The BEST Anime of Winter 2024 - Ones to Watch 

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"To anyone complaining that Delicious in Dungeon starts off too slow, just..." puts on sunglasses "....let it cook."

The deaf anime having more focus on the lips because of lip-reading etc. is such a brilliant stylistic choice to reflect character pov, that i think that decision alone might make me watch it.

The contrast between Dungeon Meshi and Made In Abyss is quite funny if you've read the manga and know that the two are actually much more similar than at first glance

I'm just gonna say it. Delicious in Dungeon is going to be fantastic. I've read the entire manga. It's amazing. Please, please, please don't sleep on this anime. It's more than just about cooking gourmet monster meals inside of a dungeon.

Jeff: Meiji Gekken is mostly for Japanese history buffs Me: *currently writing my Masters thesis on Meiji Japan* well that was lucky

The sentence "There are 10 isekai this season" shouldn't make me as happy as it does. Then again, I am isekai trash.

I am totally here for Bang Bravern seemingly setting up a love triangle between two men and an alien mecha as earth is being invaded by other alien machines. We already have Bravern gushing over Isami, blushing when Lewis wanted to *ride him* and then uh the *ED* . I can tell it’s gonna be a lot of fun the whole way through.

Here's a quick list, along with time-stamps and where-to-watch. CrunchyRoll (CR) 16; HiDive (HD) 1; Netflix (N) 1; Hulu (H) 1 - TOP 11 - 01) 03:09 - Delicious in Dungeon (N) 02) 05:20 - Metalic Rouge (CR) 03) 07:56 - A Sign of Affection (CR) 04) 10:07 - CHERRY MAGIC (CR) 05) 12:20 - The Witch and the Beast (CR) 06) 14:15 - Sasaki and Peeps (CR) 07) 16:55 - Slolo Leveling (CR) 08) 19:30 - Ishura (H) 09) 22:16 - Bucchigiri?! (CR) 10) 24:48 - Sengoku Youko (CR) 11) 26:42 - Bang Brave Bang Bravern (CR) - HONORABLE MENTIONS - 29:47 - 'Tis Time for Torture, Princess (CR) 30:17 - The Unwanted Undead Adventurer (CR) 31:01 - 7th Time Loop (CR) 31:35 - Villainess Lv.99 (CR) 32:05 - Fluffy Paradise (CR) 32:34 - The Wrong way to Use Healing Magic (CR) 33:15 - Chained Soldier (HD) 34:05 - Hokaido Gals are Super Adorable! (CR) 34:14 - Meiji Gekken: 1874 (CR)

Thank you for giving “A Sign of Affection” the love it deserves!! As a junior VA in Japan who participated in this show (episodes 1 and 2), this really warmed my heart🥹 Thanks Geoff!

the key factor in me deciding to give Bravern a chance is the fact that his theme song is in universe canon playing while he battles 😂 you cant get any better than that

Cherry Magic is a gem. The live action is also full of good feelings.

I was so, so ready to be performatively indignant about the absence of Bang Bravern from this list. I should have had more faith.

The link to your Shield Hero roast after you mention the atrocities of slave harems is the most underrated joke of the video

SO glad cherry magic made it onto this list, the drama is an absolutely iconic classic!!! i hope everyone has fun with it!!

Genuinely surprised Weakest Tamer wasn't anywhere on this list. Its one of the few isekai to actually make me feel emotional in any capacity in its first episode, and its generally a pretty sweet show about a lifelong outcast child finding a sense of belonging with a likable protagonist, and another fresh isekai idea- her "past self" is basically just a voice in her head that chimes in once in a while about its reaction to things (such as screaming over her skinning small animals for food). And funnily enough the audience doesn't hear it, just a chime whenever it makes a comment and the main character reacting to that. Only downside to the show was it only reigning in its need to drop an exposition dump until halfway through Episode 1 and spending like 2/3 of the remaining runtime on her doing so to her new tiny slime friend.

Last years season: YOU ARE MY SPECIAL 😈 This years season: Bling bang bling bling born 🕺🎶🗣️

"Where did this song come from!?" was the exact moment I knew Bravern was For Me.

