Hi! I like doing top 10 lists. And I sorta wanna do this, because I think I sorta have too much spare time on my hands. Let me just quote a bit about what my friend Necro said:
...We all have those certain anime we have seen and love to death.
So, here I am, with a top 10 list. Honestly I might change it once I finish a bunch of anime I need to watch and will hopefully finish before New Years. But one thing is certain about this list: the top 5 on this list are nothing but masterpieces.
Guidelines
I must have seen the anime in question for it to make it onto my list.
I must have finished the ENTIRE anime series for it to be on the list. But fuck OVAs and specials.
SAO is a shit series, and will never appear on my top 10 list except for top 10 shit animes.
I am excluding the Pokemon, Digimon, and Yugioh Anime as well as excluding the Big 4 Anime, those being One Piece, Dragonball Series (But fuck GT, GT was horrible), Naruto, and Bleach.
10. Kyoukai no Kanata (Beyond the Boundary)
MAL Synopsis:
The dark fantasy follows a high school sophomore named Akihito Kanbara. Although the boy appears human, he is half youmu and invulnerable to wounds because he can heal quickly. One day, Akihito meets freshman Mirai Kuriyama when it seems she is about to jump from the school rooftop. Mirai is isolated because of her ability to manipulate blood, which is unique even among members of the spirit world. Disturbing events begin to unfold after Akihito saves Mirai.
(Source: ANN)
This along with the movies, make this a really good series. But this anime can be really light and funny, and have some really sad moments. Some people do say that it's unorigonal, and pretty too, but it's these memorable moments and characters that make this anime great (glasses fetishes ). Not to mention, its enjoyable to watch.
BTW, lets get this out of the way: You don't judge an anime by it's art. Just because it looks pretty, doesn't mean it's good (SAO). And it's also the other way around, just because it looks horrible doesn't mean it's bad. I could go on about how I am trying to watch series like Aku no Hana or Serial Experiments Lain are difficult to watch because of their art style, but I am aware that those animes are really good.
9. Hourou Musuko (Wandering Son)
MAL Synopsis:
Effeminate fifth grader Shuuichi Nitori is considered by most to be one of the prettiest girls in school, but much to her dismay, she is actually biologically male. Fortunately, Shuuichi has a childhood friend who has similar feelings of discomfort related to gender identity: the lanky tomboy Yoshino Takatsuki, who, though biologically female, does not identify as a girl. These two friends share a similar secret and find solace in one another; however, their lives become even more complicated when they must tread the unfamiliar waters of a new school, attempt to make new friends, and struggle to maintain old ones. Faced with nearly insurmountable odds, they must learn to deal with the harsh realities of growing up, transexuality, relationships, and acceptance.
Lauded as a decidedly serious take on gender identity and LGBT struggles, Takako Shimura's Hourou Musuko is about Shuuichi and Yoshino's attempts to discover their true selves as they enter puberty, make friends, fall in love, and face some very real and difficult choices.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
With that said, this is probably the best LGBT anime created. The pilot of the episode itself is extremely well done. And apparently manga fans were not dissapointed. The art style for it, is not what you usually expect, but that really doesn't mater. Nevertheless, cliches like "love triangles" or "School Festival Plays" are actually done really well with this.
8. Charlotte
MAL Synopsis:
While on the surface Yuu Otosaka appears to be just another charming and intelligent teenager, he has a secret—he has the ability to slip into people's minds and fully control their body for five seconds at a time. Yuu has been using this skill for years to gain the highest grades, which allowed him to enter a prestigious high school.
When the enigmatic Nao Tomori catches Yuu using his power, she coerces him and his sister Ayumi into transferring to Hoshinoumi Academy, a school for students with supernatural abilities. The student council of the school, led by Nao, is tasked with secretly tracking down adolescents who abuse their powers. Yuu is forced to join the student council and together, they face formidable challenges that bring him closer to the shocking truth that his own, seemingly incomplete ability, might be more powerful than he could have ever imagined.
