Winter 2023 Anime Awards

Hey guys! The Winter 2023 Anime Season has officially come to a close this week and I'm excited to shout out my superlatives for the season!

(Original) Anime Of The Season

Blue Lock is my pick for the anime of the season and like maybe it's cheating slightly given that this show is a continuing one from Fall of 2022 but I really couldn't find it in myself to pick any other original anime to win cause of how Blue Lock was leagues better than everything else! For the longest time I wasn't the biggest fan of sports anime but in the last few years I've found myself enjoying more and more of them cause they really are just shounen anime set in the real world and I find that sports shows that focus on the crazy over-the-top action like shounen do are exactly my cup of tea which is exactly what Blue Lock does. I mean this show's entire premise is literally that soccer is not a team sport and that the teams that will win are the ones full of selfish egocentric players which is hilarious and wrong cause of all the sports soccer definitely is entirely based on the team but I had so much fun watching this show anyway! It was basically one big tournament arc and I loved seeing our characters grow and I can't wait for more!

Runner Up - Tomo-Chan Is A Girl!

Hidden Gem 

High Card is my pick for hidden gem of the season. This show basically follows the idea of what if 24 playing cards was spread out around the world and each card gave it's user a superpower. We follow one team that works for the government in order to collect the cards back to keep the peace but they're constantly running up against a mafia who's also trying to collect cards in order to rule the underground world. It's full of action and adventure but there's also a heavy focus on character development as we really get to dig into each character and what makes them tic. I honestly haven't heard of anyone watching this which is totally unfortunate cause it's a fun heist show!

Runner Up - Sugar Apple Fairy Tale

Best Sequel 

My Hero Academia Season 6 is definitely the best sequel of this season though it only just beat out Bungo Stray Dogs cause the second half of season 6 really took everything that we thought we knew and tossed it on it's head. Manga readers have been hyping up the first half of season 6 for years and I was a bit let down by it if I'm being honest. I mean don't get me wrong it was really good but I just wasn't that emotionally invested until we got to everything with Endeavor and the Todorokis and then we did a time skip and suddenly Deku was finally an interesting protagonist! I have been saying since almost the start of this anime that I always found it hilarious that this show literally took every part of a hero's backstory and growth arc and gave it to Shoto who's a side character while Deku's only character motivation was that he was good. I also hated how overpowered Shigaraki felt in the first half of season 6 cause I could not picture how Deku would be able to keep up with him let alone defeat him but somehow the second half of season 6 made me fully get on board. I loved that he went on a lone wolf arc but that he ended up right back with his classmates knowing that they are his strength. I also low key feel like with half of the pro-heroes quitting that we can finally return the focus back to the kids cause that was my other problem with this show and how they kept struggling to balance the pros with the kids.

Runner Up - Bungo Stray Dogs Season 4

Greatest Animation/Character Design

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale had the best animation this season cause it was just so unique. I haven't seen another show animated in this way maybe ever! I loved that everything was so soft and bubbly and pink and yet there was such a dark undertone to this show given that it's literally about enslaving fairies. Every character looked different from each other and the way the fairy wings and the sugar sculptures sparkled was magical!

Runner Up - High Card

Best OP 

Giri Giri Ride It Out by Fantastics from Welcome To Demon School Iruma-kun Season 3 is the best OP of the season. It was a jam like every other Demon School op!

Runner Up - True Story by Screen Mode from Bungo Stray Dogs Season 4

Protagonist(s) Of The Season

Midoriya Izuku from My Hero Academia Season 6 is my protagonist of the season cause like I said in my best sequel section, this second half of season 6 finally gave Deku something else to do outside of just being good. His ideals were finally challenged for the first time when he struggled to decide whether killing one person to save many more would be just or not. He struggled to work as a team cause he was worried his presence would bring harm but he also struggled to be a solo hero cause he still needed the help of others to keep him grounded. I love that he finally had an arc and yet in the end he learned that his best place is by the side of his classmates who give him the strength to fight. He learned that being All Might isn't just about fighting bad guys but about giving hope to those who are hopeless!

Runner Up - Yamano Mitsuha from Saving 80, 000 Gold in Another World For My Retirement

Antagonist(s) Of The Season

Decay Of Angels from Bungo Stray Dogs Season 4 are my antagonists of the season. They are actually the first villains in this show that actually feel like they can outmaneuver our Armed Detective Agency. I mean they even were able to get the government to turn on our heroes and perceive them as the terrorists they were hunting in the first. Almost every step our Detective Agency has taken was already planned out by the Angels and we even lost a few members (though I'm sure we'll get them back.) The craziest thing is that we've only met three of the 5 angels and given that they're scarier than any of the Guild or the Port Mafia members we've been introduced to, I can't wait to meet the other angel let alone the leader! On that note I am super curious about why the leader has taken such a backseat since it really does feel like Fyodor is running the show so far.

Runner Up - Tsukumogami from Malevolent Spirits: Mononogatari

Ship Of The Season

Aizawa Tomo and Kubota Junichiro from Tomo-Chan Is A Girl! are my ship of the season and really there was no competition cause they were the only ship this season that actually sailed. We got a full story from these two with how they fell for each other, confessed, and started dating where in most romance anime we don't even get a confession. I loved that these two really loved each other for exactly who they were so neither had to change themselves for the other to like them despite thinking they did. I loved that Jun was always in love with Tomo though he pushed down his feelings out of fear of losing Tomo if he did say something and I loved how much their friends shipped them together! 

 

Runner Up - Kunato Hyoma and Nagatsuki Botan from Malevolent Spirits: Mononogatari

And with that I'll see you all in the Spring 2023 Season!! Here's hoping that we get a better crop to choose from!

xoxo Allie