Well folks, now that J.C. and I are finished with convention prep for like… maybe a week or so (we have another one coming up in early November… why do we keep doing this to ourselves?), I’ve got time to hopefully finish up the Autumn seasonal first impressions. I should note once again that these posts don’t include the (many, many) sequels airing this season, nor the Netflix-only series since they’re on their own schedule (at least in the United States). I may do a small sequel round-up at some point (though I don’t intend to review any sequels I’m not familiar with), but that will depend on time and motivation.
In any case, there appear to be six series left to look at, so to avoid awkward-sized posts I’m going to split them up into two groups of three. Look for part 6 sometime in the next couple of days (once I sleep off my convention bad habits).
Assassins Pride
Only those from noble families have the mana to be able to fight against monsters. Kūfa is a noble born to a duke’s family who is sent to tutor a young woman named Merida. If it turns out that Merida has no talent with mana, Kūfa is secretly instructed to assassinate her. – ANN
Streaming: Crunchyroll and Hidive
Episodes: 12
Source: Light Novel
Episode Summary: Kufa Vampir is an assassin hired to serve in an undercover capacity as the tutor to Melida Angel, a young noble. Melida has never shown any ability to use mana, and because of it there are those who suspect that she may be the product of an affair between a nobleman and a commoner. It’s Kufa’s job to uncover the truth of the matter, and, if Melida truly doesn’t belong to the noble class, he’ll have to assassinate her.
As Kufa monitors Melida, it’s clear that she doesn’t possess the ability to wield mana in the same manner as a true-born noble. Kufa prepares to end her life, but a chance encounter with Melida in the night impresses upon him her intense determination and her desire to work her way into the highest level guild. He proposes something dangerous – he’ll intervene to awaken her magic, although there’s a chance she might lose her life in one way or another because of it.
Impressions: On paper this didn’t sound like a series I’d find interesting. Both the old-fashioned, very gendered relationship of the two lead characters (a gentleman assassin essentially holding in his hands the life of the young woman in his care) as well as the assassin’s overly traditional use of polite language (the particular phrase “milady” has lots of other connotations these days and has become kind of a joke) didn’t jive with my tastes. Surprisingly, though, the first episode is entertaining despite some of these questionable traits.
While the episode doesn’t spend much time explaining it, the world in which the story takes place is intriguing. Reminiscent of Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, the various destinations seem to be interconnected by a rail system and housed within protective barriers, while the world outside is nothing but darkness and danger. Unfortunately the amount of actual world-building is minimal and the episode mostly focuses on the character introductions and interactions. I hope that later episodes spend a little more time talking about the world’s mechanics, because as of this point it all feels a little bit hand-wavy.
The framing of some of the scenes is unusual as well, though I feel a little bit more ambivalent about that. Some scenes are powerful in their use of long shots and inclusion of environmental elements to show character relationships. In particular, there’s a scene during which Melida and her cousin have a tense conversation with one-another, with the archways of the school’s architecture emphasizing their disconnect from one-another. It reminds me of some of the ways Ikuhara used this type of framing in Revolutionary Girl Utena. On the other hand, throughout this same conversation during close-up shots of the characters, the camera is focused pretty much everywhere except for the characters’ faces. This has the benefit of showing different forms of expression than what one normally encounters – arms reaching forward, characters’ feet as they shift and face different directions – but anime already has a problem with ignoring what female characters are saying in favor of showing off their body parts, stripping away their personhood. I don’t think the focus on the girls’ legs in one scene necessarily has the same effect, especially since this doesn’t seem to be a fanservice-focused anime; it does, however, have the odor of a misstep and I hope I’m proven wrong.
I like stories about “running from the law” so-to-speak, and this first episode definitely has that element of intrigue on its side. I just hope the character relationships and the world get some fleshing-out in the meantime.
Cool and calculating. 
Melida is a bit clumsy. 
Still cool and calculating. 
Melida fights back even when at a disadvantage.
Pros: The setting is really interesting. The scene framing often adds to the drama of the scene. Some really good action animation.
Cons: There focus on everywhere but the characters’ faces during tense conversations could be an issue. Kufa’s speech tendencies are irritating. The student/teacher relationship could be a minefield.
Content Warnings: Character’s value based on birth status/class. Violence. Muddy student-teacher relationship.
Grade: B-
No Guns Life
With no memory of his previous life—or who replaced his head with a giant gun—Juzo Inui now scratches out a living in the dark streets of the city as a Resolver. – ANN
Streaming: Funimation
Episodes: 12
Source: Manga
Episode Summary: Juuzo Inui is a relic from the past. During the great war, he became a cyborg at the mercy of the Behrügen Corporation. Now, though he retains no memory of that time, he uses his obviously enhanced abilities to help manage crimes committed by “Extended,” individuals who indulged in body-enhancement after the war ended.
One night, Juuzo is approached by an Extended who begs him to watch over the lifeless body of a boy they have in tow. Juuzo takes up the offer, but soon learns that there are other factions hoping to take control of this child. The kid is a boy named Tetsuro who has a very odd and dangerous ability – he’s been imbued with a power called “Harmony” which allows him to control other Extended individuals remotely. Juuzo hates humidity and he really hates kids, because suddenly everything becomes complicated when they’re involved. Still, he’s got a job to do, and kid or not he’s obligated to rescue Tetsuro from his captors.
