MAPPA could fail again this season

As we have already discussed in previous articles, MAPPA studios have been surrounded by a constant controversy involving their employment conditions related to animators, who have to spend a lot of extra time working to meet almost impossible deadlines. However, this is not what involves the studio today, but the fact that MAPPA has already gone two seasons in a row without a highlight.

It's undeniable that MAPPA is recognized for projects like "Jujutsu Kaisen" and "Chainsaw Man," two franchises that it can constantly squeeze, but the problem is that when it relies on two such big names within the industry, it pretty much goes unnoticed when it releases anything other than one of these two.

That's what happened to him in Winter-2024 (January-March) with "Bucchigiri?!", a series that barely stood out during the season. And that's what's happening to him right now with "Boukyaku Battery (Oblivion Battery)," a sports anime.

While it is true that the animation quality of MAPPA is noticeable, it is clear that producing a sports series greatly limits the target audience. What's worse, making a baseball-centric story adds even more restrictions to this series, since it's a much less popular sport than others.

And yes, you've probably heard that baseball is considered "The King of Sports," but this is simply because of how unpredictable games can be. However, it is clear that soccer and basketball are sports with a much larger audience, as evidenced by the success of anime franchises such as "Captain Tsubasa," "Blue Lock," "Slam Dunk," and "Kuroko no Basket."

Anyway, it seems that MAPPA will once again go unnoticed during the Spring-2024 season (April-June) and will have to continue to rely on the glory of past franchises such as "Jujutsu Kaisen," "Chainsaw Man" and "Vinland Saga." "Yuri" movies!! on Ice" and "Zombieland Saga"? Don't make me laugh!

"It looks like they've invested a lot of money in this. From voice casting to production values. But then again, in recent times anything from Mappa that isn't super mainstream, has fallen pretty flat. Either they adapt something really boring, or they make those irredeemable originals. I don't know what will happen with this in the end, but for now these overreactions from the characters should be moderated."
"The scenario with an invincible baseball battery that suddenly stops participating (battery in baseball refers to the combination of two fundamental players in the game: the pitcher and the catcher)... It could have gone a number of ways, but they chose to go with that memory loss angle. The blond voiced by Miyano Mamoru is a bit over-the-top with his reactions, but they had to do it somehow so that he would lose his memory and therefore no longer remember his day as a first-class catcher. Not very well-versed in the area of memory loss, as I mean you usually see them in movies and soap operas only.. So this is already on a bit of a serious note to begin with."
"Once again, MAPPA takes the reins on mangaka Eko Mikawa's lesser-known baseball series adaptation, currently published in Shonen Jump+. It's not well known outside of Japan, as it has 17 volumes, even though MAPPA's episode director, Masato Nakazono, is at the helm."
"MAPPA is back for its seasonal production... This time, it's not a fighting show, but the return of 2020's OVA, Eko Mikawa's Boukyaku Battery. The plot is simple but engaging... unlike another MAPPA project, Bucchigiri?! I think this might be the best anime ever made. Listen to me, guys... They literally want to be baseball players, which is very inspiring."
"MAPPA strikes again. Good animation, as you'd expect. I'm not baseball's biggest fan, but let's give it a shot."
"Sports have been very dry lately, so hopefully this will be a good one."
"I'm a big fan of baseball, but I was disappointed with the first impression of this anime, maybe I expected too much, because Major and Ace of Diamond were so good. Except for the premise, the animations and comedy are good... I hope it gets better in the future..."
"I like this anime and the premise is good, I'm always okay with a good sports anime, however, they're not doing a good job."
"The first minute was very good, I thought I was going to be an invincible drummer shitting all over the world, but NOPE. Amnesiac school life full of gags. What a waste. dropped."
"As I expected from the trailer, it's not your average sports anime. It's more of a joking parody of the genre. From homoerotic moments between teammates to gifted players, we have everything the genre likes to bring out."
"It sounds good on paper. But I'm still not sure how I feel about it. Like the start of Snack Basue last season, it feels a bit forced at the moment. And if I had to guess: From this moment on, I either fall in love with her or I really hate her. And I still don't know which of the two options it will be."