2022 has been filled to the brim with anime projects that bring viewers more of what they've been craving. With continuations of series like Demon Slayer, conclusions of long-running masterpieces like Attack on Titan and legacy works such as Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon, the anime industry has been following up on many favorites. In the midst of these, fans have also been blown away by some truly astounding announcements, promising the return of several projects that had previously been thought of as abandoned.
The latest of these increasingly surprising comebacks was unveiled in late February. Spice and Wolf, which is celebrating the 15th anniversary of its franchise -- based on the initial release of its light novels -- shocked longtime followers by suddenly teasing a brand new anime project slated for later in 2022. While the series garnered many fans over the years, the reveal astonished audiences as the second and most recent season of its anime concluded back in 2009, well over a decade ago.
Though the upcoming Spice and Wolf project has revealed little in the way of official details, its mere existence would have been an anomaly in previous years. Until recently, very few anime would have forseen a revival after such a long hiatus. However, 2022 has proven that this is far from an ironclad rule, as this year's summer lineup is set to feature the return of The Devil Is a Part-Timer, which itself hasn't seen any fresh screen time since 2013.
While the reason behind this resurgence of older intellectual properties is unclear, it is definitely a welcome one. It is no secret that nostalgia currently sells well in fandom-oriented markets, and this is true of both anime and the greater global animation scene. Recent years have proved this, with remakes and reboots of series like Shaman King, Fruits Basket and Digimon Adventure capitalizing on fond memories and a longing for days gone by. Perhaps it is this same sentiment that's driving the return of so many deserted series, including some other legendarily popular titles.
Tite Kubo's Bleach, previously hailed as one of the Big Three of shonen manga and anime alongside One Piece and Naruto, aired its anime for eight years but ended in 2012 before reaching the manga's conclusion. With its return set for Fall 2022, it may be the most prolific name shaking up the scene by picking up where its previous run left off. Likewise, the well-known sci-fi romantic comedy Urusei Yatsura is on its way back to television screens with its own new anime. Though the project could be either a continuation or a reboot, either one would be significant as despite numerous films and OVAs over the years, the title has not had a full series dedicated to it since 1986.
This is a good sign for fans everywhere, as there is an industry full of anime that were seemingly dropped after an incomplete run. While many had given up hope on ever seeing a conclusion to the aforementioned series in animated form, their rebirth is a sign that it is never too late to hold on to such a possibility for any series. In fact, their upcoming broadcasts may inspire studios to pick up other anime stuck in limbo, particularly since The Devil Is a Part-Timer's newest run is being produced by a completely different studio. This may likely be the case for Spice and Wolf as well, which was produced by different companies between its first and second seasons.
As far as a timespan is concerned, studios do not seem to be focusing solely on anime series from a decade or more ago. Classroom of the Elite, which previously consisted of a single season in 2017, got an announcement in February 2022 for a second season as well. Its lack of an official release date or projection may imply that it will not debut until after this year, but news of its return -- alongside other belated series like The Rising of the Shield Hero and Date A Live -- show that the present state of the industry is allowing the return of anime from across the ages.
Even the English anime industry seems to be cashing in on this philosophy. New dub projects have been popping up as well, such as Aniplex and Bang Zoom Entertainment's English dub of The Irregular at Magic High School Season 1 -- eight years after the Japanese sub originally aired. With that in mind, the future of anime as a whole, and the fate of many older series, appears to be bright. Since 2022 is still just warming up, there may be even bigger surprises on the way. Should that be the case, it would further prove that some things really are worth the wait.
