Milestones:
50 - When They Cry: Cat-Killing Chapter
100 - Aria: The Animation
150 - Mushishi
200 - Monster
250 - Kakurenbo
300 - Redline
350 - MD Geist
400 - Popee the Clown
450 - Milky Holmes
How I rate things:
10 - Largely a rating based on personal taste, a 10 is reserved for those shows that are simply magic to me, and have forever changed the way I will view anime as a medium. 9 - I'll give a 9 to two kinds of shows: one that is technically awe-inspiring in every way but did not have the personal impact on me to warrant a ten, or one that would have been a ten but contained some flaw that held me back from giving it a perfect score. 8 - Anything I give an 8 or above can be counted as one of my "favorite" shows. 8s are the kind of shows I look for every season and often the best of each season. They're the ones that excel within their genre and are an all-around worthwhile watch. Often they contain some element that sets them apart from their peers, or are simply incredibly entertaining. 7 - Shows that I give a 7 or higher are the kind of shows that I will readily and easily recommend to anyone who asks. These shows are solid overall and can either excel in a niche or be good enough in all areas to appeal to a wide range of people, which is what makes them so recommendable. A 7 may have its flaws, but they are generally overlookable in favor of the good things the show brings forward. 6 - I'll give out 6s to shows that wind up being above-average but imperfect. While typically able to wow in some aspect, these shows contain unfortunate problems that interfere in some way with the show's good points. I'll usually give a 6 to two kinds of shows: one that aims high but doesn't fully reach its potential, or one that ends up being enjoyable despite itself. As negative as this all sounds, I do very much enjoy most 6s and find them to be worthwhile watches - they're just the shows I like but feel could be better. 5 - Just as it says in the MAL description, a 5 is average. Coming out of a five, I don't feel like I've really seen anything special, but I don't feel like I've seen something bad either. Alternatively, these can be shows which do good things so well and bad things so badly that I can't decide whether I like it or not. 4 - When things get below a 5, I start to question why people like a show and who thought its creation was a good idea. A 4 will often have some redeeming factor, but as a whole be boring and a chore to sit through. Many times these are the shows with good concepts that I feel like I could like but that frustrate me in their execution. 3 - These are shows that are mildly painful to watch. Usually 3s are the shows that look stupid or uninteresting from the get-go that I watch despite my better judgment, but occasionally there will be a show that looks appealing but is executed so appallingly badly that any trace of its original appeal vanishes. On the flip side, many 3s fall into the "terribad" category, meaning they are bad enough that they are quite enjoyable if watched ironically. 2 - 2s are an interesting bunch. They fall in that odd range between painful and laughable. Laughable shows often get a slight boost in rating because this causes them to be more entertaining, but a 2 sits snugly between comedically and unwatchably horrible, to the point where you want to laugh at it but feel bad about doing so. 1 - MAL's one-word description is really all that's needed to describe a 1. They are unwatchable. Somebody could tie you to a chair and place you in front of this anime and have a reasonably good chance of getting you to confess to just about anything. Thankfully, I have yet to encounter such a show, although I am fairly certain they exist somewhere out there.
"But if you think about it rationally, you actually don't need turtles."
Osaka > all, I loled at the reaction of the guy in the turtle stand in the summer home episode, priceless.
Is Nichijou worth watching? The "cute girls doing cute things" one I mean. I heard that besides the comedy it's a relaxing trip, if one doesn't get bored in the process.
That's partially how it goes after my top 4, to some degree. Overall, it gets pretty solid after that, but there are always a handful of protruding qualities that measure a lower nine's anime rank equally with the higher one, but to me it seems only natural that there should exist a cycle, considering the fact that there really shouldn't be too many nine's in the first place, so as not to make your list of favorites devoid of any limitations for value. Other than that, after all of my nine's, most of my highest eight's are like all over the place. It wouldn't be exactly right to exclude them from what you generally call your "favorites", yet their lower scores put them in just the right spot of inferiority towards your top series.
Ha, yeah, only I would say "exhausting" at worst, in the sense that it makes you feel sluggish and empty-minded, which is the equivalent result of watching dumb dating series on television. I literally felt drained before putting YYH on-hold, and that's exactly the kind of feeling that is meant to be avoided when watching anime "seriously". Man, I better stop torturing myself with works that produce a negative effect on my healthy side, enjoyment alone just doesn't seem to satisfyingly cut it for me.
I've been seeing covers of the manga with the edge of my eye ever since I can remember, and I have no idea about what it presents of itself. It seems that "stylish" would be the most accurate word to describe it, adding to your description, but I have no plans for it in the foreseeable future. YYH proved to me that I should be careful with what I wish for (shounen).
I know that feeling, only for me it dates way back to the Cartoon Network, Toonami, Adult Swim days when I was ten years old, living in the USA. Those years were pretty much the best in my life, and anime only added up to all of the enjoyment it was filled with. DBZ, segments of Gundam, Kenshin and mostly other action filled cartoons such as Teen Titans, Samurai Jack, etc. were part of everyday life for me.
