2015 closes and there were some good things and some bad things. Here's a run down of the best TV anime in 2015 as I see it.
Your Lie In April: The bitter sweet tale of young love that struggles to survive. Self rejected musical prodigy discovers a reason to live through a girl who grabs life by the horns, only to find out she has a terminal disease and feelings for another boy. The ending of this one made everyone cry but it still ended on a positive and reflective note, a message of survival.
Parasyte: A TV rendition of an older seinen horror manga. Mysterious organisms invade the planet as a way to control the human population. One high school student saves his head but looses his arm to one of them. They team up to survive and understand the meaning behind this sudden change in the earths ecosystem. Skeptical at first due to my distaste of similar stories like Guyver and Genocyber, this one quickly gained my admiration as the main character is faced with impossible odds that he sometimes can't over come.
Himoto Umaru-chan: The cute adventures of a spoiled nerd girl who appears the ideal woman to the outside world. At times too saccharin, the story of the dual personality cute girl is fun and care free. The series makes you warm inside and hope for more beyond its short initial run.
My Love Story: One of the most entertaining anime in a long time. A comedic romp featuring two incompatible people trying to learn how to be each others first love interest. Ridiculous characters in normal situations and an innocence that is sometimes cringe worthy. I haven't enjoyed an anime this much in a really long time. So quality, much entertainment. This one really is my top pick for best anime in 2015.
Rin-ne: The long awaited return of Takahashi Rumiko to the ranks of TV anime. Rin-ne is the worlds richest female manga artists 5th TV anime and returns to the comedic insanity of her earlier works like Ranma 1/2 and Urasei Yatsura. The story deals with a broke part time death god and a girl who can see spirits having to put up with harassment from the living and the spiritual world. Harassment in a purely comical way. This series is a nice return to comedic form. The show rarely takes its self seriously and in a land filled with too much drama is greatly welcomed.
Durarara 2: Durarara returns for more doings in the fictionally fucked up Tokyo ward of Ikebukuro (the ward is real by the way). The series continues to unfold an incredibly long and intertwined story of treachery, friendship and survival. While most other stories collapse under the weight of a large cast Durarara continues to be engaging as more and more characters are introduced and their stories are woven into the fabric of the original series. I enjoyed this 2nd season more the the original and eagerly await its 2016 continuation.
One Punch Man: The TV anime adaption of a web based comic, re-purposed into a legitimate comic. The story deals with bored hero for fun Saitama and his insane ability to resist all physical damage and cause incalculable damage with one punch. The series begins as a mockery of typical shonen battle stories like DBZ and Naruto but as it progresses begins to become more serious and turn into a legitimate shonen battle story all its own...which is making me reconsider watching it. Its original intention is highly welcomed by me, as I tire of the shonen trappings and their legions of fans.
Not a lot of titles that really impressed me. There were a few that were rather flat and disappointing. Knights of Sidonia returned this year as well. While it did not change from the original season, it didn't leave as big of an impression with me. Time will tell if more will come out as the manga just concluded.
The Melancholy of Nagato Yuki-chan is perhaps the most disappointing. The series, which was not animated by the original crew, is little more than a pointless and poorly planned fan fiction set in the alternate universe of the Haruhi movie (which was my favorite segment from the original series). So much disappointment in this one.
Instead 2015 seemed to be the year of manga for me, not necessarily manga that came out this year but manga I consumed this year, from Gantz to Orange and many points in between. Crunchyroll's manga service was a large contributor to this trend and I have consumed much of their catalog. Sadly, this year taught me that sometimes the anime is better than the manga, particularly in the case of Your Lie in April.
2016 see's the return of more Durarara, and the TV anime adaptions of Ajin and Koe no Katachi. Ajin is mindless action but Koe no Katachi is one I will be eagerly awaiting. The manga was fantastic and its great to see something like this attempt to grow its audience. Plus, 2016 will see the American theatrical release of Mamoru Hosoda's latest film, Boy and the Beast!
