Over the years, these year-end wrap-up posts have taken a variety of shapes and forms. In the past, I’ve enjoyed making list of my top shows of the year. But in a year where few airing television anime really moved me, I thought I’d forgo that formality by telling you all 28 (more or less) new things I watched in order to provide a more thorough chronicle of my anime-watching activities.
Hopefully it’s enjoyable and not too tedious!
30. Jujutsu Kaisen S2 (Shibuya Incident Arc)
I promise this isn’t just my contrarian streak rearing its head again or just about what the show did with Nobara. If nothing else, Jujutsu Kaisen‘s Shibuya Incident Arc is yet another example (see: Eromanga Sensei) that pure sakuga power isn’t enough to make an entire show good, as impressive as the artistry (under horrific circumstances) was. I won’t say it was all a waste when we got some very pretty sad Miwa content for a minute or two, but it is a shame, at least from my perspective as someone who cares about anime holistically as well as its component aspects.
29. Bungo Stray Dogs S5
Similar to Jujutsu Kaisen, the fifth season of Bungo Stray Dogs simply ended up feeling like a lot of noise for very little payoff. Add to that the show’s painful insistence on ending every single week with a cliffhanger and you end up feeling as if there’s not a whole lot to keep watching for, especially with a lot of the cast (including my favorite, Kyouka) on the periphery despite allegedly being involved in the action. I was happy when it was over.
28. Reign of the Seven Spellblades
What started out as a pretty entertaining Harry Potter derivative with some truly baffling directorial and adaptation choices ended up petering out in a disappointing way by the end of the overlong season. Twists like Oliver murdering one of the teachers almost out of the blue and having a secret army made the opening half feel deranged (that’s a compliment), but standardization takes over in the second half and the modest production shows its limits.
27. Bungo Stray Dog S4
The fourth season of Bungo Stray Dogs featured a more interesting immediate conflict than the one that followed and offered the excitement of brand-new characters (my favorite was the hyper violent tiny Hunting Dog girl, although I could have done without her being in love with her superior) and more unique environments for the various shenanigans. In retrospect, it’s actually kind of surprising how flat the following season managed to be when the set-up was as strong as it was. I was actually pretty hyped about things at the end of this season, but it all came to naught.
26. Sugar Apple Fairy Tale S2
Where the first season of Sugar Apple Fairy Tale was whimsical, cute, and heart-warming, I think the main problem of the second season was the lack of a clear journey for Anne to take. The arc-based structure simple didn’t offer enough interesting conflict and took much slower pacing, to its detriment. On top of that, the addition of Gladice as a villain who contributed little to either Anne or Challe’s stories (existing really only for himself and as an arbitrary barrier) hurt things. Goes to show the importance of obstacles feeling natural and connecting to characters’ evolution!
25. Banner of the Stars III (OAV)
The first non-airing show of the list, the Banner of the Stars OAV is mostly a disappointment for how it moeifies and girlfriend-ifies Lafiel. While it’s actually a fairly satisfying conclusion to Jinto’s fraught relationship with his home planet, I found its visual and textual characterization of Lafiel intolerable compared to the more distant yet more characterfully affectionate version of her from the previous three series. You will simply not tempt me with moe Lafiel. I won’t bite.
24. The Devil is a Part-Timer! S2 (Part 2)
I think we all knew that the return of The Devil is a Part-Timer! wasn’t going to live up to the fun and games of the original, but it’s a bit sad how true those expectations ended up being. I actually liked this part of the return better than the first part, as the Ente Isla material offered a new storyscape for our familiar characters to engage with. Emilia is still cute, Nao Touyama’s Chiho is still delightful, and Suzu is still great, but sadly the weak production never really let Ashiya, Maou, or Lucifer shine the way fans would have wanted. At least they’ll never take S1 from us.
23. Blue Lock
Blue Lock finished up in the winter 2023 season, so I count it as a 2023 anime. From the show’s amusing insinuation at its very beginning that Ronaldo wasn’t egotistical enough to the entertaining battle shounen tropes applied to my favorite sport, Blue Lock was solid entertainment all the way through. It certainly stretches belief if you know anything at all about football in real life (growth definitely does not come in such immediate spurts), but some of the inherent tension and appeal in the sport comes through. Good fun!
22. Spy x Family S2
Spy x Family has always been something I’ve enjoyed, but never something I’ve loved, so as much as I appreciate its various aspects, it was never going to rank highly in my list of things from the year. As cute as Yor and Anya are, I actually think Loid is both the show’s funniest and most interesting character, but rarely has he been used to his full potential. It is to SpyFam’s credit, though, that its inventiveness and the sheer quality of execution on its premise still hasn’t worn out its welcome. Not an easy thing for any comedy to do!
