Anime of the Year

[kLaUS]

Hey, wich anime do you guys think can be describe as the best of the year, but since 2000. I dont have to much time in the anime world so i wanna see what do you have to say and then i will say my choices.

I guess you can consider an anime part of a year when is on the air in that same year, doesnt matter if it was just a month or something like that, if in that time you consider it the best, you can name it. And you can already say 2006, cause the year is almost over...

[Zelkiiro]

...? I'll...try to figure out what you're talking about. Since 2000, eh?

2000: Now and Then, Here and There
2001: Fruits Basket
2002: Azumanga Daioh
2003: Tokyo Godfathers
2004: Midori no Hibi
2005: ???
2006: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

[kLaUS]

yeah, thats exactly what i was talking about, altough, midori no hibi ?¿ and why did you leave 2005 out ?¿

[jetfire]

My votes would have to go to (note that I'm picking these series based on when the majority of the anime was displayed, and not from it's premiere date. As for Now and Then, Here and There, I picked it as my favourite anime of 2000 since it was still running through that time period, and there weren't any anime that I felt that really deserved the title. I found FLCL overrated):

2000: Now and Then, Here and There
2001: Hajime No Ippo
2002: Rahxephon
2003: Gungrave/Last Exile
2004: FullMetal Alchemist
2005: Eureka Seven
2006: Blood+

And just because I feel like it:

1996: Rurouni Kenshin
1998: Trigun
1999: Cowboy Bebop/Rurouni Kenshin: Tsuiokuhen

[soundchazer]

2000: Sekai no senki (now and then, here and there started in 1999, so I would still consider it 1999)

2001: Spirited Away (god... outside of maybe 4 anime that year, nothing else was even close to memorable... what a lousy year).

2002: Tie: 12 Kingdoms / Rahxephon

2003: GunGrave

2004: Triple Tie: Fantastic Children / Monster / Gankutsuou

2005: Tie: Paradise Kiss / Honey & Clover

2004 and 2005 were incredibly good years. Lots of good anime among the sea of mediocrity the industry puts out. 2006 is still an incomplete at this point, but it hasn't been as strong as the last 2 years, but still MUCH better than 2001 and 2002

[madpierrot]

2000: FLCL
2001: Read or Die (pretty weak year)
2002: Ghost in the Shell SAC
2003: Scrapped Princess / Gungrave
2004: Beck (my opinion this was the best ever year for anime, so many incredible shows came out)
2005: Mushishi / Futakoi Alternative
2006: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (I don't see this falling from the top spot)

[Tremolo]

2000: FLCL
2001: Millennium Actress, Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' On Heaven's Door, X TV
2002: RahXephon, The Twelve Kingdoms, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
2003: Fullmetal Alchemist, Planetes, Tokyo Godfathers, Texhnolyze, Gungrave
2004: Gankutsuou, Fantastic Children, 2nd GIG
2005: Eureka Seven, Mushishi

[Zelkiiro]

2000: Sekai no senki (now and then, here and there started in 1999, so I would still consider it 1999)
Ohhhh...

Well, in that case, I pick FLCL. :D

[Lupin the 3rd]

2000: Now and Then, Here and There / Love Hina
2001: Hellsing / Fruits Baskets / Spirited Away / Cowboy Bebop Movie
2002: Full Metal Panic / Magical Shopping Arcade / Azumangda Daioh
2003: Gungrave
2004: FullMetal Alchemist / Monster
2005: Honey and Clover / Futakoi Alternative
2006: Ouran High School Host Club / Melancholy of Haruhi Suzimiya

[silan]

2000: FLCL
2001: Millennium Actress, Read or Die OVA
2002: Azumanga Daioh, Haibane Renmei, 12 Kingdoms
2003: Kino's Journey, FMP? Fumoffu
2004: Gankutsuou, Otogi Zoshi
2005: FMP! The Second Raid, Noein
2006: See sig. (Or for those that just have no clue: Ouran High School Host Club)

[C0MPL3X]

2000: FLCL
2001: No idea
2002: Haibane Renmei
2003: Planetes
2004: Gankutsuou
2005: Mushishi

No idea when my favourite animes were released, might update when more animes are listed.