That's pretty much the same case with me. I personally can't do without two digits standing beside one another in a sorted favorites list, so it all starts out with my top 2, and then solidifies with the remaining 2, aka the strongest nine's. It's so simple, yet when I write about this, it feels like I'm exploring the infrared structure of comprehensive precision, lol.
That's close to how I feel about YYH at the moment, I just can't stop watching this very average show. It's almost like a side-effect you get when you accidentally lay your eyes on a peculiar series: no matter what you think about it, the end result must without a doubt be its absolute completion. I guess I'm more annoyed about the comparatively empty feeling it leaves me with after every episode, which often rivals with my enjoyment level and at times can make me feel like I'm waisting a lot of time. This usually applies to every mediocre "addicting" series in my case, which is why I prefer not to start any. But in this case I'll just let enjoyment take over, I mean I am watching a shounen CLASSIC after all, so despite everything it's got to be worth it.
So you usually watch anime with friends huh, that kind of stuff ceases to exist around here. The audience with which you choose to spend your time with is for the most part highly immature without any clue about the topic. It really depends on the people, but I personally couldn't imagine myself watching anime with someone. Well, serious anime to say the least.
That's pretty cool. I feel like my knowledge of the English language is sinking with every passing month due to my lack of consistent dialectical expression. Verbal communication is excluded entirely what with me living in a foreign country and all, so writing these comments and reading English literature is the only thing that pushes me forward.
Yep, seeing Monster on your favorites seems just about right.
I actually forgot to mention Soul Eater, and only noticed this shortly after sending my comment. It has the kind of popularity that will catch your attention regardless of what you watch and how much you dislike shounen, so I've had it in my distant ptw for quite some time now. Kuroku no Basket looks disposable without even knowing too much about it, so I've already erased any possibilities of considering to watch it in the future. I'm still as moderately curious about Space Bro's as ever, it looks like the kind of thing that does what it has to accurately, and the score just keeps on rising.
So what made you decide to start a blog if you don't mind my asking?
Yeah I've pretty much decided on that already. The only other truly good existing shounens out there which I haven't seen yet are most likely Slam Dunk, HxH/(2011) and hopefully Yu Yu Hakusho. Detective Conan is way too long, although I heard that watching at least 50 episodes or so would be worth anyones time. It's strange, I never thought that the amount of worthy shounens would decrease so drastically. Back in the days when I had only completed a handful of shows, stuff like D Gray Man, Hitman Reborn etc. all seemed cool and dynamic, now they're just obvious filth in the cesspool of the garbage section in the anime industry. I just might read the Ranma manga some day though, I heard it was better than the anime and quite entertaining.
Back in the days FMA felt so much more than being a simple anime series, that I had fallen a victim to this addicting gateway drug. I never really have any problems with most Bones endings. Whenever a show reaches its climax point, it develops the risk of tumbling downhill depending on how rugged the closure is, but with Bones, I always feel either satisfied or fascinated by its conclusions. I agree that at times it can ruin a show and stop it from getting a much higher score, yet the amount of enjoyable features and progress invested into other aspects such as the characters and themes has always prevailed my senses of righteousness in seeking a more proper sequel to a story. I become so satisfied with everything that happens up till that point that I leave any other curious elements just drifting on auto-pilot. Although, no matter how strange a Bones ending may have appeared to have been, I never once noticed any distracting or lacking of common sense moments according to its niche in its presentation, in comparison with the shows I give 3-5 to for example. If looking at it objectively, I guess that underlining these moments as either 'cliche' or 'oversimplified' would be the most proper thing to do. So tl;dr, they can rightfully be applied to FMA's ending as well.
Thanks for that, you explained it so solidly that I now find it even more difficult to choose out of the both :D I do believe that I'll stick to the shounen version in the future though since I doubt that the old HxH series is hardly comparable with the original FMA in terms of the quality level of the drama, story, characters and atmosphere. And it does seem like something that is meant to be shounen all the way, so I should probably just interpret it accordingly.
It's the same with me for manga, although I always need a special momentum to start reading something, hence the low amount of completed works in my list. Oyasumi Punpun and Yotsuba are definitely something I'll be looking forward to in the future.
So I started watching Aria, and I've gotta say, it's very satisfactory despite it's simplicity. It feels like a weak version of YKK with, as you already said, its primary focus being centered at upbeat and calming moments. This makes it special and at the same time, lacking of some requirable additional features that would make it prosper quite promisingly if used properly. YKK would be the perfect example of the superior version in the means of heartwarming presentation with a mature note as well.
Hey, I see you've been as active with watching anime as ever, plan on reading manga for the time being?
I actually wanted to ask you, since you seem to have the experience of comparing the both: is HxH (2011) like the Brotherhood of the original FMA series (with characters lacking vitality and becoming as dry as paste in the long run) or is it just the same as the original HxH only based on enhanced visuals and sound? And which of the two can be considered the most atmospheric? I'm currently in the shounen kind of mood, and the first two episodes of Yu Yu Hakusho didn't exactly live up to my expectations, so for now I'm placing my hope on this "praised" and highly scored series.
