chii Finally Made One!

Favourites are a great thing. What makes these shows mine is that I think about them very often when I'm thinking about anime and wish to watch them more than once. Some of them I've already watched 5+ times. To be a favourite they also must be entertaining as a whole series. So if they have season 2's or more, I should have loved them just as much as their season one. Everything on the list below applies! I've been meaning to make this kind of list for many years now and I've finally sat down and mulled through all my anime titles and picked these 100 to be my absolute favourites.

Like digitalboy I'll be updating this list regularly from now on but not once a month. I will only update when I feel an anime has stood up to my standards to break into this 100 anime list. I will keep a list at the bottom of this page which of which anime has moved in and which it has kicked out. I doubt that it'll happen very often but time will tell. Check out my Does Not Want List for a taste of my dislikes.

1. Legend of the Galactic Heroes

2. Fullmetal Alchemist

3. Full Metal Panic!

4. Hikaru no Go

5. Macross Plus

6. Romance of the Three Kingdoms

7. Jyu Oh Sei

8. Baccano!

9. Ristorante Paradiso

10. Infinite Ryvius

11. Mushishi

12. Princess Mononoke

13. Serial Experiments Lain

14. Ninja Scroll

15. Berserk

16. Super Dimensional Fortress Macross

17. Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory

18. Strawberry Marshmallow

19. Hi no Tori

20. Nasu: Summer in Andalusia

21. Gintama

22. Neon Genesis Evangelion

23. Koi Kaze

24. Oseam

25. Rose of Versailles

26. You're Under Arrest!

27. Durarara!!

28. Kare Kano

29. Kita e ~Diamond Dust Drops~

30. Twelve Kingdoms

31. Kemono no Souja Erin

32. Cowboy Bebop

33. Crest of the Stars / Banner of the Stars

34. Mobile Suit Gundam 00

35. Himitsu: The Revelation

36. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni / Umineko no Naku Koro ni

37. 3 x 3 Eyes

38. Whisper of the Heart

39. Honey and Clover

40. Now and Then, Here and There

41. Katanagatari

42. Kurenai

43. s-CRY-ed

44. D.Gray-man

45. Hunter X Hunter

46. Yakitate!! Japan

47. Detroit Metal City

48. Battle Angel Alita

49. Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo

50. Last Exile

51. Turn A Gundam

52. Guin Saga

53. Blue Submarine No. 6

54. Haibane Renmei

55. Astro Fighter Sunred AKA Tentai Senshi Sunred

56. One Piece

57. Detective Conan

58. Kara no Kyoukai - The Garden of Sinners

59. Bokurano

60. Claymore

61. House of Five Leaves AKA Sarai-ya Goyou

62. Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo

63. Chobits

64. Vandread

65. Hotori: Tada Saiwai o Koinegau

66. Tytania

67. Heroic Age

68. Dirty Pair

69. Millennium Actress

70. Neko Rahmen

71. Kuruneko

72. Kuragehime

73. Puni Puni Poemy

74. Excel Saga

75. Arakawa Under the Bridge

76. Giant Robo

77. Dominion Tank Police

78. Canaan

79. Antique Bakery

80. Tokyo Godfathers

81. Iria: Zeiram The Animation

82. Nodame Cantabile

83. Nausicaa Of The Valley Of The Wind

84. Grave of the Fireflies

85. Trigun

86. Alien Nine

87. Gunbuster

88. Texhnolyze

89. Rurouni Kenshin

90. Patlabor: The Mobile Police

91. Junjou Romantica

92. Ryofuko-chan

93. Gravitation

94. Gungrave

95. Sora no Otoshimono

96. Video Girl AI

97. Simoun

98. Shangri-La

99. .hack//SIGN

100. X: The Movie

365 Days of Anime Characters: Day 58/365 Lilan

Day 58/365

From the anime Kemono no Souja Erin, Lilan is a female Ohju that Erin takes care of from infant hood. She later grows up and mates with a male named Eku whom is a wild beast lord. Together they have a baby.

Why I like her: She's strong and obedient to Erin since she was basically raised by her. Her and Erin share a very special bond that no other human has been able to achieve with a beast lord.

Why I hate her: She turns into a big meanie once she becomes a mother of her own. Understandable but sad as well.

Overall: The beast lords are really something special in this anime. There wouldn't really be an anime without them actually.

