Anime Winter 2024 Weekly Ranking March 14th to March 20th

These rankings are as of the episodes premiering March 14th to March 20th

S: Must Watch

Episodes I believe you must watch or are missing out on.

1. The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You Season 2. Ep. 22

Meme is here! And they did a great job with her superpower, as well as her voice which every girl so far has just had excellent casting. Of course, the Rentaro’s family, being every the group of degenerates themselves, would never be mean to Meme. I’m glad Rentaro was able to convey this but it seems he awakened Meme true power with that surprise kiss. Two more episodes to go, I don’t remember what happens after this but I look forward to it.

3. Re:Zero ep 15

Bea- I mean our favorite partner is back! Very happy to see her return, we needed some more firepower on our side. As good as her return is, Capella stole the show. Capella is just such a fun character to watch, absolutely demented and the animation on her body morphing is top notch. I still wonder about her motivations as well and if she will be killed in this arc, of all the enemies here she seems to be the hardest to kill permanently at least.

1. Orb: On the Movements of the Earth. Ep. 25

What an anime. An all timer in my book. Of course, the focus is on heliocentrism and how it came to be, but this anime explores many more themes in a incredible way. Human curiosity, regret, conviction, desire, and the simple beauty of what we are born into. The scenes of Albert looking into the sky with the stars in his eyes, the scenes of our main protagonist in their final moments embracing such beauty, magnificent. I didn’t realize these would be the last two episodes, they are much more grounded in reality than the previous episodes as they are based on true events. As for what comes before, I like to think it’s simply a fiction of miracles that are what brought along the idea and eventual acceptance of heliocentrism. The character writing is the highlight of this show, once again emphasized by the reappearance of Refal who may or not be the same Rafal we know, timelines may be a little off but that is fine. Orb loves to explore a human’s drive, of what they will do for their beliefs. Kill, sacrifice, die. All of it and more, just how far will they go and for what? They blur the lines of right and wrong, giving the viewer the opportunity to decide. Gosh I can rave about this anime forever, go watch it! 10/10, I love it.

A: Very Good

Good episodes, anime I would recommend to someone looking for something to watch.

4.

Solo Leveling. Ep. 11

Na, the boy Byung-Gu didn’t deserve that. Gathering the courage to help once more after what he has been through was awesome from him, but it only makes it more crushing to see him die like that, even more after Yoon-Ho’s cry of rage. The black ant is on a tear, and he really likes to decapitate people I see. He’s cool, but hurting the boy and Cha-Hae is a criminal offense of the highest order. Put’em in a pack Jin-Woo! This fight is going to go crazy, isn’t it?

6. Sakamoto Days. Ep. 11

Aw man, I forgot this was the last episode for this cour. Fortunately the next cour is not too far off. I liked what we got so far, the main cast is very likable and even though I see so many complaints about the animation, I actually thought it was good. Seriously, comparing a single panel to the same scene in the anime doesn’t make sense to me. There is no color, no need for fluidity, or any other requirements in anime o the manga panel. Each excel in their right, both are done very well. As such, I Iook forward to the upcoming cour as the family will face a great challenge against born killers.

8. My Happy Marriage. Ep. 11

Oh yea, this one is pulling at my heart strings. So, long story short, Miyo’s ability is unbelievably overpowerd and I can see why people were after it. As strong as it is, Miyo is too sweet to ever use it for evil, I doubt she’d be able to even if forced to. But, of course, the best part of the episode was her words of love to her husband to be. I’ve known for a long time, but it still felt great to hear those words. Ah love, such a wonderful thing. But soon we will be reminded of the dangers of it as shown by Naoshi in the coming episode.

10. Blue Box. Ep. 25 FINAL

So, I like the maturity of Taiki’s answer to Hina, topping off the arc focusing on her in a heartbreaking but admirable way. With that, I look forward to how their characters will interact with each other and grow after this arc. All in all, I really like how Blue Box addresses themes of love and hard work. Love is difficult and confusing, espeically at such a young age. Not only does it affect one emotionally and physically, but it can also be a source of motivation or pain. Hina and Taiki were great examples of this, each showing just how it affects them and teh results of it. Different views of love are also explored, with other characters not understanding it as well, or wishing to feel it as someone like Hina does. I like a lot of this anime, but one major issue brings it way down with me. Chinatsu. By herself, I have no problem with her. I think she is lovely, nice, and hardworking. But Taiki’s obsession with her just boggles my mind. Well, she’s pretty. Well, so is Hina. Well, she’s hardworking. So is Hina. Well, she is inspires Taiki. Hina is literally a top level in her sport. Where do they do differ, I find that Hina and Taiki are more compatible because of comfortable they are around each other, Taiki can barely form a sentence around Chinastu. No es amor, es una obsesion. If you know that last line, HMU. It’s frustrating, but so is love. His reason for liking her doesn’t have to make sense, in reality it rarely does. But I would have liked if Chinatsu was made into a stronger more competitive character instead of just someone Taiki loves just because she exists. In coming arcs this may be the case, but as it stands she just doesn’t do it for me. Not bad, but it bothers me. 7/10, maybe 8/10

5. Ishura. Ep. 11

Man, didn’t think I’d like Hiroto as much as I do but this episode did an amazing job on expanding his character into something frightening. Alas, the hero tournament is a ways away and I can only hope we will get a season for it. On a side note, Yukiharu has some screws loose doesn’t he?

7. Rurouni Kenshin. Ep. 47. FINAL

And so it ends on a very high note with great anticipation for the duel and the attack behind the lines of our three main fighters. Also, I must say, Houji really grew on me. That guy is just so dedicated to victory for his master, to the point of putting himself through such pain and never once faltering to show his dedication, yea of course Shishio showed respect during the meeting after such a display. I can’t wait for the duel honestly, I wonder if it will done as a movie instead of a season. However they do it, I hope it comes soon! Very enjoyable 8/10.

9. Apothecary Diaries. Ep. 34

Man, the old emperor isn’t getting any new fans with each coming episode. I enjoyed the ghost stories, the sutra one especially was excellent. Of course, the spirit or ghost of the organizer is the most chilling and heartbreaking, it unfortunately has left them as what can be considered a vengeful spirit forever in unrest. Revenge, or grudges, seems to be a key theme in much of this story. So, with that, I wonder what the focus will be around the boy himself, Jinshi. Is it time for Mao Mao to uncover the truth? What more will be revealed? I, for one, am quite interested.

B: Good/Solid

C: It’s ok/Fine

These are shows I happen to pick up but struggle to finish. Still watchable, but not without a good break in between episodes.

Beheneko: The Elf-Girl's Cat is Secretly an S-Ranked Monster! Ep. 12

Yea I caught up just for the end. I mean, it’s what I expected but there was enough of goon hit for it to be acceptable. I’d actually like to see the source to see just how far the goon gets in this story. Overall, It’s not something to pick up, great background noise if nothing else. The characters are likable however, which is often something many slop anime fail to do. The main group is always entertaining, whether their gooning for Tama, or being just nice individuals. Not much else to say, just find some screenshots of the goon scenes and you’ll be fine. Mmmmm, I give three big booms.

D: Do Not Recommend

Shows I do not recommend you not watch for various issues.

F: Bad

Anime with glaring issues that make them not only difficult to watch, but the watcher angry at times.

Some words

More to come soon!