Shirukii’s Top 10 Anime List
November 9th, 2008 by Shirukii
After a call to arms by my better half in this post I figured it’s up to me to get the ball rolling on the “My Top 10 Anime” posts. Furthermore, my last post was exactly one month ago, I figured it’s about time to remind everyone that I’m still alive, haha. Keep in mind that this is by no means meant to be a definitive list of the 10 best anime of all time, rather the 10 anime that I personally enjoyed the most, or that I found particularly memorable. So without further ado, hit the jump and let’s get started.
10. Nanoha As
Scraping the bottom of this list is Nanoha A’s, the second installment of the Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha series. Succeeding the first season, which was a decent, but not exceptional, magical girl series and preceding StrikerS, which destroyed the franchise in the eyes of many, Nanoha A’s encompasses everything good about the Nanoha series, while leaving out most of the fail. With an abundance of PEW PEW STARLIGHT BREAKER LAZORS and a distinct lack of annoying training episodes, Nanoha A’s was packed with terrific beam spamming action and just enough plot to get by, to top it all off, let’s not forget the delicious lesbian undertones.
Nanoha A’s is the best magical girl series I’ve seen to date, and given my latent distaste for their predictability and cookie cutter characters/plot, I doubt that will change any time soon. Unless I ever get around to watching Cardcaptor Sakura, that is.
9. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
Given that I named Gurren Lagann the best anime of 2007, its low standing on this list may come as a surprise to many, but there’s a reason, which will become apparent further down the list. There’s nothing I can say now that I didn’t say back in ‘07, as my opinion on the series remains largely the same. It was a kick ass anime filled with no nonsense (or perhaps more accurately, no sense at all) action from Kamina’s opening speech to the Gurren Lagann’s final matryoshka doll attack.
With off the wall battles that eventually scaled to galactic proportions backed by the old school, those with the most courage and the loudest battle cry wins, philosophy, and a simple but charming “believe in yourself and you can achieve anything” motto, Gurren Lagann was an anime that took the concepts of old and polished them to a mirror shine.
…and then kicked its viewers in their figurative balls with that utterly stupid and out of place time skip epilogue.
8. AIR
BAAAAAAAAAAAAW
A top 10 list from me wouldn’t be complete without a KeyAni anime, and AIR stands atop the big three (AIR, Kanon, Clannad) in my eyes. Sure, the story was a little convoluted at times, the characters lacked that degree of depth and personality that would have enabled me to relate to them, and I don’t know what the hell they were thinking when they made us watch the series twice. But despite all that, I couldn’t help but find myself drawn into this tragic story following a drifter with no direction and a little girl who, despite her well intentioned nature, just couldn’t seem to make friends. While I couldn’t relate to the characters on a personal level, I still sympathized with them and the eternally recurring fate they are bound to.
Also, I cried like a 5 year old girl during the last episode, and would probably do so again if I were to rewatch it again (for the fifth time). Gooooooal ;_;
7. Planetes
One of my more recently watched series, Planetes rocketed (hurr hurr) past the rest and now sits comfortably in the middle of the bottom half of this list, not to be dislodged anytime soon.
Planetes’s greatness lies mainly in its characters. Whether I loved or hated them, I found myself able to relate to them, I could look at their back stories and understand why they are the way they are, I felt connected to them, I felt as if I knew them. Everyone from the well meaning, but horribly naive Tanabe, to the motherly Fee, to the pitiable but strong Yuri, every character had their story to tell, and they were done exceptionally well.
What prevented Planetes from being higher on this list was its indecisiveness, it tried far too hard to be two things at once, and while succeeding on some level, both halves fell short of what their wholes could have been. The first half of Planetes was very much a slice of life series, following this quirky group of space debris collectors, each episode being a standalone retelling of one of their many experiences, throwing some character development into the mix for good measure. However, the latter half changed tone and atmosphere with a transition so sudden there might as well have been an audible clunk. Suddenly we were thrown into this involved plot riddled with social, political and interpersonal complexities that were either completely absent or only vaguely hinted at during the first half.
