2011 has been disappointing so far

**jegolego** · 12-14-2011 11:28 PM

well, at least in my point of view... see, im viewing this from the perspective of someone who watches seinen romantic-comedies that dont have American companies. Really the only 2011 series i liked was Maji de Watashi ni Koi Shinasai. Although I did have this conversation with a friend of mine who said that plenty of good mecha anime series have come out this year, so i was wondering what you, being the internet, think about the titles that came out. So What did You Think?...

**Gjallarhorn** · 12-14-2011 11:37 PM

...but weren't the large majority of the anime titles this year romance-comedies, ecchi-comedies, and the general school-fantasy (school setting, rom-com themes, and some sort of fantasy shtick) trope? You've had a lot more pickin's than those of us who are repulsed by such shows.

This year I enjoyed the continuation of Gundam Unicorn (OVAs 3 and 4), Tiger&Bunny, and the first half Fate/Zero (the second half is set to air in June). Oh, and the second season of Kimi ni Todoke, which aired this year. I think that the anime industry has become progressively worse with the meteoric rise of moeblob shows and re-hashed school-fantasies.

**jegolego** · 12-14-2011 11:52 PM

yeah but it would be impossible for me to watch shoujo anime. when i first started getting into anime, i didnt even no of such a genre as "shoujo". so i would just search top ten romantic comedy anime... bad idea. there are plenty of series that i've watched that i would KILL to have erased from my memory... its a good thing that i started noticing different drawing styles, so now i dont even have to look at the description of the series to see if its a shoujo anime...

**Gjallarhorn** · 12-14-2011 11:58 PM

Not all shoujo series are bad. Kimi ni Todoke is arguable the best romance series (manga or anime) in the last decade.

I should also note that shoujo isn't a genre, it's a demographic - meaning that it's targeted toward a certain group. Shounen is targeted toward young boys, shoujo is targeted toward young girls, seinen is targetted toward adult men, and josei is targeted toward adult women.

**GameGeeks** · 12-15-2011 12:48 AM

Originally Posted by Gjallarhorn

...but weren't the large majority of the anime titles this year romance-comedies, ecchi-comedies, and the general school-fantasy (school setting, rom-com themes, and some sort of fantasy shtick) trope? You've had a lot more pickin's than those of us who are repulsed by such shows.

This year I enjoyed the continuation of Gundam Unicorn (OVAs 3 and 4), Tiger&Bunny, and the first half Fate/Zero (the second half is set to air in June). Oh, and the second season of Kimi ni Todoke, which aired this year. I think that the anime industry has become progressively worse with the meteoric rise of moeblob shows and re-hashed school-fantasies.

Gonna second this. So much so that I went back ten to twenty years for anime.

**BestFly** · 12-15-2011 01:59 AM

Here is a list of shows I saw to completion over the year. Seriously there are some terrible ones, but also some ones that really stand out.

There might be SPOILERS but I'll keep them to a "I dont really care about that" type.

Winter
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica (Amazing in almost every way. Yeah it does have a camp that really hates it for whatever reasons, but every bit of it from the animation style to the dark story and themes really draw you in.)

Yumekui Merry (Decent at first, but went downhill. Art quality is spotty, sometimes it's really good and others it's really bad. Shame they were effected by the Tsunami/Earthquake so much. In any case, Merry turned out to be a really fun character.)

Gosick (A show that was nice at the start, but to me the Victorique and the dude whose name I now forget because so terrible. The filler episodes are really what killed it though as when they got into the story parts I felt like stuff just happened.)

Dragon Crisis (Oh god. This show is terrible. Some of the villains are so awful, and the heroes are even worse. There's also a loli who is naked in the first episode who can only say the main characters name)

Is it a Zombie (This was surprisingly great. Yeah, it's very fan servicey, but it's really so hilarious. The cast is extremely likable too.)

Level E (I was surprised with how much I liked the show. It has some weird sense of humor I found appealing. The way the story archs worked were kinda weird. The early parts of the show were better than the latter, but still a solid watch.)

Fractale (The show that will "save anime from the evil Moe invasion" xD. Yeah, it was terrible. Nothing is really explained in the 11 episodes, the characters are not likable, and the ending is not really satisfactory in any way at all)

Spring
Tiger and Bunny (Probably the surprise of the season. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Some of the parts were dumb, but as a complete package I'd say it really tackled the super hero thing pretty well. Wild Tiger is a true hero btw.)

Nichijou (I didn't get all the jokes, half the time I was stood there with a blank expression on my face. However, I really loved this. It's one of those titles where the more you watch and the more you get the running gags the better the show is.)

Hanasaku Iroha (First half is amazing, second half is amazing...ly bad. This is a show where too much stupid drama ruins what is becoming an all time great. Not saying drama is bad, but I really had to shake my head at some of the stuff. Also, never would i have believed that a character who is barely even in the show would have such a negative effect on it)

Steins;Gate (If you like anime, or just good shows, you'll watch this)

Sofuteni (Another surprisingly good show. Has a funny cast and is just a fun thing to watch.)

A Channel (An obvious cash in on K On's popularity. I can't really say this was a good show. Yeah it was moe kinda, but the characters are not memorable like the K On cast and the situations they get into are not really entertaining)

Denpa Onna (I really really liked this one. I thought the characters were very entertaining. The ending left some to be desired... but there is episode 14 coming)

Dororon Emma (A fun watch, but had trouble maintaining the quality all the way through)

Ao No Exorcist (Decent, but flawed. The mains are really good characters, but the side ones really dont get enough development. The ending arch really felt trainwrecked too.)

