Summertime Render

Since the death of his parents, Shinpei Ajiro had lived with the Kofune family and their two daughters—Mio and Ushio. Although he then left his home island to continue his education in Tokyo, Shinpei returns after Ushio tragically drowns during the attempted rescue of a little girl. During the funeral, his best friend informs him about bruises found around Ushio's neck, casting doubt over the cause of her death.

Suspecting a murder has taken place, Shinpei reevaluates recent events, but strange incidents only continue to transpire. Disappearing people and other unexplainable occurrences lead Mio to recall an old folktale referring to entities called "Shadows," which may not be entirely fantasy. Supposedly, an encounter with one's Shadow foretells the person's impending demise.

Facing the dark side of Hitogashima Island, Shinpei stands against his grim fate to fulfill Ushio's final will—to protect Mio.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Ajiro, Shinpei Main

Hanae, Natsuki Japanese

Kofune, Ushio Main

Nagase, Anna Japanese

Minakata, Hizuru Supporting

Hikasa, Youko Japanese

Kofune, Mio Supporting

Shirasu, Saho Japanese

Haine Supporting

Kuno, Misaki Japanese

Hishigata, Shidehiko Supporting

Konishi, Katsuyuki Japanese

Minakata, Ryuunosuke Supporting

Sanpei, Yuuko Japanese

Nezu, Ginjirou Supporting

Urayama, Jin Japanese

Hishigata, Tokiko Supporting

Kawase, Maki Japanese

Hishigata, Sou Supporting

Ono, Kensho Japanese

Sotokawa, Akihiro Producer

Kojima, Hiroaki Producer

Kitazawa, Shiryuu Producer

Shimosato, Satoru Producer

Reviews

Nov 30, 2025

Avengers007

Recommended

Summer Time Rendering was one of those anime that I watched at a time when I didn’t really prefer long series. Back in early 2023 (around 22 Jan to late Feb / early March), I randomly found it on Bollyflix while I was searching for Drifting Home. I kept telling myself, “Nahi dekhna, nahi dekhna,” but somehow I still ended up starting it — and thank God I did.

From the beginning itself, the series pulls you in with its time-travel twist and that eerie horror vibe. This was actually the first time I ever came across the word “Doppelgänger”, and it honestly blew my mind ... that such stories exist. The blend of mystery, supernatural elements, and looping timelines creates a very unique atmosphere.

The story begins with the MC Shinpei Ajiro returning to his hometown for the funeral of his childhood friend. From there, things start getting darker and more complicated. I won’t spoil anything, because this show works best when you experience the twists first-hand — but trust me, it becomes harder and harder to predict what’s coming next.

There was a time when I avoided long anime series, but this one slowly changed that mindset for me. It’s engaging, unpredictable, and has that “just one more episode” pull. The time loops may feel confusing at first, but if you pay attention, everything eventually falls into place beautifully.

Overall, I’d give 8/10, and I definitely recommend it. It’s unique, it’s gripping, and it’s the kind of story that stays in your mind for a long time. If you want something a bit dark, smart, and different — this is it.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by Avengers007 (57)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Aug 26, 2025

henry_tbags

Mixed Feelings

A fun story, with more than a few likeable characters, and some genuinely scary/disturbing moments. I loved the ending overall, and the final episode specifically. And although some people have complained, the final villain (and their motivation) did work for me. Happy to give it a positive rating overall.

However, there are a few caveats:

1. The fanservice is off-putting enough that I almost dropped my rating to a 6. Having so many weirdly sexualizing angles and close-ups of teens is just gross.
2. The horror/mystery element is lost too soon. It's fine that it's replaced by more action-y type stuff later, but I wish the eerie atmosphere ... from the early episodes stayed a bit longer.
3. Not sure that all the complicated details make sense on further inspection post-viewing.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by henry_tbags (2)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Jan 4, 2025

Quitch

Not Recommended

Funny

Summertime Render promised to be The Thing mixed with Groundhog Day; an island where you couldn’t tell friend from foe, and the protagonist would have to utilise their death to figure out how to navigate the threat. It was made for me. Sadly, the reality is that the show abandons this concept almost immediately. The protagonist so quickly gains a method to detect shadows that you wonder the point of the concept, just make them generic monsters and you get the same thing.