[KiraraKim]

I am not very good at remembering anime years so I am going by what other people have said.

2000- I guess FLCL
2001- Fruits Basket
2002- Azumanga Daioh
2003- Fullmetal Alchemist and Kino's Journey
2004- Not sure actually I didn't watch a lot of anime from this year
2005- Honey and Clover and Mushishi
2006- Not sure yet but I am leaning towards H&C II and Haruhi Suzumiya

[Perrin]

2000: Now and Then Here and There

2001: Millennium Actress & Spirited Away: While Spirited away won the oscar I think Millennium Actress is one of the most beautiful and creative films I have ever seen.

2002: Haibane Renmei

2003: Gungrave & Fullmetal Alchemist: Both amazing shows hard to choose between the two.

2004: Monster: Hands down best anime of the year, also my favorite show ever.

2005: Honey & Clover

[animanic_critic]

1999: Cowboy Bebop/Rurouni Kenshin: Tsuiokuhen
That's odd; wasn't Cowboy Bebop being shown in 1998 rather than in 1999?

Back to topic: Okay, here we go...

2000
FLCL - One of the most creative, mind-boggling and unconventional anime out there, not to mention how The Pillow nailed it with their music for this one.

2001
Fruits Basket - One of our favorite drama of 2001, and one of my favorites as well.
Spirited Away - Won the Best Animated Feature Oscar Award, and that alone speaks for itself.
Millenium Actress - Visually artistic and provoking storyline.
Noir - Two girls who know how to fight and sling their guns. A slow beginning that eventually became a rollercoaster. (I'm surprised no one's mentioned this one yet)

2002
Azumanga Daioh - Perhaps our most beloved group of schoolgirls. It also shows that an anime need not necessarily have a plot to be that good.
Haibane Renmei - A story of angels. 'Nuff said.
RahXephon - In my opinion, the mecha anime of the year.
Sai Kano - Despite the flawed artwork, but many viewers will shed a tear or two for the heartfelt story.
Ghost In The Shell: Stand Alone Complex - One of my personal favorites of all time, and perhaps the best cyberpunk anime out there.

2003
Gungrave: Beyond The Grave - The best game-to-anime title out there, and I'm not kidding on this one.
Last EXILE - One of GONZO's proudest moments.
The Twelve Kingdoms - My favorite fantasy anime of all time.

2004
MONSTER: No explanations needed here. See it for yourself, and you'll know why it may be the anime of the year, apart from Fullmetal Alchemist.
Fullmetal Alchemist: One anime series that really backs up all the hype and success it deserves.
Ghost In the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG - The director won the "Best Individual/"Individual Achievement" award at the 9th Animation Kobe.
Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo - Most visually spectacular anime and perhaps GONZO's best title. An adaptation of a classic novel.
Mai-HiME - The sleeper hit of the year.

2005
Mushishi - Simple yet beautiful. A light-hearted anime version of The X-Files.
Honey and Clover - Based on the award-winning manga by Chika Umino.

2006
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya - S.O.S. Brigade to the rescue!!!

* I wanted to include Now and Then, Here and There but technically, it belongs to the 1999 list.

[jetfire]

That's odd; wasn't Cowboy Bebop being shown in 1998 rather than in 1999?

In the library I read that the anime spanned from 1998 to 1999. Either way you put it, it does exist in two different years. I usually pick the later year, since I like to grade an anime when it ends. Therefore, I feel I can't really have a say if an anime was the best of a previous year, when I havent seen the anime end by the end of the year, such as in the case with FullMetal Alchemist for me.

[Mana]

Unfortunately this is most of the time when I didn't watch anime much, and if you think I'm supposed to remember crap by year, you're sorely mistaken, but I'll pick through people's lists above and tell you what I think...