Impressions: For many years it seemed as though the trend in anime was toward more light-hearted inconsequential fare populated by cute girls. Over the last couple of seasons I’ve felt the pendulum start to swing in the opposite direction, with several series echoing the look and feel of the type of hard-boiled 1990’s OVAs that I remember from my fandom formative years. I’ve come to believe that both types of entertainment have their place, but I’d be lying if I tried to claim that dark, gritty anime didn’t play into some very nostalgic feelings for me.
That’s likely why I enjoyed this episode. It definitely has some problematic aspects; aside from the inherent violence of the premise itself which will obviously be tolerable or not depending on the tastes of the viewer, there are some brief moments of objectification of a female character, as well as a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it side character who seems to embody several gay/trans stereotypes that anime continues to have a problem with. However, the show seems to lean in to its inherent ridiculousness just enough to wring some real entertainment value out of what’s left. I mean, the main character’s head is literally an old-fashioned revolver attached to a terrifying metal maw, which sounds like a character concept a child might have come up with if they were given the mission to create someone cool and bad-ass. It reminds me of watching gory (yet edited-for-TV) anime films on Saturday mornings on the Sci-Fi channel.
As with many other series this season, it’s more the world-building aspect that interests me. There are some obvious Ghost in the Shell and Blade Runner comparisons to be made in this case, since both attempt to address the existential question of what makes us human and to what extent does artificial body modification take away from that humanity. Tetsuro’s body has been mutilated to the point that he can’t move his limbs or speak with his own voice, but he can send his essence into other mechanical bodies and experience the world that way. Does this constitute a new type of human existence? I hope that buried within the action and violence this series might attempt to address that more completely.
I wouldn’t want just anyone touching my trigger, either. 
Juuzo is approached by someone in need. 
You’d think in the future that clothes might fit a little better. 
Tetsuro experiences the world remotely.
Pros: Recalls the feel of gritty 1990s OVAs. The setting has a lot of interesting potential.
Cons: Some objectification of women. Some brief gay/trans stereotyping.
Content Warnings: Violence, body horror, gun imagery.
Grade: B-
Stars Align
The teen adolescence story revolves around the coming-of-age of boys in a junior high school’s soft tennis club, which is on the verge of shutting down. Touma Shinjou asks Maki Katsuragi to join the team for his vaunted abilities, and mentions a summer competition. Katsuragi asks for money in return for joining the team. – MAL
Streaming: Funimation
Episodes: 12
Source: Original
Episode Summary: Toma Shinjo is the captain of the failing boys soft tennis team at his junior high school. Though the team saw success in the past, the current members have no interest in putting in the requisite effort. Unfortunately, the student council has taken notice and threatens to withdraw school funding unless the club wins at least one upcoming game. Toma works to recruit new members, but no one wants to have anything to do with the club for obvious reasons.
When Maki, a familiar face from Toma’s past, transfers into his class, Maki’s quick reflexes inspire Toma to recruit him to the team. However, since Maki lives with his single mother he’s got more responsibilities than the typical middle school kid. Finally Toma breaks down and offers to pay Maki for his time and even offers him a racket to use, which gets Maki to grudgingly join the team. Unfortunately a visit from Maki’s abusive father later that evening may complicate things even further.
Impressions: This episode sets up what appears to be a pretty standard underdog sports series centered around two boys from opposite sides of the financial spectrum. In its last few minutes, however, it takes a sharp turn and delves more deeply and distressingly into one of the characters’ home situations, and it’s at that point that we discover that there’s definitely more here than meets the eye.
Abuse is one of those topics that’s rarely broached in anime in any substantial way. Because anime is fundamentally entertainment and so much of it crosses over into fantasy and supernatural realms, this type of mundane human darkness doesn’t always seem to have a good place in the stories that are typically told. That, and fictional media as a whole has a difficult time utilizing human darkness in a realistic way without either glorifying it, romanticizing it, or otherwise misrepresenting or avoiding its true after-effects. That’s one of the reasons why I tend to side-eye depictions of rape or sexual abuse; history has shown me that this type of content is more often used as cheap character motivation or to establish a certain atmosphere without regard to how these acts actually affect people or how characters might navigate and recover from them. I cannot tell you how tired I am of experiencing “kick-ass Strong Female Characters™” whose devil-may-care attitudes and propensity for committing violent acts against others are the result of having been raped by somebody. Ditto for the assaulted sisters, mothers, and girlfriends who are man-pain motivation for some lackluster dude.
Anyway.
The last couple of minutes of this episode introduce the reason behind Maki’s mother’s divorce, as well as perhaps Maki’s money-focused bargaining with Toma. Maki’s father physically abuses him and also exerts financial abuse by stealing cash from the family. There’s an element of horror knowing that he knows where his abuse victims live, and I doubt we’ve seen the last of the character at this point. I just hope that the show spends enough time focusing on the aftereffects and consequences of Maki’s father’s treatment of him, rather than keeping it to the realm of pure shock value.
In any case, this seems like something well beyond the typical underdog sports series, and I’m definitely here for it.
The boys soft tennis club is a disaster. 
The student council decides to put the smack down on wayward clubs. 
The soft tennis club has a lot of worries. 
Toma and Maki definitely have a past.
Pros: The story is clearly more than meets the eye. Tackles a tough subject in a thus far fairly realistic way.
Cons: Whether the abuse angle is a one-time shocker or carries through realistically will carry a lot of weight going forward.
Content Warnings: Physical abuse, financial abuse.
Grade: B+