Anime 2013: The good, the meh, and the ugly according to Tenchi

It's that time of year again. Well except last year when I either forgot or didn't have time to do it so.....But yes the 2013 anime season is officially over besides the leftover episodes from carry over seasons. Which means it is time for all anime bloggers to post their favorite moments/shows of the year and which ones sucked. Favorite couples, favorite songs, moments that sucked. Everyone has an opinion.

So much to do and it is only January 1st!

Now 2013 was a bit of a special year for me. A transitional one. Some family drama plagued the first half of the year which spilled over into no job land. Then poof I now have a job where I work 5 or 6 days a week mostly alone. A lot of adjustments. Add in my brand new pass to Disney World and I am just grateful people stuck with me through all my lateness. I did try. So let me sit back and try to think about all the shows I watched last year. Or cheat and go through my blog posts. Don't die bandwidth.  

Favorite Anime Series- Psycho-Pass

I'll kill you and the brains!

This year was light on MOG amazing shows. So when I thought back to things that were good in almost every aspect and had likeable/relate-able/interesting characters Psycho-Pass came to mind. The plot was something new to me. The twists that happened were...well not expect. Brains controlling the world? Minority Report on steroids? The line between good and evil very blurred, very grey. Even the villain might not have been so villainous. Or really what he could have done might have resulted in the greater good, even if his intentions were evil. People died in gruesome ways yet there was always one person trying to keep the faith while everyone else was doom and gloom. It also had a lot of thought provoking meaning. Like who are we and where is society going? It did this without being so in your face about it. Sounds like a pretty good show yes? I think so too. 

Least Favorite Anime Series- Red Data Girl

We are being chased. So worried. So scared....thanks for helping mom.

After 6 episodes I gave up on this series. I was told to try again, that things were going to get better. I think 6 episodes is more than enough time. Fair I was. It just didn't get better or interesting at all. I felt as if nothing much was getting explained or it was being explained off screen so the characters themselves weren't explaining. Just...it was bleh. Vanilla without the taste. Tofu I guess. I don't know what happened at the end but yeah....it was just not very enjoyable to watch. 

Favorite Character- Kogami from Psycho-Pass

My life is so awful!

Looking back I didn't have much to choose from. But if I had to pick a character I would pick this tragic man. Poor Kogami. He believed in a system that was really...messed up to say the least. He was ultimately classified as a criminal because he cared too much. And even when he was treated poorly and could have given up he didn't. He did the right thing by blowing Shougo away. Really he was misunderstood and kept on going. Poor Kogami. Some think there will be a season two of Psycho-Pass. I just hope he doesn't take on the role of Shougo. He isn't a villain. 

Least Favorite Character- Girl from Amnesia

Sleep walking through life.

That's right, I said it. GIRL! Because she doesn't even have a name folks. Shujinko is just a name to identify her without saying girl all the time. She isn't even worth a name ya'll. Okay I know that is because people playing the game are supposed to put themselves in her position and not having a name helps with that. Putting that all aside...she was nothing. Barely had any dialogue. Just poofed around from world to world, timeline to timeline like all was well. Being hurt by crazy, jealous girls to being caged by an insane boyfriend...it was like nothing was effecting this blank slate. It was deranged to watch. Like um okay boys I guess you are carrying the show because Shujinko's lines consist of Oh all the time. I think the entire internet can agree with me that Shunjinko was a waste of space. 

Favorite Opening Song- Shingeki no Kyojin opening 1, Crimson Bow and Arrow by Linked Horizon 

Well I guess I need to clarify this. It is actually the opening song that I like, not the entire version. Because the rest of the internet and I waited for months to hear the whole song and....let's just say the whole song is odd. Like the snippet we had for the opening was one kind of song and the rest of the song...was completely different. It really didn't work for me and I think a lot of people feel that way. But for the actual opening part...I liked it. Liked it a lot. 

Best Couple- Err.....Riki and Rin from Little Busters Refrain?

Yeah Riki and Rin...

