I may have watched half a year of Bleach and no Naruto since last year as they also started the year with filler, so I cannot even really place those two on a list of any sort. And that's just terrible because I know the Naruto manga is just fantastic (though I wonder what happened after my beloved Kakashi was revived? Man, that was some trauma there for me). Bleach has been going well too but after my beloved Ulquiorra got killed (and some time after that after my beloved Shinji made an appearance), I have no clue as to what is going on in the Bleach Universe. That's a real shame.
So honestly, was there anything I watched? Enough to make a list?
10. Soul Eater
I finished Soul Eater this year. While the manga is still ongoing and I've no idea what's going on in that either, the series ended horrid-like. It was one of the worst endings I have seen in a long time. Justin didn't get to do anything super great, and the whole ending they created was so mushy, typical rubbish with copious amounts of lack luster, that it almost makes me forget how intense this anime was for the most part. That makes me sad.Favourite Characters: Justin Law and Crona. After a while, I was not even happy to see Death the Kid or Frankenstein. That was probably due to the fact they were barely in it and when they were, they made them wusses.
09. 07 Ghost
Fairly generic character design, an interesting story that was not executed quite right and only the beginning of things to come, this anime could have benefited from continuing the manga (from the little I know anyway). I suppose most series can though but this was almost Berserk in nature - the prologue to real adventure. Still, not as gutting as some things I've seen, there were still a few tugs at the heart strings.
Favourite Character: Castor
08. Kuroshitsuji
I began watching this at some point last year, and fell off. I resumed to find that this series that did not quite have a niche at the start, had become something awesome. It was always beautiful, dark, weirdly comedic and not in a great way but much more in depth at the halfway mark. I actually felt a little bit troubled as it went on, watching in awe at times and growing to love every character some more as episode after episode carried on. I'm looking forward to Season 2 and of course, it really helps that the soundtrack was brilliantly composed by Iwasaki Taku. That man is a genious.
Favourite Characters: Grell - the cross-dressing crazy Watanuki. Wha'?, Sebastian Michaelis, Ciel Phantomhive.
07. Moyashimon
Talk about weird. I liked this quirky, strange little series about microbes and agriculture school. Huh? How dull you say? Yeah, maybe but its weirdness translated to charm. Really it's the story of college life and kids on their own and that one kid who could have conversations with various bacteria. Maybe my description is not making anyone want to watch this but I'll have my memories. The music was downright quirky too. It was a fun experience while it lasted.
Favourite Characters: Kei Yuki and Tadayasu Sawaki
06. Darker Than Black
A stylish, dark (har har) anime feel for a dark (again, har har) story about assassins or contractors as they are called in this series. There's a second series I have not yet started to watch but I will at some point because I was not disappointed with the first. I do have complaints though and that's that I found some similarities to Cowboy Bebop. Of course, it was never as loveable or great as Bebop but few things are. The soundtrack composed by Yoko Kanno made it even more Bebop in likeness but getting past that, the story was a decent sci-fi breed (by the way and this is unrelated, why did the channel Sci-Fi change to SyFy?) with an interesting story to tell with characters I became attached to but did not quite leave me feeling satisfied with the ending. I suppose that's what a second series is for? Hmm, I'll just have to see...
Favourite Characters: Hei and November 11
06. Darker Than Black
A stylish, dark (har har) anime feel for a dark (again, har har) story about assassins or contractors as they are called in this series. There's a second series I have not yet started to watch but I will at some point because I was not disappointed with the first. I do have complaints though and that's that I found some similarities to Cowboy Bebop. Of course, it was never as loveable or great as Bebop but few things are. The soundtrack composed by Yoko Kanno made it even more Bebop in likeness but getting past that, the story was a decent sci-fi breed (by the way and this is unrelated, why did the channel Sci-Fi change to SyFy?) with an interesting story to tell with characters I became attached to but did not quite leave me feeling satisfied with the ending. I suppose that's what a second series is for? Hmm, I'll just have to see...Favourite Characters: Hei and November 11
06. Zoku Natsume Yuujinchou
H1 and I miss this anime. Season 1 was good enough to retain our interest for a season 2 and when that began, we were hooked. The episodes felt more coherent, more daring and bit more endearing as to the fate of Natsume and of course, Sensei. It was a pleasant watch with an ending I enjoyed.
