5 Anime Picks for Spring 2018

This year’s was a good winter — at least in terms of the new anime that kept me binge-watching through the season — and there’s plenty more to come this spring. For your spring viewing pleasure, I’ve rounded up a handful of favorites I’ve recently crossed off my personal queue — one for every mood. If you’re feeling: Contemplative Kino’s Journey: The Beautiful World

One of the fall premieres of 2017, Kino’s Journey is an odd anime that packs a punch, but not for the usual reasons. The premise isn’t particularly enticing: A young traveler named Kino visits country after country, for no more than three days at a time, with his talking motorcycle. Light on narrative and character backstory, Kino’s Journey is more about the people Kino encounters than our stoic protagonist. But Kino’s destinations are far outside the norm. The countries are fantastical nods to Jorge Luis Borges or Italo Calvino: a country that exists on an old, rusting ship at sea; a country where murder isn’t illegal; a country that exists in a giant, moving machine, etc. Though Kino’s Journey definitely delivers in terms of its imaginative landscapes, it also illustrates those same landscapes with attention and care. The animation is stunning, full of lush color. More than that, the series gives each country its own unique feel and visual identity so each episode is a surprise, totally different from the last. In short, thoughtful vignettes, the series presents the nuances of human nature, showing people’s cap…