21. In/Spectre S2
A rough year for sequels, which populate almost the entirety of this list’s bottom third. In/Spectre, at least, isn’t here for a drop in quality so much as just being what it is: a perfectly serviceable adaptation of a manga I’ve already read. There’s no new material here for me to get my teeth into, so instead I spent most of the show thinking about how unique In/Spectre is in the modern anime landscape and how much it must owe its existence in animated form to Kotoka’s cuteness and wit. I’d probably recommend the manga over the anime for the better art, but there’s nothing really to complain about here other than the fact that a more healthy industry could have done more with such an odd duck of a show.
20. Danmachi S4
After a couple of seasons that failed to live up to the first, Danmachi S4 managed to get back to form with a much tenser, more focused season. Bell and Ryu’s harrowing adventure definitely runs right at the edge of actually making you believe one of them (Ryu) might not make it, which frankly is a wonderful achievement in a show like this where Bell has been chock-full of hand-of-god survival. The other good thing about it is that the narrowed cast allows Bell’s natural chemistry with the shows’ other characters to shine through—enough so that even blushy Ryu in the end feels earned.
19. Undead Murder Farce
A show I definitely thought could have ended up much higher on this list, Undead Murder Farce‘s shift from amusing Monogatari-like mystery talk into more adventuring/battling material ultimately proved to make it less engaging overall. The clever and amusing banter that characterized the first couple arcs never fully left, but as the focus shifted more toward resolving the larger plot, it did feel as if the dialogue became more of a plot vehicle than anything else. The ever-expanding cast likewise had an adverse effect. No regrets about watching it, but I’m left with a vague sense of something missing.
18. GaoGaiGar Final
Regrettably, my long-term memory of GaoGaiGar Final is the scene where Gai and Mamoru both intone their epic, important reasons for existing, only for Mikoto to follow them both up by going, “I exist to support you, Gai!” It’s the kind of familiar sexism that exists in a lot of yelly, male-focused anime, but rarely is it so obviously, harshly made into literal in-show dialogue. I actually came to love Mikoto quite a lot (childhood friends, you know), so the scene left a bad taste in my mouth and, obviously, has stuck with me. That said, there was some good giant robot action, although I think I preferred the end of the TV series more.
17. Jujutsu Kaisen S2 (Hidden Inventory Arc)
Unlike the Shibuya Incident arc, Hidden Inventory was like, actually good. It still winds up being kind of pointless considering that Geto had already died in the flashback movie and that he wasn’t even really resurrected in Shibuya Incident! It was just some brain curse (or evil sorcerer?) using his body! So getting to see the actually fairly compelling description of what led Geto to forsake jujutsu society (and the murder of a non-combatant high school girl) basically is meaningless. But I didn’t know that at the time, so I won’t let the schlock of the following arc ruin the good of the preceding one for me.
16. 100 Girlfriends
I have no shame in saying it. I think Rentarou is wrong. I think Karane is the best girlfriend. As cute as Shizuka is and as incredible addition to the cast as Kusuri is (insanely overloaded with gimmicks), there’s something pure and beautiful in the undiluted, concentrated levels of tsundere that Karane offers. You may not have noticed like I have, but tsunderes really aren’t in vogue these days the way they used to be. For the most part, they’re either toned down or preferred to other, less inherently interesting tropes. So 100Kano has my thanks for bringing the tsundere back. We as a society needed this. As for the show as a whole? Yeah, it’s fun and good to watch. Thumbs up even if the horny bits did basically nothing for me.
15. Synduality: Noir
Speaking of things brought back into vogue, did we really get an original mecha anime in 2023 (even if the mechs were 3D)? And Synduality: Noir‘s first season wasn’t even like, serious mecha anime. It was actually pretty goofy, which matched the goofy designs of the robots themselves. This isn’t to say there was a lot that was new here, but sometimes bringing back the vibes of anime past has its own fresh appeal. There’s something almost Gurren Lagann-esque in the tone of Synduality, but Synduality also has a Sheryl Nome expy (she sings while in the robot!!!!). Yes, Sheryl Nome, the one archetype that’ll make me switch my allegiance from the childhood friend character. RIP Ellie. You didn’t deserve yet another L..
