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Every anime fan is more than familiar with the 3-Episode Rule for selecting the best shows of each season. Sometimes, some start with a slower pacing to set the whole context, and others start off on the right foot but go off the rails after a few chapters. That’s why this rule is essential; it gives us time to see where the story is going and learn about the characters. The Fall 2024 anime season is no exception, and we already have our top that passed the 3-Episode Rule.
15. The Healer Who Was Banished From His Party Is, in Fact, the Strongest
A classic anime about adventurers, dungeons, and monsters. The kicker is that one of the main characters, Raust, is a “useless” healer who gets fired from his guild. However, Narusena, a rookie adventurer, shows up just to join Raust’s team, and soon everybody realizes that he’s indeed a bad healer. Yet, he’s really one of the greatest warriors no one has ever seen before. It’s a nice and original touch on the whole healing magic genre and one that many will want to watch until we get a second season of Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic.
14. Good Bye, Dragon Life
The most powerful dragon lives in peace until the greedy humans decide to kill him. Instead of fighting, the dragon chooses to succumb to the end of his immortal era, but he is reborn and grows up as another human in a village to live a simpler life. Or so he thinks, since fate has something different in store for him. During an errand, the former dragon meets Lamia, a half-snake woman who is searching for a husband. Soon, they both discover that not everyone in the village or the capital takes the presence of a snake monster lightly. This slice-of-life-esque anime has many interesting takes on the fantasy genre, and with its strong cast, it has a lot of potential.
13. Demon Lord 2099
This is another isekai in our top anime of Fall 2024; here, the most fearsome immortal demon, the emperor of a great army, dominates all the territories. At least until the “hero” defeats the big baddie, sending him to the beyond. But with the help of his most loyal servant, the demon lord returns from the dead. However, he does so only to realize that he now lives in the world taken from the Cyberpunk 2077 book, well, kind of. All-mighty powers are useless because he has no devotees. How can someone who can do absolutely nothing get followers? The answer in this anime is to turn the Demon Lord into a famous streamer.
12. Let This Grieving Soul Retire
A group of children who played as adventurers took the idea seriously and, as adults, formed one of the most powerful guilds. However, their friend, who no longer wants to play with them, is forced to be the guild’s leader. Although everyone thinks the leader is cool, he is actually a lucky goofball who wants to give up his life as an adventurer. Still, no one understands him or wants him to leave his position, even though the truth is that he is so useless that he can’t use magic by himself. Out of all shows this season, this one has some of the most refreshing humor and a great cast that will have you laughing in stitches in almost every episode.
11. You are Ms. Servant
This is the parallel world in which Yor Forger does not know Anya or Loid and works as a “Maid” with very particular skills. One day, this maid, Yuki, shows up at Hitoyoshi’s house looking for a job. Although he is reluctant due to Yuki’s skills, Hitoyoshi hires her to help her become a maid and learn how to become an ordinary girl. Initially, it seemed to be the run-of-the-mill show of an edgy assassin hiding her identity, but it is a bit different. You have a great slice-of-life show with one of the best girls in the season and my favorite fluffy dog ever.
10. I’ll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History
That’s right, we have another Isekai where the protagonist moves into the fantasy world of her favorite video game in the role of the villain, Alice. Although far from wanting to redeem her story, the protagonist gives her heart and soul to being a true villain. In reality, Alicia is not a bad person; she wants to replicate the character of a bad guy, but in the process, she helps others and is not just another spoiled noblewoman. Also, she gets the prince to take an interest in her, even though he should be courting the Saint, the game’s protagonist. It’s unsure how it will hold against other great villainess shows, but it’s been great so far.
9. Negative Positive Angler
When your life can’t get any worse, Tsunehiro proves that it can get even worse. Between dropping out of college, being up to his neck in debt, and having a severe illness, Tsunehiro is rescued by a group of fishermen who teach him the ropes, or rather, lines. While it might seem like a normal fishing-focused anime, it is much more than that. This activity connects the strong cast of characters in this show, who all have a reason to partake in this relaxing hobby. Even if it seems like a slow-burn anime, stick around because it gets better with each episode.
8. Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister
Uryuu is an orphan determined to become a doctor, so he breathes, eats, and even dreams about his studies. He is so focused on learning that he decides to look for a quiet place to concentrate, so a temple is his best choice. However, to stay at the temple, he must eventually marry one of the three Miko sisters and take care of the temple in the future. So, with no other alternative, Uryuu tries to tolerate the sisters, each one more unique and chaotic than the last. In a way, it is a temple version of Café Terrace with fewer girls, the same amount of fan service, and an excellent cast. So, we couldn’t leave this harem anime out of this Fall 2024 anime top.