This show feels like a microcosm of all the problems in anime. It can’t make up its mind whether it wants to be ... a drama, a comedy, or softcore porn featuring children. It doesn’t excel at either of the first two, and the last one is just a hill that anime insists on dying on. The writing doesn’t understand how to portray emotion except through having characters shout to convey to the audience that this is A DRAMATIC MOMENT. The comedy is heavily reliant on the tired slapstick you’ve seen a hundred times before and likewise leans on shouting to convey that the funny is happening.

Eventually Summertime Render decides that it’s actually a romance. This also doesn’t work due to flat characterisation with very little difference between the starting and end point for most. The protagonist is your typical bland insert, who inexplicably has half the women wanting to get with him. For several women in the show trying to get with him seems to be their sole motivation in life. He’s also introduced committing sexual assault, so clearly this guy is a winner.

There is a real lack of introspection in the writing. Shadows are perfect copies, not just physically, but mentally too, keeping the thoughts and personality of the original. Yet at every turn the show fails to interrogate what this means. Is a copy the same as the original? How do you feel if someone who died is still alive? Is that life? What does this mean for our understanding of what a person is? How do you handle the mental load of fighting and killing loved ones and children? Not once are any of the questions asked, let alone addressed. The protagonist abandons the island for the mainland, even changing the way they speak to better fit in. Why is their return and the nature of their departure not a barrier or an issue to be addressed? I was none the wiser by the end as to why the protagonist couldn’t have just started on the island. Another wasted opportunity.

The writer also loves pulling stuff out of their arse. Regularly situations will develop where one of two things will happen, either some power that has been subject to no foreshadowing will be used to get the writer out of a corner, or we’ll have flashbacks to conversations that happened in previous loops that we never saw. Both are incredibly lazy. I can understand some of this in a manga with regular releases, but an anime should be able to smooth out these rough edges, yet no attempt is made to do so. You start with something that’s relatively grounded, but by the end is an unrecognisable mess of lore stacked on top of lore which just removes all stakes because you know the writer is going to make up something new again next episode.

We’re constantly told how smart the protagonist is, yet their every action in the show speaks against this. Time after time they make the worst decision possible in every scenario they encounter. One character makes a comparison to failing to save before a boss fight, but it’s closer to a game where losing a particular unit loses you the mission and the protagonist opts to put this unit in the frontline. It was hard to root for someone who was this stupid, and the show never provides adequate explanation as to why half the cast is following this guy, apart from the ones thinking with their genitals.

There’s just nothing to recommend here. It isn’t well written, plotted, or paced. It doesn’t feature interesting characters, it doesn’t interrogate its themes, and its central concept is wasted. At best this is forgettable drek.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by Quitch (4)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

hidden gems

by peaceink

30 Entries · 33 Restacks

Peak imo!

by levibeliever

24 Entries · 3 Restacks

Ayumu Watanabe Directed Anime Watchlist

by TheCoolGuy82

32 Entries · 12 Restacks

PV Collection for Mar 28 - Apr 3

Here is a collection of promotional videos (PV), television ads (CM), and trailers for the last week. This thread excludes videos that have already been featured in ...read more

Apr 3, 2022 7:30 PM by Snow | Discuss (2 comments)

Spring 2022 Simulcast List [Update 6/1]

In this thread, you'll find a comprehensive list of television anime acquired for simulcast release during the Spring 2022 season. Anime series licensed for hom...read more

Mar 29, 2022 1:48 PM by Snow | Discuss (78 comments)

	Poll: Summertime Render Episode 15 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) Stark700 - Jul 21, 2022	187 replies	by R0ary »» Yesterday, 5:46 AM
	Poll: Summertime Render Episode 25 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Sep 29, 2022	521 replies	by Sharpedon »» Nov 14, 7:46 PM
	Poll: Summertime Render Episode 24 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Sep 22, 2022	266 replies	by Sharpedon »» Nov 14, 5:49 PM
	Poll: Summertime Render Episode 21 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ) Stark700 - Sep 1, 2022	206 replies	by Sharpedon »» Nov 13, 11:40 PM
	Poll: Summertime Render Episode 20 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Aug 25, 2022	269 replies	by Sharpedon »» Nov 13, 11:05 PM