Been a while. I re-read your post on Texhnolyze and reflecting back on it, in that series the characters did stay the same. You wish they could move and learn to change but there was no way. Based on people I've met, some folks hold their core to the bitter end whereas others change.
As for Renmei, it's one of my favorite 10s as well. The way in which they held their composure...it's all symbolic to me because there is no destined purpose except going to a place that no one is sure of in a town that no one is really sure of either. That's the beauty of it, living through the tough times even when the intent and goal is not clear. Just living to live.
Well, how should I put it. It's smart, has an intelligent plot, mature themes, yet it's for kids. And the funny thing is, kids won't get half of what happens in it. So basically, it takes on relatively serious material in an augmented reality with a peculiarly light-hearted "audience friendly" approach, which can cause people to lose grip of getting acquainted with the atmosphere as well as the sort of intrigue that should be present with accordance to every thrilling scene. I believe that this is one of the reasons why some people can't relate, despite it being an objectively great series. If compared to say, Bakemonogatari/Penguindrum for example, it wins in the character/age section for at the very least, being natural in presentation and in what it tries to do overall. The shows listed above, on the other hand, subject to being toyed by the director's crafty workmanship and in the end, lose any kind existing value. So in DC, instead of being presented "just" as characters (like in Bakemonogatari, "stylish"), a lot of work was crafted into giving the characters a natural childish appearance that would fit the "elementary school" image, and it was done very well. So from here, when interacting with the story, the anime gets a unique atmosphere that remains to be reviewed by taste alone.
Yeah I plan to watch the shows you listed sooner or later, forgot to mention. I see that Danshi show with a high score on pretty much every list I scroll though. As for Thermae Rome, I heard from a friend the it did a good job, so watching it in the future is inescapable. Gintama gets very "comfortable" to watch when you get used to seeing the characters do what they do throughout every episode. It's amazing how it manages to be cool, funny, thoughtful at the same time. I was pretty skeptical when first starting it, and actually gave it a 4 after the first two episodes, but later on it just started getting to me and I adapted quite a lot of feelings of amusement when watching it. And yeah, it's relaxing when you take a break from your usual routine and switch on an episode, really does its job. GTO is the only other show that made me laugh as much as Gintama did.
I think so too. And yeah, that goes without saying since they're in your top 5. I actually really liked Dennou Coil's and Haibane's themes, especially the themes, but there were also some aspects that didn't fully connect with my tastes and preferences, as well as the existing disability for me to fully relate with some particular moments of catharsis, parts of presentation, etc. For example, I really liked Rakka as a character, she would most likely find a spot in my top 20, but there were some parts were various character interactions didn't completely satisfy me to a full-length level, and the "melodramatic" moment at the end kind of drew the last straw in an attempt to please me story-character wise. It's most probably just me, since criticizing well-written characters and giving them a subjective outlook wholeheartedly remains for preference, personality and attitude to decide. I'm not going to say taste, since taste is a matter of development, thus it remains partially objective, especially when you're in the state of rating things according to logic and common-sense, which imo is the basis of everything. As for the story and unique atmosphere, well, they did their job finely. The problem with Dennou Coil for me, like for most people I believe, was to relate with everything being surrounded around kids. Don't get me wrong, this is probably one of the few anime that actually used kids the right way, without overdoing it (Bakemonogatari, Penguindrum waves to you), yet it didn't really amaze me that much, if compared to Haibane for example.
Whenever I look at pictures, short conversations about it, I get the image of Planetes being done H&C style. For some reason. I've heard quite some positive things about it, and also noticed that people are starting to rate it higher. Guess it's a definite 2012 ptw along with F/Z and Sakamichi no Apollon. I'm currently watching the second season of Gintama. It's an extremely successful mood lightener, works like a charm.
That's a nice description. Reminds me of something similar I read about the Natsume series and Mushishi, whereas the first being a more upbeat and audience friendly version. But anyway, I'm guessing that every SoL falls under the "best of the rest" category when it comes to comparing it to stuff like Dennou Coil and Haibane for you. As for watching relaxing and slow-paced series, you stated correctly, I have a strangely high level of tolerance when it comes to watching such shows. It can range from being satisfying/tolerable to enjoyable, depending on the anime. For example, Casshern was tolerable, despite most episodes seeming a bit too cliche in terms of characters and stories. The last episode really payed off for everything though. And then comes Wolf's Rain, which didn't bore me at all. It really depends on how everything is built, but so far, Mushishi, YKK, and H&C (not that it completely fits here, but since it's a SoL) are the only 9 worthy for me.
I'm actually kind of surprised that you've seen neither GTO nor Nodame Cantabile. They both succeed in their main spheres of specialty, the first being comedy and the second music. They're definitely one of the best SoL series out there, if not my other 9's, I would have placed them in their stead. Both get about 8.5 from me.
Which do you like more as a notable slice-of-life show, H&C or the last season of Aria? Both have an 8 in your list, so I was wondering on which side your preferences stand. I plan on completing the whole Aria franchise as soon as I finish some other stuff in my ptw.
