Anime Oscars I (Year End Review)

Best Male Character: Okabe Rintarou (won the award after swearing to a street vendor)

Best Female Charcter: Homura Akemi (won the award after admitting she’s lesbian to Madoka-sama)

Best Villain: Kyuubey (won the award after eating himself)

Most disappointing Anime: BLOOD-C (won the award when the “main cast” formally introduced themselves. I felt like CLAMP spat on me.)

Anime to exceed expectations: Nichijou (won the award after making me laugh for 26 weeks)

Top 20:

20. To Aru Majutsu no Index II: (Shit first half/godly second half.)

19. Denpa Onna to Sishun Otoko: (Emotional Uplift)

18. Kamisama Dolls: (Everyone is a touch insane)

17. Ben-to: (Made me hungry)

16. Ao no Exorcist: (those anime original episodes bogged it down a bit)

15. Horou Musuko: (Gender Sensitivity Award of the year)

14. Level E: (First three episodes had me cracking NONSTOP)

13. Dantalian no Shoka: (Really nice episodic series.)

12. STAR DRIVER: (KIRABOSHI!)

11. UN-GO: (Wittiest mysteries I’ve ever seen.)

10. Hanasaku Iroha: (When its good, its amazing. When its bad, lol.)

9. Fate/Zero: (Damn you cliffhanger. Now I have to wait 4 months for the next episode.)

8. Usagi Drop: (Sweetest family-oriented anime I’ve ever seen. Made me want to become a dad.)

7. Moshidora: (Still have goosebumps remembering that certain scene in Episode 9 *gambare*)

6. Kimi ni Todoke 2nd Season: (Development wasn’t slower as a snail this time around.)

5. Mawaru Penguindrum: (Symbolisms galore.)

4. Anohana: (Menma ;____;)

3.  Nichijou: (The most ballsiest and mundane comedy series I’ve ever watched)

2. Steins;Gate: (VN adaptation done right. Best cast of characters, best story, great plot twist, a unique take on time travelling. . . it really is quite the anime.)

1. Madoka Magica: (Far far ahead as my no. 1. Let’s just say that the Deconstruction of the Mahou Shoujo genre ultimately triumph.)

________________________________________________________________

2011 was one of the better years for anime. 2-cour is back, so are original adaptations. Let’s just hope something even comes close to Nisemonogatari this year (even Madoka is nowhere close to the likes of Bakemonogatari) so I can call it a great year too.

Cheers!

 

Anime Oscars Production Category

Qualifications: Anime that have proved themselves through their production.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Fate/Zero

Sure there are a lot of anime that’s as good in animation as Fate/Zero, but Fate/Zero stands out as the anime that looks like a movie. Kudos to ufotable for that of course, as their Kara no Kyoukai adventures really paid off; I can only wish that they do more anime of this caliber.

Notables: Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko, Ben-To, Mawaru Penguindrum

Best Production nominee: Fate/Zero

Fate/Zero takes place 10 years prior to the events of Fate/stay night, detailing the events of the 4th Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City. The War of the Holy Grail is a contest in which seven magi summon seven Heroic Spirits to compete to obtain the power of the “Holy Grail,” which grants a miracle. After three inconclusive wars for the elusive Holy Grail, the Fourth War commences.

BEST ANIMATION

Nichijou

Kyoto Animation’s work for this year introduces how far animation can go with its imaginative ways on telling Nichijou’s quirky and fun jokes. Not only that, the fluidity of the characters movement in Nicihijou is unrivalled, much like most of KyoAni’s work.

(To tell you the truth, it was a big tossup between this and Hanasaku Iroha)

Notables: Hanasaku Iroha, Fate/Zero, Star Driver

Best Production nominee: Nichijou

While the title suggests a story of simple, everyday school life, the contents are more the opposite. The setting is a strange school where you may see the principal wrestle a deer or a robot’s arm hide a rollcake. However there are still normal stories, like making a card castle or taking a test you didn’t study for.

BEST ARTISTIC DIRECTION

Mawaru Penguindrum

Mawaru Penguindrum always brings something different to the table with its production. Whether the way it interprets the story, the varied train scenes, or the majestic sets (note Episode 9), Mawaru Penguidrum never fails to amaze me with its creativity.

