Spring 2021 Anime Season First Episode Blitz (Part Three – Funimation and Extra Crunchyroll)
We're in the home stretch of first episodes!
Hello there, fellow anime enthusiasts, and happy “it’s Wednesday, and yes, there’s still anime to watch” to you all. Last week, I started up my series of first-episode write-ups for some new springtime anime, foolishly thinking I could talk about everything in one shot. LOL, oh Bri, you sweet summer otaku.
This will be the final run, after this, I’ll be back to doing my regular weekday/weekend round-up, complete with whatever series from these write-ups I decided to continue to watch! I’ll give a quick synopsis of each series, tell you my thoughts, and let you know if I personally think the series is worth watching.
I should note that this isn’t every new anime that’s come out, just the series I was personally interested in. Today is primarily about some series over at Funimation since I already covered Crunchyroll and Netflix.
You can check out part one here!
Then you can read part two here!
Funimation Series
- Super Cub
Synopsis: There’s freedom in loneliness, and Koguma finds hers on a motorcycle. A Honda Super Cub motorcycle, to be exact. With no parents, friends, or plans for the future, Koguma’s daily detours on her way to school become her sole source of excitement. Until one day, she learns a classmate, Reiko, shares her passion. Together, they’ll discover friendship, fun, and the adventure of the open road.
Worth checking out episode 2? Yes! Gas up your motorcycle and hit the road!
Have you ever watched an anime that perfectly illustrated what it felt like to be alone? It’s not that Koguma’s loneliness is pointed out by other people, it’s seen through every scene she’s in. The muted colors when she’s getting ready in the morning, how she eats lunch alone at school, how her classmates pass her by as she bikes to and from school (not maliciously, everyone just has their own things going on), it all really hit me in a way I didn’t expect.
When she gets her motorcycle (the Super Cub) it feels like she’s finally getting a chance to enjoy something and fully embrace the world around her, after all, she’s been taking care of herself for, well, who knows how long, so seeing her smile about something is euphoric.
Without realizing it, I also felt like I was taking a much-needed breath of air. I got very attached to Koguma and her motorcycle, stressing out alongside her when she couldn’t figure out certain issues that came up with her Super Cub.
I just want her to be happy.
I feel like this is gonna be a series where our main character faces ordinary problems, but since I’m so invested in her story, those issues are gonna overwhelm me. I’m not ready for my heart to hurt, but at the same time, I’m so fond of Koguma already that I gotta watch the next episode.
- The World Ends with You The Animation
Synopsis: Based on the hit game from Square Enix, Neku has died but doesn’t remember what happened. He joins the Reaper’s Game in The Underground, a contest for the dead where he fights to be brought back to life because…losers are erased from existence. No matter how stacked the odds may be in each round, he must overcome every obstacle in order to survive.
Worth checking out episode 2? If you have seven days to spare…
Square Enix and I have this odd back and forth relationship where I love them (Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts) and hate them (Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts). That being said, The World Ends with You was released during my “love” phase, but also during my “I don’t have time for an RPG” phase.
Basically, I played it for a little bit, dug the art style and the music, but didn’t really get to fall head over heels in love with Neku.
But now we have an anime! And it… makes me wanna play the game. That’s not to say the anime is bad. The recreation of the game’s art, the character designs, and the inherent “WTF IS HAPPENING” vibe is great. Neku waking up after each mission, in the middle of the street, looking like, well, the main character in a Square Enix game, is interesting. There’s just something about it that makes me feel like I’d get more content with the game. Also, we get through a couple of days pretty quickly when there are only seven of them.
It’s the same way I felt with the Persona 4 anime, where I knew I was missing content because I’d played 100+ hours of it before the anime released. That’s not really the anime’s fault, though. It’s not easy to take hours and hours of unique gameplay and turn it into a single season of anime.
Basically, I figure we’re a more condensed version of the game that includes major plot points and character interactions, but if we want the finer details, we gotta play the game. Honestly, it’s a pretty fun way to get me to go back to the game, or rebuy it on the Switch so I can play on my TV.
