The Best Anime of 2015

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > VEGETA > The Best Anime of 2015

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Gonna make a post later but I do not see Love Live the Movie on the list???

# ¿ Dec 21, 2015 01:05

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# ¿ May 14, 2024 09:45

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Namtab posted:

Series only

Tragic and also unlikely to stop me.

# ¿ Dec 21, 2015 01:38

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Julias posted:

With all of you guys picking Shirobako, maybe I should give it a second look. The first episode didn't impress me, but how can a bunch of goons be wrong

Some goons think Yui is the best girl so goons can be wrong.

# ¿ Dec 21, 2015 06:53

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Talkin' about Yui from SNAFU, not Yui from K-On! I haven't even watched it either.

Everyone knows Mio is the best K-On! character anyways so :shrug:

# ¿ Dec 21, 2015 07:07

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

A lot of people like it, and for good reason.

Seems like Hibike, Shirobako, and OPM are the clear winners so far.

# ¿ Dec 21, 2015 07:12

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

I thought people hated RWBY, calling it fake anime, western poo poo, etc. etc.

Now it's suddenly popular.

Did they make a new RWBY thread or did people suddenly decide they like it.

# ¿ Dec 23, 2015 04:59

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Lemon Curdistan posted:

It's getting released in Japan so now it is truly anime.

Korean dramas are being aired in Japan too but that doesn't make them anime.

# ¿ Dec 23, 2015 09:43

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

The Colonel posted:

If I got aired in Japan... would that make me anime...?

*while dying and coughing up blood*

It's okay Colonel... you... you're already... an anime...

*dies*

# ¿ Dec 23, 2015 09:45

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

All these reviews are seriously making me consider giving Shirobako and Euphogear another chance.

# ¿ Dec 29, 2015 07:03

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Twiddy posted:

I feel this thread provides this valuable service. A quantifiable "no really you should watch this/have given it more of a chance."

Especially for those normie people that don't watch much anime in the first place.

You calling me a normie?????

I'll show you! I'm going to post my list and it'll only have 4 normie shows!!!!

# ¿ Dec 29, 2015 07:16

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

poo poo I wanted to do this before the year was over, so here I go.

5. Rokka no Yuusha
I know that Rokka is sorta divisive among goons. Some like it, some liked it until they got to the ending and loving hated it, and others hated it midway when it became about mysteries and threw away the Aztec / Mayan setting. I'm firmly in the first camp. I got into Rokka because of the mystery in the first place. I wanted to know who the fake was. I got into it without watching a trailer or anything so I didn't really come off with more expectations other than "how is the author gonna pull it off?" I got hooked from the first episode, and by the time I finished the second (or third) episode I'd already bought the first volume, which I blazed through in a day. Then I ordered the next 4 volumes and blazed through (most of) them as well. Still haven't finished the fifth. Rokka was fun, its characters were interesting, and its mysteries were engaging. To be honest, this is going on my list less because of how good the anime was (it was good, but I never watched the last episode for no good reason). It's going on my list cause it got me interested in light novels again. It's a massive shame that the rest of the books are unlikely to be animated because I really would like to see future volumes adapted into animation. At least I'll always have the books.
4. Working!!!
Working! has always been good, and the newest season is no exception. It would be higher, but I hated Momma Takanashi and found her hella creepy and off putting so it loses points for that. Inami is still cute, Poplar is still small, and Yamada is still Yamada. The season did a good job of wrapping up the whole thing neatly, and even got into deeper story lines as a result. I actually felt sorry for Kozue. I used to hate her. Now I just wish her the best. I'm incredibly happy all the romances worked out. The series was good from the first season to the last, and I'll always remember it fondly. Now, when is Servant x Service S2 coming out???? Or even the author's other series about the yukionna who can't accept the main character's love because it'll make her melt? I fuckin' love the mermaid.
3. Oregairu (SNAFU S2)
SNAFU was good, SNAFU S2 was even better. While SNAFU took some time to set up the characters and get to know them, SNAFU S2 doesn't need to do that and really gets into it from the very first arc. There's not as much comedy as there was in S2, and tensions are even more rampant and things get awkward real fast. I can't admit that I could realize everything that was going on, but reading people's take on the characters in the SNAFU thread while watching the series alongside them was also incredibly interesting and provided a lot of insight. The show does a great job of laying out the issues, pointing out that as dramatic as they might seem to the cast and the viewers, they're still just kids. It also hammers in the repercussions of Hachiman's actions even more strongly, as they don't resolve as easily as they did in the first season - and sometimes even shows us that Hachiman's answers in the previous season may not have even been successful, which all culminates in the heartfelt confession of a desire for something more.