(Again this was a tossup between Penguins and Meguca)

Notables: Madoka Magica, Yumekui Merry, Dantalian no Shoka

Best Production nominee: Mawaru Penguindrum

Three siblings, twins Kanba and Shouma, and the in-and-out-of-the-hospital Himari who’s in poor health, live together at the Takakura home. One day, when the siblings are out on a trip to the aquarium, Himari collapses. The doctors state that nothing can be done for her anymore, but then, a miracle occurs…

BEST BACKGROUND DESIGNS

Hanasaku Iroha

Hanasaku Iroha makes many scenes look realistic with how detailed their backgrounds are. Also their use of CGI is very applaudable. Unlike shows which just paste their CGI here and there (ehem Last Exile and T&B) Hanairo actually bothers in making their CGI look very seemless with its 2D designs. Sometimes you’d be surprised that the background of Hanasaku Iroha was made and not real life. Sometimes you’d be surprised that the Hanairo backgrounds look even better than real life ones.

Notables: Dantalian no Shoka, Madoka Magica, Kimi ni Todoke Season 2, Horou Musuko

Best Production nominee: Hanasaku Iroha

After her single mother decides to run off with a boyfriend to dodge debt collectors, the young and energetic Ohana is sent to live with her grandmother. However, her grandmother is the strict owner of a hot springs inn and requires her to work at the inn to pay for her living expenses. Although Ohana is unhappy about this situation at first, she decides to make the best of her situation and work hard. Ohana’s life is suddenly filled with fun, mischief, and drama!

Best Soundtrack

Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Sure there were a lot of awesome OSTs this year but what makes Madoka Magica triumph over all? CUS ITS FROM YUKI KAJIURA that’s why! Not much can be said except how the OST here is quite different from the usual Yuki Kajiura making it a lot yummier to listen to. Oh yeah go check out Mami’s theme song if you haven’t.

Notables: Hanasaku Iroha, Ben-to, Anohana, Ao no Exorcist

Best Production nominee: Madoka Magica

Beloved family, good friends, laughter and tears – these things make up the ordinary life of Kaname Madoka, a second year student of Mitakihara City Middle School. One night, Madoka dreams of a mysterious dark haired girl struggling against a terrible evil; the next morning she discovers that the girl, Akemi Homura, has transferred into her class. This encounter will lead to an incident which will alter Madoka’s fate forever.

Best OP/ED

Nichijou OP1 and 2

Haaydin is fucking awesome. In this two songs of Nichijou, he manages to make the voice of a male and a female and not make it look like so. I was really surprised when I learned about this. Also KyoAni went wild with the accompaniment animation for this which makes Nichijou’s two Ops the best this year.

Notables: To Aru Majutsu no Index II OP 2, Steins;Gate OP, No. 6 ED, Gosick ED

Best Insert Song

STAR DRIVER: Monochrome by Haruka Tomatsu

While I love Mami’s theme and most of Hanairo’s insert songs, STAR DRIVER’s Monochrome beats out the rest with how catchy it is and how it really fits with the battles on STAR DRIVER.

Best Production

Nichijou

It’s safe to say Nichijou was the best this year. It had awesome and creative animation; it took the initiative to really incorporate its animation with its jokes and most of all, it never ever looked bad. No awkward character designs, everything was fluid; you just can’t get any better than this (for this year).

Nominees: Madoka Magica, Mawaru Penguindrum, Hanasaku Iroha, Fate/Zero

 

More in store in the next Anime Oscars Category: Story

September Roundup

My roundup’s get screwed up because I haven’t catched up to everything. But I do have a solid TOP 5 this season so here it is:

5. Usagi Drop – 42/50

It ended on a very reflective note, something that really reflects the series. Just please no sequel!

4. Nichijou – 44/50

It somehow also ended in a reflective mode, but still had its jokes intact. I really do think that Random comedy is the best type of comedy for me.

3. Hanasaku Iroha – 45/50

Unlike Ao no Exorcist, Hanairo really redeems itself in its last stretch. Everyone was busy in Bonbori and grandma really became one of the top characters of the series.

2. Mawaru Penguindrum – 47/50

This series was glorious this month. The library episode was fantastic. The plot started cutting through. The mysteries started pounding. There’s even relevance to reality. PingDuramu will really end up one of the best anime this year if this keeps up.

1. Steins;Gate – 50/50

It ended very sweet but very deserving. After all those hardship Okarin went through, I think he deserves a happy ending. Ending aside, this month was a perfect Steins;Gate month. It ended earlier than others, but it left one of the biggest impact to me. Bravo S;G, Bravo!

