The fall 2023 anime season has concluded, with exciting stories that took us to fantasy worlds, great adventures, heartwarming dramas and hilarious comedies. So the ANMO SUGOI team is ready to explore and share their favorite anime of the season.
The following list of anime is in no particular order and does not represent concrete facts or absolute rankings, but it might help you to discover some anime from our interesting selection.
The ANMO SUGOI team chooses its Fall 2023 animes
Pluto – LysMoonDust
Pluto, the story of a futuristic world where new technologies coexist with humans, having advanced consciousness capabilities. A world of peace where robots do no harm and humans stay out of it, what would happen if a robot becomes an assassin? A constant look at rights, the limits of thinking about good and evil, as usual in Naoki Urasawa’s works.
Mystery, drama, suspense… the favorite genres of master Urasawa, constantly using the elements of solving crimes, from the protagonist, Gesitch, a robot who works as a detective, although the word robot sounds very coarse, Gesicht has a conscience of his own, being able to reason and offer reflections on things. He is a robot who works like any other person, he has his wife whom he loves very much, Helena, who is also a robot.
At the beginning of the story, we witness directly the beginning of a case, the murder of the peace-loving robot united a large part of the community, most of the evidence being consumed in the flames of a forest fire. This event started the distrust of the people, a murder, how could someone do that?
The setting of this story is immersive, it can introduce you to certain cultures, the capabilities of robots, the advancement of these, among the dilemmas about, if robots can feel means they can have rights, a constant debate about the integrity of technology, a work set in a future where humans live with machines, feeling empathy for them. This work is inspired by the world of Osamu Tezuka, creator of Astro Boy, references can be seen in characters and places.
Now, the rights that defend the integrity of robots are raised to investigate the reason for the death of one of its greatest exponents, at that moment is where the investigation of Gesitch begins, who is also considered the best prepared robot for defense, with a great intellect and weaponry to offer the best performance. In a constant dilemma about whether humans and machines can coexist in perfect harmony, we follow the steps of this robotic detective in search of the truth.
Pluto has characters full of charisma, situations that make your hair stand on end, something that Naoki Urasawa has captured in each of his works, such as Monster or 20th Century boys, complicated scenarios that, at first glance are not connected to anything, but the more the work unfolds, the more sense they make about the story. This work does not need an explanation, since at every moment there is a different revelation, something that must be seen in the flesh.
The Apothecary Diaries – Sachi
Although it is still on air, The Apothecary Diaries has shown after these twelve chapters that the quality they have shown throughout the series will continue until the end of it and at the same time have also shown that they have managed to adapt the light novel to perfection, so there is no doubt why it is becoming the public’s favorite anime.
The story at the beginning is simple, a 16-17 year old apothecary who is forcibly taken from her home and is sold to the royal palace, where she quickly comes to stand out for her knowledge. So far it would seem simple but as the chapters go by the cases that occur inside and outside the palace become more complicated and more important that the viewer can not imagine the final outcome of these.
The characters are unique, from Mao Mao who with his wisdom, expressions and design managed to make many fans fall in love with him. As well as the enunco Jishin, who despite having a matchless beauty there are times when he behaves like a child and others in which his way of directing others stands out. You can even perceive how each character has their own attitude and do not feel like simple npc’s to use a term.
The animation is spectacular and can be perceived from the opening with each transition, the scenarios are carefully elaborated that even the smallest object manages to stand out very easily and not to mention the beautiful design they gave the characters, without any doubt the animation studio that worked behind this anime deserves a big applause for the magnificent work they did.
In conclusion The Apothecary Diaries is an anime that can easily get the attention of anyone, either by any of these elements that I described above, so no doubt it will become a very memorable anime for fans and I would not doubt that in the future it will have a second season, although there is a long way to go to see this. In the meantime I invite people to watch the following chapters that will be broadcasted in this next anime season and to the new viewers to watch it with all the time in the world, we will have a lot of Mao Mao for the future.
The Kingdoms of Ruin – The Omega
The Kingdoms of Ruin narrates the life of a sorcerer who receives training from the best witch in a world ruled by corruption. As the plot unfolds, it delves into feelings of hatred, pain and revenge, giving development to the characters.
Since the first episode, the anime has captured the public’s attention by presenting a world immersed in the conflict between humans and witches. However, having a great beginning, the story progresses slowly, marked by unnecessary fights of excessive length and repetitive, making it predictable and boring for any viewer.
The complexity of the Story is difficult to adapt and tell the whole story in a single season of 12 episodes, which does not do it justice. The series is not afraid of success by introducing gory and sexual acts, although it stays right on the edge of explicitness, avoiding unnecessary censorship.
It has an ending in which it gives you to understand that it has not finished yet there is more to tell and solve which gives the possibility of expanding the series in a possible second season, the end there is no announcement about a possible production, but hopefully it will not be one more of the pile and remain in oblivion like other great works.
Our Dating Story – Tsuki
The fall season brought us this romance anime, which does not have a spectacular plot, but if we look closely it has its own thing. The fact that the protagonist is not a “virgin” generated some controversy since it is not something common in anime of this genre.