2000 - FLCL, one of my fvaourite shows to this day
2001 - Read or Die (OAV), not a great show, but incredibly amusing, and fun to pick up for a quick ride
2002 - Haibane Renmei/GiTS:SAC (if I had to pick between the 2, I'd go with Haibane, but both are damn good)
2003 - Nothing that anyone's listed on here I've seen for this year, so, uhh... *runs*
2004 - Well, uh, see 2003 *points up* Except that I'm watching 2nd Gig right now, so Ill say that, even though I'm not finished with the show yet.
2005 - Paradise Kiss ^.^ Even if it wasn't quite as good as the manga >>;
2006 - Even though I'm not finished with it, I'll go with Ouran, because it is just awesome ^______^

[Ritalin]

Pani Poni Dash is the anime of the year!

>_>!

[sohryu]

Maybe this will help to clear up any confusion. ;o?

http://www.animenfo.com/animebyyear.php?year=2000&perpage=30

EDIT:

Forgot my choices >_<

2000 - The nominees are: Blood: The Last Vampire, FLCL, Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade, and Vandread (first stage).
And the winner is: Jin-Roh: The Wolf Brigade!

2001 - A good year. The nominees are: Bible Black, Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door, Fruits Basket, Hellsing, Najica, Spirited Away, and Vandread (second stage).
And the winner is: Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door!

The next four years kind of pale in comparison (according the anime I've seen).

2002 - The nominees are: Azumanga Daioh, Full Metal Panic, and Onegai Teacher.
And the winner is: Onegai Teacher!

2003: Uber slow year for me. The nominees are: FMP: Fumoffu and Gunslinger Girl.
And the winner is: Gunslinger Girl! (duh)

2004: Winner by default (AKA only anime I've seen from '04) is: Elfen Lied!

2005: (another) Winner by default (and this one I didn't even get far into) is: Blood+!

And now, the finale! The grand prize winner for 2006, the anime made of God and win, is...

Ouran High School Host Club!

[Kaioshin_Sama]

Since there hasn't really been any mecha this year among the slump anime has been in since late 2004-mid 2006 aside from the incredible Eureka 7 (one of the only truly good things to come out in the last year and a half) and something called Zegapain I'm going to have to go with either Welcome to NHK from what I've seen thus far or Black Jack 21. Luckily the Mecha is supposed to pick up again next year so hopefully things will get back on track in this industry. There's been some okay shows but mostly I've found myself turning away from anime up until very recently in favour of American shows like The Boondocks.

In the past there was for me:

2000 - Gaogaigar Final
2001 - Tales Of Eternia (I Guess)
2002 - Rahxephon
2003 - Last Exile
2004 - Full Metal Alchemist
2005 - Eureka 7
2006 - Welcome To NHK/Black Jack 21

[Ghostmaster]

Alright this is hard because i'm not good with years but here it goes:
2000 - no clue
2001 - tie between R.O.D. OVA and Spirited Away. Both fantastic animes.
2002 - Even though I never finished the end of it, Full Metal Panic gets my vote.
2003 - Gungrave takes the cake. Even though I haven't finished the series it's an awesome show and extremely well done.
2004 - Gankutsuou is by far one of the greatest animes ever made. A true masterpiece of its time.
2005 - There are few actually: First off Blood+ has been one of my favorite shows that is still going on. it had a weak point, but its getting better as it goes along now. Second, is Honey and Clover. A touching and really great show. The characters are all great and it's just one of the those shows that you really get into. At last but not least, Mushishi. Truely this is a work of true art. The animation is spectactular. Feels like you're watching a Studio Ghibli film. A mysterious and interesting main charcater make this a must watch show. I can't wait to see the end.
2006 - I was thinking about Ouran, but i'm not going to. I'm actually mention two others: first Black Lagoon which is a high action awesome looking show. I was skeptical at first, but you get into it and it totally kicks ass. And last but not least, NANA is actually one of my favorite shows this year. Even though i'm not into romance shows, it's more than just that. It's funny clever, has great charaters that are complete oposites, but yet similar at the same time. It's a great show.

