List of Anime to Watch: 10 - 6th place (Recommendations updated October 2017) Part 1

Hey there guys,

Endblade here. In lieu of restarting this blog, I'll be updating some of my old posts with new information! This being one of them, I'll be introducing a top 10 anime to watch (including anime movies or series) as of today, October 2017! Do take note, recently I haven't been watching much anime due to school commitments and other events, but I have been following some here and there. Also, if you guys are interested, my previous posts backs in 2015 can be seen here:

2015 list of anime recommendations part 1
2015 list of anime recommendations part 2

DISCLAIMER: My opinion is purely my own and I welcome all discussion about the choices I made for my top 10, and these choices are made in comparison with anime that I have watched. It is based on my personal taste and hence greatly influenced by it. What I rate highly may not always be what you deem the same, hence this is called 'a noob's perspective, me being the noob :)

With that out of the way, let's dive in! Do note: minor spoilers ahead, I won't spoil everything, I'll talk about it like how you would recommend a movie to someone else. But certain events or points I deem necessary to include will be included. I will try to avoid mentioning anime that I have mentioned in my earlier posts.

10. Koe no Katachi (A silent voice) aired 21 September 2016/ runtime 2 hr. 10 min. (movie)

What is friendship?

Released in September 2016, I personally only watched this a few days ago (in October 2017). Before this, I remember some of my friends recommending this movie to me, but I never got around to watching it. After watching Just Because (An ongoing anime), I decided to browse around and stumbled upon this movie. At first, I was apprehensive. Would this be a waste of my two hours? I mean, with foresight (and the fact that this is my number 10 anime selected), obviously it was good.

The show revolves around Shouya Ishida, a highschooler who is a shadow of his former self. He used to bully Shouko Nishimiya, a classmate in elementary school for being deaf. However, the tables turned and now he is the one being bullied. This movie is basically a redemption arc for Shouya as he rediscovers himself and reunites with old friends to make amends.

What I found refreshing was the blatant honesty of the show in exposing the weaknesses of the main character, that he isn't someone who is the implicit hero (unlike other anime or shows). He is on a journey, like all of us are in our lives to find meaning and to seek purpose. Nishimiya, the girl whom Shouya bullied also has her own insecurities, and the way the film portrays it is realistic and you can empathize with how she felt.

How is this movie a good movie? At the climax (no spoilers) My heart literally beat faster with the tempo of the music. Did I say that the music is just so apt for the movie? Each scene and music accompaniment helped to evoke the right feelings at the right time, and that for me made this movie an unforgettable one. While the plot may be quite simple and mundane (at first), once you relate to the characters, you understand that after all, everyone, even anime characters, can be human too.

9. 91 Days aired July 2016 - October 2016 / 13 episodes

Avilio and Nero

91 Days takes places in 1920s, during the period of Prohibition in America. True to its' namesake, it takes place over a span of 91 days, or roughly 3 months. A tale of revenge where Avilio Lagusa's family has been murdered by the Vanetti Mafia family, Avilio goes down a destructive path of vengeance as Avilio Bruno, losing himself in the process.

What made me like this anime was the dark themes and the historical setting of the anime. While the town featured, Lawless, doesn't really refer to any particular town or city, the art style and dark tones in the animation help to ensure its' validity and sell the idea of a town rules by gangs vying for importance. While the ending left more to be desired, what 91 Days does well is the art and the portrayal of the environment in the 1920s, slightly romanticized but nonetheless riveting and leaves you on the edge of your seat while watching it.

91 Days shows that sometimes, people that could have been friends could be forced by the cruel twist of fate to become sworn enemies. And yet, inside each and every person, we all have feelings. We all want to be accepted by others.

8. Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans aired October 2015 - October 2017/ 50 episodes (2 seasons)

Tekkadan

Ahhh Gundam. Always with the violence, dark themes and flashy machines. But what made this Gundam anime so great that it broke into the top 10 for me? Well, firstly being 50 episodes, its quite hard to summarize the entire plot and condense such that there isn't any major spoilers to be had. But I'll try. This show revolves around one word: Family. Family runs deep in the crew of Tekkadan (Iron Flower), who are a ragtag bunch of orphans forced into the warring business (think child fighters in the Middle East) and attempt to make a name of their own and create a future where they can live in harmony and peace against the corrupt and evil Gjallarhorn.

