What I’m Watching – Fall 2019 Impressions

Watching a Lot Here!

I’ll be going over all 16 anime that I’m watching for the Fall 2019 season. This will include continuing series as I’d like to give my continued impressions on them since my thoughts may have changed from when they first started. Plus, that makes these a little more fun to read as well. As a result, however, this is going to be a bit of a longer article so buckle up and see what I’m watching!

Assassins Pride

Episodes Watched:  4/12

Recommendation:  Goofy, but good.

Everything about Assassins Pride says that this should be the light novel trash of the season. However, due to its generally careful direction and presentation, the anime has managed to elevate itself to a state that makes it rather enjoyable. Compiled through a bunch of dissonant elements, you would think that nothing here would work, but it somehow manages to combine all of these clashing tones, colors, and plots for the better.

 I mean, just look at this. Nothing should work based on just this image, but yet, it does…

Still, it is exactly what one would expect from such an adaptation. If this wasn’t your thing before, then there is no way that anything here will change your mind. Still, I feel like this is what shows of this nature, ones with a decent premise but less than stellar writing, should be striving for. It’s kind of trashy, but has just enough care and passion pumped in to make this worthwhile.

My Hero Academia S4

Episodes Watched:  3/12

Recommendation:  You’re probably already watching this, it’s season 4…

Do I really need to say much here? My only real comment is that the series still seems obsessed with tons of unnecessary recap. Three episodes in, one of which was dedicated recap, and the story has just only now actually started to move. Doesn’t help that they took a break super early in either.

I’m looking forward to what this season has in store, from what little I know about the manga, I’ve got the feeling I’ll really enjoy it, but I do want things to move a bit faster. Obviously, at this point I’m in for the long-haul on this series but it would be nice if it learned from the shortcomings in the previous seasons.

High School Prodigies Have It Easy Even in Another World!

Episodes Watched:  4/12

Recommendation:  Surprisingly, I recommend it.

I was pretty confident that this was going to be this season’s Arifureta, but I’ve actually been enjoying this one quite a bit. It’s an isekai, overpowered protagonists, yada yada…. Nothing new here, like at all, but it is fun.

Now I do groan at a few things and the cast is a bit too big for what the show is going for, but this series seems to have come out at the right time. With shows like Dr. Stone and Ascendance of a Bookworm, it seems that civilization building anime are “in” right now, and this definitely has that feeling. Not expecting much more than just basic entertainment, but given everything I’m watching this season I can afford a show or two like this.

Finally, I just gotta say, that ninja journalist is great. It would take far too long to explain why her going “Nin nin!” all the time is so funny to me, but I LOVE it. She’s easily up there with the inventor girl as the best ones of the season. Well, I suppose the loli girl is pretty good too…

Dr. Stone

Episodes Watched:  17/24

Recommendation:  A must watch.

Speaking of Dr. Stone, this one is a real winner. With a slow start, it really feels like things are motoring right along. This has quickly moved up from a show I was fairly lukewarm on all the way to one of the better shows carried over from the last season.

Perhaps the biggest moment, at least for me, was when they had an episode exploring some events before Senkuu woke up. None of this was really unexpected, if anything it was a little obvious, but I’ve got to give credit to whoever did the singing for that episode as it was on point. Not sure if they got a woman who was a native English speaker to sing, or what, but probably the best example of English vocals, for an English speaking character (though sadly her normal dialog was still in Japanese) I’ve heard.

I’m hopeful that this show will deliver, or at the very least, set itself up nicely for a continuation that it is sure to get. Strongly recommending this one for sure.

Fire Force

Episodes Watched:  15/24

Recommendation:  Skip…

I’ve actually already written about this one before in the last impressions article I did. Everything I said then, it stays true now. Outside of some nice animation and a few kernels of story, there just isn’t a lot to like here. Fire Force doesn’t understand how to set its tone, pace itself, or feel like its own thing. It’s not like the show is awful, but given the sheer amount of stuff on offer, you can do a lot better than this one.

Ascendance of a Bookworm

Episodes Watched:  5/14

Recommendation:  Of course!

A lot of folks are complaining that this one is slow, but I don’t really get it. If you like Dr. Stone, then I don’t see why you wouldn’t like this. The same kind of civilization feeling is here, just slowed down and much more realistic. Plus it has some isekai stuff going on for an extra layer. Really, the only thing it lacks over the other is that Bookworm doesn’t have any action scenes.

Still, that’s totally fine. There is a lot to like here, and though this doesn’t have that father/daughter dynamic I particularly like, I still get a similar feeling from this show. It’s 100% working for me and I can’t help but recommend it pretty strongly. The series has a sense of realism mixed with the fantastical, which is always a plus.

After School Dice Club

Episodes Watched:  5/12

Recommendation:  Not for everybody.

Remember A Sister’s All You Need? Ok, fair, you probably didn’t even watch it. Well, one of the things that I found super exciting about that series was the fact that they played board games in it. I always thought that this could work as a standalone anime, and behold!

After School Dice Club is about a group of girls playing board games. There’s a little more depth there than that, but I’m in it for the board games. This is a super niche anime so I’m not expecting folks to rush out and watch it. However, if you want to get into the board game hobby, this’ll give you some solid recommendations while telling a decent story.

