@Thunderstrucker, yeah I just finished watching that myself. That's quite amazing short show.
Although the second... Well... "Season" got a bit too extreme.
@Doorslammer: Yep, Shinryaku! Ika Musume (err, Squid girl...) is a must get! First season has one of the cutest scenes ever happened in a history of men. And season 2 has twice as many of them! And the show is filled with good humor.
So yeah, the year is over and so is the winter season, which means it's a good time to give a short review of some of the best shows this year. It should be a good shortlist for people not wanting to guess what is good and what is not.
First of all, a funny stat, I started watching 84 series' of 2011. I dropped 7 out of those, because of being horribly bad or boring.
But let's go!
Winter:
The winter season was quite bad, TBH. The better shows from 2010 winter continued for another 13 episodes. These shows were Toaru Majutsu no Index S2 and Bakuman. The good shows starting in 2011 were Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica, Gosick and "Kore wa Zombie Desuka?". Mitsudomoe also had a shorted season, being just 8 episodes long.
The second season of Index was sort of better, sort of worse than the first one, but it is still worth a watch if you have seen the first season. What would be a more interesting setup than science versus religion. Well, many, but still! Contains pretty basic fighting, but some of the characters are just lovable.
Bakuman. Yeah, this will turn many people away propably. The show is about two guys making a manga. (Yo dawg, I heard you like manga so we put manga in your manga so you can read manga while reading manga. We have to go... Deeper... Too many old jokes?) But because the series is about something like this, it is pretty interesting. It is certainly different from all of those generic fighting shows. The first season might drag a little but the second season (airing just now) certainly picks up the pace.
If one focused purely on sales charts, Puella Magi Madoka Magica would be easily the best anime of the year. The show got an insane responce. At the beginning everyone thought it was going to be just another Mahou Shoujo anime with cute little girls fighting even cuter enemies. But it was not to be. Right from the beginning the show would show some darker scenes. And then the heart stopper happened, which kickstarted the series. After that the show was just pure greatness with deep story and some creative fighting scenes.
The drawing style might turn some people off with its hand drawn feel. I for one wasn't a fan of it..
Kore wa Zombie Desuka and Mitsudomoe provided the comedy of the season. Kore wa is a more generic comedy, but still a good one at that. Mitsudomoe plays more with misunderstanding and more normal life stuff with the show following some elementary school kids who all have their own traits. It's a shame this got such few episodes since this was even funnier than the first season.
Spring:
After a bad winter, the good shows started. Nichijou, Hanasaku Iroha, Otome Youkai Zakuro, Dog Days, Astarotte no Omocha, The World God Only Knows S2, Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko, Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai, A Channel....
Well, there's too many to write about...
In general I could say that this was a dream period for people (like me) who like cat girls or any other *-mimis. Dog girls, cat girls, fox girls, succubis and many more. Dog Days and Astarotte no Omocha were the main providers of these. Both of the shows have a very nice drawing style and nicely colorful worlds. The story is not the worlds greatest in either of these, but I don't think that's even the point in these shows.
If you're going for the story you have to see Hanasaku Iroha, Otome Youkai Zakuro and Ano Hana. First two are propably for aimed at female viewers, but that's why there is the story. Hanasaku follows a girl who has to move to an inn and work there. She obviously hits many obstacles there and has to find a way to get past them. Oretachi is another old religion vs new science type of show, but this time more towards the spiritual way. And it's a foxgirl galore! I still haven't found any good figures of this show, me wants!
And Ano Hana is a sure tear jerker. The story is very touching as it follows a group of people who lost a friend when they were young and now they try to repay their debts for her.
Denpa has some of the best graphics of the year, The World God only knows follows the same great pattern as the first season.
A Channel -> see K-ON.
And Nichijou is the comedy pick of the year. Simple as that.
Summer:
more cat girls galore as some of the spring series' continued and new ones came. Nekogami Yaoyorozy, Ikoku Meiro no Croisee, Ro Kyu Bu, Yuru Yuri, Mayo Chiki, Idolm@ster, Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Ni.
Ikoku Meiro no Croisee is the cutest one of the year. You'll be sure to roll on the floor wrenching because of the cuteness of that little girl.
Nekogami brings more comedy to the field by giving us these chibi'ish animal gods.
Idolm@ster is propably the series people have been waiting the most. The games have been highly popular and it was sure this was going to happen sooner or later. And the show provides what is requested. The show follows an idol management company which is starting from zero. Once again there will be some obstacles, mainly personal, which everyone has to tackle on.
The rest in short: Ro Kyu Bu is about a group of girls wanting to form a basketball team. Mayo Chiki is one of those traditional dating sim shows, but with some nice graphics and good characters. And yet another cat girl!
Yuru Yuri -> see K-On.
Winter:
It's not that good... Well, it sort of is, but still it sort of isn't.
Second season of Ika Musume is just pure gold.
C3 follows the great drawing style of Denpa Onna. It has a pretty nice setting and nice characters. And it brings back the twisted faces of Higurashi.
The second season of Working is yet another great comedy show, propably even better than the first one.
Mashiro-iro Symphony has a very nice story, although it is yet another harem anime. But he selects the right girl! And, you guessed it, cat girls.
Boky wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai also has a nice drawing style, almost like Denpa Onna, but not quite.
Overall the best original show of winter is propably Chihayafuru, which is about a girl who want's to become a karuta queen. It's a sort of card game where the competitors try to catch the right card as soon as they hear it. The show is aimed at women so obviously the story is better.
Sooo yeah... Top 15 to make an extreme shortlist.. (Reason in brackets)
1. Hanasaku Iroha (story)
2. Working!! (comedy)
3. Bakuman (story, idea)
4. Otome Youkai Zakuro (story, *-mimi)
5. Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai (story)
6. Ikoku Meiro no Croisee (the girl, the world)
7. Shinryaku!? Ika Musume (Comedy)
8. Softenni (Comedy, drawing)
9. Dog Days (*-mimi, drawing)
10. Idolm@ster (story)
11. Nichijou (comedy)
12. C3 (graphics)
13. Mayo Chiki (comedy)
14. Chihayafuru (story)
15. Baka to Test to Shoukanju Ni! (comedy)