Of course, harmony and peace don't go well with the world of Gundam, and Mikazuki Augus, pilot of the Gundam Barbartos (the one you see in the picture above) is the demon of Tekkadan. This is a touching tale of familial bonds, horrible circumstances, plot twists and betrayals with bloodshed that could paint an entire house red.

The entire plot was well-spaced out, although it could feel like the main plotline might not be moving at times due to certain side events, but those side episodes provide a refreshing break from the warring in the Mars and Earth Sphere. Although the final ending may not be satisfactory for some, but the conclusion to this was well-thought out and touching to say the least. Towards the ending, things felt a bit rushed to conclusion but I could understand why - too many plot strings to tie up and it can feel a bit overwhelming in the final 10 episodes climax.

Family

I would recommend you to watch ALL 50 episodes (in spite of the amount of time it may take). For me, I followed it religiously every week for both seasons because it was simply so good, each episode left me wanting more. While the first few episodes may seem slightly slow-paced, it serves as a basis for Tekkadan and its' struggles so that when you look back, you realize how far they have come.

While the first season may suffer because of this initial setup time to lay the ground, when you look at it from a composite whole, the theme and message the creators want to portray definitely ring true towards the end of the anime. It really is a refreshing difference from previous Gundam series (of which I watched them all but never got to finishing because after a while it was too tiring and cliche).

7. Boku dake ga Inai Machi (Erased) aired January 2016 - March 2016 / 12 episodes

Its' too late for regrets

Erased. That's how I feel sometimes, when people forget my name or forget me. Not that it matters as much, but this anime rings true with the idea that some people just remain forgotten to most, but cherished by some. A touching tale where the washed-up main character Fujinuma Satoru finds himself in deus ex machina fashion, using a mechanic called Revival to go back in the past to right the wrongs he felt he did to Hinazuki Kayo, a female classmate in the 1970s.

Another touching tale of redemption, although plot device being slightly incredulous (well it is fiction after all), the interactions between Satoru and Kayo are heartfelt and genuine. Kayo seems like a mysterious girl and Satoru is awkward at first, but the development between the two characters blooms in the form of an innocent type of friendship and love. Who says anime is always about boobs and hentai? (well where did I get that thought from? Not me definitely!)

6. Hai to Gensou no Grimgar aired January 2016 - March 2016 / 12 episodes

RPG? I'm in

Ever reminisced the time you were playing games like Maplestory and DragonNest? Well, I did. Watching this anime a year back brought back many memories of fun times grinding low-level mobs (back when Maplestory had difficult levelling curves). Party quests, dungeons, bossfights, the full monty. All of it is represented in one way or another when 6 people wake up in the land of Grimgar, a fantasy world of goblins and kobolds. Forming a party, they each take up different 'jobs'. A tank, knight, cleric, mage, archer and thief. These are classic archetypes in all MMOs, old or new.

Their adventure starts them off as noobs, clueless as to the mechanics in the world of Grimgar. But united they stand, and they overcome the initial adversity to form a bonded party, taking on monsters for money. Like mercenaries for hire. What made this anime so amazing to me was the setting and of course the art style. A-1 Pictures did a A+ job of watercolour-like backgrounds melded into the animation of the characters smoothly. 

Beautiful art by A-1 Pictures

All-in-all, riveting fight scenes that seem more realistic than most other action animes coupled with amazing art direction places this anime in a solid 6th position. The plot follows a steady tempo throughout, which makes the show well-paced and although the ending leaves much to the imagination, similar to MMOs, the story ends only when you stop playing.


Final Thoughts
I thought about placing all top 10 choices in one post, but I realized that after writing at length on the first 5 anime (there's really so much to talk about that writing doesn't do any of these works of art justice at all), its' just too long.

Hence I have decided to split it into 2 parts, for ease of reading, like how I did my first recommendation post 2 years back.

Anime is a beautiful medium to express your fantasies and intepretations of the world. It pains me when people deride anime as a lesser form of 'real life' shows. The effort gone into animating every scene and the creation of entire worlds to fit these shows is no less of a mean feat. Every anime takes a great deal of effort and we should appreciate it. Some other honourable mentions (which did not get into my top 10 but nonetheless should be appreciated):

Fate/Apocrypha
Kuzu no Honkai
Gundam: The Origin
Tsurezure Children
Golden Time

I may do reviews on these anime above, do let me know if you guys are interested in any of them!

Also, you can check out my Youtube channel here

Until Next Time,

Endblade