The Best of Anime 2010 - Random Curiosity

Posted by Divine on January 3, 2011 January 4, 2012 Best of Anime / Miscellaneous

Now that 2010 is over, here’s a look back at some of the best series the year had to offer. Due to the subjective nature of it all and the fact that I’m constrained to what I’ve seen, I’m not trying to pick series that the vast majority finds agreeable. Instead, I’m here to convey my personal favorites for 2010, after which you’re more than welcome to chime in with your respective choices. Carrying over from last year, there’s an increased number of categories separated into corresponding areas, namely Production, Miscellaneous (fun stuff), Genre, and Notable Others. Also included at the end are the final results to the Reader’s Choice Poll.

Disclaimer: These are purely my personal opinions based on the shows that we’ve seen in the past year. While I’ve watched a lot of series (56 this past year), please keep in mind that I haven’t watched everything. For a show to even qualify for consideration, it had to have met the requirements outlined in the Reader’s Choice Poll. For OVAs/movies, the additional requirement is that it’s been either released on DVD/BD so that viewers outside of Japan have had a chance to watch it.

Production

Animation
Visuals and fluid movement. It’s all about the quality of what we see on screen and what impressed me the most. Any lack of consistency due to poor outsourcing should be taken into account, as I’m trying to think of the most jaw-dropping series across the board. To a certain degree, character designs and overall art style fall into this category too.
	There’s only a handful of studios that I tend to associate with high quality productions, and BONES is without a doubt one of them. Their faithful remake of Fullmetal Alchemist stood out the most to me in the end, edging out J.C. Staff’s work in To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, Kyoto Animation’s in the sequel to K-ON, and AIC’s in Oreimo. When I consider the fact that Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood ran for fifteen months — a full 64 episodes — it made the series even more deserving in my eyes. From all the fast-paced transmuting action to just crisp artwork all around, I don’t recall a single episode where I was terribly disappointed with the animation quality. Consistency goes a long way toward giving off a sense of a stunning production. Honorable Mentions: K-ON!!, To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, Oreimo

Animation

Visuals and fluid movement. It’s all about the quality of what we see on screen and what impressed me the most. Any lack of consistency due to poor outsourcing should be taken into account, as I’m trying to think of the most jaw-dropping series across the board. To a certain degree, character designs and overall art style fall into this category too.

There’s only a handful of studios that I tend to associate with high quality productions, and BONES is without a doubt one of them. Their faithful remake of Fullmetal Alchemist stood out the most to me in the end, edging out J.C. Staff’s work in To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, Kyoto Animation’s in the sequel to K-ON, and AIC’s in Oreimo. When I consider the fact that Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood ran for fifteen months — a full 64 episodes — it made the series even more deserving in my eyes. From all the fast-paced transmuting action to just crisp artwork all around, I don’t recall a single episode where I was terribly disappointed with the animation quality. Consistency goes a long way toward giving off a sense of a stunning production.

Honorable Mentions: K-ON!!, To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, Oreimo

Story
As the somewhat polar opposite to what’s on the surface, here I’m looking at depth and what captivated me from start to finish. You don’t need amazing visuals to tell a good story, so it’s about the original material (if any) and the screenwriter’s adaptation of it here. Good cliffhangers that keep you on the edge of your seat week after week says the series is doing something right, whereas filler-esque showings don’t.
	Considering how Maeda Jun was expecting a two-cour series for Angel Beats, it’s a bit of a shame to know that we only got a portion of what he had in mind. Still, its thirteen-episode run had me captivated from start to finish as I tried to make sense of the afterworld that the characters found themselves in. The method of storytelling with the characters misconceptions led to some interesting twists later on, plus there was the emotional aspect from each of them coming to terms with how they died. The true underlying story was masked with a lighthearted mood much like Jun’s previous works, and was flipped to quite seamlessly throughout the series. There were a lot of times that this series had potential to be a real tear-jerker as well, which I would have been suspect to had I not gone in emotionally prepared. For those people who feel the story didn’t make sense, we must have watched different shows, because it made perfect sense to me when I covered it. Honorable Mentions: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Durarara!!

Story

As the somewhat polar opposite to what’s on the surface, here I’m looking at depth and what captivated me from start to finish. You don’t need amazing visuals to tell a good story, so it’s about the original material (if any) and the screenwriter’s adaptation of it here. Good cliffhangers that keep you on the edge of your seat week after week says the series is doing something right, whereas filler-esque showings don’t.

Considering how Maeda Jun was expecting a two-cour series for Angel Beats, it’s a bit of a shame to know that we only got a portion of what he had in mind. Still, its thirteen-episode run had me captivated from start to finish as I tried to make sense of the afterworld that the characters found themselves in. The method of storytelling with the characters misconceptions led to some interesting twists later on, plus there was the emotional aspect from each of them coming to terms with how they died. The true underlying story was masked with a lighthearted mood much like Jun’s previous works, and was flipped to quite seamlessly throughout the series. There were a lot of times that this series had potential to be a real tear-jerker as well, which I would have been suspect to had I not gone in emotionally prepared. For those people who feel the story didn’t make sense, we must have watched different shows, because it made perfect sense to me when I covered it.

Honorable Mentions: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Durarara!!

Soundtrack
What would a series be without the music to help set the mood and tone? A good soundtrack enhances the power and emotions behind scenes in such a way that you start associating imagery with the music unconsciously, regardless of whether it’s cheery, inspiring, or heartfelt. Lasting impressions say a lot, plus it just has to sound good too.
	I haven’t listened to as many soundtracks as I would’ve liked this past year, but for the ones that I have, none stood out nearly as much as Senju Akira’s musical composition for Fullmetal Alchemist. In addition to sounding good, his music was memorable enough to make me recall specific scenes from the series as I listened to it. Having that associative imagery is what constitutes a good soundtrack in my mind, as it reaffirms the music helped bring out the emotion in the scene I was watching, and Akira’s pieces did just that. A lot of times it’s only a track or two on a soundtrack that will have such an effect, but all three of his OSTs had numerous ones that brought back memories of a series I finished watching nine months ago. I still get goosebumps listening to some of them due to how “epic” they sound. “Clash of the Alchemists”, “Crisis in the North”, and “The Intrepid” are a few that come to mind. Honorable Mentions: Ryou Kunihiko – Tegami Bachi

Soundtrack

What would a series be without the music to help set the mood and tone? A good soundtrack enhances the power and emotions behind scenes in such a way that you start associating imagery with the music unconsciously, regardless of whether it’s cheery, inspiring, or heartfelt. Lasting impressions say a lot, plus it just has to sound good too.

I haven’t listened to as many soundtracks as I would’ve liked this past year, but for the ones that I have, none stood out nearly as much as Senju Akira’s musical composition for Fullmetal Alchemist. In addition to sounding good, his music was memorable enough to make me recall specific scenes from the series as I listened to it. Having that associative imagery is what constitutes a good soundtrack in my mind, as it reaffirms the music helped bring out the emotion in the scene I was watching, and Akira’s pieces did just that. A lot of times it’s only a track or two on a soundtrack that will have such an effect, but all three of his OSTs had numerous ones that brought back memories of a series I finished watching nine months ago. I still get goosebumps listening to some of them due to how “epic” they sound. “Clash of the Alchemists”, “Crisis in the North”, and “The Intrepid” are a few that come to mind.

Honorable Mentions: Ryou Kunihiko – Tegami Bachi

Opening & Ending Sequence
Whether for its originality or ability to showcase what a series has to offer, opening sequences are always fun to watch. We tend to look forward to new ones and the songs that will be featured in them, and sometimes get a glimpse at what’s coming up in the show too (for better or worse). Here, the focus is on the sequence itself, even though the song may play a part in making it memorable. Unlike opening sequences, endings don’t strive to draw the viewer in and get them psyched up about the episode that’s coming up. Instead, they’re an outro to what you’ve just seen and may highlight a specific aspect/emotion of the series. Sometimes, they’re completely irrelevant to actual story and are just an outlet for sheer fun/comedic value. Whichever the case, there are ones I enjoyed more than others.
[flv:Angel_Beats_OP.mp4 355 200] Angel Beats! OP	[flv:K-ON_2_ED2.mp4 355 200] K-ON!! ED2
As much as I like Lia’s “My Soul, Your Beats!” opening theme that accompanies this sequence, it’s Kanade on the piano, the panning camera, and the various character screens with all their names that made this one my favorite. In conjunction with the sneak peak into the episode around the middle, it’s very reminiscent to the unique style seen in Durarara‘s opening sequences, so it was a bit of a toss-up between those two. In the end, it came down to which one I liked to listen to more, and Lia’s song nudges ever so slightly ahead of ROOKiEZ is PUNK’d’s Complication. Honorable Mentions: Durarara!! OP2	Much like last year, K-ON‘s second ending sequence gets my pick of the year for featuring the girls in outfits and hairstyles outside their usual ones, while giving off a very different sense of character. They’re suddenly transformed from a bunch of goofy tea-drinking high school girls to a pretty cool-looking band, and looking a lot “sexier” than the show will have us believe. The serious looks on all their faces as they stare off into the distance, the slow-motion jumping, and their roughed up uniforms made them seem a bit gangster-like, before things switched over to a complete outfit change with a very animated Mio singing. To top it off, Ritsu has her bangs down. With a fully choreographed dance, kiss x sis comes in at a close second. Honorable Mentions: kiss x sis ED

Opening & Ending Sequence

Whether for its originality or ability to showcase what a series has to offer, opening sequences are always fun to watch. We tend to look forward to new ones and the songs that will be featured in them, and sometimes get a glimpse at what’s coming up in the show too (for better or worse). Here, the focus is on the sequence itself, even though the song may play a part in making it memorable.

Unlike opening sequences, endings don’t strive to draw the viewer in and get them psyched up about the episode that’s coming up. Instead, they’re an outro to what you’ve just seen and may highlight a specific aspect/emotion of the series. Sometimes, they’re completely irrelevant to actual story and are just an outlet for sheer fun/comedic value. Whichever the case, there are ones I enjoyed more than others.

[flv:Angel_Beats_OP.mp4 355 200] Angel Beats! OP

[flv:K-ON_2_ED2.mp4 355 200] K-ON!! ED2

As much as I like Lia’s “My Soul, Your Beats!” opening theme that accompanies this sequence, it’s Kanade on the piano, the panning camera, and the various character screens with all their names that made this one my favorite. In conjunction with the sneak peak into the episode around the middle, it’s very reminiscent to the unique style seen in Durarara‘s opening sequences, so it was a bit of a toss-up between those two. In the end, it came down to which one I liked to listen to more, and Lia’s song nudges ever so slightly ahead of ROOKiEZ is PUNK’d’s Complication.

Honorable Mentions: Durarara!! OP2

Much like last year, K-ON‘s second ending sequence gets my pick of the year for featuring the girls in outfits and hairstyles outside their usual ones, while giving off a very different sense of character. They’re suddenly transformed from a bunch of goofy tea-drinking high school girls to a pretty cool-looking band, and looking a lot “sexier” than the show will have us believe. The serious looks on all their faces as they stare off into the distance, the slow-motion jumping, and their roughed up uniforms made them seem a bit gangster-like, before things switched over to a complete outfit change with a very animated Mio singing. To top it off, Ritsu has her bangs down. With a fully choreographed dance, kiss x sis comes in at a close second.

Honorable Mentions: kiss x sis ED

Song
With the sequences covered, the attention is now on the actual songs. Insert songs are also up for consideration, with the only real guideline being that it’s something I didn’t get tired of listening to. There’s no bearing on if it was created specifically for a series or even if the series was even any good, as I’m simply picking my favorite song featured in an anime.
[flv:Veil_I_miss_you_PV.mp4 480 270] “I miss you” by Veil
Up until a month or so ago, I was pretty set on a couple of songs as my potential favorite of the year. That changed the more I watched FORTUNE ARTERIAL though, as its ending theme quickly became the song that I could listen to over and over again and not get sick of. Veil is actually a vocalist brand name that Queen’s Label uses for artist collaborations with Lia and Tada Aoi (who sang Angel Beats’ ending theme), and this particular song features Aoi with Togashi Misuzu (Minatsu in Seitokai no Ichizon). “I miss you” is a very soothing slow song that immediately caught my attention when I first heard it in the anime, but it wasn’t until I listened to the full version and its many variants did it really grow on me. The duet between Aoi and Misuzu has a very nice sound to it, so much that I even like it more than Lia’s really good solo rendition. Honorable Mentions: “Sign of Love” by immi (Sarai-ya Goyou), “irony” by ClariS (Oreimo), “Kimi no Kioku” by mao (Hakuouki)

Song

With the sequences covered, the attention is now on the actual songs. Insert songs are also up for consideration, with the only real guideline being that it’s something I didn’t get tired of listening to. There’s no bearing on if it was created specifically for a series or even if the series was even any good, as I’m simply picking my favorite song featured in an anime.

[flv:Veil_I_miss_you_PV.mp4 480 270] “I miss you” by Veil

Up until a month or so ago, I was pretty set on a couple of songs as my potential favorite of the year. That changed the more I watched FORTUNE ARTERIAL though, as its ending theme quickly became the song that I could listen to over and over again and not get sick of. Veil is actually a vocalist brand name that Queen’s Label uses for artist collaborations with Lia and Tada Aoi (who sang Angel Beats’ ending theme), and this particular song features Aoi with Togashi Misuzu (Minatsu in Seitokai no Ichizon). “I miss you” is a very soothing slow song that immediately caught my attention when I first heard it in the anime, but it wasn’t until I listened to the full version and its many variants did it really grow on me. The duet between Aoi and Misuzu has a very nice sound to it, so much that I even like it more than Lia’s really good solo rendition.

Honorable Mentions: “Sign of Love” by immi (Sarai-ya Goyou), “irony” by ClariS (Oreimo), “Kimi no Kioku” by mao (Hakuouki)

Miscellaneous

Character
Branching away from strictly picking series and focusing on some specifics is the idea behind this miscellaneous section. The first one is my favorite character, who won his or her way into my heart for whatever reason. The criteria here is somewhat loose, but with numerous options in a single series, multiplied by almost a hundred in the past year, it’s actually quite difficult to pick one above all others. Be that as it may…
	I fumbled around with this decision much longer than needed, because I somehow overlooked the absolutely adorable Ika Musume. It’s not every day you see a squid girl, let alone one that’s come to the surface to conquer mankind with absolutely no understanding of how things work above sea level. Her naivety about the world was endearing, and it was always funny to see her get swept up into other people’s pace since no one took her threats seriously. In addition to her tentacles, her manner of speech ending sentences with “de geso” and “-nai ka?” added further uniqueness to her character, whom Kanemoto Hisako brought to life in an unbelievable cute way. Then there’s mini Ika Musume, who was so warmly received by viewers that bonus episodes of her are planned for the DVD/BD releases. Ika Musume may not be able to invade the surface world, but she sure has a knack for invading people’s hearts by just being herself. Honorable Mentions: Nanasaki Ai (Amagami SS), Kuroneko (Oreimo)

Character

Branching away from strictly picking series and focusing on some specifics is the idea behind this miscellaneous section. The first one is my favorite character, who won his or her way into my heart for whatever reason. The criteria here is somewhat loose, but with numerous options in a single series, multiplied by almost a hundred in the past year, it’s actually quite difficult to pick one above all others. Be that as it may…

I fumbled around with this decision much longer than needed, because I somehow overlooked the absolutely adorable Ika Musume. It’s not every day you see a squid girl, let alone one that’s come to the surface to conquer mankind with absolutely no understanding of how things work above sea level. Her naivety about the world was endearing, and it was always funny to see her get swept up into other people’s pace since no one took her threats seriously. In addition to her tentacles, her manner of speech ending sentences with “de geso” and “-nai ka?” added further uniqueness to her character, whom Kanemoto Hisako brought to life in an unbelievable cute way. Then there’s mini Ika Musume, who was so warmly received by viewers that bonus episodes of her are planned for the DVD/BD releases. Ika Musume may not be able to invade the surface world, but she sure has a knack for invading people’s hearts by just being herself.

Honorable Mentions: Nanasaki Ai (Amagami SS), Kuroneko (Oreimo)

Seiyuu
As the natural extension of characters, the seiyuu who voiced and gave them life deserve some attention. A character’s appeal can change drastically depending on the voice behind it, so I’m here to highlight whose acting I enjoyed time and time again. While a variety of roles may help showcase a seiyuu’s talent better, sometimes all it takes is that really one good role to grab my attention and never let it go.
	In terms of impressing me and really making me look forward to her roles, Toyosaki Aki really stole the spotlight when she broke out of her K-ON mold and started playing a wide variety of characters. Her role as Tomo in Seikon no Qwaser particularly surprised me in the later stages of the series, during which she mustered up a pretty evil and psychotic voice. It was stark different from Hirasawa Yui in K-ON and Uiharu Kazari in To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, and made it seem like she had the ability to play any type of role. As the year went on, she diversified herself further with support roles in Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou, Ookami-san, Otome Youkai Zakuro, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, Motto To LOVE-Ru, and Sora no Otoshimono Forte, using distinctly different voices for each character. Before long, I found myself taking notice to any series she was cast in due to her versatility, making it difficult to see fellow K-ON co-star Hikasa Youko (whose roles I really enjoy) match up to her. As for sheer number of roles, Hanazawa Kana deserves recognition for having a breakout year, after starring in Angel Beats, BLACK ROCK SHOOTER, Durarara, Kobato, Kuragehime, Oreimo, and SEKIREI ~Pure Engagement~ in addition to numerous support ones. Likewise with Itou Kanae, Yuuki Aoi, and Nakamura Yuuichi. Honorable Mentions: Hanazawa Kana, Itou Kanae, Yuuki Aoi, Nakamura Yuuichi

Seiyuu

As the natural extension of characters, the seiyuu who voiced and gave them life deserve some attention. A character’s appeal can change drastically depending on the voice behind it, so I’m here to highlight whose acting I enjoyed time and time again. While a variety of roles may help showcase a seiyuu’s talent better, sometimes all it takes is that really one good role to grab my attention and never let it go.

In terms of impressing me and really making me look forward to her roles, Toyosaki Aki really stole the spotlight when she broke out of her K-ON mold and started playing a wide variety of characters. Her role as Tomo in Seikon no Qwaser particularly surprised me in the later stages of the series, during which she mustered up a pretty evil and psychotic voice. It was stark different from Hirasawa Yui in K-ON and Uiharu Kazari in To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, and made it seem like she had the ability to play any type of role. As the year went on, she diversified herself further with support roles in Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou, Ookami-san, Otome Youkai Zakuro, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, Motto To LOVE-Ru, and Sora no Otoshimono Forte, using distinctly different voices for each character. Before long, I found myself taking notice to any series she was cast in due to her versatility, making it difficult to see fellow K-ON co-star Hikasa Youko (whose roles I really enjoy) match up to her. As for sheer number of roles, Hanazawa Kana deserves recognition for having a breakout year, after starring in Angel Beats, BLACK ROCK SHOOTER, Durarara, Kobato, Kuragehime, Oreimo, and SEKIREI ~Pure Engagement~ in addition to numerous support ones. Likewise with Itou Kanae, Yuuki Aoi, and Nakamura Yuuichi.

Honorable Mentions: Hanazawa Kana, Itou Kanae, Yuuki Aoi, Nakamura Yuuichi

Plot Twist
This is the replacement for the category previously known as “Biggest Shocks”. I’m looking for a sudden unexpected turn of events in the story that caught me off guard and delivered sheer shock value. It’s that “WTF” moment that has people talking about it for the next few days, regardless of whether or not anyone found it agreeable. Below are the specific unfolding of events I have in mind.

Plot Twist

This is the replacement for the category previously known as “Biggest Shocks”. I’m looking for a sudden unexpected turn of events in the story that caught me off guard and delivered sheer shock value. It’s that “WTF” moment that has people talking about it for the next few days, regardless of whether or not anyone found it agreeable. Below are the specific unfolding of events I have in mind.

Show Plot Twist ▼

Death
This may be part of a plot twist or something you see coming a mile away, but I’m concerned about the impact the death has on the story and me as the viewer. Well-executed screenplay leading up to it may play a big part, but there are also cases where a character dies so suddenly that we’re left in complete disbelief. In both cases, it’s the lingering impression I’m basing my selection on.

Death

This may be part of a plot twist or something you see coming a mile away, but I’m concerned about the impact the death has on the story and me as the viewer. Well-executed screenplay leading up to it may play a big part, but there are also cases where a character dies so suddenly that we’re left in complete disbelief. In both cases, it’s the lingering impression I’m basing my selection on.

Show Death Picks ▼

Admiral Ackbar Award (It’s a Trap!)
“It’s a trap!” and by that I mean a guy cross-dressing as a remarkably cute-looking girl. Gender bender is also acceptable since we’re simply looking for the character who gave off a disturbingly unsettling feeling with how well they portrayed the opposite sex. In short, the character who managed to deceive others (and me) into thinking they’re actually a hot girl, if even only for a moment.
	This is a bit of a no-brainer, since I had the perfect candidate only days after I posted last year’s Best of Anime. It’s pretty hard to contend with a trap that even his male friends want to dress up and drool over, knowing very well that he’s a guy. Hideyoshi has a lot going for him as well, having a nearly identical physique and appearance as his twin sister Yuuko. Voiced by Katou Emiri, he’s more or less the dumber, flat-chested version of Yuuko, and can deceive just about anyone dressed up as her, which he did as part of Class F’s plan to pit everyone against Class A. Now how’s that for using sex-appeal as a weapon? Forget nosebleeds, as Hideyoshi’s cross-dressing had pervert ninja Mutsuri bleeding out of his eyes when he was unable to take a picture of him while he was changing. Honorable Mentions: Aoi-chan (Kaichou wa Maid-sama!), Hayama Tatsukichi (MM!)

Admiral Ackbar Award (It’s a Trap!)

“It’s a trap!” and by that I mean a guy cross-dressing as a remarkably cute-looking girl. Gender bender is also acceptable since we’re simply looking for the character who gave off a disturbingly unsettling feeling with how well they portrayed the opposite sex. In short, the character who managed to deceive others (and me) into thinking they’re actually a hot girl, if even only for a moment.

