The Spring 2026 Anime Preview Guide

Petals of Reincarnation

Tōya Senji is a high school boy who, despite excelling academically, sees himself as average because he constantly compares himself to his overachieving older brother. He desires to excel in something and become special. He encounters a long-absent classmate named Haito La Buffet, whom he considers exceptionally talented. He learns from her that she used a "branch of reincarnation" to claim talent from her "past life," when she was the legendary swordsman Miyamoto Musashi, effectively becoming a "Returner," a person reincarnated with their past-life talent. Tōya also learns from Haito that there are other Returners who have more ambitious plans with their talents.

Petals of Reincarnation is based on the manga series by Mikihisa Konishi. The anime series is streaming on HIDIVE on Thursdays.

Content Warning: suicide

Petals of Reincarnation is so goddamned stupid that I can't help but kind of love it. If I were in a slightly different mood or, I don't know, the barometric pressure dropped by couple of points, I could see myself violently rejecting such a self-consciously edgy piece of ultraviolet trash anime, but thankfully the stars have aligned. Or should I say the petals have aligned? Yeah, I know that doesn't actually mean anything, but I'm following the show's lead by tossing a bunch of flower imagery around and hoping it makes me cooler by default.

The funny thing is that it sort of works? Or, at the very least, the sight of dancing, blood-red flower petals spilling out of a slashed throat is ridiculous enough to catch my attention. Really, the comic-book stylings that Petals of Reincarnation has going on is one of its best qualities. The bold linework and harsh colors of all the backgrounds contrast with the flat character designs in a way that is genuinely neat looking, even if the effect sometimes gets in the way of the slice-and-dice action. One of my rules when it comes to trashy exploitation is that a solid flair for distinct visuals will go a hell of a long way. It's what makes so many of Italy's crazy giallo flicks so delightful. The stories and characters are some of the most deranged and incoherent that you're likely to find in cinema, but they almost always give your eyes some gorgeous carnage candy to feast on.

That's more or less how I feel about Petals of Reincarnation. All of its ridiculous lore about Returners and Sinners and whatever else is just the requisite narrative excuse this anime needs to show me a bunch of fun adventures where a cute swordswoman with magic swords does battle against some of history's most notorious killers. Vlad the Impaler is a disappointingly obvious choice, I will admit, but I award Petals bonus points for reaching deep into the true-crime grab-bag and pulling out Albert Fish for a boss battle. It's a shame that the guy didn't, like, get his evil superpowers by shoving needles into his own genitals, but I still appreciate the deep cut.

I'm not sure if Petals of Reincarnation has enough going on under the hood to maintain its momentum for an entire season, but I'm more than happy to check in for another few weeks to see what other kinds of wild nonsense it tries to pull with this setup. I have it on good authority that one of the twentieth-century's most monstrous figures shows up as a tiny anime girl wearing the kind of costume that will get a cartoon banned in several prominent countries around the world. Given the times we're currently living in, I think the world needs more cartoons that transform fascists into ludicrous cartoon villains before summarily running them through with sick-ass katana.

Petals of Reincarnation is a testament to the dangers of bad parenting. Toya's parents spent his entire life thus far comparing him to his ultra talented older brother Seiya, even going so far as to blame him for Seiya's death (assuming Seiya is dead, which I wouldn't put money on). The result? Toya is fully obsessed with having a unique “talent,” which quickly morphs into a burning desire to be the most talented person ever, all in an effort to stick it to his parents and his possibly dead brother. To say that this is unhealthy is an understatement.

Of course, that seems to be the point. This is a different strain of edgy than our typical isekai edgelord fare, but it still wallows in its own grittiness. Toya, along with the inevitable transfer student Haito, is a Returner, which in this case means that he's the reincarnation of someone, and able to access their skills. To do so? He just has to cut his throat – every single time he wants to use his powers. So, yes, content warning for repeated imagery of people slicing their own necks in what looks awfully like suicide, especially Toya's first essay, which results in quite a lot of blood. If you're wary of this sort of imagery, this show might not be worth your time.

