So, I've been getting random pm's for about 3 weeks now on chatango asking me to do this, so here it is. This is going to be a brief top 10 of the first 2 seasons (and I'll try to be as unbiased as possible) with a what to expect from the second half of the year following.
10. Hanasaku Iroha - Slice of life comedy about a girl working at a hotspring resort. It's funny, it's got some drama, and the art is quite nice.
9. Ao no Exorsist - Seinen about the son of the devil fighting, ironically, demons.
8. Kore wa Zombie Desu Ka? - About a guy who is a zombie (who would have guessed) and his supernatural harem (necromancer, magic girl, vampire ninjas etc).
7. The World God Only Knows (season 2) - Same thing as the first season, about a guy who has to hit on girls and make them fall for him to save their souls. Sounds more dramatic than it is, it's a straight comedy.
6. Gosick - crime drama set in the 20's about a Japanese guy in Europe and a loli who loves solving riddles (aka crimes).
5. Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko - About an ordinary highschooler who moves in with his aunt and cousin (who thinks she's an alien).
4, C, The Money of Soul and Possibility Control - about a university student who comes across a card that allows him to enter a game where he mortgages his future in battle in an attempt to make money... It's hard to explain but it's good.
3. Deadman Wonderland: About a kid who is falsely convicted of murdering his entire class and sentance to death in an amusement park prison known as Deadman Wonderland. It's pretty cool, and the superpowers of some of the characters are interesting.
2. Stein's Gate - About a mad scientist (self proclaimed) who, with the help of his majorily female labmates, develops a way to partially time travel. Second half is still airing, and is MUCH more serious.
1. Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica - No questions, easily the best anime so far this year. A complete deconstruction of the traditional magical girl genre, if something will fuck the poor little magic girls' minds, it will happen to them. Quite ironically, the top 2 shows so far this year are both written by the same guy, Gen Urobuchi, who is known for breaking his characters in very sadistic ways. This holds very true. WATCH THIS!
Future shows/Currently Airing Shows:
Yuru Yuri - about the less than crazy antics of a bunch of middle schoolers. Most of the story is to set up jokes.
Id@lmaster - Much the same as the above, only following idol singers..... 13 of them.....
Blood C - another installment in the Blood franchise, much the same as the others.
Mayo Chiki - Another harem anime, only this time with a sadist and a reverse trap
R-15 - There's a reason this is called R-15 (Restricted to 15 and up), it's about a highschool for geniuses, where the main character is a genius erotic novel writer. Lets just say his delusions and writings are.... perverted....
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kira (OVA) - It's Higurashi, you can't go wrong....
Mirai Nikki (TV) - 1 word is all I should need to say to explain why this will be awesome. YANDERE! This is a battle royal to the death to become the next god (with cell phone diaries), however the entire selling point in Gasai Yuno, who is one of the most psychotic and sadistic Yandere characters I've seen. Don't ever try to get in her way from being with the main character, or you'll get your head cut clean off. Even if they really screw this up, so long as Yuno is her Yandere self, it will be amazing. (Note: for those of you who don't know this terminology, a Yandere is a character who shows open affection for someone, usually the main character, and are VERY clingy to them. On the inside, they are solely dependant on the main character and are usually VERY unstable. Some, like the one in this series, are incredibly sadistic and will kill, kidnap or do whatever is necessary to stay with the one they love).
Shakugan no Shana 3 - First 2 were pretty good, this one will be nuts. I can say this because I've read volumes 16 and 17, which is where shit hits the fan. Let's just say, YOU WILL NOT SEE THE TWIST COMMING!
Working!! (season 2) - More antics from the staff at Wagnaria restaurant.
C cubed (C3)- This just sounds like it will be gory as hell. About a guy who fights cursed instuments, and one day comes to possess his own, a cube (which turns into a chick) that is the ultimate torture device.
Persona 4 - I love the Persona game series, so this is a no brainer for me personally. It's about people who fight creatures who are killing innocent civilians using beings they summon (by shooting themselves in the head) based off of their "Sign". What's better than watching characters shoot themselves in the head and then beat the living shit out of monsters?
