Well in that case, forgive me master.
For I must go all out.
JUST
THIS
ONCE
(untilnextyear)
Worst to Best: Anime of 2019
[Personal Opinion]
#32: Magical Girl Spec-Ops Asuka
Plot: A long time ago there was a magical girl war, and now its remnants have come back to wreak havoc and start another war.
Not many things in a medium can be so influential as to get the ball rolling that will change a landscape, but a certain famous anime called
Madoka Magica did just that. Unfortunately, sometimes when you get the ball rolling you don't know when it's going to end up rolling off the side of a cliff, and crashing into a heap of children, which is what this anime is the equivalent of. Dark Magical Girl anime had already gotten out of hand before this year, but they just kept going, and while this isn't the worst of the Madoka ripoff series, it is incredibly offensive, ugly, and tasteless.
1/10
#31: W'z
Plot: a DJ has the ability to see a hidden dimension or something, and also there's fighting.
I'm not going to have an image to go along with this one, because I wouldn't wish this much eye strain on anyone, and any frame from the show hurts to look at. This anime is just
Hanshakers 2: Eyestrain Boogaloo. There isn't much else to say about it. It's incredibly soul-less and mundane along with making no sense and looking like garbage.
2/10
#30: AFTERLOST
Plot: I literally have no idea.
Madhouse sinks to unbelievably low levels with the vague plot-having cgi-hodgepodge of shit that this anime is. It's the one that made me give up on the Lottery Game for a full month. It was so lame I couldn't pay full attention to a single episode.
#29: Sarazanmai
Plot: Three middle school boys traverse their double lives as both regular students with their own life problems, and as kappas who can travel into an unseen world to fight zombies, in order to protect reality.
I just don't understand this anime. I won't repeat my opinions on it, because I've stated many times how much I don't like it and why. Basically it boils down to the fact that it's a show with a pretty niche appeal, and I'm just not part of that. It had good animation and a few solid plot points, but other than that it flopped in my eyes with its overly-gross imagery.
3/10
#28: Yu-No: The Girl Who Chants Love at the Bound of this World
Plot: A high school student gains the ability to travel back into "save points" in his life, and gets wrapped into a multi-dimensional quest.
Overly-long title? Check. Light Novel adaptation? ...apparently not. It's a ~Visual Novel~ adaptation. Eroge as well. Well that's awkward. This over-bloated show is basically a perverted, boring steins;gate. But there is some fun to be had with what lengths it goes to create "plot twists", I suppose, so it isn't completely without value. And
@interregnum's commentary and theorizing really made it much more entertaining to partake in.
3/10
#27: Demon Slayer
Plot: A boy's sister gets turned into a Demon in a world full of the bastards, and he must go to hell in back in order to protect her.
Despite extremely well-animated fight scenes and a "unique" stylized aesthetic, Demon Slayer has little ambition other than to be an extremely generic shounen in terms of story and setting, with unbearable characters (Pictured) and a weird, angular artstyle which just doesn't jive with me at all. It isn't the worst, but it's hard after all I've seen, to tolerate shounen which just don't innovate at all.
4/10
#26: Domestic Girlfriend
Plot: a bizzare romantic drama in which a boy surpisingly becomes step-siblings with a girl he had sex with, and his teacher who he has a crush on.
I don't know if I've ever seen a premise this bizarre be so squandered by angst and the exact tropes you'd expect from an anime romantic drama. Some of it was so absurd that it was hard not to laugh at, and watching this show marked a pretty interesting chapter in my life, so I can't not give it any credit. Plus, it had a badass opening.
4/10
#25: High School Prodigies Have it Easy Even in Another World
Plot: Seven superhuman-level high school prodigies from our world get transported to a medieval magical world and immediately become gods.
Imagine an Isekai where the main character is a mary sue, except instead, it's 7 mary sues. This anime is possibly the most entertaining of all trashy isekai, though, just to due to how unaware it is. And, this is the anime this season I've decided to put the most effort into commenting on, so if you're interested, go check that out.
4/10
#24: My Hero Academia Season 4
Plot: MHA is back, but this season follows some of the students on their work-study assignments, and they start getting into a deep underworld plot that threatens heroes as a whole.
Season 3 really disappointed me, and this season has so far done little to make up for that. But its plot is proving to be a bit more interesting, and may have some twists that help the series to reach new heights in the future.
5/10
#23: ORESUKI: Are you the only one who loves me?
Plot: A boy starts his quest to gain a harem starting with two girls, only to be thwarted and sent through a bizarre series of events by a girl who is stalking him.
The show throws you for some loops early on, but loses its way extremely fast, becoming super contrived. The plot manages to stray from its initial premise and make no sense. Every character is either dumb, a terrible person, or somehow unrealistically gets redemption. But somehow, it's hard to hate the show as it goes through the motions. It isn't terrible, but not something I would recommend.
5/10
#22: The Hero is Overpowered but Overly Cautious
Plot: A hero is summoned to another world by a goddess to save it, and he's super powerful, but he's also too careful.
