Kijin Gentoushou<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/starcrossedanime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Kijin-Gentoushou-1.1-300x169.jpg\")
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<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\nShort Synopsis:<\/b> A 19th century swordsman trains to defeat demons in an effort to protect his village\u2019s priestess.<\/p>\n
Lenlo:<\/b><\/span> Honestly, Kijin<\/em> had me in the first half. I was invested in this cast, the setting, the leads conflict between personal love\/desire and his duty to the village, all of it. Sure, the hour-long premier felt really slow. I agree with Wooper that it probably didn\u2019t need to be this long, despite the fact that it actually used that hour pretty well, showing us the cast\u2019s entire history and setting up the rest of the show. But I was bought in, Great Value Kimetsu no Yaiba had my attention by actually spending time with and focusing on the cast\u2019s relationships with each other. But then it got into the fighting and overarching conflict, which it definitely doesn\u2019t have the production to support if this big special hour long premier is anything to go by, I sort of just\u2026 lost all interest? It killed off half the cast, removed one of the most interesting relationships to me, and turned into this \u201cJourney across the country to hunt a demon\u201d story we\u2019ve seen dozens of times before. Maybe it can do something interesting with the antagonist and their relationship with Jinta as it goes, but with how bluntly Kijin is written and how black and white their conflict is, I\u2019m not interested enough to stick it out.
Potential:<\/b> 25%<\/p>\nWooper:<\/b><\/span> Kijin Gentoushou is the latest anime to receive a one hour premiere, and I have to say, it used those additional minutes effectively. That\u2019s not to say I personally enjoyed its whopper of a prologue, because I didn\u2019t, but the extra time spent on the characters\u2019 histories should alleviate the series\u2019 need for disruptive backstory going forward. Those histories involve the sword-wielding protagonist Jinta and his two sisters, one biological and possessed by a demon, and one adopted and sworn to protect their village from demons. That\u2019s not a bad setup by any means, but the storytelling is so stark that it ended up losing me halfway through. Whether its characters are meeting for the first time, confessing their love, or betraying one another, they act as though they\u2019re mere agents of fate, giving the story an inhuman feel. The premiere\u2019s climactic moment sees its major villain deliver the line, \u201cScrew this world! AND SCREW YOU!\u201d which should give you an idea of how blunt things can get. With its overarching conflict established, Kijin Gentoushou is now free to tell the tale of Jinta\u2019s 170 year journey to the present day, which could result in some worthwhile individual episodes. I can\u2019t say that I\u2019m interested in the story as a whole, however.
Potential:<\/b> 20%<\/p>\nOnce Upon a Witch\u2019s Death<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/starcrossedanime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Aru-Majo-ga-Shinu-Made-1.2-300x169.jpg\")
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<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\nShort Synopsis:<\/b> A young witch learns she has only a year left to live, and to lift this curse she must travel the country collecting tears of joy for the ritual to undo it.<\/p>\n
Lenlo:<\/b><\/span> I don\u2019t understand the need for the whole \u201cDeath curse\u201d portion of the show. Do you really need an excuse for a teenage witch to travel around a fantasy world, getting involved with all manner of trouble and exaggerated cast members? How am I supposed to take this seriously when everyone treats it so relaxed, not even bothering to tell\/prepare her until a year before it goes down. Maybe if Aru Majo took a Frieren approach, focusing on appreciating your life and all the people that make it what it is, this could work. We could have gotten almost the thematic flipside of Frieren, seeing how someone young interprets the world rather than an elf. I guess it tries to do that with little Iris, but it feels very surface level. I spent almost the entire runtime looking at my watch marveling at how slowly time moved when watching something with no passion or interest behind it. If you\u2019re really desperate for a cute witch show, maybe Aru Majo will be of service? Personally though, this feels vapid even for that.
Potential:<\/b> 1%<\/p>\nCatch Me at the Ballpark!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/starcrossedanime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Catch-Me-at-the-Ballpark-1.1-300x169.jpg\")
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/starcrossedanime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Kijin-Gentoushou-1.1.jpg\")
<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\nShort Synopsis:<\/b> A 19th century swordsman trains to defeat demons in an effort to protect his village\u2019s priestess.<\/p>\n
Lenlo:<\/b><\/span> Honestly, Kijin<\/em> had me in the first half. I was invested in this cast, the setting, the leads conflict between personal love\/desire and his duty to the village, all of it. Sure, the hour-long premier felt really slow. I agree with Wooper that it probably didn\u2019t need to be this long, despite the fact that it actually used that hour pretty well, showing us the cast\u2019s entire history and setting up the rest of the show. But I was bought in, Great Value Kimetsu no Yaiba had my attention by actually spending time with and focusing on the cast\u2019s relationships with each other. But then it got into the fighting and overarching conflict, which it definitely doesn\u2019t have the production to support if this big special hour long premier is anything to go by, I sort of just\u2026 lost all interest? It killed off half the cast, removed one of the most interesting relationships to me, and turned into this \u201cJourney across the country to hunt a demon\u201d story we\u2019ve seen dozens of times before. Maybe it can do something interesting with the antagonist and their relationship with Jinta as it goes, but with how bluntly Kijin is written and how black and white their conflict is, I\u2019m not interested enough to stick it out. Wooper:<\/b><\/span> Kijin Gentoushou is the latest anime to receive a one hour premiere, and I have to say, it used those additional minutes effectively. That\u2019s not to say I personally enjoyed its whopper of a prologue, because I didn\u2019t, but the extra time spent on the characters\u2019 histories should alleviate the series\u2019 need for disruptive backstory going forward. Those histories involve the sword-wielding protagonist Jinta and his two sisters, one biological and possessed by a demon, and one adopted and sworn to protect their village from demons. That\u2019s not a bad setup by any means, but the storytelling is so stark that it ended up losing me halfway through. Whether its characters are meeting for the first time, confessing their love, or betraying one another, they act as though they\u2019re mere agents of fate, giving the story an inhuman feel. The premiere\u2019s climactic moment sees its major villain deliver the line, \u201cScrew this world! AND SCREW YOU!\u201d which should give you an idea of how blunt things can get. With its overarching conflict established, Kijin Gentoushou is now free to tell the tale of Jinta\u2019s 170 year journey to the present day, which could result in some worthwhile individual episodes. I can\u2019t say that I\u2019m interested in the story as a whole, however. Short Synopsis:<\/b> A young witch learns she has only a year left to live, and to lift this curse she must travel the country collecting tears of joy for the ritual to undo it.<\/p>\n Lenlo:<\/b><\/span> I don\u2019t understand the need for the whole \u201cDeath curse\u201d portion of the show. Do you really need an excuse for a teenage witch to travel around a fantasy world, getting involved with all manner of trouble and exaggerated cast members? How am I supposed to take this seriously when everyone treats it so relaxed, not even bothering to tell\/prepare her until a year before it goes down. Maybe if Aru Majo took a Frieren approach, focusing on appreciating your life and all the people that make it what it is, this could work. We could have gotten almost the thematic flipside of Frieren, seeing how someone young interprets the world rather than an elf. I guess it tries to do that with little Iris, but it feels very surface level. I spent almost the entire runtime looking at my watch marveling at how slowly time moved when watching something with no passion or interest behind it. If you\u2019re really desperate for a cute witch show, maybe Aru Majo will be of service? Personally though, this feels vapid even for that.
Potential:<\/b> 25%<\/p>\n
Potential:<\/b> 20%<\/p>\nOnce Upon a Witch\u2019s Death<\/h2>\n
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Potential:<\/b> 1%<\/p>\nCatch Me at the Ballpark!<\/h2>\n
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