The result was a perplexing mixed feeling when I reached the end of it all. It was good, but it could have been better if they had chosen to focus solely on either the slice of life or plot driven aspects, rather than attempting to be a jack of all trades (alternatively, it could have been twice as long!). There were also some scenes that seemed like they were tacked on as an afterthought, and much of the last episode seemed rather unnecessary. But for all its insubstantialities, it was a terrific anime whose characters drew me in to their world.
6. Princess Tutu
Brushing up against my top five is Princess Tutu, whose girly name and equally emasculating premise had put me off from watching it for a long time. That is, until I saw this AMV (one of the very few AMVs in existence worth watching) which convinced me to take the plunge. I was rewarded with an incredible anime, which although suffered from the monster of the week formula at the beginning, soon turned into a fabulous story backed with great characters and a fantastical setting.
The crowning jewel of Princess Tutu is the villain of the story, who is, in my opinion, one of the greatest antagonists in anime, ever. His sheer malice and the despair that the characters are thrown into as a result of his existence, coupled with the fact that it takes you half the series to even realize he’s the evil mastermind, is an amazing sight to witness.
Yes, this series is about ballet, and yes, your friends will berate you to no end if you’ve watched this and they haven’t, but pride yourself in knowing that they’re the ones missing out. No one should live without watching this series which boasts a great cast, a captivating story, and a brilliant soundtrack to back it all up.
5. Neon Genesis Evangelion
Sitting at the bottom rung of the top 5 ladder is Evangelion, one of the most well known anime in existence. I was torn between this and Princess Tutu for the number five spot, but Evangelion won out in the end due to its nostalgia bomb factor. Evangelion was one of the first anime I’ve ever watched and as a result holds a special place in my heart, and likely any “Best of…” or “Top…” anime themed lists that I’ll write.
With an interesting concept, in terms of surface plot elements as well as its underlying themes and symbolism, Evangelion revived the anime industry in a time when it was struggling. After being analyzed time and time again, the mystery of Evangelion has long since faded and many would argue that it doesn’t hold a candle to many anime out there nowadays, and while they may be right, back in 1995, it was an unprecedented masterpiece. I’m not sure how much its excellence over a decade ago matters to most, but having watched it during that time, I’ll always remember it fondly.
My major complaint with Evangelion is that I hate all the characters. Rei’s devoid from personality, Shinji’s a pussy, Asuka’s a bitch, Misato’s a slut, Gendo’s a bastard, Kaji’s a prick, Ristuko’s a whore, and the list goes on, but I suppose that’s the effect they were intended to have, so…meh.
4. Gunbuster
This is the reason why Gurren Lagann sits near the bottom of this list, Gunbuster outdoes it to take the title of my favourite giant robo anime of all time. While the animation pales in comparison, which probably has something to do with it being nearly two decades its senior, Gunbuster is superior in many aspects. (Not that Gunbuster’s animation is anything to scoff at) While Gurren Lagann’s characters were fun to watch, they seemed to be on a plane of existence separate from our own, the courage they display in the face of adversity is absolute, and therefore unrealistic. In comparison, the personalities and character dynamics of the cast of Gunbuster are much more believable and make it possible for the viewer to relate to them, it was particularly entertaining to watch Noriko grow.
However, what really tipped the scales in Gunbuster’s favor was how well they implemented the concept of time dilation and light speed travel. While Gurren Lagann had the cast warping to different dimensions and leaping lightyear distances with no repercussions at all, Gunbuster took space travel as seriously as anime could, where just a few hours of light speed travel equated to a passage of months depending on relative positioning. This set the stage for some compelling exchanges between characters who started on the same time line but developed at different rates, resulting in everything from tragic farewells to huge gaps in life experience. All this within a span of six episodes.
3. Akagi
Once in a while, anime will locally influence my behavior or hobbies, whether it be trying to emulate certain traits of a character I admire or trying my hand at at tennis thanks to a certain sports shounen (fucking Prince of Tennis made it look so easy). But nothing was as long lasting as the year long obsession with mahjong that developed as a result of watching Akagi, many days and nights were wasted away on Tenhou thanks to this anime.