But, if we look at the real world we can remember that it is not uncommon to start having sex as early as high school. And so, when you meet your partner it could be likely that either you or he/she is no longer a virgin. So it’s uncertain, but there are several first times you can still share, such as having really fallen in love for the first time.
The story tells us a familiar plot where an introverted guy falls in love with a popular girl and where they end up dating. However, and part of the difference of this anime is that this girl had a distorted vision of what a relationship means, a vision that Ryuto manages to correct through effort, perseverance and sincere love.
The couple goes through difficulties with the entrance of Maria, Ryuto’s ex-partner and Runa’s half-sister. Causing some misunderstandings by having mixed feelings and not knowing what to do. She made a wise but difficult decision when she decided to move away from Ryuto, prioritizing her sister’s happiness over her own. On the other hand, Nishi and Ijichi didn’t have a very happy ending either, but this could change.
This anime displayed a good and somewhat catchy soundtrack. The animation was quite good, achieving a good adaptation. Without a doubt this anime was not one of the favorites of the season but I certainly look forward to the announcement of a second season. I hope you have enjoyed this season and are encouraged to watch these anime if you haven’t done it yet. We hope you had a great holiday season and we will meet again in the next season.
My New Boss is Goofy – Esme
For me this anime was my dose of Dopamine along with JJK, only the only difference is that apparently whoever came up with the idea of making an anime about boys being cute together should be named a billionaire.
This anime from my boss is a goofy one, it’s just what people need to lift their spirits a bit; and among all the fun it is, it also leaves us with a slight taste of romance a la Boys Love. Which I obviously love, not to mention that the voice actors of the main characters have been one of my favorites for a while now.
And when I refer to Boys Love in this anime, I don’t mean that there really is something very explicit with this theme, but the duality that they handled making a very friendly and tender anime with the spark of “love” was a theme that they knew how to handle perfectly, plus those titles of each week were a real gem.
I am also almost sure that I will have one or two opinions that assure me again that this anime was pure dopamine for the hearts, because how could you not love an anime where also a very peachy kitty comes on the scene saying that he loves his owner, I just would not understand that someone would miss this anime.
Anyway My New Boss is Goofy for me was the necessary dose of cute guys acting cute that I was needing after reliving watching also the famous Shibuya arc that left me with my hopes down. But there was always the good thing about my boss is a dork, I enjoyed every week of mine just waiting for a new chapter.
I’m in Love with The Villainess – Sachi
I fell in love with the villain Now to talk about one of my favorite stories that I had been waiting for a long time. Im in love with the villainess, a Yuri anime based on the work of Inori-sensei who has managed to combine several elements that are hardly spoken in other series to give us a great work as is this wonderful series that will delight any fan of the genre.
This is a story that despite starting off somewhat simple at the beginning, it develops into a more interesting plot and with more background so that the viewer can be entertained at any time and with the fun interaction between the protagonists makes this anime easy to enjoy for anyone.
A point that I must touch on this occasion is the dubbing that for many people was a surprise, including myself, since I would never have thought that it would have a dub simultaneously to its release in Japanese which was surprising since it was not only adapted to English, but it was available in several languages and the quality of the dubbing was sensational, I even saw the whole anime in English and I’m not a fan of dubbing but with this one I could enjoy the anime to the fullest.
Now the characters, first let’s talk about Rae Taylor, she in a way was reincarnated in the world of a video game in which she is the protagonist, but unlike the game she will try to fall in love with the villain of the game, Claire who hates Rae with all her soul and will try to make her life difficult, but as the story progresses a deep feeling develops between the two of them and certainly the combination of the personalities of the two make this series very fun to watch and the viewer will want to see more interactions between the two of them.
Now the strong point of Me enamore de la Villana is that it touches many LGBT issues that no other anime has dared to deal with, about how society sees the relationships between two people of the same sex and even out of this how people judge the love that exists between two people, of which they knew how to handle very well these aspects in the series and give us a deep opinion about which many fans will agree and could even be a door for more anime may come to address these issues in more depth in the future.
In conclusion, Me enamore de la Villana is a great romance anime that leaves a deep message about the love that can exist between two people and at the same time delivers an entertaining story that will probably leave a great mark on the fans. It must be said that this adaptation would not have been possible without the support of all the fans, so we must applaud the community of this anime that is so united with Inori-sensei and her stories, hopefully this support will bring us a second season so we can enjoy more of the stories of Rae and Claire as they explore their new love.
Tokyo Revengers S3 – LysMoonDust
In this new arc of Tokyo Revengers, the Tenjiku arc, which is presented as the final battle between Takemichi Hanagaki and Tetta Kisaki, the Tokyo Manji and Tenjiku backed by the ruthless leader Izana Hurokawa, where in its opening song, which is still “White Noise” by The official Hige Dandism, as this third season is a continuation of the previous one. The ending, on the other hand, has changed, being the new closing song “Say my Name” by HEY-SMITH.
