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hylidaeAnime Meme
Day 2 - Favorite anime you’ve watched so far
I'm going to do my top 15 because I really can't pick just one. If that makes me a big cheater than so be it.
To be honest, the biggest criteria of these picks is if I feel emotion just by thinking about it years later. My list is in alphabetical order as opposed to numerical.
Aim for the Top! Gunbuster (Or just Gunbuster in some parts of the world)
Two lady leads (and one super awesome dude), mecha and a space operaish touch (though only 3 episodes long so not sure if it counts?). A bit dated in some regards (can you imagine a black hole at the center of the galaxy? pure chaos!) but there's still a lot of heart and moving moments in this anime. We see the growth of two young women and their awesome kickassness. The pace is a bit slower than much of the following, but this OVA is a classic for a reason.
Birdy the Mighty: Decode (Second Season)
Season one creates the world, the various plot strands and what note. Season two picks up the pace, brings everything to an end, but as we know everything circles back on itself so its not really the end. The action, the story, the characters, its all amazing. And probably one of the best examinations of racism (albeit of the fantastic kind) that I've seen in awhile.
Digimon Tamers
Lol Digimon. While this show is either one you love or hate (at least according to Digimon fandom), I wholeheartedly loved this show. It shook up a lot of the conventions set in the previous two series (so if did like those conventions you might've hated this season). It started with a smaller cast, allowing more character development. And I loved those characters so. A sensitive leader, a cool nerd, atsundere girl not afraid to be extremely aggressive and strong. Also the plot was more cohesive, darker, and thoughtful. Digimon heresy here, but this was my favorite season, shortly followed by the fifth (which is also darker and plays with conventions). Also this cartoon taught me the meaning of girl crushes (Ruki) and OTPs (Ruki and Ryo) which is the most important lesson anyone can learn. And it also drew me into the dark world of subs. Actually this show is probably what started me on the path of anime fandoms and fangirling.
GaRei Zero
Despite what the pic implies, the bulk of the relationship is that area between friends and lovers. And also lots of kicking ass, but of undead instead of robots/aliens as in the bulk of my favorites. This anime can get pretty sad, and its the whole 'Will you kill the one you love because of love?' (its the subtitle thus not a spoiler) that had me in tears at the end. Especially since many of the character relationships are amazing.
Jungle wa Itsumo Hare nochi Guu (all series)
This show is a slice of life comedy with oddball fantasy thrown in. Pretty different from the rest of the stuff here. This show shines at its oddball comedy. The relationships in this show are pretty touching and hilarious at the same time. Just don't go expecting a coherent plot and you'll be good.
Magical Lyrical Nanoha series
I love awesome battles and magical girl animes. This show has them both, along with lovable characters and some emotional moments. Also, magitek! :D Admittedly I need to catch up on Strikers and the new one, but this series got me out of my 'where's the good anime?' funk I was in at the time.
Mahou Shoujo Tai Alice
A kids anime that also has some of the best world building I've ever seen. And amazing characterization based on said culture. While the anime is a girl falls into a magical world and hijinks ensue, the tale is quite gripping. The girl causes some serious destruction in the world (freeing the animal slaves) and we see, the socio-political impact?! In a kids show?! Why yes, we do. Yet its all done in a very fast paced, easy to understand way. Not to mention this show is a chock full of GIRL FRIENDSHIPS. Ones that are deep, complex, yet remain faithful to how children are. If it weren't for some dropped plotlines, this show would be at the top.
My-HiME
This show got me back into anime after a few year hiatus, and also instilled a drive in me to find more anime about girls kicking ass. Actually this was around my babby feminism days and I was just learning that fictional strong girls are more than just ass kicking, but are internally strong, have their own agency, and ultimately people above grrrl power. (Though ass kicking is still appreciated.) This show boasts a huge cast of diverse, yet complex ladies that are lovable. The action is pretty good, and the story is neato too. While the ending can be pretty hit or miss for people, the journey is pretty awesome.
Noein
Quantum mechanics meets romance. The fight scenes are sparse yet good. This show really shines with its mixture of technobabble and character relationships. Especially when the time travelers, and the normal kids meet and hijinks ensue. This is oddly enough very similar to The Golden Compass except super soft sci fi instead of steampunk/scifantasy. And also a better developed romance.
