Five Anime I Finally Watched During The Pandemic!
All of us have been affected in one way or another during the Covid Pandemic, and many of us continue to be affected worldwide. During the shutdown, many of us found creative ways to pass the time. For anime fans, that meant cleaning house and finally going through that ever-growing MAL “watch later” list. You know the list, the one that rivals the number of One Piece episodes and continues to grow! While our MAL list isn’t atrocious when coupled with multiple legit streaming services and a few questionable ones (RIP Kiss-anime), that list is getting out of hand. So let’s take a peek at a few of the gems we got around to watching.
Please note some of these we’ve reviewed, and some like our lists our swaying in the wind. Also, like gluttons for punishment, our watchlist transcends the limits of time and space! Vintage Anime!
5. Blue Gender (1999)
Basically, Order 66 against all of humanity, in the year 2030, the Earth has been overrun by giant insects known as the Blue. These aliens, the result of an evolved B-cell, kill and harvest humans for food. With much of society destroyed, Earth scientists build a giant space station know as Second Earth in orbit and send away teams to the planet to fight against the Blue and search for sleepers. Yuji, the story’s main protagonist, a B-Cell carrier, was cryogenically frozen in 2008 due to an incurable disease. He is awakened by Marlene, a soldier from Second Earth.
Blue Gender is a twenty-six-episode anime co-directed and co-written and created by Ryōsuke Takahashi, best known for Cyborg 009, Armored Trooper Votoms, and Garasaki. Blue Gender was licensed in North America by Funimation and aired on the Sci-Fi Channel and Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim.
Blue Gender is a post-apocalyptic, space mecha, romance, action anime that was not widely popular due to its dark themes and adult nature.
4. Vampire Princess Miyu (1997)
Based on the horror manga by the same name Vampire Princess Myu is a twenty-six-episode anime that aired from 1997 to 1999. It follows the story of Miyu Yamano, a young teen who, like your favorite loli, is much older than she appears! Miyu is a Daywalker, impervious to holy water, mirrors, or sunlight, tasked with sending stray Shinma back to the darkness.
These stray Shinma reside in the living world, often possessing as humans.
A few have romantic relationships with humans, while the majority pray on the dark desires of the human heart.
Appearing as your typical high school anime on the surface, Vampire Princess Miyu is part treatise on the human condition and part Miyu’s story. Joined by her companion Lava, Miyu must fulfill her destiny.
3. World Trigger (2014 -)
World Trigger falls outside of the watch later list as it was happened upon by accident. Due to a 30 day free trial of VRV, which includes subscriptions to Crunchyroll and HIDIVE, World Trigger was a happy accident. A 73 episode happy “f*cking” accident! It was worth it! Before the synopsis, go “sub over dub.” First, the sub is better, and second somewhere around episode 49, or so you’ll have to watch it in sub anyway as there is no dub for the Fugitives Arc. Should it be that big of an issue, call us, and we’ll talk you through it!
Nevertheless, the events of World Trigger center around Mikado City, where one day, a portal to a parallel universe opens. These beings are known as Neighbors and attack Mikado City. To combat these constant incursions, the Border Defense Agency is created. They can hold back this menace using weapons known as “Triggers.”
Border Agents in training are forbidden to use Triggers outside of headquarters. One such agent, Osamu Mkumo, finds himself drawn knee-deep into the conflict when he responds to what he thought was a bullying incident outside of headquarters. Osamu would come to the aid of Yuma Kuga; a recent transfer student later revealed to be a Neighbor escapee to Mikado City.
2. Assassination Classroom (2013 - 2016)
Assassination Classroom is a forty-seven-episode anime spanning two seasons adapted from the manga Ansatsu Kyoushitsu written by Yuusei Matsui. It’s also one of the few action anime that brought out our sensitive sides.
The anime follows Class 3- E (a bunch of misfit students) of Kunigigaoka Junior High and the daily life of an octopus-like creature (their homeroom teacher). These students are assigned a mission – kill the teacher and save the planet earth. This task isn’t simple – this alien/creature has God-like powers and no weakness!
Koro-sensei, the teacher/monster, has impressive powers. He can fly at blinding speed, so apparently, it’s hopeless even to try and defeat him. To top everything, he is the best teacher these students ever had.
The plot of Assassination Classroom is very engaging, and all characters are likable. The series takes a lighthearted and straightforward start, but it becomes a roller-coaster as the story unfolds. Hands down, this anime finds an endearing route between scary moments and humorous characters.
It contains a substantial amount of depth, and if you’re a fan of great storytelling, it’s an anime that doesn’t fall flat after the climactic crescendo.
1. Steins; Gate (2011)
Here is an anime that, while not AOT, is just as legendary and involves a mad scientist. An anime is never complete without a mad scientist, Dr. Gero, Dr. Stone (Maybe), Dr. Kamiya, Bill Gates, Dr. Fauci, etc.
The story of Steins;Gate revolves around the self-proclaimed “mad scientist” protagonist named Rintarou Okabe. He rents out a certain room in a rundown rickety old building in Akihabara, of all places, where he proceeds to indulge himself in his orthodox hobby of inventing prospective "future gadgets''.
His two fellow laboratory members, Mayuri Shiina, his air-headed childhood friend, and Hashida Itaru, a peculiar perverted hacker nicknamed "Daru'' for short. The three of them pass their time idly by tinkering with their most promising contraption so far; a machine called the "Phone Microwave.” This strange contraption performs the abnormal function of morphing bananas into piles of green gel…
The initial episodes may seem like a typical general Slice of Life/Comedy anime. Once the Phone Microwave takes the stage, though, its ability to send text messages through time changes everything, as the messages sent to the past end up having a significant impact on the present.
Okabe then learns of an evil organization called SERN and their cruel ways, and he is left with no choice but to use time traveling methods to keep from getting captured and to prevent their plans. From this point on, the Sci-Fi thriller part of the series flares up.
The story then becomes fascinating and quite complex, blowing viewers’ minds with each episode. The execution is perfect, and there are no typical tropes at play in this series. The plot is well thought out, featuring several jumps in time that won’t cause any confusion and keeps the viewers’ attention centered. The pacing may seem ragged at first, but it eventually tones down into perfection.
