2022 was a good year for the seinen demographic; because there's no shortage of good seinen anime. There are some new contenders and also some veterans for said demographical classification, which targets young adult males. That means yuppies and anime fans who are just starting out with their adult lives are blessed with some impeccable entertainment this year.
Do note that despite being tagged as shows for a more mature audience, "seinen" doesn't necessarily mean an automatic inclusion of gore, violence, mature themes, and sexuality. Sometimes, young adults just want to live, laugh, and love (or something like that). In any case, seinen anime entries for 2022 have an interesting variety, and the best ones represent that range.
10 More Than A Married Couple But Not Lovers
- Number of episodes: 12
- Available on Roku
Seinen can be just as much about relationships as it is about overwhelming depression through violence and gore. Here's a decent anime entry with a lighthearted romance featuring high school students that were compelled to pair up as mock married couples.
One can clearly see why it's intended for the seinen demographic. This is a love story about two students who are worlds apart when it comes to personality, but they end up living with each other and even forming a romantic bond. Lots of teasing is involved here as well as fan service, but nothing too childish unlike with shonen anime.
9 Berserk: The Golden Age Arc - Memorial Edition
- Number of episodes: 12
- Available on Crunchyroll
Sadly, it looks like Berserk fans will need to keep holding their breaths and their fingers crossed for a complete or consistent anime adaptation of the manga. All they got this year was Berserk: The Golden Age Arc - Memorial Edition which is an episodic re-release of the 2012 trilogy movie covering the Golden Age backstory arc for Guts and Griffith.
However, that's not really bad. A lot of fans regard the Memorial Edition as the best adaptation yet despite the use of CGI and the fact that this arc in the manga has been done to death already. Still, partly as a memorial to the late and great Berserk author Kentaro Miura, it's a good way to get more people to watch Berserk.
8 Shadows House 2nd Season
- Number of episodes: 12
- Available on Funimation
Shadows House is a peculiar and novel idea centered around the titular family. The Shadows are ghost-like entities who are assigned Living Dolls to act as their more "normal" double and also their servant. At the heart of it all is a cheery Living Doll named Emilico who was unaware of the secrets of the Shadows manor.
The second season sees Emilico under constant pressure from the manor's rather oppressive and paranoid authorities. Emilico and her Shadow, Kate, must team up in order to uncover the root of the odd incidents and happenings in the manor in this thrilling mystery tale.
7 My Dress-Up Darling
- Number of episodes: 12
- Available on Netflix
One of the biggest hits in anime for 2022, My Dress-Up Darling proved that teasing young adults with a relationship that most of them could never have is a good show formula. But at its core, My Dress-Up Darling is a cosplay anime with a "best girl candidate" named Marin Kitagawa.
Marin's fateful encounter with Wakana Gojou, a doll maker, instantly sparked off the start of something beautiful. The two of them teamed up for cosplay contests and shoots despite their clashing personalities and gradually, Marin finds herself falling for Gojou.
6 Golden Kamuy 4th Season
- Number of episodes: 12
- Available on Crunchyroll
One can consider Golden Kamuy as a period piece since it takes place during the Russo-Japanese war back in the early 1900s. It follows the exploits of Saichi Sugimoto, an ex-soldier and deserter who goes off on an adventure to find a fabled treasure.
Helping him is an unlikely Ainu (indigenous people of Japan) companion as the two pool their survival and war skills for the treasure. The fourth season continues Sugimito's and Asirpa's adventures, though due to the death of one of the production staff members, some of the episodes for the fourth season were delayed indefinitely.
5 Made in Abyss: The Golden City of the Scorching Sun
- Number of episodes: 12
- Available on HIDIVE
Those who found The Promised Neverland Season 2's butchery too upsetting will find solace in another similar anime, Made in Abyss. Thankfully, Made in Abyss' second season wasn't rushed and offered a proper expansion and continuation for its lore.
Made in Abyss is about Riko and Reg's adventure as the two set off in the giant cave in the middle of their town to search for Riko's mother. The second season continues their expedition further down the Abyss, delving deeper into the unknown while uncovering some sinister mysteries in strange underground cities.
4 Kotaro Lives Alone
- Number of episodes: 10
- Available on Netflix
One of the most novel slice-of-life ideas of the decade, Kotaro Lives Alone is about a 4-year-old boy who moves into an apartment all alone with no parents, surrounded by troubled adults. Thankfully, the neighbors were all nice and didn't take advantage of Kotaro; eventually, Kotaro even ends up fixing their lives through his innocence and unprecedented child wisdom.
Do note that this anime will provoke some life-changing thoughts; it's notable for making any young adult ponder on what went wrong with their lives and how a fictional kid is doing better than them (this depends on a case-to-case basis). At the very least, it's a great show to watch if one is having a bad day.
3 Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
- Number of episodes: 10
- Available on Netflix
Even those who haven't tried Cyberpunk 2077 will find this anime a little too haunting or even depressing. It has no official demographic classification since there's no manga source material, but this is not a show for those below 18 years of age. Because even without the graphic sexual scenes, it's a heavy and faithful representation of the depressing cyberpunk genre.
Edgerunners follows the struggles of David in Night City in an alternate timeline when human lives are too cheap and everyone is a cyborg to a degree. After losing his mother and pride, he becomes a cyborg mercenary, sacrificing many aspects of his health to rise up and survive in the meat grinder that is Night City.
2 Kingdom: Season 4
- Number of episodes: 26
- Available on Funimation
Not to be confused with the Netflix K-drama about medieval zombies, Kingdom is a historical period piece anime that recalls the Three Kingdoms period in China. It was a time of great turmoil and political chaos where generals and warlords vied for power in the absence of a true emperor.
The fourth season of Kingdom follows the aftermath of the state of Qin's victory though "victory" might be too conclusive a word; political parties within the faction keep fueling dissent and conflict within the Qin's ranks while another enemy threatens their borders.
1 Kaguya-sama: Love is War - Ultra Romantic
- Number of episodes: 13
- Available on Funimation
Kaguya-sama: Love is War is what happens when two genius top students love each other but have too much pride to admit it. Apparently, the first person to confess is seen as a lower specimen. So, the whole anime mostly revolves around Kaguya and Miyuki strategically and manipulatively trying to make each other confess.
And wouldn't you know it, this charade and tango managed to go on for a third season. So here we are. The two are still going at each other's throats, trying to make the other confess in a competitive stalemate. Several other characters even joined them in the fray in this battle royale for love.