An original story from Jun Maeda, creator of Angel Beats and Clannad, Charlotte explores the supernatural lives of these teenagers and the price they must pay for being special.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
I have a lot of other things by Jun on this list further down the line, but this guy makes fuckin masterpieces. And while your watching it, you can tell that it has some moments that would remind you of Angel Beats, like the opening. And this is one of the only writers that I know, that can make you hate a character, but gradually on you'll change your feelings towards that character, and you'll start to like them. Or feel bad for them. There's another anime on this list that does this really well. And also the reverse.
7. School Days
MAL Synopsis:
Makoto Itou is a young Japanese high school student beginning his second term at the fictional Sakakino Academy. During his daily train rides to and from school, he becomes infatuated with fellow student Kotonoha Katsura; a girl that also commutes. When a new classmate acquaintance of his, Sekai Saionji, discovers his secret crush on Kotonoha, she helps introduce both of them to each other and over time they grow closer and agree to date; however in spite of her proud and triumphant matchmaking efforts, Sekai inadvertently becomes jealous of the new couple, having also developed feelings toward Makoto.
The following afternoon on her way home at the nearby train station in front of the school, Sekai finds Makoto waiting for Kotonoha to rendezvous for a date. He sits with her and reiterates his appreciation for her help, and feeling heavily indebted, offers repayment anyway he can. Though she believes he is overreacting, Sekai decides to redeem her obligation by placing a kiss on his lips as her train pulls in; quickly rushing into an open passenger car and happily bidding a dumbstruck Makoto luck on his date.
(Source: Wikipedia)
This is probably the most slyly written anime on this list. We have our protagonist, Makoto, who you want to cheer on because he is so innocent. But towards as School Days goes on, your feelings for Makoto will most likely change. Sadly, can't really explain why without spoiling what happens, but if you get to the end, and you are happy about the end, you'll understand why School Days is a really sly anime.
6. Elfen Lied
MAL Synopsis:
The Diclonius, a mutated homosapien that is said to be selected by God and will eventually become the destruction of mankind, possess two horns on their heads and have a "sixth sense" which gives them telekinetic abilities. Due to this dangerous power, they have been captured and isolated in laboratories by the government. Lucy, a young and psychotic Diclonius, manages to break free of her confines and brutally murders most of the guards in the laboratory where she is being held, only to be shot in the head as she makes her escape. She survives, falling off a cliff into the ocean and manages to drift along to a beach where two teenagers, Kouta and Yuka, discover her. Having lost her memories, she was named after the only thing that she can now say, "Nyuu," and the two allow her to stay at Kouta's home. However, it appears that the psychotic side of Lucy is not dead just yet...
(Source: ANN - Revised)
I think from this point on, all of these anime's (including this one), have openings that are really good that I just love listening too. Or, with a special case, no opening at all. Which works well. But with the other animes on the list, you would probably want to skip the opening. To be honest, I could call this a masterpiece as well, cause the end is so beautiful. All of the characters are memorable, and in the end, this is just beautifully well done. Also, sorry for the lack of a movie poster, all of them have some nudity for some reason, and I rather not risk posting that on a forumotion site. ;~; Give the opening a listen instead.
5. Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai (Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day)
MAL Synopsis:
Jinta Yadomi and his group of childhood friends have become estranged after a tragic accident split them apart. Now in their high school years, a sudden surprise forces each of them to confront their guilt over what happened that day and come to terms with the ghosts of their past.
(Source: NIS America)
This anime just sorta wowed me. At first, I really just disliked Jinta cause I felt he was so dam immature, and bratty. But his development throughout the anime sorta changes that, and Menma's cheerfulness is something that'll probably always be remembered. If anything, you probably remember Menma. But the way this story is showed, is beautiful. In writing, you usually wanna show not tell. Same for a lot of art forms. And this anime shows it's story beautifully. And the end is also just beautiful as well. All of these ends are beautiful. And in the end, its a masterpiece.
4. Angel Beats!
MAL Synopsis:
Otonashi awakens only to learn he is dead. A rifle-toting girl named Yuri explains that they are in the afterlife, and Otonashi realizes the only thing he can remember about himself is his name. Yuri tells him that she leads the Shinda Sekai Sensen (Afterlife Battlefront) and wages war against a girl named Tenshi. Unable to believe Yuri's claims that Tenshi is evil, Otonashi attempts to speak with her, but the encounter doesn't go as he intended.
