2021 is finally over, and we are ready for the upcoming anime of 2022. The first titles that will kick off the year are Irodorimidori, Orient, Tokyo 24th Ward, In the Land of Leadale, and Police in a Pod, all but one airing on January 5. Meaning that if you’re dying to get a head start on Winter 2022 anime, these shows are the perfect place to start. Let’s take a look at what they’re all about and what you can expect from them.
The very first anime of the year will be Irodorimidori, music and slice of life shorts series based on a girl band from SEGA’s rhythm game CHUNITHM. Yes, another cute music show. After the game’s hit in 2015, the band received other mix-media projects such as manga, animated manga videos, radio drama, and live concerts. Now, the same cast will return for the anime adaptation this season. You may recognize some of them for their famous idol roles – Emi Nitta, who voices Kousaka Honoka from Love Live!, will play Akesaka Serina, and Ayaka Fukuhara, the voice of Rin Shibuya from The iDOLM@STER, will play Aliciana Ogata. Ayano Yamamoto will star as Nazuna Tennozu, Kaoru Sakura as Nagi Kobotoke, and Mao Ichimichi as Naru Hakobe.
You can get a teaser of their adorable voices in the PV:
Each episode will be 3 minutes long. Along with their broadcast in Japan, the episodes will also be available on the franchise’s official YouTube channel on January 4. The story is as follows:
The story takes place at Maigahara High School attached to Maigahara College of Music, also known as “Maimai”. At this school, where students aspiring to become musicians gather, there is a rumor whispered by some students that they will receive a mysterious score by giving their best performance at the school festival. The source of the rumor is unknown, but students whose grade are not so well before the festival mainly participate. Like the other students, IRODORIMIDORI also decided to make their much-awaited appearance at the festival.
Crunchyroll
CloverWorks, a well-known anime studio, especially when it comes to beautiful visuals, introduces this new original sci-fi anime Tokyo 24th Ward. The director will be Naokatsu Tsuda, known as the director of David Production’s first 4 seasons of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. The anime premiere will be a special 1-hour long episode releasing on January 5 and the voice cast is looking stacked as well. Yuuma Uchida and Manaka Iwami, the voice actors of iconic couple Kyo Souma and Tohru Honda from Fruits Basket, will return together as Ran Akagi and Asumi Suidou. On top of that, Junya Enoki (Yuuji Itadori, Nasa Yuzuki) will voice Shuuta Aoi, Kaito Ishikawa (Tenya Iida, Tobio Kageyama) will voice Kouki Suido, and Eri Kitamura (Mina Ashido, Sayaka Miki) will voice Lucky.
You can watch the official trailer below:
Enter the 24th Ward, a man-made island inside Tokyo Bay. Three of its inhabitants: Shuuta, Ran, and Kouki, have been best friends since childhood, but after a deadly incident, everything changed. A year later, reunited for the first time, they receive a mysterious phone call. On the other line is a familiar voice—from a friend who’s supposed to be dead. Together, they’ll have to save their home.
Funimation
Orient is an anime many are anticipating, primarily because it comes from the pen of the creator of the Magi franchise, Shinobu Ohtaka. It follows a boy named Musashi who wants to be a heroic samurai just like his father and fulfill the childhood promise he made with friend Kojirou who once had the same dream. However, the world they currently live in is ruled by demons, and samurais are now despised by society. Musashi must convince Kojirou to believe in their dream again and together save people from the injustices of demons.
The series will be animated by studio A.C.G.T. and previously revealed some of its cast including Rie Takahashi. It will be directed by Tetsuya Yanagisawa, who directed High School DxD and I’ve Always Liked You HoneyWorks film. Orient will premiere on January 5, and you can check out the official trailer:
Many fans are already comparing In the Land of Leadale to Sword Art Online. This is because both stories take place in a VRMMO RPG game from which the main character cannot log out. However, even before In The Land of Leadale airs, we can already point out many differences. You can identify some of them in the synopsis:
After being put on life support after a tragic accident, Keina Kagami’s only freedom comes from the VRMMO RPG Leadale. One day her life support system shuts off and Keina passes away. When she wakes up, she finds herself in Leadale two hundred years in the future. As the high elf Cayna, with lost skills but incredible stats, she must forge relationships with the residents of this new world… which, shockingly, include the “”children”” characters she designed herself! A leisurely adventure tale is about to begin, featuring a girl transported to a game world and the smiles and tears she shares with her quirky companions! (via Crunchyroll)
The heroine, Keina, is already dead by the time she permanently logs into the game, making this show an isekai anime, which Sword Art Online is not. In addition, SAO is an action-packed show focusing on intense battles and passionate fighting scenes, while according to the original light novel, the adventures of Keina will be more leisurely and comedic. We can expect this anime to be more similar to I’ve Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level with its aspects of wholesomeness and slice-of-life in a peaceful fantasy world.
In the Land of Leadale will be animated by studio Maho Film and produced by Kadokawa. It premieres on January 5, and you can get a glimpse of Keina’s journey in this PV:
The first police anime of 2022, Police in a Pod, will be animated by the incredible studio MADHOUSE and produced by Magic Capsule and Kadokawa. It previously announced its voice cast including Kana Hanazawa, and its genres are comedy, drama, and slice-of-life. An interesting fun fact is that the original creator, Miko Yasu, was a police officer before becoming a mangaka. What a great way to combine your career paths!
The anime will be available to stream on Amazon Prime Video. Here is its official trailer:
Female police officer Kawai had enough of a career she wasn’t even that into and was about to hand in her registration, when the unthinkable happened—she met the new, female director of her station! And after spending a little time with this gorgeous role model, Kawai realizes that maybe she isn’t quite done being an officer after all.
Kodansha USA
The new year is starting off with some exciting shows and you can also see which ones are most anticipated here. The last four series in this list air on the same day, so you can get a good head start on the first anime of 2022 on January 5.
Which Winter 2022 anime will you begin your year with?
Sources: Irodorimidori Official Website, Tokyo 24th Ward Official Twitter, Orient Official Website, In The Land of Leadale Official Website, Police in a Pod Official Website