It summoned a few giggles from me, but most of the comedy it seems to derive from the concept of an overpowered character who is overly cautious, is sexual and perverted jokes. Just like an isekai. And I'm just not into that at all. Konosuba fans may enjoy this one, but I sure don't.
5/10
#21: The Rising of the Shield Hero
Plot: a guy is summoned to a magical world, and almost immediately gets accused of rape, being forced to recover his reputation and protect the world at the same time.
Its premise is slightly altered from the usual isekai, being focused on its main characters hardships rather than his being overpowered, which has some value. And the beginning is pretty compelling. However, the extrinsic value of these things are lost when the characters themselves are pretty generic in personality, and the progression is extremely unrealistic. Instead of being a more interesting isekai, it becomes more of a revenge fantasy disguised with vague morality. But rarely do isekai attempt to innovate, so this should still be given some credit.
6/10
#20: No Guns Life
Plot: in a world where some people have been modified and turned into weapons, a man with a gun for a head works to protect a certain boy he's saved from his persecutors, in this cyber-noir story.
Unfortunately this show doesn't do enough with its wacky premise and dark world contrast to be all that worth it, instead delving into exposition and dialogue much more often than action or the inherent humor in its setting, but it still holds my interest as a cyber-noir. It's alright.
6/10
#19: Welcome to Demon-School, Iruma-kun!
Plot: a human boy is transported to the world of demons by the demon king, and in his efforts to remain undiscovered, falls into a comedic chain of coincidences that lands him at the top of his class.
It has some funny comedy, but ultimately feels like My Little Pony with demons, playing out a bit like an isekai. If you're into that kind of thing, this may be for you, but I realize I'm not the target audience, due to its hyperactive energy and characters. It isn't bad, but there are better comedies.
6/10
#18: Attack on Titan Season 3 Part II
Plot: it's attack on titan, dude.
This season was by far the best so far, really impressing me with how the whole battle arc went, and its expansion of lore. But it's still AoT, a series I've never been fond of for many reasons i've stated many times before.
6/10
#17: Stars Align
plot: Middle school boys tennis club recruits a new member who helps them to improve so that they can finally win games, alongside a lot of dramatic subplots.
There is too much angst in stars align. The animation is some of the most fluid i've seen, and it manages to make tennis interesting, but there's just waaay too much angst. Every character has some kind of home-drama or personal issue or trauma, and they go too many directions at once to get invested in it. The tennis side is awesome, but the drama side of the story needs some work and may not be for everyone
7/10
#16: BLVCKFOX
Plot: a girl from a secret society of ninjas loses everything, and grows up with the goal to take revenge on the company who destroyed those she loved.
It's a fairly straightforward shounen-style story in a condensed format since it's a movie, but it's pretty entertaining and quite nice-looking. If you want some relatively low-investment fun with powers vs ninjas action, this may be for you.
7/10
#15: The Promised Neverland
Plot: orphans living on a farm learn something disturbing about the world they live in, and must fight to escape
It has a pretty interesting story, but rather tropey main characters, and as i've stated on this thread already, tries way too hard to sound smart, sacrificing the beleivability of its events. However, this anime does dramatic tension far too well to discredit, and is full of twists and turns.
7/10
#14: Fire Force
Plot: humans are turning into fire demons, and a boy with a strange smiling quirk named shinra joins the taskforce charged with protecting humanity from them.
Never before and never again will fire be so beautifully animated in a show. The plot is straightforward as with most shounen, but the action is the main reason to watch this show. As it's from the creator of Soul Eater, its comedy is sometimes perverted, sometimes good, and it has a pretty solid style and aesthetic, as well as some interesting characters and conflicts. Shounen fans will enjoy this one.
8/10
#13: Blade of the Immortal
plot: A remake of the tale of an immortal ronin and his revenge-quested companion.
This anime is extremely brutal in its action, dark, with a lot of screwed up characters and situations. The action is a bit slideshow-y but well-done even without advanced fight choreography, and the weapons are always super awesome. Feudal-set roadtrip anime like this are exactly my jam, so I still really like this one.
8/10
#12: Bungou Stray Dogs 3rd Season
Plot: it's bungou stray dogs, dude.
Another great season, but without some of the really visceral action of the second season. It had a super great villain though.
8/10
#11: Kaguya-sama: Love is War
Plot: two high school geniuses have a crush on one another, but instead of handling it like normal people, they turn every encounter with one another into multi-dimensional psychological mindgames.
One of the best purely comedy-driven shows in recent memory. There isn't much to say on it other than many of its gags are laugh-out loud funny, some are not as great, and when it gets more serious, it's really lacking. Nonetheless there's a lot to appreciate about this show.
8/10
#10: Dr. Stone
Plot: everyone in the world turns into stone with no explanation. thousands of years later, a science fanatic high school student named Senku awakens, and begins rebuilding humanity from the beginning.