Oh, and Irohass. Easily the best female character of the show. The season. The year. The decade. The century. The millennium. When God created this world he decided that he needed to give it something perfect so that everyone could aspire to it. That was Irohass. Sassy, sly, sneaky, and more, Irohass is the only person who makes the notion of being called Senpai appealing.

It also has the best little sister character in pretty much all of anime. Komachi is great. I love you Komachi. Not as much as Irohass, to be sure, but you're still the best non-Irohass character in the show.
2. Non Non Biyori S2
Slow but relaxing, energetic and carefree, Non Non Biyori was the chillest anime of the season. There's not much of a story, so nothing happens in terms of an overarching plot, but each stand-alone story can pretty much be enjoyed as is. It's incredibly cute and moving and hilarious from the first episode to the last, and I'd honestly say it's even better than the first season, due to the increase in Hikage appearance, Renge reenacting Fist of the North Star, Hotaru acting her age, Candy Store being Candy Store, and so on.
1. One Punch Man
I'm gonna be honest here. If I'd made this list before watching the final episode, OPM would be like, number 3 or something tops. A good adaptation of a stellar manga. But that final episode, man, that loving blasted this series all the way to the top. I loved it. If I had to pick my favorite episode of the entire year, episode 12 of OPM would probably be it. I've always taken OPM a bit non-too seriously. I'd just sorta skim through pages, enjoy the art and the humor, and not really think too much of it. Which isn't to say that's a bad thing, or that OPM is super deep (I don't think it is) but there's a good deal of emotional depth and impact that really got me thinking, as well as what is in my opinion the best action scene I've ever seen in an anime. The parallels between the villain and hero, the role reversal that made you want to root for the underdog villain, the bittersweet conclusion, the callbacks to the first episode, etc. Pretty much everything about that episode was perfect. I had high expectations for OPM but never really entertained the thought that it might exceed the manga. I was wrong. In that one glorious moment, the anime one punched my delusions away.

Oh, and other parts of OPM were good too, yeah. Especially episode 9. That one was loving top notch as well. I actually shed a few tears while watching that all-too memorable scene. Also episode 8, which set up episode 9 and gave us the amazing Angel Rush gif. Also episode 3, which also had a loving amazing battle scene and really gave life to the monster of the episode, propelling him from a one-off monster-of-the-week to a boisterous and memorable behemoth. The other episodes were good too. Great, even.
0. Love Live School Idol Project + Movie
It's a well-kept secret, so I'll say it now. I really like Love Live. I know, I know. Love Live wasn't even this year. But the movie was. So I'm giving it the top (non-existent) ranking. I don't have time to effort post about it now. I'll do it later. This post is long enough already.

Honorable Mentions
Koufuku Grafitti: It was a delight to see the sisterhood / friendship between Ryo and Kirin develop. The story is cute, the characters are cute, the next-episode preview animations are hella cute, everything is cute. Ryo herself is a really fascinating character, especially in how people around her affect her enjoyment of food - she can cook herself a fantastic meal but she can't really taste it if she can't enjoy it. She's literally the personification of the concept of love being the secret ingredient. It's a heartwarming story of how a lonely girl rediscovers the spark that gives her life joy through her budding relationship with her cousin. This would honestly have been a contender for my Top 5, but lost out to Working!!! and Rokka for sentimental reasons.
Ore Monogatari, Yona, Shokugeki no Soma: Adaptations of manga that I like that I didn't watch. Except in the case of Yona, where I skipped over the anime to read the manga so I could be spared the agony of waiting for another chapter. Shin-ah is the best dragon. I want to hug him and Ao.

# ¿ Dec 30, 2015 16:21

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Knorth posted:

This is a good description of that show I would love to see more of Koufuku Grafitti, and Rolling Girls too!

Fuckin' love that show, bro.

The episode where Kirin makes lunch for Ryo was so sweet.

# ¿ Dec 31, 2015 05:19

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Lemon Curdistan posted:

Thanks for tallying these. Boo the 6 people who voted for OPM but did not vote for Shirobako.

I am one of those people.

# ¿ Jan 5, 2016 02:56

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

Lemon Curdistan posted:

I'm not surprised, because you consistently have the worst anime opinions.

I stopped on episode 2 I think. Or 3.

Same for Euphonium, for that matter.

Maybe it's a think.

# ¿ Jan 5, 2016 09:37

ZepiaEltnamOberon: Oct 25, 2010; I Failed At Anime 2022

ZepiaEltnamOberon posted:

I stopped on episode 2 I think. Or 3.

Same for Euphonium, for that matter.

Maybe it's a think.

I was gonna say "a me thing" but it came out as "a think" for some reason.

The Colonel posted:

i swear zep sometimes you have opinions that are good and make me want to kiss you but then you have really bad opinions that make me want to destroy you and everything you hold dear

I hold you dear, Colonel.

# ¿ Jan 5, 2016 10:37