In a departure from their custom, Crunchyroll hosted an exclusive press event at their Los Angeles office and on-site theater to celebrate the release of a new anime season for Spring 2024. This event featured an early screening of some of the series that will be the centerpiece of Crunchyroll’s future season, including Kaiju No. 8, Black Butler: Public School Arc, Astro Note, A Condition Called Love, and Bartender Glass of God. It was MC’d by Kyle Cardine, the Global Editor-in-Chief of Crunchyroll News. This schedule of releases makes it evident that there are more new anime for a wider range of audiences than ever before, with something action-packed, ambient, humorous, and even romantic to enjoy this season.
The anime that Crunchyroll has pushed the most has, for the past few seasons, been among the most widely watched and talked about. Solo Leveling was the anime for winter 2024, and Jujutsu Kaisen’s second season had a massive production in the summer and fall of 2023. I’m here to inform you that they’ve done it once more! The highly anticipated manga is brilliantly adapted in Production I.G.’s Kaiju No. 8 premiere episode, which has a shockingly high score and the kind of high-quality sakuga that fans of action-shonen anime anticipate.
In the opening episode of Kaiju No. 8, which takes place in a universe where kaiju assaults are so prevalent that Japan has established para-military task teams particularly to cope with them, Kafka Hibino, the protagonist, immediately sets the show apart from its shonen peers. The Attack on Titan references end here. Instead of being a driven young man fulfilling his ambition to battle the enormous monsters that destroyed his youth, he is 32 years old and works on the kaiju corpse cleanup team. He accepts that he’s content in his life and appreciates that he’s serving the public with his profession, but he regrets his inability to pass the Japan Anti-Kaiju Defense Force entrance exam. Kafka immediately connected with me as a vivacious 30-year-old whose career hasn’t been going the way I want it to lately.
My fondness for Kafka is reinforced by his friendship with Mina Ashiro and the excellent animation of the series. Being a well-known captain in the Defense Force, Mina has achieved far greater success than Kafka despite being five years younger. The fact that he inspired her to enlist in the Defense Force and served as an older brother figure to her when they were younger is a salve to this pain. His feelings of happiness and even pride over Mina, along with his aggravation with his own situation and jealousy of her, are incredibly relatable and deeply human.
Kaiju No. 8’s excellent animation skillfully conveys these nuanced feelings as well as a host of other complicated emotions. In this episode alone, Kafka makes so many great looks, and the show isn’t hesitant to experiment with different animation and art techniques to emphasize a point or make fun of the grossest aspect of his work. Action sequences, on the other hand, elevate the animation from a 9 to a 10, and it’s engrossing to watch Kafka run for his life across a completely wrecked downtown city block.
This part made me realize that, as the highest-scoring anime of the season, Kaiju No. 8 is already a clear favorite. When it was revealed that YUNGBLUD’s “Abyss” and OneRepublic’s “Nobody” would be the opening and closing themes for the series, it attracted some notice; nonetheless, the series is noteworthy throughout. This anime isn’t very musical, but it hits the synth notes just perfectly during the action scenes to give the impression that you’re watching a breathtaking show.
For the sake of not adding fuel to this hype train, I thought it was frustrating that, although being essential to Kafka’s motive, we didn’t gain much insight into Mina’s character. Mina, who serves as a kaiju killing machine except from one scene in which the viewer witnesses her exiting a bath, has less lines than Kafka’s tsundere new hire at his day job. I hope the series continues to show more of those humanizing moments. We get some beautiful views of her and Kafka’s dynamic as youngsters, which allow us to intuit how they’ve made each other the individuals they are today.
You’ll be seeing a lot of this type of animation over the next three months, so hopefully you enjoy this fresh take on humans vs. gigantic monsters.
Black Butler: Arc Review of Public Schools
Fans of Black Butler, rejoice—more Black Butler is on the way! The Black Butler, not to be confused with the same-named Chainsaw Man storyline In the Public School Arc, Ciel Phantomhive enrols in the esteemed Weston College public school to look into the disappearance of a few children at Queen Victoria’s request. Seeking the truth behind this mystery, the two traverse the school’s many ancient traditions and rigorous hierarchy with the help of their trusty demonic butler, Sabastian, who is posing as a new housemaster. Along the way, they meet a diverse cast of individuals.
To be honest, I’ve always considered Black Butler to be on the outside of the anime community. I am aware that despite the long pauses between new seasons, it has a sizable and devoted fan base that has persisted for almost ten years. The return of the show makes me sincerely glad for these people, and after seeing the premiere, I can see why so many people find it relatable.
This anime episode features a tonne of gorgeous boys and hot males performing weird things. I think it’s safe to assume that if you already enjoy the show, you’ll enjoy what this new season has in store. If you’re as fresh to the show as I am, you should definitely start with the anime, but even if you’re not, this episode still has a lot to offer.
To start, CloverWorks is adept at prioritizing the animation, as evidenced by the numerous fancam moments dedicated to Ciel, Sebastian, and the several new males who join the ensemble this season. Plenty of humor originating from the antiquated customs at the heart of Weston College’s culture can also be found, such as the return of the protag running with toast in their mouth bit and Sebastian’s overzealousness causing problems for Ciel.
But this is where the main problem I have with this episode starts. The majority of Weston College’s student body appears to be intentionally mocking private education and the elitism that may be fostered by such an establishment. Characters refer to it as a public school, nevertheless, in what seems like every other conversational exchange! I’m not sure if this is a peculiarity of the Black Butler series, or if there is a cultural gap between Black Butler’s Japanese culture and my distinctly American upbringing, but I found it annoying whenever this contradiction occurred. It’s possible that I’m taking this series too seriously, or that the seemingly incorrect wording is intended to highlight the absurd culture at this school. Even still, I was really bothered by it for the entire show.
Of course, it shouldn’t deter anyone from watching this show, and I would appreciate it if any fans of Black Butler could get in touch with me and let me know if I’m missing any jokes. I can take this program where it is and enjoy the odd bit of Britishness that appears in the translation in the meantime.
