Last year's April line-up was pretty damn impressive. Suzumiya 2nd season(though this was only a "rumor" in the beginning), K-ON!, Basquash!(though this turned out to be rather unpopular),  Fullmetal alchemist, Cross Game, Saki, Shangri-La(though this was yet another series that failed to gain popularity), Natsu no Arashi, Ristorante Paradiso, Eden of the East, etc. Seriously, that was one heck of a line-up, right there, and I only listed the ones I was particularly interested in. This year, probably not as flashy as last years but there are many big titles. For me, there are 4 titles that I'm particularly interested in.

House of Five Leaves
©オノ･ナツメ/小学館/ さらい屋五葉製作委員会
(PV on the official homepage: HERE)
Production by Manglobe, original manga by Ono Natsume. Unique drawing style of the manga was very well adapted judging from the PV and we all know how stylish Manglobe's animation is(at least most of the times). This was one of the most anticipated anime of the year for me, and I thought it would air this fall, so it was a pleasant surprise to see this in April slot. Staff wise, I see that both animation director and art director worked on Samurai Champloo, which is a good news. Also, being a 12 episodes series, Manglobe should be able to manage stable animation quality(ANN says its 11 eps, but I believe it is 12 episodes). On the other hand, since it is only 12 episodes, I'm worried about what they will do about the plot.

Yojouhan Shinwa Taikei
©中村佑介/四畳半主義者の会
(PV on the official homepage: HERE)
Director Masaaki Yuasa, known for his unique style of directing is working on non-original anime this time. I'm not really a fan of his directing but PV did look interesting and I can't deny that his works are refreshing, and that is important. Each season, you are surrounded by more or less similar anime you've seen for years(if you are following anime for a long time like me, that is) so these kind of series do stand out. Living up to that expectation is a different story though.

HEROMAN
©スタン・リー/BONES/SQUARE ENIX
Again, I didn't expect this to air on April. No PV is out yet but I don't need to see PV for this one. Bones usually pull off great animation quality, and this one, with Stan Lee as a staff, probably had a generous budget. I think this should be 2 cour, but no source. Introduction sounds like a classic superhero series but with Bones behind it, I'm sure it's more than that.

Arakawa under the bridge
©中村光/SQUARE ENIX/荒川UB製作委員会
Being a Square Enix show, there's a good chance that this will be two 1 cour seires (so 2 cour divided into two different seasons). I'll have to wait for the proper PV to get a better impression but judging from the staff, I think it should be similar to Natsu no Arashi. First chapter that was available on Square Enix site was interesting and manga has a good reputation. Being a manga adaption however, I'm again worried about how they will end the show. Another thing that worries me is animation quality. SHAFT has a tough schedule to keep up these days and it could affect the animation quality big time. They might re-draw some of the scenes for DVD/BD like Bakemonogatari IF it is popular enough, but that's a big IF.

There are some other interesting series but these are the big 4 for me this season. Then again, it really comes down to which series gets streamed in North America. Last season it was 3 out of 4(but I did get to try Dance in the Vampire Bund eventually, thanks to Mediafactory streaming first 3 eps without region restriction). Hopefully, we'll get 4 out of 4 this time, fingers crossed.