[Mana]

Just in case anyone was wondering, the best anime per year of 00-06 according to the AA Library is as follows:

00 - Now and Then, Here and There
01 - Hajime no Ippo
02 - Azumanga Daioh
03 - Full Metal ALchemist
04 - Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo
05 - Paradise Kiss
06 - Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

[L-sama]

2000: Now and Then, Here and There/FLCL
2001: Read or Die
2002: Azumanga Daioh!
2003: Gungrave
2004: Fullmetal Alchemist/My-Hime
2005: Blood+
2006: The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

[Barrelhaven]

Warning: I have a sieve-like memory, so this is the best I can do. I've undoubtedly left out some anime or labeled some titles under the wrong years. So, "oops" in advance.

Here we go, my personal favorites from each year since '00.

2000: Now and Then, Here and There
- FLCL is up there too, but this was an easy choice.

2001: Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' on Heaven's Door
- ROD OVA as the runner-up.

2002: Twelve Kingdoms
- Full Metal Panic! as the runner up, but far behind 12 Kingdoms.

2003: Scrapped Princess
- ROD TV and Last Exile gave a good fight.

2004: Full Metal Alchemist
- Even though I can't think of another anime from '04, FMA probably has it beat anyway.

2005: Full Metal Panic: TSR
- Blood+, although the ending is getting abit sluggish...TBD.

2006: The one with Haruhi in it. =)
- I honestly can't pick between the two series, but I'd give a slight edge to Suzumiya since it's actually finished (I think...any word on a 2nd season?).

*Black Lagoon will probably make the '07 list after the outstanding first season.

EDIT/PS: For whatever reason, I seem to be able to remember the 90s alot clearer than post-2k. Odd?

[kLaUS]

Maybe this will help to clear up any confusion. ;o?
http://www.animenfo.com/animebyyear.php?year=2000&perpage=30

Thanks !!!

Just in case anyone was wondering, the best anime per year of 00-06 according to the AA Library is as follows:

I was gonna do that...

Anyway, My choices.

2000. Now and Then Here and There. Aparently, most voted in here.(i havent watch FLcL so no clue if is better).

2001. Noir and ROD. CLose tie, but only between these two, any other series from this year sucked.

2002. Azumanga Daioh. No doubt with this. One of my favorites.

2003. LAst Exile. Top of the Best for this anime, I dont know why everyone is not chosing this.(gungrave is awesome, but i love this anime)

2004. Full Metal ALchemist. Just because it was so big of a series.

2005. Eureka Seven Great year for everyone, A lot of Anime with great quality. But i preffer this one, because of its exiciting history.

2006. THe Melancholy of Haruhi Susumiya. Currently my favorite anime. I had so much fun this year...

We cant complain, the last couple of years hasnt been bad, on the contrary, a lot of great anime to remember later. By the way, if anyone wanna post years before 2000, no problem, i just thought nobody would have memory to remember exact years from anime that old

[Tremolo]

Maybe this will help to clear up any confusion. ;o?

http://www.animenfo.com/animebyyear.php?year=2000&perpage=30Thanks !!!

Haha, you say that and you still put Now and Then, Here and There for your 2000 choice. I'm not getting at you because loads of other people have done it; it just seemed funny to me after acknowledging soh's link that doesn't list it in the year 2000.

Just for future reference for anyone else posting:

NOW AND THEN HERE AND THERE IS A 1999 ANIME. :)

[Mana]

Technically, Now and Then, Here and There is both years; it was released in '99 and finished in '00. Just because one website says it was one way, doesn't mean that it's hardcore fact.

Besides, the original poster in this thread stated that if an anime was produced in more than one year that you could count is an an anime of either year, for the purposes of the thread. If people felt it was good enough to list as the best of the year in finished in, so what?

In any event, it's neither here, nor there.

And yeah, that pun was intentional... seriosuly, though. It's not worth making a post over, and definately not worth all caps, bolded, with larger text.

