For the third week of Anime Trending’s Summer 2026 anime early impressions, our team reviews the first few episodes of My Stepmother and Stepsisters Aren’t Wicked, Red River, The Ogre’s Bride, Victoria of Many Faces, and Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games.
My Stepmother and Stepsisters Aren’t Wicked
Episodes watched: 2
While The Ogre’s Bride is a Japanese-style Cinderella story this season, My Stepmother and Stepsisters Aren’t Wicked is a reverse Cinderella story. The story follows Miya, who is an illegitimate child of the Kounokura family. When her mother dies, she is taken in by the said family, where Miya thought she would be resented and treated badly by her wicked stepmother and sisters. What she didn’t expect was to be treated nicely and like family.
The title of the series initially piqued my curiosity, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that the title is what it says: both the stepmother and the stepsisters aren’t wicked at all. The phrase, “Never judge a book by its cover,” definitely matches the characters in this series. Despite looking like a wicked stepmother and stepsisters, their actions aren’t wicked, and they are really kind and attentive to Miya. It is such a nice breath of fresh air after watching and reading series where the family is completely disgusted toward the main character, and it’s quite funny to watch. Their physical appearances cause lots of misunderstandings — every time Miya and other supporting characters think they’ll do something bad, they’re shocked to see them do the exact opposite.
I feel like My Stepmother and Stepsisters Aren’t Wicked is a hidden gem, and I am excited to see more comedic, cute, and familial moments between Miya and her stepfamily.
By: Gerrymelyn Casupang
Red River
Episodes watched: 2
One of the classic shojo manga has finally made its way to the screen. Yuri, a normal Japanese girl, thinks luck is on her side after getting her first kiss from her childhood friend-turned-boyfriend — until a hand shoots out of a puddle and drags her underwater When she resurfaces, she finds herself transported to an ancient village in the Middle East, where she is captured by the Queen’s men to be used as a human sacrifice for the Queen’s wicked deeds.
As a fan of the manga, I was so surprised when I first heard the anime announcement and jumped at the chance to relive the story. While the first episode felt a bit rushed, it mirrors the pacing of the manga’s initial chapters. What takes some getting used to is going between Yuri’s inner monologue scenes and what’s happening to her, and vice versa. Yuri also fits the damsel-in-distress archetype, which can be a turnoff to people who prefer stronger female leads, but that was a popular trope in the mid-90s. Personally, I don’t mind it and quite enjoy the story more, especially knowing how much Yuri will grow in the future.
The original manga is also quite dark for a shojo series, and I was hoping the anime adaptation would reflect that. It definitely does, especially in the second episode. I am honestly glad how they structured the first episode so Yuri’s story really begins in Episode 2, where she tries to adapt to the new world and realizes how her actions have lethal consequences. When her choices actually get someone killed, it makes me realize I will have to prepare my heart once more as I continue to watch the series.
Overall, I’m enjoying the series so far. Knowing how dark the series gets, I have no doubt they will cut certain scenes; the question is how much they will cut and whether it sticks to the original source material. My hope is that this series will have multiple seasons rather than cramming everything into one. I do not want them to cut corners, especially when it comes to Yuri’s character development.
By: Gerrymelyn Casupang
The Ogre’s Bride
Episodes watched: 3
What would you do if a handsome man suddenly approaches you and calls you his bride? That’s what happens to Yuzu when she meets Reiya, an ogre ayakashi, who calls her his “bride.” After constantly being compared to her sister, who is the bride of a demon fox, and being ostracized by her family, Yuzu sees her life make a complete 180 when she suddenly becomes the bride of the most powerful ayakashi.
My first thought when I watched the first episode is that her family is complete and utter trash! All jokes aside, The Ogre’s Bride is actually quite interesting to watch. I watched it with no expectations, only to realize that the plot is just the type of story I am currently reading. The character designs are also quite appealing to me, especially Reiya’s. The series makes it out to be a Cinderella story, but in Japanese ayakashi style, which I could definitely see: Yuzu as Cinderella, Reiya as the prince, and Yuzu’s family resenting her like how the evil stepmother and stepsisters resent Cinderella. What fascinates me is how an ayakashi finds a human female and becomes their “bride.” It reminds me of the idea of soulmates, which I think is where the author of the original series got their inspiration from.
