Summer 2015 anime preview

Written by A. H. on 25 Jun 2015

The weather may be heating up, but will anime follow suit? That's right, it's time for our traditional round-up of all of the new season anime coming to Japan over the coming months, and as per usual there's plenty of adaptations, spin-offs and original works promising to fill your summer with... well, stuff, mostly.

But which stuff will be good and which will be bad? Allow us to offer what insight we can into what might capture your attention for this coming anime season, so read on and see what catches your eye!

Akagami no Shirayuki-hime

Official web site
First Japanese broadcast date: Tuesday 7th July 2015, 12AM

We kick things off with a shoujo manga adaptation from Studio BONES, which translates as Snow White with the Red Hair. Its story is the tale of a striking red-haired girl who escapes the kingdom she calls home when a prince tries to make her one of his concubines. Her travels brings her into contact with a prince and his aides from another nearby kingdom, and she finds herself falling in with them and sharing their travels as a result.

Should I watch it? The series looks likely to focus on characters and relationships rather than non-stop swords, sorcery and action, which might make for a refreshing change for this otherwise fantasy-led series. If you're ready for a little shoujo anime this summer, you'd probably do worse than giving this a look.

Aoharu x Kikanjuu

Official web site
First Japanese broadcast date: Friday 3rd July 2015, 1:45AM

Survival games have been a popular topic for manga and anime in recent years, from the deadly in the form of BTOOOM through to the silly with Sabagebu. This brings us to Brain's Base's manga adaptation of Aoharu x Kikanjuu, a story of a high school girl who disguises herself as a boy and finds herself caught up in a host of survival games - a set of circumstances which sees her team up with, of all things, an erotic manga artist as this duo set out to become amongst the country's best.

Should I watch it? It's difficult to get a fix on what this show wants to be from its premise, but if your eye hasn't been caught by that brief plot description then we'd be surprised. Thus, we'd cautiously suggest that this might be worth at least catching the first episode of to see what you make of it.

Aquarion Logos

Official web site
First Japanese broadcast date: Friday 3rd July 2015, 12AM

After a successful return to TV screens for Shoji Kawamori's Aquarion franchise in 2012, this mecha series gets another outing for 2015 to celebrate its tenth anniversary in the form of Aquarion Logos. Given its heritage, expect robots, drama and (perhaps most importantly) a Yoko Kanno soundtrack - complete with an opening theme performed by May'n - from the series.

Should I watch it? It's hard to tell how heavily this will lean on lore established in previous Aquarion series, but if you're after a mecha show for the summer there's no shortage of pedigree associated with Logos, and major mecha aficionados are probably already up to speed with the franchise anyhow.

Bikini Warriors

Official web site
First Japanese broadcast date: Wednesday July 8th 2015, 1:35AM

We're pretty sure the title of the show says it all for this entry, and failing that the trailer should fill in the gaps - girls in bikinis, big knockers, and weird slime creatures that make those bikinis melt. Feel animate this series of shorts set in an RPG-esque world where a group of girls get together to challenge a demon king without even having the time to get dressed first.

Should I watch it? If you're writing a PhD on jiggle physics in anime, then this is certainly an important part of your research. If not... well, just don't let anyone catch you watching it, okay?

Chaos Dragon: Sekiryuu Sen'eki

Official web site
First Japanese broadcast date: Thursday 2nd July 2015, 10:30PM

If you were to pick out one marketing bullet point about Chaos Dragon, it would be the part that makes mention of Gen Urobuchi, although that said he is just one of five creators (also including Durarara creator Ryogho Narita) that came up with this concept spun out from their love of tabletop RPGs.

The result is a franchise constituting smartphone and tabletop games, and of course this original anime series from Silver Link, which delves into a battle for supremacy between two huge nations in the year 3015, and the involvement of a small, independent island which sits between them.

Should I watch it? Given the creators involved in at least the core concept of this series, it'll be interesting to see what develops from it, although that may well depend upon how much input those creators have into the episode-to-episode content of the series, which is likely to be far more limited if not minimal.

Charlotte

Official web site
First Japanese broadcast date: Sunday 5th July 2015, 12AM

Remember Angel Beats? A terrific series reportedly cut back in its prime due to a shortened broadcast run which led to much of its content being excised. With that in mind, perhaps we should hope for a different fate for this latest collaboration between Jun Maeda (of Key visual novel fame) and P.A. Works in the form of original summer season show Charlotte.

The series imagines an alternate reality where some children find themselves gaining superpowers upon reaching puberty. Rather than immediately moving to Stern Bild, they instead go about their normal lives, and Charlotte follows a student council who do their utmost to help these teenagers do exactly that by assisting them in overcoming whatever troubles they face.

Should I watch it? The phrase "written by Jun Maeda" will probably give you your instant yes or no answer, as chances are you'll either love or detest his output. Personally, I can't wait to see what it has to offer, and it's a potential highlight of the summer.