—————————–

Well there you have it. A short, not concise, not satisfying Roundup. Hahahahahahaha!

Nichijou (END) – 95 points

No more “Everyday Life” for me?!?!?!? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 Nichijou, probably my favorite anime this season, is about 1) the lives of this three high school students, 2) the life of a robot and 3) some random stories in between. It’s a no-brainer that there’s no plot with this thing and it really just serves as comedy, but the thing is, this is what this series does best. It delivers the utmost, unbreathable, almost neck breakingly hilarious comedy I’ve ever seen. The way it execute its comedy is very unique, with all the different experiments it goes through. Even the non-chokable scenes manages to at least make you smile of some sort. This is the Nichijou that I fell in love with since Episode 1 and it consistently delivered til the end.

There were some people who were frankly disappointed with how Nichijou’s animation studio, Kyoto Animation, keeps animating useless Slice of Life stuff like this. While I thoroughly love their stuff like Lucky Star and Haruhi, even I kept on wondering how maybe the studio is just wasting their talent on Slice of Life shows that need not extravagant animation. But I think I stopped wondering when Nichijou came into the scene. It showed almost all of Kyoto Animation’s potential, with some of the most breathtakingly gorgeous, to absolutely experimental animation being induced in this series. Its clean, top-notch, and very creative. Exactly like Nichijou.

There’s not much I can say to this series that I’ve already said in the past. I just wanna say, NANO WAS SO DAWWWW IN THE LAST EPISODE. She kept her fuckin’ screw!!

Best Episodes: Episode 16 (Mio wrestling), Episode 14 (Nano goes to school), Episode 17 (Crow Episode), and Episode 6 (Deer Wrestling)

Best Skits (redundant?)

1) Mio attempting on bringer her doujin when Yuuko, a police officer, and a goat interfere (Episode 16)

2) Yuuko seeing the principal wrestle a deer (Episode 6)

3) Gundere Misato’s biggest open fire to Sasahara (Episode 8)

4) Mai, Yuuko and Mio going into the shrine as the rain pours (Episode 19)

5) Takasaki-sensei thinking Sakurai-sensei has a boyfriend (Episode 15)

Rating

Execution: 38/40 (Comedy heavily relies on this, and Nichijou did it almost perfectly)

Engagement: 29/30 (Favourite Anime this Spring, CHECK!)

Characters: 18/20 (I love everybody’s little quirks, even those random side characters. Hakase is so freakin ADORABLE!!!! Besides Hakase, my other favorite character is none other than the closet fujoshi Mio, who probably delivered the best skits in the series.)

Production: 10/10 (HANDS DOWN BEST SO FAR THIS YEAR.)

Rating: 95/100 (For me, this is one of the best anime this year so far, alongside Steins;Gate and Madoka)

AUGUST ROUNDUP

Magazine cover thanks to ahelo- oh wait that’s me.

10. Ao no Exorcist: 32/50 (4)

Ao no Exorcist has taken quite a dip this month. I guess I just don’t like the way it handles original material since characters like Konnekomaru get ruined. The easy-going pace it has that I actually quite liked disappeared with the twists and turns too. But I still like it, and by the looks of where its headed, we might get a good finale.

9. Hanasaku Iroha: 36/50 (6)

It managed to save a little more face than AnE, but it surged down a lot too. Why is Minko annoying again? Why does Tohru keep showing up and making love triangles everywhere when I clearly don’t like him? Who the hell cares about Enishing and Takako? The only thing is has going for it is Grandma which is getting a lot of great lines.

8. Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Nii: 38/50 (14)

It may not be as funny as the first season, but its doing a lot of things right. The “trying to find who was taking the pictures” arc went a tad bit too long, but it had its moments. The main gist of my praise though is the Minami-centric episode which was perfect in every way.

7. No. 6: 39/50 (8)

Well I don’t get the hell what’s going on most of the time, but hey I’m having a lot of fun with it. I love the overly metaphorical dialogue everyone has, the getting-gayer-by-the-second relationship of the main characters, and the overall story they are telling. It never changes feel and its firm with its grip on its story.

6. Kamisama Dolls: 40/50 (7)

I really like Kamisama Dolls, if you haven’t noticed. Its storytelling is very solid, and completely flaunts it off in the flashback episode. Man, that episode with the teacher was awesome, albeit a bit creepy (the teacher’s actions). It also sets a more darker edge to the series (well not really, haha episode 8) but. . . OH WHATEVER I JUST LIKE IT.