This is a bit of a no-brainer, since I had the perfect candidate only days after I posted last year’s Best of Anime. It’s pretty hard to contend with a trap that even his male friends want to dress up and drool over, knowing very well that he’s a guy. Hideyoshi has a lot going for him as well, having a nearly identical physique and appearance as his twin sister Yuuko. Voiced by Katou Emiri, he’s more or less the dumber, flat-chested version of Yuuko, and can deceive just about anyone dressed up as her, which he did as part of Class F’s plan to pit everyone against Class A. Now how’s that for using sex-appeal as a weapon? Forget nosebleeds, as Hideyoshi’s cross-dressing had pervert ninja Mutsuri bleeding out of his eyes when he was unable to take a picture of him while he was changing.

Honorable Mentions: Aoi-chan (Kaichou wa Maid-sama!), Hayama Tatsukichi (MM!)

Genre

Action
In the genre section, the goal is to pick the series of the year for their respective classes. These are pretty much the series that brought their A-game to the table and are viable candidates for my favorite anime of the year. First up is action, which ranges from shounen-crazed series to war-filled mecha ones. For battles, choreography plays a huge role so that was definitely taken into consideration.
	With shounen series never ending and no Gundam or Macross offerings aside from their movie counterparts, no particularly series stood out to me that much in the action department. Looking back, Fullmetal Alchemist still isn’t a series where the action comes to mind first, but it’s pretty hard to ignore the awesome transmuting battles that it animated. In combination with what I perceive as the best animation and music of the year, it was easy to see the fights against the Homunculus as some of the most exciting exchanges to grace television airwaves for the past year. It wasn’t just senseless action either, as the alchemy aspect came into play from a strategic standpoint and made everything more interesting. The other series I had in mind, Seikon no Qwaser, Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu, and STRIKE WITCHES 2, come in at a distant second at best. Honorable Mentions: Seikon no Qwaser, Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu, STRIKE WITCHES 2

Action

In the genre section, the goal is to pick the series of the year for their respective classes. These are pretty much the series that brought their A-game to the table and are viable candidates for my favorite anime of the year. First up is action, which ranges from shounen-crazed series to war-filled mecha ones. For battles, choreography plays a huge role so that was definitely taken into consideration.

With shounen series never ending and no Gundam or Macross offerings aside from their movie counterparts, no particularly series stood out to me that much in the action department. Looking back, Fullmetal Alchemist still isn’t a series where the action comes to mind first, but it’s pretty hard to ignore the awesome transmuting battles that it animated. In combination with what I perceive as the best animation and music of the year, it was easy to see the fights against the Homunculus as some of the most exciting exchanges to grace television airwaves for the past year. It wasn’t just senseless action either, as the alchemy aspect came into play from a strategic standpoint and made everything more interesting. The other series I had in mind, Seikon no Qwaser, Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu, and STRIKE WITCHES 2, come in at a distant second at best.

Honorable Mentions: Seikon no Qwaser, Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu, STRIKE WITCHES 2

Romance
Emotion-filled romance at its finest. The relationships between characters and the emotions involved are the appeal, and the main criteria for selecting a series here. A sentimental story is always good, with tear-jerking scenes being a plus. There’s a saying that romance is in the air, and this is the series that made that mood the most prominent from the character interactions to the big confession.
	After giving me my first good taste of the omnibus format and showing me the beauty of having multiple endings, Amagami SS had multiple opportunities to become the standout romance series of the year and made good on them. With six different heroines to focus its short four-episode arcs around (plus a bonus one at the end), the series leveraged the “thrill of the chase” leading up to a relationship, and provided drastically different looks on how it can happen depending on the girl in question. It may seem a bit unfair considering how the series focuses on arguably the best part of romance series, but there was no guarantee that the format would work out as well as it did. Regardless, all I needed were a couple of arcs to win me over with this one, namely Kaoru and Ai’s. Using a pseudo-omnibus format, the very lustful Yosuga no Sora deserves special mention, as does the more innocent Kimi ni Todoke and the more lighthearted romantic comedies, Kaichou wa Maid-sama and B Gata H Kei. Honorable Mentions: Yosuga no Sora, Kimi ni Todoke, Kaichou wa Maid-sama!, B Gata H Kei

Romance

Emotion-filled romance at its finest. The relationships between characters and the emotions involved are the appeal, and the main criteria for selecting a series here. A sentimental story is always good, with tear-jerking scenes being a plus. There’s a saying that romance is in the air, and this is the series that made that mood the most prominent from the character interactions to the big confession.

After giving me my first good taste of the omnibus format and showing me the beauty of having multiple endings, Amagami SS had multiple opportunities to become the standout romance series of the year and made good on them. With six different heroines to focus its short four-episode arcs around (plus a bonus one at the end), the series leveraged the “thrill of the chase” leading up to a relationship, and provided drastically different looks on how it can happen depending on the girl in question. It may seem a bit unfair considering how the series focuses on arguably the best part of romance series, but there was no guarantee that the format would work out as well as it did. Regardless, all I needed were a couple of arcs to win me over with this one, namely Kaoru and Ai’s. Using a pseudo-omnibus format, the very lustful Yosuga no Sora deserves special mention, as does the more innocent Kimi ni Todoke and the more lighthearted romantic comedies, Kaichou wa Maid-sama and B Gata H Kei.

Honorable Mentions: Yosuga no Sora, Kimi ni Todoke, Kaichou wa Maid-sama!, B Gata H Kei

Drama
I separated the drama genre from the romance one this year, as there are a lot of good series out there that depict an emotion-filled story where the romance comes secondary, if at all. Strong depictions of friendship and in challenging situations can really draw a viewer into the story and start making them sympathize with the characters. It’s a bit of an all-encompassing genre, but only a handful of series tend to portray it well.
	RAINBOW: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin deserves a lot more attention than it received, depicting a very dark drama that most viewers would rather turn a blind eye to. Abe George’s story about seven boys who find themselves in a juvenile corrections facility in a post World War II era was incredibly powerful, as they struggle against absolutely ruthless acts of tyranny by corrupt adults and find a way through it all. Relying on nothing but their absolute trust in one another and the friendship that was hardened when they came in contact with their senior prison mate “An-chan”, the first half of the series was full of strong depictions of anger, sadness, and despair. It’s definitely not for the faint of heart, but it’s for that very reason that I was so captivated by this very “un-anime-like” anime. It’s a must-watch for anyone who’s lost faith in the medium doesn’t and feels it’s degraded to shows about scantily-clad girls or “moe crap”. Hakuouki‘s surprisingly faithful depiction of the Shinsengumi on the losing side of the Boshin War was a favorite of mine as well, since it depicted a similar perseverance in an otherwise depressing story. Honorable Mentions: Hakuouki (Hekketsuroku), Yosuga no Sora

Drama

I separated the drama genre from the romance one this year, as there are a lot of good series out there that depict an emotion-filled story where the romance comes secondary, if at all. Strong depictions of friendship and in challenging situations can really draw a viewer into the story and start making them sympathize with the characters. It’s a bit of an all-encompassing genre, but only a handful of series tend to portray it well.

RAINBOW: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin deserves a lot more attention than it received, depicting a very dark drama that most viewers would rather turn a blind eye to. Abe George’s story about seven boys who find themselves in a juvenile corrections facility in a post World War II era was incredibly powerful, as they struggle against absolutely ruthless acts of tyranny by corrupt adults and find a way through it all. Relying on nothing but their absolute trust in one another and the friendship that was hardened when they came in contact with their senior prison mate “An-chan”, the first half of the series was full of strong depictions of anger, sadness, and despair. It’s definitely not for the faint of heart, but it’s for that very reason that I was so captivated by this very “un-anime-like” anime. It’s a must-watch for anyone who’s lost faith in the medium doesn’t and feels it’s degraded to shows about scantily-clad girls or “moe crap”. Hakuouki‘s surprisingly faithful depiction of the Shinsengumi on the losing side of the Boshin War was a favorite of mine as well, since it depicted a similar perseverance in an otherwise depressing story.

Honorable Mentions: Hakuouki (Hekketsuroku), Yosuga no Sora

Comedy
The ability to make you laugh until you cry. That’s probably the number one criteria when selecting a comedy of the year. From everything to sheer stupidity, quirky characters, and timely comedic pauses to perverted fun, elaborate setups, and witty jokes, it’s the lighthearted nature and humorous entertainment value of these series that I love.
	Of the comedies that left me laughing up a storm and hurting from it, Mitsudomoe is at the forefront of them all with its quirky depiction of sixth graders who get into a whole whack of slapstick incidents and subtle misunderstandings. It’s a real shame that some people would ignore this series simply because they don’t find the character designs agreeable, since they’re missing out on some of the best laughs of the year. The misconception that this involves pedophilia is almost as laughable as the humor in the series itself. Bridge brought a lot of the hilarious moments that I loved in the gag manga to life, and did an impeccable job of it as a new studio. It was a close contest between Mitsudomoe and Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu, but I can remember laughing more often with the former, so that gave it the nod for being my favorite of the year. Both are absolutely great comedies worth watching, as are WORKING, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, and Oreimo. Honorable Mentions: Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu, WORKING!!, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, Oreimo

Comedy

The ability to make you laugh until you cry. That’s probably the number one criteria when selecting a comedy of the year. From everything to sheer stupidity, quirky characters, and timely comedic pauses to perverted fun, elaborate setups, and witty jokes, it’s the lighthearted nature and humorous entertainment value of these series that I love.

Of the comedies that left me laughing up a storm and hurting from it, Mitsudomoe is at the forefront of them all with its quirky depiction of sixth graders who get into a whole whack of slapstick incidents and subtle misunderstandings. It’s a real shame that some people would ignore this series simply because they don’t find the character designs agreeable, since they’re missing out on some of the best laughs of the year. The misconception that this involves pedophilia is almost as laughable as the humor in the series itself. Bridge brought a lot of the hilarious moments that I loved in the gag manga to life, and did an impeccable job of it as a new studio. It was a close contest between Mitsudomoe and Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu, but I can remember laughing more often with the former, so that gave it the nod for being my favorite of the year. Both are absolutely great comedies worth watching, as are WORKING, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, and Oreimo.

Honorable Mentions: Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu, WORKING!!, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, Oreimo

Slice of Life
A laid back series with no reliance on heavily gimmicky plot devices nor a constantly progressing storyline is what this genre stands for. The character interactions themselves in an otherwise “normal” setting are the highlight, along with any incidental humor that results from them. A lot of times, they’re just really cute and innocent happenings, and that’s exactly what makes a good slice of life series.
	This happens to be one of my favorite genres with the ARIA series considered one of the pinnacles, so it felt odd not to pick my favorite of the year for it. After all, this past year saw the highly-budgeted sequel to the series about the high school girl band, “Houkago Tea Time”, which doesn’t strive to be overly hilarious yet slots in beautifully as a cute series with amiable characters that I love watching. Even though the music is secondary, the episodes that featured Pony Canyon‘s songs were a treat and always something I looked forward to. The drastic increase in production quality was a huge plus, but even without it, the continuation brought more of the rather simplistic lighthearted moments that I enjoyed in the original season. While Shinryaku Ika Musume made a strong push at the tail-end of this year, K-ON had precedence that was followed up nicely in this sequel. For a series that has a remarkable resemblance but no real connection, Sora no Woto‘s portrayal of “girls playing war” (as I like to refer to it as) goes down as one of my favorites as well. Honorable Mentions: Shinryaku! Ika Musume, Sora no Woto

Slice of Life

A laid back series with no reliance on heavily gimmicky plot devices nor a constantly progressing storyline is what this genre stands for. The character interactions themselves in an otherwise “normal” setting are the highlight, along with any incidental humor that results from them. A lot of times, they’re just really cute and innocent happenings, and that’s exactly what makes a good slice of life series.

This happens to be one of my favorite genres with the ARIA series considered one of the pinnacles, so it felt odd not to pick my favorite of the year for it. After all, this past year saw the highly-budgeted sequel to the series about the high school girl band, “Houkago Tea Time”, which doesn’t strive to be overly hilarious yet slots in beautifully as a cute series with amiable characters that I love watching. Even though the music is secondary, the episodes that featured Pony Canyon‘s songs were a treat and always something I looked forward to. The drastic increase in production quality was a huge plus, but even without it, the continuation brought more of the rather simplistic lighthearted moments that I enjoyed in the original season. While Shinryaku Ika Musume made a strong push at the tail-end of this year, K-ON had precedence that was followed up nicely in this sequel. For a series that has a remarkable resemblance but no real connection, Sora no Woto‘s portrayal of “girls playing war” (as I like to refer to it as) goes down as one of my favorites as well.

Honorable Mentions: Shinryaku! Ika Musume, Sora no Woto

Fan-Service
While fan-service-filled affairs tend to go hand-in-hand with comedies, that’s not always the case. In addition, fan-service doesn’t only constitute breasts in your face, nor an abundance of needless upskirt shots. The only criteria here are character interactions suggestive of a sexual-related context, regardless of how revealing the scenes may actually be.
	From kissing with chocolate lipstick to using one’s body as a “study tool”, kiss x sis sure didn’t leave much to the imagination. At the same time, the series never once shelled out with any actual depictions of nudity, regardless of how risqué some of the wild actions and fantasies of the Suminoe twin sisters got. Ako and Riko are pretty daring to say the least, and their forwardness in their love for their non-blood-related little brother Keita makes most depictions of romance in anime look like they’re moving at a snail-like pace, save for Yosuga no Sora. While the series is just a huge tease, it never failed to amaze me with the boundaries they pushed. Suggestive is a bit of an understatement since the girls had every intention of getting the deed done. However, it was their sliver of innocence in light of all their advances that showed exactly how far you can take fan-service without treading into hentai territory. The precarious situations depicted makes it far more enticing than the breast milk drinking in Seikon no Qwaser, which was pretty outlandish even by anime standards. Honorable Mentions: Seikon no Qwaser, Yosuga no Sora

Fan-Service

While fan-service-filled affairs tend to go hand-in-hand with comedies, that’s not always the case. In addition, fan-service doesn’t only constitute breasts in your face, nor an abundance of needless upskirt shots. The only criteria here are character interactions suggestive of a sexual-related context, regardless of how revealing the scenes may actually be.

From kissing with chocolate lipstick to using one’s body as a “study tool”, kiss x sis sure didn’t leave much to the imagination. At the same time, the series never once shelled out with any actual depictions of nudity, regardless of how risqué some of the wild actions and fantasies of the Suminoe twin sisters got. Ako and Riko are pretty daring to say the least, and their forwardness in their love for their non-blood-related little brother Keita makes most depictions of romance in anime look like they’re moving at a snail-like pace, save for Yosuga no Sora. While the series is just a huge tease, it never failed to amaze me with the boundaries they pushed. Suggestive is a bit of an understatement since the girls had every intention of getting the deed done. However, it was their sliver of innocence in light of all their advances that showed exactly how far you can take fan-service without treading into hentai territory. The precarious situations depicted makes it far more enticing than the breast milk drinking in Seikon no Qwaser, which was pretty outlandish even by anime standards.

Honorable Mentions: Seikon no Qwaser, Yosuga no Sora

Notable Others

Most Underappreciated
This is the replacement for the “Show We Wish We Blogged More”, and falls into the same criteria short of being something I didn’t blog. There are a lot of shows out there that people don’t watch or continue watching because they’re so fixated on what’s unanimously popular. I make a point of watching and covering series that tend to be overlooked, so this is intended to highlight the series that more people should have checked out but probably didn’t.
	I had several series under consideration for this, and decided to go with GIANT KILLING since it should appeal to a wider audience yet never did. Ruling out an anime because it’s about sports is a fairly ignorant mindset, and one that I’m guilty of as well in the past. Luckily, I took the time to see exactly what this series had to offer and was immediately hooked on the story of a seemingly unorthodox coach turning a his struggling ex-soccer team around. I’m not a huge fan of soccer, but the portrayal of skeptical players whom Tatsumi eventually gets to buy into his system completely won me over. Some games were depicted in great detail and showed just how much excitement can be built up from inner dialogue alone, and left me in awe on several occasions when East Tokyo United would pull a huge upset. RAINBOW is another underappreciated one (even as my favorite drama of the year), as are Sarai-ya Goyou, Hakuouki, and Senkou no Night Raid. The last one is not only underappreciated, but difficult for most audiences to even appreciate with the inclusion of a very controversial period of history. Honorable Mentions: RAINBOW: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin, Sarai-ya Goyou, Hakuouki (Hekketsuroku), Senkou no Night Raid

Most Underappreciated

This is the replacement for the “Show We Wish We Blogged More”, and falls into the same criteria short of being something I didn’t blog. There are a lot of shows out there that people don’t watch or continue watching because they’re so fixated on what’s unanimously popular. I make a point of watching and covering series that tend to be overlooked, so this is intended to highlight the series that more people should have checked out but probably didn’t.

I had several series under consideration for this, and decided to go with GIANT KILLING since it should appeal to a wider audience yet never did. Ruling out an anime because it’s about sports is a fairly ignorant mindset, and one that I’m guilty of as well in the past. Luckily, I took the time to see exactly what this series had to offer and was immediately hooked on the story of a seemingly unorthodox coach turning a his struggling ex-soccer team around. I’m not a huge fan of soccer, but the portrayal of skeptical players whom Tatsumi eventually gets to buy into his system completely won me over. Some games were depicted in great detail and showed just how much excitement can be built up from inner dialogue alone, and left me in awe on several occasions when East Tokyo United would pull a huge upset. RAINBOW is another underappreciated one (even as my favorite drama of the year), as are Sarai-ya Goyou, Hakuouki, and Senkou no Night Raid. The last one is not only underappreciated, but difficult for most audiences to even appreciate with the inclusion of a very controversial period of history.

Honorable Mentions: RAINBOW: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin, Sarai-ya Goyou, Hakuouki (Hekketsuroku), Senkou no Night Raid

Biggest Disappointment
The pitfall of excessive hype and anticipation for anything is the disappointment that results when things don’t meet expectations. With regards to anime, this is doubly true when a series has precedence established by its original and a sequel falls incomparably short. At times it’s only a small letdown, but sometimes we’re left wondering what we did to deserve sitting through it. I’m not looking for the worst series of the year here, but the biggest disparity between expectations going in and way the series turned out.
	This choice may surprise a lot of people, but please keep in mind that it by no means makes Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu the worst show of 2010. Just like the criteria above states, I went into this adaptation of an award-winning light novel with pretty high expectations, and they fell quite short of the impression I got from the early chapters of its manga version. I attribute this largely to what I perceived as poor direction and series composition (i.e. script), since the series was ridden with a lot of interesting story elements that never really came together. There’s a common belief that predictability is a bad thing, but I’m a firm believer that providing the viewer with some idea on where things are headed is not a bad way of telling a story. With Denyuuden, I never once could felt like had a good idea of its direction, despite how closely I paid attention to the plot and tried to anticipate where it was going. The abrupt ending only reiterated the sentiment that not enough thought went into the production of this series. To put it in really crude terms, it’s as if the production staff took whatever parts of the story they found interesting, animated those, and (poorly) strung them together in whichever way they deemed fit. As someone who was expecting a good medieval story in a fantasy setting, this series turned out to my biggest disappointment of the year.

Biggest Disappointment

The pitfall of excessive hype and anticipation for anything is the disappointment that results when things don’t meet expectations. With regards to anime, this is doubly true when a series has precedence established by its original and a sequel falls incomparably short. At times it’s only a small letdown, but sometimes we’re left wondering what we did to deserve sitting through it. I’m not looking for the worst series of the year here, but the biggest disparity between expectations going in and way the series turned out.

This choice may surprise a lot of people, but please keep in mind that it by no means makes Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu the worst show of 2010. Just like the criteria above states, I went into this adaptation of an award-winning light novel with pretty high expectations, and they fell quite short of the impression I got from the early chapters of its manga version. I attribute this largely to what I perceived as poor direction and series composition (i.e. script), since the series was ridden with a lot of interesting story elements that never really came together. There’s a common belief that predictability is a bad thing, but I’m a firm believer that providing the viewer with some idea on where things are headed is not a bad way of telling a story. With Denyuuden, I never once could felt like had a good idea of its direction, despite how closely I paid attention to the plot and tried to anticipate where it was going. The abrupt ending only reiterated the sentiment that not enough thought went into the production of this series. To put it in really crude terms, it’s as if the production staff took whatever parts of the story they found interesting, animated those, and (poorly) strung them together in whichever way they deemed fit. As someone who was expecting a good medieval story in a fantasy setting, this series turned out to my biggest disappointment of the year.

Exceeded Expectations
Naturally, there’s the exact opposite of the above, where we go into a series with low or little-to-no expectations and it turns out much better than we anticipated. This could easily be considered finding diamonds in the rough, which is only possible if you tend to give new shows the benefit of the doubt. My picks here don’t mean they’re blockbuster hits in disguise, but that the disparity between expectations and the actual series goes in the favorable direction.
	Since I approach all new series with expectations aligned accordingly, I’m rarely surprised by something turning out to be much better than it initially seemed. In 2010, I was fortunate enough to be graced with a few that did so, with Hobby Japan’s Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls adaptation being the most notable one. While I was open-minded to the possibility that this series would go down a similar fan-service path as Queen’s Blade, the focus on the comedy really took me by surprise from the second episode onwards. I was already content with the unique art style and stylistic touches in what I expected to be a modern samurai series, so the sudden shift to the high school comedy that it was intended to be transformed this series to a mesh of some of my favorite genres. In addition to providing some slapstick laughs — most noticeably through Kanetsugu — there was much more plot than I imagined, which included a couple of twists along the way and worked towards a climactic finish. In a somewhat similar fashion, Seikimatsu Occult Gakuin had some nice twists, and Otome Youkai Zakuro came together really well in the end. Honorable Mentions: Seikimatsu Occult Gakuin, Otome Youkai Zakuro

Exceeded Expectations

Naturally, there’s the exact opposite of the above, where we go into a series with low or little-to-no expectations and it turns out much better than we anticipated. This could easily be considered finding diamonds in the rough, which is only possible if you tend to give new shows the benefit of the doubt. My picks here don’t mean they’re blockbuster hits in disguise, but that the disparity between expectations and the actual series goes in the favorable direction.