Akagi takes the pastime of mahjong and escalates it to unrealistically epic proportions, the title character pulls off some stuff that while theoretically possible, should never be expected to be witnessed in one’s lifetime of playing the game. The best part of Akagi is the suspense it creates despite the viewers knowledge of the end result. Akagi Shigeru is the ultimate gambler, he CANNOT lose, but despite this, it’s absolutely nerve wracking watching exactly how he’s going to pull off his win. In over a decade of watching anime, I’ve never watched anything that did such a good job of drawing me into the spectacle, so much so that while I was skimming through Akagi to get a screenshot for this post, I ended up watching two episodes before I tore myself away to continue screencapping.
But as much as I praise it, Akagi is not for everyone, while you can watch it without a prior understanding of mahjong, you don’t get the full effect unless you know at least the very basics of the game. Furthermore, the animation style will put A LOT of people off this anime, which is a shame, since it works so well.
2. Honey and Clover (I & II)
The ultimate slice of life drama and the penultimate slice of life, Honey and Clover was an absolute joy to watch. Another series in which the characters make the show, Honey and Clover is unparalleled in drawing me into the lives of its cast. Life and love are the two umbrella themes of this series, and the anime does well to give every character their time in the spotlight, fleshing each and every one of their stories out to a surprising depth over its 40 episode run. Love triangles may be an industry standard, overdone to hell and back, the very definition of cliche, but the superb execution and meshing of this series many love polygons is, in my opinion, second to none.
Throughout the course of Honey and Clover, I laughed, cried, facepalmed, cringed, D’AWWWW’d, and generally dragged through every range of emotion that I can think of. Honey and Clover is by no means a perfect anime, many will find local faults with its characters, pacing and plot elements, but I think that when all is said and done, anyone who watches this series will look back and find that it was time well spent.
1. ARIA (all)
The ultimate slice of life, number one shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who reads this blog with any consistency, I crowned it my favourite anime of all time the moment ARIA the ORIGINATION finished airing.
It may not boast adrenaline fueled action, complex story elements or a touching love story, but ARIA’s atmosphere sucked me into the world of Aqua. Fleshing out its settings and its characters, ARIA evoked emotions I thought my heart was no longer capable of feeling, as corny as that may sound.
Absolutely sublime from start to finish, there’s not much I can say in a few short paragraphs that I haven’t already said in more words in my series retrospective, so feel free to read it and hear me rave some more.
Honourable Mentions (in no particular order)
- BECK
- Simoun (FUCK YEAH LESBIANS)
- Monster
- Kannazuki no Miko (Only the ending. FUCK YEAH LESBIANS)
- Dennou Coil
So there you have it, the ten anime which, in my mind, stand above all the rest of the crap out there, the shining beacons in the swamp of crap comprised of most anime out there. Bear in mind that I’m far from being able to claim that I’ve watched every single good anime out there, so if you disagree with my picks, feel free to present a recommendation or a reasonable argument for your objections, lest you find yourself ridiculed for your unsupported ramblings.
Hopefully the other authors will follow with their own lists sometime soon, when we’re all finished we can tack links to these lists to our author biographies to give prospective readers an idea of what to expect from our tastes and how they are presented through our writing.
Now if you’ll excuse me, this post, chock full of praise and worship, has left me with a lot of surplus bile, it’s time to return to the day to day grind of university life. Until next month?
~ Shirukii ~
36 Responses to “Shirukii’s Top 10 Anime List”
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I love you if only for the fact you put “Princess Tutu” on your list.
@Shirukii: You’re completely wrong, and I disagree with everything you said.
…
Don’t ridicule me =(
By the way, is it so wrong if I’m downloading Princess Tutu as we speak? Seems as if a grand majority of people have been recommending it, even though it’s been, what, 6 years -ish?
Ah well, hopefully it will be time well spent. I don’t want to be hours in the hole for my life…..
…
It already is in the hole. NVM!
What? I’m not your better half?!
Fuck this shit.
Anyway, fuck yeah Aria!
And you have a good understanding of what is better than most, I must say. Putting Beck and Simoun and Monster and Dennou Coil and H&C ahead of crap like Da Capo shows that you’ve matured. Good job, Shirukii.
I still love you.