Favourite Characters: Natsume Takashi and Nyanko-Sensei
05. Bakemonogatari
A twisted love story? Something like that. Vampires? Well, one and then less than half of one. Crazy girls with crazy curses? Yeah. Sometimes shocking? What story about monsters should be without a shock here or there? Dialogue reminiscent of a Quentin Tarantino movie?! Brilliant! This anime as incredibly heavy on the talking, sharp on the artistic direction making it Indie from music to presentation and story. Quite an interesting watch, this anime. I enjoyed it immensely. Let me not forget two of my favourite voice actors also contributed to its greatness and deliverance - Hiroshi Kamiya and Takahiro Sakurai
Favourite Characters: Koromi Araragi and Meme Oshino
04. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
Probably the most memorable beginning to any anime I watched this year, this story while no means anything stunning, it put spunk into an otherwise straight-laced deal: Oppressed boy breaks free by seeking the stars, loses his best friend in the process and is forced to come out of the shadow of said friend to attain greatness.
Did I mention it put spunk into two otherwise straight-laced stories? Now leader of the 'free world', boy meets further oppression attained from 'freedom' and the politics behind it. He saves the princess but endures suffering at the end anyway (well, that's not Western standard but an anime standard, sure).
I'm not one for Mech anime but that's where it becomes interesting - yeah, your standard bad-assed giant robot is present but your standard bad-assed giant robot takes on the personality of the pilot in often stylistic, comical ways that match the edgey art of this series.
It's a 'big' scope anime where nothing is impossible with fun, fun-loving characters that make you feel sadness but pride when their time comes.
Again, Iwasaki Taku masters yet another bit of composition.
Favourite Characters: Leeron, Simon and Kittan
03. Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei (series)
I'm not quite done yet and I can benefit from knowing a lot more about Japanese culture to fully enjoy this series, but even with the knowledge I have, this anime is insane. I cannot tell you how fond I am of the stupid Tulip song, or how much I laughed during the first season's characters' introductions (tail fetish? Poor animals...). The gags are sometimes overdone but the beauty is that they know it and often break that 4th wall.
Favourite Characters: Zetzubou Sensei (of course), and who do I keed? The entire cast both the girls and the boys.
02. Kateikyoushi Hitman Reborn!
The only long-running shonen series I kept up with this year and it continues to make me giddy. The characters continue to grow ever more loveable, the battles mostly impress me still with the few shocking bits here and there that make me cringe. Alliances are formed with former enemies (oh, they're still enemies mostly...ha) and new characters add to the level of cuteness and keeps the series interesting. The filler was good too and as more serious aspects of the series are brought forth, Hitman Reborn! manages to mature the characters at a pace that adds depth to the characters without being brought on unexpectedly or feel rushed.
Favourite Characters: Gokudera (old favourite), Tsuna, Mukuro Rokudo, Yamamoto (who I'm loving more the more I see him), and Spanner.
01. Ouran High School Host Club
Vowing never to watch a show about a host club of boys in a high school, I caved one day and I'm not sure why. Maybe it was the popularity? Maybe I was bored? Whatever it was, I am thankful for it. I am also feeling a bit as though I should closet my love for this series. I am beginning to think I might be a sap sometimes - first Love Hina and now this? At the heart of it all, it's a romantic comedy but as we all know, the Japanese do not do romantic comedies that are cut and dry. I wish this series would come back for a second season but in the meanwhile, I'll just hope someone gifted me the box sets for Christmas so I can re-watch the antics of the Host Club.
Favourite Characters: Kyoya Ootori, Kaoru Hitachi, Tamaki Suoh (as much as it kills me to love anyone voiced by Light (Mamoru Miyano)! He's actually quite a good voice actor...grrrrr, and Haruhi Fujioka
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