2014 is in the books – time for you to weigh in…
Here’s the 2014 LiA reader poll – please choose your 5 favorite series of 2014. It’s a huge list, obviously, so I’m going to pin this post to the top for a week during voting rather than hijack the sidebar. Thanks for participating!
AnnaJoe
January 1, 2015 at 6:46 pmOk so, I have no intention of listing out my favourites in the comment section but I would love to give a shout out to Daiya no Ace. I been watching anime for a long time now and never even looked at a sports anime title before. But somehow I gave DoA a chance and I can't get enough of sports anime.
I don't even have baseball in my country Lol
Also, I had to type Akatsuki no Yona in "other." I know thee list is long but I would have thought it would be actually on it.
admin
January 2, 2015 at 4:16 pmAkatsuki isn't on the list because it's ongoing. It would hve to completely crater or 2015 would have to be the year of the Century for it not to place in the next Top 20.
I do like Daiya a lot, and as I said it would have been Top 21 or 22. Just too many dead episodes, and too many completely uninteresting third-year characters. "Oohgah!" is not good dialogue.
Jesse Twain
January 2, 2015 at 1:26 amExtra shout out to Inou-Battle wa Nichijou-kei no Naka de.
Aside from the heavy hitters like Hunter, Inou-Battle turned out to be my favorite show of the year. By the time I got to the brilliant outburst in episode 7 it had firmly changed from a random guilty pleasure, to the show I most looked forward to each week.
Duke Of Earls
January 2, 2015 at 6:08 am1. Mushishi
2. Hunter x Hunter
3. Kingdom
4. Yowamushi Pedal
5. Baby Steps
6. Diamond no Ace
7. Sidonia
8. Tokyo Ghoul
9. Hajime no Ippo
10. Uchuu Kyoudai
Honorable Mentions: Isshukan Friends, Soredemo Sekai, Kanojo ga Flag
Zeta Zero
January 2, 2015 at 11:02 am1. Ping-Ping
2. Noragami
3. Shingeki no Bahamut
4. Houzuki no Reitetsu
I would include Stardust Crusaders to round off a top 5, if my personal rule of excluding series greater than two cour didn't apply, not to mention it isn't completed yet.
Tsunoh
January 2, 2015 at 2:50 pmWhile I expected HxH and Book of Circus to be great, I was blown away by Inou Battle. My long-winded comment apparently got eaten, but Inou is surprisingly well-written; there is not a wasted detail. It takes time to develop its characters beyond the generic role, and there were many instances of pure comedy gold.
The first episode put me off a little bit, but over time I grew more and more immersed in it. Plus if you liked Steins;Gate, you will surely like Andou. It could have gone badly if they'd pandered to the 'moe' crowd or Fate/ devotees, but there is a uniquely funny spin on the latter.
admin
January 2, 2015 at 4:18 pmInou Battle is one of those shows I might try and catch up with later, time permitting. The Gainax connections are somewhat appealing.
whemleh
January 2, 2015 at 5:20 pmIF you do decide to watch it, I wouldn't go past episode 7. It pretty much tosses aside everything good about it from there on.
Tsunoh
January 4, 2015 at 1:39 pmwhemieh let's let him decide 🙂 As for myself I liked it. I've always wondered what side characters do while the designated heroes go around saving the world- that sort of thing is almost never shown.
lHyDrAl
January 4, 2015 at 4:18 pmI'll have to add to the Inou Battle comments. Looking back at 2014 I couldn't place anything as my number 1 but Inou Battle. Just brilliantly written and constantly self aware. Here's hoping for a second season.
Dvalinn
January 5, 2015 at 2:36 pmHunter X Hunter's an easy pick for one – it is and most likely will be my favourite shonen series ever. It's top five material of all time best anime for me, so the competition isn't even fair in that regard.
Nozaki-kun was the best comedy this year, so that gets a pick. So hoping that'll get a sequel, I laughed my ass off every episode.
Then there's Log Horizon, which manages to roundhouse kick SAO and every other show like it in the face by giving us a compelling narrative in its videogame-world, which got me theorycrafting more than anything else this year. Very well written in that regard.
No Game No Life was fun incarnate, and Space Dandy was an experimental circus that brought some of the strongest episodes this year (the one in the land of the dead is my pick for best episode overall this year).
Other high-ranking shows for me were Jojo, Mushishi, Fate, Magi and Bahamut. Kanojo ga Flag and Sekai Seifuku for darkhorse picks. Parasyte for best show going into next year.
Not a bad year overall, in my opinion – just kind of average. It never really excelled anywhere, but it lacked truly disastrous seasons (like Fall 2013 or Summer 2012 – or the upcoming Winter, for that matter) and it had more pleasant surprises than dissapointments. I'm satisfied with it, anyway (especially in comparison to the terrible year 2014 was for videogames).
Rannta
January 6, 2015 at 5:03 amGlad to see in the poll haikyuu (the superior sports series) above baby steps.
Lem Enrile
January 6, 2015 at 6:57 pmDon't you like Ao Haru Ride?