Looking for something great to watch? The following are my recommendations of what I feel is the best show to have come out that year. The following shows are probably much more enjoyable than the mainstream shows like Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, Detective Conan, etc.

  • 2006 – Nana
  • 2006 – The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi
  • 2005 – Air
  • 2004 – Midori no Hibi
  • 2003 – Kimi ga Nozomu Eien
  • 2002 – Full Moon wo Sagashite
  • 2001 – Hikaru no Go
  • 2000 – Hajime no Ippo

 
Nana (2006) ナナ

Nana 01 
Nana 02
Nana 03 
Nana 04

A second entry for 2006. I had not watched Nana until more recently. And after watching Nana, I now declare Nana the new best for 2006.

Nana is about a girl called Komatsu Nana and Osaki Nana. Komatsu Nana is nicknamed Hachi, to avoid confusion with the other Nana. Hachi means eight and nana means seven in Japanese. Hachi is a ditsy girl, always falling in love too easily and believes too much in fate and the great evil lord (whoever that is). Nana on the other hand, is a vocalist in a band. She hides many deep wounds inside.

The story is well written and well told. Filled with laughs and plenty of drama. You can download the torrents from Ureshii or IY-F&Oki.

The ending song “a little pain” is sung by Olivia Lufkin, who has an American father and a Japanese mother. She generally spent half of her childhood in Okinawa and the other half in many cities throughout the states. English is her first language and originally, “a little pain” was written wholely in English and was partially translated in Japanese to make it more appealing to a Japanese audience and more mainsteam J-Pop. We might even see the English version of “a little pain” released sometime. Perhaps one day she’ll make it big in the states as well since she writes most of her songs in English.

Official OLIVIA site
OLIVIA fansite (English)

Suzumiya Haruhi (2006) 涼宮ハルヒの憂鬱

 Haruhi 01 Haruhi 02
 Haurhi 03 Haruhi 04

My pick for the year 2006. It’s really a show that makes you go, "What the heck!?". The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi tells the story of a normal, everyday high school boy nicknamed Kyon. All that’s normal about his life changed when he meets Haruhi. Eccentric and quirky, Suzumiya Haruhi isn’t just your typical high schooler.

The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi is available in English subs by a.f.k. They have a truly skilled translator, an editor with a great sense of style and a timer with great precision. A group which I truly respect as their work is clearly superior to anything you’d find in a commercial DVD. (Actually I just found out that, the translator, editor, timer and encoder is the same person.)

Download it here.

 

Air (2005) Air

Air 01 
Air 02
Air 03 
Air 04

Another very successful transition from an adult dating sim to an anime. Somehow, these games seem to have very strong plots and deep story lines. Air is about the 1000th anniversary of a curse bestowed upon the winged-people. Yukito, a wandering traveller in search of ‘the girl in the sky’, is stumbled upon by the curious Misuzu. She immediately befriends him and they slowly learn about the secrets of their past and ancestry.

Midori no Hibi (2004) 美鳥の日々

Midori 01 
Midori 02
Midori 03 
Midori 04

An extremely funny story about having your right hand as your girl friend. Midori had always had a crush on delinquent, Seji. And one day, she becomes his right hand.

You can purchase the DVDs from Media Blasters, if you can figure out how to buy anything from their piece of shit website. If you live outside region 1, well just download it illegally, although I’m not at liberty to tell you where.

 

Kiminozo (2003) 君が望む永遠

 kiminozo 1 kiminozo 2
 kiminozo 3  kiminozo 4

Voted by fans as the #1 show on animenfo, adapted from the adult dating game of the same name by Age-Soft. Well, you may be wondering what’s so great about this show, and why in the world is a soap opera doing at the top of the list? You can have the most brilliant and amazing story, but if poorly told, it won’t amount to much. That is the true strength of Kiminozo, as it has but a simple story which anyone can relate to. The bittersweet tale of four friends, and the summer that would change their lives forever.

Download it here, from KickAss Anime.

 

Full Moon (2002)満月を探して

– Coming Maybe Never –

Hikaru no Go (2001) ひかるの碁

Shindou Hikaru stumbles upon an ancient Go board stained in blood. Upon coming into contact with it he is then haunted by a spirit of a Go master from the past. Go is a bit like the oriental version of othello, where the objective is to conquer as much territory as possible. Hikaru slowly begins to learn the strategies behind the game of Go as he is guided by the spirit, Sai. He defeats the Go prodigy, Touya Akira. How could the prodigy be beaten by a rookie?

US Distribution: Viz Communications, Inc.

Hajime no Ippo (2000) はじめの一歩

Ippo 01 
Ippo 02
Ippo 03 
Ippo 04

One of the best sports/action animes to have ever been produced, Hajime no Ippo, is a story about Makunouchi Ippo, a teenager who was often bullied. Ippo is inspired by professional boxer, Takamura, and ends up training in the same gym. The action is intense and the fights have a realistic feel to them. Watching Ippo almost makes you feel like going out and puching some one. Highly recommended.

US Distribution: Geneon Entertainment