The List
Our 5 Favorite Premieres of Winter 2020
by Jacki Jing & Lynzee Loveridge,
You're bundled up with a hot cocoa while the snow piles up outside. Icicles hang perilously from your front door frame. It's way too cold out there, so let's get cozy with five of our favorite premieres from the Winter 2020 anime season! We've got mysteries, fantasy, sports, and even a little fashion to brighten things up around here.
5. Haikyu!! To The Top!
My volleyball boys! Hinata and Kageyama are hot off their win again Shirotorizawa and need to get
prepped for their next big game: nationals. Despite his impressive performance, Hinata is disappointed
to find out that he WASN'T selected to participate in elite training camps like some of his teammates.
That calls for some last-minute espionage as he breaks into the program and plans to prove himself to
none other than Shirotorizawa's coach (who has a bias against short athletes). This is Haikyu!!'s fourth
season and if you haven't jumped on board of this amazing sports series' bandwagon it's time to hop on.
It's got camaraderie, emotional intensity, amazing animation, AND it's really funny!
(Streaming on Crunchyroll)
4. ID: INVADED
Murder is afoot and detective Sakaido isn't your average Sherlock Holmes. He's diving right into the
minds of killers in order to solve the circumstances of their crimes using advanced technology but it's
easy to lose yourself if you wade around in a criminal psyche too long. Or maybe it's just that Sakaido's
hands aren't as clean as he thinks? This series is setting itself to keep you guessing as it twists and
turns. You're going to want to check it out and see if you can put the case's clues together.
(Streaming on Funimation)
3. Smile Down the Runway
Fashion seems like an unusual topic for a shonen series, but Smile Down the Runway is hoping to get
bring excitement like it was a typical action show. Ikuto is a poor high school student with three
siblings and an ailing mom. His dream is to be a fashion designer but he can't afford college and there's
no way he'll get hired without a degree. He's about to give up on his aspirations of designer stardom
with he meets his classmate Chiyuki, a beautiful magazine model that wants to walk the
runway—except she's only 5'2. Together they hope to defy the odds but if you've seen The Devil Wears
Prada, high fashion is no cake walk.
(Streaming on Funimation)
2. Somali and the Forest Spirit A cozy series about a girl adventuring with her dad. Well, just that her dad is a 1,000-year-old golem and their “adventure” is trying to figure out what happened to all the humans. Somali lives in a beautiful world of fairytale-like creatures and more than a few inhabitants that would like to eat her. She and her new golem dad keep her humanity underwraps by passing her off as a child minotaur while searching for a family to take care of her. Not that the golem would mind, but his lifespan is about to run out. This series is really cute and the background art is nothing short of gorgeous.
(Streaming on Crunchyroll)
1. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!
If you're passionate about art, anime, or both, you cannot miss Masaaki Yuasa's Keep Your Hands off
Eizouken! The series is about three high school girls who set out to start a club in order to make anime.
Not just watch it, but actually create it. The short and highly imaginative Midori loves anime,
especially background and mechanical design. She draws up machines in her sketch book and creates
whole new worlds to explore. Tsubame loves animation too, especially character animation, but as an
attractive model with wealthy parents, they won't allow her to participate in a nerdy pursuit like
“anime.” The trio is rounded out by Sayaka, a tall and lanky girl always looking to make some cash. It
sounds like a simple “kids want to start a club” premise but the show is really dedicated to the
imagination and craft that goes into this medium that we all love. If you've ever gotten excited about a
story you wanted to create, you'll love diving head first into Eizouken's imaginative trio.
(Streaming on Crunchyroll)
What were your top five premieres of the new season? Let us know in the poll and forums!
Last week we asked how you would rank our choices for best goth anime. Here's the results!
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