Ladies and gentlemen, elves and aliens! Here’s part 2 of what your favorite curiously dead cat is watching this season. Last time, we looked at new fantasy, isekai, and sci-fi series; this time, we take a gander at new series set in the “real” world, as well as continuing series of all stripes.

Modern/Real World

Just because a series isn’t a fantasy doesn’t mean it can’t have a kind of magic all its own! Take a look at these fun ones…

Love of Kill

With one of the best OP’s of the new season, this show also provides great visuals and a set-up that makes for both comedy and drama. An assassin falls in love with a bounty hunter; she in turn wants nothing to do with him. Like a cat that leaves dead mice on your doorstep as a sign of affection, he leaves the corpses of her targets for her to find: he’s not a very savory character, and this may well turn some people off. However, if you can look past that and a whole lot of blood, Love of Kill presents a nice adult mix of humor and tension.

Oh, the presentation of physical laws also leaves something to be desired. When the bounty hunter’s car rams a guard rail and flips off a cliff, the girl in the back seat is crushed to death—while the bounty hunter walks away without a scratch. This is why I used quotes above when mentioning the “real” world.

I’m Kodama Kawashiri

No one is talking about this cute series of shorts, and that’s a shame. The OP music falls only slightly below that of Love of Kill in the running for best of the season. Which is a good thing, because the OP takes up about 60% of each episode’s run-time. The story follows a self-professed “dissolute lifehacker” and her way of life. It’s dumb, but it’s dumb fun. At two minutes per week, it’s a chill slice-of-life show that will hardly cost you any time to enjoy.

My Dress-Up Darling

With a couple of compelling main characters—a guy who likes to sew dolls and a girl who likes to cosplay but can’t sew—My Dress-Up Darling looks to be well on its way to becoming the fan-loved darling of the season. And I can see why. The visuals and the setting are on-point. Having said that, I’m not an ecchi guy and episode two felt a fair bit overboard to me. So we’ll see if I stick with it or not.

Police in a Pod

With delightful art and a cast of enjoyable characters, Police in a Pod takes us through a series of vignettes about two police officers as they deal with crimes like theft, speeding, and domestic abuse, as well as taking a hand in difficult life moments such as a loved one’s natural death. The focus is less on the crimes, however, and more on the people involved. The series does paint a rather rosy (though not immaculate) view of the police: I can’t tell if that’s because it’s “copaganda” or if Japanese police are just more humane than American cops. If the pro-police perspective is all right with you, and you’re looking for a more adult series that can be both heavy and fun, this one’s for you.

Continuing Series

With anime, as with friends, we value both the new and the old.

86 eighty-six

With the last couple of episodes delayed on account of Covid, I’m biting my nails waiting to find out what happens to our favorite dystopian heroes and heroines…!

Princess Connect! Re:Dive

Our favorite fantasy princesses in pursuit of the perfect cuisine are back! I tried the game last year, and it lasted me for a couple of months; but I haven’t logged in for many, many months. Which is a shame, because I’m still listed as guild leader for the “Cult of the Llama” guild. (Sorry, fellow cultists!)

How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom

Negotiations have kicked off with the empire! While the art budget seems a bit lower than last season’s, the story hasn’t let up at all. Looking forward to more realist shenanigans!

Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest

Season 1 of Arifureta showed us the MC as he went from an idealistic but underpowered wimp to a cynical, OP harem magnet. After that point, the plot seemed to drop in quality to me. Still, I like the world-building, so I’m giving season 2 a chance to redeem the story.

---

That’s all for the nonce, miaj geamikoj! Let me know what you’re enjoying, too!