Akikan!

Starts Airing: January 3, 24:00
Station: BS11
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Yuji Himaki (Bouken Yuuki Pluster World)
Webpage: http://www.melomelomelon.com/

From My Anime List:

The story revolves around a typical high school boy named Kakeru Daichi and the can of melon juice soda that he bought from a vending machine. The can suddenly transforms into a beautiful but standoffish girl that Kakeru nicknames “Melon,” and more “Akikan” (”empty can”) girls appear. However, Akikan girls need to be infused with carbon dioxide from kissing to survive.

This sounds like a big excuse to have a ton of fan service series. Girls suddenly magically appear, as they have to be kissed to survive. And let me guess, they’re going to all be falling over the lead male, usually with little to no clothes on. This sounds like it has minimal plot with a lot of potential to be stupid. I don’t think I’ll be wasting my time on this.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Asu no Yoichi!

Starts Airing: January 8, 25:29
Station: Nippon TV
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Rion Kujo (A Heat for All Seasons, Love Doll)
Webpage: http://www.tbs.co.jp/anime/yoichi/

From My Anime List:

The titular character Yoichi decides to leave his family’s mountainside home after his father tells him there is nothing more he can learn in martial arts there. The teenaged boy ends up in a martial arts dojo in the city with four girls.

I don’t think this series is pretending to be anything other than a fan service harem-fest. We have a boy, secluded from society, going into the world for the first time, only to be surrounded by 4 very hot woman in a dojo right off the bat. Jeez, tell me what happens next. Pure ecchi harem series are really starting to run thin for me.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Before Green Gables

Now Not airing until April

Starts Airing: January ??, ??
Station: BS Fuji
Episodes: 26
Director: Unknown
Webpage: http://www.akageno-anne.jp/

From Wikipedia:

This book is about the death of Anne Shirley’s parents and the resulting struggles of Anne’s pre-Gables youth. The book shows how deeply in love Bertha and Walter Shirley were. The book also tells details about the fever that killed Anne’s parents. The book tells in detail the emotions Anne feels, the people in her life, and the way she connects with other people till she is on the train to Green Gables. The Thomases are bizarrely bitter.

I remember watching some of the (US live action) Green Gables series when I was younger with my sister (as she liked it), but I don’t remember much from it. Usually I just skip over the Masterpiece Theater anime series without much thought, but I might at least think about this one.

Josh’s Judgment: May Watch

Birdy the Mighty DECODE:02

Starts Airing: January 10, 22:30
Station: Tokyo MX TV
Episodes: 13
Director: Kazuki Akane (Birdy the Mighty Decode, Vision of Escaflowne, Noein)
Webpage: http://www.birdy-tv.com/

From Anime News Network (from Season 1):

Tsutomu Senkawa is an average high school kid who is busy studying for his senior entrance exams. Tsutomu goes out for some fresh air, after a hard day’s work studying for a big test, when he runs into a guy fleeing from a pretty young lady. The pursued man is actually an interplanetary criminal on the run from a Federation agent called Birdy Cephon Altera. Caught in the midst of this chase, Tsutomu gets thrown by the man at Birdy, which kills Tsutomu. Fortunately for Tsutomu, there is a way to keep him alive, although it comes at the price of discarding his body. He ends up merged into Birdy’s body.

Birdy was one of the better series from 2008, so I’m definitely checking out the 2nd season. This would be a prime candidate for a blogging spot if I wasn’t restricting the number of series I was blogging.