Normally I would consider playing with the space-time continuum to be highly unethical, but I 110% agree that Bravern shouldn't be slept on and you're doing a service to humanity by upending your video and time itself to spread the good word.

I can't believe I hadn't heard about Metallic Rouge until now, its everything I'm into AND its studio bones. I'm so glad y'all make these videos

I actually really like the character designs in A Sign of Affection and especially the way they animated the mouths. It really helps emphasize that we're experiencing the world through Yuki's perspective, lip-reading along with her. Since anime as a medium doesn't usually overemphasize lip matching, it's a really wonderful detail. I'll also say, if you like A Sign of Affection I can HIGHLY recommend the manga "I Hear the Sunspot," which is a BL romance story with a deaf/HOH character and is similarly detailed in how it portrays disability and specifically diversity in the deaf community (I think there may also be a live action tv adaptation but I haven't seen it yet!). What a great year so far for shojosei in anime! And now we can look forward to Honey Lemon Soda too!

YAY DUNGEON MESHI MENTION! Ryoko Kui is a master of her craft, in my opinion. To all those new to Delicious in Dungeon, please give it a chance. It truly grows into a wonderfully made story, that builds on its world and characters in a satisfying way.

1) I am so pumped for Dunmeshi getting an anime adaptation. It's already doing it justice so far. We eating good. 2) I can only assume at this point that you must have *something* about Apothecary Diaries in the pipeline, since it got functionally left off the Fall Ones to Watch (I know it was for practical reasons due to the way it aired) and it's still running. So I expected it to at least get a nod along similar lines to Freiren. And if you're not planning anything... it'd be cool if you maybe consider giving it a shot and/or some coverage, if you've got the time? I don't know the last time a show mugged me for my loose attention this hard.

Also Bravern has awesome CG work. If Bones is flexing their 2D Animation, Cygames is definitely showing off their 3D.

The greatest anime of this season for me is simply Gushing over Magical Girls. From just the first episode of it, I knew that this would be the anime of this season. I don't know how you can not appreciate this kind of masterpiece, Geoff.

These are the reviews I wait all season for. While I probably won’t check out most of these, it’s always great to hear what new shows are out there!

Gonna say Mr. Villain's Day Off is also very cute and worth checking out.

Bravern is one of the hidden gems.It's been a hit in Japan and I hope people give it a try. It's definitely a defition of chaos.

Dude, I had no Idea that Emily Rudd was playing Marcelle!? Thats really cool, im glad shes finding ways further into the scene! Also as an old, withered Mecha Fan, seeing Bravern's genre flip from Real Robot to Super Robot brought a Yusha Brave shaped tear to my eye.

Dungeon Meshi and Made in Abyss are weirdly similar in that they are both cooking-focused travelogues through menacing Freudian fantasy worlds adapted from niche but surprisingly popular and beautifully illustrated seinen manga written by people who've probably played a lot of Wizardry. The fact that they are tonally polar opposites just proves that this hyper-specific genre nobody previously knew existed has legs. :P

-obsessively checks to see if Winter 2024 anime video is up yet multiple times a day: Oh wait, it’s actually up. Yay!

So glad The Witch and The Beast was mentioned, as a manga reader I can guarantee things are going to get way crazier and super fun, we get to see Guideau beat up sooo many people (and kiss lots of witches

Sign of affection is a perfect, beautiful show... also I have that shoujo lower lip as a bearded man xD

How did no one get it was gonna be super robo, it has brave in the title, TWICE!

I'm really enjoying the melancholy vibe from the Weakest Tamer's first two episodes. Depending on where it goes, it could be a season highlight. For as adorable she (very unconvincingly pretending to be a boy} and her slime can be, there's definitely some darkness there.

i cant thank you enough for mentioning bang bravern. i had a literally sleeper to excited moment when bravern dropped out of the sky after going in blind. the trailer and synopsis were super misleading and i was worried it'd get overlooked. the robot sings his own theme, how could you not love it

I’m all for Netflix jumping on this Anime train, because lately they have been releasing some bangers. Blue eye Samurai, ooku, and Komi were really good if you haven’t checked it out.