Since I approach all new series with expectations aligned accordingly, I’m rarely surprised by something turning out to be much better than it initially seemed. In 2010, I was fortunate enough to be graced with a few that did so, with Hobby Japan’s Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls adaptation being the most notable one. While I was open-minded to the possibility that this series would go down a similar fan-service path as Queen’s Blade, the focus on the comedy really took me by surprise from the second episode onwards. I was already content with the unique art style and stylistic touches in what I expected to be a modern samurai series, so the sudden shift to the high school comedy that it was intended to be transformed this series to a mesh of some of my favorite genres. In addition to providing some slapstick laughs — most noticeably through Kanetsugu — there was much more plot than I imagined, which included a couple of twists along the way and worked towards a climactic finish. In a somewhat similar fashion, Seikimatsu Occult Gakuin had some nice twists, and Otome Youkai Zakuro came together really well in the end.

Honorable Mentions: Seikimatsu Occult Gakuin, Otome Youkai Zakuro

And Finally…

Favorite of 2010
The be all and end all of the year. If I had to pick just one series as my favorite, this would be it. If I could’ve only watched one show this past year, here’s what I would’ve been watching. There’s no other criteria here and being on the same page as the masses is the least of my concerns. You may not agree, but this category is for conveying what I enjoyed the most in 2010.
	There were really only two series that were under consideration for this, and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood not only gets my pick as my favorite series of 2010, but also as one of my favorites of all-time. As someone who wasn’t familiar with the manga but did enjoy the original adaptation, this faithful remake with Arakawa Hiromu‘s intended conclusion took everything that I liked there and enhanced the experience. With BONES back behind the production and a beautiful score by Senju Akira, this adaptation had it all on the production side of things, plus a complex story that well warranted the 64 episode adaptation that it received. It’s not often we see an anime of this caliber, and that is what ultimately led to me picking it over Angel Beats. As another one of Maeda Jun‘s stories, Angel Beats was a very entertaining series that stands out from the crowd with its combination of humor and melancholy, and featured great songs that he composed for it, making it the only other series that really contended for my favorite of the year. Honorable Mentions: Angel Beats!, K-ON!!, Oreimo, Durarara!!
	Kiiragi: Katanagatari, Kimi ni Todoke, Kuragehime, Tatami Galaxy, Angel Beats! Prooof: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Kaichou wa Maid-sama!, Angel Beats!, WORKING!!, Durarara!! Takaii: Amagami SS, Katanagatari, Angel Beats!, Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakama-tachi, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Favorite of 2010

The be all and end all of the year. If I had to pick just one series as my favorite, this would be it. If I could’ve only watched one show this past year, here’s what I would’ve been watching. There’s no other criteria here and being on the same page as the masses is the least of my concerns. You may not agree, but this category is for conveying what I enjoyed the most in 2010.

There were really only two series that were under consideration for this, and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood not only gets my pick as my favorite series of 2010, but also as one of my favorites of all-time. As someone who wasn’t familiar with the manga but did enjoy the original adaptation, this faithful remake with Arakawa Hiromu‘s intended conclusion took everything that I liked there and enhanced the experience. With BONES back behind the production and a beautiful score by Senju Akira, this adaptation had it all on the production side of things, plus a complex story that well warranted the 64 episode adaptation that it received. It’s not often we see an anime of this caliber, and that is what ultimately led to me picking it over Angel Beats. As another one of Maeda Jun‘s stories, Angel Beats was a very entertaining series that stands out from the crowd with its combination of humor and melancholy, and featured great songs that he composed for it, making it the only other series that really contended for my favorite of the year.

Honorable Mentions: Angel Beats!, K-ON!!, Oreimo, Durarara!!

Kiiragi: Katanagatari, Kimi ni Todoke, Kuragehime, Tatami Galaxy, Angel Beats!
Prooof: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Kaichou wa Maid-sama!, Angel Beats!, WORKING!!, Durarara!!
Takaii: Amagami SS, Katanagatari, Angel Beats!, Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakama-tachi, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Favorite OVA/Movie of 2010
The same as above, except for the not regularly broadcasted offerings. These aren’t covered very often on the site, but I’ve had the pleasure of watching enough to find some that really caught my eye.
	I’m probably one of the very few people who didn’t place Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu in my top three, let alone as my favorite of 2010. However, as a long-time Gundam and Macross fan, their movie offerings delivered impeccably in reminding me of everything that I love about both franchises. I was pretty set on the theatrical retelling of the Macross Frontier as my favorite, but the late release of Gundam 00’s conclusion changed my mind with its stunning animation and story about a powerful independent organization intent on putting a stop to war even if it meant getting involved themselves. The “peace through understanding” theme was finally brought to fruition in this movie, and gave new meaning on the fifty episodes that came before it. That’s on top of featuring some of the most action-packed battles in space to date, including Celestial Being’s “last mission” that spanned over twenty minutes long. With mankind facing insurmountable odds, the suspense was off the charts and had me on the edge of my seat. Some viewers may feel that it took the franchise in a questionable direction, but as someone who’s been following it for as long as I have, I personally loved the new outlook. I still enjoyed Suzumiya Haruhi a lot, but Fate/stay night’s alternate storyline that addresses the mystery behind Shirou’s connection to Archer edges ahead from an entertainment standpoint. Beautifully animated as well, by Studio DEEN of all studios too. Honorable Mentions: Macross Frontier ~Itsuwari no Utahime~, Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Gundam Unicorn
	Kiiragi: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Summer Wars, Eve no Jikan Prooof: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Summer Wars, Angel Beats! OVA Takaii: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, Tamayura

Favorite OVA/Movie of 2010

The same as above, except for the not regularly broadcasted offerings. These aren’t covered very often on the site, but I’ve had the pleasure of watching enough to find some that really caught my eye.

I’m probably one of the very few people who didn’t place Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu in my top three, let alone as my favorite of 2010. However, as a long-time Gundam and Macross fan, their movie offerings delivered impeccably in reminding me of everything that I love about both franchises. I was pretty set on the theatrical retelling of the Macross Frontier as my favorite, but the late release of Gundam 00’s conclusion changed my mind with its stunning animation and story about a powerful independent organization intent on putting a stop to war even if it meant getting involved themselves. The “peace through understanding” theme was finally brought to fruition in this movie, and gave new meaning on the fifty episodes that came before it. That’s on top of featuring some of the most action-packed battles in space to date, including Celestial Being’s “last mission” that spanned over twenty minutes long. With mankind facing insurmountable odds, the suspense was off the charts and had me on the edge of my seat. Some viewers may feel that it took the franchise in a questionable direction, but as someone who’s been following it for as long as I have, I personally loved the new outlook. I still enjoyed Suzumiya Haruhi a lot, but Fate/stay night’s alternate storyline that addresses the mystery behind Shirou’s connection to Archer edges ahead from an entertainment standpoint. Beautifully animated as well, by Studio DEEN of all studios too.

Honorable Mentions: Macross Frontier ~Itsuwari no Utahime~, Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Gundam Unicorn

Kiiragi: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Summer Wars, Eve no Jikan
Prooof: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Summer Wars, Angel Beats! OVA
Takaii: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works, Tamayura

Reader’s Choice
Your choice for 2010. Since I allowed everyone to pick their top 5 this year, we have an even nicer spread of results than the previous one. In exchange for finding out if there was one series that everyone would’ve picked with a single vote, we have a much better idea of the other ones you enjoyed. The top choice is still pretty unquestionable however, since it was good enough to make it into the majority of your top 5 picks.
	The Top 5: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – 3,232 (9.17%) Angel Beats! – 2,944 (8.35%) Durarara!! – 2,633 (7.47%) K-ON!! – 1,634 (4.63%) Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai – 1,252 (3.55%) Total Number of Votes – 35,255 Here are the full results. The turnout for this year’s polls was quite remarkable with at least 7000 voters. Whether or not that’s due to a longer poll duration, it’s a staggering increase from last year’s 4000 or so, and provides an interesting spread of results like I was hoping for. As for the results themselves, the reader’s choice top five are the same as mine (albeit in a slightly different order), which seems to suggest my tastes are in-line with most people’s despite being arguably more diverse. I am a bit surprised to see HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD ahead of the likes of To Aru Kagaku no Railgun and Katanagatari however, indicating that the summer zombie anime did live up all the hype. The top three, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Angel Beats, and Durarara, lead the pack by a fair amount, and are quite deserving of being there.

Reader’s Choice

Your choice for 2010. Since I allowed everyone to pick their top 5 this year, we have an even nicer spread of results than the previous one. In exchange for finding out if there was one series that everyone would’ve picked with a single vote, we have a much better idea of the other ones you enjoyed. The top choice is still pretty unquestionable however, since it was good enough to make it into the majority of your top 5 picks.

The Top 5:
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood – 3,232 (9.17%)
Angel Beats! – 2,944 (8.35%)
Durarara!! – 2,633 (7.47%)
K-ON!! – 1,634 (4.63%)
Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai – 1,252 (3.55%)
Total Number of Votes – 35,255
Here are the full results.

The turnout for this year’s polls was quite remarkable with at least 7000 voters. Whether or not that’s due to a longer poll duration, it’s a staggering increase from last year’s 4000 or so, and provides an interesting spread of results like I was hoping for. As for the results themselves, the reader’s choice top five are the same as mine (albeit in a slightly different order), which seems to suggest my tastes are in-line with most people’s despite being arguably more diverse. I am a bit surprised to see HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD ahead of the likes of To Aru Kagaku no Railgun and Katanagatari however, indicating that the summer zombie anime did live up all the hype. The top three, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Angel Beats, and Durarara, lead the pack by a fair amount, and are quite deserving of being there.

Reader’s Choice OVA/Movie
Your OVA/Movie choice of 2010. As mentioned in the disclaimer above, the choices here were restricted to what’s been released on DVD/Blu-ray so that viewers outside of Japan have a chance of watching it and making an informed decision. It didn’t make sense to restrict such offerings to a small pool of voters this year and not have it up it for consideration in 2011, so if you wanted to vote for anything that premiered in theaters, you’ll get your chance next year.
	The Top 5: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu – 1,807 (10.26%) Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance – 1,682 (9.55%) Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works – 1,255 (7.13%) Summer Wars – 1,153 (6.55%) Darker than BLACK Gaiden – 1,018 (5.78%) Total Number of Votes – 17,609 Here are the full results. I gather that Suzumiya Haruhi and Evangelion appeal to wider audiences, resulting in a lot more voters having them up for consideration. Either way, they took the lead by a fair margin, earning a spot on a lot of people’s top three OVA/movie lists. Summer Wars turned out to be a lot of people’s favorite as well, which I also enjoyed, but not more than the other offerings I selected as my favorites of the year. I would’ve placed Darker than BLACK Gaiden ahead of it too, simply because the OVA cleared up a lot of the confusion in the second season.

Reader’s Choice OVA/Movie

Your OVA/Movie choice of 2010. As mentioned in the disclaimer above, the choices here were restricted to what’s been released on DVD/Blu-ray so that viewers outside of Japan have a chance of watching it and making an informed decision. It didn’t make sense to restrict such offerings to a small pool of voters this year and not have it up it for consideration in 2011, so if you wanted to vote for anything that premiered in theaters, you’ll get your chance next year.

The Top 5:
Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu – 1,807 (10.26%)
Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance – 1,682 (9.55%)
Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works – 1,255 (7.13%)
Summer Wars – 1,153 (6.55%)
Darker than BLACK Gaiden – 1,018 (5.78%)
Total Number of Votes – 17,609
Here are the full results.

I gather that Suzumiya Haruhi and Evangelion appeal to wider audiences, resulting in a lot more voters having them up for consideration. Either way, they took the lead by a fair margin, earning a spot on a lot of people’s top three OVA/movie lists. Summer Wars turned out to be a lot of people’s favorite as well, which I also enjoyed, but not more than the other offerings I selected as my favorites of the year. I would’ve placed Darker than BLACK Gaiden ahead of it too, simply because the OVA cleared up a lot of the confusion in the second season.

Every year offers something different, and I feel that 2010’s line-up wasn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination. That’s coming from someone who watched 56 of the 98 series put up for consideration in the poll too. Those who weren’t willing to dip their toes into many series and expand their horizons likely missed out, as there are a lot of good shows that didn’t even make it into the top 20 in the poll. Of course, that’s purely subjective much like this Best of Anime post itself, but it’s probably fair to say that you’ll never find out if you enjoy a series if you don’t give it a fair chance. In any case, 2011 is well upon us and along with it the Winter season, so here’s to hoping for another fun and entertaining year from the world of anime.

304 Comments

I hope this year’s anime will be as great as 2010

Monklife

January 3, 2011 at 7:22 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. My biggest disappointment was the world only god knows; the pacing of the show was awful.
  
  Monklife
  
  January 3, 2011 at 7:28 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. The pacing was definitely the most disappointing aspect of TWOGK, but I thought it really had some moments that were absolute gems. Lets hope the next season goes faster!
    
    PockyG
    
    January 4, 2011 at 1:49 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  2. Pacing? Yes.
    But still a wonderful show? Yes Indeed.
    
    MrTerrorist
    
    January 4, 2011 at 2:46 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
Awesome review Divine! Thanks!

Freya

January 3, 2011 at 7:26 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I thought this year was actually a bit disappointing.

ashiya

January 3, 2011 at 7:27 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I agree. Most of the good stuff I watched this year were movies like Haruhi and Evangelion.
  
  Legion
  
  January 3, 2011 at 7:46 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Same here movies/ovas were outstanding I had to choose from ten three best…
    while I wasnt even sure what to pick for anime
    
    laaa
    
    January 3, 2011 at 11:29 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
Great reviews though. Always been using randomc to determine what I watch.

ashiya

January 3, 2011 at 7:28 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Seeing how Fullmetal Alchemist took nearly all of the awards reminded me of Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King . FMA : Brotherhood FTW!

Coupza

January 3, 2011 at 7:28 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Wow this is rare: I didn’t watch half of the favorites from Divine’s list. Also, I JUST finished watching the Gundam00 movie, and I didn’t feel it surpassed the other OVAs and movies like Haruhi, Summer Wars and Eve no Jikan. Oh well, to each their own.

xcswmboy

January 3, 2011 at 7:30 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Sweet Durarara!! got third and Summer Wars made it into the top 5 as well, all is right with the world.

der fur shur

January 3, 2011 at 7:36 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. Agreed. Summer Wars is a nice OVA / Movie to watch.
  
  Hagiri
  
  January 4, 2011 at 2:14 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Happy to see Giant Killing! included as well as Rainbow, we really need more of these types of shows and less moe, interesting stories, meaningful stories. Have to say that Katanagatari needed more attention, good story, good animation, good character, I think the monthly schedule really hurt it.

Bluth

January 3, 2011 at 7:38 pm 14 years ago

Reply
How awesome that I was listening to FMA:Brotherhood’s soundtrack as I read this? >.<

While the anime is not my favorite of all time (the manga is, however) this adaption still sits up there as one of the best animated work to ever come out of Japan. And it's the only anime I would impatiently anticipate every week this year (and last year as well!).

Long live Hagane no Renkinjutsushi!!!

damian

January 3, 2011 at 7:42 pm 14 years ago

Reply
thanks for the awesome post! really appreciated all the hard work you guys have put in here!
FMA is really good one… same goes Durarara.

jrj

January 3, 2011 at 7:44 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I wouldn’t be surprised about FMA Brotherhood. It’s a classic and award-winning, though I don’t watch it. Some of these awards I can totally agree, the others (since I don’t know them) I’ll just say “meh, carry on.” But who the heck is Admiral Ackbar? 😛

Anyway, it has been a great 2010. It was characterized by sudden anime pop-ups. During Christmas break, I finished “Shinryaku! Ika Musume” and “Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai” while finishing some classics like MGL Nanoha 1 and 2. But I’m a bit sad that I won’t have anything to look forward to in the Winter season (except for Moshidora if it’s any good). Kudos to Random C, hopefully I pick up something along the way, hooah.

Razgriz

January 3, 2011 at 7:47 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Isn’t summer wars 2009 not 2010?

Shimapan

January 3, 2011 at 7:50 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. It premiered in Japan in late summer of 2009, but not to the rest of the world until 2010, according to ANN. I think more promotional material, along with the DVD didn’t come out until 2010 as well. Maybe that’s why?
  
  aloneinwonderland
  
  January 3, 2011 at 8:08 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Sorry, but I have to completely disagree with you on Densetsu No Yuusha No Densetsu. Well, for one thing I haven’t read the novels so yeah i don’t know how the original material is or the way it is paced but i found the anime to be very interesting, fun and it fulfilled my need for a GOOD fantasy that id been waiting for for a while. I also grew very attached to the characters and it is indeed one of my top 3 anime this year after FMA: Brotherhood. Railgun is third. In fact, for all i care, angel beats was a let down, after having watched Kanon and Clannad and even player the game.

I do sorta agree with the rest though but o well.. 😛

Kewldude

January 3, 2011 at 7:52 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. If you read the criteria for Biggest Disappointment, you’ll realize that it’s not open to agreement or disagreement. The likelihood that your expectations coming in were the same as mine are slim to none.
  
  As for Angel Beats, I can tell you that there are at least 2,944 people who don’t agree with you. 2,945 if you want to count me since I didn’t vote.
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:56 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. I understand that it is not open to agreement or disagreement, I only meant that I didn’t feel it was “The Biggest Disappointment”. I liked it, this year, and can understand that it would be disappointing when compared to other animes, especially when, as you say, the novels are much better.
    
    As for Angel Beats, it was not bad. Just, sort of a let down as compared to the Directors’ other creations.
    
    Oh well, each to his own I guess. That said, I missed saying it in my first comment, but Great post! Keep it up ~_^
    
    Kewldude
    
    January 4, 2011 at 5:06 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
2. No he was right on that one. Densetsu No Yuusha No Densetsu was a mess. It was all over the place and didn’t make a whole lot of sense. Then it ends with more questions then answers about what was going on. I liked the series and it had some great characters but it seems the pacing was off and it ended with everyone scratching their heads as to what was really going on.
  
  Karmafan
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:57 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
3. As I saw it all must admit it was too big mess for story. But again it also was suprise for me when it got years biggest disappointment. Still could say I enjoyed that anime alot and it was one of rare I wached till the end. As for my biggest disappointment is was Maid sama with no romance at all! I was kinda hoping till the end…
  
  laaa
  
  January 3, 2011 at 11:45 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
4. I was excited with Denyuuden at the start since a good old fashioned fantasy has been missing somewhat. The problem was the way it was paced and the story not condensed. Some parts such as the political maneuvering were interesting if you tried to analyze the situation but it ate up too much of the time in a sngle episode. If they mixed it with some plot + action scenes such as Ryner berserking, it would have gone down better. At the start i was only interested in WHY Ryner was so different from other alphas but in the END, i was also interested in why Sion was so wierd.
  
  Now if they moved the part on Shion going crazy due to his responsibilities to the nations colliding with his morals or friendships (plus a certain hero) at the MIDDLE, then it would have been much better IMO.
  
  Other high impact points that are not normally seen in fantasy anime: Ferris’ mom and dad are…. and Miran’s relationship with his foster father was …
  
  In the end though, the entire series in the end felt draggy
  
  Zaku Fan
  
  January 4, 2011 at 12:47 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
5. Story was all over the place w/ a lot of questions left unanswered and then ending the season w/ a war.
  
  Hagiri
  
  January 4, 2011 at 2:21 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
I’m very disappointed by the lack of support Katanagatari got. The final episode in the series was an absolutely amazing end to a series rife with both serious and comedic banter between the main characters. While the plot can come off as a bit generic at first, it’s easy to see that the plot isn’t the main driving force behind what makes the series great. It’s the character interactions that does that. Getting to see the humorous Maniwa Corp, the witty Tsuruya, and the naive Yasuri was simply a great experience.

Anyways, I’m surprised the new UBW movie got rated so high. Maybe it did so because FS/N has a huge following. The stuff DEEN did to that route, I don’t really want to talk about here.

On another note, biggest disappointment for me (And I know for MANY others out there too) would be Black Rock Shooter. The hype that a simple Hatsune Mikuru drawn in an alternate costume developed was absolutely phenomenal…And then they gave us a short OVA severely lacking in a consistent plot and was overall a gigantic gag to watch.
Oh and Heroman too; not much I need to say about that, is there?

I will have to agree with you on LoLH a bit. The first couple of episodes had me hooked for various reasons (Read: Ferris) and I picked up the novels which are definitely terrific to read. LoLH pales next to its sequel though, and I will still hope for an anime sequel (Even though knowing ZEXCS, that’s not happening in the near millenium).

dszx

January 3, 2011 at 7:53 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. >Tsuruya
  
  Excuse me, I meant Togame.
  
  dszx
  
  January 3, 2011 at 8:22 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. I Agree Katanagatari was one on the underdogs for 2010 that turn out to be surprising good. However, u really need a bit of patience to fully appreciate it. The finale was simply amazing.
    
    Dlslord
    
    January 3, 2011 at 8:36 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
2. I took the time to finish Katanagatari before writing this post, but I still didn’t see any particular category it excelled in. Story was the only one I really considered it for, except the plot was relatively straightforward in comparison to ones I listed. I made mention of the death in the finale, and how it didn’t really faze in me in any way.
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:23 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
I’m with mostly everyone saying that this year in general was pretty lacking in quality anime/OVAs. Only a few stand out like FMA and Amagami.

DMZ

January 3, 2011 at 7:55 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. WAT ARE YOU TAKING ABOUT
  kaicho wa maid sama was great
  katanagataris animation art and details in it are perfect
  durararas story is awsome
  high school of the dead was pure horror but+echii
  nurarhyon no mago will have season 2
  the world god only knows is genius
  working!! was cool
  shiki was 2 a mysteri like
  bakuman is cool life like story
  you only FMA IS IN THE WORLD
  even inuyasha final chapter was cooler
  I HATE FMA i will never ever watch it
  
  sakana-chan
  
  January 4, 2011 at 3:04 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. “kaicho wa maid sama” – Was OK but the manga was better
    “katanagataris animation art and details in it are perfect” – never watched it, didn’t look interesting to me
    “durarara”‘s story got stale after about 10 episodes
    “high school of the dead” – Was way too ecchi and got stupidly bad in the second half
    “nurarhyon no mago will have season 2” – So did Strike Witches so that doesn’t say much
    “the world god only knows” – Was horrible
    “working!! was cool” – I will give you this one, it was
    “shiki” Started off great but due to delays in airing and slow pacing was horribly boring
    “bakuman” – Was almost as exciting as being in a coma
    “FMA” – Was awesome
    “inuyasha” – OK I thought you were trolling before, but now i KNOW you are
    “I HATE FMA i will never ever watch it” – Good for you. Have a cookie.
    
