The growth that anime has experienced over the past decade is incredible, and the medium of entertainment is now one of the most popular and mainstream forms of animation. Every year brings forward tons of new series to consume, and it can honestly be a little overwhelming for those who try to check out everything or don’t know which are worth their time and those that are destined to be disappointments.
There’s excitement that surrounds each new season of anime, and Spring 2021 debuts a lot of series that will be talked about for years to come. However, there are also a handful of anime series from 2021 that don’t quite meet expectations or standards.
10 Dull Visuals & Repetitive Storytelling Rob Cestvs: The Roman Fighter Of Its Potential
It’s a shame that Cestvs: The Roman Fighter misfires because there’s a fair bit of potential in the series’ premise, and there aren’t nearly enough anime that focus on gladiators and their trials of combat. Cestvs, the protagonist, also has a deep aversion to violence but is forced to fight, which makes for a complex headspace for him to operate within. Unfortunately, Cestvs devolves into derivative action, which comes at both the cost of character and story. The most egregious offender here is the anime’s art style, which is heavy in CGI and dilutes any of the series’ elegance.
9 Full Dive Struggles To Mix Its Comedy With The Other Genres That It Tackles
The isekai genre has never been more popular, especially when it comes to series that turn to a virtual MMORPG world for its environment. Full Dive doesn’t do enough with the genre to justify its existence. As the anime’s rote full title suggests, Full Dive wallows through territory that’s well-trodden at this point. The biggest issue with Full Dive is that it wants to turn Hiro’s journey into a subversive comedy, but the humor never properly mixes with the series’ darker elements. The result is a tonally disastrous anime that never fully finds itself.
8 Blue Reflection Ray’s Slow Pacing Loses Sight Of Its Magical Plot
Blue Reflection Ray is set in the same world as the Blue Reflection video game series and the anime’s premise hinges on a complex concept where human emotions form Fragments, which are collected by Reflectors for either just or nefarious purposes. Ruka and Hiori get roped into this mess and work hard to become Reflectors who can help others.
Blue Reflection Ray has a decent look and infectious music, but the biggest detriment is the anime’s slow pacing, which drains the story and characters of any urgency. The magical girl concept gets muddled through all of the minutiae.
7 Jouran: The Princess Of Snow & Blood Squanders An Interesting Idea Through Mediocrity
Jouran: The Princess of Snow and Blood has a lot going for it and there’s a very superhero-like mentality to its central plot. Set in the Meiji era, Sawa Yukimura works an unassuming day job but moonlights with a vengeful mission to execute those who killed her family and tribe. Sawa can also transform in incredible ways thanks to her unique blood. However, Jouran doesn’t have much to offer beyond this initially engrossing revenge premise. It’s a very mediocre series that goes through the motions and becomes highly forgettable.
6 Mars Red Presents A Radical New Take On Vampires & Nationalism
Mars Red has flown under the radar in Spring 2021, but it’s become one of the season’s most polarizing anime. People seem to go all in on Mars Red, or it just completely washes over them. Mars Red presents an alternate version of 1920s Tokyo where a vampire epidemic runs rampant. These creatures are both feared and turned into weapons, and Mars Red has much to say about democracy. Mars Red is a good show and it features some absolutely brilliant moments, like its opening sequence, but it’s still mildly disappointing due to the potential that it has yet to reach.
5 Farewell, My Dear Cramer’s Light Attitude Diminishes Its Unique Sport Setting
There is no shortage of sports anime, and at this point, there are multiple series for virtually every recreational activity imaginable. Soccer anime is nothing new, but Farewell, My Dear Cramer specifically narrows in on the dying art of women’s soccer in Japan.
A team of optimistic high schoolers band together to redeem the reputation of women’s soccer. There’s a compelling premise and fun characters in Farewell, My Dear Cramer, but the anime becomes too light for its own good. Those who want an exciting sports anime will inevitably be let down over its tone and pacing.
4 Seven Knights Revolution: Hero Successor Is More Of A Fantasy Template Than A Fresh Story
Seven Knights Revolution: Hero Successor is an anime series that might win people over if it’s the only fantasy anime they’ve ever seen. Seven Knights Revolution trades in a standard plot for action-adventure series where their village gets destroyed, and they become empowered with intense magic. Seven Knights Revolution: Hero Successor is just generic in every regard and a shallow and stereotypical protagonist only weighs down any sense of progression. The action sometimes delivers results, but otherwise, everything that Seven Knights Revolution: Hero Successor attempts is done better elsewhere.
3 Dragon Goes House-Hunting Is Sometimes Too Light For Its Own Good
Dragon Goes House-Hunting is an incredibly sweet anime series from Spring 2021 that’s easy to enjoy, but it also seems like it could be so much more. Set in a traditional fantasy world, Letty is a cowardly dragon who’s forced to fend for himself before he meets Dearia, a helpful elf and real estate agent. Dearia makes it her mission to set Letty up in the perfect abode and wackiness ensues. Dragon Goes House-Hunting does want to be taken, but episodes can still come across as disposable. The anime’s strong art style helps its case and it continues to improve.
2 The World Ends With You The Animation Gets Lost In Its Complicated World
Anime adaptations of video games are par for the course, but The World Ends With You The Animation adapts a Nintendo DS game that’s 15 years old. The series is set in an alternate reality where players must fight against hostile “Noise” in a mysterious game of life and death. The World Ends With You The Animation features an art style that properly represents the game, but it’s a very slow adaptation. It’s hard to imagine the anime resonating as strongly with people who have no previous context for this universe, and it struggles to properly convey its full complexity.
1 Battle Athletes Victory ReSTART! Mixes Sports & Sci-Fi For A New Generation
The Battle Athletes series has been around since the 90s and it examines an unconventional competition between humans and aliens where gymnastics and other track and field-based activities are the crucial qualifiers. Battle Athletes Victory ReSTART! is a modern reboot of the anime that once again pits Earth and its most athletically gifted against dangerous extraterrestrials. Battle Athletes Victory ReSTART! is a satisfying return to this heightened sci-fi and sports hybrid, but the issue is that the original Battle Athletes was never high art. It’s an adequate modern version of a mediocre retro classic.
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