5. Dantalian no Shoka: 42/50 (10)

Unlike Memochou which never got out of the “I think there’s something missing” and is slowly getting worse, Gainax’s Dantalian no Shoka just gets better and better in my eyes. Of course the beautiful animation helps, but the story it presents, the little mysteries, have quite a soothing feeling to them. Some have relevance to today’s otaku society (too much sometimes) like the fujoshi who keeps killing the writer because he’s not writing the end the fujoshi wants, or the followers of that Frankenstein Girl. Also they’re putting a lot of Gainax trademark, like the lovers who turned into a new being (fujoshi episode), some fight scenes that utilizes that black color, and more.

4. Mawaru Penguindrum: 45/50 (5)

It just gets more awesome doesn’t it. From Penguin Queen trash-talking Ringo, to Kanba’s moment of manliness, to Ringo making a frog lay eggs on Shouma’s back on hot temperature to her trying rape, and Fabulous Max,. . . god I love this anime. I am getting worried that I like way too much anime this season.

3. Usagi Drop: 46/50 (3)

Usagi Drop is DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW. This is why I don’t blog it.

2. Nichijou: 46/50 (1)

There was no moment that reached Mio’s wrestling episode, but there are a lot of skits that came close. Did I mention that I also LOVE THIS ANIME.

1. Steins;Gate: 49/50 (2)

I think its appropriate to put this on first. It started slow with the Rukako episode, but quickly picked up pace with Moeka’s and to Mr. Braun’s. It got really dark and creepy, death toll went up, and finally we see Kurisu leave. Well not after a kiss and confession. Also after she leaves, Suzuha reveals that World War III will happen in the future. I don’t know about you, but that’s plot talkin’.

Saimoe Wars 2011 – Episode 8 – Angelic Laydown

Winners: Kanade, Erica, Yuuko

I lol’d at Kanade and her 500-600 fans.

Also Mai is avenged.

Nichijou – 18

Yuuko’s dreams are too lol. Poor workers in the airship.

Haha Tsundere’s back. I think she’s the parody of a tsundere actually, completely reacting to everything in a tsundere way. Her imouto is lol though.

JULY ROUNDUP

So it’s July and it’s time for a roundup! I decided to screw the Mid-month impressions since I realized it was a bad idea so I just tried to stick with the traditional monthly impressions. The total score per month would be 50 and by the end of the season, I’ll add everything up and do a seasonal ranking. I love rankings btw.

16(new) BLOOD C – (15/50)

The fourth episode was very interesting, a step up from the disappointment of the first three. It’s still a disappointment though, these four episodes, and CLAMP needs to give better execution for me to rate this any higher.

15(new) Itsuka Tenma no Kuro Usagi – (18/50)

I think I’m gonna hold this for a while. While it has an interesting story, it doesn’t execute it well. The characters are bland, there’s the bad type of fanservice, and it has a problem of telling and not showing. For now, I’d consider this dropped.

14(new) Baka to Test To Shoukanjuu Ni! – (22/50)

I love the first season a lot. I guess this one is much of the same but those first two episodes were very lukewarm and boring in terms of making me laugh. I just hope it doesn’t go to the same pile as Maria Holic.

13(new) Sacred Seven – (23/50)

It has an interesting premise but not executed well. I’m very engrossed to the series but it has a lot of glaring faults. There’s still a lot more episodes to fix that though.

12(new) Mayo Chiki – (27/30)

It would’ve made it to the passing mark but the third episode sucked. I think this is my guilty pleasure series this season though so I’m tentatively positive about this one.

11(new) It’s the NEET thing to do – (34/50)

The dialogue and the mystery is the main hook for me. It’s well done and it’s just so witty. There’s still something lacking though and I can’t point my finger at it but it’s a nice start for this series.

10(new) Dantalian no Shoka – (34/50)

The GOSICK this season, Dantalian doesn’t disappoint at all. Animation-wise it;s the best this season, and the plot is also pretty good. The main characters have great chemistry (the fact that they’re both smart is already a win factor) and its building up to something interesting. Again though like the other mystery-solving series before it, there’s something lacking that I can’t point my finger at.

9(new) Moe in Paris – (35/50)

It has a solid start for a heartwarming, educational, and cultural story. It is very laidback, the soothingness creeps to you slowly making you go AWWWW and Dawwwww. I realized though “WHY THE HELL AM I BLOGGING THIS?!!?”. It didn’t cross my mind until now that it gives me the same feeling as Usagi Drop and would be hard to blog. AHAHA I’m dumb.