Actually, there’s one thing I don’t get, and that’s how any of your honorable mentions are inferior in any way to Nanoha A’s. Sure, Nanoha is awesome (hey, am I like, the only guy in the world who thinks the first season was the best?), but it’s nowhere near any of the honorable mentions in terms of quality.
p.s. Kannazuki no Miko was good for more than just its ending—it was a genre-breaking epic, it featured some of the best voice acting ever featured in anime, it had an excellent balance of violence and emo angst, and it had a wonderful ending. Not many shows accomplish those goals, and doing such definitely elevates KnM above “omg lesbians.”
I think I watched the first couple episodes of Aria. I found it awful. Did it get better from there?
Somehow, I saw ARIA as your number 1 coming, especially after your last post was ARIA-themed anyway. ^^; And though I haven’t watched Princess Tutu myself, a picture of some guitar-wielding ninjas are urging me more and more to take the plunge…
@Pyrrhus Online: No, it’s not bad at all, considering I only started watching (and finishing) Gurren Lagann once I went to AX this (last?) year. ^_^
I’ve always thought we had a similar taste in anime, but as I’ve only seen 4 of the series on your Top10 I can’t say for sure. I’ll be checking Akagi and Princess Tutu out though.
I think I’m a lot less partial to slice-of-life drama than you are, although I can definitely appreciate it. And it’s good to see you value Planetes as much as I do. ^^
Personally I find psychological and “deeper” series much more to my liking, which you should be able to see from my Top10 (when I get around to it)
PS – Have you seen REC?
Ha, I got you beat Vadigor, I’ve only seen three. Although, that doesn’t suprise me in the least. And, the ones that I have seen will also be sitting in my top ten somewhere… except for maybe Planetes. I’m still bitter about how my awesome space garbagemen show got destroyed by some terrorists’ mission to Mars.
Jesus though Shirukii, you can write bud. There is no way in hell I will ever sit down and watch AIR or Princess Tutu, but for a second or two after reading your descriptions I was thinking it might be something I should do.
Also, I need to convince my friends to watch Gunbuster. I’ve been sold on the anime for a while, but I can’t get anyone to watch it with me.
Look for my top ten list once I can kick my roommate into bringing a microphone to school and hooking it into my computer for me.
Hell, I’m just glad you’re not dead ^^.
One thing about Gunbuster though (and I’ve only seen the series once so don’t quote me on this). Noriko seemed less to grow as she had a sudden personality change when that guy died in the middle of the series (forget his name). She went from immature and irritating to courageous within about 20 seconds, and that just didn’t sit well with me. Then again, the series as a whole was great, but due to my Nu-Age anime viewpoint, the animation dragged it down a lot for me.
Check out Baccano! It’s one of the most convoluted but enjoyable anime I’ve seen in a long time. Plus it’s set in the 1950’s. In Italy. On a train called the Flying Pussyfoot. With IMMORTALS.
None of my top 10 animes are in your list, except for Honey & Clover.
The series is a masterpiece, a series that everyone should watch.
I never come across another anime just like H&C (name one if you know any), it’s different from any other anime.
If you found the first couple awful, the answer is probably “no.” Aria isn’t for everyone. Most of the common reasons for liking it are things that would be considered “bad” when describing a show (slow, boring, mushy, etc.), after all. It’s a miracle of a series in my opinion (my #1 of all time as well, decided at the same time as Shirukii for the same reasons) but that does not make it the end-all be-all of everyone’s anime experience.
:)
It’s actually quite funny that I aslo got drawn into “Princess Tutu” due to a AMV. Not the same as yours, but still a great AMV.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyJ2FAAqdH4
You made good choices for your Top 10 and you have solid reasons to choose them.
I still don’t get the ARIA obsession in the anime-sphere….which is weird considering it has many factors that I enjoy (cute character designs, emphasis on life lessons etc.)….but its just so…..blaise
hmmm I don’t think I’ve watched enough anime to give a top 10, but I can give a top 5 for sure
5. NGE-If for no other reason then the mind-rape of Auska Langely….that has to be one of the best animation/dialouge sequences ever!