Lotte's Toy (If you put the whole lolicon thing aside. This was a cute romantic comedy. Watch out for the FBI though. Nah actually fan service wise it's relatively tame compared to others like those school fighting shows)

The World God Only Knows II (This was really good too. If you enjoyed the first season you'll enjoy this.)

C (As intriguing as the synopsis was... the show was kinda boring to me. Both the main character and bad guy were not remarkable in any sense and the ending really leaves a bitter taste in your mouth.)

Ano Hana (There's a lot of debate on this one. I personally feel like the characters got too terrible and it got too overdramatic at the end of the show, but I understand those who call it an all time great.)

Deadman Wonderland (This is a victim of an 11 episode season. There was a lot of potential here, but it became wasted on bad pacing... it doesn't help that the show only had one really good character.)

Summer
Natsume Yuujin Chou San (If you have not watched Natsume's Book of friends yet, you should. It's a great feel good anime that puts a smile on your face.)

Yuru Yuri (More moeness. This is a pretty good show too. Hits the jokes at the right times, good characters, great OP/ED.)

Usagi Drop (This is one of the few Mangas I've actually read... and I'll tell you it turns...weird as you go on. Thankfully the show does not get to the time skip. Not spectacular, but very enjoyable)

Mayo Chiki! (I have a hard time saying this was a good attempt on a romcom. It's hard to care about the characters, and even harder to put up with the gimmick)

Baka to Test 2 (Again, if you liked S1 you'll like S2. There were a couple of episodes that really focused on the characters that were more serious. Good episodes, but felt out of place.)

Ikoku Meiro (Cute, but that's all really.)

Mawaru Penguindrum (I didn't even know what this show was at first... and then I saw the first episode and knew it was going to be special. It's ending soon, it's currently at the top of my list for airing shows.)

The idolM@Ste R (Decent, but inconsistent. Some episodes are great while others are bad. However, as the show is ending I am impressed how well you feel like you know each Idol being there are so many of them.)

Fall
Hunter x Hunter 2011 (A remake of a classic. Maybe Madhouse need to recover after so many marvel animes. If you havn't seen the original this is turning out to be just as good if not better. The cast has amazing chemistry with each other. It is kinda slow paced, but not to the point where I really care)

Chihayafuru (This ones got SOUL. It really takes you on a huge emotional ride each episode. This is one to look out for.)

Guilty Crown (It has so much potential. But it does some very stupid things. The premise screams Geass... and there are a lot of similarities. The animation is the best of the season, the music is really good too. The past couple of episodes have been good. So it might be coming into its own)

Un GO (More like Un No. Really, pacing problems, weird supernatural stuff that they dont really explain, etc)

Persona 4 The Animation (A good adaptation. If you have not played P4 yet, you should, It's an all time great.)

Ika Musume 2 (The invader is back. Quality wise I feel like it has had episodes worse than those in S1, but also ones that were better. If you liked S1 you'll like this.)

Fate/Zero (Great fight sequences, and the characters are finally getting some development. But it does bother me when Rin got more development in an episode than everyone else within the entire series so far. Still a good show.)

Mashiro iro Symphony (This is as...average as you can get. It's really a harem with no real humor or heat.)

Last Exile: Fam the Silver Wind (This one has spawned a lot of debate as well. Most people who dislike it don't like the main cast of females because of their moeness. I dont know. I feel like the show does a really good job painting the state of the world and representing each characters feelings and personalities.)

Tamayura Hitose (Okay so there is a HUGE art quality drop this past episode. So I have a feeling they overextended their budget. This show is the sleeper hit of the year, literally)

Boku Tomodachi (A show about a group of people who can't make friends decide to form a club to make friends. It has fan service, a trap, two lolis, a crazy perverted glasses girl, a kid whose hair scares people, an abusive girl, another girl who is basically a dumb blonde, and it all adds up to be an amazing watch.

Mirai Nikki (This is fun to watch. I was pulled in from episode one. Not all the episodes are amazing, but none of them have been bad so far.)

Shana III (So half the episodes have been bad, and half have been good. However, the past couple have been very good. Obviously if you have not seen the first 2 seasons you're not going to care about this. The first 2 are really required viewings anyways to really appreciate this)

C3 (Remember when I saw Dragon Crisis is bad? This is bad to a whole new level. No idea why I'm still watching it. It might make me reevaluate some of the 1s on my MAL.)

BenTo (Serious business. Has some minor inconsistency issues but it has a decent cast and a rediculous concept that's very entertaining.)

All and all I'd say I'm very happy with the year. Might not be as epic as 2007 was (Lucky Star, TTGL, Gundam 00, Baccano, Darker Than Black, Nodame Cantabile, Hayate no Gotoku, Clannad just to name a few) but has it's own share of great titles.

**Kaitou Ace** · 12-15-2011 08:10 AM

Have to agree that it really wasn't that bad overall. Usually if there are two good shows a season, its not a bad year, and this one has managed to hit that [and more in some cases], so I can't complain too much. Fate/Zero, Persona 4, Steins;Gate, Mawaru Penguindrum, Tiger and Bunny. I also enjoyed C, Ano Hana, Shakugan no Shana 3, Ika Musume [just hilarious most of the time], Last Exile. Still have to see Usagi Drop and BenTo