[ShinoMatrix]

Hmm... I worked off my favourites list now and figured out what year they were in...

2000 - Love Hina (because I didn't want to put FLCL, the only other anime I thought was worth putting on this list from 2000 that I can remember).
2001 - Fruits Basket
2002 - Haibane Renmei, Gundam SEED
2003 - Full Moon wo Sagashite
2004 - Beyond the Clouds
2005 - Mai Hime
2006 - Haruhi is the flavour of the year... so Ouran and Melancholy it goes :D
Actually... nah, it's probably only Suzumiya after all in the end.

[Tremolo]

Technically, Now and Then, Here and There is both years; it was released in '99 and finished in '00. Just because one website says it was one way, doesn't mean that it's hardcore fact.

Besides, the original poster in this thread stated that if an anime was produced in more than one year that you could count is an an anime of either year, for the purposes of the thread. If people felt it was good enough to list as the best of the year in finished in, so what?

In any event, it's neither here, nor there.

And yeah, that pun was intentional... seriosuly, though. It's not worth making a post over, and definately not worth all caps, bolded, with larger text.

Well, sure, but I think it's more logical to class an anime by what year it started in. That was when the main planning, animating, storyboarding and production work occurs. If it's a longer series that dovetails over half of both years, or even a number of years, I can see how that would be a bit different and a bit more open to debate, but NTHT literally goes into 2000 by a few days. I don't think it's worth classing it as a 2000 anime based off from the last two episodes being shown it that year is all. For all intents and purposes, the vast majority of the series is 1999 when it was first concieved and started, therefore it's a 1999 anime by my book.

And there's always time for posts with me being an anal ****wit using large and bold text!

[soundchazer]

Technically, Now and Then, Here and There is both years; it was released in '99 and finished in '00. Just because one website says it was one way, doesn't mean that it's hardcore fact.

Besides, the original poster in this thread stated that if an anime was produced in more than one year that you could count is an an anime of either year, for the purposes of the thread. If people felt it was good enough to list as the best of the year in finished in, so what?

The only problem I have with that logic is that I could put the same anime as the best for 2 straight years if it dovetails from a year to the next, taking half of the fun out of the exercise. I agree with Tremolo on this. Year of release whould be the year it counts into, just like with any major award given out there.

[ShinoMatrix]

That stuffs up my list then... well, it bumps them up or down the list as I put that together to have at least something in that year. And you'll forgive me if, I don't bother changing it :p

[Mana]

It's still a personal opinion, and not fact. Some people may prefer classifying an anime by its end date, because that's when they were able to finish a show and judge it by its entirity.

Honesty, I don't care one way or the other. I just don't think it should matter that much.

@SC: And, yet, even though we have people classifying anime by different year systems, we still haven't had any one do that yet. Come on, we're not stupid, give us some credit :p

Besides, I wasn't stating any kind of logic. I was just stating 2 facts; one the fact that NTHT was released iver the span of 2 years, the other being what the original poster said in his first post.

[Niner]

Sher, why not.

2000: Love Hina - Akamatsu at his best. Or possibly his worst. Whatever, it was hella fun to watch.
2001: Noir - This was a slow year for me, as I didn't really watch much anime. That aside, Noir wasn't really all that bad, comparitively. At least it had Yuki Kajiura.
2002: Azumanga Daioh - Yeah, there was really no contest with this one. Arguments could be made for Full Metal Panic!, Haibane Renmei and Witch Hunter Robin, but AzuDaioh just blows them all ot of the water.
2003: Full Metal Panic: Fumoffu - This was a really tough decision, as Gunslinger Girl was also very, very good. But overall, Fumoffu simply held far more entertainment value and was just more fun to watch.
2004: Mai-HiME - This was easy, as it was an excellent series in its own right. It helped that nothing else really stood out that year.
2005: Paradise Kiss - Another hard one, since Honey & Clover, Futakoi Alternative and Full Metal Panic: The Second Raid were also in contention, but the overall high quality of the series and the schnazzy music ultimately won me over.
2006: Ouran High School Host Club - Yeah, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya came pretty close to ousting Ouran from my top spot, I'll admit. But Ouran's still going strong and has pretty much consistently kept me entertained, so it gets the love.