Review of 2009 Anime Part 1 ~Winter~

So I made a goal at the beginning of this year to watch all anime that started airing in 2009. I made a few exceptions of course. I didn't watch series that I hadn't seen the first season to and knew I wouldn't get around to in time (Major, Ippo, Before Green Gables). Overall I think I did pretty good in watching everything I could get my hands on for 2009. Anyway on with winters aired anime reviews.

For winter everything was watched that aired but Major...5... and Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger. Kupuu!! Mamegoma! was never picked up by anyone so that wasn't watched either. I do plan on watching both of those sports anime but not quite ready yet to take up getting into a baseball (I hate baseball) or boxing anime quite yet. Kupuu I don't think will ever get picked up so that's off the list as well unless magically someone does do it. And really... who wouldn't be interested in a show about seals.... yeah me either. lol

Hetalia: Axis Powers started up and surprisingly gained a lot of popularity. It is still airing right now and shows no signs of really stopping. Hetalia takes the world's countries and turns them into people. Hilarity ensues with the interactions between the countries as they go to war, problem solve world issues together, and do lots of other funny stuff. The show does require you to know some of your history but also teaches it to you as well. Quirks of countries are portrayed quite well too right down to the stereotypical behaviour you'd expect of someone from that country.

Winter proved to be a very good season for me enjoyment wise. I only have 4 shows that I was disappointed with and 1 of those I already knew before it started that it was going to be bad because of its ova's. (Munto) I hoped it would prove me wrong but sadly it didn't. The winter season had a lot of sequels that aired. 9 to be exact which is almost half of the shows that aired. It also holds the anime that I think was the best show overall of 2009 (Kemono no Souja Erin) and the worst show of 2009 (Girl Who Leapt Through Space).

Best show of winter for me, aside from Kemono no Souja Erin because that is the winner for overall best anime of 2009, would be Zoku Natsume Yuujinchou. This was the second season to Natsume Yuujinchou that aired in 2008. I enjoyed this slow paced tale about a boy who could see spirits and inherited a book from his grandmother called the 'Book of Friends'. His grandmother could also see and talk with spirits so she made this book by putting all the names of the spirits that she defeated in it to kept control over them like that. Natsume's journey continues with his goal to release all of the spirits from the book. I loved all the stories that were told in this anime and I especially liked the cat Nyanko-sensei or Madara. I know for a lot of people that this character ruined the anime for them but I loved the humor he brought to this anime. That and I have a soft spot for cats in anime.

Worst show of winter for me, aside from the winner of worst 2009 anime overall Girl Who Leapt Through Space, would be Akikan!. I knew this anime was going to be bad from the start. Cans that turn into girls... right... And have to fight other can girls to see which model is the best... I hoped it would just be silly fun which I suppose for some people it was, but in general it made my eyes and ears bleed. Daichi the useless male lead pissed me off. None of the can girls were remotely interesting and in general everything about this anime just sucked.

Here's my big list of Best to Worst shows of winter 2009:

1. Zoku Natsume Yuujinchou 10/10
2. Hetalia: Axis Powers (still airing) 10/10
3. Minami-ke Okaeri  10/10
4. Birdy the Mighty Decode 2 9/10
5. Shikabane Hime: Kuro 7/10
6. Asu no Yoichi! 6/10
7. Chrome Shelled Regios 6/10
8. Kurokami The Animation 6/10
9. Ride Back 6/10
10. Genji Monogatari Sennenki 6/10
11. Slayers Evolution-R 6/10
12. Maria Holic 6/10
13. Viper's Creed 6/10
14. Maria-sama ga Miteru 4th 6/10
15. White Album 2/10
16. Munto TV 1/10
17. Akikan! 1/10

Surprise enjoyment: Asu no Yoichi, a harem comedy with some ecchi tossed in there. Why I liked it is beyond me. The only thing that stood out about it was that it had a samurai theme to it that I highly enjoyed.

Surprise fail: Viper's Creed, a Mecha Post-apocalyptic anime. Taking my rating aside it just didn't really do anything for me. I don't remember much about it and it didn't really have anything new to offer. It's a very forgettable series.

Honorable mentions: Maria Holic and Ride Back. Both were enjoyable series but ratings from me aside they both fell short of being super awesome.

