As the summer season is ending and the autumn season is upon us with a whole range of new anime titles it’s time to pick a few of greats from this summer’s season. As usual I’m behind the curve and haven’t seen that many fresh series this summer. Some are also ongoing and most probably worth a watch but for me that would have to be when the series/season ends, shows like Dr. Stone, En’en no Shouboutai and Vinland Saga. Over the summer there were also two half-length* shows that are worth mentioning; Sounan desu ka? (which follows four high school girls trying to survive on a remote island after a plane crash) and Tejina Senpai (an comedy about a magic club at high school).
For now here is my two biggest recommendations from this summer season of anime;
*episodes with a running time of 15 min or less
Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san 2
Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san second season comprised of 12 episodes and aired between July 7 and September 22. The first season of this show came second on my favourite anime shows of 2018 so no real surprise this follow-up is a must-watch for me. Again we follow the slowly evolving chemistry between Nishikata and Takagi with light-hearted teasing and one of the most adorable and cute shows these last few years. We even get a peek at a grown-up Takagi in a flashforward in episode 8. For those of you who doesn’t already know, the manga creator has created a spin-off featuring the grown up version of the main characters (spoiler, they end up getting married and having a kid). The main manga is translated and known as Teasing Master Takagi-san.
Kanata no Astra
Kanata no Astra, or Astra Lost in Space, was a very pleasant surprise this season. On the face of it, it could seem as a pretty generic sci-fi story. 8 high schoolers and one ki sister in the near future get lost in space and need to find their way back home. Kanata no Astra comprises of 12 episodes (episode 1 and 12 being double-length clocking in at 50 min) that aired between July 3 and September 18. The story is based on an manga series that was published online between May 2016 and December 2017, and has also gotten an english translation (published between December 2017 and December 2018).
What makes Kanata no Astra so good is that it injects twists and turns in the story but still managed to keep the overall story flowing and even gets a satisfying ending. No filler, but not too rushed and overall very excellent use of 12 (or basically 14 as the start and end is extended) episodes. It has sometimes some odd humour here and there, even some meta jokes for good measure, but overall an very good and proper sci-fi.
Tabletop Cave 