A Look Back at Winter Anime 2019

Lately, I’ve taken to watching current run anime instead of just older stuff. Winter 2019 proved to be a bit of a slow season for me compared to previous seasons. But I found a few that caught my attention. I also watched a few that left me wondering why I spent the time. Others I just stopped watching.

Manaria Friends

Magic academies, high schools, and the like are tired. So when I saw Manaria Friends, I sighed and thought to give it a try. After all, the description on MyAnimeList mentioned battles between humans, demons, and gods.  Well, after two or three episodes, I dropped it. There were no battles. I only saw an awkward yuri romance blooming between flat characters. Anne comes off as stereotypical as possible. Grea, though a little more interesting, is part-human part-dragon. The episodes focus extensively on this and her self-conscious feelings toward it. That is fine, even interesting, but she lacks any sort of character beyond that. Most of the episodes I’ve seen involved the pair trying to spend time together. The scenarios are mundane compared to the serious backdrop of racial politics.

The Rising of the Shield Hero

I wrote about the controversy surrounding The Rising of the Shield Hero already. I found the show interesting enough to watch. Naofumi gets a little exhausting with how he goes out of his way to be difficult toward everyone. While he has reasons for it, how he blankets everyone he encounters with his ire threatens to make him a one-dimensional character. Luckily, his interactions with his companions save him from this. The series offers an interesting pseudo-harem story. Only this time, the girls Naofumi collects are more like daughters to him than lovers. Although Raphtalia has obvious romantic interest in him. This remains questionable, however, because her chronological age is 10 years old. But as a demi-human, her body ages to an adult’s as she gains levels. Yes, this is one of those worlds that uses experience points and leveling systems. Honestly, this would be useful if reality worked this way. I could gain librarian levels which would make my experience obvious to any library who would want to hire me. I could gain writing levels. Anyway, the story doesn’t dwell on the implications of Raphtalia’s aging. She mostly appears to think and behave with the same maturity as her body. At least, for the most part. But there is the implication that continually leveling could age her to become an old woman. I don’t believe the story will go that far, but it would prove an interesting dynamic.

Racial tensions between humans and demi-humans remain below the surface of the story. The malice Myne (the main antagonist)  feels toward the Shield Hero isn’t directly explained, but her desire for power and the racial dynamics of the kingdom motivate her. Although the RPG video game elements feel cheesy, The Rising of the Shield Hero has enough interesting elements to keep me watching.

Kaguya-sama: Love is War

Comedies don’t usually jive with me, but this one surprised me. Love is War actually had me laughing at each episode. The show knows it is ridiculous, but plays this off well. The deadpan nature-documentary narrator added some great humor to the teen melodrama segments. Of the anime this season, Kaguya-sama: Love is War offers the best, most complex characters. Whenever it seems the characters fall into a stereotype, it offers a small twist. Each character has his or her role to play in the jokes, and the mix of their different personalities helps jokes that should fall flat stand well. Look for my full review of this anime soon.

Domestic Girlfriend

Speaking of melodrama, oh boy, Domestic Girlfriend has it. I ended up watching the show to the end despite of how trashy it was. I spent most of the time mentally calling Natsuo, the main man, a–ahem–dumbass. I’m not one to curse as many of you know, even in my thoughts. But Natsuo set me off with his single-minded, burn-the-world-because-I’m-hormonally-in-love behavior. At the same time, it offered some refreshing changes to the usual shonen rom-com model. Namely, Natsuo has sex with the female characters. In the first episode, he and Rui lose their virginity to each other in a one-night stand. Not exactly the best way of doing it. But it serves as a hook. Yet Natsuo’s emotional intelligence wavers from being a blockhead to reading every signal except the writing on the wall. Especially with his teacher, step-sister, first love Hina. In his defense, he falls in love (or in lust?) with her before their parents marry. Of course, Rui happens to be her sister and they all move in together. Rui has feelings for Natsuo and attempts to get him to see that. Despite his feelings for Hina, he’s fine with basically using Rui as an outlet for his lust. While the characters aren’t particularly engaging (I felt bad for Rui), I couldn’t stop watching Domestic Girlfriend to see how far it could devolve. I also wondered if the characters would ever wise up to their situations.

You’d think I know the answer to that after watching and studying anime for 8 years eh?

My Roommate is a Cat

My Roommate is a Cat amused me, even if it didn’t make me laugh as Kaguya-sama did. Subaru’s mistakes as a first-time cat owner were great. Although his extreme introversion makes all introverts (and writers) appear neurotic. I’d like to see one anime that didn’t show introverts as headcases or as supporting characters. Anyway, I enjoyed how each episode divided between Subaru’s human perspective and Haru’s cat perspective. the story could have made Haru a snarky cat as most cats stories do. Instead, Haru worried about Subaru–especially if he was eating enough. The perspective shift made me wonder what my cats thought sometimes. Haru most often thought about food. I could see my cat Midna thinking that way, but Shikamaru most likely thinks more about playing. He will turn down food for playtime.

My Roommate is a Cat irritated me at times. Its attempts at comedy didn’t work anywhere near as well as Kaguya-sama, but I looked forward to its relaxed pacing.

I tried various other titles, but they didn’t hold my attention. My free time is scarce, so I’m picky about what anime to watch. Most of the time, I watch them for an hour or half hour before I sleep. TV allows me to unwind; although every once in awhile, an anime keeps me awake until I finish the episode backlog.

What anime did you enjoy from the Winter 2019 season?