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The BIGLY Discussion of Anime/Manga Thread

Crunchyroll ending Ad Anime for free for non-subscribers.

"Last updated 1 hour ago
Starting December 31, 2025, Crunchyroll will no longer offer free ad-supported access to select titles for non-subscribers. The change pushes users toward paid tiers like Fan at $7.99 a month for ad-free viewing, offline downloads, and simulcasts. Fans lament the loss of this legal entry point, especially with few rivals like HiDive or Netflix's scattered lineup, while some turn to piracy or physical media. A new free channel on Samsung TV Plus offers a small alternative, but on-demand classics require payment now."

https://twitter.com/x/status/1997367213620170965
 
Baffling choice on their part when not only are there illegal options but also more and more legal competitors out there. Personally I consider CRoll worth it to have the yearly sub but it would be the first one I'd drop if prices rose.
 
Finally whittling my list down a bit: Knocked out Season 2 of Kakegurui (I think I slightly preferred Season 1 more) and My Hero Academia which was all sorts of awesome as expected. I actually really liked their coverage of the damage, etc. post battle both physically (heroes and buildings) but also emotionally.

I have 1 episode left for Gachiakuta and Ranma 1/2 Season 2 so those should be finished next week. I adore Ranma, it's just a sweet, fun little show.
 
Finished up Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Season 1. It was awesome, very excited for Season 2. Kind of glad I watched it later after the initial "live" hype didn't overhype my expectations for it.

Also finished up This Monster Wants To Eat Me, which ended up being just fine for me (6/10). A lot of the initial premise/opening episode ended up kind of going nowhere and it felt very stuck in its tracks... not willing to go full demon carnage or yuri sweetness so it was a bit of a slog to finish off. Probably won't bother with Season 2.

Didn't even realize Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun had dropped Seasons 2 AND 3 so I'm starting those up. Also kind of in "random" mode so I started up Roll Over and Die (this feels like a show that could go either way for me in that I'll like it more than most or it ends up being a dropped title) and Fate/strange Fake (this has gotten high scores off 2 episodes but it being set in America and it being part of the Fate universe intrigues me). I am watching this Dubbed given the America location, which is rare for me.

Continuing Fire Force S3 - Part 2 and My Hero Academia: Vigilantes Season 2 as well.
 
animecorner.me

Netflix and MAPPA Enter New Strategic Partnership for Global Anime Development and Distribution - Anime Corner

Netflix and animation studio MAPPA have entered a new strategic partnership to co-produce and globally distribute anime projects.
animecorner.me animecorner.me

"Netflix, meanwhile, has already exclusively distributed several MAPPA productions, including Kakegurui Twin, the 2024 reboot of Ranma ½, and the 2025 adaptation of The Rose of Versailles.

Under this expanded partnership, the companies plan to co-produce multiple anime titles already in progress. These will be distributed exclusively in over 190 countries and territories via Netflix."

I also finally started up Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood and Fuuuuck does Episode 4 still hit hard... so skin crawling and soul crushing knowing what was gonna happen.
 
Couple episodes into most stuff this season so here's what I'm watching from it:

Sequels, Sequels, Sequels:
Jujutsu Kaisen: The Culling Game Part 1: We all know this show so I don't need to say anything.
Hell's Paradise Season 2: The first season is one of my top shows of the last few years. You should be watching this.
Fire Force Season 3 Part 2: This is the final season IIRC so they've got some big stuff to cover here.
Trigun Stargaze: I liked "Stampede". Classic Trigun is still the best but this has been fun.
Fate/strange Fake: You know what you're getting with the "Fate" shows. This is fine.
My Hero Academia: Vigilantes: I haven't actually finished the first season but I wanted to make sure I shouted it out.
The Daily Life of the Immortal King 5: this show is pretty bad and I don't know why I still watch aside from the fact its like 15 minutes long and I've made it 5 seasons and sunk cost fallacy is a thing.

Actual NEW shows!:
Sentenced to Be a Hero: This is the new show of the season. @Brooklyn Zoo watch this. The animation is gorgeous. The main character is sentenced to fight on the frontlines of a war, dying over and over as punishment. His background and how he got there is revealed over the hour long debut episode really well. Really intriguing worldbuilding.
Shiboyugi: Playing Death Games to Put Food on the Table: This seems good so far. Like the title says, the main character plays death games. All the characters are cute teen girls but it doesn't really seem fan-servicy so far. People die, there's mystery about who is organizing the games and the backstory of the character etc.
Jack-of-All-Trades, Party of None: One of your "Hero's party kicks out someone who is actually awesome" shows.
Roll Over and Die: See above etc seems darker and it's lgtbq
The Holy Grail of Eris: noble girl helps a ghost of a murdered noble find out who framed her and stuff.

This is also a good time to get into One Piece as it is on break for a few months and when it comes back it is changing to being a seasonal anime instead of running year-round.
 
www.ign.com

Dragon Ball 40th Anniversary Event: Everything Announced - IGN

The Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri was held in Japan over the weekend to celebrate the global manga, anime and video game phenomenon. The main stage was packed with exciting announcements about where the series is headed after the death of series creator Akira Toriyama, including two new anime TV...
www.ign.com www.ign.com


Two new animes announced. An adaptation of the Galactic Patrol arc of Super and less exciting but something to tide people open for that at least, an expansion/doover of the Beerus storyarc that's more faithful to the Manga etc.
 
Last week's Jujutsu Kaisen was amazing. Not only was the animation fantastic but some of the most satisfying and put together fight scenes in an anime in a long time. They'd built it up for a long time.


This is less than half of it but my favourite part.
 
Ended up dropping Roll Over and Die as I wanted to get into it more but it just wasn't doing it for me. I'm also, outside of Gachiakuta, getting over the whole dark/grim dark vibe hero action shows so that wasn't helping out with this one either.

Banged out Renkin San-kyuu Magical? Pokaan (aka Magi Poka) which was a sweet little SOL comedy about a vampire girl, werewolf girl, robot girl, and witch girl all sharing a treehouse/flat together and getting into basic hi-jinks (e.g. they try to make a mailbox to lure the mail man, they order stuff via Infomercials/Pitch shows without realizing they have to actually pay for them, the vampire girl tries to get a donor drive person to give her blood but she ends up giving her blood daily, etc.). There's a slight bit of ecchi but it was kind of refreshing in that it wasn't an over the top focal point. 7/10

Also started up You and I Are Polar Opposites which sounds like a show up my alley. I'm already digging the main leads, I'm a sucker for bubbly person x serious person relationships/opposition, and it's just fun.

Caught up on everything else on my list so far. Fate/strange Fake, Fire Force, and Frieren continue to be my main investments as far as must watches. MHA: Vigilantes is solid but I feel like I'm not as invested in it on the whole as MHA so that's kind of putting it as a secondary show thus far for me.
 
Fucking sickening. I'm happy to see people in the industry coming out so strongly against it considering that the author of Samurai X is still given a pass by so many.
 
www.avclub.com

The live-action One Piece people are tackling Samurai Champloo next

The live-action One Piece people are tackling Samurai Champloo next
www.avclub.com www.avclub.com

On the one hand they've done a great job with the live action One Piece. On the other the live action Bebop was very poorly received (I didn't hate it, but it wasn't very true to the anime so I get it).

They need to get someone who loves the material as showrunner and use as much of the OST as possible IMO. Fight choreography will be huge. I don't think it's impossible to do this right. At the very least it will hopefully get more people to watch the anime. I know a lot of people are now watching the OP anime because of the live action.
 
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