- Blue Reflection Ray
Synopsis: Optimistic Hiori can’t turn away anyone in need. Awkward Ruka can’t seem to make friends, even when she tries. But these two do have one thing in common: they’re both magical girls called Reflectors! Together, this unlikely pair will use their powers to help resolve emotional struggles and protect the Fragments of people’s hearts.
Worth checking out episode 2? My emotions are uncertain, unable to reflect the truth.
I can’t decide if I like this series or not.
I think it’s a case where I really WANT to like the series, intrigued by the concept and the fact that I’m a sucker for magical girls, but the first episode didn’t seal the deal for me. I do like how the episode starts (giant evil that appears to destroy the team and the city), but after that, I’m kinda lost on what’s happening. Is it a flashback leading up to that battle? Is it a time loop like Madoka Magica where someone is trying to prevent the devastating battle? We get glimpses of our main girls sensing something between them, but no real rules on how this magical world works, what these Fragments are, and it left me feeling more confused than intrigued.
It’s a shame because I like the world itself, the extremely artistic landscape where everyone freezes except our magical girls when trouble’s afoot, and the costume designs are cute, but that’s all that really did it for me. I dunno if it’s enough to get me to watch more.
I can’t stop comparing it to Madoka, either. There are a lot of similarities throughout (the devastating opening battle, the world becoming a vividly colored mess for battles, etc.) That’s not necessarily a bad thing, after all, Madoka isn’t the only “dark” magical girl series (honestly most of them are dark in their own way), but as it stands there’s not much that’s getting me to add it to my queue.
- Battle Athletes Victory ReSTART
Synopsis: Aspiring athletes from around the galaxy gather to compete in a tournament where the winner will be crowned the Cosmic Beauty. What begins as rivalry grows into friendship among the athletes, including a lunar refugee and her kangaroo companion, the daughter of an arms-dealing CEO, a mysterious loner, and Earth’s representative…a humble potato farmer named Kanata Akehoshi.
Worth checking out episode 2? No, the series needs more training.
I don’t have a personal investment in the old series, but I do remember seeing it back in the day and this revamp screams 90s nostalgia with a wacky plot and endearing characters. As it stands, everything happens too fast for my liking, with odd narrative choices that tell the story out-of-order. It’s not that you can’t have flashbacks/flashforwards in your story, but the anime doesn’t do anything that indicates that what you’re seeing is something that happened before Kanata got to the school. I didn’t even know she won the spot to represent Earth because the anime doesn’t show her winning the match, but hey, she’s packing up to head to space so… congratulations?
There’s also not much in the way of worldbuilding, we’re just left to accept that there’s this competition for a Cosmic Beauty, different girls from different planets competing for whatever reason, and, um, a shady group watching the whole thing because of course there is. I get how anime loves having an optimistic lead that doesn’t question much, but I dunno, maybe question the crashed ship, the girl telling you to compete for her, and – oh, guess we’re just gonna fast-forward to qualifiers, not really show much of them, then zip off to school.
Also, the characters don’t leave much of an impression. Kanata’s roommate, Shelly, thinks that everyone is pitying her because of her prosthetic arm (which we don’t learn until near the end of the episode). I can understand not wanting people to underestimate you, but Shelly goes from zero to one hundred in seconds, snapping at Kanata when they first meet, then being nice to her when they meet again as if she hadn’t yelled at her earlier. Kanata doesn’t even question why Shelly went off on her during their first meeting, and since we don’t know it’s because of her arm, she comes off as being unreasonable until the last couple of minutes.
I dunno, I just wasn’t into it. I do like her getting so strong because she’s a farmer, though, that’s a cute detail.
- SHADOWS HOUSE
Synopsis: High atop a cliff sits the mansion known as Shadows House, home to a faceless clan that pretends to live like nobles. They express their emotions through living dolls that also endlessly clean the home of soot. One such servant, Emilico, aids her master Kate as they learn more about themselves and the mysteries of the house.
Worth checking out episode 2? The soot in the air spells yes.
This is such a curious series.
The shadow family acts exactly like a human family. Sometimes. They get dressed every morning and take baths, for example, but they don’t eat. It’s also interesting that they’re called shadows when they leave soot behind like ash that’s been clumped together to make human-like figures.
They also emit soot from the top of their heads when they’re upset?
Oh, and there’s soot… bugs that scurry about?