Noir
While slow to start, this show boasts some pretty gun play along with two awesome girls. It takes me back to my childhood of spy thrillers and mysteries. Also, the soundtrack is one of my favorite.
Princess Tutu
or 
Another cliche but well deserving of it. Not only did I grow up on mecha anime, I also grew up on Magical Girls. And considering the west was pretty poor during my childhood about girl heroines kicking ass, I ate this genre up. Princess Tutu subverts many of the Magical Girl traditions while remaining ultimately upbeat (in my opinion). There's also a big dissection of free will versus fate that makes me go 'guh this is great'.
Read or Die (including the TV series)
Spy thriller theme, the awesome relationship between two girls, awesome fight scenes and ancient conspiracies. What's not to love?
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
I know this is probably a super cliche answer by now. However this is one of the last anime I had the time to watch while it was coming out. Meaning my fond memories are not only of the awesome show itself, but being super active in the fannish/discussion community. While not that far in my past, I will always look back on this show with rose tinted, star shaped sunglasses. Action, comedy, giant robots beating the crap out of eachother, and some meaningful messages if you want to think about it.
Terra e
Space opera with 70s esque art (I really love 70s anime art for some reason). While the character development is sparse, save for a few. Probably the best is Keith Anian (sp?). You watch him from military school to Hitleresque leader and its stunning to watch his character grow and shift. He also punts a toddler, which I loled at more than I should've.
Shikabane Hime
Gunplay, endearing characters and some of the most heart wrenching, tear filled moments in an anime I've ever witnessed. I love how Makina is strong willed, despite her love and how Ori is supportive of her. TBH, this is one of those anime that has an awesome supporting cast but doesn't give them much development. They are still awesome though. The story is pretty interesting, and sometimes creepy as well.
Victorian Romance Emma
A slow paced, slice of life, romance anime. Wtf is this doing here? Actually this is probably my favorite anime and the super high bar I hold up all manga/anime Romance genre stuff to. The relationships are the understated yet complex kind. The two leads are refreshing as they're intelligent, capable adults with their own lives and desires outside of eachother. It makes the romance so much more meaningful in my opinion. The cast is large but lovable. The story itself is a tad cliched, yet presented in an engaging manner. I really recommend this if you like romance in theory, but hate a lot of the over idealized teen stuff that hogs the market.
Day 2 - Favorite anime you’ve watched so far
I'm going to do my top 15 because I really can't pick just one. If that makes me a big cheater than so be it.
To be honest, the biggest criteria of these picks is if I feel emotion just by thinking about it years later. My list is in alphabetical order as opposed to numerical.
Aim for the Top! Gunbuster (Or just Gunbuster in some parts of the world)
Two lady leads (and one super awesome dude), mecha and a space operaish touch (though only 3 episodes long so not sure if it counts?). A bit dated in some regards (can you imagine a black hole at the center of the galaxy? pure chaos!) but there's still a lot of heart and moving moments in this anime. We see the growth of two young women and their awesome kickassness. The pace is a bit slower than much of the following, but this OVA is a classic for a reason.
Birdy the Mighty: Decode (Second Season)
Season one creates the world, the various plot strands and what note. Season two picks up the pace, brings everything to an end, but as we know everything circles back on itself so its not really the end. The action, the story, the characters, its all amazing. And probably one of the best examinations of racism (albeit of the fantastic kind) that I've seen in awhile.
Digimon Tamers
Lol Digimon. While this show is either one you love or hate (at least according to Digimon fandom), I wholeheartedly loved this show. It shook up a lot of the conventions set in the previous two series (so if did like those conventions you might've hated this season). It started with a smaller cast, allowing more character development. And I loved those characters so. A sensitive leader, a cool nerd, a
GaRei Zero
Despite what the pic implies, the bulk of the relationship is that area between friends and lovers. And also lots of kicking ass, but of undead instead of robots/aliens as in the bulk of my favorites. This anime can get pretty sad, and its the whole 'Will you kill the one you love because of love?' (its the subtitle thus not a spoiler) that had me in tears at the end. Especially since many of the character relationships are amazing.