    DMZ
    
    January 4, 2011 at 1:12 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
Woohoo Ika Musume!

Pikapu

January 3, 2011 at 7:58 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Interesting, I would have thought that Macross Itsuwari no Utahime would rank a lot higher than it did. Then again, I also thought that Unlimited Blade Works was too confusing for people who hadn’t played the game.

Grant

January 3, 2011 at 8:00 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Divine, FIFTY SIX? Have you developed permanent eye under circles and/or a heavy addiction to tea and coffee?
Show Spoiler ▼

I agree that although FMA: Brotherhood really did an all around fantastic job, the original’s portrayal of Hughes’ death had a much larger impact.

Hmm, I’m not at all surprised at the the Reader’s Choice Favorites. That said, all of RC’s blogger favorites of 2010 are surprising different.

aloneinwonderland

January 3, 2011 at 8:02 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Yup, after all that divine has a commoner’s taste in anime just like the rest of us suckers :D. jk <3

FMA is very deserving of the top awards. Its the only anime that really left an impression with me along with Angel Beats. Combined my favorite aspects of an anime all into one package.

Jin

January 3, 2011 at 8:08 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I was amused by that comment. 🙂
  
  Of course, we could always spin it the other way, by saying that if my tastes are similar to most people’s, then everyone should enjoy the more niche series just like I do.
  
  I’d love to be proven wrong that this similarity is unidirectional.
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:30 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. I like both your’s and omni’s taste in anime.. they seem to compliment each other. omni could be a little deep and complex, while you could be a bit more simple and easy (in a good way)..
    too bad omni retired.. but it’s great you succeded him! ^^
    
    MrRei
    
    January 4, 2011 at 5:42 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
I agree with most of them I was really looking forward this post 🙂 you didn’t dissapoint me at all with your choices. Thank you for a year full of good anime blogging and I hope this year be better!

Miharu

January 3, 2011 at 8:09 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I shouldn’t be surprise that FMA was best anime of the year. It’s a really excellent anime.

I surprised to see that everyone liked the opening from Angel Beats. I waited for MONTHS for the opening to come out after seeing the second episode.

Hopefully there will be more epic anime in 2011 as well! 🙂

David Herbert

January 3, 2011 at 8:10 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Thanks for all your hard work this year. Looking forward to another great year of anime and reading you guys’ posts. Keep up the great work.

Chen^2

January 3, 2011 at 8:11 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Wanted to add, why all the hate for the Gundam movie. It was entertaining enough and had a decent plot with a twist and all. Must be the fags who pretend to be anime connoisseurs. Its Gundam, pew pew lasers and shit blowing up is entertaining no?

Jin

January 3, 2011 at 8:14 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. i personally liked all the pew pew in Macross a lot more, maybe my impression will change on watching the 720p rip
  
  RickyMack
  
  January 4, 2011 at 1:19 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. Recall that was Reader’s Choice, and to at least some extent boils down to being a popularity contest. The Gundam movie was not out so long (and only recently blogged about here), so at the very least it makes sense that would be reflected versus the other films out longer.
  
  That said, I still would go with Disappearance for top spot.
  
  Zeruel
  
  January 4, 2011 at 3:04 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Yeah this year I wouldn’t say it was bad but it wasn’t great. A few really great shows but many disappointing ones =P. Still FMA Brotherhood made me really happy XD

ExaltedZero

January 3, 2011 at 8:15 pm 14 years ago

Reply
MITSUDOMOE FTW!!!!!!!!!!, what a Great ride this last season has been, there was something for Everyone! CANT believe however that Samurai Girls EXCEEDED in anything? ohh well, opinions are after all what makes the world interesting

BROOKLYN otaku

January 3, 2011 at 8:17 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I have to agree with you in almost everything except the part you forget to mention sora no otoshimo in comedy genre. It was really fun.
And Nanoha is a honorable mention in favorite movie/ova.
Thanks for the review divine.
Keep your good work this year too!

Ichigomaru

January 3, 2011 at 8:18 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Sigh not enough K-On!

Igotknowidea

January 3, 2011 at 8:21 pm 14 years ago

Reply
FMA really is one of the best anime of all time, and a big contender for best action anime ever. The only thing that keeps Brotherhood from perfection is the slightly rushed feel of the first 14 episodes, everything else was pure gold.

I seriously can’t praise this series enough, and your (and Omni’s) commentary on each episode really added to the experience. It’s great to see something cool, but it’s even better to know other people are just as wowed by it. I have high expectations for the upcoming FMA movie.

Great picks overall, lets hope that 2011 gives us all the new shows and high-quality sequels we’re hoping for (Ika Musume 2? God willing).

caramel_cod

January 3, 2011 at 8:26 pm 14 years ago

Reply
thanks!!!! it’s relly kind off what i expected, one recomendation would be to add ‘the best episode’ cathegory. for this year i vote for HOTD episode 1 😉 (sorry for the bad english)

Skam

January 3, 2011 at 8:39 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I never ended up watching Brotherhood. Not sure why. Always fun to read this, thanks Divine!

LaN

January 3, 2011 at 8:40 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. Oops. Hopefully will get to it eventually.
  
  LaN
  
  January 3, 2011 at 8:40 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Aw, Comedy, no Seitokai Yakuindomo as Honorable Mention? Not into lewd humor, Divine?

Bossun

January 3, 2011 at 8:40 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I contemplated it, but as I mentioned in my final impressions, I never found it overly hilarious. Mildly amusing, yes.
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:13 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Hm, fair enough. Going back in my memory databanks, I suppose the shows you picked were funnier; although I think Yakuindomo had more jokes than almost any other show, they never really made me laugh quite like Working or even Hyakka Ryoran. Quality over quantity, right?
    
    Bossun
    
    January 5, 2011 at 7:37 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
Dear goodness, not a single mention of Shiki anywhere on the list even on the under-appreciated list (which sadly proves it is). I had penciled as a Best Animation personally and a top 3 of the year with FMA and Rainbow. But personal choices, I know. Still, it almost sounds like you never even watched it.

Anyway, off to 2011!

Ncrdrg

January 3, 2011 at 8:43 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. Shiki had a pretty good following if I’m not mistaken. A lot of people, myself included, were looking forward to every episode. I don’t see why it would be considered underappreciated.
  
  Also, I linked my MAL anime list in the post, so there shouldn’t be any ambiguity on what I have and haven’t watched.
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:15 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Had no idea Shiki had a good following actually. Most people I saw wrote it off except a few select critics. But then again, this year had quite a few underrated gems. I had Ika Musume as my favorite comedy but I just started Milky Holmes and it already blows it out of the water. Biggest disappointment this year for me was Yakumo because the manga was a very tense mystery and you’d never guess that from the anime.
    
    Anyway, I’m not bashing your list per se, we just have obviously different tastes and I love your work and the time you took to make that list Divine. For the niche gems, I check the Star Crossed blog since watches every anime at least once and drops the popular shounens (FMA being an outlier) and picks out 70% of the time quality anime I never ever gave a glance to.
    
    Ncrdrg
    
    January 3, 2011 at 10:56 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
Very nice post.
Personally, my favorite of 2010 is K-ON!! 🙂 I just had the most fun watching it this year. However, I haven’t watched Fullmetal Alchemist.
And favorite OVA/Movie goes to Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu without a doubt.
You may have convinced me to watch Mitsudomoe and maybe RAINBOW…

innerchihiro

January 3, 2011 at 8:47 pm 14 years ago

Reply
WUT?

This blog had more sense before, suddenly came to hurt some susceptibility but in truth there are so poor choices:
ANGel Beats that a better story, OMG
plot had many holes in his own line, as well as characters left to air only 10 minutes having emotional part of a series. have to be blind to ignore it.

Aki toyosaki, good seiyu?
has a unique vocal range, do not deny that, but all papers are equal in mitsudomoe Yui, Yui mad at Sora no Otoshimono, in Railgun Yui, Yui in Ichiban Ushiro, at least his role in VOTOMS not sound too bad, but indeed their ability histrionica apex only in K-ON

HYAKKA was like started, a total waste of time trying to put together a story that could be 4 chapters complete with fanservice

I do not know what their view table of values, entertainment, naked or just by the public. We must not confuse popularity with quality.
To all this, or know where UNICORN eggs, Haruhi as film leaves much to be desired, it is like 6 episodes glued to carry a movie, only good animation involved.

Eriol elric

January 3, 2011 at 8:51 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. You are more than welcome to start your own blog and “enlighten” everyone with your views. I for one won’t miss you using my opinions to draw attention to your own.
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:33 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. /thumbs up
    
    Bossun
    
    January 3, 2011 at 10:06 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
2. I have a life to do and prefer to read people who are frustrated when they can not respond to arguments opposing ideas to yours <3
  
  Eriol elric
  
  January 3, 2011 at 10:25 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. I’m sorry, but you’re sorely mistaken if you think a comment someone makes asking for justification under a 6,400 word post would “frustrate” me.
    
    If anything, it continues to amaze me how people comment before reading. Also, you’d know I don’t cater towards what’s popular if you actually read this site for any extended period of time.
    
    Divine
    
    January 3, 2011 at 10:44 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  2. you have a life? you’re on the internet making a pretty detailed response about why you disagree with someone’s opinion on which they fully deserve the right to have and when someone points out your misplaced arrogance you then respond by saying you supposedly have a life.
    
    your initial comment does not suggest you indeed have an actual life. your response further confirms you do not have a life.
    
    you’re making comments on the internet on a blog, stop trying to act like you’re so god damn important.
    
    RickyMack
    
    January 4, 2011 at 1:27 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
3. I’m already used to having to point out a lot of “plot holes” in Angel Beats are NOT plot holes but either a failure to remember the previous episodes, complaints of having to read Track 0 (which was never necessary), complaints of somesone’s favoriate character’s (TK seems popular for this) backstory not shown or insufficient explaination about the school.
  
  Some are more excusable such as not understanding the culture or a translation failure. Feel free to point out the “plot holes” you see but do be prepared to be as rebutted in the same manner as your post. You know, reap what you show and all that
  
  Zaku Fan
  
  January 4, 2011 at 12:19 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
4. TROLL
  
  MrRei
  
  January 4, 2011 at 5:50 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
I totally agree with you Divine. It really felt like it came down to FMA:B and Angel Beats! overall. I really believed both series had their own unique strengths and weaknesses, which ultimately delivered a great presentation from start to finish.

I believed what separated FMA:B from Angel Beats! is the warranted number of episodes for production to deliver enough content. I’m not aware of the circumstances for either series, but you can argue that FMA:B might have done worse if it was given a traditional 48-52 episodes. The same can be said that Angel Beats! may have done better if it had around 24 episodes.

Regardless, that’s the business part of anime and that shouldn’t give Angel Beats! the credit it deserves. FMA:B definitely deserves the top praise for it’s production and faithful adaption.

A great year of anime for 2010 and cheers to another great year of anime for 2011. Many thanks for your unparallel time and dedication Divine!

P.S. Hideyoshi was indeed a no-brainer. More scarier to Admiral Ackbar than the Death Star. The ultimate trap I tell you! XD

PoohBear

January 3, 2011 at 8:52 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I expected all the anime I watched to be relegated to Honorable Mentions. I seem to like shows that are really good most of the time, but no one else seems to watch.
Oh well, enough of my depressing commentary. Great post; keep up the good work, Divine. Can’t wait for 2011’s anime series! Here’s hoping it’s good!

ciaossu

January 3, 2011 at 9:04 pm 14 years ago

Reply
How did FMA get lump into the best animation category? More often than not, it lacks the polish and refinement that defines most Bones anime and with most scenes looking as though they were handrawn by a pack of schoolchildren. The pacing of the show was also terrible and did little credit to its source material.

Reis

January 3, 2011 at 9:07 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. And your pick would be…?
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:35 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Rainbow… Loved the colours and style. Well must admit FMA had some fail places with which failed as new and some as coppy of old
    
    laaa
    
    January 3, 2011 at 11:35 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  2. A tie between either RAINBOW or HOTD. FMA just doesn’t have that level of animation quality as the first show did (even if it now had a superior storyline). It was just animated for the sake of being animated.
    
    Reis
    
    January 4, 2011 at 12:54 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
2. Well they had to make it different than the original as people then would clump both to be the same… I thought it was pretty unique and refreshing for them to use crayon style to do up the background, it was an unusual choice yes but it depicted the scenery and atmosphere of the situation clearly and well.
  
  As for your last comment on the credit to source material, often studios are not able to depict what fans want to see from the source into the anime; take kami nomi for example, it had an excellent animation and production value but fell short of what people wanted. I thought FMA:B handled the story well and ended off in a great note to leave a lasting impression. Yes they might have pissed off a bunch of people by cutting out a few important scenes but hey making a 60+ episode anime is a huge commitment these days (not counting the long running series with lots of filler materials and fan base support). IMO I dun think that FMA:B could be done in any other way with its 60+ episode run. Cheers and Chill!
  
  Flappy
  
  January 4, 2011 at 12:48 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Yes they should animate things a little differently to distance it from the first show, but I think the crayon approach is the wrong direction as the scenery feels very static (it’s most noticeable in the Briggs arc).
    
    And while the show was consistently animated, it wasn’t spectacular or jawdropping in quality like others of the past (take Soul Eater for instance even with its terrible original ending). And commitment is hardly an issue as I very much suspect that the studio was in cahoots with the author on the finale and they probably chose to make the second series with full knowledge of the ending. And while its true that a 60+ ep show is a tall order, it still wasn’t a good enough excuse to my perception that they could’ve done a lot more as far as visuals are concern.
    
    Reis
    
    January 6, 2011 at 1:34 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
I believe Divine overrated Angel Beats. The last episodes were terrible twisted, and that plot could reach epic levels, but, in the end, I only was disappointed. Katanagatari in the last chapters was incommensurable. And kirino, the… imouto of the year, not got enough attention.

But at least, the 2010 was a funny year.

Huitzi

January 3, 2011 at 9:12 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Always interesting to see what your opinions are Divine. Thanks to that, I’ll probably check a few out that I missed this year. I thought this year had a lot of very interesting animes that got drowned out by sheer quantity but I shouldn’t really expect that to change.

One thing that I felt was impressive this year was that the studios really stepped up their games this year and put out some outstanding productions. Bones, JC Staff, AIC, KyoAni and even Xebec all deserve a lot of praise this time around.

The choice of series were all excellent by everyone except a few. *coughtakaiicough* But I am a bit disappointed by how some truly great animes were neglected for the more popular choices i.e. High School of the Dead and Railgun over pretty much anything else below in the Reader’s Choice list.

I’m a bit shocked how popular Haruhi is, perhaps because I’m still a bit bitter about Endless Eight. I’m just shocked that it actually beat Evangelion, perhaps I’m just a generation behind most anime viewers now. orz

Regardless, I look forward to everyone’s hard work at RC and of course another year of anime. Thanks guys!

PockyG

January 3, 2011 at 9:13 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Most underrated would definitely be Tatami Galaxy. One of the best I have ever watched, truly a breath of fresh air. And although I watched Amagami SS, and am a bit skeptical of it’s depth as a romance series compared to say, Kimi ni Todoke, I can see how it’s victory is assured in reaching out to everyone’s ideal romance/partner.

Regardless, I’m glad you gave a shout-out to Rainbow, Divine; it’s much deserving of praise, as I cheered, cried, and suffered every week with the show’s cast!

Toyosaki Aki is a favorite of mine in terms of Seiyuu, but I’d have to say Hanazawa Kana’s range/expertise is what suprised me the most, even though I adore her voice and listen to it for countless hours, sometimes I’d have to double check to make sure it was actually her! (Attesting to her range/skill, compared to Aki, whom although I also love, I always recognize without fail.)

Here’s to another year of great anime, and a great Random Curiosity (Omni is gonna be proud!) keep it up Divine!

Dawn

January 3, 2011 at 9:16 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I agree with you. Tatami Galaxy even won the grand prize for the animation category in the Japan Media Arts Festival.
  
  kabayongtao
  
  January 3, 2011 at 10:54 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
You need to host an award show.

YOU NEED TO.

I can’t thank you enough for covering this many shows, and even gathering additional reviewers to help with the workload only impresses me more. Watching 56 series this whole year is not healthy so I can at least thank you so much for continuing to review in this new version of the site.

starss

January 3, 2011 at 9:31 pm 14 years ago

Reply
FMA:B really stood out for this year, nothing to be surprised at.

Just when I thought Baka to Test got the Best of Comedy, I totally overlooked how hilarious the Marui triplets are. A good contender but still my choice is Baka to Test.

Im quite relieved I considered not picking up LoLH, not really a fan of fantasy settings.

As for Rainbow I was hesitant to watch it back then cause Ive no idea what its premise and setting. But seeing that it won the best of drama,got many honorable mentions,and Im a fan of drama series maybe Ill reconsider it again.

Best Slice of life = K-On ofc. Im surprised Working didn’t got mentioned though.

As for the rest I pretty much agree with you.

Thanks for this post Divine, It helped a lot. Hope this year’s anime could only get better :3

PS: Ika Musume is too adorable, I had a feeling it’d get a mention but didnt expect it to be your best 😮

Nhelraios

January 3, 2011 at 9:35 pm 14 years ago

Reply
FMA:B
K-ON!!
Aki Toyosaki
Disappearance

F YEARS!!

But… How come the biggest disappointment wasn’t Iron man?
Also Angel Beats’ story was nice but wasn’t fleshed out right and they d*cked around too much to the point that the story was crammed(Actually I’d prefer if they did that for the rest of the series). I’d pick FMA:B over it 🙁

megalith

January 3, 2011 at 9:35 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Agreed on the biggest disappointment. Frankly, I like Denyuuden. There were some good character dynamics, but the story never really took off and many of the more emotional moments in the manga or novels were taken out.

I’d have given my vote to the Gundam 00 movie too, had I watched it before the voting started.

Owaranai

January 3, 2011 at 9:35 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I miss Omni, this list is so flawed.

Animation: Yes, FMA:B
Story: Shiki or FMA:B. Possibliy Durarara!
Soundtrack: I never pay too much attention to the soundtrack, but yes, FMA:B for the sake of saying FMA:B again xD. PaSwG deserves a mention though.
Op&Ed: Agreed with op, I never skipped it. Although Shiki’s first opening was amazing. But I also have to propose FMA:B’s first opening. I mean, it’s freaking awesome. Dunno what to say of the Ed, given how I didn’t watch that anime. Rainbow’s ending was great IMO.
Not to mention PaS.
Song: One word: ANARCHYYYYYYYY
Character: Can I insert all the characters of FMA:B here? And Toshio from Shiki.
Plot Twist: Shiki’s is better IMO.
Death: I actually have to agree here, his death was awesome.
Trap: AGREED 100%
Action: Of coruse, FMA:B
Romance: No idea…haven’t watched any romances this year, not my type of anime. Amagami SS isn’t looking that good either.
Drama: Hell yes!
Comedy: Wait, what? Baka is my choice. I didn’t see Mitsudumoe to be honest though.
Slice of life: Again, not the type of anime I watch.
Fan service: Wow, I honestly got over fan service this year! I didn’t see anything! I feel so proud. Can I have cookies? Nevermind, Xplayer reminded me that I watched HSotD.
Most unappreciated: Having not watched Giant Killing, I’ll go with Rainbow.
Biggest disappointing: ABSOLUTELY NOT. The WORST DISAPPOINTMENT was by FAR Ookami Kakushi. From the creator of Umineko comes…crap. Yhea. I actually think that R07’s involvement in the original project is overrated, ’cause he simply can’t have created that crappy storyline.
Exceeded expectations: Kuroshitsuji 2. After the so-so first season, the sequel was brilliant.

Best anime of the year: FMA:B, duh.

Sacchi

January 3, 2011 at 9:42 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I’ll add something. Divine, I’m not saying you’re a bad blogger. You’re actually pretty good. The list is very flawed to me because put simply, we obviously don’t share the same tastes in anime. I did with Omni, so I can only miss him. Didn’t mean to sound like you’re terrible.
  
  I’m just saying that your choice for best character…is so bad in my eyes that it’s hard to believe this ain’t April Fools. But at least I’m glad you went with your personal beliefs instead of putting some known character for people to be like your list.
  
  Sacchi
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:45 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. Interesting how you say opinions can be flawed. Apparently if people don’t agree with you, it’s “wrong”. That’s a pretty conceited statement to make.
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:46 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
A correction in the Honorable Mentions in the Animation award.
It’s To Aru “Kagaku” no Railgun, not “Majutsu”.

And no Sora no Otoshimono:Forte in the comedy awards? I am disappoint.

I agree though with FMA:B being the best of 2010, as well as Durarara!! in the top 5, but the others I don’t agree.

belatkuro

January 3, 2011 at 9:44 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I am surprised nobody mentioned Katanagatari, it was my favorite anime of the year, even if it took all year to watch it 😛

James

January 3, 2011 at 9:46 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I think that’s the problem with it. The release format worked well for quality and all, but it was a show which could easily be forgotten about by viewers in the long wait between episodes. In the end, it is show best watched in a marathon. 🙂
  
  Zeruel
  
  January 4, 2011 at 3:13 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
what is with all the hate towards angel beats. Despite the lack of more episodes for character development and relations (ex. more scenes of otanashi x kanade,it was kind of forced how otanashi fell in love with kanade), it was a good anime overall and i don’t think that divine overrated it at all.

amatsu

January 3, 2011 at 9:50 pm 14 years ago

Reply
i think u should have included a “Horror” category. Shiki was pretty good.

Azy

January 3, 2011 at 9:52 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. Believe it or not, I actually considered doing so to highlight Shiki in some way, but it’s not a genre that sees a lot of series every year, so I didn’t want to have it one year and scrap it the very next.
  
