2022 was an absolutely incredible year for anime. We got everything from a new series starring a guy with chainsaws on his head and arms to the emotional finale of one of the most cherished series of the past decade. It’s a tough act for 2023 to follow. Fortunately, the future looks bright. And some of our favorites from 2022 might even make an appearance.
More series (especially returning ones) will certainly be announced over the course of the coming year—we already know we can probably expect more Spy x Family, and a fall return of Chainsaw Man is definitely in the cards. But the titles we already know about are promising in their own right. We have a reboot of a beloved classic, an adaptation of one of the best Japanese action games of the last decade, the long-awaited adaptation of a fan-favorite webtoon, and the actual ending to the biggest series of the 2010s. Let’s see what’s in store, shall we?
Nier Automata Ver1.1a
2023 is going to be a huge year for film and TV adaptations of video games. We’re getting the first Mario movie in three decades and a series based on The Last Of Us, which looks suspiciously promising. But, personally and with bated breath, my most anticipated gaming adaption of the year is Nier Automata Ver1.1a from A-1 Pictures (Kaguya-sama: Love Is War, Lycoris Recoil). If you haven’t played Nier Automata, you really should, and now that it’s available for Switch, you no longer have an excuse. It’s a hell of a game about a dystopia overrun by robots, with android soldiers fighting on behalf of humans, which requires multiple play-throughs that (spoiler?) give you alternate endings. In other words, it’s perfect anime fare.
To sweeten the deal, we have the VAs behind Attack on Titan‘s Mikasa Ackermann and Demon Slayer‘s Tanjiro Kamado in the leading roles, 2B and 9S, respectively (remember, they’re androids conscripted by humans). But in terms of actually showing us what’s in store, A-1 Studio’s been playing their cards very close to their chest ahead of the series premiere—which just makes me all the more excited.
Release date: January
Trigun Stampede
Vash the Stampede is back, and he’s hot now (sorry, not sorry). Trigun Stampede is a reboot of the 1998 space opera-style classic, which centers around a wanted man and his struggles on a dystopian desert planet. Given last year’s reboot of Urusei Yatsura, we might be entering a time when treasured anime of the ’80s and ’90s are given a refresh. In that sense, Trigun Stampede is perhaps holding even more weight than the legacy of the original. This is all the more intriguing because the studio helming the project is Orange (Beastars), which is known for specializing in CG. While many are eager to see how Trigun Stampede diverges from the original, the reaction from fans (and how loaded that might be) is also going to be interesting to gauge.
Release date: January 7
Vinland Saga, season 2
Vinland Saga‘s second season is “anticipated” in the purest sense of the term. Season 2 takes place one year after the conclusion of the first, but real-world fans have had to wait four years to see the continuation of Thorfinn’s story. Part of the wait may have due to the fact that—strikingly similar to Attack on Titan‘s shift between seasons 3 and 4—Vinland Saga has jumped from Wit Studio to MAPPA. But don’t worry about a change in tone, because Shūhei Yabuta is still returning as director.
Release date: January 9
Demon Slayer: Swordsmith Village Arc
Yes, everyone’s favorite demon-slaying golden boy is back! I am, of course, talking about Inosuke. But Tanjiro, too, will be returning to your screen for the highly anticipated Swordsmith Village Arc, as Nezuko stays safely in her box. Ever since Mugen Train smashed box office records all over the world, Demon Slayer has become one of the biggest names in anime. What more can I say? Ufotable will definitely make it look gorgeous, the stakes will be high, and Inosuke will continue to be my beautiful best buddy. Keep an eye out for a traveling theatrical tour of the final episodes of the previous Entertainment District Arc, followed by a premiere of episode 1 of the new season.