Jungle wa Itsumo Hare nochi Guu (all series)
This show is a slice of life comedy with oddball fantasy thrown in. Pretty different from the rest of the stuff here. This show shines at its oddball comedy. The relationships in this show are pretty touching and hilarious at the same time. Just don't go expecting a coherent plot and you'll be good.
Magical Lyrical Nanoha series
I love awesome battles and magical girl animes. This show has them both, along with lovable characters and some emotional moments. Also, magitek! :D Admittedly I need to catch up on Strikers and the new one, but this series got me out of my 'where's the good anime?' funk I was in at the time.
Mahou Shoujo Tai Alice
A kids anime that also has some of the best world building I've ever seen. And amazing characterization based on said culture. While the anime is a girl falls into a magical world and hijinks ensue, the tale is quite gripping. The girl causes some serious destruction in the world (freeing the animal slaves) and we see, the socio-political impact?! In a kids show?! Why yes, we do. Yet its all done in a very fast paced, easy to understand way. Not to mention this show is a chock full of GIRL FRIENDSHIPS. Ones that are deep, complex, yet remain faithful to how children are. If it weren't for some dropped plotlines, this show would be at the top.
My-HiME
This show got me back into anime after a few year hiatus, and also instilled a drive in me to find more anime about girls kicking ass. Actually this was around my babby feminism days and I was just learning that fictional strong girls are more than just ass kicking, but are internally strong, have their own agency, and ultimately people above grrrl power. (Though ass kicking is still appreciated.) This show boasts a huge cast of diverse, yet complex ladies that are lovable. The action is pretty good, and the story is neato too. While the ending can be pretty hit or miss for people, the journey is pretty awesome.
Noein
Quantum mechanics meets romance. The fight scenes are sparse yet good. This show really shines with its mixture of technobabble and character relationships. Especially when the time travelers, and the normal kids meet and hijinks ensue. This is oddly enough very similar to The Golden Compass except super soft sci fi instead of steampunk/scifantasy. And also a better developed romance.
Noir
While slow to start, this show boasts some pretty gun play along with two awesome girls. It takes me back to my childhood of spy thrillers and mysteries. Also, the soundtrack is one of my favorite.
Princess Tutu
or Another cliche but well deserving of it. Not only did I grow up on mecha anime, I also grew up on Magical Girls. And considering the west was pretty poor during my childhood about girl heroines kicking ass, I ate this genre up. Princess Tutu subverts many of the Magical Girl traditions while remaining ultimately upbeat (in my opinion). There's also a big dissection of free will versus fate that makes me go 'guh this is great'.
Read or Die (including the TV series)
Spy thriller theme, the awesome relationship between two girls, awesome fight scenes and ancient conspiracies. What's not to love?
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
I know this is probably a super cliche answer by now. However this is one of the last anime I had the time to watch while it was coming out. Meaning my fond memories are not only of the awesome show itself, but being super active in the fannish/discussion community. While not that far in my past, I will always look back on this show with rose tinted, star shaped sunglasses. Action, comedy, giant robots beating the crap out of eachother, and some meaningful messages if you want to think about it.
Terra e
Space opera with 70s esque art (I really love 70s anime art for some reason). While the character development is sparse, save for a few. Probably the best is Keith Anian (sp?). You watch him from military school to Hitleresque leader and its stunning to watch his character grow and shift. He also punts a toddler, which I loled at more than I should've.
Shikabane Hime
Gunplay, endearing characters and some of the most heart wrenching, tear filled moments in an anime I've ever witnessed. I love how Makina is strong willed, despite her love and how Ori is supportive of her. TBH, this is one of those anime that has an awesome supporting cast but doesn't give them much development. They are still awesome though. The story is pretty interesting, and sometimes creepy as well.
Victorian Romance Emma
A slow paced, slice of life, romance anime. Wtf is this doing here? Actually this is probably my favorite anime and the super high bar I hold up all manga/anime Romance genre stuff to. The relationships are the understated yet complex kind. The two leads are refreshing as they're intelligent, capable adults with their own lives and desires outside of eachother. It makes the romance so much more meaningful in my opinion. The cast is large but lovable. The story itself is a tad cliched, yet presented in an engaging manner. I really recommend this if you like romance in theory, but hate a lot of the over idealized teen stuff that hogs the market.