4. Bamboo Blade-Simply put, it is/was different from every other anime I’ve watched so far……the humour is fantastic! :D…..
Originally I wasn’t going to put it on the list, but if I asked myself the question: “What anime would I rewatch on a regular basis?” Bamboo Blade has to be up there
3. Elfen Lied-Yes, the OP gets overplayed and annoying, but the story-line is great, and the series as a whole is SUPER dark and brooding :D
2. Honey & Clover-For all the reason Shirukii stated :D…Morita-san ftw!
1. Kanon 2006-You should have seen this one coming lol….Animation is awesome, the characters are endearing and the male-lead actually has a backbone.
Kanon ‘06 was the first anime I ever watched (unless you count dubs of Sailor Moon back in the 90s) and I also came to it without any previous knowledge of the game, or how events unfolded. I was hooked on the emotional roller coaster from start to finish, and still stands as one of very few series where I was actually anxious for episodes to be released from week to week :D
Honourable mentions:
Death Note-super entertaining but fails in light of the HAX where N figures out that Light is Kira for no apparent reason
Air-another KeyAni production that also had me crying like a 5 year old girl :(
SHnY-I seriously thought about adding this into the top 5, but it has lost some of its appeal in the mass hysteria that surrounds it…..
My all-time favourite anime is actually Byousoku 5cm….but I wasn’t sure if movies count lol :P
My top 5:
5. Haruhi
4. Fumoffu
3. Kanon
2. Clannad
1. Air
One of these decades. I will watch Aria. I’m reading the manga now and then and I like it.
Also i might get motivated to try watching Princess Tutu because of this.
Nice way to sum up Air. I kind of half-watched it (blasphemy I know). I think I watched it too quickly to actually settle down and sympathize with the characters.
Cool place for Akagi. I wouldn’t call it one of my top 10. But definitely a great watch.
@ Yubikiri: Excellent, Princess Tutu is finally getting the recognition it deserves.
@ PyrrhusOnline: *ridicules*
Seriously though, you won’t be disappointed, it is well worth your time.
@ lolikit: Live and learn. As the time I was able to spend on anime decreased, my selectiveness increased in direct proportion and led me to the realization that harem is, on the whole, inferior. I still like Da Capo though, but I know you love me despite my faults <3
As for Nanoha As surpassing my honorable mentions…meh, I don’t really have a reason for it, I just wanted a Nanoha series to be on there.
And yes, KnM had its merits beyond the fuckwin ending and the accompanying lesbian themes, my apologies for reducing it to such base components.
@ Roy Mustang: What lolikit said.
Also, your top 5 list reeks of KyoAni, not that that’s a bad thing, but it doesn’t hurt to diversify!
@ Jay: I was debating whether or not to put that picture up, but figured that most people wouldn’t understand it and therefore opted not to. But really, watch it, it’s awesome. Dueling guitar ninjas awesome.
@ Vadigor: Yes, I’ve seen REC, I thought it was far too short for a romance with as much potential as it had. Manga is significantly better though.
Psychological anime are all fine and dandy, but my problem with them is twofold. Often, they either try too hard to be intellectual, and come off as pretentious instead, or just delve too much into mindfuckery that I can’t be bothered.
@ Linall: Yea, totally didn’t see the terrorists coming either.
Thanks for the compliments on my writing, I’m glad that I still have it in me to incite reader reactions, I was afraid month long hiatuses at a time would dull my writing. Yours is just as influential, I’ve either watched or queued for watching, every series you’ve written about.
@ Omisyth: I found the transition to be justified enough, that death was a life altering event for her, it’s reasonable that a drastic change in personality would follow. As for the animation, although not the cutesy moe moe style of the present, it excels in its own rights.
I’ll give Baccano! a try (when I get some time ;_;) thanks.
@ Setsukyie: Honey and Clover was quite the ride, anime like that don’t come along very often. Out of curiosity, what is your top 10?
@ DreamGazer: Nice AMV, very well put together, although I can’t say I like the song much D:
@ Kanon_fan82: Well I saw Kanon coming, but it was a surprise to see Bamboo Blade in there, it was a nice feel good anime, but lacking in many key elements that define excellence. But that’s just my take on it, though your reasoning for it being on your top 10 seems sound enough.
