The end of the year is fast approaching and it’s usually a time of celebration. But, there’s more to it than just fireworks, it also means that a batch of new anime shows are coming out.
And although anime studios take their sweet time to reveal what they are working on, several of them have announced which anime they are planning to release in 2018. From the looks of it, 2018 will be the year of awesome and much-anticipated sequels. So, here are 14 anime show that you should be looking forward to.
Batman Ninja
- Premiere Date: 2018
- Production Company: Warner Bros.
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Martial Arts, Sci-Fi
Warner Bros. released one of the most impressive Dark Knight anime adaptations to date: Batman Ninja. The new movie was first announced during New-York Comic-Con last October, and ever since then, Marvel and anime fans alike have been waiting for the first glimpse of Batman Ninja.
The new Batman story will see the Dark Knight face off against his arch nemesis, the Joker during a tumultuous era in Japan’s history. From, high-scale explosions to meditation, fans are in store for an epic battle of historic proportions. And perhaps the new anime movie will open the door for other iconic Western cartoons to be adapted into anime series.
Batman Ninja is set to be released on DVD and Blu-ray in 2018.
Tokyo Ghoul:re
- Premiere Date: 2018
- Studio: Studio Pierrot
- Genre: Action, Drama, Horror, Mystery, Psychological, Supernatural
After many — but I mean many — production setbacks, the third season of the popular horror anime, Tokyo Ghoul, will premiere in 2018. The story will take place two years after the events of √A and will follow Haise Sasaki — a half-ghoul, half-human — as he leads a special team known as the Quinx Squad to exterminate Tokyo’s ghoul problem.
Although the extermination team on their heels, the ghouls are set to create a world where both humans and ghouls can live together peacefully.
Despite the fact that fans will finally get to see Sui Ishida‘s sequel to Tokyo Ghoul, the third season would be replacing its original director. Odahiro Watanabe will be stepping in Shuhei Morita’s place who led the first two seasons of the horror anime. But regardless of this switch, fans are still looking forward to the new season.
My Hero Academia Season 3
- Premiere Date: April 2018
- Studio: Bones
- Genre: Action, Comedy, Super Power, School
It’s finally official, the third season of My Hero Academia will return in April 2018. Due to its success in Japan and abroad, it’s no surprise that the superhero comedy will get another season.
The much-anticipated sequel will see class 1-A going on a school field trip and of course, will follow Izuku Midoriya as he becomes a hero in his own right.
Violet Evergarden
- Premiere Date: January 2018 and Spring 2018 (Netflix)
- Studio: Kyoto Animation
- Genre: Drama, Fantasy
Back in 2016, Kyoto Animation announced on their Twitter account that they are working on adapting the light novel series, Violet Evergarden.
The anime adaptation will take place in an alternate world where robots, known as “Auto Memory Dolls,” help people with disabilities. One of these robots is Violet Evergarden who assists an author in writing her novels after she loses her sight. However, soon after the Auto Memory Dolls are repurposed as war weapons. And after four long years, the country is left in ruins and the scars of battle have only left Violet with a haunting memory — a word that she heard on the battlefield and that she doesn’t understand.
During her quest for finding the meaning of this word, she touches human lives and human hearts through her new work.
In the first few scenes alone, you will fall in love the series, even if drama anime is not your go-to genre. But, what’s most alluring about the series is it’s touching storyline, that will leave you in tears.
Taichi Ishidate (Beyond the Boundary and Hyouka) will oversee the series and Kyoto Animation will be in charge of animation. Violet Evergarden will premiere in Japan in January of 2018 and Netflix will stream the series worldwide in the spring season of 2018.
Steins;Gate 0
- Premiere date: 2018 – 2019
- Studio: White Fox
- Genre: Sci-Fi, Thriller
After more than four years, studio White Fox is releasing a new Steins;Gate series called Steins;Gate 0. The new anime will be an adaptation of the visual novel of the same name. And while Zero is going to be part of the main canon, it will take place before the ending of the original story.
Although it’s not technically a true sequel, fans of the series — including myself — can’t wait to see Okabe on the small screen and see if the mad doc has a chance at rescuing Kurisu.
FLCL 2 and 3
- Premiere date: 2018
- Studio: Production I.G
- Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Comedy, Parody, Dementia, Mecha
At this year’s Anime Expo, studio Production I.G announced that two installments, with six episodes each, of FLCL would premiere in 2018. The new seasons will follow Haruko several years after the events of the previous season. And while fans are excited that the series is returning, the teasers left us with more questions than answers like why did Haruko return to Earth?
On top of that, staff from One-Punch Man, My Hero Academia, and Naruto are said to be working on the anime. Can’t wait to see what these animators will bring to this already weird and action-packed show.
Fairy Tail Final Season
The Final Season of FAIRY TAIL TV anime will go on air in 2018!
