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「片想い」 (Kataomoi)
“Unrequited Love”
Before you burn all your Kimi ni Todoke merchandise like the rebellious fans I know you all are, let me calm you down a bit. Yes, this is a recap, but I can give you a couple reasons not to shoot your next door neighbor in rage. And thus, we begin the Winter Quarter.
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.
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「A wakening of the Trailblazer」
Back in May when I posted about a couple of the trailers for the theatrical conclusion to the Gundam 00 story, there wasn’t a whole lot revealed about what Celestial Being would be getting into in this final installment. The official site only makes brief mention that it takes two years later in A.D. 2314, when a 130-year-old scrapped research vessel in Jupiter’s orbit makes its way towards Earth with a new crisis, so I really wasn’t too sure what to expect.
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「ジェリーフィッシュ・オブ・ドリームス」 (Jerīfisshu obu Dorīmusu)
“Jellyfish of Dreams”
Well what an incredibly anticlimactic solution to last week’s cliffhanger huh? To be honest, I didn’t give it much thought, and sadly, I don’t spend every waking moment wondering what the next episode of Kuragehime will reveal, but I seriously expected the Amamizu-kan to be a plot milestone this time. That said, the episode managed to tie up the series rather nicely, faithful to the manga or not (I wouldn’t know).
| Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beelzebub 07:00 NTV (1/9) |
Dragon Crisis! 25:30 CTC (1/10) |
Bleach 18:00 TX |
Starry☆Sky 16:00 animate.tv (12/23) |
Wolverine 22:00 ANIMAX (1/7) |
Cardfight!! Vanguard 08:00 TX (1/8) |
|
| Suite PreCure ♪ 08:30 EX (2/6) |
Kore wa Zombie Desu ka? 25:30 TVS (1/10) |
Rio -RainbowGate!- 23:00 MX (1/4) |
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica 25:25 MBS (1/6) |
To Aru Majutsu no Index II 23:30 AT-X (10/8) |
FREEZING 09:30 AT-X (1/8) |
|
| STAR DRIVER Kagayaki no Takuto 17:00 MBS/TBS (10/3) |
LEVEL E 25:45 TX (1/10) |
Kimi ni Todoke 2ND SEASON 24:59 NTV (1/4) |
IS Infinite Stratos 25:25 TBS (1/6) |
GOSICK 25:23 TX (1/7) |
Bakuman. 18:00 NHK E (10/2) |
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| Super Robot Wars OG: The Inspector 22:00 MX (10/3) |
Moshidora 22:55 NHK (3/14-18, 3/21-25) |
Yumekui Merry 25:55 TBS (1/6) |
Tegami Bachi REVERSE 23:55 TX (10/2) |
|||
| FRACTALE 24:45 CX (1/13) |
Onii-chan no Koto ga Zenzen Suki Janain Dakara ne!! 24:30 tvk (1/8) |
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| Hourou Musuko 25:15 CX (1/13) |
Mitsudomoe Zouryouchuu! 26:58 MBS (1/8) |
* Others: SUPERNATURAL THE ANIMATION, Houkago no Pleiades
| Legend: | 7 | Divine | 3 | Kiiragi | 4 | Takaii | 2 | Prooof | Not covering |
|---|
The start of the winter 2011 season is only days away, so here’s the quick rundown on what me and the writers will be covering. As I mentioned in the Winter 2011 Preview, I’m reducing my personal load to about half of what it was last season by only picking up a couple more series — Infinite Stratos and FRACTALE. To help compensate, both Kiiragi and Takaii have offered to pick up an additional series to cover, adding GOSICK and Kore wa Zombie Desu ka respectively to the ones they decided on in the preview. Prooof on the other hand is still too busy to pick up new shows, but will continue being the resident Bleach specialist like he’s always been.
* More after the jump on some plans for the new season.
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It’s… TIME! Time to look back at 2010 that is, so I’d like to present the Fifth Annual Reader’s Choice Poll.
Similar to last year, there are two polls for you to vote on — one for regularly broadcast series and another for OVA/movies. The subtle change is the number of votes has increased from three to five for series and one to three for OVA/movies to further diversify results so they aren’t heavily skewed. With 98 series and 71 OVA/movies to choose from, we’re now asking for your top five and top three of 2010 respectively.
The criteria for a regular broadcast anime to be included is that it had to have been a TV series that finished airing in 2010. The general idea here is that you can’t really judge a series until it’s over, so shows such as STAR DRIVER and To Aru Majutsu no Index II will appear in next year’s poll. For OVA/movies, it has to have been released on DVD/BD in 2010 to qualify, ensuring that viewers outside of Japan have had a chance to watch it. This mostly pertains to theatrical offerings. I’ve loosened the requirement on being complete though, which is why you see Gundam Unicorn episodes one/two and Break Blade movies one/two included in the list as single entries.
As far as I’m aware, the anime series list is complete. The OVA/movie is purposely less so since there are a lot of really niche OVAs that aren’t really worth considering. However, if you feel there’s something the deserves consideration, please send me an e-mail and I’ll add it. Otherwise, you are welcome to vote for it in the Others option. Let the voting begin!
Note: The polls will close on Sunday, January 2nd at 8:00 AM GMT. Results will be posted in the upcoming Best of Anime 2010 post.
The Reader’s Choice Polls are after the jump.
Polls are now closed. Thank you for taking the time to vote.
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「楽園からの追放者」 (Rakuen kara no Tsuibousha)
“An Exile From Paradise”
As suspected, any sort of potential suspense or shock from Lamia’s sacrifice was short-lived, after it was revealed she survived the Ash to Ash self-destruct. Taking its place wasn’t a decisive battle between Kyousuke and Axel however, and instead an explanation on Shadow-Mirror’s origin care of one Gilliam Yeager, a.k.a. Helios Olympus.
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「涼宮ハルヒの消失」 (Suzumiya Haruhi no Shōshitsu)
“The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya”
At this point in time, the Haruhi series needs no introduction. Unless you’re an extremely casual viewer, or have a streak of uncanny avoidances, you probably know who or what Haruhi is. You may not know that fans have been waiting for this movie for a long time, and you may not know that this is not a stand alone movie. If you have not seen the prior two seasons of Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu, and you wish to enjoy this movie, please do so now. For everyone else, these impressions are written with the expectation that you have seen the movie beforehand, so if you have not had the pleasure to do so, well what are you waiting for?
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「恋する紅い剣」 (Koi Suru Akai Ken)
“The Loving Red Sword”
Either hairstyles and colors don’t stand out as much as they seem or some characters just don’t bother to take notice, as the secret “Kiraboshi” greeting often leaves me both amused and dumbfounded by the surprised reactions. Take Benio for example: “Oh, so you’re Ivrogne.” Me: “… (lol)”
Note: The STAR DRIVER broadcast is on break next week. Episode 14 airs on January 9th.
