- NO Long Running Shonen e.g One Piece, Pokémon, DBZ, Naruto, etc.
- Only Anime I've seen are included.
- No show here is over 52 episodes long.
- Only one season per franchise (for example, I can't put both Shakugan no Shana and SNS II in two different spots.)
So, without further ado, let us begin!
Number 10: Angel Beats!
"We're the Afterlife Battle Front. Our name changes every now and then." - Yurippe Nakamura
The story of a High School of the mostly Dead, Angel Beats! by Studio Key and P.A Works is something that's enjoyable on your first time through....until it ends all too quickly. There are redeeming qualities to this show, if there weren't well It wouldn't be on this list. For one, the animation is drop dead gorgeous, and the music - especially the vocal tracks - is pretty damn good, especially for an anime soundtrack. The main characters do get a lot of development, at the expense of the minor, sometimes more interesting characters. An interesting but flawed anime. Go check it out if you can, you may like it, or not. It all depends on what you think of the ending.
Number 9: Another
"Did you hear the story about Class 3-3?" - Unknown
Good horror is hard to come by in anime, especially horror that's just scary rather than psychologically frightening. The story about a cursed class in a Japanese Middle School and a girl who's more than meets the "eye" (HEHEHEHE), Another by P.A Works (originally a Japanese Novel) has a good premise, and at times great execution, but a real let down is it's characters and how uninteresting a majority of them can be at times. Sure, the main two are fairly interesting enough but then you got the supporting cast who are really just....there. It's got a superb atmosphere, thanks to a brilliant soundtrack and animation. Another is one of those anime you should watch late at night with the lights off to enhance the experience. It's terrifiingly good (just like my puns)
Number 8: Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun
"If you scream, I will rape you" - Yoshida Haru
Slice of Life anime are some of the most generic things you can find out there, most of the time with a generic romance story tucked behind it with bland characters with typical tropes in behind them. But not this one. Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun (aka My Little Monster) is a show about a die-hard study fanatic and the absolute complete opposite. What makes this show interesting isn't it's plot or the romance, it's just the shit the characters do I find entertaining. Heck, even the minor characters like Sasayan or the adorably funny Natsume are too good to not mention on. The animation is kinda meh in my opinion. Sure, I like the way the characters look, but there's something about the contrast of the show that annoys me. Otherwise, it's pretty good and you should give it a go sometime.
Number 7: Yu-Gi-Oh! (1998 Japanese Original Series, AKA "Season 0")
"Who was that who saved me...it wasn't Yuugi, was it?" - Anzu
Not to be confused with the 2001 reboot with one of the only decent 4kids dubs ever, the original Yu-Gi-Oh! from 1998 is one of the most bat shit insane things you will ever see in your life. Taking place in a fictional Japanese City, Domino, Yu-Gi-Oh! is the story of Yuugi Mutou, a young boy who loves games but is always being bullied by his peers because of his height and how weak he is. His then solves the Millenium Puzzle, an Egyptian Item with magical powers. The show mainly revolves around building the characters, which is something I appreciate. There's also not a lot of Duel Monsters in this series, so it's mainly insane crap like fake Pokémon. The animation though is lackluster and the voice acting can be dreadful at times. However, it's something that is definitely worth a shot at watching, because of how down to earth it can be one moment and how insane it can be the next.
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| C'mon, who couldn't trust a face like this? |
Number 6: Death Note
"I am Kira." - Light Yagami
Call me crazy but I enjoyed all of this anime, from Episode 1 to Episode 37. This is one of those anime you can't avoid no matter what you do, because of how famous it is in the community. MADhouse's absolutely crazy adaptation of Death Note is something that can make you laugh one minute, scare you another minute and then make you feel the feels the next A story about a boy who finds the means to eradicate all the crime in the world, It's a very diverse anime with extremely interesting characters which are true to it's manga source, and it has one of the all time best anime soundtracks (the first opening is actually my second favourite in all of anime) with superb animation to boot, although the plot can feel stagnant at times, since the main plot takes so long to actually execute. Unlike most really popular anime, Death Note lives upto the hype. Mostly.
