The Summer 2024 season is coming to a close after an especially impressive line-up, ranging from the groundbreaking animation in Oshi no Ko Season 2 and Too Many Losing Heroines, to the meme material in My Deer Friend Nokotan and VTuber Legend. But now its time is up and the Fall 2024 season is bringing some serious competition to the table.
This year saw a growing trend in experimentative animation styles, and we’re excited to see come in full force with lesser known animation studios stepping up to the plate. With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of the most highly anticipated and visually interesting anime to watch this Fall 2024 season.
Let us know what you’ll be watching in the comments below!
1. Dandadan (Science SARU)
Top of the list is one of the most highly anticipated series of the year. Dandadan follows the story of Momo, a high school girl who comes from a family of spirit mediums, and her classmate Okarun, an occult fanatic. After Momo rescues Okarun from being bullied, they begin talking. However, an argument ensues between them since Momo believes in ghosts but denies aliens exist, and Okarun believes in aliens but denies ghosts exist.
The anime is being adapted from the widely beloved manga written and illustrated by Yukinobu Tatsu, and animated by the critically acclaimed Science SARU. The studio is best known for their work on Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, Star Wars: Visions, and the recently released feature film The Colors Within.
2. Uzumaki (Drive, Akatsuki & Fugaku)
No, this is not about Naruto.
Based on the Junji Ito manga of the same name, Uzumaki is a four-episode anime adaptation that tells the story of the citizens of Kurouzu-cho, a fictional town which is plagued by a supernatural curse involving spirals. As the madness spreads, the inhabitants of Kurouzu-cho are pulled ever deeper, as if into a whirlpool from which there is no return…
Uzumaki is often described as Junji Ito’s magnum opus, which makes this a must-see for any fan of the mangaka or general horror fans. The manga was nominated for an Eisner Award in 2003, and placed in the Young Adult Library Services Association’s list of the Top 10 Graphic Novels for Teens in 2009.
3. Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War – The Conflict (PIERROT FILMS)
We inch closer and closer to the ending of the Bleach anime every year, and Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War – The Conflict returns to put another notch in our belts. The Conflict is the third part out of four, with the first cour premiering in October 2022 and the second cour premiering in July 2023.
4. Blue Lock VS. U-20 JAPAN (8-bit)
After a highly successful first season, Blue Lock returns for its second outing focusing on the match between Blue Lock and the U-20 National Japan team, in which the survival of the Blue Lock project is at stake. Season 2 new cast members include Eiji Mikami as Yo Hiori, Kakeru Hatano as Nijiro Nanase, Satoshi Hino as Oliver Aiku, and Akihisa Wakayama as Shuto Sendo.
Written by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and illustrated by Yusuke Nomura, Blue Lock follows Japan’s football team as it struggles to regroup after a disasterous defeat at the 2018 World Cup. But what’s missing? An absolute Ace Striker, who can guide them to the win.
5. Re:ZERO Starting Life in Another World Season 3 (White Fox)
Re:ZERO returns for a third season, proving that the franchise is indeed alive and well. In Season 3, a year has passed since Subaru’s victory at the Sanctuary. He savors a life of fulfillment while Emilia’s camp stands united for the royal selection until a fateful letter arrives. Anastasia, a royal selection candidate, has invited Emilia to the Watergate City of Priestella. But as the party begins its journey, crisis stirs beneath the surface and Subaru meets a cruel fate once again.
6. Blue Box (Telecom Animation Film)
Based on the manga series by Kouji Miura, you might just be looking at the romance anime of the season! Blue Box follows Taiki Inomata who loves badminton, but he has a long way to go before he can reach nationals. When Taiki sees upperclassman Chinatsu Kano practicing her heart out on the girls’ basketball team, he falls for her hard. After an unexpected turn of events brings the two closer together, sports might not be the first thing on their minds anymore!
7. Ranma 1/2 (MAPPA)
A remake of Rumiko Takahashi’s Ranma 1/2 was not on anyone’s bingo card, but we sure are happy it’s here! If you didn’t grow up with Ranma 1/2 like the rest of us, here’s a quick primer: Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendou of Tendou Dojo are betrothed to each other by their parents, but Ranma faces a unique problem. Ever since he fell into the cursed springs of Jusenkyo while training in China, his body has acquired the peculiar trait of transforming into a girl when doused with cold water and reverting to a boy with hot water.
8. Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Disturbance (LIDENFILMS)
The second anime adaptation of Rurouni Kenshin premiered its first season in July 2023, and after being received well by fans, a second season is currently premiering this October! Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Disturbance retells the story of Kenshin Himura, a seemingly plain wanderer whose true identity is that of the infamous hero Hitokiri Battousai, who disappeared into thin air after the war.
9. Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Season 5 (J.C. Staff)
In the fifth season of Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, Bell Cranel is here and ready to enjoy the bustle of the Goddess Festival until he receives a letter from a girl at a small bar in a corner of Orario—”To Mr. Bell, please go on a date with just the two of us at the upcoming Goddess Festival. From Syr.” Meanwhile, the Einherjar, the warriors who claim to be the “strongest,” are now suddenly on the move.
10. ONE PIECE FAN LETTER (Toei Animation)
Although not technically an anime series, ONE PIECE will be celebrating the 25th anniversary of the ONE PIECE anime with a special anime adaptation of the ONE PIECE light novel, Mugiwara Stories. The light novel is a collection of three sections from each volume of the ONE PIECE Magazine, containing stories from normal people’s perspectives on the Straw Hat Pirates.
This includes a story of a Marine watching Luffy trying to protect Ace during Marineford and how it reflects their relationship with their younger brother, who is also a Marine on Marineford. Another story is of Zoro getting into an argument over who’s the best swordsman after Dressrosa. And another features a kid pirating Soul King’s concert on Sabaody Archipelago.
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