Despite the change of platform, Tokyo Revengers is still positioned as one of the best anime of recent years, although its manga is complete, many wish to continue watching the adventures and tragic scenes of the weeping hero animated. This new season is the greatest example of this, as Takemichi understands that his enemy is Izana Hurokawa, but why?
From one moment to the next Tokyo Manji begins to squirm, being betrayed by one of his captains, in addition to being snatched from his lines to kokonoi, one of the most important weapons that had been obtained from Black Dragon in the previous season. These events attack the morale of the gang, as an addition, countless squad members have been attacked, by this time the leaders of almost all divisions such as Mitsuya or Smiley have been lost.
In desperation they seek to understand the truth of these events, truth that is found by Takemichi in one of his childhood friends, Kakucho, who now works for Izana, warning him that he will use the lowest possible tricks to win this war. The answer to his questions was always in front of his eyes, Tetta Kisaki is the one behind this perfect plan, as always smiling at Takemichi, declaring war.
A meeting brought by Mikey makes everyone gain energy, the few remaining being Takemichi’s division and a few others, but having the invincible Mikey in their lines, there will be nothing that can stop them, right?
Tokyo Revengers acts increasingly tense, offering us fewer opportunities for Takemichi to go to the past, in this season, Naoto’s death offers a dead end for our hero, how will he be able to face the most brutal war of the whole series?
Kisaki makes his final move to win this war: Emma Sano. Mickey, Enma and Izana visit the grave of their most precious relative, Shinchiro, but Takemichi feels that something is not right, after a moment Emma decides to go buy something to drink accompanied by our hero, while they chatted quietly after buying drinks a key event occurs, really sad, Tetta kisaki riding a motorcycle at full speed hits with an aluminum bat to Emma…
Now there are no more obstacles to this war, Kisaki thinks, taking a last look at a Takemichi lying suffering for an unconscious Emma, blaming himself for his uselessness as a protector. Mikey and Draken, the strongest have been left speechless at the loss of someone so important. Takemichi uses his last strength to comfort Hina, who cries for the death of her great friend, the hero steps firmly pronouncing some words with courage before leaving to battle against Tenjiku: “I don’t care what happens, even if I die, I will save you”.
Takemichi alone with Chifuyu, his faithful lieutenant, Peyan, Inupi and Angry, with a few men who, upon hearing Takemichi’s speech, who does not mind going alone against Tenjiku and his more than 300 men and all their leaders. So they decide to go with the weeping hero in this bloody battle.
A battle that, for fans who have read the manga, has a couple of scenes that make the skin crawl, but, this is better seen than told, so, for the moment, I leave the intrigue in the outcome of this one. Tokyo revengers is one of those series that can make you think about the word, “Why would I give up?”, a story that has hundreds of falls of our protagonist, despite starting as a coward who let his own beloved die, wasted his life and did not want to continue; he becomes a hero, who does not mind dying, being stabbed or beaten to death; he will always get up for a better future.
The 100 Girlfriends Who really, really, really, really, REALLY Love You- Troian
For those who like harem/ecchi anime, The 100 Girlfriends Who Really Love You is undoubtedly a highly recommended anime, because it is a story that although it has been catalogued as a parody of both genres, what it offers is something very entertaining.
Here we follow the story of Aijo Rentarou a boy who due to a divine mistake had the misfortune of being rejected 100 times by 100 different girls, before this he goes to a local shrine to ask for fortune in love, without expecting that this will become the beginning of his adventure with 100 different girls.
In the initial cast of characters the first 6 girls that are presented to us, each one has an attraction that will make any Otaku delirious, fan of the “waifus”, big thighs, great attributes, is something that we have here without skimping, but we also have for those who like girls with more modest attributes.
The fan service is undoubtedly one of the best of this year, because they show us scenes full of “ricura” that crave, but that will also make you laugh because of the irreverent way in which these situations occur.
Ecchi, Fan Service, Comedy are the reasons why you can not miss The 100 Girlfriends Who Really Love You, as it is one of the best exponents of the genre this season and certainly one of the best in this category throughout the year.
Frieren Beyond Journey’s End – Rafael
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End has left an indelible mark with its stellar cast, the protagonist Frieren and the great visuals accompanied by Evan Call’s score, making it one of the best anime of the season and of the year.
The plot dives into Frieren’s regrets, exploring how her inability to make the most of her time with her peers changes the course of her millennial life. Through new encounters, we discover how his past with Himmel affects his present in profound and emotional ways. This journey is both heartbreaking and beautiful, highlighting the impossibility of making up for lost time, but highlighting the importance of valuing each present moment.
The anime maintains an emotional and fascinating consistency, with moments that bring the viewer to the verge of tears intertwined with others that generate applause, all backed by a great animation by MADHOUSE studio.
Although some may disagree due to genre and rhythm preferences, the perfection in the elaboration, the harmony in the movement, the care with the characters and their environment make this series an example of excellence that proves to be an almost perfect work in itself. If Frieren is not on your list of anime to watch, it should be.