Otonashi decides to join the SSS and battle Tenshi, but he finds himself oddly drawn to her. While trying to regain his memories and understand Tenshi, he gradually unravels the mysteries of the afterlife.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
School for deceased children. That's how you sum up this anime in about 1 sentence. Though just about all of the moments within this anime are beautiful. Soundtrack, beautiful. The character's themselves are all interesting. And the end is nearly unforgettable. After all, it was written by Jun Maeda. The dude writes fucking masterpieces. Though, I think some other's will say some of his other work is better then this.
3. Shinsekai yori (From the New World)
MAL Synopsis:
A millennium from now, in Japan, exists a utopia. The protagonist, Saki Watanabe, lives in an idyllic village barred from the outside world. Her world is ruled by the people who possess the "gods' power" of psychokinesis. After finally obtaining her own powers, Saki enters the Zenjin Academy to train along with five other children: Satoru Asahina, Maria Akizuki, Mamoru Itou, Shun Aonuma, and Reiko Amano.
Not all is as it seems, however. In this utopian village, strange rumors about a monstrous cat that abducts children circulate, and students are said to disappear from the academy. The world and its history are much darker than they appear and humanity is on the verge of collapsing.
(Source: TV Tropes, edited)
This anime is beautiful! And people complain about the art? They are fucking crazy. And even so, this anime is a masterpiece. If anything, the world in this anime is so well written. Like my god, if anything, you remember the world this anime has. You come to love the characters. Also it doesn't have an opening. Mostly because this anime needs to just jump right into the content. Hell, the story is so good, I might just try to pick up the novel and read it. But seriously, who doesn't want to watch about kids learning about how fucked up society is?
2. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (When They Cry) | Higurashi no Naku Koro Kai (When They Cry 2)
MAL Synopsis(Higurashi no Naku Koro ni):
After moving into the quiet town of Hinamizawa, Maebara Keiichi spends his days blissfully in school often playing games with his local friends. However, appearances can be deceiving. One fateful day, Keiichi stumbles upon news of a murder that had occurred in Hinamizawa. From this point on, horrific events unfold in front of Keiichi, as he soon learns his close friends may not be all that they seem. Based on the amateur mystery game by 07th Expansion, the story is told in a series of different scenarios.
MAL Synopsis(Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai):
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai continues the story from the first series and sheds light on many of the dark mysteries prevalent in the first season. The young group of friends in the town of Hinamizawa continue to have terrible conflicts with one another in their never ending summer of 1983, often ending with the brutal murder of one of their numbers. With the help of her spiritual friend ,Hanyuu, Furude Rika tackles these challenges over and over, trying her best to keep their lives from coming to a tragic end. With no end to the torture in sight, Rika must call upon the bonds of friendship and trust among her friends to discover the true villain of this eternal June.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
Kay, to me, this is just a masterpiece, but in the anime world, it's not really a masterpiece. But if anything, this is probably one of the best, if not, the best horror anime out there. For starters, the soundtrack and openings are amazing, the stories are great, and the world's atmosphere is fucking horrifying. Oh, and the characters are amazing. Shion and Mion are the queens of Yandere, and Rena is the queen of Yangire. They aren't the only psychopaths, everyone is a fucking psychopath. Besides RIka.
To help ya understand the first season (ni), each chapter is a different story, which is then all wrapped together in the second season (kai). Either way, this anime heavily influenced me, and I really found myself enjoying it. But on this list, Shinsekai Yori and Higurashi are the only animes that perfected their worlds.
Honorable Mentions:
A Certain Magical Index | A Certain Scientific Railgun Series - God's fear a guy that has no powers and punches shit.
Koroko Connect - If I could swap bodies with anyone, I would do it with my man Adolf
Akuma no Riddle - Typcial survival game
Date A Live Series - Guy lives dating sim.
Noragami Series - Someone needs to pay Yato 5 yen to help make his series better
Gakkougurashi - Girls who protect a girl who thinks the river known as denial exists.
Gj-bu - Kidnaping boy and making him join a club? Seems legit.
Another - People die because a boy joins the class.
