This Year in Anime! [2021 Review]

Hey min’na! It’s New Year’s Eve and us folks at Adilsons are in a reflective mood. It’s for this reason that we’re replacing this week’s anime news with a mega throwback and looking back at the entirety of 2021 and what it had to offer! Numerous titles made their way to the top of popularity charts worldwide and added to the ever-growing list of the most successful anime of all time! Several scandals marked the year as one of the most catastrophic for the anime industry, be it through the loss of notable individuals or other unforeseen calamities. Yu-Gi-Oh players endured a year riddled with disappointing sets and eye-opening banlists. Movie fanatics had much to look forward to, due to the release of several successful titles (and news of more yet to come). Finally, what do the prospects for 2022 look like for the anime community as a whole; what’s there to look forward to and what can we hope to expect from 2022 in general? Here’s your final not-so-Rapid Rundown of 2021, giving you one final glance of the year that was 2021!!!


January

• #DeclarationofWar trending on Twitter: Attack on Titan Season 4 Episode 5 heralds the beginning of the end for the series
• Dr. Stone Season 2 Released: Season saw massive success; season 3 estimated for release sometime mid 2022
• The Promised Neverland Season 2 Released: Show strayed from the manga, flopped; series regarded as a failure by many
• Shin Megami Tensei V Announced: released in November; receives 85/100 on Metacritic!

February

• Yu-Gi-Oh Structure Deck Freezing Chains Released: reprints attract buyers but deck flops competitively
• Blazing Vortex Booster Box Released: set fails completely; Pot of Prosperity only card worth buying
• Goblin Slayer Season 2 confirmed: release date set around April 2022
• Demon Slayer Season 2 announced: controversy plagues release amidst censorship issues; series released in October without issues or backlash
• Seven Deadly Sins gets Manga Sequel: Four Knights of the Apocalypse currently has 3 volumes; reviews generally positive

March

• Black Clover Anime on Indefinite Hiatus; catches up to manga after 170 episodes
• Dota: Dragon’s Blood released by Netflix; reviews generally positive with 75% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes
• B: The Beginning Season 2 released: runs for 6 episodes and receives mixed reviews; gets 6.2 rating on MAL
• My Hero Academia Gets Season 5: runs for 25 episodes; explores competition between Class 1-A and 1-B; 7.5/10 rating on MAL

April

• Yu-Gi-Oh Ghosts from the Past Released: set fails; sees no competitive relevance, dubbed “Ghosts from the Trash”
• Yasuke anime Released: generated lots of hype due to involvement of MAPPA; scores 72/100 on Metacritic; no news on season 2
• Seven Deadly Seasons Series Finale: fans bid farewell; manga lives on through sequel
• Godzilla vs Kong Released: generates largely positive reviews; adds landmark title to the MonsterVerse
• Attack on Titan Manga Concludes: Hajime Ishiyama quotes disappointment with Game of Thrones finale in interview
• Osamu Kobayashi & Shunsuke Kikuchi pass away; anime communities mourn for a fortnight

May

• TCG Scandal: some Walmart stores refuse to sell Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokémon and MTG cards over “inappropriate customer behaviour” and “increased demand”
• Made in Abyss Season 2 Announced: Trailer released in November; release set for 2022
• Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero- movie announced for release in 2022; trailer released in October
• Kentaro Miura passes away: Berserk manga faces uncertain future after 363 chapters

June

• Yu-Gi-Oh Egyptian God Decks Released: cause controversy over the name “structure deck”, provide some much-needed reprints but not much else
• Yu-Gi-Oh Lightning Overdrive Released: set pushes Drytron to definite Tier 1 status, introduces Ruddy Rose Dragon
• Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song Ends: praised for brilliant story, music and animation; earns 8.5 rating on MAL
• Record of Ragnarök Released: scores 6.2 on IMDb but garners much hype; causes controversy in India; season 2 confirmed for late 2022 to early 2023 release
• Mangamura Administrator Fined: Romi Hoshino fined 72 million yen and sentenced to 3 years in prison over copyright infringement

July

• The Case Study of Vanitas Premieres: scores 7.9 on MAL; season 2 set for release in January 2022
• Vinland Saga Season 2 Confirmed: release date remains uncertain, but speculated for early 2022
• DEEMO The Movie Announced: release date remains elusive
• MAPPA Scandal: company slaps back against rumours of overworking its employees; unveils new workspace for Chainsaw Man
• Russia Enforces Censorship Laws: bans more titles, including Attack on Titan live-action Movie

August

• To Your Eternity Season 1 Ends: receives overwhelmingly positive responses; 8.4/10 score on MAL; season 2 set for fall of 2022
• My Hero Academia- World Heroes Mission Released: earns $2.81 million on opening day in Japan; holds approval rating of 85% on Rotten Tomatoes

September

• Pokémon Evolutions Announced for 25th Anniversary: 8-episode run ended in December; episode 1 exceeds 4 million views on YouTube
• World’s End Harem Anime Announced: episode 1 released as scheduled but rest of the series delayed to January 2022 in order to “closely examine” the anime’s production
• Mother of the Goddess’ Dormitory Ends: run not as controversial as expected; scores 6.2/10 on IMDb

October

• Komi Can’t Communicate Released: trailer received millions of views; season 1 currently in progress; reviews largely positive
• Yu-Gi-Oh Mega Tins Released: Crossout Designator flops, Virtual World, Tribrigade become budget decks; Nadir Servant, Triple Tactics Talents just as expensive as ever
• No Game No Life manga resumes run after 3-year hiatus
• Naruto faces Tragedy: world mourns the loss of an old friend
• Guilty Crown Celebrates 10th Anniversary
• Attack on Titan Season 2 Part 2 Trailer Released: Set for release on January the 9th, 2022

November

• Pokémon Gen IV Remakes Released: Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl regarded as faithful recreations; fanbase divided over Chibi art style; 73/100 score on Metacritic
• Mob Psycho 100 Season 3 Announced: announcement came after 100-day countdown; speculations put release in 2022
• Spy x Family Anime Announced: release set for April 2022
• One Piece Gets Live Action Remake by Netflix; mixed sentiments from fans due to history of Netflix failures

December

• Jujitsu Kaisen 0 Movie Released: release remains limited to Japan; receives excellent reviews; fans predicted it since April by checking for reserved URLs
• Bleach Gets Second Trailer: return date set for October of 2022
• Attack on Titan Season 4 Part 2 Gets 2nd Trailer: reveals climactic moments

...and with that, ladies and gentlemen, we bid farewell to the year that was 2021.

The year had its ups and downs for us all, but in the end, we persevered through every calamity, every misfortune and every godforsaken strain of the Coronavirus. Here’s to hoping 2022 brings good fortune for us all! Adilsons wishes our dear readers a very Happy New Year!