The last king of Atlantis over 10,000 years ago, Dartz and his people were threatened by the power of the Orichalcos that came from falling meteors. While the Orichalcos at first gave the people of Atlantis power, it soon began having devastating effects on those with evil in their hearts. As Dartz tried to save his people, he soon came corrupted by a belief where only by reviving a being called the Great Leviathan to destroy the world could a new one free of evil be created. Dartz’ plan eventually results in Yami Yugi and Kaiba dueling together in order to beat him and saving the world. While Dartz’ deck uses a unique strategy of negating his opponents attack and strengthening his monsters as a result, we only see him get to duel once. Maybe if we had seen him duel more, perhaps we could have confirmed how consistent his deck really was but as it stands, Dartz is certainly a cut above most of the other duelists.

A lone wolf at first, Mai Valentine enters the series as someone who will do whatever it takes to get ahead, whether it’s by her looks, cheating, or both. After meeting Yugi and his friends at Duelist Kingdom, however, Mai begins to have a change of heart, knowing what it’s like to have friends for the very first time on her life. Unfortunately, due to the torture she endures at the hands of Yami Marik in the Battle City Tournament, Mai ends up going down a dark road until Joey helps redeem her at the end of the series. Mai’s deck throughout the series is based around Harpie Lady and the proper support for it. Even though she doesn’t have the strongest deck, Mai is skilled enough to make both the final four in the Duelist Kingdom Tournament and the quarterfinals in the Battle City Tournament, cementing her as one of the show’s top duelists.

A schoolmate of Yugi and his friends, Bakura has a central role in regard to the main plot of the show due to his reoccurring role as a secondary antagonist until becoming the final antagonist in the last season. While Bakura is a kind-hearted soul who cares about his friends, his Millennium Ring houses an Egyptian spirit known as Bandit King Bakura that lived in the same time period that Yami Yugi did. This dark spirit, also known as Yami Bakura, takes over Bakura’s body multiple times in order to enact his plans of obtaining all 7 Millennium items. Yami Bakura’s dueling skills are impressive, best evidenced by making the quarterfinals in the Battle City Tournament as well as his duels with Kaiba and Yami Yugi in the final season. His deck, however, mainly relies on locking his opponent down while trying to win through other means besides brute force, resulting in disaster if he fails to lock his opponent down. Despite this tactic as well as only recording a low number of duels, Bakura’s skills are impressive in regards to the other duelists in the show.

The biological son of Gozaburo Kaiba, Noah was raised very much like Seto was until he was severely injured in a car accident at the young age of 10. In a desperate attempt to save him, Gozaburo placed Noah’s mind into a supercomputer, which Noah enjoyed at first until lack of human contact and bugs in the system slowly stunted his maturity to remain as that of a young boy. Eventually, Noah wants to escape the virtual world by taking over someone’s body, and sets Seto as his target in order to prove to Gozaburo that he is the true heir to the Kaiba Corporation. Like some of the others on this list, Noah has few duels to truly base his skill upon; however, in the few duels that we do see him, we see a lot of potential. Noah is able to beat Seto in a duel using a rather deck based around the creation of Earth, and his duel with Yugi is based around Spirits and rapidly replenishing his life points, something that is very effective and forces Yugi to win in one turn in order to beat him. Had Noah dueled more using the Spirit deck, he could potentially have had a legit claim to being the absolute best.

The president of Industrial Illusions as well as the creator of the modern version of Duel Monsters, Pegasus certainly knows the ins and outs of dueling. It’s soon revealed in his duel with Kaiba just how many cards he possesses that were never released to the public, and his Toon deck proves to be too much for Seto, making Pegasus one of the few character to ever beat him. Pegasus’ possession of the Millennium Eye gives him an unfair advantage by reading his opponent’s mind and seeing what cards they have in their hand in addition to robbing people of their souls. However, it soon comes to light that his schemes for collecting the Millennium items and taking over Kaiba’s company were all an attempt to bring back his lover Cecilia, and it takes his defeat at the hands of Yugi to transform him from bad guy to good guy. Pegasus is defeated by other characters later on in the series; however, the mastery he displays in his duels with Yugi and Seto earn him the right to be among the best.