Toradora - Totally unpredictable main pairing
Tegen Toppa Gurren Lagann - I'm sorry, but why is Yoko so fucking -
Animes to Watch List:
Aku no Hana
Serial Experiament Lain
Lucky Star
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso
Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo
Shuffle
Akagami no Shirayuki-hime
Ansatsu Kyoushitsu
Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Darou ka
Highschool DxD
Rosario + Vampire
1. Clannad | Clannad: After Story AND Little Busters! | Little Busters!: Refrain
MAL Synopsis(Clannad):
Okazaki Tomoya is a delinquent who finds life dull and believes he'll never amount to anything. Along with his friend Sunohara, he skips school and plans to waste his high school days away.
One day while walking to school, Tomoya passes a young girl muttering quietly to herself. Without warning she exclaims "Anpan!" (a popular Japanese food) which catches Tomoya's attention. He soon discovers the girl's name is Furukawa Nagisa and that she exclaims things she likes in order to motivate herself. Nagisa claims they are now friends, but Tomoya walks away passing the encounter off as nothing.
However, Tomoya finds he is noticing Nagisa more and more around school. Eventually he concedes and befriends her. Tomoya learns Nagisa has been held back a year due to a severe illness and that her dream is to revive the school's drama club. Claiming he has nothing better to do, he decides to help her achieve this goal along with the help of four other girls.
As Tomoya spends more time with the girls, he learns more about them and their problems. As he attempts to help each girl overcome her respective obstacle, he begins to realise life isn't as dull as he once thought.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
MAL Synopsis(After Story):
Clannad: After Story, the sequel to the critically acclaimed slice-of-life series Clannad, begins after Tomoya Okazaki and Nagisa Furukawa graduate from high school. Together, they experience the emotional rollercoaster of growing up. Unable to decide on a course for his future, Tomoya learns the value of a strong work ethic and discovers the strength of Nagisa's support. Through the couple's dedication and unity of purpose, they push forward to confront their personal problems, deepen their old relationships, and create new bonds.
Time also moves on in the Illusionary World. As the plains grow cold with the approach of winter, the Illusionary Girl and the Garbage Doll are presented with a difficult situation that reveals the World's true purpose.
Based on the visual novel by Key and produced by Kyoto Animation, Clannad: After Story is an impactful drama highlighting the importance of family and the struggles of adulthood.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
I'm sure Clannad has a place in many people's hearts for it's feels and dramatic story. I still need to get the dam VN, but seriously, I'm sure if you seen Clannad, you are familiar with Dongos, and how lovable Dongos are. The first time I watched it, I didn't really get some of it, but I still loved it. The second time I watched it, I understood a lot more of it, and I loved it even more. You love all of the characters, and honestly, if we aren't talking about any of the big 4, or YGO, Pokemon, or Digimon, Clannad is probably one of the most well known, if not the most well known romantic anime. And for good reason too. Hell, the VN is good, the anime is just as good, and it definitely makes the work Seriously though, if we could all be one happy little dongo family, the world would be a better place.
MAL Synopsis(Little Busters):
When tragedy struck Riki Naoe as a child, he was rescued from grief over his parents' deaths when four other kids "recruited" him for their group—the "Little Busters." Now in high school, Riki and the other Busters are still fast friends, and though their vision of being heroes for justice may have faded, they'd still do anything for each other. Which is why Riki is now on TWO special missions. The not so secret one: recruiting new members so the Busters can form a baseball team. Preferably FEMALE recruits, as the current dude/babe ratio is an inconvenient 4 to 1. The OTHER mission, though... That's the strange one. Because Riki and Rin, the group's singular girl, are receiving odd messages, delivered by cats, concerning the existence of a "secret world" and assigning them tasks they have to complete. Were their youthful dreams of being crusaders not so fanciful after all? Or is there something even more vital at stake? Between steeling his courage to talk to girls, dealing with his own narcolepsy and facing his feelings concerning Rin, Riki may just need the strength of a superhero to solve the ultimate mystery of the Little Busters!
(Source: Sentai Filmworks)
MAL Synopsis(Refrain):
Riki and his friends have been managing to form a complete team for the Little Busters baseball team and after overcoming some of its new members' internal conflicts, Riki and Rin slowly approach the "secret of this world."