7. Loner Life in Another World
Some people enjoy their own company more, without needing to be surrounded by other people all the time, just like Haruka, who ends up in another world with all her colorful classmates. When anybody starts in this world, they can choose a skill, but Haruka ends up with all the last and worst skills. However, he ends up adapting to a happy life of solitude, but in reality, his other classmates don’t let him have his moment alone and always end up asking him for help to advance in this isekai adventure. So far, every episode has ended with a great cliffhanger, so we are eager to see how this Isekai will evolve.
6. Yakuza Fiancé
Two important Yakuza groups promise their grandchildren in marriage; she is a provincial girl who tries to adapt to her life in the city by being as nice as possible. He is a masochistic psychopath who despises his fiancée for being good. However, she will change their places, making her fiancé fall more in love by mistreating him as he likes and proving that she also comes from an influential family. Do not expect karaoke or Pocket Circuit in this show, though.
5. Acro Trip
The main character is Utena from Gushing Over Magical Girls, but toned down—way down. Chizuko is a normal girl who does not have much to be passionate about, but on a visit to her grandfather, she discovers a magical girl in the town. So, Chizuko decides to stay and live there and watch every move of her favorite magical girl, Cherry Blossom. Cherry fights against the “dangerous” organization Fossa Magna of Kumakaijin led by Chrome. This organization is very reminiscent of the misdeeds of Team Rocket and Dr. Doofenshmirtz. As fate would have it, Chrome meets Chizuko, and by manipulating her with her love for Cherry, he convinces her to help him in his not-at-all-evil deeds.
4. Magilumiere
Imagine the overpopulated world of superheroes and their agencies from My Hero Academia, but with magical girls. It’s the girls’ turn to take down Kaijus emergencies, but here, the most significant threat is the race with other agencies of who will get paid for the job. Here, even the magic objects evolved with technology, such as transformations that are VFX combined with AR; their spells are advanced programming, and to catch monsters, they use a USB. In truth, this show has some of the best magical girl transformation scenes in recent years. That’s what puts this anime at our top of the Fall 2024 list and why fans of the genre need to add this show to your must-watch list.
3. Mecha-Ude
Mechanical living beings come out of their planet and fall on Earth; no, they are not Transformers. Here, the Mecha-Ude can work with humans as weapons or tools that make them people powerful. Unfortunately, this power can bring attention to dangerous people, such as the Kagami Group, who have trapped the most powerful Mecha-Ude, the Trigger Arm. By fate, someone tries to steal the Trigger Arm, also called Soul, but Hikaru finds it, so they end up tied together. So now Hikaru, with the help of Alma, who has amnesia, must protect themselves from the villains and avoid the disasters of other humans who have other Mecha-Ude. For a studio’s first show, it’s been kicking butt left and right, and I can’t wait to see how the plot unfolds.
2. Blue Box
Taiki trains daily for his school’s badminton team, but in the school’s gym, he meets a star girl from the basketball team, Chinatsu. The two see each other almost daily, but they are not close, and Taiki prefers to hide his love for her. Everything gets complicated because Chinatsu’s parents have to move, and they leave their daughter with an acquaintance. So, Taiki and Chinatsu end up living together, although this should be fine for their classes and training. Both continue to give their all to make it to the nationals in each other’s sports, and Taiki doesn’t want to confess to Chinatsu, at least not until he makes it to the national championship. So their love story will be full of misunderstandings, emotional moments, and a lot of sports action.
1. DanDaDan
Undoubtedly, this is one of the most popular anime of the Fall season 2024. The plot involves aliens and ghosts that the main characters, Ayase and Okarun, must face. However, it all started by getting into the territory of an entity that possessed Okarun and stole his manhood. With the help of Ayase’s new spiritual powers, they could get out alive from any threat. In the four episodes we’ve gotten so far, Dandadan stands among the best-looking, masterfully animated, and packed-with-style shows of this season. Plus, it has Creepy Nuts singing the OP, so what else could we ask for?
These Fall 2024 anime are on the right track and are at the top for surpassing the 3-Episode Rule mark. Still, we hope that the rest of the episodes will only improve, and we will see if the ones in the best positions maintain the same position or change at the end of the Fall.