Fate/Zero: Prequel to Fate/Stay Night. Similar story, however it's written by the guy who's written the 2 best anime so far this year.... so nothing wrong with that.
10. Hanasaku Iroha - Slice of life comedy about a girl working at a hotspring resort. It's funny, it's got some drama, and the art is quite nice.
9. Ao no Exorsist - Seinen about the son of the devil fighting, ironically, demons.
8. Kore wa Zombie Desu Ka? - About a guy who is a zombie (who would have guessed) and his supernatural harem (necromancer, magic girl, vampire ninjas etc).
7. The World God Only Knows (season 2) - Same thing as the first season, about a guy who has to hit on girls and make them fall for him to save their souls. Sounds more dramatic than it is, it's a straight comedy.
6. Gosick - crime drama set in the 20's about a Japanese guy in Europe and a loli who loves solving riddles (aka crimes).
5. Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko - About an ordinary highschooler who moves in with his aunt and cousin (who thinks she's an alien).
4, C, The Money of Soul and Possibility Control - about a university student who comes across a card that allows him to enter a game where he mortgages his future in battle in an attempt to make money... It's hard to explain but it's good.
3. Deadman Wonderland: About a kid who is falsely convicted of murdering his entire class and sentance to death in an amusement park prison known as Deadman Wonderland. It's pretty cool, and the superpowers of some of the characters are interesting.
2. Stein's Gate - About a mad scientist (self proclaimed) who, with the help of his majorily female labmates, develops a way to partially time travel. Second half is still airing, and is MUCH more serious.
1. Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica - No questions, easily the best anime so far this year. A complete deconstruction of the traditional magical girl genre, if something will fuck the poor little magic girls' minds, it will happen to them. Quite ironically, the top 2 shows so far this year are both written by the same guy, Gen Urobuchi, who is known for breaking his characters in very sadistic ways. This holds very true. WATCH THIS!
Future shows/Currently Airing Shows:
Yuru Yuri - about the less than crazy antics of a bunch of middle schoolers. Most of the story is to set up jokes.
Id@lmaster - Much the same as the above, only following idol singers..... 13 of them.....
Blood C - another installment in the Blood franchise, much the same as the others.
Mayo Chiki - Another harem anime, only this time with a sadist and a reverse trap
R-15 - There's a reason this is called R-15 (Restricted to 15 and up), it's about a highschool for geniuses, where the main character is a genius erotic novel writer. Lets just say his delusions and writings are.... perverted....
Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni Kira (OVA) - It's Higurashi, you can't go wrong....
Mirai Nikki (TV) - 1 word is all I should need to say to explain why this will be awesome. YANDERE! This is a battle royal to the death to become the next god (with cell phone diaries), however the entire selling point in Gasai Yuno, who is one of the most psychotic and sadistic Yandere characters I've seen. Don't ever try to get in her way from being with the main character, or you'll get your head cut clean off. Even if they really screw this up, so long as Yuno is her Yandere self, it will be amazing. (Note: for those of you who don't know this terminology, a Yandere is a character who shows open affection for someone, usually the main character, and are VERY clingy to them. On the inside, they are solely dependant on the main character and are usually VERY unstable. Some, like the one in this series, are incredibly sadistic and will kill, kidnap or do whatever is necessary to stay with the one they love).
Shakugan no Shana 3 - First 2 were pretty good, this one will be nuts. I can say this because I've read volumes 16 and 17, which is where shit hits the fan. Let's just say, YOU WILL NOT SEE THE TWIST COMMING!
Working!! (season 2) - More antics from the staff at Wagnaria restaurant.
C cubed (C3)- This just sounds like it will be gory as hell. About a guy who fights cursed instuments, and one day comes to possess his own, a cube (which turns into a chick) that is the ultimate torture device.
Persona 4 - I love the Persona game series, so this is a no brainer for me personally. It's about people who fight creatures who are killing innocent civilians using beings they summon (by shooting themselves in the head) based off of their "Sign". What's better than watching characters shoot themselves in the head and then beat the living shit out of monsters?
Fate/Zero: Prequel to Fate/Stay Night. Similar story, however it's written by the guy who's written the 2 best anime so far this year.... so nothing wrong with that.