14. The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses
I wrote a blog post after the first episode of SukiMega that more or less sums up my feelings on this dumb, lovable show in its entirety. Basically, everyone who wrote the show off for its visual presentation after episode 1 (except for those who had motion sickness) were just cringe clout chasers dunking on an easy target and deliberately ignoring the charms for internet points. Having seen how warm and hilarious the full show was, I find myself even more disgusted in those people. SukiMega is deeply charming once you accept that its very premise is an absurd gag that the show treats seriously because its funnier that way. Both Mie and Komura are adorable and fun, and I simply won’t tolerate any further slander of them.
13. Overtake!
Does anyone else remember Run with the Wind? Although most of the similarities between the two of them are fairly superficial (sports show about boys), what’s not superficial is excellence of their writing. Overtake! isn’t overly emotive, except when it counts, and its restraint along with its sharp characterization and excellent control over its plot elements makes for solid, engaging watching every episode. I particularly enjoyed the Belsorriso subplot, as well as the non-traditional relationship between Kouya and Sae-chan (I’ll marry her if he won’t). It’s a shame the show won’t get the plaudits it deserves; in terms of overall craft, it’s probably a top 3 TV anime production of the year along with Frieren and Skip & Loafer.
12. GaoGaiGar
I sang the OP while at karaoke in Japan. GAO GAO GAO GAO GAO GAO GAO GAI GAR!!!! While some of the weekly stuff, especially in the first half of the show, gets a little tedious when you’re watching the show in batches, once the paradigm shifts with the defeat of the Four Machine Kings, GaoGaiGar kind of just goes berserk in terms of action and fun until it ends. It makes for a very good watch, and getting to sing the banger OP at the beginning of each episode and “Sea of Stars” at the end of every episode just makes the experience that much better. DIVIDING DRIVEEEEEEEERR!!!!
11. Last Exile
What a delight this show was! From its unique setting to enjoyable characters to offbeat plot, Last Exile is the kind of anime that makes you happy you watch anime. It’s not as if the narrative is some sort of masterwork, but the sheer novelty of everything that happens makes the show feel like its creators were basically cramming every idea they could think of into the runtime. I personally love that kind of bursting, bustling style and the collection of quirky yet not-fully-filled-out characters. The ideas ripple out, and that’s the real charm of Last Exile. It’s invigorating and it’s fun to watch things that feel like the creators are as excited to show you what else they’ve come up with as you are to watch it.
10. Sugar Apple Fairy Tale
I seriously loved the first season of Sugar Apple Fairy Tale. Early slavery stuff notwithstanding, the relationship that evolves between Anne Halford (great name) and Challe is equal parts adorable, heartwarming, and just plain nice. At times I was reminded of shoujo anime great Shirayuki-hime thanks to Anne’s identity as a craftswoman. Although sometimes the obstacles placed in front of her seemed arbitrary, I appreciated that Anne for the larger part overcomes problems largely thanks to her own hard work and persistence. Challe usually simply provides emotional support, so she never feels overrun or diminished as a character. And when they due cute shoujo romance things… ooooo baby, that is sweet as a sugar apple confection.
9. Sora wo Miageru Shoujo no Hitomi ni Utsuru Sekai (Munto TV)
A nine-episode OVA from Kyoto Animation, Munto‘s TV installment is a true treat of its time. Produced in 2009, it’s characterized by a script that doesn’t bother to explain too much (except when it decide it’s time for the exposition episode), characters who are more sketches of ideas than fleshed out entities, and a dual-world story that lets you enjoy both KyoAni’s trademark grounded world-building in the real world and some very nice magical action in the Heavens. I probably like the show more as a time capsule of 2000s anime more than anything else, but that’s more than enough to make it one of my favorite things I watched this year.
8. Skip & Loafer
We’re now into the section of the post where we’re talking about things that are good enough that they could be rightfully considered as the best of their year. Skip & Loafer is one of those anime where the writing and the animation production are highlights in their own ways while also complementing each other beautifully. It’s a pretty show visually, and the way it treats its characters is pretty, too. The only thing you could possible hold against it is that it’s only part of a story, and that it feels less like a entity with its own gravity than just the creme of the seasonal/yearly crop. But being at the top of the yearly pile isn’t anything to sniff at.
7. Banner of the Stars II
In Banner of the Stars II, everything that has been building since the very start of the three-season series comes together. This main problem? Jinto and Lafiel are separated for most of the season! It all pays off in the end, despite the fact that the opening of the season telegraphs that something tragic might happen (especially if you have a young impressionable mind like mine). We still get a decent chunk of their interactions, but we get even more of them thinking about how they wish the other was there. I guess the pining has its own charm, but there’s nothing better than Jinto and Lafiel bantering back and forth. Even a romantically charged reunion just doesn’t have the spark that their situationally restrained chirping has.