8(new) No.6 – (36/50)

This is the BL Dystopia fantasy anime of the season. One moment everyone’s serious and then the next moment everyone’s hinting BL undertones on each other. Not that it’s a bad thing since it’s so LOL and they are chugging in an awesome plot. . . I’m very excited for this!

7(new) Kamisama Dolls – (38/50)

This series is completely appealing to all my Anime tastebuds. Interesting story: Check!, Interesting Characters: Check!, You know it will explode sometime soon: Check!, There’s the intrigue you really like in anime: Check!. This is how awesomely Kamisama Dolls rolls.

6(4) Hanasaku Iroha – (38/50)

I think I went overboard in praising this. Episode 16 I was all like, “It reminds me of Toradora! This is the shit!”. Then episode 17 came in to ruin he day. Damn episode 17, Hanairo was getting really consistent! I do hope they start tackling the main characters again now. It seems that the series is at its best when they put Kou-chan (though I personally lost interest in him when he dissed Ohana). Besides it was gonna be hard topping last month’s awesomeness.

TOP 5

5(new) Mawaru Penguindrum – (40/50)

There’s actually two new series I’m in love with this season. This is the one of them. Now that I’ve watched Revolutionary Girl Utena, I totally get why people are so excited about this. It’s very layered with symbolisms (not as bombarding as Utena) and there’s a good story to be told. It seems that the series is concentrating on beliefs; Fate or no fate. It’s not technically bltantly pointed out, but it’s something to realize. Also, those penguins are awesome.

4(5) Ao no Exorcist – (42/50)

It had an awesome mid-season climax; not to mention how it’s getting more and more exciting with the plot starting to finally roll. Big-boobs is a great addition to the cast. The awesome thing about this series that differentiate this from other Shounen action is the focus. It’s very character-oriented. Friends are a dominant team as also is teamwork. Also one must note that this series is really coll. Saying it’s not cool means your blind or something.

 3(new) Usagi Drop – (42/50)

When I watch this series, the thing that keeps coming out of my mouth is the word “DAWWWW”. Damnit the parenthood being shown in this series is so realistic and down to earth. It can really attack anyone who’s watching this. Rin is the most adorable thing ever and I’m glad 2ch isn’t into boning her because if they did, Imma kill all of them. Nice to know that sometimes, people like the idea of parenthood. Afer a long meditation, I realized I liked this quite a bit more than Penguindrum, thus the high score.

2(3) Steins;Gate – (49/50)

The series is completely chugging the plot. . . it’s getting more and more interesting as the episodes progress. I love the idea that Okarin and co. is trying to reverse engineer everything to the point that Mayuri wasn’t endangered at all. But yeah “No hope goiys” so far. . . SUZUHA!!!!!!!!! L

1(1)Nichijou (50/50)

So it manages to be funnier than it already is. . . WHATTUP! I think Mio’s wrestling spree propelled this into a perfect 50.

Addendum:

It seems that the gap between second and third place is getting bigger. Steins;Gate and Nichijou just keep on getting better and better! The new series are sure to challenge that though, especially Ping Duramu and Usagi Drop. So far no disappointments besides BLOOD CLAMPYCLAMPCLAMP.

Nichijou – 16

CRAZY BABY!

I ALMOST BUSTED MY GUT WATCHING THIS EPISODE. Mio’s a crazy fujoshi and her bad side can really go. . . CRAZY. There’s also Yuuko and her ordering problems, I myself am a victim to this too. Hasn’t anyone ordered something, not understand what they ordered, and getting something different from what they though they would get?

Special mention to Nano and Yuuko’s develpment. Yuuko really showed how nice of a person she is though what went on in that segment was just crazy.

Nichijou, deliver more of this awesomeness and I assure you a spot in my TOP 10 all-time.

Nichijou – 14

FUCKIN EPIC

As much as I love Nichijou, I do wish each episode is as awesome as this one. I just love it when Nichijou goes on “We have awesome animators” mode that look 100 times better than your average shounen action anime. Heck I’ll say this looks even better than Soul Eater. Come one KyoAni keep wasting your money cus I LOVE IT!

Also Nano’s finally at school. OP2 isn’t as catchy as OP1 but fucking ED is Tsubasa wo Kudasai with “Find Wally” animation. God I love this series.