My Top 60 Series of the Decade 2000-2009

The third and last installment of my decades list brings us to the Series of 2000-2009. The Series were very difficult to choose from and it was very hard to even pick an order (Don't take the ordering of these series to seriously) let alone limit it to a top 50. So I did 60 instead! XD

Lots of other bloggers have already put up their lists and you can find them all listed over on Kitsune's page. Check them out! There's a lot of great lists to be had for all those list crazy people! Also don't forget to check out my OVA's list and the Movies list if you missed them. Digitalboy created an ultimate top decade list that everyone should definitely check out if they haven't already. Add titles that you think are missing from this huge list.

Time to look at my top 60 series of the decade!

60.) Gravitation (2000, 2001) - What can I say I liked the boy boy love... and songs XD
59.) Gilgamesh (2003, 2004) - Love hate, love hate, love hate. Try it. Love it or hate it. I still don't know.

58.) Oban Star-Racers (2006) - Star Wars Episode 1 meets anime. Only it's about a girl racer instead of a boy.
57.) Tokyo Mew Mew (2002, 2003) - Favourite magical girl series besides Sailor Moon. XD

56.) Doujin Work (2007) - Hilarious comedy about a girl who draws a doujin for the first time.
55.) Junjou Romantica (2008) - Yes more boy boy love. More explicit, more smooches. S2 was a let down from the awesomeness of the first season.

54.) Hellsing (2001, 2002) - Really fond memories of watching this series with my sister over and over again. Yes I know the ova is much much better.
53.) School Days (2007) - Nice boat.

52.) Rec (2006) - Cute little love story that made me awww.
51.) Chi's Sweet Home (2008, 2009) - Both seasons of Chi were so awesome. This is what cats are really like. Somehow the Japanese capture this perfectly.

50.) Samurai Deeper Kyo (2002) - Swords, ass kickery, and a confused man.
49.) Kanamemo (2009) - Hilarious moe slice of life comedy.

48.) Nyan Koi! (2009) - Sure it's a harem romance. But the CATS!
47.) Skip Beat! (2008) - That chicken suit was win.

46.) Eureka Seven (2005, 2006) - I only actually really liked the last 10 episodes or so of the series. Great story in general, but the characters were too annoying all the way through to make it a really amazing watch.
45.) Love Hina (2000) - My first harem romance anime I watched. Good memories.

44.) Scrapped Princess (2003) - A great story about sibling bonds with magical powers.
43.) ef - a tale of memories (2007) - Ok I only really like Kyosuke's story with Kei. Those two are adorable. Stay away from S2.

42.) Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 (2009) - Amazing story, graphics, and drama. Great tale of survival.
41.) .hack//SIGN (2002) - Somehow it being slower than molasses on a winters day didn't make me run away. The music was stunning and makes it on my anime playlists everytime.

40.) Mermaid Forest TV (2003) - Horror and mermaids? Yes please.
39.) Get Backers (2002, 2003) - They'll find what you have lots! Pretty boys saving the day!

38.) Samurai Champloo (2004, 2005) - Two dudes who fight all the time and an annoying chick. How was it awesome then? Just was somehow XD
37.) Canaan (2009) - a wonderful clusterfuck of amazing characters.

36.) Soul Eater (2008, 2009) - EXCALIBUR!!!!!!!!
35.) Kino's Journey (2003) - Great travels of a girl and her motorcycle. Really liked the look at the way humans are. Really made you think.

34.) Diamond Daydreams (2004) - 6 amazing stories about the magical diamond dust tale.

33.) Yakitate!! Japan (2004 - 2006) - BREAD! Oishii!

32.) X TV (2001, 2002) - A huge cast of amazing characters fighting to save the world.
31.) Natsume Yuujinchou (2008, 2009) - Both seasons of this show were amazing. Following a young boy that just happens to be able to see and talk with spirits.

30.) Speed Grapher (2005) - I went in expecting a dude that just takes pictures. What I got was that but WAY more.
29.) D.Gray-man (2006 - 2009) - Every episode was a treat to watch. I stalled this series for a good 2 months because I knew that when it ended I was going to be sad. I want more.

28.) Haibane Renmei (2002) - A touching tale about angels that will leave you breathless and ponder many important questions of life.
27.) Minami-ke (2007) - The adventures of three quirky sisters.

26.) Chobits (2002) - One of my favourite romances out there. Chii is adorable and her master Hideki knows it.
25.) Hi no Tori (2004) - 3 epic stories of the legendary phoenix. You'll ponder about life in general. How did we get here?