6. Fire Hunter
From the director of Glasslip, it’s Fire Hunter (Hikari no Ou)! For most that would probably not be the greatest selling point, but for me… Junji Nishimura’s idiosyncratic directorial style is all over this production, and I really can’t get enough of it. The odd marriage of source material from a novel, a setting very from what’s currently in vogue in anime, and the sketchy, spaced out storytelling makes for an anime that is genuinely fascinating to watch. It helps, too, that the depth of the setting from the novel shines through in the world’s weird creatures and mythology. There’s so much to be intrigued by, and Nishimura makes unraveling a journey of its own. I was delighted the whole way through.
5. SSSS.Dynazenon
I think that Dynazenon‘s predecesor, Gridman is probably the better anime from a technical, craftsmanship perspective. But I like Dynazenon more, and that’s primarily due to its cast. Where Gridman is cerebral and somewhat detached, Dynazenon is warm and intimately involved in its characters. I particularly liked the way it handled Yume’s arc and the slow unveiling of the details of her sister’s untimely death—and, even more, the way Yomogi was allowed to come alongside and support her. Then, we had Chise’s little arc of learning to love herself, Koyomi’s growth, and even Gauma’s backstory. The robot-kaiju fights are fun, but having characters you love involved in them makes them that much better. Just a great show.
4. My Love Story with Yamada-kun at Lv999
Mathematically, I believe having Yamada-kun here as the highest ranked 2023 anime on the list, makes it AOTY by default? Not exactly what I expected when I started writing this all out, but the simple reality is that I loved this show. Akane is endearing and just mature enough not to feel babyfied, while Yamada turning out to have actual reasons for being as reserved as he is makes him so much more compelling than he would be otherwise. They’re just a perfect couple, and Yamada’s boyish joy at Akane’s confession completely won me over. I’ve often said that my favorite romances are those where the relationship evolves out of a true friendship, and despite Akane’s initial recognition of Yamada’s good looks, that’s exactly what this feels like. Morio Asaka just has my number, I guess.
3. Crest of the Stars
Lafiel appears in the first episode of Crest of the Stars, but it takes a few episodes before the show really reveals its hand. Romance anime aren’t exactly a rare breed, but romance anime with this particular combination of sci-fi trappings, socially (or royally?) restrained flirting, and offbeat adventuring are one of a kind. Or maybe three of a kind, since this is the first of a three-season show. Perhaps my favorite part is the way Jinto and Lafiel’s uneven path toward their physical destination provides the grounds for their evolving relationship; the adventure is as much between the two of them and their coincidental alliance than as it about them trying to reach safety. I could watch these two forever.
2. Banner of the Stars
If Crest of the Stars is the wind up, Banner of the Stars is the pitch that hits you right in your romantic banter-loving guts. All the work that Crest does to endear Jinto and Lafiel to you as individuals and as a couple with unparalleled chemistry pays off in ways both large and small. Take your pick of the numerous scenes—Lafiel pretending to be jealous of Jinto talking with Ekurya, Lafiel going back into the ship to save Jinto from certain death, and so on. Oh, and we also get some extremely good Spoor content on the side, which is possibly the only justifiable reason to turn the camera away from the absorbing cinema that is Lafiel and Jintos’s restrained yet deeply affectionate conversations (although the two idiot brothers are pretty good too). Impeccable talking anime that also has space battles.
1. 86
Yeah, 86 is that good. The first half of the show offers a compelling, emotional reflection on the responsibility of the individual within systems of injustice, capped by Lena’s tangible action—her assertion that using the mortars will only get her court-martialed, not killed, still sticks with me—and an escape that is as cathartic as it is symbolic. The second half is less cohesive but somehow no less powerful, perhaps in part due to the fact that it seems to realize there are more ways to connect with viewer’s emotions than just killing off characters. The final reunion between the remaining Spearhead members of Handler One is one of the most satisfying earned conclusions I’ve seen, despite the fact that we don’t even see Lena’s journey in full. All in all, 86 is a show that I could see myself adding to a top shows list someday in the future (if I ever update it again)—and that’s about the highest praise I can give any anime.
And that’s everything (approximately a month late)! It was a pretty good year in anime for me, and congrats to Yamada-kun for being AOTY. No one else will recognize this reality (Crunchyroll won’t even let you write in the show for their Anime Awards), so I have to be the one to do it. It’s fine. I’m used to being the only one with good taste.
If you think you have better taste than me (I know many of you do), you can let me know in the comments. Just don’t embarrass yourself.