Josh’s Judgment: Will Watch

Black God

Starts Airing: January 8, 26:40
Station: TV Asahi
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Tsuneo Kobayashi (Emma: A Victorian Romance, Midori Days, Twelve Kingdoms)
Webpage: http://www.kurokami-anime.net/

From Wikipedia:

Keita Ibuki is an independent and struggling freelance computer programmer who, with two of his friends, is developing and trying to sell a video game program to big-time video game companies in Tokyo while trying to stay afloat and survive financially with money being given to him by his 21-year old childhood friend Akane Sano. He had a chance meeting on one night with a high Mototsumitama named Kuro while eating alone at a ramen stand. He gives her his dinner, a bowl of ramen, and tries to protect her when she is attacked in an ambush by an unknown Mototsumitama. Keita loses his entire left arm during the fight between the Mototsumitamas, but Kuro was able to save his life by exchanging the decapitated arm with her own left arm since she has enhanced healing abilities like all Mototsumitamas. This creates a contract between them, which makes her more powerful than before. However, Kuro warns Keita that they need to be together all the time in order to be at their strongest.

This looks like a sort of fighting anime, but the art looks interesting and the story sounds like it at least has some potential.  The complicating factor about watching this show is that Bandai Entertainment has now licensed it, which means I won’t watch it via fansubs, but I would watch it if Bandai makes it available online (as they’re airing it on iATV simultaneously with Japan).  However, as of now, Bandai has announced no plans to do so.

Josh’s Judgment: May Watch

Chrome Shelled Regios

Starts Airing: January 10, 25:00
Station: TV Kanagawa
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Itsuro Kawasaki (Rengal Magica, Arc the Lad)
Webpage: http://anime.webnt.jp/regios/

From My Anime List:

In this school fantasy story set in the distant future, creatures contaminated by pollution have overtaken the land, forcing humanity to live in isolated mobile cities called Regios. One such city named Czerni is a self-contained school in which freshman Reifon Aruseifu has just enrolled. Reifon reluctantly joins the 17th Martial Arts Studies Unit led by the third-year student Nina Antōku and embarks on a series of adventures.

There is precious little that I can find out about this show, besides the setting, but it pretty much looks like people going out and beating up on monsters which have been mutated by pollution – a standard “Monster of the Week” show. Given that this season is already looking pretty good, I think I can safely pass on this.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Fighting Spirit: New Challenger

Starts Airing: January 6, 25:29
Station: Nippon TV
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Jun Shishido (My Wife is a High School Girl, The Story of Saiunkoku – 2nd Season)
Webpage: http://www.ntv.co.jp/ippo/

From Anime News Network (for the 1st season):

Ippo, a timid highschooler, is one day saved from being beaten up by Takamura, a boxer. Enthralled by Takamura’s skills Ippo begins to learn boxing, soon finding love for the sport and a drive to challenge the boxing world.

I’m not particularly excited by sports anime of sports that I do like, much less sports that I don’t particularly like. Besides, I never watched the first series, so this goes on the “no” pile.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

The Girl Who Leapt Through the Heavens

Starts Airing: January 5, 25:30
Station: TV Tokyo
Episodes: Unknosn
Director: Masakazu Obara (My-HiME, My-Otome, My-Otome Zwei)
Webpage: http://www.sorakake.net/

From Anime News Network:

The story is set in the year 311 of the Orbital Calendar, when humanity has migrated to countless colony clusters in space. A space colony girl named Akiha Shishidō encounters a malevolent artificial intelligence named Leopard that has been installed on a colony. Akiha is joined by an Inter-Colony Police officer named Itsuki Kannagi, a taciturn young girl named Honoka Kawai, and a robot named Imoko “Imo-chan” Shishidō.

I’m not sure what to think of the fact that this show’s title is a play on the movie/manga The Girl Who Leapt Through Time” (Sora o Kakeru Shoujo vs. Toki o Kakeru Shoujo). This looks like a typical ‘hot girls flying mechas around” type series, so unless I see something that distinguishes this series, I think I’ll pass.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Kemono no Souja Erin

Starts Airing: January 10, 18:25
Station: NHK Kyouiku
Episodes: 50
Director: Takayuki Hamana (Chocolate Undergrouind, The Prince of Tennis, Sisters of Wellber)
Webpage: http://shop.kodansha.jp/bc/books/topics/kemono/p2.html#03

From The Null Set:

After her mother, a veterinarian, is executed for allegedly killing a clutch of fighting snakes, the daughter Erin is adopted by a beekeeper and meets the king of the animals in the mountains. Erin follows in her mother’s footsteps to become a veterinarian and this decision will put the fate of the kingdom of the animals in her hands.

