2009 Spring Anime Preview

Anime Vice has their preview up of all 30 new anime that will be debuting this spring. Some of these shows may get licensed and brought stateside. Some of them probably won’t. My shows of interest are below the cut.

Well, we’re getting what’s either another season of Full Metal Alchemist, or a Hellsing Ultimate style reset – as the manga has gone much further along since the anime ended. I haven’t seen the original series – I’m probably one of the handful who haven’t – I need to finish up Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, and Tengen Toppa Gurren Laggan first. In any case, this is definitely gong to get licensed.

Guin Saga looks somewhat like your standard fantasy anime fare (amnesiac protagonist – check, Machiavellian politics – check). It may get licensed as the very long series of light novels it’s based on have been trickling out to the US in a translated from from Vertical press.

Hayate no Gotoku!! is the latest season of the Hayate The Combat Butler anime series. I don’t know if it’s going to get licensed or not. Bandai has licensed the previous season, but they haven’t put out any DVDs yet. The Manga’s been coming out for a while through Viz.

Every now and again I’ll watch a very, very fan-service heavy show. Sometimes they’re bad, sometimes they’re funny. Anyway, Queen’s Blade may be one I try and hunt down. It’s going to be very fanservice heavy. How fanservice heavy? The director did character design for La Blue Girl, so yeah, pretty fanservice heavy.

Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z is a remake/re-imagining of Mazinger Z, with a more Greek Mythological twist (possibly like Saint Seiya). I’m interested to see how this turns out – as I haven ot seen the first Mazinger Z, I’d be coming to this with no preconceptions.

Souten Kourou is yet another anime based on Romance Of The Three Kingdoms. The difference for this one is that Cao Cao is a good-guy in this version, instead of a villain. Oh, and it’s directed by Toyou Ashida, the director of Vampire Hunter D, which should make it visually interesting at least.

Finally, my last pick of the Spring Anime, Valkyria Chronicles the adaptation of the game. I have not played the game, due to somewhat lack of funds (getting my iPod replaced and getting Rock Band was a somewhat higher priority – but I intend to rectify this). However, I have heard amazing things about the game, both in terms of its gameplay and (what counts for the anime) its story. I don’t know if this will get licensed or not. The game’s gotten a lot of buzz, but it hasn’t been selling as well as a lot of people would like. It might not get licensed because of this. Alternatively, it might get licensed to get people to buy the game, based on seeing the anime. We’ll see.

Any other shows on that list that caught your attention, that you’d like to see licensed (or just in general see)?

One reply

  1. Ones I’ll probably follow
    Shangra-la: Premise sounds interesting at the very least.

    Higashi no Eden: Looks to be a combo of action/romance/drama. Given some of the names attached to it I’m thinking it’ll at least be a decent watch.

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