— 真島ヒロ (@hiro_mashima) July 20, 2017
- Premiere date: 2018
- Studio: N/A
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Magic, Shounen
In July, the author of the Fairy Tail manga took to Twitter to announce the sad news the Fairy Tail anime will come to an end in 2018. The series premiered almost a decade ago and has become part of the Japanese pop culture and a favorite for anime binge-watchers.
Fairy Tail follows the Fairy Tail guild comprised of young wizards. Natsu, a member of the guild, makes an unlikely friendship with Lucy Heartfilia as she aspires to become a powerful wizard.
Since its release in 2009, Fairy Tail has aired more than 250 episodes and several movies. Now that the final season is about to premiere, it’s time to binge-watch the series from the beginning.
B: The Beginning
- Premiere date: 2018
- Studio: Production I.G.
- Genre: Action, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
In a world where technological advancements are the way life, crime grows rampant. In this new civilization, we meet Koku, the protagonist, and Keith, the legendary investigator of the royal police force RIS. Watch Koku and Keith race through the city as they try to solve a string of murders orchestrated by a mysterious criminal organization and the infamous Killer B.
I love a good mystery anime when the suspense and drama are done well, and B: the Beginning (formerly known as Perfect Bones) looks like it will keep the viewer enthralled until its conclusion. Anime shows like Monster and Erased do justice to the genre and it looks like Netflix’s B: the Beginning will do the same.
Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress Season 2
- Premiere date: 2018
- Studio: Production I.G.
- Genre: Action, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
The steampunk survival action, Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, returns for a second season in 2018. Originally, the anime was slated to premiere in 2017, but it was pushed back to make way for the second season of Attack on Titan. The season finale had many shocking twists and because it’s an original show, there are no indications on how the animator will proceed with the sequel.
Overlord 2
- Premiere date: January 2018
- Studio: Madhouse
- Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Game, Magic, Supernatural
Although there are many anime series about being trapped in a video game (Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash, SAO, Log Horizon), there is something special about Overlord.
In the season finale, Ainz Ooal Gown finds out that the Slane Theocracy were the ones responsible for the malevolence across the New World. The sequel will continue with this revelation and we will see our main villain face some new challenges.
Ainz Ooal Gown isn’t the hero that fans usually see in this genre. Rather, he takes a more villainous role and uses his resources to win the game and some allies. Overlord breathes new life into the MMORPG genre with its dark, funny, and wicked humor. Surely, we want to see more of this.
One-Punch Man 2
本日9/26（月）12時にTVアニメ「ワンパンマン」第2期製作決定とスマートフォン向けゲームアプリ2017年日本・中国配信決定のリリースを発信しました。最新情報は随時公式サイト＆ツイッターで発表いたします！ https://t.co/ZEx0x1ZFAM #onepunchman pic.twitter.com/UmIE4v5iay
— TVアニメ「ワンパンマン」公式 (@opm_anime) September 26, 2016
- Premiere Date: 2018
- Studio: J.C. Staff
- Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Comedy, Parody, Super Power, Supernatural, Seinen
With the news that Madhouse isn’t animating One-Punch Man season 2 — the studio is notorious for passing on sequels — and that its director (Shingo Natsume) is leaving the series, fans are a bit worried. There’s real concern that J.C. Staff doesn’t have the same caliber as its successor. However, the studio is no noob. J.C. Staff has animated several shows (Revolutionary Girl Utena and Ghost Hunt) that have become classics and must-sees.
Despite these concerns, fans are still excited that they are working on the second installment. In the new season, we will see the titular hero, Saitama, face a new villain, Garou.
Persona 5 The Animation
- Premiere date: 2018
- Studio: A-1 Pictures
- Genre: Action, Supernatural, Fantasy
In the fall of 2016, A-1 Pictures released Persona 5 The Animation The Day Breakers to promote the game. However, the response to the short anime was so overwhelmingly positive that they decided to make a 12-episode series. And if the anime is as good as the game then it might be a serious contender for best anime of 2018.
Attack on Titan
- Premiere date: July 2018
- Studio: Wit Studio
- Genre: Action, Super Power, Drama, Fantasy
The third season of Attack on Titan is coming a lot sooner than you think. After the series revealed the real identities of the Colossal and Armored Titan, fans still wanted more. Especially, to find out what’s in Eren’s basement. The end credits of the season two finale announced that the third installment would premiere in 2018. Hopefully, this doesn’t push back the release date of Kabaneri.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Resurrection
- Premiere date: 2018
- Studio: Original
- Genre: Action, Military, Sci-Fi, Super Power, Drama, Mecha
The anime that I and a lot of anime fans are looking forward to the most is the third season of Code Geass: Lelouch of the Resurrection. While details about the new installment are not clear, based on the trailer we can assume that it will take place several years after the events of the Zero Requiem plan. More specifically, how Japan and other countries have recovered from the tyranny of the Holy Britannian Empire.