This sounds like a historical fantasy show, which I tend to find somewhat hit or miss in my experience. This would normally go into the “may watch” list, except that it’s listed to be 50 episodes long, and I’m always hesitant to start watching a series that long, especially if I’m not totally sure about it.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Major – Season 5

Starts Airing: January 10, 18:00
Station: NHK Kyouiku
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Unknown
Webpage: http://www3.nhk.or.jp/anime/major/

From Anime News Network:

Shigeharu Honda is a Major Leauge batter on the rise. His son Goro is a Little League pitcher who one day hopes to follow in his father’s footsteps. Momoko Hoshino is Goro’s schoolteacher, and the first woman Shigeharu has been interested in since the death of Goro’s mother. The destines of these three individuals will become intertwined as father and son experience both heartbreak and triumph on the baseball diamond. But when an unspeakable tragedy visits the family, it will take everything they have to pick up the pieces and reclaim their dreams.

Another sports show, and given that I haven’t watched any of the first four seasons, this is a pass.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Maria Holic

Starts Airing: January 4, 24:30
Station: Chiba TV
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Yukihiro Miyamoto (Directorial debut)
Webpage: http://www.mariaholic.com/

From My Anime List:

The story centers on a sophomore named Kanako who enrolls in all-girls school because she has a phobia of men and wants to find her destined yuri partner. She meets a captivating freshman named Mariya who fits her criteria — except her seemingly ideal mate happens to be a cross-dressing sadistic boy.

Well this story seems to have an interesting twist…a would-be yuri show thrown on it’s head by a cross-dressing guy? It’s kind of like a trap show in reverse or something. This show would be a prime candidate for the “may blog” list if I wasn’t restricting the number of series that I was blogging as much as I could while I finish my last semester before I get my master’s degree (yay!)

Josh’s Judgment: Will Watch

Maria Watches Over Us – Season 4

Starts Airing: January 6, 25:15
Station: Chiba TV
Episodes: 13
Director: Yukihiro Matsushita (Blue Dragon, Maria Watches Over Us Seasons 1 – 3)
Webpage: http://www.gokigenyou.com/index2.htm

From Anime News Network (for the 1st season):

Yumi is a first year student at the Lillian School For Girls, an exclusive all girl’s catholic school. The school has a tradition that older girls take a younger girl as their little sister or “soeur” in order to instruct and look out for them. Though Yumi admires Sachiko, a reserved second year student who is a member of the student council, she has no hopes of being chosen as her soeur. When an innocent encounter leads Sachiko to impulsively ask Yumi to be her soeur, Yumi is suddenly brought into the inner circle of the Roses, who are the members of the student council. With Sachiko at her side, Yumi begins to unravel and understand the relationships between the Roses and their soeurs and figure out her own feelings for Sachiko.

This series actually sounds somewhat interesting. Too bad I never got around to actually watching the first three seasons of it, and I’m not going to start watching a show in it’s 4th season.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Minami-ke Okaeri

Starts Airing: January 4, 25:30
Station: TV Tokyo
Episodes: 13?
Director: Kei Oikawa (Directorial Debut)
Webpage: http://www.starchild.co.jp/special/minami-ke/3/

From Anime News Network:

There are three of the Minami sisters: Haruka, Kana and Chiaki, who have an average life. The girls only have each other to depend on and help each other get through everything from love confessions to cooking.

The good news: it’s a third season of Minami-ke. The bad news: it appears to be done by the same people who did the second season instead of the first season, which was the rather lackluster of the two. This has a different director than either, so hopefully they’ll bring back much of what made the first season great, but we’ll see. Since I loved the first season and liked the second season at least reasonably well, this goes on the watch list.