It might not be worth anyone's time, actually, because it's so enamored of its own schtick that it isn't nearly as exciting as it wants to be. Points to going with reprehensible American serial killer/cannibal Albert Fish instead of the tired old Jack the Ripper, but we've still got Musashi Miyamoto and Vlad the Impaler floating around, along with whatever historical thief Toya manifests. Toya's true power is so very predictable that it takes away from the big reveal, as is the post-credits scene. It's just not quite as clever as it thinks it is.

I do like the way it looks, though. The use of reds on black backgrounds really works, and while some of the design elements are a bit cheesy, like the stained glass window motifs and the incessantly floating petals, but it's got style and a unique enough look to stand out. And as it settles into its plot, now that Toya's introduction is out of the way and we know at least one of Neumann's secrets, it might turn out to be a slick action show with a spot-the-historical-character aspect. I'm not entirely hopeful, but it does have at least a little potential to be fun.

I think the big problem this anime has is its protagonist. Touya is so unbelievably unlikable it hurts. He is basically a ball of impotent rage. Born in the shadow of his talented brother, he is a walking inferiority complex. On one level, I think anyone can understand the root of his feelings. Everyone wants something they can instinctively do well and enjoy.

Touya's problem is that he has let this define his personality. He's not content with being above average in a ton of different subjects. He wants to be the best at something. Anything less is unacceptable. But even when he gains superpowers and becomes the best thief alive—able to steal anything from the contents of a handbag to a person's blood from their body—that's not good enough. No, he must steal all the powers of every other superpowered person like him—be they good or evil. It's just so angsty it hurts.

Outside of Touya, the other notable aspect of this anime is the art style. Backgrounds are uncharacteristically flat—lacking in shading. They are often just a uniform color with a texture pattern thrown over it. Likewise, background characters unimportant to the story don't even get faces.

However, on the other side of things, the action scenes are above average—smooth, detailed, and without any of the budget-saving tricks you come across in many anime. Honestly, it feels like an example of using the budget only where it's most important-—and I respect that.

But in the end, I don't think I'll be coming back for another episode. While I like the character designs and the action, I simply have no interest in Touya's story.

Petals of Reincarnation wants to be cool and edgy soooooo bad. The plot reads like it was scribbled in a middle school student's notebook: people slit their throats to access the skills of their past lives, but sometimes they're eeeevil people, like dictators or murderers or rapists! They have red petals flowing out of their throats! And I'd get a power that sounds lame, like supernatural pickpocketing, but I'd use it to steal other people's powers! And then I'd be THE MOST POWERFUL PERSON OF ALL!

Then I'll show them! I'll show them all!!!!!!!

Although they haven't shown up yet, the cast list includes such mysterious figures as “A. Hitler” and “Pol T.” Considering that, I was expecting the worst kind of chuunibyou, the kind that holds up history's greatest monsters and asks, “But you have to admit they were kind of cool… I mean, interesting, right?” But Petals of Reincarnation is a lot more boring than that. Instead of trying to impress us with how hardcore it is, there's a lot of generic shonen swordfights. Here I was, expecting to get on my high horse, but instead I'm trying not to fall asleep. The worst thing that happens is Toya kills a mugger by stealing his blood. Not great, since that guy didn't deserve to die, but at least we're not glorifying genocidal despots.

But credit where credit is due. It's not an awful-looking show, especially in comparison to a couple others I've watched today. This is the sole credit for Benten Films, and it's a fine effort for a brand new studio. It wouldn't hold up for a more established studio, but there's some striking use of color, light, and shadow, and there are some solid backgrounds mixed in among the ugly photographs with a filter slapped over them. Now I'll just take a big sip of my drink and look up their Wikipedia page…

“Benten Film Co., Ltd. (Japanese: 株式会社Benten Film, Hepburn: Kabushiki-gaisha Benten Film), formerly known as Gaina Co., Ltd. (Japanese: 株式会社ガイナ, Hepburn: Kabushiki-gaisha Gaina) from 2018 to 2025 and as Fukushima Gainax (Japanese: 福島ガイナックス, Hepburn: Fukushima Gainakkusu) from 2015 to 2018, is a Japanese animation studio subsidiary of Creator's X.”

ARE YOU SERIOUS!?