  Divine
  
  January 3, 2011 at 9:58 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. I agree about the Horror award. Even though you may not need it next year, personally I think it’s important to include it because Shiki was REALLY good. I use these “Best of”‘s from Randomc to find series that I may like and find interesting to watch, and it’s such a shame to just ignore Shiki when I (and I know I’m not alone here) rarely come across another horror series as good as this one. Other than that, the list is good. ^^
  
  Acylia
  
  January 4, 2011 at 6:33 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
I want some of whatever Divine was smoking when he picked Angel Beats over FMA for story. That huge 64 episode series told an amazing story from beginning to end. Angel Beats story was interesting but seriously it could not even come close to what FMA told.

Karmafan

January 3, 2011 at 9:59 pm 14 years ago

Reply
At least this year’s Reader’s Choice winner is not an anime that I hate… There is nothing wrong with FMA’s plot and production. I just don’t like its character re-design and did not finish the whole series. The fact that it is a re-make doesn’t help get my attention. Otherwise, I agree that FMA is a worthy candidate for the honor title of best anime of the year.

All in all, I think this year’s Reader’s Choice is a lot more reasonable. Except for a few, most of the animes that shouldn’t float to the top did not. Most of those that should have sunk to the bottom did so.

However, the seasonal effect is still problematic — those series from the fall quarter tend to rank higher than those from earlier quarters of the year. A few series from winter quarter of last year (2009) were even omitted. If possible, I think it would be more fair to have the votes take place every one or two quarters. Also, perhaps the administrators can consider postponing the votes until the middle of January (or whenever the “fall” season completely ends).

Matroid

January 3, 2011 at 10:00 pm 14 years ago

Reply
“Ruling out an anime because it’s about sports is a fairly ignorant mindset.”

In Mexico it is the other way around, most people loved Slam Dunk or Captain Tsubasa because it was about sports. I was not a sportsman yet I loved those ones, but most people who watched it in my school were the “Dudes/jerks/bullies” so it was a “No brainer/herp derp” choice of anime. Same for sport titles in games over the ones like “Trace Memory”. Oh… the tora uma!~

This was a good year for anime, so many good choices… next year, at least right now, does not look as promising!

Lectro Volpi

January 3, 2011 at 10:07 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. Giant Killing is the sort of anime I’ll someday get a hold of and watch over a few days, and enjoy, but wouldn’t have wanted to watch every week. Not my genre, not my personal interest, but I’m sure I’d enjoy it nonetheless. I just haven’t gotten around to it because of all the competition.
  
  Jeremiah Bourque
  
  January 3, 2011 at 10:15 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. oh man, i love slam dunk..x3 it’s d best sports anime i’ve seen!!! i think i’ve seen it 20 times already.(my local network’s fault) xDD
  
  keiOnDaisuki
  
  January 4, 2011 at 2:49 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
really, thank you!! i was waitting for this!

PIMPOLLA

January 3, 2011 at 10:08 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Regarding Densetsu, I’ve read some of the novels. I can’t blame the show directors. The novels deliberately jump around and spread things out. They were never written to wrap things up in what this TV series covered. If anything, an excess of faithfulness guaranteed that we see a lot of the absolutely fantastic characters, and the frustrating and maddening (and quite depressing and disturbing) plot.

Then again, I don’t see what directors could have really done about it. The best thing I’ve done with my own blog is to essentially give it an ‘incomplete,’ because there’s no way in hell it’s done until a second season is aired and finished.

I’ve read half of the novels that came after the ‘first’ series of ten. I will say nothing about the content, but bottom line, I don’t know how it ends either. I’ll try and patiently wait to find out on the TV screen.

Oh, my blog entry was:
http://jp.learnoutlive.com/anime-review-densetsu-no-yuusha-no-densetsu/

Jeremiah Bourque

January 3, 2011 at 10:10 pm 14 years ago

Reply
100% agree Ika Musume as fav character this year.

I would have liked to see Souta win the “It’s a trap” award. He had to get props for ultra cute baby and cool grown up versions.

Surprised Railgun wasn’t in the top 5, though 5-10 was a spread of just 200 or so votes. And sorta disappointed to see Sora no Woto 31st overall.

Still, this past year had awesome anime. Hope 2011 can top it.

kira-kun

January 3, 2011 at 10:16 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Agreed that Senkou no Night Raid is much underappreciated. I didn’t even watch it myself until recently, since I dropped it when the first episode seemed too dull and I wanted to keep watch Durarara instead. It’s too bad historical anime aren’t more popular. Well, to be honest, I think I probably see Night Raid as better than it really is because it gets a boost in my eyes not only for *not* having a focus on high schoolers/magical people/feudal Japan, but also for focusing on a period of history that rarely gets covered even outside of anime. I can’t think of the last time I saw a movie or read a book about pre-WWII China…or just Asia in general, really. Except maybe…Taishou Yakyuu Musume? That sounds more like sports (with a side of history) rather than history (with a side of sports), though.

Of course, this isn’t to say I dislike high schoolers, magical people, and feudal Japan, because I quite like them–I just like historical anime as much. Ah well….

I pretty much agree with the rest of the list, but I get the feeling I missed out on a lot having not seen FMAB or Angel Beats.

Tumbril

January 3, 2011 at 10:21 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Loved that shot of mustang pissed off at envy. That was my favorite part cause envy never was “spanked” in the other adaption for killing hues.

dice

January 3, 2011 at 10:23 pm 14 years ago

Reply
hi divine, i love to watch comedy show, and i dont quite agree with your pick “mitsudomoe” i feel that kind of comedy is so , so not funny. baka is quite my top pick too, cuz i really lmao for every episode, i think gintama and arakawa under the bridge should be mention too, cuz they are really good.

well still good job for post.

Justin2010

January 3, 2011 at 10:25 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I would have to disagree with your pick for FMA. I say this mainly because I personally think a soundtrack should be judged on it’s ability to individualize the content, as well as separate itself from it. For example, Angel Beats chose a different compositional style to bring a certain musical flavour which makes it intriguing enough to listen as a stand-alone and unique to all the other soundtracks. FMA:B I wouldn’t say is a terrible soundtrack because the musical genre is right down my alley, but I was expecting more individuality. I think what would have improved it was a stronger prescence of a motif instead of a large collection of Romantic orchestral music ripoffs.

kureejii

January 3, 2011 at 10:26 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Great review, *agrees on everything.

Kizamikun

January 3, 2011 at 10:26 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Nice read. :3 I always love these posts.

Kinda surprised Angel Beats didn’t get the “Death” award though. Seeing as thats the entire theme and all.

Eternith

January 3, 2011 at 10:34 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I’m quoting this about the Gundam 00 movie:

“Some viewers may feel that it took the franchise in a questionable direction, but as someone who’s been following it for as long as I have, I personally loved the new outlook.”

This. I, myself, have been a Gundam fan for a long time and I admit being surprised by the liberties the staff took for the movie and as much as I wanted something better, but given the time constraints of a movie, it was good enough. I wouldn’t dismiss it as horrible, but definitely not the best thing ever.

sadakups

January 3, 2011 at 10:37 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I’m not surprised that Gundam 00 movie didn’t really stand out in the Reader’s choice poll.

After all, many of us haven’t watch it yet. 🙁

kabayongtao

January 3, 2011 at 10:43 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Divine, i really appreciate you doing these detailed year end reviews since Omni left. They are really great to read! hope you keep it up all the way to 2011 and longer!

XiShi

January 3, 2011 at 10:49 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I know it’s your opinion and everything, but I don’t think I’d give Angel Beats! the BEST story. Did it make sense? Sure. But even though the story was continuous, it felt rather jagged. I mean, the first 8-ish flowed well enough, but the last 4 had sudden jerks left right and center. Even though you could follow it, I can’t help but think that the progression was like pushing a piece of paper together (ie: the original plot Maeda Jun wrote) and watching the jagged mountains form.

Otherwise, nothing on the list particularly bothers me.

Vsin

January 3, 2011 at 10:55 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I’m glad Summer Wars made it into the top 5 OVA/movie by the reader’s poll. It truly is an outstanding anime and I highly recommend it.

bertman4

January 3, 2011 at 11:00 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Nice choice of Gundam 00: Awakening of Traiblazer as favorite movie of the year. Dissapearance was way too overrated

00xta

January 3, 2011 at 11:07 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Althought FMA 2 has a very good soundtrack, DRRR!! has the BEST soundtrack composed by Yoshimori Makoto. I’m disagree.

David

January 3, 2011 at 11:10 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Thank you, Divine, Kiiragi, Takaii, Prooof, and Suzuku.

Infinitas

January 3, 2011 at 11:11 pm 14 years ago

Reply
what the f*ck is that? Angel Beats gets the best story? Oh so the best story are the ones w/ so many unanswered question like why is that they can’t get out the school place, the focus of an episode is to think of an unnecessary things like thinking of a new name for a group or a sob story of unrealistic thief where it is more realistic if it told us that the parents of yuripee haruhi copycat were eaten by hippos.

and oh you said that angel beats is original? wtf! haibane renmei, gantz, suzumiya haruhi and other many work rip-offs. Yes it is indeed an original work that become a parody. Contrary to the manga “Onani Master Kurosawa” w/c is an unoriginal manga w/ parody but became original because of its ehem* good story and characters.

Arvin

January 3, 2011 at 11:16 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. It’s fine to have your own opinions, but you have to keep an open mind and realize that not everyone will agree with you, even if you think your opinion is plain obvious fact. I for one thought FMA:B had a better story than AB but there’s no reason to rage at someone thinking otherwise. Divine clearly said you are free to state your own choices.
  
  Prooof
  
  January 4, 2011 at 3:48 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. May I know how did divine select the winner for the best story? I can at least swallow other awards in other categories because they are subjected in opinions but wtf happen with the best story? At least “reason” is superior in terms of story. Even Tatami Galaxy that deserve the best is not mentioned. Well I agree with you about FMA:brotherhood. No unnecessary battles(AB anyone?), the internal logic is ok(AB anyone?) and many more reason. And wtf, AB is a den of stereotype characters. F*ck that T.K., that judo boy, that unwise girl and other characters who doesn’t have anything to do with the story but is considedered as main characters. No wonder in the OP song of AB, their names are tagged w/ them so we can’t easily forget those easy to forget characters.
    
    Arvin
    
    January 4, 2011 at 5:22 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  2. I did feel the Angel Beats’s plot was a bit convoluted and the series was too short to flesh out much of the drama and I found the comedy to be better done. Character stereotypes? perhaps; but I think the problem was that there was no attachment for me to any of the characters due to the length of series vs. number of characters. Clannad for example succeeds in this aspect even though it uses many character archetypes. But again remember that its Best Story you are talking about, not characters. Yes I didn’t find the AB plot done well (even though the premise is pretty good), but it obviously touched a lot of people and they probably thought the story was fine.
    Also I’m a bit biased since AB was a bit of a disappointment only because I watched it with high expectations (Clannad). I still enjoyed it though, and it ranks among my favorite series this year.
    
    Prooof
    
    January 5, 2011 at 6:32 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  3. Yes I know I’m talking about the story. I’ve even mentioned about AB’s internal logic and unnecessary battle. And because there isn’t an award for best character development or best characterization here, I’ve also said some annoying things in AB’s character section. After all, what matters to me first is the story and the characters of an anime. It looks like AB becomes Best Story just because it’s another creation of the creator of clannad and divine likes it just because of it’s cliffhanger.
    
    Anyway, I’m happy that you respond to my rants. But I’ll be happier if divine respond to me too and oh, you didn’t answer my question: how did divine select the one to be the Best Story of 2010?.
    
    We both agree FMA:Brotherhood is suited to be the Best Story of the year. What about Tatami Galaxy? What can you say about it? I’m not surprised there are people saying like this: “No Tatami Galaxy? This is a joke”.
    
    Arvin
    
    January 5, 2011 at 8:42 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  4. Arvin, you need to stop and ask yourself why it bothers you so much that Angel Beats was the best story for ME in 2010. I mean, I’m flattered if my tastes are that important to you, but you need to learn to accept that not everyone will agree with yours.
    
    Divine
    
    January 5, 2011 at 9:51 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  5. While it may be true that anyone will not agree with me, it is not what I’m pointing out. I mean, in objective point of view, AB seems obviously lacking many things for it to be the best story or 2010. Well I’m not accusing you of being missing the point but may I know why AB is the best story of 2010 although there’s FMA and Tatami Galaxy w/c has a complete story that you can bring so many reason for them to be the best story of the year?
    
    I remember reading a post here that objectivity is one of the reason why this site has so many readers but, it’s ok. what is done is done. I’ll be looking forward for BETTER new anime thanks to that vague bill that restricts ecchi anime and it’s idiocy. After all, most ecchi are waste of time.
    
    Arvin
    
    January 8, 2011 at 6:32 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  6. I feel I am objective in my decisions, which is why I can decide for myself that Angel Beats has a good story regardless of how much negativity it’s received. The same goes for Gundam 00 A wakening of the Trailblazer being a good movie.
    
    Anyway, I’ve stated my reasons for my choices, which is more objective than the disagreement I’ve received, so I don’t feel any need to provide any further justification. People expect me to hear them out when they won’t even read the post they’re commenting in, so I’m not going to waste my time.
    
    Divine
    
    January 9, 2011 at 6:03 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  7. Oh I didn’t get where did you become objective in the best story part. Oh well, enough with AB. Now I’m confused. Even Gundam 00 movie shit is good for ya? Isn’t the story and characters of that movie was a mess? Isn’t the stupidity made by alelujah(where he killed all of his kind where those kids killed only sin was used in an experiment just like him.) enough?
    
    Arvin
    
    January 10, 2011 at 5:38 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
in my imagination, Best…
animation- FMA
story-FMA
soundtrack-FMA
op-FMA (1st op)
song- FMA (again by YUI)
character- FMA (everyone in the cast XD)
plot twist- FMA
death FMA (maes hughes T_T)
action- FMA
drama- FMA
comedy- FMA
Favourite of 2010- FMA
Ed: HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAAAA *strokes a cat that al rescued*
XDDDDDD lol. btw great post divine! also, devastated the subs for gundam movie came out after the poll closed T_T i’m sure gundam would’ve ranked higher if everyone had a chance to watch it first/read your post about it =)

qntiria

January 3, 2011 at 11:21 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I miss 2010 already :’)

P0NCH

January 3, 2011 at 11:22 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I have disagree.
FMA brohterhood is understandable.Durarara was for me the best anime of 2010
Although I like animes you classify its genre, even so I think durarara is better than angel beats, not only for its plot but also for its characters.
Still I can only thank you for the dedication they have for the anime, so you go on

Kazrsama

January 3, 2011 at 11:26 pm 14 years ago

Reply
You know it’s a sad and lackluster year for the romance genre when Amagami SS wins… Sigh…

SirMuffin

January 3, 2011 at 11:31 pm 14 years ago

Reply
No Tatami Galaxy? This is madness.

ImperialX

January 3, 2011 at 11:47 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Thanks for the post, Divine!! I’ve been waiting for it to come out!! =D our tastes are so the same! Yes, FMA:B, the best! Thumbs Up! I love how you always give an in-depth consideration before choosing. It’s a matter of opinion anyway. ^^ i look forward to your next “Best of 2011”!!

VT

January 3, 2011 at 11:51 pm 14 years ago

Reply
it got to be Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu! pity BRS isnt in the top 5.

FidelDesu

January 3, 2011 at 11:51 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Awesome post. Come on people let’s be frank, if you don’t love Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, you simple don’t love anime. =P

Nigangelo

January 3, 2011 at 11:53 pm 14 years ago

Reply
well i hate to admit , this is review is a total righto for me.
i have no violent reaction.

♕Croosboy♕

January 3, 2011 at 11:57 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Damn! Baka to Test almost made it! D’awww…shoot, I thought it was more entertaining than Mitsu since it gave off that cute/dumb/hilarious story to it. I already had a feeling too that Haruhi Suzumiya was going to win it and I’m surprised none of the Eden of the East movies made it, though I’m extremely happy about Fate/Stay Night getting the top 3 it still is sad it couldn’t even get one award. It was a tough year though since there was a substantial amount of high-budget movies + facing Kyoto Animation. Though the Evangelion movie? Ehhh even I watched it and it’s not as good as the originals but that’s just me. Always the hardcore fans dominate the real winners (ie. Divines choice for Gundam 00). Fantastic year, I hope to see perhaps the new work from Makoto Shinkai: Children Who Chase Lost Voices from Deep Below is going to see a part of the 2011 list. Good job my friend, you made some good choices.

Jason Isenberg

January 4, 2011 at 12:04 am 14 years ago

Reply
I realize that all of the selections here are based on your opinion and I most definitely respect that, but I disagreed with them a lot 😛

Story: Individually the arcs for Angel Beats! were solid, but they lacked flow towards the end of the series while the “last boss” was somewhat cheap. Durarara!, Shiki, and Tatami Galaxy had a better plot in my opinion, and Cross Game and Katanagatari were almost as amazing. While Angel Beats! had some strong arcs, some questions went unanswered or didn’t make any sense, such as:
Show Spoiler ▼

1. Why did Otonashi arrive at the school after Kanade even though he died first?
2. How the hell did Takamatsu un-NPC himself?
3. How did Yurripe die?
4. Who created the school setting?
5. ~~Why is there a 30-year-old creeper who lives underground and makes guns for high schoolers?~~
6. The epilogue and the OVA don’t come together at all and lack explanation.

Character: I definitely thought this award should have gone to Izaya Orihara. Now don’t get me wrong, I love Ika as much as the next guy, but there was something about Izaya that made him stand above the rest. Maybe it was the fact he plays an odd board game with people’s lives, or maybe it was that he ran up to a random Ganguro girl and stomped on her cell phone for 10 seconds straight, OR maybe it was all of those hilarious interactions he had with the rest of the cast, especially the ones with Shizuo (who was a fantastic character in his own right). Izaya reeked of absurdity and while he was an insane, highly intelligent, criminal antagonist, he oozed personality and can be surprisingly human when appropriate.

Death: Show Spoiler ▼

RAINBOW is sad. An-chan dieing was definitely one of the saddest, if not the most jarring death this year, and there’s absolutely no way to refute that. However, I did think that Togame’s 15-minutes-of-dieing should have at least gotten an honorable mention. While it was pretty mind blowing that she was going to kill Shichika if she had not been killed, her last words got me crying. Also, the aftermath and the impact her death made on Shichika and the rest of the plot was amazing.

Romance: I really don’t know. Personally I didn’t really think much of many of the romance genre this year, but I thought that there had to be some better than Amagami SS. In Amagami, the rollbacks and beginnings of a new character are just really, really harsh. I couldn’t believe how different Junichi was every time it rolled back. I mean, the difference in character between the Haruka arc and the Sae arc were just….. O_o. But I definitely don’t mean to say that your taste are horrendous or anything, I just thought that Amagami was a step down from its predecessor Kimikiss and wasn’t very special aside from the omnibus format. In a way I’d say that the series is more or less like Dane Cook’s stand-up: I definitely see the appeal, and I wouldn’t take that away from anybody, but it’s standing on a load of bulls**t. But then again, what do I know? 😛 I didn’t think much of many 2010 romance to begin with.

Slice of Life: I thought Working!! should have won. And that’s all I gotta say about that xfd

Fan Service: ???? VS. ????
Show Spoiler ▼

Just kidding. kissxsis totally won this one

Most Underappreciated: Tatami Galaxy and Kuragehime. Nobody watched these two. Like seriously. Well sucks for the people who didn’t because Tatami was one of the best series this year and Kuragehime was pretty darn good too. I think both of those were much more underappreciated than Giant Killing, but all three got dodged many people despite being very good animes. Another underappreciated one was Cross Game, which was one the most amazing baseball animes of all time, and probably one of the best series this year.

Favorite of the Year: I definitely thought that Cross Game, Tatami Galaxy, Shiki, Katanagatari, or Durarara!! would have easily grabbed the title. I definitely won’t say that Brotherhood was a bad anime because it was quite good, but I definitely thought that there were better animes this year.

But anyways, I’m not saying that your opinions are flawed at all or any arrogant s*** like that, as you picked based on your own opinions just as I picked my own. Hopefully nobody will take any of this the wrong way. >_<

Click

January 4, 2011 at 12:21 am 14 years ago

Reply
Aww Sora No Otoshimono didnt win any awards, not even an honorable mention for comedy, sadface.

YanDaMan

January 4, 2011 at 12:22 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Sora season 2 got eclipsed i think. Its partly due to season 1 being funnier than 2 and insertion of a lot more drama in season 2 so it didn’t seem as funny as a lot of other stuff that were pure comedies
  
  Zaku Fan
  
  January 4, 2011 at 12:34 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Kuragehime has a nice trap as well though its more like Maid-sama’s Aoi.

Zaku Fan

January 4, 2011 at 12:31 am 14 years ago

Reply
Where is Panty & Stocking??? 🙁

Mito

January 4, 2011 at 12:33 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. At the bottom of the barrel where it belongs.
  
  Karmafan
  
  January 4, 2011 at 6:51 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
YAY for FMA:B being first! YO Divine, thanks for the work dedicated to the post! It is interesting that Angel Beats! became your best in the story category… Hmm I might have to rewatch it again to look out for stuff I missed XD any hints? Totally agree that Occult had one of the biggest plot twist this year, srly the last few episode kept me going WTF! all the time. Well, thanks to you and your team, 2010 was a blast! Wish you and your team all the best for the upcoming 2011!!!

Flappy

January 4, 2011 at 12:36 am 14 years ago

Reply
Well, let me start off by thanking Divine for this post. From the length of it, i can imagine the time and effort you placed in this.

Well, i had no disputes of the best animes for the 2010, as i had also predicted the outcomes. However, i do have some comments of my own:

1. Let me thank you again. But, this time, for not ‘letting’ oreimo win in any of the categories. To me, the show is overrated 100%. AIC production had the budget, but i dont see how the show managed to keep on to its pre-hype. On a personal basis, i detest Kirino. If i knew someone like that in real life, i might have been sitting in asylum for attempted murder.

2. Well, i cant argue because its your personal opinions, but no Sora no Otoshimon Forte in the running for comedy of the year? I had not watched Mitsudomoe, but i was pretty sure the perverted antics and jokes of Tomoki in Forte would have proved to be a potential forerunner.