Josh’s Judgment: Will Watch

Ride Back

Starts Airing: January 11, 24:00
Station: Chiba TV
Episodes: 12
Director: Atsushi Takahashi (Directorial Debut)
Webpage: http://www.rideback-anime.jp/

From My Anime List:

Ride Back tells the story of a girl and her “iron horse” robot motorcycle in 2020, a tumultuous time of anti-government student protests.

Wow, there is nothing about this show out there. A girl rides a kick-ass bike during a “time of anti-government student protests.” This sounds interesting enough to at least put it in reserve, I think.

Josh’s Judgment: May Watch

Shikabane Hime: Kuro

Starts Airing: January 4, 23:30
Station: Chiba TV
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Masahiko Murata (Gilgamesh, Jinki: Extend, Shikabane Hime: Aka)
Webpage: http://www.starchild.co.jp/special/shikabanehime2/index.html

From My Anime List:

The “Corpse Princess” of the title is Makina Hoshimura, an undead girl who hunts down 108 corpses in order to go to heaven.

This series, also called “Corpse Princess: Kuro” is a second season to Shikabana Hime: Aka, which is currently airing in Japan. Even if this wasn’t a sequel, I’m not sure this series sounds compelling or interesting enough to watch, but given that it is a sequel to a series that I haven’t watched, it goes on the “won’t watch” list.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Slayers Evolution-R

Starts Airing: January 12, 09:30
Station: AT-X
Episodes: 13
Director: Takashi Watanabe (Boogiepop Phantom, Shakugan no Shana, Slayers)
Webpage: http://www.starchild.co.jp/special/slayers_revolution/er

From Anime News Network (from 4th season):

Having lost the Sword of Light in the previous battle, Lina and Gourry continue their journey in search of a replacement weapon. On the way, the two of them meet up with Amelia and Zelgadis in the kingdom of Luvinagard while taunting some pirates. Lina is happy to reunite with her old friends, but appearing before her is Luvinagard’s Inspector of the Special Investigative Unit; a man called Wizer. However, Lina is amazed at his unusual behavior..

Slayers has always intrigued me as a series, but it’s rather intimidating to try to catch up on a series when it already has 4 seasons under it’s belt, and as such I haven’t watched any of them (and thus, won’t watch this).

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

Sora o Miageru Shoujo no Hitomi ni Utsuru Sekai

Starts Airing: January 13, 24:45
Station: Chiba TV
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Yoshiji Kigami (Munto)
Webpage: http://www.munto.com/

From My Anime List (from Munto):

Akuto, the main source of energy is running low and the Heavens, a world of islands, hidden beyond time, floating above ours, has united against the Magical Kingdom whom uses the most energy. To save both the Magical Kingdom and the Heavens and restore the flow of akuto, the Magical King Munto must follow a vision and find the girl Yumemi in the lower world. Yumemi herself is just a normal girl except that she is the only one who can see the islands of the Heavens floating above. When Munto appears before her she starts thinking about hers and others responsibility to the world.

This series (also known as “The World Reflected in the Eyes of a Girl Looking Up at the Heavens” or “the series with the long-ass name”) is a continuation of the OVA series Munto, though apparently those two OVA episodes will be retold at the start of this TV series, so the fact that this is a “sequel” isn’t really an issue when it comes to watching it.

The description of at least Munto isn’t necessarily overly thrilling, but this is apparently a KyoAni series, which automatically makes it credible. However, with so many good series floating around, I’m hesitant to put this on the “will watch” list too soon, so it goes onto the “may watch” pile for now.

(This is also the first time that I’m aware of KyoAni working on two series at the same time if the January air date holds up).

Josh’s Judgment: May Watch

The Tale of Genji

Starts Airing: January 15, ??
Station: Fuji TV
Episodes: 11
Director: Osamu Dezaki (Ashita no Joe, CLANNAD: The Movie, Nobody’s Boy – Remi)
Webpage: http://genji-anime.com/

From Wikipedia:

The work recounts the life of a son of a Japanese emperor, known to readers as Hikaru Genji, or “Shining Genji”. Neither appellation is his actual name: Genji is simply another way to read the Chinese characters for the real-life Minamoto clan, to which Genji was made to belong. For political reasons, Genji is relegated to commoner status (by being given the surname Minamoto) and begins a career as an imperial officer. The tale concentrates on Genji’s romantic life and describes the customs of the aristocratic society of the time. Much is made of Genji’s good looks.

