Summer 2011 Anime First Impressions

This ranking list feels really strange to me. The first episodes of many of the story driven series (No. 6, Itsuka Tenma no Kuro Usagi, Kamisama Dolls, Sacred Seven, Mawaru Penguindrum) really left me wondering what the hell is going on. Due to this, many of my rankings are based on pure speculation. It then follows that shows that satisfactorily represented their raison d’etre in their first couple of episodes were given favorable rankings. I expect the halfway rankings (with continuing shows also being factored in; Steins;Gate baby!) to look drastically different than this list.

Unaired Tier

• Dantalian no Shoka - I still have high hopes for this show, it’s just starting way too late in the season to keep delaying this list for, especially since I’m going to have to start preparing for Comic-Con.

Standout Tier

1. Ikoku Meiro no Croisée - I ranked this #1 on my anticipation list and I’m going to stand by my choice. The show’s relaxing ambiance is exactly what I would expect from a production Sato Junichi is involved with and Yune is adorable. I also just learned that the musicians ko-ko-ya have a common member with Choro Club who did the Aria soundtracks that I love. No wonder the music sounds so familiar.
2. Natsume Yuujin-Chou San - What can I say, Natsume’s first episode was amazing. Even more amazing is that I heard it was anime-only filler; I wish all filler was this good. If this is what we can expect from the rest of the season, I’m really looking forward to this.
3. Usagi Drop - I was expecting a little more from Usagi Drop’s first episode and it ended on a somewhat strange note; I was expecting the episode to end on an emotional climax to hook viewers, but it ended pretty ordinarily. I’m still not entirely sure of what to expect, but I suspect that there are many touching scenes ahead of us. At the very least I’m quite interested in reading the manga (Yen Press is making a fortune off me lately…).
4. Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Ni! - I may have anticipated other shows more, but I was confident this would end up being one of my favorites of the season. The first episode proved that they are correctly going for the same formula as the first season; let’s just hope the shtick doesn’t become overexposed like it did with the most unfortunate second season of Maria Holic. While I truly enjoy this show for its slapstick humor, I do hope some of the shows in the next tier will overtake it by season’s end.

Potentially Good Tier

5. Ro-Kyu-Bu! - As both a sports and anime fan, there’s not much better than having a show featuring cute lolis playing basketball. This show has really made me realize how I’ve fallen into Japan’s sweet, sweet moe trap, but I’m not complaining at all. If I had to make the difficult choice between this and another serious sports anime like One Outs, I’d take this every time just for the girls.
6. Mawaru Penguindrum - Perhaps this show makes it this high in the rankings out of pure curiosity. The siscon brothers aside, the whole deal with the penguins’ presence demands explanations. It may not have much of a basis outside his previous work on Utena, but I don’t think Ikuhara Kunihiko will let us down.
7. No. 6 - An entertaining first episode in spite of not really knowing what’s going on, but similar to Penguindrum my curiosity may be getting the best of me. If the homolust is around this level every episode, I think I can deal with it.
8. Itsuka Tenma no Kuro-Usagi - Yet another show I’m going to have to watch more of to get a reasonable opinion about. I greatly enjoyed the character designs and the art style, especially the color palette. What concerns me is how Himea and all the supernatural happenings will blend in with the modern setting. With YuuDenYuu’s fantasy setting everything fit in naturally, but can Takaya Kagami and the animators pull it off in the overused high school setting?
9. Sacred Seven - For some reason Sunrise was able to hook me on this show and not Tiger & Bunny. However, of all the shows on this tier this is the most likely to fall off. Mostly because the characters are a bit too one dimensional and the fighting scenes haven’t resonated with me.
10. The IDOLM@STER - It was much better than I expected and it rekindled my love for Yayoi and Miki. I heard somewhere this is going to be a two cour show. If this is true, I’m curious if they are going to dedicate an even amount of episodes to each girl. I’m also hoping Producer doesn’t end up being annoying. I pray to god they don’t go down awakened Miki’s route and cut her delicious long hair.

On the Precipice Tier

11. Kami-sama no Memo-chou - I felt the first episode was somewhat pretentious. I appreciated that they went with a bad end right off the bat and was hoping the show would continue that trend. However, they abruptly transitioned to a scene where generic main character X gets called a pervert in an equally generic scene. The eccentric cast is rough at best and if the useless main character becomes “the oil that makes the machine run smoothly”, I’d be pretty disgusted.
12. Blood-C - Pretty boring outside the fight scene. None of the characters particularly stood out; it feels like CLAMP is running out of material. Still have a little hope for it, though. Looks like this show is in for some long day jokes for the rest of it’s existence thanks to CLAMP’s unique character designs. Speaking of designs, I can’t come to like Saya’s hair style.
13. Kamisama Dolls - Hibino’s boobies are ridiculous.
14. Nekogami Yaoyorozu - Looks like a fairly uneventful comedy show. I’m not willing to put it into the shit tier, yet. If I stick with this show, the seiyuu cast will definitely be a big reason why.

Shit Tier

15. Mayo Chiki! - Feels like a really bad J.C. Staff show (read: Okami-san). Of all the shows in this lowest tier, this is most likely to be my Hidan no Aria of this season where I watch and somewhat enjoy it in spite of its generic shittiness.
16. Yuru Yuri - The first episode was pretty much a perfect adaptation of the first few manga chapters I read; meaning it was terrible beyond all belief. The second episode was better, but I’m still going to drop this series. Perhaps the only substantial aspect that separates Ro-Kyu-Bu! from this is the thinly veiled basketball plot, but in the end that makes all the difference to me.
17. Morita-san wa Mukuchi - I don’t think three minute episodes are going to cut it.
18. R-15 - I was really hoping for more from this show; something in line with the constant wackiness I got from MM!. The main character isn’t a total pushover, but he still gets put into too many generic harem situations. Also, who the fuck doesn’t know what a reed looks like. Hurr durr let’s eat wood.
19. Kaitō Tenshi Twin Angel - Holy shit that was terrible. It’s been a while since I fell asleep watching an anime. Even Tamura Yukari and Noto Mamiko could not save this show for me. Sorry Danny, it looks like I’m not going to be able to last until Mirai’s cameo appearance.