3. Toyosaki Aki!~ Well, i do feel that there are other more worthy winners, in particular her fellow K-On! mate; Hikasa Youko. I believe the latter had a better year in the industry, proven by the number of roles she gotten.

4. It is a shame that Shiki wasnt mentioned. Well.

5. I have to disagree with you on the biggest disappointment ‘awarded’ to Denyuden. To me, Denyuden deserves better ratings. Well, poor directing and animation week in week out defintely killed a lot of watchers, but given that ZEXCS are the one behind it, it isnt difficult to see why. It won awards for a reason, which i believe to be its decent plot and mix of characters. Betrayal of oneself’s beliefs and friends was prominiently highlighted. For myself, i loved the whole plot.

Other than those i mentioned, there arent much to argue about, since its Divine’s personal opinions. No one is right here, especially when Divine took time to write up this post.
Now for all those who disagreed with me, flames away.

Nancy Roberts

January 4, 2011 at 12:49 am 14 years ago

Reply
Heheh Mitsudomoe didn’r really come as a suprise, it was the funniest anime ever!!! >//
And yey for Angel Beats! great animation :3

Wheate

January 4, 2011 at 1:16 am 14 years ago

Reply
SoreMachi deserved an honorable mention in the Comedy section. Some parts were really funny.

Kirino

January 4, 2011 at 1:26 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Oh, and Gintama.
  
  Kirino
  
  January 4, 2011 at 1:27 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
bah… i thinks best Plot Twist and death is Katanagatari last episode that make me stuned

pandoramon

January 4, 2011 at 1:38 am 14 years ago

Reply
Divine just one thing I want to say aside from how I agree with almost everything. A category should be added for greatest potential because after reading you mention Seikon no Qwaser a few times it reminded me of the series and I thought there is almost always a series like this that could be amazing but has a serious flaw, and with Qwaser obviously the breast milk thing was the flaw. I tried to watch the series to the end but that kept getting in the way because it kept making me think what the hell am I watching here. Aside from that the plot wasn’t half bad, and some of the fights were just phenomenal but I just couldn’t overcome the concept that they had to suck a girls breasts to use powers its a shame.

Sigh

January 4, 2011 at 1:38 am 14 years ago

Reply
the results look good enough for me even though I havent seen some of those yet.
FMA brotherhood really deserves top place as well as the other choices.

im at least glad that yosuga no sora got several mentions here and there.

amado

January 4, 2011 at 1:45 am 14 years ago

Reply
I think the problem with Angel Beats! is that it really splits people’s opinion into two extremes. I really, really hated that series, because the plot kept jumping direction before they had anything resolved. And the drama felt very forced. Out of the three main character deaths, one was killed off the moment she was introduced, the second was quite annoying to me, thus leaving me no emotional engagement when she died, and the last one had this plot hole that jarred an otherwise perfect moment. So I can’t really see any other reason to like this show unless you are either a moefag or love spreading your legs to Maeda Jun. But that’s just me. Apparently, the rest of the world and their grandmas LOVE Angel Beats to the death. So whatever floats your boat man. Only thing is, pity we didn’t have a second opinion this time round so that people wouldn’t bitch so much.

And also, as one or two other people have mentioned by now, the REAL under appreciated anime this year is Tatami Galaxy. Fantastic series that very few covered. I was hard-pressed to find anyone who blogged this, actually. And after watching this, I really couldn’t believe it had slipped by me.

Other than that, I’d like to point out that awesome plot twists should never be confused with lousy drop in writing so far that they try to do something from the far end of the spectrum. No. Awesome plot twist is the realisation that the wimpy kid was the one who started 4chan. And the headless rider was a girl after all.

All in all, this was a bit of a hipster year of anime for me. From So Ra No Wo To to Katanagatari to The Tatami Galaxy, all my favorite anime this year made me somehow or other feel like a hipster.

Yamibakeru

January 4, 2011 at 1:57 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Okay, lemme revise my statement about Angel Beats! deaths. I meant character deaths, not, like, death in the anime itself, because, you know, they’re all already dead.
  
  Yamibakeru
  
  January 4, 2011 at 1:58 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Nice to see GIANT KILLING getting some recognition.

I loved that show

Excalibur

January 4, 2011 at 2:03 am 14 years ago

Reply
Dear Divine, I respect your opinion in every way possible and I have the most sincerest belief in your anime tastes but….Mitsudomoe? Really? Over Baka No Test!? OVER THE CHIBI GOODNESS! OVER THE FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL OVER THE BREAD!? OVER THE HIDEYOSHI GENDER TRAPS AND THE EPIC NOSE BLEEDS!? Why Divine!? Why have you crushed my heart!? D:. I know you said it was a close 2nd…but why…I’m so disappointed :(. I haven’t seen the Gundam 00 movie but I’m truly surprised you enjoyed it more than Haruhi, you truly are a mecha fan haha. You tend to like a lot of shows with small tiny cute characters xD You sure your not a loli lover? Thanks for writing all this up! To a great new year!

Rin-kun

January 4, 2011 at 2:16 am 14 years ago

Reply
The results in this post i just right for me.

Hagiri

January 4, 2011 at 2:25 am 14 years ago

Reply
No surprise for FMA:Brotherhood, srsly but for a second, I thought Durarara!! might get the spot. For the underappreciated animes, asides from the ones mentioned, Tatami Galaxy is also underappreciated. Too bad that Divine and the rest didn’t a chance to blog it since it’s a fairly good show.

For the worst shows, Iron Man would be on that spot since I find disappointing that Madhouse produced this result

xxxholic_wing

January 4, 2011 at 2:29 am 14 years ago

Reply
Ohhhh interesting personal taste from Divine, don’t see these kinds of interesting picks much anymore these days. In particular two nods too Rainbow. I didn’t think anyone watched straight up anime drama anymore except a couple of friends and myself. Also didn’t know anybody else knew who Senju Akira was or if I’d ever see him get acknowledgement for anything considering what’s popular in anime music these days. He’s actually my favourite composer. Also the unimaginable in someone actually giving something other than that slog of a Haruhi movie some acknowledgement and praise. I didn’t even know you were allowed to do that on the internet. I mean my goodness, picks from shows that weren’t already super popular already and a consideration of more than one category in each area eh….what a crazy idea.

Thanks again for trying to put Drama, Sci-Fi, Mecha and action back into the public’s eye again. Also I must say I’m impressed that you watched more than half the shows that came out this year instead of the same handful of shows everybody seems to end up watching. It allows for a much more varied perspective on things doesn’t it?

Kaioshin Sama

January 4, 2011 at 2:30 am 14 years ago

Reply
Angel Beats? Best story? Is this some kind of sick joke, lol.
Probably Maeda’s worst piece of writing to date.

geki

January 4, 2011 at 2:30 am 14 years ago

Reply
atleast mah k-on made it at 4th spot!! xD I Thought it wouldn’t even get into top 5 considering THOSE HATERS. XP but this result makes me happy! i agree with how you see aki-chan.yes,her versatility is reall admirable.not to mention her pretty face *shot* anyhow, i’m quite hurt at what you said about pikasha,albeit it’s true.DX

NO THANK YOU FTW!!! it’s my favorite song of all time! XD

YEY! EVA!!! oh,congratz to FMA,it deserves the top spot!!!XD

keiOnDaisuki

January 4, 2011 at 2:35 am 14 years ago

Reply
So many shows I still have to watch. Though I love anime I can never really get around to watch more episodes 🙁

Re-installing Mass Effect 1 doesn’t help either.

Morridin

January 4, 2011 at 2:45 am 14 years ago

Reply
@divine
I did expect Brotherhood to own everything here (i think even omni would’ve picked it as the year’s best) but in my opinion there were definitely others for the best in animation post. I guess animating FMA for 63 whole episodes kinda wins the whole thing but better quality is better and HOTD was just wide mouth awesomely gorgeous with its animation. Railgun too look pretty stellar and more stellar in my eyes than FMA. Opinions vary though I guess.

Oh yeah I guess you haven’t watched Cross Game. I’m pretty sure most people who watched it put it on top of their lists. You should check it out.

ahelo

January 4, 2011 at 2:46 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. @Divine
  Thanks for the post. While opinions always vary. I think a more objective picking, would have included Railgun for sure.
  
  While as any other person, I would agree and disagree with certain favorites above, which is completely normal since people tend to have subjective views. Still, almost entirely excluding the word Railgun from this post is, again, not very objective.
  
  vladrin
  
  January 4, 2011 at 7:52 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Reading what others have commented, reminds me that Durarara was also almost completely excluded. Which is obviously a very unique anime, at least in relation to Angel Beats.
    
    vladrin
    
    January 4, 2011 at 7:55 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  2. @DIVINE:
    At the “DEATH” section, I know it’s your opinion and all, but I just wanted to know if you have watched the ending of KATANAGATARI series?
    
    Show Spoiler ▼
    
    In ep.12, cuz In my opinion that was the MOST SURPRISING DEATH in anime 2010, since I couldnt believe that they had actually killed off one of the main character (Togame) and also a surprising end in which they made the main male character (Shichika) end up with the rival of the main female character (Princess Hetei) who even ordered to kill off Togame lol, it’s quite ironic and could even be labeled NTR in my books.
    
    Though because of her death, we had witness Shichika at his true power and wiped out the 12 swords in 15 minutes lol.
    
    X
    
    January 4, 2011 at 1:12 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  3. X: I edited your comment with a spoiler tag since you basically spelled out the entire ending. Also, if you actually read my write-up for the death choice, you’ll notice that I specifically addressed Katanagatari.
    
    Divine
    
    January 4, 2011 at 2:43 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
I know it’s your opinion, but it’s a bit weird how you considered Angel Beats as one of your favourite anime of the year and the best overall story, but it was not mentioned in any of the genre lists. Thought it could fit with drama/slice of life/comedy – could even fit with action or romance lolz

Taiakun

January 4, 2011 at 3:07 am 14 years ago

Reply
FMA ftw!

immortalgamerz

January 4, 2011 at 3:11 am 14 years ago

Reply
Results are pretty close to what I was expecting, with the exception of Angel Beats!. I wouldn’t even consider it for favorite anime of year. I would have changed these if it was me though:

Story: Durarara!!
Opening: Durarara!! OP2
Song: Kimi no Kioku
Seiyuu: Hanazawa Kana
Romance: Kimi ni Todoke
Drama: Hakuouki (Hekketsuroku)
Comedy: Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu
Most Underappreciated: Senkou no Night Raid
Exceeded Expectation: Otome Youkai Zakuro
Favorite OVA/Movie of 2010: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu

Still you have my selections as Honorable Mentions too. I guess we have similar tastes.

In the upcoming years, we could have reader polls for each category as well. I’m sure it would require a lot lot more work at your end though, Divine, but it would be interesting to see what readers think too.

[SiNaN]

January 4, 2011 at 3:16 am 14 years ago

Reply
Haha, I almost typed in a whole paragraph raging why you said Dnyd was the worst anime until I reread the sentence.

FMA FTW.

You seemed to have a pretty small scope of anime though. I didn’t think Angel Beats would win multiple award.

Tan-Tan

January 4, 2011 at 3:39 am 14 years ago

Reply
I was shocked to see that Angel Beats got the best story award. IMO it’s the biggest disappointment of 2010. The plot was a mess,and it’s even far from being good, let alone the best. FMA definitely deserve the best story award in my list, with a strong competition from Shiki. I found it a bit sarcastic that what Divine wrote in the biggest disappointment part can be applied to Angel Beats as well.

But it’s undeniable that Angel Beats is a favourite of many people, although I never understand why, and I actually found it a bit unbelievable. But I guess it’s down to everyone’s own taste. *shrug*

Kae

January 4, 2011 at 3:49 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. i couldn’t agree with you more….to me Shiki and FMA definitely deserve the best story award. i was surprised to see angel beats! there….
  
  Razz
  
  January 4, 2011 at 1:26 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. Shiki was a good offering in the horror department, but I never found the story to be that engaging.
  
  People in the village were dying mysteriously and rising up, but no one would believe it. When word finally got out, the villagers started fighting back.
  
  That’s the plot in really simplistic terms. To me, it was too straightforward to be considered for the story category. What the series did well was wrap it up with horror elements to make it more interesting. That still didn’t change the fact that there wasn’t too much to the story itself though.
  
  Divine
  
  January 4, 2011 at 3:33 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. *spoilers of Shiki*
    
    It’s extremely unfair to sum the story up that way. The way the story transitioned itself with by the end of the series, the “bad guys” no longer felt like the bad guy and the “good guys” becoming seemingly more despicable than the shiki, how the village burned and was destroyed anyway, and so on, it was just one of, if not the best portrayal of an ironic ending I’ve ever seen. I rarely say animes have good endings, but the last few episodes of this series, in my opinion mind you, are perhaps the best last few episodes an anime series has ever had. Summing up Shiki in that way almost makes it seem like you were busy cooking dinner with Shiki on in the background.
    
    Ghost of Oden
    
    March 9, 2011 at 10:48 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
i have mix feelings about angel beats as best story.

John Smith

January 4, 2011 at 3:53 am 14 years ago

Reply
I mostly agree with your list but the readers’ choice list is fail.
A bit of a shock seeing AngelBeats for the best Story and Comedy should go to Ika-chan.

alex

January 4, 2011 at 3:58 am 14 years ago

Reply
Shiki deserves strongly the most underappreciated, it wasnt even blogged here nasd had very good story!

ewok40k

January 4, 2011 at 3:58 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. agreed.
  
  lol
  
  January 4, 2011 at 4:27 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. Agreed.
  
  Acylia
  
  January 4, 2011 at 6:28 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
3. Agreed. Shiki was easily my favorite show this year and it gets no recognition here.
  
  Kat
  
  January 4, 2011 at 7:44 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
4. Agrees. For me Shiki was not only the best anime of the year but one of the best animes ever. It was amzing & the only anime I actually managed to keep up with cause I loved it so much :)!
  
  farrafella
  
  January 4, 2011 at 2:13 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Exactly, I also agree.
    
    Razz
    
    January 6, 2011 at 4:37 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
5. agreed
  
  Alcohol
  
  January 6, 2011 at 12:54 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
definitely agree with best OP and ED picks

Prooof

January 4, 2011 at 4:36 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Same here! Although, I did like the Angel Beats! ED as well. Would never put it over the K-ON!! ED 2 though. Also I half expected Divine to create a sub category called “most annoying OP to encode every week”. It was great, but it must have sucked to encode it every week haha.
  
  LaN
  
  January 4, 2011 at 5:09 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
LOL Heroes was really a disappointment. It had a wonderful backstory that could have been told, and had the basis for really cool fight scenes with the magic. All that was animated in the words of someone else was ‘lightning dogs vs more lightning dogs’….

Madox

January 4, 2011 at 4:52 am 14 years ago

Reply
Angel Beats best Story really? Really? Can anyone tell me anything about the story that wasn’t rushed, inconsistent and just generally poor?

RedWing

January 4, 2011 at 4:57 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. It’s the blogger opinion, not the reader one RedWing. They are allowed their own opinions you know…
  
  Love the list Divine, agree with most, if not all :).
  
  Pureauraa
  
  January 4, 2011 at 5:07 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. I would say its beatiful ending that AB had… So many nice animes end up with nothing and too open for next season
  
  laaa
  
  January 4, 2011 at 5:19 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
The majority has pretty much tied up on the polls.

Got the same choice as you and the rest with your OP and ED picks. I guess that shows how limited the competition are this time around.

JC

January 4, 2011 at 5:08 am 14 years ago

Reply
I just realized that I’ve been visiting this site for around 3 or 4 years.. Happy new year randomC! And thanks to Divine for keeping the site up! ^^

MrRei

January 4, 2011 at 5:23 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. me too.
  We are getting older, believe you or not
  
  Ichigomaru
  
  January 4, 2011 at 5:41 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
O.O wow…

a bit shocked that Angel Beats got the story award… and a bit shocked that Amagami SS got the romance over Kimi ni Todoke O_O… actually no im more shocked over that…

in all honesty Angel Beats started to bug me after a couple of episodes of… SUDDENness… everything from the where the hell did he come from when it was mainly those 2 talking most of the episode and the WHO THE HELL is that last guy kinda feeling…

but really… Amagami SS? I guess it really depends on what your tastes of romance… cause i mean ya… it wasn’t bad and all, but it really didn’t feel that GREAT either… Kimi ni Todoke had a smoother feel to it imo ^^; Amagami had those… weird… wtf? moments to it that really didn’t seem “romantic” and it felt like the characters were forced sometimes…

anywho though, despite my opposing opinions on your choices, I’m really glad to have RC around still to keep on giving me great episode reviews ^^ keep up the great work Divine and thanks a bunch for all the time and commitment you invest in RC :D!!

Pochi

January 4, 2011 at 5:26 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Well personaly enjoyed Amagami alot because this was one of those anime that brought story till the end every arc was unique so as female characters… As KnT it was inocent type I couldnt take that much myself made me wana cry or laugh or something between but was very touching too
  
  laaa
  
  January 4, 2011 at 5:29 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Agree with pretty much everything. FMA Brotherhood actually became one of my top favs of all time.

Sad to see the Maid-sama snub though, really enjoyed that show.

Aecen

January 4, 2011 at 5:52 am 14 years ago

Reply
I think it’s ok. btw, yosuga no sora for me was the best romance, not amagami.

Alfredonm

January 4, 2011 at 5:57 am 14 years ago

Reply
This is another reminder that I need to finish watching FMA…

Is there something about exclamation marks in the title that increases the quality of an anime work?

Oh and Kuranosuke should have at least gotten an honorable mention for TRAP, I stopped bothering to convince myself he’s a guy by ep2.

Here are some of my memorable anime moments of 2010:
Most memetic: Durarara! (Trust Me Parodies, cellphone stomping, vending machine, Shizuo, Dollars site etc.
Most likely to cause diabetes: Kimi ni Todoke (in a good way)
Biggest plot twist: Show Spoiler ▼

Ciel turning into a demon

(sure it was always a possibility, but no one expected A-1 to have the guts to do it.)
Exceeded expectations: Oreimo, Otome Youkai Zakuro, Hakuouki Hekketsuroku
Biggest (for a fujoshi) WTF went wrong!!? award: Togainu no Chi (Nitro+Chiral game, A-1 and great seiyuu and music…yet the final product turned into an eye-burning convoluted mass of QUALITY).
Most needy of sequel/extras:DenYuuDen, Kuragehime, Angel Beats!

Momogoldfish

January 4, 2011 at 6:14 am 14 years ago

Reply
Man, Summer Wars just doesn’t get enough love…

Then again, considering all the anime-watchers here, I’m not surprised it got shunted….

Zero

January 4, 2011 at 6:27 am 14 years ago

Reply
Here are my picks (I agree with the other categories):

Soundtrack – Yosuga no Sora (beautiful score)
Opening – Durarara!! OP2 – Complication
Ending – Yosuga no Sora – Tsunagu Kizuna (don’t know if it counts as it’s apparently counted as an insert song)
Song – Hiyoku no Hane by eufonius
Character – Heiwajima Shizuo and Kasugano Sora
Seiyuu – Hanazawa Kana
Romance – Yosuga no Sora (particularly Sora’s and Akira’s arcs)
Drama – A tie between Yosuga no Sora and Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin
Comedy – Working!!
Fan-service – Yosuga no Sora (great fan-service AND it played an important part in the story)

HenDarou

January 4, 2011 at 6:33 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Forgot the rest:
  
  Most Underappreciated – Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin
  Most disappointing – No idea
  Favorite Series – Tie between Yosuga no Sora, Durarara!!, Angel Beats! and Working!!
  Favorite OVA/Film – Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu
  
  HenDarou
  
  January 4, 2011 at 6:39 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. I agreed with everything you said about the animes I already knew. So I downloaded the others animes you mentioned, and I’m also totally agreeing so far. Thank you for your advices. And I’m still looking for the OST of Yosuga no sora (TV version).
  
  Vlavv
  
  January 15, 2011 at 5:10 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Honorable Mentions seiyuu: Taketatsu Ayana too );

Saika

January 4, 2011 at 6:37 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Kobayashi Yuu!! <33
  
  Shirt
  
  January 4, 2011 at 7:36 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. I can’t believe you’re the only one who mention her here. ):
  
  Of course, Toyosaki Aki-san deserved the credits she gets too but personally, she’s the seiyuu of 2010 for me. You can see her range from soft-voiced Azu-nyan who stand out the most in K-ON!!, to the tsundere Kirino, to the aggresive Isurugi Mio, Ako-neechan in Kiss x Sis and many more support roles. Not only that, she performed a lot of lovely songs.
  
  chibuki
  
  January 4, 2011 at 8:57 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. …oops I was referring to Taketatsu Ayana.
    
    chibuki
    
    January 4, 2011 at 9:00 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  2. I always found it very funny how Kobayashi Yuu voiced such morally twisted characters. From Kuroko to Naruko to Amazoness. lmao She’s just to funny.
    
    Shirt
    
    January 6, 2011 at 4:27 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
I just would have liked to see Zakuro do better in the results then it did. It was a great story that had action, romance, comedy, great music, beautifully drawn, and was just very well done.

Also Kimi Ni Todoke should have beat out Amagami for romance series. Its really laughable that a series that changed the characters every 4 episodes and rebooted everything won out over the beautiful story between Sawako and Kazehaya!

Karmafan

January 4, 2011 at 7:00 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Kimi ni Todoke was soooo much better than Amagami. I think that since it was more recent, it was stuck in more people’s heads and the story was fresher. =_=
  
  Shirt
  
  January 4, 2011 at 7:37 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Or it could just be that people want to see romance that actually develops to more than just holding hands. These start of the journey conclusions are over used and frankly appeal to less people.
    
    Suppa Tenko
    
    January 4, 2011 at 1:10 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
At least Kaichou wa Maid-sama got a honorable mention 😐

virox

January 4, 2011 at 7:03 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Yeah, I’m a bit surprised as to how poorly it did even in the viewers choice, as it was really one of those shows that surprised me in terms of quality.
  