I’m not necessarily one for historical anime, but this sounds interesting enough to at least put it on the maybe list.

Josh’s Judgment: May Watch

The Tower of DRUAGA -the Sword of URUK-

Starts Airing: January 8, 25:30
Station: Tele Tama
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Koichi Chigira (Gate Keepers, Last Exile, Tokyo Babylon, Tower of Druaga: The Aegis of Uruk)
Webpage: http://www.druaga-anime.com/

From Anime News Network (from 1st season):

The Summer of “Anu”: In a summer once every five years, demons in the mysterious Tower of Druaga lose their powers due to the magic spell cast by a god named “Anu”. King Gilgamesh, ruler of the kingdom Uruk, uses the appearance of demons as an excuse to invade the tower and find out the construct’s secrets. As 80 years passed, the Uruk army managed to fight back the demons and built a fortress city and safe haven on the very first floor of Druaga – Metz Kier. Thus begins the story of a warrior named Jil who, finding companions along the way, embarks on a quest for the fabled Blue Crystal Rod, a powerful artifact rumored to be in the highest floor of Druaga. However, other competitors, including the kingdom of Uruk itself, want the treasure, all for their own reasons.

I’m kind of mixed on this one. The first season was kind of a mixed bag, going from absolutely hilarious to deadpan boring from one episode to the next. However, it was decent enough that I’d at least consider watching this series. I’ll probably just wait to see how the rest of my viewing/blogging slate shapes out first.

Josh’s Judgment: May Watch

Viper’s Creed

Starts Airing: January 6, 22:00
Station: ANIMAX
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Shinji Aramaki (Appleseed)
Webpage: http://viperscreed.jp/

From My Anime List:

The story revolves around the members of a private military company (PMC), and the uneasy tension between them and the regular military after a war that caused massive environmental destruction.

It’s people riding big bikes fighting other people. Sounds exciting. OK, not really.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch

White Album

Starts Airing: January 3, 26:00
Station: TV Kanagawa
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Unknown
Webpage: http://www.whitealbum-tv.com/top.htm

From Anime Nation News Blog:

The White Album game centers around Toya Fuji, a college student dating a rising idol singer named Yuki Morikawa. The game deals with the challenges to the couple’s relationship from the other people at Fuji’s college, Morikawa’s work, and elsewhere.

This anime, adapted from a 10 year old visual novel, appears to have some nice looking art, but it’s very difficult to find very much out about the story, and there is nothing about the story that makes this immediately attractive. However, if the anime goes along with the game, it sounds like the premise is that the main male lead started out with a girlfriend and the story was their troubles staying together instead of trying to woo girls as other visual novels are like. That at puts this show on the “may watch” list.

Josh’s Judgment: May Watch

Zoku Natsume Yuujinchou

Starts Airing: January 5, ??
Station: TV Tokyo
Episodes: Unknown
Director: Unknown
Webpage: http://www.natsume-anime.jp/

From My Anime List:

The story revolves around Natsume, a boy who has been able to see ghosts since he was little. Unfortunately, humans shun him, and there is not much fondness between him and ghosts either. One day, he inherits a Yūjin-Chō (”Book of Friends”) from his grandmother. The book is actually full of contracts that his grandmother made to trap ghosts. As one ghost after another shows up, Natsume tries to release or help them — even while many of them seek vengeance on him.

This is a second season of the slow and lighthearted supernatural series Natsume Yuujinchou which aired in the Summer 2008 season. Amazingly enough, I did watch that season, but I don’t think it was really good enough for me to go back for seconds.

Josh’s Judgment: Won’t Watch