If you weren’t sampling new series this summer season, oh boy, you missed out. This season was kind of great, but we get it, some people like to wait until a series finishes up. I mean, you don’t have to wait for new episodes and you know what series are worth your time. We got you. Here is what we enjoyed this season.
*Note – As usual, this covers new series not second seasons or anything like that.
Best Summer 2019 Anime
Vinland Saga
Ravaging every land they touch, Vikings have become renowned for their thirst and talent for violence. Thorfinn, a son of a great Viking warrior, spends his childhood on the battlefield in order to reap his vengeance on his father’s murderer. A man who murdered his family in front of him, plucked him from his home, and now commands him in a band of warriors.
Why It Is Worth Watching? – Vikings. No, but really. Vikings are brutal and under-represented in anime. This is a good Viking story that did its source material justice. You like vicious revenge stories or Vikings? You will like this.
Dr. Stone
One day, all of humanity was engulfed in light and mysteriously petrified. After a few millennia, two high schoolers awaken and find themselves in a wild world. These two set out to cure those still frozen and kick start civilization.
Why It Is Worth Watching? – Dr. Stone started really strong and then rolled downhill the more people read to much into the scientific validity of what was presented. What I’m trying to say is, you can have a good time with this one if you don’t look too hard at what it is telling you. That being said, this is a shounen series with less fighting than usual, but still a lot of the same tropes.
O Maidens in Your Savage Season
The girls of the literature club have recently been reading sexually charged pieces of literature. This combined with a newfound interest in adult relationships sends each member spiraling off into the world of sex and intimate relations.
Why It Is Worth Watching? – Female perverts are hardly innovative in anime, but female perverts that aren’t all lewded up? Now there is a rarity. As a once teenage female myself, I found a lot to relate to here. Every girl goes through the same stage where they become curious about sex and it kind of takes over your life a little bit. This series is pretty grounded in its exploration of this area of puberty and creates a nicely realistic emotional story.
Fire Force
A phenomenon has started overtaking mankind – one where people spontaneously combust and turn into destructive fire demons called Infernals. To fight these demons, special fire forces were established full of those with dedication and powers to control fire. This is the story of Fire Force 8 and their newest recruit – Shinra, who aims to become a hero and discover the truth behind the Infernals.
Why It Is Worth Watching? – This series had a rocky launch with the accusation of plagiarism and then the KyoAni fire, but it endured. Immediately likable is the visually stunning fire effects that do seem to sometimes eat up the rest of the budget. However, if you like flashy fights, then this is amazing. Although, while it intrigues at first, it kind of stumbles to keep that intrigue going with the plot.
Given
On one particular day, Ritsuka Uenoyama decided that two things he loved – playing guitar and playing baseball – had become boring to him. However, when he encountered Mafuyu Sato holding a broken guitar, he fixes it. Upon fixing it and hearing him sing, it leaves a huge impression.
Why It Is Worth Watching? – Right off the bat, this is a shounen ai series, so that immediately crosses it off the list for many. However, for those who are into it, you should know it is a pretty refreshing one. Something immediately noticeable to me is that it lacks the same predatory tones that they like to shove into yaoi for some reason. Instead, it tells an emotional story not so much of love, but of letting go. If you like engaging, realistic boy’s love that kind of has a nice emotional resonance for all viewers no matter what orientation, then this is a given. (I just wanted to wedge that in there, sorry.)
Astra Lost in Space
Each year, the students of Caird High School are placed in groups for Planet Camp. When group B5 land at their camp site, they are engulfed by a mysterious sphere of light that transports them into the middle of space, 5,000 light years away from home. After discovering an old space ship, they begin their very long journey home.
Why It is Worth Watching? – …I don’t know why I like this series so much, but damn do I. It is essentially a group of kids lost in space and jumping from planet to planet in a conveniently placed space ship to get back home. Each kid has a talent to help them survive. You know, one is the child of a doctor, one is a literal genius, one kid is super handy, ect. It is a set up for the generic and the cliched, and yet it is wonderful to watch them survive each planet and deal with the actually pretty intriguing overall mystery. I do a terrible job of selling this series because I can’t quite grasp what it is I even like, but really, I do recommend it if you like exploration, adventure, or even mystery series.
Did you like other series this season? Let folks know why in the comments section below.
