime shows we’ll be watching starting with the new season. Did we miss any important shows? Post them below, or reply to us on Twitter!
J-List’s sister company J18 Publishing has had a great year, bringing out dozens and dozens of 100% uncensored English-translated doujinshi and full tankoubon format manga, thanks to the warm support of all of you. See the newest fun upcoming release by J18 here!
