I usually watch slice-of-life series, but this season, I’ve had way more action and drama than I set out to watch. I’m a sucker for isekai, slice-of-life, slice-of-life isekai, though I feel like it isn’t reflected on the shows I watched for this season.

My top picks for this season are Kyuujitsu no Warumono-san [Mr. Villain’s Day Off] and Saijaku Tamer wa Gomi Hiroi no Tabi wo Hajimemashita [The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash].

Disappointment for this season is Sasaki to Pii-chan [Sasaki and Peeps].

Worthy of special mention (warning) is Isekai de Mofumofu Nadenade suru Tame ni Ganbattemasu [Fluffy Paradise].

With that, here’s my thoughts of the anime I’ve watched this season.

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Finished, or about to be finished series

Kusuriya no Hitorigoto [The Apothecary Diaries]

I didn’t really expect much from this series, mostly because of the raves it got. I was pleasantly surprised though.

The characters and the writing are good. The “worldbuilding” is good too, giving us a well-fleshed-out view of the time and place the story is set. If there’s one complaint I’ve got about this series, it is that at some points, the plot seems to be pushed along by some deus-ex-machina. I wouldn’t mind a series where nothing much happens, but this isn’t that kind of series.

Sasaki to Pii-chan [Sasaki and Peeps]

Its premise and the impressive first episode impressed me. However, it ended up being a mixed bag for me.

On one hand, I‌ liked how the main character isn’t an overpowered protagonist blasting his way through his problems even though he has the means to, but on the other hand, his methods didn’t translate on-screen as well as it might have had in theory. He’s set up to be this masterful negotiator, but despite efforts to showcase this, it fell flat. The real-world intrigue as well as the other-world politicking also wasn’t developed well enough too.

This series might have fared better as a 2-cour season, though having more episodes to play with might just make its pacing problems even worse. All in all, I was disappointed in this one. It gave a promise of a good premise, but its botched execution just squandered it.

Chiyu Mahou no Machigatta Tsukaikata [The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic]

Having already read the manga (but forgot until after watching the first episode), I just wanted to see how they adapted their source material. It’s okay, I guess?

The characters could have been written better for the anime though. Despite some effort, they still felt flat and stereotypical. The MC, most especially, felt to me as if he’s just being strung along the story, even despite declaring that he’s willingly staying and committing to the path that lays ahead of him.

Also, I felt that the title is a clickbait. I’ve encountered some discussion as to what the title meant, but I don’t really buy into any of them, even though I think one of them makes a lot of sense.

Loop 7-kaime no Akuyaku Reijou wa, Moto Tekikoku de Jiyuu Kimama na Hanayome Seikatsu wo Mankitsu suru [7th Time Loop: The Villainess Enjoys a Carefree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy!]

To be honest, I don’t even know what I expected when I started watching this one. I don’t know what I wanted out of this title, and I don’t know what to do with what I got.

It isn’t terrible, but I didn’t really care enough about the characters to care about what happens to them. I finished it, if only to sate my curiosity. Perhaps I’m just not the target market for this kind of series.

Isekai de Mofumofu Nadenade suru Tame ni Ganbattemasu [Fluffy Paradise]

Came in for the slice-of-life fluffiness, came out horrified by the fluffy redacted implications.

If somehow I can turn back time and warn myself about this series, I wouldn’t be sure if I want to warn myself. This series seems so innocent and fluffy, but the implications of what the MC is trying to do, which she fully believes in, is just horrifying.

Kyuujitsu no Warumono-san [Mr. Villain’s Day Off]

This series is the fluffiest of all the series I’ve watched this season and is my favorite of all of them. If you’re looking for a quick relaxing watch before going to bed, or a palate cleanser after watching something horrifying, then this is a good series to watch. Just don’t binge it all in one sitting, I guess, as that’d likely cause a diabetic coma.

The characters here are as flat as a pastel drawing on paper, but I think that’s part of its charm. There are character backstories here and there, but these serve as a contrast to the scenes we do see being played out.

Saijaku Tamer wa Gomi Hiroi no Tabi wo Hajimemashita [The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash]

I didn’t even expect this series to have an anime adaptation. However, the source material of this is so good, I am glad it got an adaptation. As for the adaptation itself, it didn’t disappoint. In fact, I liked the anime better than the manga, or the webnovel. With that, it shouldn’t be a surprise that it’s my second most favorite this season. It just lost to Mr. Villain’s Day Off due to this one having more melancholy drama and a bit of action.

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Series that will continue until the end of the next season

Dungeon Meshi [Delicious in Dungeon]

I walked into this expecting a nice laid-back slice-of-life series, perhaps of a restaurant inside a dungeon, with stories from the different adventurers stopping by for a bite. However, I am not complaining about what I got, not one bit(e).

While premise of this series reeled me in, and it certainly didn’t disappoint, the characters gave me a pleasant surprise. They’re deeper than I expected them to be, with their motivations and backstory giving their shenanigans a bittersweet vibe to it. Except Senshi. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s got a surpisingly dramatic backstory as well.

Tsuki ga Michibiku Isekai Douchuu 2nd Season [Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2]

I’ll get one thing out of the way first: I enjoy trash isekai. I watched the first season of this series, and I‌ liked it. This season is also okay. I guess.