MAL MCP Server

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Get upcoming season anime

get_upcoming_season

Read-only

Discover which anime are scheduled for the upcoming season. Filter by media type, rating, and safe-for-work status, then paginate results to plan what to watch.

Instructions

List anime scheduled for the upcoming season. Use get_seasonal_anime for the current or a specific past season. If Tenrai is unavailable and MAL_CLIENT_ID is set, transparently retries via the official API — filter/rating/unapproved/continuing/kids/order_by/sort are silently dropped (no equivalent there), themes/demographics/broadcast come back empty, an explicit sfw: true is enforced client-side (a filtered page can come back shorter than limit), and sfw_strict degrades to the same filtering as sfw there (no Ecchi-genre distinction available).

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description
`sfw`	No	If true, exclude adult/explicit-rated entries (R+ Mild Nudity and up). Defaults to false (no filtering). Note: this alone still allows mainstream, safely-rated shows tagged with the Ecchi genre (fanservice) through — use `sfw_strict` to also exclude those.
`kids`	No	If true, exclude entries tagged as children's/kids content. Defaults to false.
`page`	No	1-based page number for pagination (1-1000).
`sort`	No	Sort direction.
`limit`	No	Max results per page (1-50).
`filter`	No	Restrict to one or more media types.
`rating`	No	Restrict to one or more specific content ratings. More granular than `sfw`/`sfw_strict` — use this to target a precise rating band instead of a blanket adult-content cutoff.
`order_by`	No	Field to order by. Defaults to members.
`continuing`	No	If true, also include TV series continuing from a previous season. Defaults to false.
`sfw_strict`	No	If true, exclude adult/explicit-rated entries AND anything tagged with the Ecchi genre, even otherwise-mainstream/safely-rated shows. Stricter than `sfw` alone. Defaults to false.
`unapproved`	No	If true, also include entries not yet approved by MAL's moderators (excluded by default). Defaults to false.

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`page`	Yes
`results`	Yes

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed40 schema fields changedv0.9.0Jul 30, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / continuing

Added value: +{
+  "description": "If true, also include TV series continuing from a previous season. Defaults to false.",
+  "type": "boolean"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / filter

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Restrict to one or more media types.",
+  "items": {
+    "description": "A media type.",
+    "enum": [
+      "tv",
+      "movie",
+      "ova",
+      "special",
+      "ona",
+      "music",
+      "cm",
+      "pv",
+      "tv_special"
+    ],
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  "minItems": 1,
+  "type": "array"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / kids

Added value: +{
+  "description": "If true, exclude entries tagged as children's/kids content. Defaults to false.",
+  "type": "boolean"
+}

changedInput schema / properties / limit / description

Previous value: -"Max results per page (1-25)."New value: +"Max results per page (1-50)."

changedInput schema / properties / limit / maximum
```
Previous value: -25New value: +50
```

addedInput schema / properties / order_by

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Field to order by. Defaults to members.",
+  "enum": [
+    "score",
+    "members",
+    "start_date"
+  ],
+  "type": "string"
+}

changedInput schema / properties / page / description

Previous value: -"1-based page number for pagination."New value: +"1-based page number for pagination (1-1000)."

changedInput schema / properties / page / maximum

Previous value: -9007199254740991New value: +1000

addedInput schema / properties / rating

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Restrict to one or more specific content ratings. More granular than `sfw`/`sfw_strict` — use this to target a precise rating band instead of a blanket adult-content cutoff.",
+  "items": {
+    "description": "A MAL content rating: g (All Ages), pg (Children), pg13 (Teens 13+), r17 (17+ violence/profanity), r (R+ Mild Nudity), rx (Rx Hentai).",
+    "enum": [
+      "g",
+      "pg",
+      "pg13",
+      "r17",
+      "r",
+      "rx"
+    ],
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  "type": "array"
+}

changedInput schema / properties / sfw / description

Previous value: -"If true, exclude adult (NSFW) entries. Defaults to false (no filtering)."New value: +"If true, exclude adult/explicit-rated entries (R+ Mild Nudity and up). Defaults to false (no filtering). Note: this alone still allows mainstream, safely-rated shows tagged with the Ecchi genre (fanservice) through — use `sfw_strict` to also exclude those."

addedInput schema / properties / sfw_strict

Added value: +{
+  "description": "If true, exclude adult/explicit-rated entries AND anything tagged with the Ecchi genre, even otherwise-mainstream/safely-rated shows. Stricter than `sfw` alone. Defaults to false.",
+  "type": "boolean"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / sort

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Sort direction.",
+  "enum": [
+    "asc",
+    "desc"
+  ],
+  "type": "string"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / unapproved

Added value: +{
+  "description": "If true, also include entries not yet approved by MAL's moderators (excluded by default). Defaults to false.",
+  "type": "boolean"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / current_page / exclusiveMinimum
```
Added value: +0
```
addedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / current_page / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
changedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / current_page / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```
addedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / last_visible_page / exclusiveMinimum
```
Added value: +0
```
addedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / last_visible_page / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
changedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / last_visible_page / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```
addedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / total / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
addedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / total / minimum
```
Added value: +0
```
changedOutput schema / properties / page / properties / total / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / episodes / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / episodes / minimum
```
Added value: +0
```
changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / episodes / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / mal_id / exclusiveMinimum
```
Added value: +0
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / mal_id / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / mal_id / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / members / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / members / minimum
```
Added value: +0
```
changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / members / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / popularity / exclusiveMinimum
```
Added value: +0
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / popularity / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / popularity / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / rank / exclusiveMinimum
```
Added value: +0
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / rank / maximum
```
Added value: +9007199254740991
```
changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / rank / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / year / maximum
```
Added value: +2100
```
addedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / year / minimum
```
Added value: +1900
```
changedOutput schema / properties / results / items / properties / year / type
```
Previous value: -"number"New value: +"integer"
```

Addedv0.8.0Jul 29, 2026
Removedv0.7.1Jul 22, 2026
Addedv0.2.0Jun 29, 2026

TDQS

A4.8/5.0

Behavior5/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

Annotations indicate read-only and open-world; description adds rich detail on retry logic, parameter dropping, field emptiness, and sfw behavior, all beyond annotations.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness4/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

Description is long but front-loaded with purpose. Every sentence is justified given complexity; slight verbosity but no waste.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness5/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

Given 11 parameters, full schema coverage, and complex fallback scenario, description covers purpose, alternatives, behavioral nuances, and parameter effects. Output schema exists, so return values are covered.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters4/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema covers all 11 parameters (100% coverage), so baseline is 3. Description adds value by explaining parameter interactions under fallback, but doesn't redefine individual semantics.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description clearly states it lists anime for the upcoming season, and explicitly distinguishes from sibling get_seasonal_anime for current/past seasons.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines5/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

Explicitly tells when to use get_seasonal_anime instead, and details fallback behavior and parameter limitations, guiding correct invocation.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.

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