2023 was another stellar year for anime fans and, if the winter anime season (which runs from January through March) is any indication, 2024 is shaping up to be just as exciting. We’ve got a ton of highly anticipated premieres and new series debuts to kick off the new year, so let’s dive in and see what’s in store.
Trigger, the anime studio behind such beloved shows as Little Witch Academia and Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, is producing an adaptation of Ryōko Kui’s culinary fantasy manga Delicious in Dungeon, which is set to premiere on Netflix. An anime adaptation of the popular South Korean web novel Solo Leveling is also premiering, and Bones, the anime studio responsible for Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Mob Psycho 100, and My Hero Academia, is releasing Metallic Rouge, an all-new original series to celebrate the studio’s 25th anniversary. There are other exciting new releases this season, including new seasons of Blue Exorcist, Urusei Yatsura, and lots more!
We’ll continue to update this list as we get a clearer picture of everything this upcoming anime season has to offer, but in the meantime, here are some of the most exciting anime airing this winter you should look forward to.
Delicious in Dungeon
Release date: Jan. 4
Where to watch: Netflix
Based on Ryōko Kui’s fantasy comedy manga, Delicious in Dungeon follows a group of intrepid adventurers who descend into the bowels of an ancient labyrinth in search of gold and glory. After being defeated by a powerful red dragon, the remaining party members — human swordsman Laios, halfling locksmith Chilchuck, and elven spellcaster Marcille — reconvene to venture back into the dungeon to save Laios’ sister Falin.
There’s just one problem: They have no money and nothing to eat. Enter Senshi, a dwarven warrior with a knack for cooking the many monsters and creatures that live in the dungeon’s depths, who agrees to help the party rescue Falin in exchange for the chance to eat the red dragon.
Directed by Yoshihiro Miyajima (Little Witch Academia, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind), Delicious in Dungeon is being produced by Trigger, the anime studio behind Kill La Kill, Little Witch Academia, and most recently Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, which earned a place on our list of the best anime of 2022.
Solo Leveling
Release date: Jan. 6
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Based on the popular South Korean web novel, Solo Leveling is set in a fantasy world where super-powered warriors known as hunters battle against supernatural creatures who have descended upon Earth en masse to wreak havoc and destruction. The series follows Sung Jin-woo, an infamously low-level hunter, who is inexplicably granted a mysterious power known as “The System” which allows him to amass power without any limit. After becoming the strongest hunter in the world, Jin-woo finds himself caught between two factions vying for the future of the world.
A-1 Pictures (Kaguya-Sama: Love is War, Nier: Automata Ver1.1a) will be producing the anime with Shunsuke Nakashige (Sword Art Online: Alicization — War of Underworld) attached as director and Hiroyuki Sawano (Attack on Titan) as composer.
Blue Exorcist: Shimane Illuminati Saga
Release date: Jan. 6
Where to watch: TBA
Blue Exorcist returns this year with a brand new season! Set after the events of 2011’s Blue Exorcist and 2017’s Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga, Blue Exorcist: Shimane Illuminati Saga continues the story of Rin Okumura, the estranged son of the demon lord Satan, as he grows on his journey to become a powerful exorcist.
This season will adapt volumes 10-15 of Kazue Katō’s original manga and feature the returning cast of voice actors from previous seasons. Daisuke Yoshida (Hajime no Ippo) will direct Blue Exorcist: Shimane Illuminati Saga, with animation duties being handled by Studio VOLN. Hiroyuki Sawano and Kohta Yamamoto will return as composers on this new season, with Toshiya Ōno also returning as series script writer.
Metallic Rouge
Release date: Jan. 10
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Bones, the acclaimed anime studio behind Eureka Seven, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, and My Hero Academia, is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year with Metallic Rogue. It’s an original sci-fi action anime directed by Motonobu Hori (Carole & Tuesday, Super Crooks) featuring character designs by Toshihiro Kawamoto (Cowboy Bebop, Wolf’s Rain).
Set in a futuristic world where humans coexist alongside lifelike androids known as “Neans,” the series follows Rouge Redstar, an android tasked with hunting down and eliminating a terror network known as the “Immortal Nine” who threaten to dismantle Human-Nean society. Operating under the codename “Metal Rogue,” she and her human partner Naomi Orthmann travel to Mars to track down clues in their mission to apprehend the conspirators.
Urusei Yatsura season 2
Release date: Jan. 11
Where to watch: HIDIVE
The latest adaptation of Rumiko Takahashi’s landmark rom-com manga returns! This season of Urusei Yatsura will consist of two cours (quarters of a year), which will air consecutively from January through the end of June. As with the previous season, Urusei Yatsura will be produced by david production (JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure) and directed by Takahiro Kamei (JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind).
The Witch and the Beast
Release date: Jan. 11
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
Based on Kōsuke Satake’s supernatural action manga, The Witch and the Beast is set in an alternate historical world where supernatural entities live alongside ordinary humans. The series follows Ashaf and Guideau: a soft-spoken man with a coffin strapped to his back accompanied by an entourage of crows, and a woman with beast-like fangs and eyes, respectively. Their mission: To hunt down witches who prey on the fear of their human underlings in search for the one responsible for Guideau’s condition, in the hope of devising a cure. Produced by Yokohama Animation Lab, The Witch and the Beast is directed by Takayuki Hamana (Appleseed XIII, Ace of Diamond).
Bucchigiri?!
Release date: Jan. 13
Where to watch: Crunchyroll
This original anime from director Hiroko Utsumi (Banana Fish) and writer Taku Kishimoto (Erased, 91 Days) follows the story of Araji Tomobishi, an unassuming high school student whose dreams of a carefree life are quickly dashed when he discovers that the school he’s transferred to is filled with hoodlums and ne’er-do-wells.
It’s not all bad though — he’s reunited with an estranged friend, and he has a new crush. After stumbling into the middle of a brawl with the toughest guys in town, Araji inadvertently awakens a genie named Senya who offers to grant him his greatest wish.
Rick and Morty: The Anime
Release date: TBA
Where to watch: Max
Rick and Morty is getting an anime spin-off!
Directed by Takashi Sano, the director of Tower of God and the “Rick and Morty vs. Genocider” and “Summer Meets God (Rick Meets Evil)” animated shorts, Rick and Morty: The Anime is a standalone anime series that follows everyone’s favorite alcoholic mad scientist and his grandson sidekick as they galavant across the multiverse in search of adventure and all types of other shenanigans. The series will be produced by Telecom Animation Film (Lupin III, Shenmue the Animation) and Sola Entertainment. According to Sola Entertainment’s website, the series is scheduled to premiere sometime this season between January and the end of March.
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