The heir to the Tomb Keepers whose job is to guard the tomb of the Pharaoh. Marik’s resentment toward his destiny and the Pharaoh in conjunction with the Millennium Rod results in the creation of his alter ego, Yami Marik. Marik eventually rejects his clan’s purpose, instead deciding to freely explore the world and take control of it. Once he learns of the Pharaoh’s return, however, Marik wants nothing more than to take out his hatred on him and his friends. Marik demonstrates a fair amount of knowledge of Duel Monsters through the use of his Millennium Rod and his rare hunters, as each of them have their own deck that Marik uses in order to defeat Yugi. Even though Marik loses to him multiple times, each of the decks have a viable strategy to win, such as being built to summon Exodia as fast as possible or making an impenetrable defense that Yugi is very lucky to have a key card to exploit. Marik actually makes the finals of the Battle City tournament, personally using a slow drain method to defeat both Mai and Joey in order to get there. Despite his losses, Marik consistently loses to 1 person, marking him as an exceptional duelist.

The strongest of Dartz’ henchman, Raphael is a powerful duelist. Being shipwrecked as a young boy, Raphael was stranded for 3 years on an island with only the clothes on his back and his Duel Monster cards. He eventually came to be in Dartz’ service, not knowing that it was Dartz who was responsible for the shipwreck that killed his entire family. Raphael shares Dartz’ hatred for the Pharaoh; unlike Dartz, however, Raphael accomplishes the near impossible by becoming one of the few duelists to ever beat Yami Yugi in a duel. Raphael’s chosen deck is that of Guardian themed cards, relying on a lot of support to protect and empower the monsters he was stranded with on the island. Even though he only duels Mai and Yami Yugi and he loses to Yami Yugi in their second duel, Raphael’s skill as well as his crucial win are what place him so high on the list.

Originally Yugi’s tormentor at school, Joey eventually becomes Yugi’s friend and grows from being one of many amateur duelists to one of the best duelists in the show. Joey shows a lot of consistency throughout the series: he makes it to the Duelist Kingdom Finals and the Battle City Semi-Finals, and he eventually beats Yami Yugi in a duel, making him one of the very few duelists to ever do so. Even though Joey’s deck in the beginning of the series is based around cards that involve a lot of luck, such as dice rolls, con flips, etc., Joey eventually obtains powerful cards of his own that allow him to overcome established duelists such as Weevil Underwood, Rex Raptor, Bandit Keith, and so on. Joey’s true skill is revealed when he has Marik Ishtar beaten in his Battle City semi-final match only to lose on a technicality before finishing his final attack. Without a doubt, Joey is one of the best duelists in the series, and certainly has a right to be considered the best.

The main character of the series, Yugi is a small boy who loves playing the many games his grandfather keeps in his shop. Showing a knack for puzzles, his grandfather gives him the Millennium Puzzle, resulting in an Egyptian Pharaoh known as Yami Yugi being awakened and starting an incredible journey for the both of them. Yugi is certainly skilled in Duel Monsters, having won both the Duelist Kingdom Tournament and the Battle City Tournament as well as defeating the world’s best duelists, including the game’s creator. However, his deck tends to have cards that only come to play against certain duelists, while some of his other cards are very grandiose, such as the God cards. Even the cards he uses consistently, such as those based around the Dark Magician, aren’t the most powerful cards to rely on. That being said, very few of his opponents are able to overcome these weaknesses, which speaks to Yami Yugi’s abilities as a duelist to win with whatever he is given.

