Anime in itself is a world of its own, offering content in various genres, themes, and contexts, thus attracting people from all walks of life.

At various stages, it is seen that some Animes bring about their own “Age”, which are more often than not seen in the case of Coming-of-age Animes (these are the ones that are shown right from childhood and it grows with the audience), and as they are well-received and loved by the masses, those traits are often seen to repeat over the years.

Considering the New Age of Anime that’s upon us, we search for glimpses of the past in the following mentioned recent arrivals of 2020:

1. My next life as a villainess: all routes lead to doom! ( Apr-Jun, 2020 )

Catarina, who was an otaku in her past life, has now reincarnated as the main villainess in the Otome game she used to play before.

Glimpses of the Old (Kiss Him, Not Me?)

• Both female otaku MCs weren’t stupidly ignorant of the feelings of the males surrounding them, they rather had their priorities straight. Catarina wanted to escape her ‘doomed-future-of-a-villainess’ and Serunima being a diehard-fujoshi, would gladly prefer those boys ending-up being together for her visual pleasure.
• Without discrimination, both males and females in the harem were fighting for the MC’s attention.
• There were drastic changes between the past and present appearances of both MCs.

Distinctive features:

• The setting of the world is very different, even by the ‘Isekai’ genre standards, as MC has reincarnated into a world which she has complete knowledge about, more than those already living there, even regarding the ‘future scenarios’.
• Catarina isn’t a ‘Damsel-in-Distress’, unlike the usual ‘Harem’ genre MCs. She tackles her own problems in her own innovative ways and uses the power at her disposal – her villainous-face to save her friends.

2. The Tower of God ( Apr-Jun, 2020 )

Bam, who spent his whole life under the tower, after his only friend’s departure, follows her steps and enters the tower.

Glimpses of the Old (Hunter x Hunter)

• The MC in TTOG, Bam entered the ‘tower’ in search of his only friend, after she left to fulfill her dream. Similarly, Gon, from HxH entered the ‘Hunter exam’ to follow in his father’s footsteps and find him as his father also had left him when he was a kid, to fulfill his dreams.
• Rankers(TTOG) and examiners(HxH) are elite personnel, setting the rules for each level independently in this tournament-type setting. 
• The floor system is quite similar to heaven’s arena arc. So is the prize for winning in Greed Island(HxH) and reaching the top of the tower(TTOG). 

Distinctive features:

• Unlike the usual Tournament-based Anime, they have to often fight in teams based on the requirements of the levels, with the work being assigned to them based on their positions.
• The innovative “different-rules-per-floor” keeps the viewers entertained, each being really engrossing and well thought-out.
• Most of the characters having their own struggles are bound to show various shades of their true natures.

3. Id: Invaded ( Jan-Mar, 2020 )

Using the Mizuhanome system, Narihisago enters the unconscious minds of killers to solve mysteries and eventually find the serial killer creator.

Glimpses of the Old (Psycho-pass)

• A futuristic tool, Wakumusubi is used to detect and collect “cognition particles” given off by someone’s killing-intent. Later, he dives in an id well, gathering clues to find the killer; quite similar to Psycho Pass’ system of using the Crime Coefficient index based on one’s psychological state, determining their probability of committing a crime. 
• The brutal death of Narihisago’s daughter and his wife’s suicide due to a serial killer was the reason behind him pushing himself continuously to help the investigation, resembling Shinya’s urge to find Makishima after his friend’s death. 
• Both characters have criminal records.

Distinctive features:

• Narihisago used to be a detective. Despite being in prison, he receives respect for his work from colleagues.
• The main antagonist’s identity is a mystery in Id:Invaded, whereas Makishima’s (PP) identity was known.
• Hondomachi turns into a notable character because of her certain acts.
• The concept of delving into another’s unconscious mind is indeed intriguing. Also, how all the mysteries were connected to a bigger event was well-portrayed.

4. The God of the High School (Jul-, 2020)

“The God of the High School” is a world tournament that the protagonist participates in as he feels intrigued by the unique type of prize one receives upon winning.

Glimpses of the Old (Hunter x Hunter)

• It follows a tournament setting much like the Greed Island in HxH, where players enter of their own volition, may use any weapon at their disposal, and any ‘one wish’ of the winner will be granted.
• The MCs are strong right from the beginning and don’t suffer losses at every match-up they have.
• It’s sometimes compared to “The World’s Strongest Disciple: Kenichi” as they hail from the same “Martial Arts” genre, but they are incomparable.

Distinctive features:

• Awesome fight scenes, solely based on various kinds of Martial Arts. (I’ve been looking for a Martial Arts Anime for ages and finally, my prayers have been answered!)
• Really strong female fighters can be found among the midst.
• Teamwork is well portrayed, none are shown as dead-weights which is often the case.
• Anime mainly focuses on fights, rather than relationships, which will come as a nice change-of-pace for fight-lovers!

5. Plunderer ( Jan-Jun, 2020 )

Losing her mother to the Abyss as her “count” drops to zero, Hina sets off on a journey to find the “Legendary Ace” as instructed by her mother in her dying moments.

Glimpses of the Old (The Seven Deadly Sins)

• Finding “the Legendary Ace” which refers to a group that fought in the Waste War 300 years ago, is somewhat similar to the search of the “Legendary Seven Deadly Sins”.
• Characters Litch and Hina are very similar to – perverted Meliodas and cheerful, gullible, and kind Elizabeth.
• Both MCs set off on the journey to find the group that is only said to exist in legends.

Distinctive features:

• The “count” system which is unique for an individual in regards to what is being counted, can both fall and rise according to the situation.
• The concept of “falling into the Abyss” if your count runs out, much like running out of HP in video games.
• The main character is unaware of how the world works, which is similar to the “reincarnation” theme rather than “adventure”.

Final Thoughts::

The popular stories this year are certainly better in almost every aspect than their counterparts, with matured contents and relatable reactions. Rather than giving occasionally-inconsistent stories with idealistic themes for hooking the younger audience, nowadays seemingly the target audience has shifted to a slightly mature audience. 

This is the New Age, that has been brought by the old, passed down like a hereditary heirloom, like a legacy being left behind, connecting the past and future with invisible strings of fate.

Pic credits: taken from the episodes of the respective Anime.