20:10 *sigh* I really wish The Executioner and Her Way of Life would get a second season.

the main gripe i have with sasaki and peeps is: why is all the girls underage??? with a middle aged MC i thought we are going to get many adult/mature waifus but instead all of the girls here are underage, wasted potential really.

Going into Bravern blind was such tonal whiplash. I don't think I've ever seen a show tone shift so hard in that direction before.

As someone who's also watched every episode of all the shows out so far, let me tell you... The "bargain bin" is full of pretty actually good shows.

...as a manga reader hearing you call dungeon meshi "laid-back" and "low-stakes" gave me a bit of a shock lmao

7th loop isnt a bargain bin, it is misplaced there, it is super well made, so grab before they noticed the blunder!

The thing I really appreciate so far about Lvl 99 Villainess is that, unlike most Otomisekai I've seen, the "villainess" isn't super sweet and then taking over the game's original harem for herself. It looks like she'll actually bond most closely with other people who weren't major figures in the game. Just feels refreshing. Also, the weakest part of Dungeon Meshi for me is that it's localized title is "Delicious in Dungeon". Nani the f**k is that? The direct translation of the title is Dungeon Food. They chant it like 3 times in the end of the first episode.

Oh shit, I'm gonna get magic powers this year!? Hot damn! Turning thirty while having done nothing with my life suddenly got way more appealing!

I’m so happy you gave some love to the dub cast of Delicious in Dungeon! That’s how I’ve been watching it and I love Emily Rudd & ProZD’s performance. Also shout out to Damien Haas as Laios he’s been crushing it.

Honestly The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic is one of my favorites this season. You will both laugh and get hyped as you watch not-Izumi Curtis use protag-kun’s ability to use healing magic to somehow turn him into a berserker-packing Doom Guy.

I sincerely appreciate the use of Fruits Basket OST in the background for Sign of Affection. Good shoujo recognizes good shoujo.

i think the lip thing in 'A sign of Affection' is to how much more she focuses on the lips due to lip reading or something along those lines

i assume gushing over magical girls was tossed in the, "too dangerous to mention on RU-vid without being peak fiction" bin. As the animators somehow made an even hornier version of the manga, that definitely crosses the H-line multiple times in order to ensure that everyone has to watch fluffy paradise afterwords to cleanse their souls.

Not going into detail but the comparison between Delicious in Dungeon and Made in Abyss is actually a lot closer than you'd think

I'm so happy you talk about Bang Bravern, such an underrated show!

Alrightio, here are your two bargain bargain-bin recommendations from yours truly! - Doctor Elise: While I have no knowledge of a source material, I have enjoyed the first two episodes VERY much! It has some very interesting hooks, and I'm excited to see how it plays out. So far, all the characters are very charming, and Elise is actually pretty refreshing in terms of isekai protagonists! If you enjoyed tearmoon empire, this is essentially that, but with way less tonal whiplash and focused on medicine. Also, if your favorite weirdly specific anime genre is "medical isekai," this is the show for you! I have been craving more since Parallel World Pharmacy, and this is hitting the spot. - The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash: Two episodes in, and I ADORE it. This show does not hesitate to make you feel for the main character, getting you invested in her well-being right off the back. It's technically an isekai, but it's a VERY unique take on it. Ivy can hear and converse with her past life, who seems to have come from our world, but they're clearly separate individuals. We, as the audience, can't even hear Ivy's past life, nor do we even know their name. It's a very fresh take on reincarnation, and I enjoy it a lot! The major problem with it is the animation. Sometimes, it's absolutely gorgeous. Other times, you can count the frames on one hand.

Cherry Magic manga reader: They do reciprocate AND THE STORY KEEPS GOING. also the OP Office lady is the best character. You're welcome.

I'm so glad you squeezed in Bravern. The juxtaposition of serious mecha, borderline gay partner pilots, and Bravern's literal Tokusatsu insanity is just plain *fun* . I think it's the show I'm most excited for every week so far.