Will they be ready for the truth? In this world devoid of logic, something has started to move and soon will come the time when the lives of the Little Busters will change forever.
(Source: Koi-nya, edited)
My god I love this anime. Honestly, some people say compared to Clannad, Clannad is way better. I can't decide which one is better, I love them both. Little Buster's just does everything so dam well (Though it is accepted fact that the VN for Little Busters is better then the anime). The characters are just so well written, like for example Katana Futaki. You learn through the story to hate this character. And not dislike, hate. Then later on you feel so dam bad for her. And Kyousuke is one of the most well-written antagonists in anime. I don't even think describing him as an antagonist is appropriate, but Key manipulates characters in this series so dam well. So, along with Clannad, I have to say that this and Clannad are the best dramatic anime I've ever seen.
Anyhow, I'll probably make some changes to this once I finish the anime on my to watch list, but please, if you feel like there is some anime that you feel like I should add to the to watch list, please do tell. I would like to watch it. Now don't mind me, I've spend 3 hours working on writing and designing this list, and its somewhere between 2 and 3 am. I need some sleep.
im currently watching a few on your list here bote and from your descriptions ive definitely found a few new animes to check out if i were to list my top 10 id have a fair few mainstream animes up there as u said the big 4 are in my and most likely a lot of ppls list but if i were to exclude them my list would be (im not going to go into as much detail as bote did but none the less)
10. heavens lost property
9. Kill La Kill
8. log horizon
7. Deadman Wonderland
6. High school of the dead
5. high school DxD
4. Tokyo Ghoul (a little bit main stream ik but i love this anime)
3. D.Grey man
2. Fairytale (another slightly main steam anime but still 1 of my favs)
1. Black Butler (i fell in love with this anime from the 1st episode i just love the style, the characters and the whole dark and twisted tone of the anime)
I guess this is a thing now, so I might as well join in. Can’t do my top 10, since I haven’t really watched enough anime, but I can do a top 5.:
5-Naruto
Mostly referring to the first series. While it was still plagued with the large amount of filler that most ongoing anime have, I still found some enjoyment. The side characters were a lot more involved, music was great, animation, in my opinion, was superior to Shippuden and the fights were so much more tactical. Characters didn't win through the power of will and friendship, they won through careful planning or through just being that much stronger than their opponents.
4-Kill La Kill
This is definitely one of those shows that are mostly for entertainment, with a bunch of underlying metaphors and themes to add the actual depth to it. Though the animation can at times seem a bit clunky and, dare I say it, lazy, it still manages to do a great job of highlighting things such as how powerful or important a character is (through use of lighting and seriously over-exaggerating character sizes). The cast is colorful (both figuratively and very literally) and quirky, and there are some seriously epic moments near the end of the series. Overall, a very enjoyable anime.
3-One Punch Man
No comment. Just watch it. Now. Just...stop what you’re doing, drop your soda cans and go watch this anime. No but seriously, it’ll definitely be worth it. The show has jaw-dropping animation (especially during fights, short as they may be), a good cast of characters and a lot of comedy, much of which comes from the main protagonist: Saitama. Unlike most shouen main characters, Saitama doesn’t want to be the best like no one ever was, nor does he fight purely for the sake of his friends and uses his bonds with them to win. He’s simply a hero for fun, who can no longer derive enjoyment from his fights due to his immeasurable power. You may be thinking “Oh, won’t that get boring after a while? If there is no risk involved?” Well, One Punch Man makes up for this by just being so funny and enjoyable that you really end up not caring if there’s a risk involved.
2-Madoka Magica
A lot of people are turned away from this show because it looks like a stereotypical show about cute little girls given strange powers which they use to fight evil and save za warudo. While this assessment is technically true, there’s so much more to this show than meets the eye. The show explores the consequences of being a magical girl and how it affects each character, and is also just much more dark and unsettling than your average magical girl show. Definitely worth your time.
1-Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
This is more of a personal preference. I’d probably say Madoka is a better anime series overall, but I just can’t help but prefer Gurren lagann. It has awesome animation, a lot of over-the-top action and excitement, and just a lot of pure, raw emotion during its climax. Definitely one of the most enjoyable shows I’ve come across.
Bote's top 10 Animes