The CEO of KaibaCorp and Yami Yugi’s main rival, Seto Kaiba is arguably the best duelist in the original Yu-Gi-Oh TV show. No one else has the intensity and drive that Seto brings to the game. His knowledge of the game is best demonstrated by his response to his first ever loss to Yugi, as he creates multiple ways to defeat Yugi in their next duel and eventually wins, even if it is on a technicality (because screw the rules). His losses are minimal, having only legitimately lost to Yugi twice and once to Pegasus (which he rectifies later on). Most importantly, Seto’s deck shows a powerful consistency, revolving around one of the most powerful monsters in the game in addition to adapting newer cards to fit this theme. Truly one of the greatest duelists and the true King of Games.

The much loved magical girl adventure returns this season with its fourth installment. Once again, after defeating their most recent foes, Illya and Miyu are ready to just relax for once. But of course, a magical girl’s work is never done. This time they are led to investigate an unusual incident on Mt. Enzou. While battling a new found enemy, something strange happens, and suddenly Illya finds herself in Fuyuki City, in a parallel world where her friend and partner Miyu is from. We can be sure that more of Miyu’s and Illya’s secrets and mysteries will be revealed and we can probably expect more than a few exciting battles! Will Illya finally make her dream come true? Will the girls ever be done with this fighting and just live a calm peaceful life? We’ll just have to watch this season and see!

Based on the card game by the same name, Ange Vierge is about the events that take place after Hairou portals open connecting our world with 3 other ones. Part of the consequences is that teenage girls develop special powers called “Exceeds”. An academy is built on a faraway island for these special girls or “Progresses” to train and cultivate their powers until they need them to save the four fused worlds. Ange Vierge comes to us from the same people that brought all the Fate/kaleid Iiner Prisma Illya series as well as other similar anime like Anti-Magic Academy, Baka and Test and Shomin Sample. While it feels like just another Magic School anime, the character design looks great and Silver Link Studios has a good track record of giving us action, cute girls and an interesting story all in one package. I already know CodeΩ77 Stella will be my favorite character. She’s a cat-girl android! X3

Sorey is human, but he grew up among the spiritual beings called Seraphim. However, humans can’t see Seraphim so Sorey decides to change the world so that humans and Seraphim can coexist peacefully. His first time in the capital, he unexpectedly pulls out a sword from a stone and becomes a Shepherd. Legend tells that Shepherds are powerful people who appear in times of crisis, which means Sorey has his work cut out for him. Another game-based anime, Tales of Zestiria seems to have great promise. It has Adventure, Magic, guilds and beautiful art and character design. It’s also interesting that the enemies are beings fueled by humans’ negative emotions. I'm always down to banish negative feelings! Brought to us by Ufotable, directed by Tales of Symphonia’s Haruho Sotozaki and with music from FLOW and fhana, this is an RPG anime we have high hopes for!

Mahiro Shirota is a freshman in High School and concerned about a black stray cat, he picks it up, names him Kuro and takes him home. Well, it turns out Kuro is actually a Servamp and thus one of the 7 vampire brothers in charge of the vampire world and protecting the seven deadly sins. Picking up Kuro forms a contract between the two and Mahiro can now give Kuro orders as his Eve. Tsubaki, an eighth trouble-causing brother appears and the seven and their Eves find themselves in an all-out war. Servamp seems like the kind of anime that anyone who’s into sexy bishonen will enjoy. It involves vampires, the seven deadly sins and pretty much everyone’s male and hot in one way or another. To add to this crazy Supernatural Action Drama, they channel Fruits Basket and our sexy boys turn into animals too! You know I’m watching this one! *Marks July 5th on calendar*

Seigi or Justice Akatsuka is a middleschooler with a tattoo on his palm. He got this tattoo from a man he saved one day, and it turned out to be an ancient powerful weapon called a Jumon that warps space and time. America and Serinistan are in an arms war and Segi and his Jumon are deep in the middle of it. He teams up with a girl named Izzie and faces other bearers of Jumon as they learn more about these cursed crests. This Action Adventure Seinen is one of the upcoming Supernatural anime that also delivers a dose of Comedy. It's directed by Takashi Watanabe, who worked on Heavy Object, it comes from J.C. Staff Studios and the music and character design look great so far! We're keeping an eye out for this one.