24.) Gungrave (2003, 2004) - Two men can love each other... No not in THAT way XD
23.) GANTZ (2004) - Great bloody action. Loved the characters even if everyone hated them.

22.) Tytania (2008, 2009) - My updated with pretty graphics space opera fix.
21.) Birdy the Mighty Decode (2008, 2009) - A lovely remake from the OVA that was left unfinished. Glad they came back to finish off such a wonderful story. The characters are awesome.

20.) Banner of the Stars (2000) - A yummy follow up from Crest of the Stars. They just get better and better. 
19.) Himitsu: The Revelation (2008) - CSI with a twist! They'll look at your brain and find the bad guys. SO GOOD.

18.) Vandread (2000 - 2002) - Girls VS boys! Oh crap we should save the universe too!
17.) s-CRY-ed (2001) - One of 5 anime that only managed to make me cry.

16.) Bokurano (2007) - CHAIRS!
15.) Claymore (2007) - "I just want to eat delicious guts."

14.) Ristorante Paradiso (2009) - This is slice of life adult style. Very slow but so mature. And it's about food as well to make it extra delicious.
13.) Strawberry Marshmallow (2005) - Favourite slice of life moe blob out there. Episode 6 will always be treasured.

12.) Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (2006) - A delicious mix or gore, horror, and confusion. No need to answer questions. Just sit back and enjoy the bloodfest! <- (spoilers)
11.) Last Exile (2003) - Felt like I was watching Star Wars racers while watching some amazing cut scene from a Final Fantasy game. Music, graphics, and story were all stellar.

10.) Koi Kaze (2004) - One of the BEST romance series out there. Why? Because it isn't a "normal" romance XD
9.) You're Under Arrest: Full Throttle (2007, 2008) - This series in general is one of my all time favourites. Watching this police department keeping the streets clean along with their amazing character development. Not to be missed.

8.) Mushishi (2005, 2006) - Delicious episodic anime of a man wandering around the landscape in search of learning more about the weird and mysterious mushi.
7.) Twelve Kingdoms (2002, 2003) - An epic tale of epic proportions. Just get past the first 6 episodes to really get into it.

6.) Kemono no Souja Erin (2009) - The best epic tale of a girl and her beast lords.
5.) Jyu Oh Sei (2006) - Short but an amazing story of survival with a twist at the end.

4.) Baccano! (2007) - An amazing gathering of crazy characters on a train. If I was an anime character I would be Miria!
3.) Hikaru no Go (2001 - 2003) - This show made Go actually interesting for 75 episodes!

2.) Full Metal Panic! (2002) - Military, secrets, and a blue haired beauty! Sousuke is pretty delicious too.
1.) Fullmetal Alchemist (2003, 2004) - My all time favourite anime. Nothing has topped it. Few have come close.

Day 1 of The 12 Days of Christmas

First up for The 12 Days of Christmas: romance moments is Kemono no Souja Erin Episode 35 "A New Life" These 12 Days of Christmas posts aren't in any particular order. I just choose moments that actually made me feel all warm and squishy inside. Be sure to check out animemiz’s scribbling's and Desu ex Machina's blogs for more 12 Days posts! Oh and there might be spoilers about so read at your own risk. For the most part though I think I've kept things as spoiler free as possible.

This show has captivated me all throughout the year. I was scared at first that it was just going to be a boring child plays around with the weird animals type of thing but was pleasantly surprised. Then I feared that Erin wouldn't grow up throughout the anime because 50 episodes is a lot of time to kill. Again surprised. Sure it's a little slow at times but it has never failed to be interesting to me. There is so much to learn about this world Erin lives in and I want to know every single detail. Anyway onto my romance moment.

Who? The beast lords Lilan and Ekku

Why they are adorable: Maybe it's just me but I was moved *almost* to tears by their mating ritual in the sky. The colours, music, and feel were just so right. If I ever have kids I'd want them learn of the birds and the bees like that. Generally anything involving animals in anime have a very good chance of making me cry. It was a shock that something like this was so moving to me as generally crying involves death, not life.

Right down to some lovely sky kissing. Spiderman's upside down smooch has nothing on this! XD

I find myself re-watching this scene a lot and everytime it is so touching. Then again maybe it's because I'm a girl that I enjoyed this so much. I hope others have enjoyed this moment as much as I did. It's one not to miss out on.