[NausicaaBoy]

2000. Now and Then Here and There.
FLCL came close

2001. Hellsing

2002. Azumanga Daioh.

2003. Fumoffu

2004. Elfen lied

2005. Eureka 7

2006. THe Melancholy of Haruhi Susumiya.. OHSHC came close....

[UndeadBear]

In the US, the entertainment industry is really, really fond of having zillions of award shows to celebrate themselves and their own success. Is there an equivalent award show for japanimation? Occasionally, there is a crossover and an anime movie can win an Oscar, but how about some recognition for the anime series?

[annie14892]

Haha..I wasn't interested in anime/manga until this year..So yea.
2001-Pokemon
2002-pokemon
2003-Pokemon
2004-Cardcaptors
2005-Yugioh

Best animes of 2006

1st place is Sukisho!Genre:romance.This is kinda a more shonen-ai version of princess princess..although the characters have different hair style and personality,their hair colors are some-what the same.I also got the impression of the 'do it all club' and the 'princess dress up club' in both..The ending for sukisho is different though..at one point,the revealing of the point of the whole story was very shocking..but the ending for me was very Satisfying.Meh..I'm very picky about endings..so yep if I think it was a good ending,you probably will too.

2nd Place Gravitation.Genre:romance.Haha..My first shonen-ai anime..This got me hooked into shonen ai and looked it up to find sukisho..^-^
Some of the events were kind of confusing..but the anime was very funny.It had me cracking up pretty much of the time.The ending was pretty satisfying..but not as satisfying as it should've been.

3rd place is Karin/Chibi Vampire.Genre:romance.If it weren't for the 'hot guy kissing hot guy' scences in gravitation,this would be switched to second place.It's a story about a vampire that does not suc k blood.Instead she makes blood when someone unhappy is around her.A new student moves to her school and she feels a really heavy wave around him.He see's her suc king someone's blood out,but he thought she was actually doing stuff for money.One day her brother Ren took her out to suc k a woman's blood.Later they found out it was the new guy's mother.Her grandma finds a way for her to get changed to a full vampire.Winner kun,a vampire hunter who doesn't know karin is a vampire,thinks he's in love with her.His grandfather comes and kills her family.
I won't spoil the ending for you..And I kind of skipped some events..So yea.Great story.

4th place:Naruto!Genre:fighting.Pow pow..Everyone knows what happens.Lol The artists could've drawn the characters cuter though..(Notices that most fighting animes have uncute characters)

5th place:Ouran high school host club.Genre:comedy and perhaps romance..?Anyways..So far the story have been good..the art is terrific and stuff..but if the ending is unsatisfying, then I will take this off and replace it!!

[Dark Lord]

Since I only began watching anime last year so I only have the top anime for 2006...
Ouran High School Host Club!!! This series is absolutely hilarious...

[silan]

Where's the Kino's Journey love?! Honestly. And I'd even call that one of my favorite anime, but it's nowhere to be seen on anyone's list. How sad.

Best animes of 2006

1st place is Sukisho!
2nd Place Gravitation.
Errrr.... technically, neither of those are 2006 anime. Unless you're going by the North American release schedule (and even then, Gravitation was released in 2004 in NA). Sukisho is from 2005. Gravitation is from 2000.

But I guess that's only if you want to be technical... :suspiciou

[KiraraKim]

Where's the Kino's Journey love?! Honestly. And I'd even call that one of my favorite anime, but it's nowhere to be seen on anyone's list. How sad.


It's on my list tied with Fullmetal Alchemist for 2003. :)

[annie14892]

Meh..I dunno when the animes I'm watching were released..>.> buh I'm putting it for what year I watched them..which is 2006~ :D