In this continuation of the original D. Gray Man, The Millenium Earl is still manufacturing Akuma though sorcery by attaching weak, grieving hearts to bodies. Their only purpose is to kill, kill and kill to promote fear and tragedy so the Noah Clan can reach its objective of destroying the human world as we know it. Allen Walker and the exorcists must stop the Akuma and find out the truth behind these sinister events. After 8 years, Allan Walker and company are back in this demon-powered Action Adventure Shounen. We can expect many of the characters we know and love looking better than ever and of course some new additions along with twists and turns and a few laughs. If you were a fan of the first series, you'll absolutely enjoy this long-awaited sequel!

Also known simply as Time Travel Girl, this Supernatural Adventure anime is based on a book from 1983 that was based on discoveries on magnetism and electricity. Middle school girl Mari Hayase finds this book in her friend Waka's home. The book used to be in her father's laboratory before he disappeared 3 years ago. A strange light pulls her into the book and she finds herself in the past. Her Armillary compass, a memento from her father, warps time toward wherever it points. Now Mari and her friends will travel through time trying to find clues as to her father's disappearance. This anime showcases several highly intelligent characters and takes us through a tour of time as the main characters “discover” and “invent” historical items in their search for answers. It's definitely a fun-filled educational anime full of Adventure. While anyone could get into this anime it seems like it'll be a hit especially with kids who like science.

Based on a visual novel by the same name, OZMAFIA!! is themed around both the Wizard of Oz and the mafia, a rather unusual combination. In the original story, the heroine finds herself in a city at war with itself, as the various different mafia groups that inhabit it are constantly at odds with each other. Upon arrival, her life is immediately threatened, but saved the next second by a handsome gentleman from the house of Oz. With so much violence and fighting, it’s down to her to work out who she can trust, who she must avoid, and who she can fall in love with. The anime version of OZMAFIA!! is stated to be an original story based on the visual novels’, so this is likely to be a show made for the fans as service, but also an introduction to the series for any newcomers. This original story will be set at Oz Academy, where one of the main heroes Scarlet has just enrolled and already gotten himself into some trouble. At 5 minutes per episode it’s unlikely to get particularly in depth, but be enough to offer some laughs, some interesting tidbits of information regarding the characters, and hopefully some pretty visuals. Though saying this, currently we know very little about the show's art style, with no trailer and only a couple of key visuals released. However, it’s currently looking to be a chibified version of the original bishounen style art and retains the bright-and-faded color palette that otome games are so well known for. Any fans of otome games or pretty boys, in general, should definitely check OZMAFIA!! out, as at only 5 minutes per episode, there’s no excuse not to! As mentioned, there are no trailers for the OZMAFIA!! anime as of yet, but check out the trailer for the game below if you’re hungry to find out more.

Kotarou Tennouji is a meddlesome high schooler and resident of the beautiful city of Kazamatsuri. Being as he is, Kotarou has no trouble accidently getting up in other people’s business, of which one encounter leads to him reviving the school’s Occult Club with the help of some of the school’s pretty ladies. But the world they live in is much more complicated than it first seems, with an excellent example being Kotarou himself, and his ability to permanently rewrite any part of his body, enabling him to become faster or stronger. So with the girls assembled and the stage now set, Kotarou’s journey into the supernatural begins. Rewrite is one of Key’s most recent and famous visual novels, so it’s safe to say that the creation of an anime version was inevitable. Like many of Key’s previous stories, you can expect the harem/slice-of-life façade to fade into something much more complex and meaningful as the plot progresses, so look forward to some twists, tears, and drama. With no confirmation as to how many episodes Rewrite will be yet, it’s anyone’s guess as to quite how they’ll be handling the story’s various routes. However, the anime’s director Tensho has stated that it will follow a “6th route” that was left untold in the original game. From the PV alone it seems that the series will feature the visual novel’s excellent music, a soundtrack featuring the works of several composers including the well-known Jun Maeda. As for the art and animation, with the studio 8bit behind production hopefully, we can look forward to something that matches The Fruit of Grisaia’s quality. Rewrite is looking to be one of the big names next season, so regardless of your interest in harems, we’d recommend keeping it on your radar.