@ Avisch: DOOOO EEET.
Akagi was a unique watch for me, it sucked me in from episode one and didn’t let go until it was all said and done. Then I read up on the basics of mahjong and went back for seconds. The extent to which I was drawn in and immersed into the series was what earned it its number three spot.
I was about to laugh for your choice of Princess Tutu, but then I remembered than Rahm Emanuel is an amateur ballet dancer.
In any case, nice list. I don’t really like to rate or rank things, so I’m not sure what my favorite anime is. I guess I kind of stick shows into “liked a lot”, “kind of liked”, “sucked/should die” categories. The only show I would probably have in common with you for my top choices is AIR.
You win for having Honey and Clover on your list.
>>>@ Roy Mustang: What lolikit said.
Also, your top 5 list reeks of KyoAni, not that that’s a bad thing, but it doesn’t hurt to diversify!
_____________________________________________________
It’s the smell of quality animation. How do I diversify my favorite anime? When I watch a show, I either like it or dislike it. All of the ones I liked the most just happened to be KyoAni.
Anyway, I don’t think KyoAni gets enough credit for what it does, non-animation wise. Can you imagine any other studio doing Haruhi? It would be a medicore series that started out strong and faded fast (like Shana) if they didn’t have that stroke of genius and use out of order episodes. And let’s not even compare the story progression and pace of Kanon 2002 to Kanon 2006…
I’ve watched two out of the ten that you have on the list. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann & Honey & Clover S 1 & 2(Don’t forget the special Episode chapter F & L!!) I always liked your taste in anime even most of the anime movies you reccomended ealier a few years ago. I will definately try the rest on the list. Btw, will you be planning to list down your Top Ten Anime Movie list? I haven’t watched a decent Anime Movie in a while…haha \(>.
I actually have to agree with Roy Mustang on this one…KyoAni does indeed have some decent series. That is to say, besides Lucky Star (personal opinion), they tend to blend animation quality with superb Key storylines which end up being a delicious waltz of welling wonderment!
So anyway, aside from my lame consonance, I agree with RM. Questions? Concerns? Call me? MARRY ME?!
I’ve got a day off today (which I should have been using for studying but hey) so I thought about starting that top10, until I watched the first episode of Akagi. I’ve now reconsidered and am marathoning that instead.
I’d say you owe me a few games of Mahjong now Shirukii. =p
>>”Most of the common reasons for liking it are things that would be considered “bad” when describing a show (slow, boring, mushy, etc.),”
The best to describe it is “The ultimate boring slice of life” is that sound better to you?
@Shirukii:
>>”Then I read up on the basics of mahjong and went back for seconds.”
How much did you learn anyway? Enough to make money form mahjong?
As for Princess Tutu, LOL I was like did Shirukii post a wrong pic? Well, after I saw that AMV, I can say it can be really something to watch. And wow, 2266 comments? even though it is Youtube but that is still a lot.
@Gungrave1988:
>>”will you be planning to list down your Top Ten Anime Movie list?”
I think I can guess a few on his list.
Big shout out for ARIA xD. Was scared for a moment when I didn’t see it lol. Thought you might have turned your back on ARIA :P.
>>>>Nanoha A’s is the best magical girl series I’ve seen to date, and given my latent distaste for their predictability and cookie cutter characters/plot,
You need to blog Kannagi. It’s turning out to be the best magical girl series I’ve seen.
Late to the party. I think the primary distinction between Gunbuster and Gurren Lagann, regarding heroism, is that the main cast of Gurren Lagann were never intended to be everymen. They were, from the outset, the best of the best of the best – a collection of individuals with greater courage, nobility, and raw potential than normal, brought together by Kamina’s charisma and Simon’s power. Men (and women, although perhaps ‘woman’ would be more accurate) of action.
