It's easy to make a list of favorite shows. Whether you enjoy every single moment of it, or you enjoy most of it so much you can ignore the mediocre. Or maybe just 'as a whole' you decide this is something you like/love.

What's hard is finding a favorite episode. Just one episode of one show, that hits you so hard you consider it one of your favorite things ever. It not only eclipses all the other episode of that show, but rather it eclipses all other episodes of the genre/media you are watching. You don't even have to count the show itself among you favorites. But this episode will stand out among the hundreds (thousands) we've seen.

A couple years ago, I started my list with the 2-parter towards the end of Samurai Champloo. I don't even remember the details, because I haven't seen it in a while. When the Blu-ray comes out this December, it will be the very first thing I watch once I have the discs in hand. But what I do remember is that it told me a story that I didn't think anime could tell. And it blew me away.

And if I think hard, I think I'd want to add to this list an episode towards the beginning of Kare Kano. In the middle of class, one character simply reaches out to hold the hand of another. It was the culmination of an intense setup that was building the story of the anime at the top of the list of my favorite shows ever. It's the episode/scene that makes me think "This is why I watch anime."

And so today, I am ecstatic to add a 3rd episode to this list.

Bakemonogatari episode 12

Each episode of this show had me guessing. Never knowing what to expect. And it always played out wonderfully. The 'end' started out like another of these episodes. Beautiful all the way through. One would instinctively think it will be just another episode, but before I even noticed, it was slowly and gracefully building into something even more beautiful. Sound, visuals, and heart. It had it all. I don't even want to bother describing the story. I'm just going to let it sit on my brain, and I'll fall asleep to it tonight.

But the best part? The thing that's making me even more excited? The fact that this is apparently not the last episode. 15 were (are being made), the final three to be released (I believe) direct to video. This 'final' episode felt like an amazing finale. It was a perfect 'ending'. But I couldn't be happier that they are delivering even more. I won't expect it to top this episode, but if they can deliver anything even close to what Iu got to watch tonight, I'll be an incredibly happy fan.