Actually, the first episode left such a strong impression on me that I ended up looking to see if either the light novel or manga was published in English. I really wanted to know what happened to Yuzu after meeting Reiya. It’s been a while since I’ve felt such a strong emotion from a show, and it only happens with series that share a similar storyline. Honestly, I would have written my first impression after the first episode, but I wanted to wait to see if Yuzu would get her revenge. Well, Reiya ended up getting revenge on Yuzu’s behalf, and seeing it play out was oh-so-sweet and satisfying to watch.
The first three episodes of The Ogre’s Bride are mostly filled with drama, with some romance through Reiya since he is openly affectionate toward Yuzu, but she looks hesitant to reciprocate. Seeing people get their karma also felt satisfying to me. I am quite excited to see where this series goes with all the drama and revenge, and to see how Yuzu and Reiya’s romance blossoms from here on out.
By: Gerrymelyn Casupang
Victoria of Many Faces
Episodes watched: 2
Chloe, a professional spy, disappears one day after being betrayed by her organization. She decides to start her life over as an ordinary civilian in a neighboring kingdom under the alias name Victoria and uses skills from her spy days to live a normal life. Once arriving in the kingdom, she adopts a child named Nonna and decides to raise her.
Victoria of Many Faces, to my surprise, is actually quite a wholesome series because the interactions between Chloe and Nonna are quite cute to watch. It’s amusing to see how she uses her ex-spy skills to help her live her normal life but comes up with excuses with a straight face when someone asks her. Chloe’s interactions with Jeffery are quite cute as well. Despite only knowing each other for a short period of time, they instantly clicked and acted like a real family with Nonna like their daughter. I kept thinking, “Just get married already!” because they really do act like a couple even though they just met.
From the first two episodes, all I can think about is how adorable and wholesome the series has been so far. I am quite content in simply watching the characters and seeing how the story pans out, as I want to know how long Chloe can hide behind all the lies before the people close to her find out who she truly is.
By: Gerrymelyn Casupang
Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games
Episodes watched: 2
As a new scholarship student of Kuromi Girls’ Academy, Aya Mitsuki is committed to becoming the perfect young lady and fitting in with her wealthier, more ladylike peers. When she accidentally catches the graceful Mio “White Lily” Yorue playing Street Fighter 6 after classes, Aya is reminded of the game she used to love — and entranced by Mio’s shimmery gaze, puts down her ladylike goals for one second and accepts Mio’s challenge to a match.
Somehow I have once again unknowingly stumbled upon a yuri anime, and I am much more into it than I expected to be. The establishing shot including Virgin Mary and the small interactions between the students cemented me right firmly inside Aya’s world of wealthy Christian school trials and tribulations, and what’s an all-girls’ Christian school experience without a little gay? I love how the story shows the romantic tension between Aya and Mio right away by playing into tropey displays like thumping heartbeats and a kabedon. Its self-awareness makes the comedy all the more refreshing and the banter between its main characters that much more enjoyable.
Most of all, as someone who is only familiar with Street Fighter through the handful of times I’ve stumbled upon arcade machines while on vacation, I appreciate how this show presents gamer lingo as well as SF6-specific characteristics without overloading the viewers with convoluted explanations. Being sponsored by Capcom, the anime also features gameplay clips right from the source, interspersed between the animated shots of the girls’ furious movements. It’s crafted with that sports anime formula in both its explanations and the high tension of each fight, while also blending in that slice-of-life playfulness and the cringey earnestness of gay teenage girls. I squealed when they stopped playing their intense best-of-five game and hid in the dorm bed together as they heard the footsteps of the hall monitor approaching, and then found themselves face to face. True heart-fluttering yuri!
By: Audrey Im