The thoroughly intriguing premise of Stone is what propels the series, along with its dissection and interesting presentation of some scientific principles, presented in a meme-like fashion which I'm just really into. It has a few annoying characters but most of them are pretty good, and it has a few plot holes but they don't really ruin the fun of the show. One of the better popular shounen to come out in recent memory. One of my favorite things is how it takes itself seriously science-wise while simultaneously not taking itself seriously at the same time. It has a sense of fun to it, as well as high stakes at many points in the show, making a good interesting balance.
8/10
#9: Legend of the Galactic Heroes: The New Thesis 2nd
Plot: LotGH remake, but the second season.
This one was released in movies, but I've been watching it on VRV in episodes. its political drama is always super interesting, but I wouldn't say I'm as invested in it as some of these other series this year.
8/10
#8: Carole & Tuesday
Plot: two girls meet in a futuristic city on mars where all music is generated by an AI, and begin their careers as independent artists who eventually influence the industry and the political atmosphere of the struggle between mars and earth.
Carole & Tuesday may be the most audiovisually stunning anime since last year's Violet Evergarden, and that alone is enough to propel it into the top 10 of this list, but aside from that, it has some good comedy, interesting and relatable characters, and a really fantastic setting. All in all the show is super focused on music more than anything else which is what it should be judged on, but I think the show could have been perfect if the plot was more focused. There were also a few cringey episodes to weigh it down. But it's really good.
8/10
#7: Boogiepop & Others
Plot: an assorted series of arcs surrounding the enigmatic grim reaper Boogiepop, and the threats it serves to protect the world from.
The best thing about this series is how it poses questions about the human condition using inhuman supernatural creatures and events, and has a lot of intriguing mystery and drama. It doesn't have the signature fever dream feel of the original series, but as a light novel adaptation with a complex world and plot, this series does it a lot of justice as a faithful adaptation. It also has some great voice acting.
9/10
#6: Beastars
Plot: high schoolers in a world of anthropomorphic animals where the status quo is seperated into species, and carnivores/herbivores are constantly at odds.
Despite how none of the characters are human, this may be the most relatable anime to come out this year, providing a lot of insghts to the mentality of the characters, and some compelling conflicts and drama that can only exist in this type of world with animal characters. It has a lot of metaphors for real life as well. The CGI looks great too, proving once again that Orange is the best in the business at that. It has a lot of personality and heart. Not just a furry anime. Definitely worth watching.
9/10
#5: Babylon
Plot: hard to explain, but basically a team of public prosecutors try to expose a conspiracy about a new district in modern-day japan.
This may be one of the best, most intense thriller anime to come out. It reminds me a lot of psycho-pass and monster. It has a strong central figure and everything, with incredible storytelling, fast-paced tense scenes, oscar-winner level voice acting, beautiful visuals and disorienting scene-direction, and twists that you'll never see coming. This anime won't end until next year but if the mystery resolves in a satisfying way this may become one of my very favorite anime.
9/10
#4: Fruits Basket (2019)
Plot: an orphan girl lives with a family whose members are based on the chinese zodiac.
This anime just has me wrapped around its finger. I love every character and every moment of it. It's delightful, the drama is great and emotional, the humor is funny, basically every character makes me almost cry with their backstory. This is how drama should be done, with charm and tact all the way through. Amazing.
9/10
For the top 3 I'll just copy from my other post because I've already spent too much time on this :D
#3: Vinland Saga
Plot: a historical epic in the time of vikings, where many nations are at war, and one boy attempts to get revenge on a pirate captain.
It isn't even over yet but I doubt anything else is going to touch it. Anime too often shy away from telling a story this badass on this scale, but this one captures the heart and soul of vikings so well that it's hard to dislike it. And the story is never lacking, as it's always changing and progressing, telling different threads through different angles.
10/10
#2: Mob Psycho 100 II
Plot: Mob has more psychic adventures, and there's an evil organization that wants to take over the world again.
Part two of the greatest study on the human condition in anime, and this one just straight up goes hard. There's no other way to put it. It delivers on all the promises of season 1 while providing a lot of stuff out of left field that no one saw coming, and some of the most artistic episodes and scenes in the medium. any animation fanatic will go nuts over this one and I do too. The only thing preventing the show from surpassing dororo is how the end conflicts just feel a bit too generically shounen despite their more thematic material.
10/10
#1: Dororo (2019)
A man sacrifices his firstborn to demons in order to save his land. The boy is born without any body-parts, and years later, he joins a young thief named Dororo on a quest as a half-doll, half-human, to slay the demons who stole his body.
One of the most perfect anime I've seen, which has a super great premise, delightful and intriguing characters, and manages to convey emotion visually so goddamn well. And has one of the most compelling conflicts in anime. Not many can make you feel just as sympathetic to both sides, but this one does perfectly. Actually this one has recently moved up the ranks as my third favorite anime of all time, right after Ansatsu Kyoushitsu and Kino no Tabi. So props. I just adore it.
10/10
