Top 15 Anime and Top 15 Characters of 2015

Let’s start 2016 with a proper farewell to 2015. Before we look forward to another year of anime, we should look back on 2015 and reflect on what made it one of the best years of anime in recent memory. There were numerous anime and characters that were incredible, dazzling, brilliant sensational, influential, and monumental in 2015, and today, I want to take a moment to provide my thoughts and opinions on the 15 most significant anime and characters from this last year. Come, take a look and re-experience why the anime of 2015 are so remarkable and unforgettable.

12 Days of Anime (2015) – Day 3 – Favorite Openings and Endings of 2015

Every year, I recall my favorite anime openings and endings in my Final Review, selecting my very favorites from each of the four Season Reviews that settle at the end of each season. But, seeing as I haven’t published a Season Review since 2013 and given that there is no other time to document my favorite OPs/EDs of the year, I have reserved Day 3 of my 12 Days of Anime for 2015 for this lacking quality of mine. Of course, I won’t reveal my favorite OP and ED of the year just yet (that will be reserved for the Final Review of 2015), but here are some of my favorites that I would love to share with you. Now, please enjoy 8 of my Top 10 Openings and Endings for 2015.

12 Days of Anime (2015) – Day 9 – The Quindecim and the Setting of Death Parade

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: the setting is my favorite aspect of anime. To me, it is the most significant attribute of an anime because the setting is the foundation for which the stories and characters are shaped and constructed, the ground from which they grow and progress.  It is what provides the story and the characters with the appropriate tools, direction, and limitations for which we, as an audience, are able to watch, appreciate, and enjoy. And the setting is more than just a pretty backdrop, but one that defines the culture, society, technology, clothing, architecture, geography, climate, diet, and lives of the characters we love. As a result, I absolutely adore any anime with a captivating, distinctive, and inspired setting because of how it influences the story and the characters. And that brings me to Death Parade and the Quindecim, arguably my favorite setting in all of anime for 2015.

Winter 2015 – Week 12 Anime Review

This week: one of the primary reasons why Shirobako is one of my favorite anime of all-time, questioning other factors outside the arbiter’s control in assessing souls in Death Parade, contrasting the younger and older pilots in Soukyuu no Fafner – Dead Aggressor: Exodus, and my issues with the overpowering symbolism in Yuri Kuma Arashi.

Winter 2015 – Week 5 Anime Review

For Week 5: analyzing the role of the ‘colorless’ background characters in Durarara!!x2 Shou, a tribute to the border security girls running the checkpoints in The Rolling Girls, issues with how the fights end in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders – Egypt Arc, and wondering about a future business opportunity for Shinku and the others in Dog Days’’.

Winter 2015 – Week 4 Anime Review

A while back, whenever Week 4 was: appreciating the change from producing episodes to producing an anime series in Shirobako, teenager mecha pilots who actually act and behave like teenagers in Soukyuu no Fafner – Dead Aggressor: Exodus, questioning Lulu’s character development in Yuri Kuma Arashi, and finally realizing why Fubuki is the main character of Kantai Collection.

Winter 2015 – Week 3 Anime Review

Last week: analyzing the literary conflict in Yuri Kuma Arashi, appreciating the non-linear yet logical storytelling in Durarara!!x2 Shou, acknowledging the effectiveness of the “business card” introductions in Shirobako, and thoughts on the contrasting fashion and sexual themes in Junketsu no Maria.