  Also in terms best romance, I think Yosuga no Sora definitely beats Amagami.
  
  foofiebeast
  
  January 4, 2011 at 11:12 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
”that really contented for my favorite of the year.”
I don’t know if I should be nitpicking on small spelling errors like this,but shouldn’t it be ‘contended?’>_>

elijah

January 4, 2011 at 7:08 am 14 years ago

Reply
Nah Eden of the East movies didn’t make anything 🙁 They where good followups to the series and had great plot :3

And i so agree with comedy pick XD !!

Wheate

January 4, 2011 at 7:23 am 14 years ago

Reply
So tired of FMA stuff. But what’s good is good. The OP and ED awards were spot on.

Shirt

January 4, 2011 at 7:34 am 14 years ago

Reply
Oah! seems our tastes are complete different. Or the total opposite.
Animation: not sure .. there wasn’t anything standing out last year.
Story: (ah now I understand why you picked Angel Beats .. there wasn’t anything interesting last year) I would pick Katangatari(ouch .. a character driven show) or Brotherhood
Soundtrack: easy: Katanagatari and PSG
Character: Stocking, Busujima Saeko, Misaki (Kaichou)
Plot Twist: last 3 seconds of PSG lol .. no .. maybe Katanagatari or Tatami Galaxy
Death: Katanagatari (I didn’t watch Rainbow)

mrman

January 4, 2011 at 7:43 am 14 years ago

Reply
Oh yeah… totally forgot about Rainbow when I voted. Indeed, it was the best drama.
Working would win the comedy award for me, though… Mitsudomoe was just gross.

No comment on the rest, since my tastes tend to be way different compared to the general anime viewer.

Litho

January 4, 2011 at 7:54 am 14 years ago

Reply
yeah~ Rainbow deserves for it 😀

RAINBOW > Angel Beats (no offense for AB’s fan :D)

sonaive

January 4, 2011 at 8:18 am 14 years ago

Reply
are you sure that’s the best animation ??
i mean..
what about the complex details in rainbow
or the sublime battles in unlimited blade works(except in the last battle between archer and lancer, but whait… it was for the foggy efect)
what about the beautiful characters on angel beats
i think all of them are far better than oreimo
maybe above To Aru Kagaku no Railgun
and they might be on the same level as fma,
also, i think maybe you are on the side of fma, cause, this year, maybe there werent great shows like in other years, but, there are a lot of series to take into count

mike

January 4, 2011 at 8:27 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. OVA/movies weren’t candidates for any category except the Favorite OVA/Movie 2010. It wouldn’t be fair to compare a movie’s level of animation with a TV series.
  
  As for series to take into account, there are 56 that I watched to completion and considered.
  
  Divine
  
  January 4, 2011 at 8:39 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Well, I agree in almost everything except Fma as best of the year but, as you said,it’s a very subjective matter. Even though, i think Shiki deserved at least an honorable mention in the story department.

Also, denyuuden’s plot suffered the same destruction as Kaze no Satigma and CHAOs;head. So sad.

dave

January 4, 2011 at 8:43 am 14 years ago

Reply
Where is Monochrome by Tomatsu Haruka from Star Driver? Where is Ichiban no Takaramono from Angel Beats? Especially Ichiban no Takaramono since it was played as background for one of the most tearjerker scene, I couldn’t stop crying for a while after watching episode. I think it deserves at least a mention.

And Haru from Yosuga no Sora deserves a mention: the guy has the balls to go for it in first date, plus he has to finish what he started 😀 .

As for trap, Hideyoshi can’t be considered a trap, you know, even the show itself treated Hideyoshi as a third gender 😛 Another mention would have to be Kotori-chan from Working!! as Poplar-chan worship her.

Maximilian

January 4, 2011 at 8:45 am 14 years ago

Reply
angel beats is the best!!!jun maeda works is really something…

zmil

January 4, 2011 at 9:11 am 14 years ago

Reply
I’m a bit disappointed that Gintama was not even mentioned. I guess it’s a little too Japanese for the liking of a Western audience, and its originality is more like Woody Allen for another genre, not for the “moe-moe” fans. But that’s the beauty of anime: diversity.

GIANT KILLING is not underrated. At least in Asia, esp. within Chinese otakudom, there’s a huge following. Sports anime has been huge. the last series of Major was a blast to many fans. So was the sequel of Hajime no Ippo.

RAINBOW: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin is a little tough to score because I’ve watched too many live-action adaptations of a similar theme: The Disaster films. I believe there was a film adapted from the exact same storyline. I guess I grew tired of them, if just to kill time about the same theme, I’ll rather read some Japanese novelia (“Light Novel”), or the disaster/horror manga by Ito Junji.

2cents. Some sleepers here. Thanks for the reviews.

dorasaga

January 4, 2011 at 9:26 am 14 years ago

Reply
That picture for “Drama” is perfect 🙂

pcwolff

January 4, 2011 at 9:37 am 14 years ago

Reply
@Divine please put more attention on moves/ovas next year

laaa

January 4, 2011 at 9:45 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. Please keep in mind that OVA/movies were never even considered before, so they’ve already received more attention in the last two years since I added them.
  
  Divine
  
  January 4, 2011 at 9:52 am 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Well must admit I didnt consider them much worthy up till this year when there were so many nice ones… Anyway ty for work and fast reply
    And Gundamn ftw…
    
    laaa
    
    January 4, 2011 at 10:25 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  2. o Gundam*
    
    laaa
    
    January 4, 2011 at 10:26 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
Woo another Aria fan 😀
*High five*

Luxorcist

January 4, 2011 at 10:34 am 14 years ago

Reply
Just as planned FMA:brotherhood won

Secsuey

January 4, 2011 at 11:03 am 14 years ago

Reply
Thanks Divine for the usual yearly review. Too bad Cross Game wasn’t on the list. I’ve watched nearly 60 shows this past year and Cross Game was definitely the best for me!

Reianz

January 4, 2011 at 11:21 am 14 years ago

Reply
Sheesh, so much haterade in these comments. It’s only opinion, and we are all free to differ with it. With that in mind, and given we have been freely offered to do so, I will throw out my own.

Animation: I cannot necessarily disagree here. From what little I watched, I actually found Samurai Girls’ animation style and quality quite good, but that is probably more a matter of preference. (I also couldn’t bring myself to watch all the episodes, so I may have missed out on some QUALITY work.)

Story: I would go with either FMA:B or Durarara! (jeez even in written form that’s a mouthful). Angel Beats! seemed like it possessed a good concept, but the fact it was a two cour show presented in just one really showed in the form of a cramped plot. I honestly groaned at the climax, as it just felt too rushed and pulled out of nowhere for me to find any real attachment to what was going on. I can nonetheless say I would easily vote for Angel Beats! as top show to be remade as a two cour. 😀

Soundtrack: Difficult choice, but I would probably sway with FMA:B’s musical score. Panty & Stocking’s soundtrack was excellent, but my elation is tempered somewhat by the realization that anyone who hates techno may not be so fond of it.

OP and ED: I cannot really disagree here either. Angel Beats was worth watching in spite of its cramped plot for two things: the characters and their interactions, and that amazing opening.

Song: Another tough choice, but the one song that probably sticks in my head most from this season is Ichiban no Takaramono from Angel Beats. It still makes me tear a little to this day. XD

Character: A hard choice between Ika Musume and Kuroneko. Both were the driving forces in their respective shows, but I have to give Kuroneko credit for what she did for Oreimo. Oreimo was, as far as I am concerned, a terrible show made decent by three unexpected bits: its trolling of the incestuous relationship fad, its trolling of the anime industry in episode eight and the implicit contrast between “old school” and “new school” anime fans. Kuroneko and her wit were pretty much the driving force behind the latter two, she helped spice up the first bit as well, and in the process made Oreimo bearable (and in fact entertaining) to watch for me…and I am not sure if I owe a fictional character more gratitude as a result.

Seiyuu: I will go along with your choice, though Hanazawa Hana definitely stands out as well (partially for being associated with my best character choice).

Plot Twist: Very difficult, as Gakuin’s plot twist really came out of nowhere and brought us back to the plot in driving force. Nonetheless (and perhaps just for the sake of being different), I would have to go with the twist in Katanagatari. That type of plot twist happens, and they actually let it stick? That, and characters that realistically act in their interests seems so…rare in anime anymore.

Death: Agreed in full, though I also agree your first alternate was an extremely strong contender.

Admiral Ackbar Award: I cannot disagree. This character may be solely responsible for turning a certain other anime blogger into a trap fan, and that probably says something. What, exactly, I neither know nor do I really want to know. 😛

Action: I will go along for FMA:B, for all you said of it.

Romance: Agreed in full again. Amagami may not be the absolute best romance show ever, but it stood out this year in my opinion.

Drama: Agreed to RAINBOW. A show that can fill me so full of anger due to the situations its characters are in that I find it hard to keep watching is probably doing something very right.

Comedy: As an all encompassing choice, it is difficult to disagree with Mitsudomoe. I honestly found Panty & Stocking more amusing, but it was not entirely consistent in its delivery and a number of episodes require the viewer to be in on what Gainax was spoofing.

Slice of Life: Ika Musume. Down with moe overload for moe overload’s sake! 😛

Fan Service: Not going there. 😛

Underappreciated: Agree with all your choices, though I would also throw in Shiki for good measure.

Biggest Disappointment: HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD by far. The nature of the genre this show was in pretty much puts fan service hand in hand with zombie violence, but the fan service here was turned up to such ridiculous levels I could not keep myself watching after about two thirds of the way through.

Exceeded Expectations: Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt. Even with Gainax at the helm, I felt the concept would make it utterly not worth watching to me. In the end though, it almost always kept me thoroughly entertained with its spoofs and Gainax’s own uniquely insane presentation. It was also one of the very few shows I faithfully watched every week as it came out. The excellent soundtrack was an additional plus. I should probably stop doubting Gainax at some point, though we’ll wait and see after this upcoming season.

Anime Of the Year: I will agree with FMA:B for the sake of its excellent story and its consistently excellent presentation. As you said, given the sheer number of episodes this show spanned over, it really deserves accolades.

Movie / OVA: Very hard, though I make it a toss up between the Macross Frontier ~Itsuwari no Utahime~ and Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu. Shoushitsu’s presentation was all around great, while Frontier’s seeming forcing of Ranka more into the plot was made up for by Sheryl Show Spoiler ▼

personally bankrolling the rescue of Macross Galaxy

, thereby proving her to be a true hero of capitalism and the one truly worthy of the hand of the One True Trap. 😛

Awards For The Sake of It: I might agree with other commenters arguing for a horror category for Shiki, as this type of show is quite uncommon. Also, I think a certain Lelouch would happily hand a FABULOUS award to Star Driver. XD

Zeruel

January 4, 2011 at 11:22 am 14 years ago

Reply
you’ve got Samurai girls and Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu switched. Samurai girls was an epic fail.

and why the fuck did you choose the Gundam 00 movie as the best movie of 2010?! Gundam 00 was the biggest piece of shit Gundam series EVER and the movie was just as bad if not worse! at least the reader’s choice did list the best movie of the year. the Haruhi Movie was epic.

Mad_Dog

January 4, 2011 at 11:40 am 14 years ago

Reply
1. I chose it because it’s what I liked, and not what you’re telling me I should have liked.
  
  It’s a really simple concept actually. I’m surprised more people don’t get it right away.
  
  Divine
  
  January 4, 2011 at 12:03 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. Indeed. It must get on your nerves how people often critizes you about your opinions beacause you didn’t mention their pick, Huh?? It’s kind of a matter os tastes and perception; opinions are always subjective. I think what we can espect from you it’s impartiality, and given the wide range of anime you consider, you were very impartial, in my opinion XD
    
    Dave
    
    January 4, 2011 at 3:02 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  2. Would you have expected the Gundam 00 movie to have fared better in the user poll if it had come to dvd sooner?
    
    JonBob
    
    January 4, 2011 at 4:28 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  3. Probably a little better, but it’s still highly unlikely it would’ve made the top three. Judging from the poll last year, Gundam doesn’t appeal to a wide enough audience.
    
    Divine
    
    January 4, 2011 at 5:52 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
  4. I’m not really a fun of the gundam series but I was hooked with gundam 00…I really like it and it’s a shame that it doesn’t appeal to a lot of people.
    
    xybercutie
    
    January 11, 2011 at 1:59 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
Idk about other people but I felt this anime year was average. Amagami was probably the best Romance this year but comparing it to other years best is just sad(Clannad/True Tears). Actually Kaichou wa Maid-sama! was an even better series but it just felt like a better animated Special A. The Haruhi movie and DTB OVA where the only things that I’ll remember from this year. Once again this upcoming season doesn’t really seem to have anything that good. Beezlebub is funny but it’ll be full of fillers soon enough and the ones Im interested in (IS/GoSick/Fractale) might not even turn out that to be that good. Hope next year picks it up :D. Anyway my best are:

Anime: None really

Movie: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu (I read the Novel acouple of years ago and knew this would be amazing. Thank god it was so long, it was worth it :D)

The only other thing I’d like to say is that Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu was definetly disapointing but it also showed its great potential. When/if the sequal comes out, I bet it’ll be a top anime of the season. LuLu voice=Win in any setting.

SenorDelgato

January 4, 2011 at 11:57 am 14 years ago

Reply
Re: Angel Beats!, no, Divine, we didn’t watch different shows. I know you know, but still I want to say it: it’s just a matter of differing opinions. My biggest beef with it is that whatever story it has doesn’t flow well at all. The show’s such a huge mess overall.

(People need to give it a rest. Just because I’m/you’re in the minority/majority doesn’t mean I’m/you’re wrong or my/your opinion needs to be discredited. Makes sense?)

We both agree, though, that Giant Killing and Rainbow deserve more attention than they got. I absolutely enjoyed K-ON!!, too. But you didn’t watch The Tatami Galaxy‽ Sigh, and here I thought you’re my soulmate. (…Kidding.)

Thanks for this nice entry. I love that we both agree and disagree on some things; makes life more interesting, y’know. I’m fairly new to animé and start each show without [much] prejudice or [high] expectations (hadn’t heard of, say, Maeda and Yuasa before AB! and TTG), so it’s interesting to know how other people take in the ones I watch and end up liking.

By the way, glad to see Kiiragi’s included The Tatami Galaxy—which is obviously my favorite—on his/her list. Hi, Kiiragi. ~~You’re my new soulmate.~~ XD

Alex

January 4, 2011 at 12:07 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. It could be just some people’s personality. Divine probably focused on the good parts and over looked the bad while some others like to pick at the bad stuffs. Its kinda how presidential elections work. For instance, I can say G-Senjou no Maou has a lot of problems with its side routes including discontinuity, sudden change in plot and all, but the main route was so good, it made most people over look the bad and focus on the awesomeness of Kyousuke and Haru vs Maou.
  
  Suppa Tenko
  
  January 4, 2011 at 1:14 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Wow, I agree with pretty much every one of your choices this year, Divine. However, I do think Katanagatari was better than you gave it credit for.

one2the

January 4, 2011 at 12:59 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I’m happy to see that a lot of people enjoyed Angel Beats as much as I did since most opinions I heard previously were not very positive.

Thanks very much for this write up, I enjoyed reading it. I think I’ll pick up Giant Killing, Working and Samurai Girls and probably finish Rainbow (I dropped it half way through). I didn’t have good first impressions for those first few so I’m looking forward to it now. 🙂

Some of the biggest disappointments for me: Ironman, Heroman, Togainu no Chi, Black Rock Shooter
And favourites: FMA, Angel Beats, DRRR!!, KnT, TTGL Lagann hen

Yuumei

January 4, 2011 at 1:08 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Hm… my favorite OP this year was the Den Yuu Den second OP, Last Inferno :3

Suppa Tenko

January 4, 2011 at 1:11 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. Same about Last Inferno except I can’t say is favorite but at least I think is way better than Angel Beat Opening.
  
  Plus so many winning titles that I have to disagree on but different stroke for different folks I guess.
  
  arixx
  
  January 4, 2011 at 2:06 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Divine – I’m surprised SoraOto Forte got absolutely zero mention here! I’d have thought it at least deserved an honorable mention in the comedy category…

Zeuradin

January 4, 2011 at 1:32 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. Now that you’ve mentioned it… yeah….
  
  0927123
  
  January 4, 2011 at 2:06 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. I considered it for comedy, but I actually enjoyed Sora no Otoshimono Forte more for its plot than the humor. It never had me laughing nearly as much as the first season, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing because I liked the change of focus.
  
  Divine
  
  January 4, 2011 at 2:46 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
But fans know Evangelion: 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance always the best^^^^ Haruhi pehhhh

ushio

January 4, 2011 at 2:11 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Gah! SHIKI IS SO UNDERPRECIATED! It is not only the best anime of the year for me but one of the best animes i’ve ever seen – it beat Baccano (my once favourite) in my books. But so many people didn’t watch/like it cause of the animation style – but it wouldn’t have been right if in a moe-blob syle or any other typical animation style.

And I really should watch brotherhood – I’ve read the manga so I know the story is amazing!And gah the greatest OP for me is the first Durarara OP – the first few seconds were so well timed it makes me cry! The best ED for was strangely the Haruhi movie….even though there was no music I just loved it!

PLus I don’t see the big deal about Amagami SS – i tried watching it but after the first few minutes it was annoying me so much i switched my computer off…. 🙂

AND EVERY YEAR THE BEST SEIYUUS ARE ALL WAYS GIRLS! Give the guys a chance! Hiroshi Kamiya is the best seiyuu for me every single year! His voice acting is amazing!

farrafella

January 4, 2011 at 2:32 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I agree with you, Shiki it’s prrobably the most undervalued anime this year. I also hate It’s art concept in the characters, they looked so unrealistic, speacially the hair. But the story itself was really incredible, it’s the best of this year. But this is my perception, i don’t want to start an argument like Kirino-Kuroneko.
  
  Dave
  
  January 4, 2011 at 3:13 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. Agree 100% with Hiroshi Kamiya (though maybe I’m just partial since he’s my fav seiyuu XD). Great range of characters from asshole(Orihara), only sane man (Otonashi), crazy (Kou from Awakawa)and nailed every single one of them!
  
  Honorable mention for Junichi Suwabe as Miran in DenYuuDen and Shu (which was a complete break from his usual roles) and for one-off performance Shinichiro Miki as Hijikata in Hakuouki. ^-^
  
  Momogoldfish
  
  January 5, 2011 at 10:49 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
I get why a lot of people Hated Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu, but I was pretty intrigued by it.

I went into it expecting a medieval fantasy action anime, but the plot was deeper than I expected. It was one of the few animes where nothing was predictable, as Divine mentioned. But to me that’s a good thing. Action scene wasn’t rampant, but when it happened it was always a treat.

The ending was a bit abrupt with no closure, but I think the anime can be redeemed if a second season does get the green light. Animation, character design, action scene, everything but the screenplay was outstanding, let’s not waste all that potential by not giving us a Season 2.

YanDaMan

January 4, 2011 at 4:22 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. In my list Lol-Heroes is absolutely no disappointment. Of course it was fishy on a lot of occasions but it was at the same time refreshing. (Well I have a weakness for shows that are different and strange).
  
  The first season was something like a prolog but don’t count on a second season. Nearly nobody watched it and the sales for the dvds/BRs will be a disaster.
  
  mrman
  
  January 4, 2011 at 4:40 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. I feel sad and disagree with the topic on Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu.
    
    I think the show is so underrated and epic, is been such a long time that I ever get the feeling of watching an anime episode and when the episode was over I curse the time go so slowly and had to wait a week for next episode. The show doesn’t have harem at least not in plain view, no eye dropping action scenes, fan service, but what it does have is an amazing plot and season one is like only an introduction. The war the truth of the world doesn’t get uncover until a second season or reading the next part of novel. Bottomline is I have to totally disagree on ppl trash talking about Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu where I think is one of the best or at least a better show of 2010.
    
    any other anime show I watch I usually be like good episode this week can’t wait till next week, but never felt like I need to rush or anything, more of a I watch as time comes.
    
    The topic on Brotherhood I have not even bother to see or care about this pathetic remake, I will always stay true to the first anime of FMA ( even thou I know the story is more anime original, but still that is the impressive it left on me even thou it sucks), I read the manga I know how the story suppose to go but that does not change the fact of me having a big hatred for remakes.
    
    arixx
    
    January 4, 2011 at 6:42 pm 14 years ago
    
    Reply
i dont like the fact durarara didn’t get any love here =(
That being said fullmetal rocks!!, i like this version better than the original, although my friend said it didn’t focus enough on the hole brother relationship thing, unlike the original

wrathandpride

January 4, 2011 at 5:11 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I agree. The first part of the series and a lot of the relationships were rushed (Ed/Al, Hughes, Al/cats) so the first series definitely hit me more emotionally. I think the first one had better pacing because sometimes, it felt like there was no break after emotional scenes and stuff in the new one… Though this may have something to do with having read most of the manga before the same content aired…
  
  Yuumei
  
  January 4, 2011 at 8:10 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Looks like last year was the Year of FMA.

I would’ve liked to see Durarara for story and Working for comedy.

cshin9

January 4, 2011 at 5:53 pm 14 years ago

Reply
ll y r s pthtc. dnsts s ‘dsppntmnt’ nd rght ftr tht y pn dwn hykk smr grls s xcdng xpcttns. ll. bt f crs yr tsts r vry dffrnt s ndrstnd. y’r mr f th kssxss/hnt/bbs/fnsrvc/tlt hmr gy s stff lk gtsc, myzk, ltr tc wll jst fly pst y.

Disemvoweled troll: zanzi

January 4, 2011 at 5:58 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. You really don’t know how to read do you. That section specifically states what was a disappointment and exceeding expectations compared to initial promise/expectations. So really, do yourself and everyone a favor and learn to read before you do anything. It’ll make you look a lot less like a fool.
  
  Somrandom1
  
  January 4, 2011 at 6:35 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Angel Beats? Best story? I genuinely hope that’s a joke – the story had virtually no structure.

The lack of Tatami Galaxy/Yojouhan Shinwa Taikei makes me sad. Not even the comments take note of it. 🙁

Jon

January 4, 2011 at 6:21 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Nothing I voted for won, or even got close O_O

Katanagatari needed to win, you all should be ashamed for not voting for it.