Your Lie In April: The bitter sweet tale of young love that struggles to survive. Self rejected musical prodigy discovers a reason to live through a girl who grabs life by the horns, only to find out she has a terminal disease and feelings for another boy. The ending of this one made everyone cry but it still ended on a positive and reflective note, a message of survival.
Parasyte: A TV rendition of an older seinen horror manga. Mysterious organisms invade the planet as a way to control the human population. One high school student saves his head but looses his arm to one of them. They team up to survive and understand the meaning behind this sudden change in the earths ecosystem. Skeptical at first due to my distaste of similar stories like Guyver and Genocyber, this one quickly gained my admiration as the main character is faced with impossible odds that he sometimes can't over come.
Himoto Umaru-chan: The cute adventures of a spoiled nerd girl who appears the ideal woman to the outside world. At times too saccharin, the story of the dual personality cute girl is fun and care free. The series makes you warm inside and hope for more beyond its short initial run.
My Love Story: One of the most entertaining anime in a long time. A comedic romp featuring two incompatible people trying to learn how to be each others first love interest. Ridiculous characters in normal situations and an innocence that is sometimes cringe worthy. I haven't enjoyed an anime this much in a really long time. So quality, much entertainment. This one really is my top pick for best anime in 2015.
Rin-ne: The long awaited return of Takahashi Rumiko to the ranks of TV anime. Rin-ne is the worlds richest female manga artists 5th TV anime and returns to the comedic insanity of her earlier works like Ranma 1/2 and Urasei Yatsura. The story deals with a broke part time death god and a girl who can see spirits having to put up with harassment from the living and the spiritual world. Harassment in a purely comical way. This series is a nice return to comedic form. The show rarely takes its self seriously and in a land filled with too much drama is greatly welcomed.
Durarara 2: Durarara returns for more doings in the fictionally fucked up Tokyo ward of Ikebukuro (the ward is real by the way). The series continues to unfold an incredibly long and intertwined story of treachery, friendship and survival. While most other stories collapse under the weight of a large cast Durarara continues to be engaging as more and more characters are introduced and their stories are woven into the fabric of the original series. I enjoyed this 2nd season more the the original and eagerly await its 2016 continuation.
One Punch Man: The TV anime adaption of a web based comic, re-purposed into a legitimate comic. The story deals with bored hero for fun Saitama and his insane ability to resist all physical damage and cause incalculable damage with one punch. The series begins as a mockery of typical shonen battle stories like DBZ and Naruto but as it progresses begins to become more serious and turn into a legitimate shonen battle story all its own...which is making me reconsider watching it. Its original intention is highly welcomed by me, as I tire of the shonen trappings and their legions of fans.
Not a lot of titles that really impressed me. There were a few that were rather flat and disappointing. Knights of Sidonia returned this year as well. While it did not change from the original season, it didn't leave as big of an impression with me. Time will tell if more will come out as the manga just concluded.
The Melancholy of Nagato Yuki-chan is perhaps the most disappointing. The series, which was not animated by the original crew, is little more than a pointless and poorly planned fan fiction set in the alternate universe of the Haruhi movie (which was my favorite segment from the original series). So much disappointment in this one.
Instead 2015 seemed to be the year of manga for me, not necessarily manga that came out this year but manga I consumed this year, from Gantz to Orange and many points in between. Crunchyroll's manga service was a large contributor to this trend and I have consumed much of their catalog. Sadly, this year taught me that sometimes the anime is better than the manga, particularly in the case of Your Lie in April.
2016 see's the return of more Durarara, and the TV anime adaptions of Ajin and Koe no Katachi. Ajin is mindless action but Koe no Katachi is one I will be eagerly awaiting. The manga was fantastic and its great to see something like this attempt to grow its audience. Plus, 2016 will see the American theatrical release of Mamoru Hosoda's latest film, Boy and the Beast!
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