When I wrote Seasons of Anime, it was just middle of the year. Since then, I watched a lot more anime titles. I decided to use MyAnimeList to keep track of the titles I’ve watched and its ratings. Here, I will list some titles that are really exceptional to me in no particular order.
Kaguya-sama: Love Is War
Kaguya-sama: Love Is War at time of writing consists of 3 seasons and 1 movie. I love this series so much. It’s a story about two high school students who like each other but wants to make the other’s confess. Throughout their day-to-day interactions with other characters, they grew closer and closer. It has a superb comedy style, and at some moments, I could tear up too. 10/10.
Violet Evergarden
Violet Evergarden (2018) is set in an alternate world where a war orphan reintegrates into society. It explores theme like how to express themselves, how to face own’s past, and how to let go. Besides the story, the accompanying orchestral soundtrack is also really good. Be ready to cry, as it unleashes so much emotional damage. At one of the episodes, I cried from the start till the end of that episode. 10/10.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Puella Magi Madoka Magica (English title) or Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica (Japanese title, literal meaning is “Magical Girl Madoka Magica”) originally aired as anime original series in 2011, it has stood the test of time. On the surface, it might look like a typical magical girl anime, where young girls obtained magical power to defeat evil powers. However, the dark story and twist will make viewer really hooked till the end of the series. Besides that, the art styles and soundtracks are also really unique. 10/10.
A Place Further than the Universe
A Place Further than the Universe (English title) or Sora yori mo Tooi Basho (Japanese title) is a series from 2018 where a group of high school girls decides to make full use of their youth and embark on an adventure to visit Antarctica. It is styled like a cute-girl-doing-cute-things genre, however, it contained lots of relationship drama, soul searching, and personal growth. At one of the episodes, they visited Singapore and it’s really nice to see durian & chicken rice depicted in anime. There are tons of funny moments and also teary moments. It’s unfortunate that this title is not more well-known. 9/10.
A Silent Voice
A Silent Voice (English title) or Koe no Katachi (Japanese title, literal translation is “The Shape of Voice”) is a 2016 film. This film jam packed so many difficult themes, like disability, bullying, facing one’s past, depression, and suicide. I think the best part of this film is the direction, which have the feeling like a live-action movie. The music is also unique in the sense that it’s quite minimal, like there are lots of silence, which works out really well in this film. 9/10.
Conclusion
There are probably more titles that I wanted to include, but for now, these are the five titles I’d like to recommend to anyone:
- Kaguya-sama: Love Is War
- Violet Evergarden
- Puella Magi Madoka Magica
- A Place Further than the Universe
- A Silent Voice
P.S. Happy birthday Matt.