I never watch romance anime but Cherry Magic has been giving me all the wholesome I didn’t know I needed. Stellar recs per usual on this channel! 👏🏽

Somebody show this video to Gigguk. He took one look at the trailer of Bravern that was SUPPOSED to be misleading and immediately said “not interested”!

I am so glad you covered Bravern, a friend was recommending it because I really like the VA who plays Bravern, and I decided to give it a shot, but it feels like a fever dream.

I watched Bravern based on your recommendation, and it made me laugh so hard that it caused me to have an asthma attack, and then my continued laughter made me continue wheezing and gave me one hell of a sore throat. 10/10 show would recommend.

Huh, I never would have heard of Bravern before this. Thanks for the Rec!

I THOUGHT BRAVERN WAS GOING TO APPEAR ON THE TRASH, DGSJABHSKWHWHXBJDJ! But yeah, it is based and fun.

It's only Winter for you Geoff !! It was 105°F (41°C) in Adelaide yesterday !!! 🤪

Sasaki and Peeps kinda gives me a our world version of "The Lords Coins Aren't Decreasing" vibe without the regressor aspect :)

Im glad you include where each show is streaming. Im tired of seeing a massive list of cool looking shows only to later realize half of them are on platforms i don't have

The dungeon food anime is fun to watch. Can't wait for it to get to the twist. One piece especially egg head looking amazing. Also they fixed female designs by giving them cake Overall I feel good about this year. Some manga I wanted to see as anime are getting released so it's all good

Sasaki and Peeps needs to go back into the bargain bin on account of it's a middle aged guy collecting a harem of underaged girls. Very cool that they do a total bait and switch and reveal that his new coworker is also in fact underaged.

I AM SO EXCITED TO WATCH DUNGEON MESHI WITH MY FRIENDS But one of them read the manga first and... be suspicious of Geoff's comparison to Made in Abyss

also Bang Brave Bang Bravern might be a spiritual successor to the Yuusha/Brave series anime which is made by a collaboration with Sunrise and the toy company Takara (now Takara Tomy) which was meant to replace Transformers after the franchise sold poorly in Japan during the 90's, Bravern's director Masami Obari also worked on the Yuusha/Brave series anime.

Fair and nice, there is a few I missed as usual, but I have to ask. Where is "The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash"? It is absolutely beautiful and having read the light novels, will be quite awesome to witness. Also no mention of the continued season of The Apothecary Diaries that is somehow still 5.0 with 98% of 67.6K voters. But I understand, that Ace Attorney sponsorship was worth the time and effort you put into it, I'll be getting that.

Sasaki and peeps had a fantastic first episode but then they started the anime bullshit with like 3 underage girls inexplicably attracted to our 35+ year old main character. With a lot of these "ones to watch" I'm going to wait until the end of the season to circle back and see if they are worth watching. I have like 20 plus anime on my list of potentially good shows, and there's no way that I have that kind of time with a full-time job. Anyway, solid list. There are so many that you did miss a few... Specifically, "weakest tamer" is both simultaneously heart breaking and wholesome if that's even possible. When the plot really gets going, they really take the time to build up a fairly nuanced world and set of characters. Also villainess level 99 has a really interesting meditextual spin on it; unlike a lot of "isekai based on game" shows, they explore how the video game is almost a misrepresentation of the events that happen in the world as a result of only seeing things from one perspective. There are a ton of plot points which technically follow the video game on the surface but have completely different implications because of the added context of a fleshed out world with real characters. I won't say anything else for the sake of not giving out any spoilers but I really enjoyed both books despite them being from a pretty well trodden genre. Weakest tamer has a to your eternity vibe in how it presents its world and characters.

i haven’t had the mental capacity to watch anime in a few seasons now, i’ve even stopped paying for my subscriptions for the time being, but i still watch these rundowns for the day i get that itch and enjoyment back. i’ve been looking forward to dungeon meshi for a good long while so it’s nice to know i have that as a pick me up when i’m up for it.