When the blue world came under attack from the red world, a unit was formed to counter their onslaught: Scared Rider. But as the Nightfly O'Note kept coming from the red world through the crimson Scared barrier, the Sacred Rider units were wiped out one by one. Now our heroine Akira Asagi has been put in charge of the sixth and latest unit, Scared Rider Xechs. But when the Nightfly O'Note’s attacks suddenly come to a halt, the men of the Xechs unit are quickly left without a purpose. Another reverse harem for the list, this looks to be the show where any bishounen lovers can get their fill next season as, compared to OZMAFIA!!, Scared Riders Xechs will be a standard series with full-length episodes. It’s also our third visual novel adaptation on the list, so as with most visual novel based shows we can expect some decent characters and plot development. An anime original character, Hako Salome Sakura, will also feature in the adaptation. It’s unusual that they decided to add another female character to a reverse harem show, so we’ll have to wait and find out how big her role is in the story. It’s worth mentioning as well that Scared Riders Xechs will feature action and fighting as is evident in the PV, and so would be worth checking out for any fans of those genres as well. Overall Scared Riders Xechs is looking to be a decent show that knows exactly what its audience wants: pretty boys doing manly stuff.

To combat the invaders from another world that are currently attacking, young people possessing the Heart Hybrid Gear ability are sent to schools where they are trained to fight the menace. Kizuna Hida, a seemingly ordinary HHG user, has been called to the Ataraxia defense academy by his older sister to begin training there. What he doesn’t know however is the real reason he’s been called there, his true special ability: to power up other users via erotic methods. With a school full of cute and busty girls, you can see where this is leading. Sorry Shokugeki no Soma, but Masou Gakuen HxH is looking to be THE ecchi title of the season, possibly reaching Shinmai Maou no Testament levels of ero. The show has actually had two main PVs released: one with censoring and one without. So we can only hope at this point that the anime Gods grace us with quality streams of the uncensored version. The story and setting are fairly standard at this point, looking a lot like Infinite Stratos and numerous other series since then, with the skin tight “battle suits” and mysterious invaders only our protagonist can help defeat. But honestly speaking as long as the ecchi scenes are good, the girls are cute, and the fights hold up, we wouldn’t say a generic story is really that big of a concern. If you like ecchi and fanservice, Masou Gakuen HxH is an absolute must watch for next season.

They're back for the next round, let the food wars commence once again. A brief summary for those who didn’t catch the first series: for years Souma Yukihira helped his father run the family's restaurant as the sous chef. But one day, after a bizarre incident leaves the restaurant in tatters, his father closes up shop and sends Souma to the Tootsuki Culinary Academy, an ultra-elite cooking school, where only 10% of students graduate. There he, along with his new friends, face off in some of the most insane food battles the world has ever seen, and it's safe to say that losing is not an option. With the first series sitting at 24 episodes long, we’re fingers crossed that the second season ends up with the same two-cour run. For anyone who has seen the first series, we can look forward to more of the same: excellent animation and art quality, intense cooking, and hilarious ecchi scenes. If we're fortunate enough to get another 24 episode run, fans predict the story will cover up to the introduction of the Elite 10, Tootsuki's top students. The new series' opening "Rough Diamonds" will be performed by SCREEN mode (Musaigen no Phantom World), with the currently unnamed ending performed by nano.RIPE (Non Non Biyori, Hataraku Mao-sama), so look forward to a quality soundtrack. Much like Rewrite, Shokugeki no Souma: Ni no Sara is set to be one of the big names next season, so be sure to check out the first series if you haven't already.