Favorite Anime of 2015

Hope everyone had a Happy New Year. It's now 2016 and the end of January. \(^0^)/ That means it's time to look back at some of my favorite anime of 2015. Last year, there were eclectic mixture of anime that came out. I felt like I've watched a lot of darker and more realistic shows last year than I've ever had before. In addition, there were tons of light novels turned anime too. I was surprise that there were even shows that have were similar in premise to each other and premiere on the same season ToT.

The basics:

Please note that I did not get to watch every new anime that came out in 2015 and the shows that started in 2014 but ends in 2015 will count in this post. What I like and how I interpret each shows may be different than others so there is no right and wrong.

Since I didn't have a post for my favorite anime of 2014, here's a recap...

Best Fantasy --> It's a tie. Akame ga Kill & Hitsugi no Chaiga + Hitsugi no Chaiga: Avenging Battle
Best Game Adaptation- Shingeki no Bahamut Genesis
Best Light Novel Adaptation- Amagi Brilliant Park
Best Psycho Thriller- Terror of Resonance
Best Sport Anime- Haikyuu!!
Honorable mention: Free! Eternal Summer and Yowamushi Pedal + Yowamushi Pedal Grand Road
Best Visual Novel Adaptation- Fate/stay night: Unlimited Bladework season 1
Best Comedy- Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun & Barakamon
Best Horror/Thriller- Tokyo Ghoul

Best Anime of 2014- Barakamon - I love this anime. This show made me smile and feel happy inside. A slice of life with a touch of comedy.

Favorite characters of 2014-It's a tie between Naru Kotoishi from Barakamon and Chaika from Hitsugi no Chaika.

Now let's begin with my...


***** Favorite Anime of 2015*****


Best Light novel adaptation

Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darou ka (Danmachi for short...such a long title)

I really like this show. At first I thought it's going be another harlem anime in MMORPG world but it's better than I expected. Bell, the main character, is not arrogant, good hearted, and is just really lucky with the ladies unconsciously(who are mostly stronger than him). He just wants to be stronger and protect the people he loves. His goddess, Hestia, is adorable and helpful too. This show setting is in a typical fantasy RPG world. It reminds me of Sword Art Online or Log Horizon but with no players. The story moves at a good pace. Bell's character development was handled well. The animation grew on me and some episode I found was very artistic. The action scenes were good. The fan service in this show did not distract me from the story. Also, the supporting characters in this show are fun and entertaining. It's not a happy go lucky show. Bell has to deal with betrayal and escape death each time he goes to the dungeon. It's exciting to see how Bell handle the problems that arises. I'm hoping for a season 2 in the future.If you are looking for a nice RPG type show Danmachi is great for you.

Best Sci-fi

Kiseiiju (Parasite the maximum)

This anime actually started in Oct 2014 and ended in Mar 2015. The main character, Shintaro, and Miki(the parasyte alien in his hand)had a great relationship. The parasites they fought were ugly and scary. This show can actually be consider a horror anime since there were quite a bit of gruesome deaths. The pacing of the story was slow but it picked up really quick later. The action scenes were awesome. Their symbiosis change both Shintaro and Miki little by little. Miki was becoming more human like as Shintaro was becoming less. There are lots of layers within this show. Overall, Kiseiiju is a show that makes you think about our society and let us appreciate our everyday lives.

Honorable mention: Ghost in the Shell Alternative Architecture

Best Action/ manga adaptation

Kekkai Sensou (Blood Battlefront Blockade)

The feel of this show reminds me of Cowboy Bebop but with a Trigun twist. It was adapted from the creator of Trigun and I think the story is really intriguing. I love the sountrack in this show. Its jazzy/blues background made the show even better. The opening and ending theme were amazing and the insert songs were nice too. The animation is top notch. The casts were amazing. I enjoy the whole alternate New York City with people with crazy powers, aliens, and cool creatures in it. The fight scenes got better as each episode progress. Even though we had to wait 3 months just to see the last episode, it was well worth it. I wish they would dive into more of each character's back story. Hoping for another season in the future. I highly recommend this show to everyone.

Favorite Anime Episode of 2015 --> Kekkai Sensou episode 6 "Remember you Remember Me"

It's a touching episode. Some tears may be shed and it all started with an alien just wanting a burger ^o^

Best Music/Drama Anime

Shigatsu Kimi no Uso (Your Lies in April)

This show started in Oct 2014 and ends in March 2015 so I'll put this in the 2015 category. The music is fantastic. The animation is beautiful. The story is really good..>o<.. The relationships between the four main characters are well done. These teens have their own problems to tackle and they ways they do that is really realistic. There was the feels that I get that reminds me of when I watched Ano Hana with a Sakamichi no Apollon (Kids on a Slope) twist ..>o<...Watch it till the end and you will know who and what lies were said in April. It's been a while since I've watch a show like this. Best Horror/thriller

Tokyo Ghoul √A

I really like the darker shows this year and Tokyo Ghoul really show the grittiness of it. I wish the series was longer. The characters are complex. It's hard to figure out who's right and wrong. The ghoul just need to survive but they have to eat human flesh. Human have to kill ghoul so that they can survive. Lots of twist in this half. So many unanswered questions. Lots of death. I'll be watching it's OVA while I awaits Tokyo Ghoul:RE anime.