Then there’s the dolls.
The dolls act as the shadows’ faces. They’re how you can see their expressions, furthermore, they’re how the shadows can see themselves. At one point Emilico (the servant for Kate) is told to eat so Kate can see how she’d look if she ate. And yeah, the dolls eat, even if they’re, well, dolls. They have to learn all the basic human functions, which you’d think they wouldn’t have to do because they’re dolls, but they are basically human themselves.
Not much happens in the episode besides us getting to know Kate and Emilico, and the two of them getting to know each other, but the premise is so interesting that mundane moments such as “Emilico likes bread” make for engaging content. I want to see who else is in the house and have a feeling that there’s a lot more going on than what we’ve seen so far.
- Pretty Boy Detective Club
Synopsis: Mayumi Dojima is a young girl who has been searching for a star that she saw only once ten years ago. She visits the headquarters of the Pretty Boy Detective Club where she meets five boys who are each unique in their own way. Her encounter marks the beginning of an extraordinary search for a lost star. A beautiful and dazzling mystery-adventure story starts now!
Worth checking out episode 2? Yes, beauty is in the eye of the series!
Well, the title didn’t lie.
These boys know that they’re pretty and are proud of it, each with his own unique form of beauty and personality that, well, you probably recognize if you watch anime. The energetic one. The aggressive one. The oh so beautiful long-haired one. You get the picture, but the boys very much believe that inner beauty is what matters – even if they themselves are hot as hell.
What makes this series work for me (besides the gorgeous art style) is that it feels like there’s gonna be more to these characters than the archetypes they come equipped with. There’s something mysterious about the club and the fact that they take on a seemingly impossible case. Mayumi asks them to find a star, and I kinda hope the cases they get have them looking for things like that. I feel like it’s leading to the club helping their clients rediscover the feelings they felt during specific events, like how Mayumi felt inspired by the star she found in the sky. It’s also sweet how the boys go about completing the task (they recreate the moment for Mayumi), and while she initially thinks they’re making fun of her request, she (and we) learn that these boys take this seriously.
I kinda get the Toilet-bound Hanako-kun vibe where the art and the characters are so cute, but something darker is waiting right around the corner. That could just be my fangirl paranoia, but just in case, I’m watching this series with caution.
Crunchyroll Bonus
- To Your Eternity
Synopsis: An epic fantasy saga of an immortal hero’s quest to understand what it is to live…
In the beginning, an “orb” is cast unto Earth.
“It” can do two things: change into the form of the thing that stimulates “it”; and come back to life after death. “It” morphs from orb to rock, then to wolf, and finally to boy, but roams about like a newborn who knows nothing.
As a boy, “it” becomes Fushi.
Through encounters with human kindness, Fushi not only gains survival skills but grows as a “person.” But his journey is darkened by the inexplicable and destructive enemy Nokker, as well as cruel partings with the people he loves. Fushi continues his eternal quest, bearing the pain of living with the fortitude of someone who chooses his own path.
Worth checking out episode 2? Yes, let’s continue to travel through life.
Listen. I know I should’ve known this would be maximum sad girl hours from the trailer and the creator behind it (Yoshitoki Ōima – A Silent Voice), but did this first episode have to hurt so much?
The concept is intriguing. An orb gets tossed into the world and develops as it encounters more elements from the world it inhabits. Unfortunately, the way the orb evolves is through death, so get ready to get immensely attached to a dog or a boy and watch them die and trigger the orb’s growth.
And like. When I say this episode hurts, I mean it, because you get to see the almost desperate bond between the boy and his dog. See, the boy has been left alone but holds onto a sliver of hope that his family will return from the mountains. This leads to him having lots of conversations with his dog, which you can tell is him trying to psyche himself out about how grim things are. It’s heart-wrenching to watch because you know in your gut that his family isn’t coming back.
I get the sense that all the episodes will center around human emotions since it centers on an orb discovering the value of life. I’m ready (not really) to feel emotionally compromised on a weekly basis.
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And that’s it! In total, we’ve talked about 22 new anime series in the span of a couple of days! Are any of these series being added to your watch list? And I suppose I should ask, with hesitation, since my queue is so full… what series am I missing out on?
(Image: Funimation)
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