Off the top of my head I couldn't think of really any couples this year. Well besides the many that were Amnesia. And a lot of them, people who could be couples, weren't official yet. So....it was actually kind of hard to pick a real couple. Riki and Rin did get together technically...in a fake world. But if all the memories and what not were true it seems that they were on that path anyway. The craziness of Kyousuke's test just pushed them along. Like a shy sorta new beginning yes? Sweet, innocent, and growing as people when around each other. Yeah I can get down with that instead of always in your face and over the topness. 

Favorite WTF moment- Tamako Market Dera's Deraness

Behold Dera's mating call!

I was going to pick Solomon and his many faces but that episode was in 2012. So I went another direction on this one. Dera and his little dance was so cute. A little fat bird that got it mentally but was around for comic relief anyway. Dance little bird dance. You made Tamako Market fun to watch.

Biggest Let Down- Zetsuen no Tempest plot/ ending

Like totally. This ending like totally sucks totally dude.

This was one show that I would rush home to see if there was a new episode up yet. Refresh refresh. Wake up and see if it's done. And even when things got a little weird, especially when it turned out that Aika wasn't....well truly the mage I thought she was I still watched. Waiting for this amazing ending of epicness. That it would blow my mind. It is all building up to something awesome. A real trick of an ending. What I got was...well a below average boy turning into a Power Ranger and the answer being a lot simpler than I had expected. Perhaps I had built it up so much in my mind I was going to be disappointed anyway. Just...I wanted it to go a different way. It was wrapped up so nicely. You know, besides like ¼ of all humanity dying or something. The build up grand, delivery...not so great. 

Tearful moment- Eren verses Old Man Titan from Shingeki no Kyojin

With you Armin.....

There were so many to choose from. I mean....most of Little Buster's Refrain was one big BOO HOO fest. But if I were to pick from the many tear jerking moments I would have to say it might be when Eren got nommed by the old dude Titan. It was just the whole moment before and after it too. The rest of his squad dying, getting himself in danger to save Armin, and his speech about how he was going to kill all the Titans. He was going to save everyone and then....SNAP! His arm goes flying and he is swallowed by the Titan, leaving Armin scarred for life. Now...Eren is okay and isn't really dead but at that moment it was a WTF and just..sad. Like okay this series is going to be full of hopelessness, all is doom. Poor Armin. Marco being really dead I guess is a close second.

Favorite Closing Song- Psycho-Pass ending 1Namae no nai Kaibutsu by EGOIST This song just had a really nice beat to it. The lyrics were not....creepy per say. What is the word I am looking for? Not mysterious but....eerie? Yes I think that is what I am looking for. It's funny how a song where you don't understand the lyrics can make you feel something you know? 

Stupidest plot- Arata Kannagi

Can someone just stab him already?

It sadness me to say this but yes....Arata Kannagi..I had such high hopes for you. Probably given who the author/artist is behind the manga. Perhaps my expectations were way too high. But each week I felt more and more disappointed watching this show. I GET why Hinohara was upset about the race and how he wanted the friendship back. But after hearing about it for the 4839438 time I wanted to slap Hinohara. Open your eyes to what is really going on! Your friend lost his mind after you did him a favor and now he traveled to another magical world to take you out. It is time to stop trying to save this friendship and save yourself. Oh and trying to save everyone else...since everyone else has to “die” for you to become King. I am sure in Season Two it will be revealed all who submit to Hinohara will be saved in the end but for now it seemed too happy and optimistic given how DARK it was supposed to be. Corners were cut for sure with the animation and the plot. 

Moment of WTF that made me question humanity- All of Shin Sekai Yori

Just...good job adults for making sure tragedies didn't happen again.

Granted most of the WTF moments happened in 2012 clearly I am still traumatized by this entire series. Or how it won awards and was super popular. Those who didn't “see the beauty” in this show were told they just didn't get it. That it meant so much more than what was presented on screen. Well I got what it was supposed to represent. Just... so much craziness. So much bleakness. So much of it could have been prevented. And the future still looks bleak despite how the surviving characters came together in the end. Like no. Everything is horrible and a lie and is it worth going on if humans could be so bad? Just WTF indeed.