I voted for Katanagatari and Kimi Ni Todoke.

Jay

January 4, 2011 at 7:28 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I can’t believe the hype over AB. Of course it doesn’t make sense, cause I haven’t watched it, d’oh.

~✿~✿~✿~✿~

aloneinwonderland

January 4, 2011 at 7:33 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Oreimo. That is all.
Maybe I should watch the remake of FMA now since it seems to be so awesome.

PeepQ

January 4, 2011 at 7:37 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I’m just going to say that we can agree to disagree? I value your choices although I probably wouldn’t have chosen some of these shows for the categories; however, it’s your opinion and I can respect that.

It was really obvious that Fullmetal would have received a good majority of the awards, especially anime of the year, since it was a faithful adaption. I personally didn’t like the adaption and prefer the first series, but Brotherhood was a bit enjoyable. I’m glad to see Ling being animated unlike making a small cameo in the first series.

I was actually kind of surprised to see Hanazawa Kana not win best seiyuu, especially after a post you made earlier with the Durarara!! Ending parody. At least she had an honorable mention!

Thanks for doing this! I look forward to the next “Best Of” post! Good luck with all of the blogging this year!

Nikki

January 4, 2011 at 8:28 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I was actually flipping back and forth between Aki and Kana for quite some time. I agree that Kana had a much more stellar year (and is much more deserving of an actual seiyuu award), but I enjoyed Aki’s roles more and that’s what I decided to go on when I made my choice. She impressed me quite a few times over the year, including her MC work at the K-ON Live Event.
  
  Divine
  
  January 4, 2011 at 9:26 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
“regardless of how risqué some of the wild actions and fantasies of the Sumeragi twin sisters got”
Divine, it is Suminoe, not Sumeragi.

Luke

January 4, 2011 at 8:49 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. I think Divine still have Gundam in his mind while typing it up…
  
  personally, I’m more surprised P&S didn’t get a mention for the extreme animation direction decided by Gainax even if it resulted in a lot of inconsistency
  
  info600
  
  January 4, 2011 at 9:15 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
2. I think I did have Gundam on my mind. Thanks for the correction.
  
  Divine
  
  January 4, 2011 at 9:20 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
First off
Awesome job on this post Divine! I’ve been looking forward to it 🙂
@all the nerdragers..
chill out. Why are you getting so offended because Divine doesn’t agree with you? O__O;;
You all read this blog to get Divine and co.’s opinion and insight on various anime, manga etc. not for them to parrot your own thoughts back at you. There’s a difference between stating what your picks would have been (leaving a tasteful comment) and being like
ZOMG…FUCK YOUZZZ…IZ ANGREH. >:(

Just needed to be said >_> <_<

Allie

January 4, 2011 at 9:38 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Well, I was quite disappointed with the results.
Amagami SS and HIGHSCHOOL OF THE DEAD do not deserve a place in the top ten animes. For Amagami, the girls could fall for Junichi for no reasons and blindly meet the commands of him, which were totally lack in credibility. For HOTD, it was pretty attractive in the first few eps, but later, it continued showing exaggerated scenes like the big boobs of the girls which were unnecessarily added. The plot also didnt develop well towards its end. You can pick these shows to watch for fun, but they cannot persuade anybody to think they are good enough to be one of the best 2010 animes.

Another complaint is that Baka should be the best comedy of the year instead. I couldnt find any ep which couldnt make the audience burst into laughter. But for WORKING!!, it seems more to have cheap gags, like mocking at the height of the girl or having a weird character to punch somebody. Baka is the real big deal.

And Gundam 00 The Movie should be the biggest disappointment of the year. Being a true Gundam fan, I dont think they will think worth paying the ticket and accept the low quality of production(story) after watching this piece of “good” art. It is undeniable that the first part of the movie pretty catches our attention and arouse the curiosity of the ELS, but after revealing the truth, the expression of the audience is just like =O=”. And the way of repeating “understanding each other” is just overplayed. And what annoyed the audience most is the last scence. I thought I was watching a children cartoon show.

For FMA, it is good but overrated. It’s just like a domino effect. From my observation, many people dicussed the show in forums or in their daily lives, making it feel quite popular. And some other people were just affected by those good comments and couldnt judge the show by themselves. Please have a deeper and wider look at the anime, and you find that this show isnt really the best anime of all time, not even the best in this year. (the above comments represent my personal view only)

eternaluster

January 5, 2011 at 2:55 am 14 years ago

Reply
A thought experiment. Using guys for this. Just reverse for girls

If everyone thought the same and liked the same things, that would mean any girl you are attracted to would be attractive to everyone else, including people like Brad Pitt, Bill Gates, Obama, etc

And the number of possible girls available would be much smaller than the actual female population unless you have were ok with ANYTHING that was human and female

We would then need a queueing system and i wonder what queue number i would get and how far down my preference list i would have to go. Would my queue number be greater than the number of girls i prefer? What if my best availabe choice was a granny?!

Think about it. Isn’t it great tha people don’t all like the same things 🙂

Zaku Fan

January 5, 2011 at 6:11 am 14 years ago

Reply
For me the biggest disappointment this year was the Unlimited Blade Works movie. My friend said that without playing the original game, it looked fine, but for me, who actually played through it, the movie was actually painful to watch how they left out a lot of necessary information, and how they changed the two most epic fights (Archer vs. Shirou, Shirou vs Gilgamesh) into something weird brawl. (I actually facepalmed how Shirou whacked the hell out of Gil, using the excalibur like a bludgeon)
By the way, nice post. I don’t like how DenseYuu become the greatest disappointment this year, but sadly what you wrote about it is all true.

Linzermaster

January 5, 2011 at 6:43 am 14 years ago

Reply
YEAH FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST RULZ!!!!!

Lin-Meitoky

January 5, 2011 at 8:26 am 14 years ago

Reply
Gotta say its nice to see Gundam as the best ova of the year, was a very nice closer to the 00 story line which i feel is one of the best gundam’s to come out in a long time. Also very happy with Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, makes me sad to think alot of people missed out on it. Maybe with this it can get the word out abit more about it. All in all nice list Divine, and heres to 2011!

Jimjam

January 5, 2011 at 11:54 am 14 years ago

Reply
I didn’t think there was nearly enough love for Working!!, and a little too much love for something that I really couldn’t get into. I liked the first rendition of FMA, maybe too much to really get into the second. Maybe a bias exists. Who knows…It’s not like I’ve felt very strongly about either version.

Animation: Railgun – Love the animation in both Railgun and Index.

Story: Angel Beats/Durarara!! – Durarara’s story was completely enveloping with the use of characters, and Angel Beats had one of the most interesting premises I’ve seen in a while, granted that’s because it was done the correct way.

Soundtrack: K-On!! – Anything with good music is good, but this had tons of good music.

OP: Working!! – The full song is a marvel, and probably one of the few songs from an anime I cared enough to download.

ED: Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru/K-On!! 2nd ED – Soredemo Machi’s ED is almost as addictive as Working!!’s OP, but it has interesting instruments. Maybe I just like more unique sounding songs, but then again, my taste in music is probably vastly different than I presume anyone else’s around here to be.

Song: Working!! – Someone Else from the OP.

Character: Ika Musume – Not even close. There was no one that even touched her, though Kon from Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru tried her best.

Seiyuu: I really don’t pay enough attention to know the Seiyuus.

Plot Twist: Durarara!! – For the same reason I loved the story.

Death: FMA – Maes Hughes.

Trap: Working!! – They used the trap to it’s fullest.

Action: STRIKE WITCHES 2 – I guess it’s not really action, but it’s the closest to action this season that I liked. Durarara!! had a solid amount of action, and I’d probably put that in this category if it really could be classified as only action. That said, STRIKE WITCHES was kind of slice-o-life as well as action though. Even Angel Beats had some fun.

Romance: Kimi ni Todoke – One of the more refreshing shows in this genre I’ve seen in a while. The poorly done hybrids that match fan-service and romance with some stupid twist to make it a little different though it’s really the same do nothing for me except occupy time. They’re alright, but they pop up quickly and are just as easily forgotten. I’m not saying Kimi ni Todoke was unforgettable, but it was pretty close. Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakama-tachi was also pretty solid.

Drama: Shinrei Tantei Yakumo/Senkou no Night Raid – There really wasn’t much noting on the drama section this year.

Comedy: #1 WORKING!!, #2 Ika Musume, #3 Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru – The first two were the funniest shows I’ve seen in a long time. In a normal year Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru might have been #1. Oddly enough, I didn’t watch any of them as soon as they came out. They were all mid-season pick-ups that ended up really making the 2010 calender year a great year for comedy.

Slice-o-life: K-On!!/Sora no Woto – I don’t consider Ika Musume slice-o-life, even though it kind of really is. K-On!! and Sora no Woto fit the description much better and were both great shows.

Fan-Service: Kiss x sis – It was actually kind of cute. The rest were just the same old thing, though the Fan-Service definitely pushed itself this year further than it’s ever been before if you know what I mean.

Non-Category: Oreimo – I don’t know what to call it. I really didn’t see it as a romance or slice-o-life or drama. It was still a really good show, that couldn’t technically win at anything else. I’m calling a freebie on this one.

Most Underappreciated: Working!! – Honorable mention goes to Sora no Woto. People still write both off pretty substantially. Working!! was easily one of the best shows of the year, yet barely any notice. Not a lot of people seem to have had the patience for Katanagatari, which was another great show.

Biggest Disappointment: Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu – I really wanted it to be good. I thought it would be. I’m not someone who pays attention to sales in Japan or reads light novels, etc, but I had a feeling this would be done well. I was completely wrong. It was good enough to finish but nothing like I had hoped.

Exceeded Expectations: Working!!/Ika Musume – They were nowhere near my radar. Working!! still isn’t really on many people’s radar.

Favorite of 2010:
1. Working!!
2. Railgun
3. Durarara!!
4. Ika Musume
5. Angel Beats
6. K-On!!
7. Oreimo

FMA doesn’t even place top 15.

OVA/Movie: Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu – Redemption is such a beautiful thing.

Me

January 5, 2011 at 12:33 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Angel Beats, Durarara, FMA Brotherhood.
All finished the same week this past year.
All deserves to be remebered as the better anime
of 2010.

rasone0104

January 5, 2011 at 4:15 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Of course, I read this knowing it’s all purely subjective and I accept to name Hideyoshi as Trap of the Year, but I’m surprised that Kuranosuke from Kuragehime doesn’t even get an honorable mention? I feel like he pulled off the trap thing better than Aoi did from KWMS…

aria-san

January 5, 2011 at 4:42 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Im kinda bumbed that Durarara came to alot of honourable mentions but not really winning. I thought it would have at least get the story or OP, but Angel Beats got to it on both lol. Then I only watched 3 eps of Angel Beats so maybe I can finally try and watch it.

I’ve never watched Haruhi but I want to watch this lengthy anime movie. Will I still understand what is going on?

unknown2

January 5, 2011 at 7:10 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. It’s definitely a lot better if you have seen either the anime or read the novel, though there’s still much to enjoy just watching the movie.
  
  Prooof
  
  January 6, 2011 at 12:41 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
Oh but Im really happy that FMA got in lotta points it was really deserving. Each ep towards the end was realllly something I looked forward to during my free time on weekends 🙂

unknown2

January 5, 2011 at 7:11 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Although I agree with a few of your choices (love FMAB), I’m really disappointed that Shiki didn’t even get a single mention. It definitely deserves at least one, especially on the most underappreciated part. The fact that it didn’t even reach the honorable mentions is proof how underappreciated it is. ): It deserves more credit for bringing back the vampire image that was ruined by some ugly movie out there. Another surprising thing is that plot twist. Seriously? Occult Gakuin is under the horror genre but it’s just like a typical maho shoujo anime combined with Futurama plus a bunch of plotholes and a weak male lead.

I’m sorry if I sound rude. I just hope you guys would blog more underrated shows in the future.

Alcohol

January 6, 2011 at 12:38 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. This is probably the last time I’ll say it, but I don’t consider Shiki an underrated series. I also happen to blog and enjoy lots of actual underrated shows.
  
  Have you watched any of the ones I mentioned? GIANT KILLING, RAINBOW, Sarai-ya Goyou and Senkou no Night Raid struggled to even get ten comments on a lot of weeks. I am willing to bet a lot of money that Shiki would not have had that problem.
  
  I mentioned before that the only reason Shiki wasn’t blogged was because I was already covering two Thursday shows — Amagami SS and Kaichou wa Maid-sama, the latter of which carried over from spring. I really wanted to blog both Shiki and Densetsu no Yuusha no Densetsu back in summer, but had to settle for just watching them instead.
  
  Shiki is a good series, but I didn’t want to toss it into a category I didn’t feel it deserved, just for the sake of giving it some attention. If people want to make their own list of categories to award every series they liked something, then they are free to do so. Heck, they should start their own blog and do it there if they feel so strongly about it. Compared to the previous Best of Anime posts that Omni used to write, the new format gives limelight to a lot more series already.
  
  Now here’s a request from me. Please don’t jump to conclusions when I covered all those series to completion in spite of how unpopular they were. Omni was often criticized about only covering what’s popular, so I made a conscious effort to alleviate that in the three years I’ve been blogging here. It’s also why I’ll make a point of covering romantic comedies that most blogs won’t even give a fair chance.
  
  Divine
  
  January 6, 2011 at 2:09 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
I could see FMA winning so many awards, as it is a veeery popular franchise and long running, which makes it kinda unfair for other series which premiered in 2010 and had only a 12 or 25 episode run.

Anyway, I more or less agree with the awards given to FMA, except for the soundtrack which I found sub-pair compared to the first series. Also, I completely agree on the WTF moment category.

About other awards: call me a Durarara fanboy, but that’s my personal favorite of the year, and I think it should have deserved at LEAST two awards. I’m kinda disappointed and puzzled by the fact that it won none: it had an incredibly fresh story and narration and the art by Suzuhito Yasuda was gorgeous.
I ADMIT I may be repetitive, but I would place Durarara in the following categories:
-Character: Izaya Orihara is one of the best villains ever. As a person, you would punch him, but as an anime viewer, you love his character.
-Seyuu: this was definitely Hiroshi Kamiya’s year. His roles as Kou Ichinomiya and Izaya Orihara were stunning.
AND FINALLY:
-OPENING: Uragiri no Yuuyake is one of the most energic, upbeat, fresh, addicting opening I’ve ever listened to. Seriously, ever since I watched the short TV commercial for Durarara in December 2009, I found myself humming the 30-SECOND FRAGMENT of the song, and I couldn’t wait for the first show to premiere, only to see how the full opening was like! Indeed, Complications was also very good, but for me, Uragiri no Yuuyake is unmatchable.

On a side note, it’s much of a personal opinion, but I find rather disappointing to see my personal favorite behind a series like Angel Beats, which I found rather bland and unoriginal.

lorenzo

January 6, 2011 at 3:31 pm 14 years ago

Reply
1. Im so with you on that on the fact that it came so close but never actually winning anything. The unique narration style as well as a variety of different distinctive characters. And I havent been so hooked with an anime in years, well since baccano and durarara. Im a fan of the author and I collect his works thats why maybe.
  Plus I thought the soundtrack was very good esp. Ikebukuro west gate intersection, although I would admit that FMA truly deserved it more.
  
  unknown2
  
  January 6, 2011 at 7:13 pm 14 years ago
  
  Reply
  1. I liked the FMA score too, but in the first episodes, I found the music to be not quite on pair with the first series. But then the latter episodes completely compensated for it.
    
    lorenzo
    
    January 7, 2011 at 3:56 am 14 years ago
    
    Reply
Got to give Angel Beats more credit. It IS pretty good anime despite the shortcomings. Story/plot was still very good minus the ending, which is like or dislike depending on the viewer.

hei

January 6, 2011 at 4:24 pm 14 years ago

Reply
This year I watched at least the first episode of *every* single subtitled anime series or show, which adds up to around a hundred different series plus several dozen more OVAs, specials and movies. My Top Ten:

(First: Honorable mentions: Broken Blade, The Legend of Koizume, Time of Eve, Hen Zemi, Bungaku Shoujo, Working, Angel Beats, Cat Shit One, Arakawa Under the Bridge, Legend of Legendary Heroes, Kuragehime, Yondemasuyo Azazel-san, Kowarekake no Orgel, and Yozakura Quartet: Hoshi no Umi)

10. Kaichou wa Maid-sama
9. Shinryaku! Ika Musume
8. Katanagatari
7. The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya
6. Highschool of the Dead
5. Occult Academy
4. Tatami Galaxy
3. Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt
2. Shiki
1. Durarara

Flipping to the other side, on the bottom end of the scale:

(First, honorable mentions: Strike Witches 2, Asobi ni Iku Yo, Planzet, Star Driver Kagayaki no Takuto, Iron Man, Motto to Love-ru, Super Street Fighter IV, Hime-chen Otogi Chikku Idol Lilpri, Ikkitousen Xtreme Xecutor, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, Kachou no Koi, Prism Magical, Yosuga no Sora, Omamori Himari, Chu-Bra, Mayoi Neko Overrun, Kiss x Sis, and MM!)

10. Super Robot Wars OG: The Inspector
9. Seikon no Qwaser
8. Sekirei: Pure Engagement
7. Sengoku Basara 2
6. Sora no Otoshimono Forte
5. SD Gundam Senshi Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors
4. Tono to Issho
3. Shin Koihime Musou Otome Tairan
2. Haiyoru Nyaruani
1. Sleeping with Hinako

mlh

January 7, 2011 at 12:11 pm 14 years ago

Reply
If I have to choose, my top 3 favorite anime in 2010 will be Working!, Angel Beats and Ika Musume.

oOgA

January 7, 2011 at 6:33 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Shiki gets a mention too, my favorite for story development in my opinion, loved how the pace picks up as the story gears towards the end.

oOgA

January 7, 2011 at 6:34 pm 14 years ago

Reply
DON’T WORRY ARAKAWA UNDER THE BRIDGE, I STILL LOVE YOU EVEN IF NO ONE ELSE DOES ;3;
ahaha

Ceeney

January 7, 2011 at 7:32 pm 14 years ago

Reply
MM!!!

Shopao

January 7, 2011 at 7:36 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Wow I’m surprised Cross game did so poorly, should definitely be best slice of life or most underappreciated :/

disgradius

January 8, 2011 at 9:50 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I am really glad that you choose gundam 00 as your anime movie of the year. I watched both gundam 00 and suzumiya movie and i really agree that gundam 00 left much more impact in me. the movie itself had gone through many bashing from narrow-minded fans(from the appearance of alien, the suit design, character, war intervention and etc). the series and the movie left a lot of thinking about human futures, and I believe that those that truly understand the meaning behind “peace through understanding” will understand the whole series.you have my salute, Divine!!

Blacksun88

January 9, 2011 at 4:58 am 14 years ago

Reply
gonna watch angel beats now since alot of ppl is liking it.

the_custard

January 9, 2011 at 5:56 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I just finished watching Angel Beats! Holy! That was REALLY good. The premise was interesting. The twists and turns in the story were unexpected and refreshing. The characters were all individuals and lively. Their emotions were what really set this show apart. I actually cried watching this show. Thanks for picking it as the Best Story anime of 2010.

bertman4

January 11, 2011 at 10:03 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Why isnt Panty and stocking in the comedies part? I mean cmon. Is it not considered anime?

Mick Jagger

January 19, 2011 at 8:21 pm 14 years ago

Reply
I don’t see any mention of Cross Game at all. o.OOO

passerby

January 29, 2011 at 7:32 am 14 years ago

Reply
I have made a compilation of all the best anime series from 2010 from around the web including the polls you have here (which actually got quite a large weight because of the sheer number of voters in it!). I hope you find something interesting in it and look forward to next year’s poll! Not counting FMA:Brotherhood (which I consider as a 2009 series), your poll definitely nails down the top three:)

http://aquabluesweater.wordpress.com/2011/01/28/best-anime-series-of-2010-definitive-look-from-around-the-internet/

aquabluesweater

February 9, 2011 at 7:45 am 14 years ago

Reply
I haven’t watched any of FMA or Angel Beats so a lot of this list is meh to me lol but i’m happy to see Haruhi and Gundam on this list. Although i was disappointed with Gundam’s ending, the storyline for the movie far exceeded my expectation. It was really enthralling.

I think for romance Kaichou wa Maido sama should have got Best because it was just hilarious and cute. The corniness was leveled out nicely which was something i didn’t see in the few eps of Amagami SS that i watched. Kimi ni Todoke was good but by the end of the series, nothing had really happened lol. Kuragehime is another great shoujo anime. I would rank that above Kimi ni Todoke.
Durarara was great too so i would’ve liked to have seen that top the list also, for story.
Glad to see Summer Wars up there too.

Hmm i think i’ll check out FMA finally, just to understand the hype. Its all over this page lol.

saeki

February 20, 2011 at 8:38 am 14 years ago

Reply
hmm,can you guys help me what is name of the anime that this page make is as background..really want to know,help me..

arissan

February 24, 2011 at 8:37 am 14 years ago

Reply
Animes the best!!

Yuuki

February 28, 2011 at 2:35 pm 14 years ago

Reply
Honestly, Angel Beats was a terrible anime. I admit it was very original in terms of story and characters, but that doesn’t mean it’s a good anime. The plot lacked any real depth, the character progression was terrible, and even the comedy they tried to incorporate failed. I’d rather watch a cliche anime with a story that’s actually good then an original one that’s horrible any day.

Fullmetal Alchemist, Durarara, Shiki all thumbs up.

theprophesy

March 11, 2011 at 6:42 am 14 years ago

Reply
Next time you make a best of can you please make an entire catgory for rom com’s

antimeify

March 22, 2011 at 3:04 pm 14 years ago

Reply
when I first watched UBW I thought it was amazing. Then I went and played the VN then watched the movie again. It made me not like the movie as much because they ruined the best two fights just like someone else stated above. And they took out alot of stuff but I don’t blade them for that since it’s impossible to fit 20 hrs into 1 hr and 40 mins.

Ragna92

March 23, 2011 at 7:14 pm 14 years ago

Reply
men i love kiss x sis daiske kiss x sis hehe

sup fan

April 1, 2011 at 5:56 am 14 years ago

Reply

304 Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply