Two things I love to do - watch anime, and rank things. Naturally, ranking anime is just my cup of お茶, so I figured I sum up some of my favorite anime of the year, and maybe give you a heads up in case you didn’t get around to watching a particular series. I’ve taken into consideration all regularly-airing TV series that have had at least one episode air in 2008 (no straight-to-DVD, no OVAs), and I’ve limited the number to 15 because we’d be here all day if I didn’t stop there.


Disclaimer: There is little objectiveness in this ranking - as you’ll see from my comments below and from previous blog posts, I am extremely biased towards anime with cute girls with good voice actors, and I tend to lean more towards comedies and slice-of-life shows. Keep in mind, this is a ranking of my favorites, and definitely not a statement of which shows are better than others. Keep in mind that I’ve not watched every show this year, and it’s entirely possible I missed several good ones that would’ve made it to this list.

As such, let me know what you think about my rankings! Which shows in 2008 were your favorites?

15. Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (Harem comedy)
Lighthearted show about Nogizaka Haruka, perfect school idol hottie who just happens to be a closet otaku. Who also has a genki precocious imouto with a penchant for flashing her panties. No, neither of them are dating the captain of the football team, they are all s-s-single and extremely susceptible to nice guys who can protect them! There’s very little substance here but having this kind of setup and Noto Mamiko voicing Haruka is such an otaku wet dream it’s impossible to not like.

 
14. Gundam 00 (Futuristic space drama with big robots)
The convoluted plot would probably make more sense if I were marathoning this show, but having one week intermissions between episodes really throws me off. At any rate, 00 is standard world-altering politics and military Gundam fare with excellent animation and sound quality, but is quite a departure from SEED in that the style is a bit more old-school Gundam. Fans of the olden days should love it; me, I couldn’t get enough of Lacus (and the princess in 00 is a total loser). Told you I was biased!

 
13. Kure-nai (Slice-of-life crime dram… ah who am I kidding, it’s pedo)
Slow paced and quiet story about a girl in exile and her teenage bodyguard. The unique animation style turned me away from the show at first, but after giving it a chance, I found it to be quite enjoyable. Kure-nai is really carried by the amazing main character Murasaki (the girl in exile), who is an absolute handful with her sass and attitude, but instead of coming off an an annoying brat, makes herself seem more genuine and likable. Some real funny moments in this one.

 
12. Itazura na Kiss (Romantic comedy)
With a successful manga series, two Japanese and one Taiwanese live action drama behind it, the anime series had some high expectations to fulfill, and for the most part lived up to them. “Mischievous Kiss” is about a determined high school girl with a huge crush on the school prince. He completely ignores her, but through an inexplicable series of events, she ends up moving in with his family. From there, their relationship develops, and the anime follows them through the rest of high school, college, professional school, and onwards. Lighthearted drama with good comedy and memorable characters, and it’s one of those rare stories that actually goes from start to finish.

 
11. The Tower of DRUAGA -the Aegis of URUK- (RPG gag comedy)
Druaga is about a team of “climbers” that seek to reach the top of a tower to defeat the great boss and achieve their dreams. Armed with swords and shields, wands and magic, they fight through the endless swarms of slime pawns, band together to slay the mighty dragon, and navigate the trickiest of mazes and puzzles, all in the hopes of defeating the mighty king Druaga. It’s a classic setup for an RPG - and the anime takes full advantage of it, exploiting every stereotype and taking every opportunity to throw a gag in. Frankly, it’s totally hilarious - and if I hadn’t mistakenly downloaded it (and watched it anyways), I would’ve never had the chance to enjoy it.

 
10. Minami-ke: Okawari (Slice-of-life comedy)
This was an absolute heartbreaker for me - the first season of Minami-ke was perfect and would’ve been a clear top 3 on this list, but the 2008 Okawari (second helping) series had such unappealing and buzzkilling animation that it gets booted into the double-digit ranks. Still, the formula remained largely unchanged from the first series, with the three sisters and their friends going about their daily lives, encountering hilarious situations at every turn. There’s some actual clever humor going on here, which sets it apart from other comedies that utilize more slapstick humor to get a reaction out of its audience. Mako-chan!

 
9. Code Geass R2 (Futuristic drama with big gravity-bound robots)
I actually thought season 2 of Geass was much better than the first, which is quite rare in anime. The action picked up a notch, the scale and severity of plot twists were getting larger, and seemed… more believable, if that was even possible for something like Geass. I’m guessing it had to do with the shift from the outrageous characters and their ridiculous back stories in season 1 to the more plot-driven events of season 2, but regardless, it was a fun romp and had an appropriate ending. Geass tends to throw some wicked curveballs once in a while - there will be a random gag episode in the middle of an all-out war, and for that reason, while it’s arguably made more enjoyable in the short term, in the long run, I can’t take it seriously at all. Season 2 does better in the sense that there’s less “distractions” (see pic), but there’s just too much craziness going on.

