2022 has been a stellar year for anime fans, bringing back shows likeMob Psycho 100, andKaguya-Sama Love is Warand introducing new hits likeSpyxFamilyandChainsaw Man. Safe to saythis year brought something for everyone. The sci-fi genre in particular received many notable new shows. The sci-fi genre has never been a saturated one, but most shows that do tackle its elements end up becoming instant favorites.
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While most shows this year focused on action and laughs, there was still a good deal of noteworthy sci-fi anime that dealt with themes like time travel, giant robots, and dystopian futures. Here are this year’sbest sci-fi animethat amazed audiences with their intriguing premises and reached mainstream popularity.
5Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury
Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercuryis thefifteenth mainline entry in the popularGundamfranchiseand tells a new stand-alone tale filled with robots, and greedy corporations. The show stars Suletta Mercury, the first female protagonist of aGundamTV series, as she transfers from Mercury to Asticassia School of Technology on Earth, which is an academic institute run by the mega-corporation known as the Benerit Group.
In her new school, Suletta must prove her abilities as a Gundam pilot if she wants to be acknowledged by her peers. Her path also crosses with Miorine Rembran who is trying to escape from the institute to be free from the clutches of her father, the president of the Benerit Group.Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercuryhas a rating of 7.92 on MyAnimeList
4The Tatami Time Machine Blues
The Tatami Time Machine Bluesis a sci-fi time travel comedy seriesthat is set inThe Tatami Galaxyfranchise. The show centers around a group of friends from a science fiction club, that go about wasting their days fooling around in their clubroom. The protagonist of the show is a boy named Watashi who is constantly worried about wasting his life.
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One summer morning a chain of events leads to one of the boys accidentally spilling coke on the remote of the clubroom’s air conditioner. The remote breaks and they are unable to find a replacement for it. But suddenly a guy appears in their room in a time machine and then escapes leaving behind his device. The boys first think that they were being pranked but when they soon find out that the time machine is real, they think of using it to go back in time and save the remote from being broken. The show has a rating of 8.19 on MyAnimeList.
3Made in Abyss: The Golden City of the Scorching Sun
The Golden City of the Scorching Sunis the second season ofMade in Abyssand continues the quest of Riko to find her mother by diving deeper into the depths of the Abyss. Now possessing the White Whistle, Riko and her friends Reg and Nanachi descend into the sixth layer of the Abyss where they land upon the ruins of the Promised Golden City.
After arriving in the city of the unreturned, the trio is greeted by strange creatures known as hollows. As Riko, Reg, and Nanachi begin to take it easy, new dangers start appearing. The three friends must now uncover the lost legacy of the Golden City and the true origins of the hollows before they can dive deeper into the Abyss.Made in Abyss: The Golden Cityof the Scorching Sun currently holds a rating of 8.69 on MyAnimeList.
2Summertime Render
Summertime Renderbecame an instant hit after it started airingin the spring of 2022. The show stars a young man named Ajiro Shinpe who returns to his hometown after two years to mourn the death of his childhood friend Ushio. Soon after he arrives though, Shinpe realizes that something unnatural is afoot and that the death of his friend was no mere accident.Summertime Renderis a show thatleans more toward the supernatural genre, but the main theme of the show revolves around time travel.
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Ajiro Shinpe finds out that he has the ability to go back in time and start over every time he dies. With his new ability and the aid from his island friends, Shinpe must find out what really caused the death of his best friend and save the island from mysterious beings known as shadows.Summertime Rendercurrently holds a rating of 8.55 on MyAnimeList.
1Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
Cyberpunk: Edgerunnersis a sci-fi show that serves as a prequel series toCD Projekt Red’s infamous game,Cyberpunk 2077,taking place one year before the events of the game. The show is set in a dystopian future rampant with corruption, crime, and cybertronic implants. It stars a street kid named David Martinez who loses his everyday normal life as a result of a drive-by shooting incident.
To exact revenge on the perpetrators, David turns to the wrong side of the law, becoming a mercenary and joining the ranks of the Edgerunners, who are cyborg criminals that will do anything to make money. Developed by Netflix,Cyberpunk: Edgerunnersbecame an instant hitbreathing life back into its parent game. The show has a rating of 8.65 on MyAnimeList.
