T5W#334-Top 5 Most Anticipated Anime of 2022

Every year, the world of Anime continues to grow and evolve.  Fresh new IPS take a shot at the big time while a dozen new Issekai try to break new ground and never come close to matching the popularity of Sword Art Online.  For me, I’m always open to new stories but it’s the ones I grew up with, that got me into Anime that will always take priority.  2022 will see the end of new legends and the return of some familiar ones we haven’t seen in a lonnnnng time.  I don’t know if I’ll be watching all of them but you can bet I’ll keep a close eye on them (maybe even line up one or two of them for reviews, you never know).  So, to kick off our 2022 slew of Top 5 Wednesdays, lets look at my Top 5 Most Anticipated Anime of 2022.

 
#5-Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island

While the original Mobile Suit Gundam is still a masterpiece, there is one episode that Yoshiyuki Tomino himself said looked so ugly, it has rarely ever seen the light of day beyond its initial airing and has NEVER had an official US release in any Mobile Suit Gundam full series collection.  Well, that “lost episode” is getting a short film release (actually I don’t know if it’s a short film but it’d be hard to stretch the premise into a feature length one).  Set near the end of the first quarter of the TV Series, Cucuruz Doan’s Island sees Amuro Ray crash landing on the titular island and encountering a Zeon deserter who has mad it his vow to protect three young children whose parents were killed because of his actions.  Since we’ll be waiting a bit longer for the next chapter of Gundam Hathaway, any new Gundam is good news for me.
 

#4-My Hero Academia (Season 6)

Season 5 of My Hero Academia was good though I don’t think the show has blown my mind as it did all the way back in Season Three with All Might’s throwdown with All for One (Season 4 did have the school festive song which still makes me cry).  The “My Villain Academia” arc, however, was intense and full of some of the most powerfully tragic moments in the entire series.  As that arc ended, Shiguraki now had an entire army at his beck and call and in Season 6, he’s gonna put said army to work.  The all out war between Heroes and Villains will finally arrive and that offers a ton of promise.  This event has the potential to make or break Deku and his classmates as heroes in training.  Will Deku and Shiguraki finally get a chance to face off in the biggest battles the series has ever had?  Think we’ll need to go far beyond PLUS ULTRA for this one.

 
#3-Attack on Titan-The Final Season (Part 2)

Now I haven’t been watching this show for a long time but I cant ignore just how much of an impact Attack on Titan has had, not just in the Anime community.  I remember back during the heyday of Season One when non Anime fans were chatting about how mindblowing this new show was…and many say that Season One was nothing compared to how good AoT has become.  Unlike last year though, THIS IS IT!!!  There’s no other break, there is no “Part 3”.  When Attack on Titan returns (this weekend I think), we’re finally getting to the final trials of Eren Jaeger and what’s left of his squad facing off against Titans and the desperate darkness in their own hearts.  Maybe once this show wraps I might think about adding it to my review queue in 2023…maybe for Halloween?  Hmmm…Extended Halloween Series…imma table that for now.

 
#2-Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 Season 2

My second favorite Anime franchise after Gundam returned in 2020 with a new look and an extra directing hand.  It’s not quite the Stand Alone Complex we were all expecting and it’s been pretty divisive amongst the fanbase (the awkward CG Animation is a key cause of debate). Still no clue when the second half of SAC_2045 is due out but  once it’s all complete I can get around to reviewing it (might even aim it for November of this year as a potential review zone.  No matter how it all goes down, I’m always excited for new Ghost in the Shell and I hope that the original English Cast from Stand Alone Complex is still down to reprise their roles.  And I’ll say it…Motoko still looks sexy as hell…at least the CG didn’t do her a disservice in my eyes.

 
#1-Bleach: The Thousand Years Blood War Arc

Ohhhhh boy…it’s finally time then?  When Bleach wrapped its first run in 2012, it ended with yet another filler arc while the Manga still had a long way to go.  Well, just like Inuyasha, Bleach is back with its “Final Act.”  I wont lie…I fell off Bleach lonnnnng before the end because I felt it was taking too long and the filler was just dumb (as it is with most Shonen Anime).  Still, this is Bleach and it was one of the “Big Three” for a reason back in the day, along with Naruto and One Piece.  I know a lot of people who are super excited for this and the prospect at seeing a Big Three reunion of sorts in the Fall of 2022 with Bleach, One Piece and Boruto (YES NARUTO ISNT DONE IT JUST CHANGED ITS DAMN NAME!!!), that’s actually kind of exciting to think about.  Will Bleach’s last arc be any good?  Still plenty of time to catch up on the Manga for a taste of what’s to come…and trust me, Blood War is kind of putting it lightly.