Number 5: Umineko no Naku Koro ni
"Let me flip the chessboard again" - Battler Ushiyomiya
A Spiritual sequel to the infamous Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, Umineko no Naku Koro ni by Studio Deen is one of those anime that people like to bash simply because it's not Higurashi. Well, while I agree that Higurashi is the better of the two, Umineko is good on it's own merits. Taking place in 1986 (mostly, since the story does shift to 1998 from time to time), Umineko focuses more on witchcraft and the occult, rather than demons and the God of a rural village cursing everyone. Sure, it's animation can be flat, but with an amazing soundtrack and what has to be my all time favourite male lead in an anime, Umineko is for anyone who likes horror, suspense and a mystery story.
Number 4: Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo
"I Believe in Panties" - Shiina Mashiro
Y'know this would be higher if it weren't for the fact that the soundtrack sucks so much. A Story about a boy who lives in what is probably the most insane school dormitory in the civilized world, Sakurasou is a great Dramatic Comedy with brilliant characters, a great set up and what has to be some of the best animation Japan has ever produced. it's something that will make you cry and laugh your ass off all the way through, and it has to be the best source of comedy I've seen from Japan. Sure, it's not perfect, but I'm sure you'll find something enjoyable in here.
Number 3: Shingeki no Kyojin
"This world is cruel...yet...it is so beautiful.." - Mikasa Ackerman
The Shonen all other Shonen wish they could be, this is the pinnacle of action and fantasy. A show about 3 children who witness horrific events on a single day in the year 845, behind a huge wall, Shingeki no Kyojin is easily my favourite Shonen around. It's got a plot similar to AMC's great TV Series The Walking Dead, and the characters are some of the best in the Shonen genre. Compared to other Shonen like Soul Eater and Sword Art Online, Shingeki no Kyojin just has everything done better. Better animation and my all time favourite anime opening, this show is for those who aren't afraid to jump on the hype train and watch one of the all time greats.
Number 2: Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (+Kai)
"Just like you have your secrets...we have our secrets too, hehe!" - Rena Ryugu
[SPOILERS AWAIT FOR EPISODE 4: Onikakushen-hen IV]
The master of the horror genre, welcome to the most insane thing ever produced by Human Beings. While not the best adaptation of a Visual Novel out there, the main Higurashi no Naku Koro ni series (being the original and the sequel, Kai) is just a masterpiece of pacing, tension, gore and everything right with horror. Set in a rural Japanese village in June, Showa 58 (AKA 1983), the show starts as it means to go on, by completely putting you out of your comfort zone with the single most confusing yet satisfying plot in anime. All is explained at the end of Episode 4, as Keiichi Maebara discovers.
In Higurashi, most people, if not everyone will end up dead by the end of an arc.
However, they will all be alive in the next episode. This is due to the strange way the Higurashi story arcs work. And it's why it's the best horror around. it has something for everyone, and it shouldn't be taken lightly. Definitely not for the squeamish.
Number 1: Clannad (+After Story)
" I hate this town. It's too filled with memories I'd rather forget. I go
to school every day, hang out with my friends, and then I go home.
There's no place I'd rather not go ever again. I wonder if anything will
ever change? Will that day ever come?" - Tomoya Okazaki
It does not get any better than this. It simply just does not get any more emotional, heartbreaking, wonderful, comedic or depressing as Key/Kyoto Ani's finest achievement, Clannad and it's After Story. Clannad is the story of Tomoya Okazaki, a boy who hates everything that his town has because it's full of memories he'd rather forget. His life changes one fateful day however, a day in which he met his future wife and thus his new life began. What happens to Tomoya and his friends is some of the most engaging and heartwarming things I've seen from any piece of fiction ever. With the best animation of any anime ever, and one of the best soundtracks in anything ever, let alone anime, whether you're into Drama's and Romances or not, you're not an Otaku if you've never seen Clannad.
Dango, Dango, Dango, Dango, Dango Daikazoku.
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