Release date: April
The Ancient Magus’ Bride, season 2
The Ancient Magus’ Bride started airing all the way back in 2017 and wrapped up in 2018. In other words, it’s been a hot second since we’ve checked in on Chise and Elias. On its surface, The Ancient Magus’ Bride is inspired by both Studio Ghibli and the Beauty and the Beast analogy—only the “Beast” in question bought the “Beauty,” as she willingly sold herself as a slave. He frees her on the condition that she become his apprentice and bride. So it’s considerably darker and not un-problematic. Whether the first season adequately addresses these problems and the power dynamic between its main characters is an active debate among those who have seen the show. Personally, I’m curious to give the first season a rewatch (it’s one of those “I got distracted and stopped” shows for me) and see where season 2 leads.
Release date: April
Jujutsu Kaisen, season 2
Praise the godlike beautiful blue eyes of Satoru Gojo, Jujutsu Kaisen is finally coming back! The excellent film adaptation of Jujustsu Kaisen 0, which serves as a prequel to the series, was released in North America in winter 2022, so it’s not like we’ve been starved. Still, I’ve missed Itadori, Fushigoro, and Kugisaki so much, I’ve started to read the manga. Which is why you can believe me when I say that, wowee, this season’s going to be saucy. It’s going to include the Shibuya Incident Arc. Which. Yeah. When I said I was going to Shibuya on Halloween this past year, all my friends who had read Jujutsu Kaisen knowingly raised their eyebrows. Like I said—saucy, spicy, eventful.
Release date: July
Hell’s Paradise
Look. MAPPA’s adaptation of Chainsaw Man was incredible. Add to that their other successes like Jujutsu Kaisen and the current season of Attack on Titan, and the result is that I have currently reached a point where I will watch anything MAPPA puts out because it’s MAPPA. I know that, at bare minimum, it will be incredibly pretty. And it will also, at bare minimum, be tasteful about its fan service—a nice bonus.
So from that point of view, I’m already interested in Hell’s Paradise. But this new series suckers me in on another front: I love a good period piece, and Hell’s Paradise takes place at the end of the Edo period (late 1800s). That’s a particularly compelling time, considering the following era—the Meiji Restoration—is when “Western modernization” started becoming the norm. Interestingly, Hell’s Paradise also appears to include numerous Buddhist settings and imagery. Also, the main character is a ninja. Win.
Release date: July
Spy x Family, season 2 (and a MOVIE?!)
Forget “six seasons and a movie.” How about “two seasons and a movie announced less than a year after the initial show’s release?” Less catchy, for sure, but no less ridiculous. Yes, Spy x Family‘s second season has been slated for sometime later in 2023. This is excellent news, because it’s delightful and perhaps the most popular breakout series of 2022.
But somehow, there will also be a movie. And to my understanding, this isn’t a season that’s been re-edited into a movie, either. We are talking a whole-ass new movie. I know Spy x Family is made by two studios at once, but a full season and a movie within a year feels like a ridiculous feat. I hope the animators at Cloverworks and Wit can get adequate sleep.
Anyway, more Spy x Family, hooray!
Release date: TBA
Solo Leveling
Among the ever-growing fanbase of both manhwa (South Korean comics) and webtoons (online comics where you read by scrolling down vertically), cries to adapt one popular series in particular have grown increasingly louder over the past few years. And that series is Solo Leveling, also translated as Only I Level Up. An anime adaptation by A-1 Pictures—the same studio behind Nier Automata Ver1.1a—was finally announced at Anime Expo last year. The synopsis is sort of Sword Art Online-ish, involving the sudden opening of gates to an alternate dimension that gives some people superpowers. Our protagonist, Jinwoo, begins as the weakest of the so-called “hunters”—”begins as” being the key phrase.
Release date: TBA
The actual end of Attack on Titan
After two years of misleading subtitling, the end of Attack on Titan is near. The actual ending of the final season will be its third part. For real this time. What kind of horrible morally gray hot messes will occur? How uncomfortable will Eren make me? How many of my favorite characters will die? Who will stop whom from murdering untold scores of people? All this and more, as arguably one of the most influential anime ever made finally nears its thrilling—and assuredly very, very stressful—conclusion. The animation, I’m sure, will be ridiculous. Because MAPPA.
Release date: TBA
(featured image: Ufotable / Netflix / Crunchyroll / The Mary Sue)