Kabukichou Sherlock

Episodes Watched:  2/24

Recommendation:  Hard to say.

This is the weirdest adaptation of Sherlock Holmes I have ever seen. I haven’t seen enough to say if this is really good or not, I’m leaning toward it not being really “good”, but it is certainly funny.

Sherlock doing some terrible Rokugo, the strangeness, it all just compels me. I don’t think anybody is really going to enjoy this as much as I think I might, but again, it really is too early to say. At only two episodes in, I’m having a great time, but I can also see it wearing thin after a bit.

The mystery stuff has been pretty easy, and beyond the wacky changes for the sake of this adaptation, it is very much still Sherlock Holmes. So I suppose this one is a proceed with caution if any of what I’ve said sounds good to you.

Special Crime Investigation Unit – Special 7

Episodes Watched:  2/12

Recommendation:  Tentative

I’ve got to say, I’m happy to see so many crime anime coming out this season! While I’m not far enough into this one to really pass judgement, I can say that it has a quirky cast that seems like it’ll make for a fun time. That’s really all I have to say on this one, there just isn’t enough to go on at two episodes.

No Guns Life

Episodes Watched:  2/12

Recommendation:  Probably a yes.

It’s about a private detective, with, get this… a GUN for a HEAD. Sold!

Ok, in all seriousness, this one has a problem with its tone. Meaning, it doesn’t have one. It wants to be this gritty serious crime noir, which is great, but at times it comes off as a Saturday morning cartoon with how goofy it is. This isn’t inherently bad, but it is making it more difficult to wholeheartedly recommend.

You guessed it, at only two episodes in for me, it is a bit too hard to definitively say. Still, I like it well enough and the premise warrants at least checking it out. It gives me Ergo Proxy vibes but far less moody and, of course, less serious.

Null Peta

Episodes Watched:  5/?

Recommendation: A nice short, so yes!

I have been in the mood for a short-form anime and Null Peta fits the bill! It’s mostly goofy with just a touch of some serious stuff. It’s about a young girl who is good at making things, one day though, her sister dies. So naturally, she builds a robot to “resurrect” her sister… only things don’t quite go as planned. At 5 minutes an episode, it wouldn’t hurt to check out.

Psycho-Pass S3

Episodes Watched:  2/8

Recommendation:  It’s a sequel, so if you liked the stuff before…

I’ve got to say, this season is not taking advantage of the more unusual format that it is releasing under. The pacing feels really bad as a result, which isn’t helped by a mostly new cast. For the folks who wanted to see the usual suspects, it’s not like you don’t, but they seem to play a very small role, or none at all, so far.

The main character has the power to “empathize” strongly with others, giving him “mentalist” powers. Basically, he can perfectly recreate crime scenes and such with “statistics”. It’s kind of hard to take seriously. I’m not totally in love with this season.

Radiant S2

Episodes Watched:  5/21

Recommendation: Season 1 was good, so yeah!

I realized while writing this that I hadn’t reviewed season one! Whoops. Well, when season 1 started it was a bit rough, but it really grew into its own. Season 2 has picked right up with where things left off an I’m enjoying it.

Radiant is kind of a sleeper that shonen fans are sure to enjoy. If you gave this a pass in the past, I recommend catching up. The start may be a bit rocky, but the payoff is absolutely worth the wait!

Cautious Hero: The Hero Is Overpowered but Overly Cautious

Episodes Watched:  4/12

Recommendation: Lukewarm

I don’t dislike this show, but I don’t love it either. It wasn’t until the last episode that I finally felt some real enjoyment out of it. Mostly watching this because my mom wanted to along with my friend.

My thinking is that this will be better now that the cast is more than just the guy and the goddess. We’ll see by time this is over how I feel. Hopefully the jokes don’t get stale and things continue to develop positively.

SAO – War of the Underworld

Episodes Watched:  4/12

Recommendation:  Sequel, but very much yes!

The first episode back was one of the BEST episodes that SAO has had. That’s how I feel about this season. While it isn’t perfect, the pacing is a bit off, it really feels good otherwise. Stakes feel real, there is a lot going on, and all the characters are getting plenty of focus.

If you hate SAO, you probably aren’t going to suffer to get “to the good bits” of the series, and I don’t blame you, but this is shaping up to be a strong addition to the franchise. While Alicization part 1 was a bit dull, I’m wide awake here.

Didn’t I Say to Make My Abilities Average in the Next Life?!

Episodes Watched:  4/12

Recommendation: I mean, I like it.

For whatever reason, I really like the OP for this show. I don’t know why. Series is dumb, obvious, and nothing special at all. Still, I’m really having a good time. There are a plethora of isekai anime this season, and I’m glad that almost all of them are good. Still, I get the feeling that a lot of folks aren’t going to like this one by time it is over so take my weird premonition with you if you were on the fence.

Overall…

This is shaping up to be a strong season with a LOT of options. There are sure to be at least one or two anime to your liking, if not more. If I had to dock the season for anything, it’d be for lackluster OP’s and ED’s, most of which, are either incredibly bland or just outright terrible.

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That’ll do it for today folks! Let me know what anime you are watching this season in the comments. If you would like to support my efforts please utilize either of my donation buttons below. Thanks for reading and I hope to see you again soon!