Dated 29 February 2016: My favorite shows of winter 2016 so far
Get pumped, witches.
As you can see from my per-episode chart, it took a while for Dagashi Kashi to secure the top spot I predicted, but it's in good company. Konosuba is my current number four show, but its rating is higher than what I gave my top show, One Punch Man, autumn 2015. I certainly disagree with people who claim this is not a very good season. Besides, there are at least three "NOT KID'S STUFF" serious shows worth watching1 in addition to some entertaining lighter fare, so I'm pretty deaf to most complaints.
Coconuts and Saya are pretty lucky You is looking out for them.
Dagashi Kashi is an uncomplicated show, but it succeeds because it's easy to enjoy the characters and their candy-related shenanigans. Hotaru and Saya are the real stars of the series, but it helps a lot that Coconuts is not a potato, if you get my meaning. Sure, he's a little dense when it comes to Saya, but his observation that Hotaru is "pretty cute when she doesn't talk" is fairly astute for an anime male lead. Likewise, his buddy Tou is totally all right. I like how he's always slumming in a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses. The dude is leagues above the usual shitheads male anime leads tend to surround themselves with. TYPE-MOON, I'm looking in your direction.
Fast cars and polite, well-dressed robots.
I'm probably enjoying Dimension W more than most people thanks to my growing appreciation of Ueda Reina. Still, her role in the show isn't nearly as large as I would have expected, so maybe I just enjoy the mysteries and the pacing more than most viewers. There's enough detail in each episode for me to follow the story, but not so much that it becomes predictable. I've read some of the manga, and there's actually a lot more background and world building in the source material that is absent from the anime. This is probably a wise decision, as it keeps things moving along and none of the omitted bits seem critical to the main story.
Yeah, I'm not watching the Toonami dub either, Mira.
The Toonami broadcast dub started airing recently, but I'm not sure Dimension W is really going to draw a large general audience. I don't think it's nearly episodic enough to engage anyone who isn't on board from the beginning. I'm totally with it, though. Depending on how the final arc shakes out, Dimension W could easily end up being my favorite show from this season.
Paper fans are a lot more durable than I'd imagined.
Shōwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjū turned out to be much different than what I was expecting. First episode aside, Rakugo devotes all of its time to an extended flashback covering the rakugo master's youth and his relationship with the now-deceased father of the surly lady from the first episode. There are homosexual overtones, but it's starting to look like the climax of the series may involve fighting over a woman. I'm doing Rakugo a disservice by commenting on it so lightly, as it is an excellent and serious show. We don't get anime this good very often, so anyone who complains about anime being all moé shit these days had best be watching it lest he be disregarded as a hypocritical crank hereafter. In other news, there's an amusing amount of Evangelion alumni in the cast. Voice actors for Kaworu, Kaji, Rei, and Touji all have important roles.
I bet that thing dies.
Like Rakugo, Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo! is a Studio Deen production, giving this oft-maligned studio two series in this season's best four shows. Crunchyroll described Konosuba as a pastoral. I agree with this view and would like to add that Konosuba comes across overall as the best case scenario for a NEET reincarnated in a fantasy world. Yeah, Aqua is a sloppy and generally horrid person, and Darkness' one shtick can get pretty tiresome rather quickly, but...you know, this don't seem so bad. I'd sleep in that stable. The show itself is quite funny and very refreshing considering the over-saturated Fantasy and Reincarnation genres we're stuck with. Even though Konosuba is my number four show of winter 2016, I feel as if it ought to be higher.
I want to read a 4-koma comic strip about Kayo's shitty life.
If you look at initial impressions from the first couple weeks of the season, you'll find near unanimous agreement claiming Boku dake ga Inai Machi (ERASED) is the best show of the season. I can't agree with this at all, but I also can't disagree too vehemently. ERASED is very good when it's good, but it's also the sort of show that really hurts itself when it's bad. It's probably unfair to hold a time travel show to such a high standard that even minor plot holes become damning, but the plot holes (and contrivances) do bother me. I went over this already, though, and don't feel the need to revisit those criticisms at this time.
The rising sun was a bit much. P.S. Spoilers.
I should probably say a few words about the second season of Gate, particularly since I seem to enjoy it much more than most viewers. However, it's one of those shows that has so much baggage and requires so much context that it's just too much work to address at this time. At a minimum, it requires a lot more explanation than is appropriate for one of these little blog updates. Maybe I'll get around to it someday (just as maybe I'll get around to writing down all those Aldnoah.Zero thoughts. I will at least say anyone on the fence about starting the series should disregard the criticisms of opponents who are hostile towards military force projection as a matter of principle.
Meanwhile, Ojou helps you find her nipples.
Oshiete! Galko-chan probably deserves to be at the top of this list, especially considering I've given it a perfect score through eight episodes. However, it's an episodic short series with eight-minute episodes and essentially no continuity. Galko-chan is mostly deft observational humor and gags about Galko herself behaving differently than one might stereotypically expect, but it's fun to watch. Additionally, Noto Mamiko is really making the most of her role as the show's narrator.
This was a pretty good catch, especially since it doesn't have opposable thumbs.
I only intended to highlight three or four shows from this season, but there are just too many gems currently airing. I haven't even mentioned the latest Pretty Cure or any of the bad shows with good ideas. Back in the day, I'd probably have gotten a lot more mileage out of the current crop. Before the dark times. Before the Twitter. Well, that platform does seem intent on self-destructing, so maybe good ol' anime blogging will return one day.
Note 1: Rakugo, ERASED, and Ajin (which I dropped after one episode).