 
8. Kannagi (Harem comedy)
Originally I had tabbed this as a show set up solely to push a cute character design, but as the episodes went on, they got better and better. The main girl Nagi (voiced by relative newcomer but instant sensation Tomatsu Haruka) is quite awesome, and puts on quite a performance in one of the best OP sequences… ever? The show’s director is Yamamoto Yutaka, who was the lead guy for Lucky Star before being axed after the 4th episode - there’s a few references to it scattered throughout Kannagi, which adds to some of the random humor. Beyond that, the voice acting is excellent, the animation quality is good, and most importantly, the characters’ spirited portrayal of not-so-everyday situations makes it fun to watch!

 
7. Toradora! (Dominatrix tsundere harem comedy)
There’s been some rampant hate for this show amongst fansubbing groups, but I don’t really see why. It’s funny, it’s cute, it’s got bright colors and great animation, and it’s got an all-star cast of voice actors. The characters are a bit one-dimensional but that doesn’t mean they aren’t still awesome!

 
6. Nodame Cantabile: Paris-hen (Music drama with a side of romance)
I went back and watched the first season of Nodame a few months ago and I remember telling myself, “I forgot how good this show was…”. While the initial novelty of a cantankerous pairing of “super popular lone wolf music stud” and “train wreck stray dog with unchained talent” has pretty much worn off by the 2nd season, the new challenges that the characters face in a new country still has me giddy for every new episode.

 
5. CLANNAD (Melodrama to the Nth power on top of a bucketful of moe)
Latest incarnation of Kyoto Animation, the studio responsible for AIR, Full Metal Panic, Haruhi, Lucky Star, Kanon. I’ve let my frustrations with Kanon be well known, but surprisingly, none of those have really manifested with CLANNAD, perhaps due to the uniquely non-eroge background. On top of the always-superior animation and voice acting, the stories are genuine and have real heart to them, and seem more believable because they don’t try too hard to be omgepicdrama. Oh, and the characters are much, much more likable!

 
4. Macross Frontier (Space action drama with lots of singing)
I’m not sure why I’m always so drawn to space dramas (Stellvia, Nadesico, SEED, all amongst my favs) - perhaps it’s my geeky tech-loving Star Trek worshiping side. Or maybe because girls with futuristic uniforms are hot. Macross Frontier definitely qualifies for all that, AND has the huge added bonus of having not one, but two songstresses - one of my favorite aspects of the Gundam SEED series. Add the fact that Yoko Kanno (Escaflowne, Wolf’s Rain, Ghost in the Shell) composed the music, a brilliant new seiyuu in Nakajima Megumi, and there’s nothing more to do than to make a note here: HUGE SUCCESS. Yes, almost everything about MF is fanboy bait, but they do it oh so well. Awesome show.

 
3. Soul Eater (Quirky shonen action)
I don’t want to put Soul Eater in the same category as the likes of travesties like Naruto and Bleach, and while the genre and intended audience is the same, the fact that Soul Eater is slated for 51 episodes makes all the difference. The plot is kept tight while the 51 episode format gives the show plenty of time to develop a large cast of characters, which Soul Eater does very well. The quirkiness adds a lot of dynamism and fun to the overall product, and what you end up with is a very well put together shonen action anime that doesn’t lag, stays interesting, and is just a joy to watch. Excalibur!

 
2. Special A (Overly-caffeinated comedy)
Kind of like Kannagi for the Fall 2008 season, Special A was the dark horse surprise anime for the Spring-Summer seasons. It started out just as another typical school life comedy with the usual elite group of students, but as the episodes progressed, started showing some real heart and real substance behind all the gag comedy. Each character was developed well, their relationships fully fleshed out at a good pace. And most of all, the main girl, voiced brilliantly by Mikuru’s seiyuu Goto Yuko, was an absolute blast. Special A isn’t a show I recommend to people just getting into anime, but I always bring it up when asked about my personal favorites.

 
1. ARIA the ORIGINATION (Cuddle up in pajamas with a mug of hot cocoa slice-of-life)
There’s a special place for ARIA in any discussion about favorite anime. For those who have experienced the tranquility that is Planet Aqua and its denizens, little needs to be said, as I have no doubt you feel the same as I do. For those who haven’t had the pleasure: imagine the city of Venice faithfully recreated on a terraformed Mars, where life is slow and everyone is friendly, where the only mode of transportation (save for your own two feet) is a gondola rowed by a warm and welcoming female guide. ARIA is the story of three young gondola rowers (called Undines) as they learn about guiding a gondola, about each other and themselves, and about the mysteries of the planet Aqua. One of the most memorable quotes from the series says “only because your heart is so wonderful, that everything in this world seems so wonderful.” Herein lies ARIA’s true strength - it brings out the best in our hearts, to help us appreciate in whatever way the people and places around us. Three seasons and an OVA later, I do believe ARIA has changed my life and the lives of many others in its own special little way.

 
Just Missed The Cut:

Zero no Tsukaima: Princess no Rondo: Better than the trashy second season, the already stacked cast is boosted with the addition of Noto Mamiko as the big-breasted elf.
 
Total Letdown:

 
Special Mention:

Hope you enjoyed the anime selection this year as much as I did! Until next year!