April - June • 217 anime
Spring 2021 rolled out a massive slate — 233 titles and a lot of risk-taking. The season was anchored by Evangelion's theatrical finish and a handful of compact originals that got people talking.
My take was that spring 2021 stood out because it balanced a huge theatrical send-off with nimble, creative short-form work. Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time finally closed the Rebuild story in a way that looked and sounded spectacular — it felt like a proper cinematic moment for longtime fans. LINK CLICK offered a different kind of payoff: tight, emotionally clever time-mysteries that used stillness and framing smartly, so the quieter scenes landed hard. The Way of the Househusband turned deadpan domestic comedy into a reliably funny short-format show, leaning on timing and voice work more than spectacle. Small additions like the Kaguya-sama OVA also kept the season's comedy and character moments sharp.
What made the season memorable wasn’t just one big thing but the variety: a surge of ONAs and music-focused projects alongside TV series and movies, and studios like Production I.G, TMS, and J.C.Staff showing up with clear craftsmanship. For a season that could've been scattered, those strong individual projects gave it a distinct flavor that stuck with viewers.
