4/23/2007

The Queue

What is eternity doing tonight? has become Mega Megane Moé. For the latest posts, please change your links accordingly. This post's just a little list of all the anime I have watched, am watching, or have yet to watch, just for reference. I've reorganized it as sort of a tier list so you can see my preferences and thoughts on each show as well. I think it says a lot about my tastes and who I am.

Shows in bold I'm currently watching, shows in italics I should watch but are currently not for some reason (or I have it as low priority), and plaino font shows have been completed.

Positions subject to change if a show jumps the shark or uh...dives under the shark? You know what I mean.

Tier 1: The defining works
Cardcaptor Sakura (Know your roots. This is where it all began, in an innocent little magical girl show that captured anime viewers everywhere. And I'm not ashamed a bit about it. I believe it would still be good today.)
Kanon 2006 (The anime of the post-CCS viewing period for me. AIR was great. Kanon obliterated it. Maybe it's because the characters were more endearing. Maybe it's because there was more time to develop the plot. But in any case, Kanon really struck home, and I stand by my fanboying unrelentingly.)
Tsukihime *Visual Novel* (Read before AIR, before Kanon, before any other modern anime. Opened a gateway to the land overarching plots where every character had an emotional story to tell. Never knew how much a work of fiction could affect you before this.)

Tier 2: Ones that'd I'd recommend anyone to see
AIR (What can I say, I'm a KyoAni whore. Manly tears are very OK. The show that made me tear up more than anything. And with the Summer specials, it makes you smile too.)
Azumanga Daioh (Easily digestible, universally understood humor that anyone can enjoy. Great in short stints, although not marathonable.)
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (I'm not completely overboard for Haruhi - Nagato, maybe - but it's a very good series that is 'different' in a sense. It's one of those things that you can't understand by reading about it; unless you count the light novels.)

Tier 3: Very good, but not for everyone
Clannad (5/24 complete; Key and KyoAni bias hasn't failed me yet. A bit 'been there', but I blame Fuuko. Dribble, shoot~ and a miss?)
Gambling Apocalypse Kaiji (5/? complete; a guys' show for once that's a great mindgame-like fest about a bunch of down-on-their-luck delinquents fighting for financial survival.)
Kagetsu Tohya *Visual Novel* (A great example of a funny and serious visual novel, but without knowing Tsukihime it'll fall a bit flat.)
KimiKiss Pure Rouge (4/12? complete; a down-to-earth multi-relationship romance show that is refreshing to watch - even if you can see the pairings coming.)
Lucky Star (Funny and cute, but if you're anti-moe, anti-KyoAni, or maybe just not into Japanese culture enough you'll hate it.)
Myself;Yourself (6/12? complete; a somewhat bread-and-butter visual novel adaptation with strong characters and a feel of 'more than the sum of its parts')
Minami-ke (4/? complete; a funny slice-of-life with romance aspects, and a cast that feels like it should be Slice of Life All-Stars)
School Days (Story's a complete trainwreck but you would never think a trainwreck would be so fun (or funny, sometimes) to watch. Presentation is great, music is great. Don't watch if you hate hating characters.)
Shuffle! (The first half drags almost as hard as D.C., and there's almost too much fanservice - and don't mention Memories - but the final half is quite captivating and redeems the series.)
sola (An interesting mix of harem/romance and action, which comes off quite well. A very good dramatic work, but lots of holes as a fictional work)
Tokimeki Memorial ~only love~ (What got me back into anime again, which is my highest praise for an otherwise bread and butter harem romance...with a bit of Akiko's jam to spice things up. Doesn't reinvent the wheel but uses it well.)

Tier 3.5: Yes, I need more tiers.
Da Capo (it's a bit of generic harem at time, and it's a bit filler-ish much of the time, but there are good characters and quite redeeming moments)
Da Capo Second Season (Even slower at the original at times, and Aisia is annoying as all hell; but D.C.'s great characters and character drama carry it through to a passable ending.)
ef ~a tale of memories~ (3/? complete; A trippy visual novel adaptation from shaft; the characters are interesting and the story is interesting but it's very confusing when watched with other anime.)
Nanatsuiro Drops (A great heartwarming show in the vein of Cardcaptor Sakura; romance that pokes a little fun at magical girls as well.)
Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei (9/12 complete; great dark humor and amusing references, but it's losing momentum. Too much off-kilter fanservice, maybe?)

Tier 4: Shows I'd like, but you probably wouldn't
Aria (2/many complete: the Nothing Happens of nothing happens shows, but it has a good feel.)
Code-E (Meganekko, dojikko, romance, case closed. A slow show, which means it's relaxing and entertaining to watch. Drags very hard at times though, and the ending is nonexistant.)
Kanon 2002 (A decent show, but everybody looks silly, Yuuichi's a jerk, and it gets absolutely hammered by Kanon 2006.)
Lunar Legend Tsukihime (As an anime, it's pretty good. As a Tsukihime fan, it's unforgivable.)

Tier 5: Passable shows; average with not much to say
Da Capo II (3/12? complete; fairly dull start first three episodes, but that's the D.C. way. I pray it improves.)
Doujin Work (Smirk-inducing funny and Tsuyuri is awesome, but nothing standout, cheaply made, and short. Not enough time to make an impression.)
Hidamari Sketch (1/12 complete; some appealing aspects to it but it sort of just Teflon-ed off me so far. May change with time.)
Potemayo (1/12 complete; well, it's funny, yeah, and it's cute, yeah, but I don't know. Maybe comedy isn't too much my forte; at least on its own.)
Shakugan no Shana II (5/24? complete; Shana's a good series but this isn't her at all. Too much faux drama, not enough good romance or action. OP rocks more than the show.)
Wangan Midnight (2/26 complete; My first racing anime to be honest, a good idea and less hax than Initial D, but hampered by ugly art and slow release.)

Tier 6: Forgettable
D.N.Angel (One of the few anime in the dead period between CCS and TokiMemo. Not much to say about it; it's not horrible, but the more I look at it the more I see generic yaoi bait.)
To Heart 2 (6/12 complete; one of the first I started upon getting back into anime, but as you can tell, I still haven't finished it. That should tell you how much I care.)

Unrated: To watch
5cm Per Second (R1 licensed; heard lots of good stuff about it and seems up my alley.)
Canvas 2 (Episodes downloaded; reccomended as another eroge/harem adaptation)
Ever17 *visual novel* (Needs to be bought; heard it's better than Tsukihime.)
Genshiken (R1 licensed; the manga seemed like an appealing take on otaku life)
Hayate the Combat Butler (Episodes downloaded; the manga was decent, if not a bit too guy-orientated.)
Higurashi a.k.a. When They Cry (R1 licensed; What is it? I don't know. That's why my job is to find out.)
Honey & Clover (R1 licensed, so close!; another good romance store, it seems)
Maple Story (Airing fall 2007; for laughs, I want to see an entire series of level grinding)
Moetan (Episodes downloaded; I'm more scared to watch this with every passing episode)
ONE (Episodes downloaded; it's a Key, er, Tactics VN adaptation, but heard it was junk. Looks it)
ONE *visual novel* (English patch released; me wants)
Shakugan no Shana (R1 licensed, movie watched, manga / light novels read; had some good existential stuff in the beginning, and the fights / romance seem nice.)
Sketchbook ~full colors (Episodes downloaded; some slice-of-life thingy)

-CCY (9/5/007)

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