It’s been 14 years since the last time an entire season of TV airing anime failed to show at least one nipple. Unfortunately, there is a decent chance that streak could end next season.
Series not worth expecting anything from, but should be mentioned anyway
feel.
The manga has definitive ecchi themes but always of the tease variety so far. The safe-for-work ecchiness and slightly goofy character design style reminds me of Jitsu wa Watashi wa from the Summer 2015 season.
Studio feel. has done nudity several times before including twice recently, but they don’t have much history with taking liberties to add nipples and so I’m guessing Dagashi Kashi the anime will remain non-nude just like the manga.
8th
Gate: Jieitai Kanochi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri 2
A-1 Pictures.
The second cour follow up to the Summer 2015 anime Gate . Like before, expect some light service with a long shot chance at nudity. Originally based on a light novel, the manga adaptation had a surprisingly high amount of nudity and graphic content, but A-1’s anime version was far, far tamer.
Gate: Jieitai Kanochi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri 2 9th
Kyoto Animation
It’s Kyoani, so you can pretty much toss nude fanservice out the window as they always tailor their anime to the safest and most mainstream audiences. With the Kyoani caveat out of the way, Phantom World seems to have more fanservice than your typical Kyoani show, and might be fun for those who enjoy casual service shows.
Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!
Studio Deen
The premise of this series has a lot of similarities to Zero no Tsukaima , and the trailer makes me think this will be a type-A show. But still, it might be nice for people who appreciate casual service.
Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo! 14th
originally began as a brief OVA series from 2002-2004. It featured ecchi scenes but never went as far as to show nipples. Over a decade later, this seemingly forgotten series is now landing its first TV anime.
So you’re telling me there’s a chance? The long shots:
Production IMS
*
Youtube clips of this series reveal some highly impressive character designs and fluid animation. Which isn’t necessarily a good thing. vice-versa.
A cool little side note – these attractive character designs were penned by none other than famed hentai artist Tosh! Not sure how that will work as an indicator for possible nudity, but all the same it’s pretty cool seeing Tosh getting some design work in the anime business.
I was a little shocked then to see that such high caliber animation was being done by none other than Production IMS, who’s seen their animation quality drop quite a lot in recent seasons. Not so here; the production values on Active Raid look terrific.
P
Koukaku no Pandora
Studio Gokumi
Despite the prevalence of “cybernetically enhanced” characters, the manga has a bit of a ‘magical girl’ kind of vibe to it, strangely enough. There are is a lot of fanservice in said manga, but always with blank boobs.
There are ecchi elements in the manga to be sure, and both studio and staff have ties to the 2012 nude ecchi series Nakaimo , but even still, nudity in the anime version would surprise me. It would require taking liberties and I don’t see much reason to think Studio Gukomi would do that.
Koukaku no Pandora 8th
Wildcards. These shows could be AMAZING or they could be soul-crushing disappointments
Gonzo
Four Rhythm is the Winter 2016 season’s lone eroge adaptation. Given that eroge are quite literally fap material by both function and intention, it always amazes me that any eroge adaptation made into anime form would ever hold back from showing nipples (I’m looking at you, Utawarerumono … ). Occasionally such anime turn out as prudes, and so I can’t guarantee nudity with this series despite some good indicators.
Gonzo has done nudity many times in the past, most recently with some surprise nudity in Blade and Soul . Gonzo isn’t on the same level for ecchi stuff as TNK, Xebec, or ARMS, but it’s fair to say that they laugh at the idea of having inhibitions with the content of their anime.
Just going off the top of my head, but I would guess that roughly 75% of eroge adaptations show nudity when adapted into anime format. The original Four Rhythm PC game released in 2014 had plenty of nudity and sex scenes. The timing of this anime suggests that it is likely promoting the upcoming (non-nude) PS Vita game of the same franchise, but given that we’ve seen a lot of anime over the past year show nipples while promoting non-nude games, I’m not sure if it even matters.
12th
Lerche
On paper there is a lot to like about the prospects of this anime. It’s ecchi, it’s harem, and it’s produced by Lerche, who’ve had some of their biggest successes producing nude ecchi shows (Monster Musume no Iru Nichijou , Unbreakable Machine Doll ). There’s a definite Infinite Stratos vibe to the imagery of this series.
Light Novels allow a lot of freedom with regards to fanservice, though unfortunately, this freedom cuts both ways. Light Novels such as Madan no Ou to Vanadis and Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry were rather salacious and may very well have had nudity in the novels if not for the restrictions placed on them, but unfortunately the anime versions toned everything down to non-nude levels.
There is some suggestive artwork from the novels, but ultimately it will be up to Lerche to determine how far they take those scenes.
11th
Fall 2015 season leftovers
Garo 2
Heavy Object
Utawarerumono
OVA releases of note
To Love-Ru Darkness 2nd (January 4th)
Shinmai Maou no Testament BURST (January 26th)
Okusama ga Seitokaichou! (January 27th)
Queen’s Blade Grimoire (January 29th)
Prison School (March 4th)
The one bright spot in a very weak season is an unusually strong lineup of OVAs. Queen’s Blade Grimoire and Testament BURST could very well be the two best fanservice OVA of the year. To Love-Ru Darkness 2nd is sure to be great as well and both Prison School and Okusama will likely throw the fanbase a bone.
Which is good, because this season badly needs all the help it can get. Our best hope is that
On the surface, the Winter 2016 season sure looks an awful lot like Summer 2014 – a season that was the weakest for ecchi content in a very long time. And even the super weak Summer 2014 season still ended up with three series that showed nipples, which is a reminder that even the weakest seasons are capable of a surprise or two.