Sasaki and Peeps is incredibly fresh, not only because of the isekai commerce + secret psychic society, but because the MC is an older man trying to solve things peacefuly, and his ersonality is mostly an "already out of f*cks to give, but still in the game"

Solo leveling is going to ve a letdown for people who pay attention and are hoping for character arcs. It's a simple power fantasy isekai adjacent plot that turns into something you never asked for. Very generic.

I was not expecting Geoff to pull out some Astrojax. I haven't seen that shit since middle school.

I'm surprised that "Gushing Over Magical Girls" (Hidive) wasn't mentioned. I guess that it might be the sleeper hit of the season.

I will call it "Delicious in Dungeon" when I am dead in the ground. The subtitles even translate "Dungeon Meshi" as "Dungeon Food" in the show

"Let me in yours" Everything clip I've seen from A Sign of Affection is full of vibrancy and wholesomeness. I definitely plan to watch it

Appreciate the Ascendance of a Bookworm bits at the start, very excited for season 4 of the anime!

The fact that Doctor Elise was not even mentioned is a huge goddamn shame. Easily the black sheep of the season and I'd argue one of the best of the season.

Witch from Mercury and Bravern mentioned! Gay mecha is so back.

Delicious in Dungeon is the perfect winter anime right now! The fantasy setting and the good food are so cozy.

Great season breakdown. Thank you. An anime that started later this season than its contemporaries is _The Weakest Tamer Begins a Journey to Pick Up Trash_ (Crunchyroll). The story is as odd as its straightforward premise-title. Combine a dash of isekai (although whoever that is is like a 3rd-tier character), a little tamer girl too weak to survive, and the weakest possible slime ever, and you get a remarkably touching and innocent story. It has a lot of unexpected depth. It deserves a spot on your Bargain Bin list, if not higher.

These lists every season are super helpful for me. Thanks for consistently making them.

Finally someone on RU-vid mentions Bravern, the successor to GaoGaiGar! One of my favorite first episodes I’ve seen. Also GaoGaiGar is finally legally streaming which is awesome.

4:48 We all know his best roles are Lysanderoth and King Dragon, who sends his regards.

I saw a RU-vid video about the dubbing of delicious in dungeon (the elf girl in particular) and thought "here we go 🙄 everyone gonna moan about the dubbing for no reason" and it was actually a video on how good she's was and all the comments saying they loved it. What a time to be alive.

Really glad you decided to make note of Bravern.

Sorry, just had to pause the video for a sec and praise the immaculate transition from Metallic Rouge to Signs of Affection. Just brilliant.

I greatly appreciated the Truck-kun Enterprises joke, though I initially misread it as Truck-kun Express, which feels like it would've also been appropriate

As a Dungeon Meshi reader, I am waiting with baited breath to watch people freak out about their comfort show suddenly getting real 2/3rds through

SUNGWON CHO WAS THE VOICE OF KAGE!?!?!?!? no way!!!!! My jaw dropped when you said that! I finished the series just last week!! I loved it! I had no idea that was him!!!!! /pos

Gushing over magical girls is my TOP new anime, props for everyone involved to go through with such an outrageous project, Only you Japan!!!

Sign of affection was so good that they started to translate the mangaka's older works and I'm doing one of them. Thanks for paying my rent (๑´•.̫ • `๑)

Escaflowne the movie: Doo Doo Dogwater Escaflowne the show: One of my favorites

the fact that cherry magic actually didn't force us to agonise over the "will they or won't they" for too long and even gave a satisfying end to the story is what I call the ✨cherry✨ on top ...I'm sorry about that

I laughed too hard at the Now Kiss joke. I wish I could like video more than once. lmao

it's actually sad that ishura is off the radar for most people, as in only 3 episodes it's already one of the best anime in this season and has a star-studded VA cast, and It seems to be quite competently written. I really hope more people watch it. Also bang bang bravern is also a fucking banger.

"That's as many as five 2s..." - The Goat of Basements

I appreciate a good number of your picks here, but I need to mention here to anyone trawling the comments that so far, in its two episodes, The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash is both the most well-produced and emotionally touching isekai of the season. It is genuine quality that I would highly recommend.

Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic is way better than Solo Leveling will ever be