Wow, my Summer 2018 anime list becomes even shorter than ever before compared to my anime list for the last season.

Is it because there aren’t that many interesting anime to watch?

Well, I won’t deny that is one of the reasons behind my shorter Summer 2018 Anime Must-Watch List.

But another reason for that is because I want to spend more time playing video games and reading the manga, books and light novels that have been piling up for the last few months.

I’m so behind my reading list for this year.

Let’s not forget that I also have other work commitment like managing the business side of my author career and also coming up with a plan for the next book in my Trigger Locked series.

Despite the not-so-stellar anime lineup for this season, I will say not to feel discouraged about it. There are still quite a few anime out there that is still worth your time watching it.

If you’re curious which anime that is worth your time watching, then take a look at my personal anime list. I’m sure that you’ll find something that you like.

My personal Summer 2018 Anime Must-Watch List

Just like in every season, the anime that I’ll be watching for this season will always consist of anime continued from the past season and also the new anime.

As much as I enjoy watching anime continued from the previous season, I still give myself a chance to watch the new anime. You can only find your holy grail anime if you give the new anime a try.

After going through all the anime lineup for summer, these are the anime that made it to my list.

Free! Dive to the Future

As someone who watched the first two seasons of Free! anime, I didn’t expect that there will be a third season.

I don’t know why they decided to have a third season, but I have a feeling that it must have something to do with them wanting to introduce the characters that appeared in Free! movies.

I guess that they already know that the majority of us never had the chance to watch Free! movies. So, introducing these characters from the movies as an adult will do justice for these characters.

But for some reason, I find that their intention ends up making me feel confused for the first few minutes of the first episode.

I understand that you can tell right away the kind of relationship they have based on their conversation alone. But it can still be hard to grasp if you never watched the movies before.

So, does it mean that you should give Free! Dive to the Future a pass?

Well, I won’t be so quick to pass the third season just because I didn’t watch the Free! movies. The only thing I need to do is to give myself the time to get used to the storyline.

If you have never watched Free! before and want me to describe what kind of sports anime it is, I will say that the overall story isn’t like the typical sports anime.

You’ll see a lot more of the character-focus storyline than the actual competition. Some people may enjoy it and some people may find it boring.

For me, I’m just curious about the third season, which is why Free! Dive to the Future is on my watchlist.

If you’re looking for the sports anime that fits the shonen-style narrative, you can either have a look on the next anime on my list or read my blog post on the sports anime that I enjoy watching.

Hanebado!

I know that you can create pretty much any sports anime and manga under the blue sky.

But for some reason, I’m not expecting a sports anime talking about badminton. Perhaps maybe it’s because I find badminton to be a boring sport.

But still, I’m willing to give Hanebado! a try despite I’m not a badminton fan and most of the characters in this anime are mainly female characters.

If you’re used to seeing sports anime filled with male characters, then it may take a while for you to get used to the female characters taking the center stage.

So, how good is the storyline?

I have to say that the first few episodes seem to be focusing on the characters trying to get out of the slump.

But I believe that you can expect an intense match down the road.

Hanebado! reminds me of Baby Steps a little bit. So, if you already watched Baby Steps before, you can expect that the narrative style will be more or less the same.

Even if you’re not into sports anime, I still recommend you to give Hanebado! a try. Sports anime can be entertaining, even a lot more than the typical shonen anime.

Happy Sugar Life

The first thing that popped into my mind when I reread Happy Sugar Life synopsis was is this a yuri anime?

I wasn’t into BL and yuri anime, so the synopsis was enough to make me feel skeptical about the anime.

Well, I was glad that Happy Sugar Life isn’t a yuri anime at all. But I was greeted by the main character who has a twisted personality instead.

And not to mention, the storyline can be a bit disturbing and gory too.

How’s that for a yuri anime, huh?

If you’re looking for a different flavor than the usual anime being hyped by the anime community, then Happy Sugar Life is perfect for you.

Kyoto Teramachi Sanjou no Holmes

When you hear the title, you’re may be thinking that Kyoto Teramachi Sanjou no Holmes is a detective anime like Detective Conan.

Well, you can expect something like that since the main character has a deduction skill like Holmes. But I don’t think the cases that he has to solve will involve a dead body.

It’s hard to say since there were only two episodes so far when I write this blog post.

If I have to describe what kind of anime is Kyoto Teramachi Sanjou no Holmes, all I can say is it gives you the same vibe as Hyouka.

If you’re looking for anime similar to Hyouka, then you can’t go wrong with Kyoto Teramachi Sanjou no Holmes.

Overlord III

There’s no doubt that I’m watching Overlord III because I already watched the first two seasons of this anime.

But somehow, I find that the third season is a lot more entertaining than the first two seasons.

I would say that it may have something to do with Lord Ains’s reaction when he’s trying to figure out what his followers have in mind.

Well, his clueless reactions to his followers aren’t anything new. But for some reason, it’s getting even more hilarious during the third season.

If you can only watch one anime, then give Overlord III a try. Sure, you may have to watch the anime from the beginning.

But hey, each season only has 12-13 episodes. So, I’m pretty sure that you can catch up to the latest episode in Overlord III in no time.

Satsuriku no Tenshi

For the better or worst, Satsuriku no Tenshi follows more or less the same vibe as Happy Sugar Life.

But the difference is we have the main character who is stuck in a building with someone who has a scythe with him.

And let’s not forget that each person on every floor is trying to kill her as she tries to find her way out of the building.

While it’s obvious that the guy with a scythe is in for a killing spree in the building, at least we know that the guy isn’t a normal guy. And we can’t deal with him using the conventional method.

Compared that to Happy Sugar LIfe, at least we don’t have to deal with someone who has a twisted personality despite having a pretty face.

If Happy Sugar Life is your flavor, then I believe that Satsuriku no Tenshi will be another anime that you should add in your list.

Otherwise, stay away from this anime if you can’t tolerate a disturbing theme.

My thought about Summer 2018 anime so far

Judging by the number of anime that I have on my watchlist, I won’t deny that the anime lineup for this season isn’t that strong, just like the last season.

Unlike the last season, at least we don’t have a lot of anime sequel coming out this season.

Despite not having a strong anime lineup for this season, there are still quite a few anime that is worth watching such as Kyoto Teramachi Sanjou no Holmes and Hanebado!.

If you hear people say that there aren’t interesting anime to watch, they just don’t dig deeper enough. And they simply don’t want to give a chance on the new anime.

Don’t fall into their narrative. Just like in any season, there will always be a gem to be discovered as long as you’re willing to give the new anime a try.