Best Mystery/thriller

Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru (Beautiful Bones - Sakurako's Investigation)

A really good murder mystery anime with heart and somewhat despair. There was a depth to the story. Sakurako and Shoutarou's chemistry was great. She's a bit strange and he complimented her. The character design and the animation of this show is good. The premise of the show was interesting and well written. The second episode got me a bit teary too. Each case they solve has variety of layers to it. It's not the usual ..who'd done it.. kind of murder mystery. Also, sometimes, the truth of the murder hurt. The anime shows a grey area. In the end, there were still some unanswered questions left in the show so I'm hoping for a possibly second season in the future.


Honorable mention: Subete Ga F Ni Naru (The Perfect Insider) & Ranppo Kitan: The Game of Laplace
Other mystery reccommendation: Ryuugajou Nanana no Maizoukin, Un-Go, Kami-sama no Memochou, and Hyouka

Best Shoujo/Historical

Akatasuki no Youna

This show came out in Oct 2014 and ended in Mar 2015. I adore its manga and the anime did a great job with it too. The character design it top notch and the fighting scenes are excellent. Youna's character develope and matures as she learns that the outside world is not what she thought it would be. Her four dragons guys and Huk are loveable characters. Too bad it just ended too fast. I wish they would have just continue on with the rest of the story but we'll have to wait for a season 2.


Best Historical/Action

Arslan Senki (Heroic Legend of Arsland)

Based on a fantasy novel with the same name, Arslan Senki is an epic story about a young prince trying to claim his kingdom back. With the help of his interesting friends, he journeys to become a great king. This sums up what Arsland is about but there is so much more. There is more crazy family drama and treacherous story going on and I really enjoy it. The character design is done by my favorite manga artist Hiromu Arakawa(Full Metal Alchemist). The animation is really well done. I like the fight scenes too. The war scenes were ok. I adored prince Arslan. He's a kind prince with a big heart. The supporting characters are interesting and I love how the story continues on. Can't wait to see what happen next.

Best Comedy

One Punch Man

It's the little anime that can...Little premise..Little story..but lots of laugh. It's silly to think a show about a guy who became a super hero and can kill any enemy with one punch would be this good. The silliness is what makes this show funny. The bald headed superhero, Saitama, is awesome. Saitama and Genose are a great combo. I don't know how many time Saitama city has been mess up by unatural and natural disasters but he just kept saving it. The bad guys appeared to be strong and powerful and it's funny to see how Saitama beats them. One Punch Man is animated by Madhouse and they did a fine job with this. Madhouse did a great job with its animation and action sequences. For a 12 episodes anime, One Punch Man is a fantastic show.

Best Anime of the Year

I have to give it to 2 shows: Death Parade and Fate/stay night: Unlimited Bladeworks season 2

Death Parade

Death Parade is just an amazing show. It premiere early in 2015 and I just can't get it out of my mind. This shows pushes the limit of human morality. Life or death situation will happen with just a few choices. Each characters that come to the bar had mysterious past. They are not always as innocent as they seem. As the guests play the game, they are remembering horrible truths that happened to them. It's a unique show. The animation is excellent and the characters are amazing. The story is well thought out. It's dark and brutal so probably not good for young audiences. I've also watched the OVA Death Billiard, which came out before the series and it's really good too. I highly recommend Death Parade. It's refreshing to see something that's different and still really good.

Fate/stay night: Unlimited Bladeworks -->this also won the Best Visual Novel Adaptation too

I wish it was longer but I'll have to finish playing the FSN Visual Novel to get more details. The Fate series is one of my favorite show and it's great to see UBW Arc being brought to anime form. It's the last half of the Unlimited Bladworks arc. The ending of UBW was great. The Holy Grail war concluded and you see the life after a bit. This arc has more focus on Shiro and Rin and it was done beautifully. Their character development and their chemistry makes you believe that they care for each other. The truth of Archer which has been hinted throughout the first half was revealed. There were lots of dialogue in the this half but it never dragged the show down. You get to see Illyasviel and Berserker in action ..>o<..Lancer redeemed himself and is a better character than I thought he would be. The animation was amazing. The battle scenes was top notch. I love this show ♥♥♥. Highly recommend it.

That is all of my favorite anime of last year. I still have a ton of back log to watch for last year. Overall, 2015 was a decent year for anime. What were your favorites of last year? Let's look forward to another good year of anime in 2016.