I think the series’ realism, in regards to its characterisation, should be fairly apparent in the episodes immediately following the first time skip, when it’s shown how poorly such individuals fare at everything other than being heroes. I don’t think it’s any great coincidence that Rossiu and Leeron, the members of the Dai Gurren Dan most lacking in the conviction and courage that epitomises the crew, end up functioning the best during the time of peace. You’re not supposed to empathise with Simon and the gang in the same manner that you empathise with Yuuichi from Kanon. You’re supposed to admire them the way people admire sporting legends, or national icons and heroes – as individuals who stand above the crowd, and always did.
Gunbuster is, by contrast, a series which tries its best to make you empathise with Noriko. We understand that she has a lot of natural ability, yes, but we’re shown her progressing through sheer effort and extensive training, struggling with everything under the sun. It’s a different kind of take on characterisation, rather than a more realistic one. We’re supposed to feel that we could be Noriko. We’re never supposed to feel like we could be Simon.
For mine, generally a good list, though I have to take issue with your criteria for selecting Evangelion. Astroboy, Mobile Suit Gundam, Urusei Yatsura, to name just a few, were all as influential as Evangelion, if not more so. Saying NGE makes your top 10 because of nostalgia is one thing, but surely its influence, or lack thereof, really makes no difference in that regard.
Personally, as much as I loved it to death when it was running, I can’t bear to watch it nowadays.
I am glad it’s your personal list and not something you think should be the top 10 because it still misses on a lot of good anime out there. And yeah, when it comes to maturity, you still aren’t there; yet.
Look into Canvas II which makes you cry with them. Look into ‘Welcome to NHK’ which is one of the most unique anime out there; predict the ending and I’ll give anything you want. Look into Nodame Cantabile which weaves comedy, music and emotions. Look into FLCL which leaves you completely bewildered, something which only happens when you watch a ground breaking/genre breaking series. Look into Natsume Yuujinchou, 5 cms per second, Shakugan no shana, Koi Kaze, Kurenai, Genshiken, True Tears, yada yada. It might just change the way you think about anime; but then again, you might have already seen those and don’t like them, happens. :-)
Like they say, YMMV. ;-)
@orochimaruSanin: IIRC, he’s seen almost all of those, and while they’re good, a top10 is quite restrictive and as you said yourself, personal.
And not only has he seen those, he’s blogged at least 3 or 4 of them. >_>
0/10
@orochimaruSanin: Yes, let’s criticize someone else’ maturity by also bringing yours into question. Don’t criticize him for not putting series you think should’ve made his own personal favorite list. Don’t assume things either.
kthxbai
Eh, for someone that’s only been in the anime business for an year (aka, me :D), having seen 7 of the animes you’ve mentioned ( 2 from the honorable ones ^^) is quite good, I reckon!
I agree with most that you’ve said, but admittedly, my personal top 10 list would come out rather different. Top spot would probably belong to Denno Coil (loved the dark mood of the 2nd part), followed closely by Infinite Ryvius (which I seriously recommend you to see) and Honey and Clover (can’t get enough of Morita). The rest would most likely be a Gainax & Kyoani train, with Azumanga Daioh in the middle; you know, the usual :D
Also, it’s quite funny to see someone with the pretension of maturity over anime taste. Kudos, sir. Kudos.
So as laughable as orochimaruSanin’s idea of mature anime is, the way Vadigor, Lumi, and Jay immediatly jumped in to defend Shirukii’s honor is kinda funny in it’s own right.
Just sayin’.
Well, not so much defending Shirukii’s honour as pointing out the logical fallacies in orochimaruSanin’s claims and the fact that obvious troll is obvious.
Uh, but sure.
I have seen some but not all of your top 10 anime ^.^ . But because i’m a blind Nanoha fan my top 3 would be the nanoha series ^.^|| . After reading this I kinda got motivated to watch Aria after it has been sitting on my shelf for a long time =.=
Planetes is hands down the worst show I’ve ever seen. If you want to feel a murderous rage towards ficitional characters, watch Planetes. Congratulations to the male and female leads, Tanabe and Hachimaki. You two are first and second on my most hated characters of all time list.
Aria banzai! \o/
>>So as laughable as orochimaruSanin’s idea of mature anime is, the way Vadigor, Lumi, and Jay immediatly jumped in to defend Shirukii’s honor is kinda funny in it’s own right.
Just sayin’.
^^;;