Japanator's top 10 anime series of 2010

8:00 PM on 12.30.2010   |   Brad Rice

That's right: it's time to get your rage hats on, because we're here to discuss the top ten anime series that came out in 2010. Much like our Top 50 Anime of the Decade series, this was done by a complicated voting matrix that involved strands of Tom Brady's hair.

In other words, it was complex and involved the Dark Arts.

We had a number of contenders, but when it came to voting, the top ten anime series quickly became evident. Check out the full list below, and feast your eyes upon the shows you had better watch from this past year.

10. Katanagatari
Studio: White Fox (Tears to Tiara)
Director: Keitaro Motonaga (School Days)
Season: Year-long

Ben Huber demanded describing this one:

9. To Aru Majutsu no Index 2
Studio: J.C. Staff (A Certain Magical Index, Bakuman)
Director: Hiroshi Nishikiori (A Certain Magical Index, Azumanga Daioh)
Season: Fall 2010

With the first season of To Aru Majutsu no Index succeeding so well, J.C. Staff doubled down and heavily invested their budget in the second season of the show. It did not disappoint. Right from the get-go, the show had you pumped up for the second season.

And with good reason. Besides its being as pretty as J.C. Staff can make it, Index is a quintessential action-adventure show, set in a universe is so detailed and convoluted that it could only have been birthed in the mind of a crazy person. A good kind of crazy, of course. With every episode you learn a little more about Academy City, the war between Magic and Science, and the powers and personalities of players on both sides of the conflict (as well as in between). And with every new piece of knowledge you find that Index's world is that much more different than the one you and I live in, even beyond the whole Magicians-versus-Espers premise. Put plain, Index is big and dumb, but remains compelling in its lunacy.

8. High School of the Dead
Studio: Madhouse (Death Note, Casshern Sins)
Director: Araki Tetsuro (Death Note, Blue Literature)
Season: Summer 2010

Tits. Guns. Tits. Zombies. Tits. Ass. Tits. Little girls peeing. Zombies. Ass.

That's just about what made up High School of the Dead, and despite the obscene levels of fanservice, the show was nonstop action. Really well animated action, at that. Sometimes, you really need mindless action to have some fun, and High School of the Dead had that in spades.

Is the DVD release going to be awesome? Yes. Is it going to be explicit? Oh yeah. Are you going to need to watch it only when nobody else is home? I think so. But oh, will it be a good time.

7. Kuragehime
Studio: Brain's Base (Baccano!, Spice and Wolf II)
Director: Takahiro Omori (Durarara!!, Hell Girl)
Season: Fall 2010

Not having watched Kuragehime, I'm going to turn this one over to Ben Huber:

"Kuragehime, to put it simply, is the most heartwarming anime I've watched this year. From the delightful characters to the simple but pretty art style, Brains Base has knocked this one out of the park. Tsukimi and her obsession with jellyfish is portrayed as, yes, being an otaku, but while at first it seems like a bad thing (Kuranosuke seems to share this opinion) instead it swings around and is portrayed as one of her strengths. Eventually Kura-pyon himself finds himself falling for a jellyfish otaku he thought he'd never want. Well written from start to finish, the Amars and Kuranosuke's family of politicians are all hilarious supporting characters that give flavor to the show. Especially the Prime Minister.

It's a wonderful take on otaku life and injecting a little spice into it. Kuranosuke learns a little something about himself (perhaps his occasionally arrogant attitude or inability to relate to Tsukimi), and the Jellyfish Princess herself discovers that people can love you no matter who you are. Kuragehime is a great little show – don't miss out."

6. K-ON!!
Studio: Kyoto Animation (The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi, Lucky Star)
Director: Naoko Yamada (K-ON!)
Season: Spring and Summer 2010

Despite all the bitching and moaning about season two's lack of plot and the level of corruption the show had on my dear, sweet Mugi, season three of K-ON!! turned the show into something meaningful. In this season, Azusa's transition into the main character became apparent, and by the end, had to deal with the same feelings of loss that Azusa was feeling.

I didn't cry during it, but some people sure did.

While the show didn't have any sort of grand impact on the lives of those who watched it, K-ON!! did bring a level of closure to a slice-of-life show above and beyond just about every show in the genre. It followed in the footsteps of Azumanga Daioh with its graduation-style closure, but I think that the emotional impact was greater. Like it or not, K-ON! is going to stay on top of the genre for a long while to come.

5. Arakawa Under the Bridge
Studio: SHAFT (Hidamari Sketch, Bakemonogatari)
Director: Akiyuki Shinbo (Dance in the Vampire Bund, Bakemonogatari)
Season: Spring and Fall 2010

With its quirky humor, Arakawa Under the Bridge instantly grabbed everyone's attention as the next Sayonara, Zetsubou-sensei. The humor in Arakawa was similar, but beat its own drum, turning it into the season's standout comedy.

While the show started off with an absurdist plot, we were instantly intrigued. From there, the budding romance of Recruit and Nino kept us going. The show spent a great amount of time developing all these characters, providing us with a truly rich cast. It was enough to make Mike shed Manly Tears.

4. Gundam Unicorn
Studio: Sunrise (Mobile Suit Gundam, Code Geass)
Director: Kazuhiro Furuhashi (Le Chevallier D'Eon, Hunter x Hunter)
Season: Year-long

For just about every Gundam fan, this was the holy grail: after so many years away, the folks at Sunrise finally decided to put the spotlight back on the Universal Century timeline. While the story may be great, the bigger reason for the show's popularity and success has been all that surrounded the release.

Gundam Unicorn was a big-budget venture, hitting Blu-ray release simultaneously in the US and Japan. The fans who had been clamoring for anything Gundam-related were ecstatic, resulting in blockbuster sales for the title and a huge swell of fandom. It's a new age in the era of anime releases, and it's a good one.

Oh, and this anime was just Full Frontal Baddassery throughout.

3. Tatami Galaxy
Studio: Madhouse (Death Note, Black Lagoon)
Director: Masaaki Yuasa (Mind Game, Kaiba)
Season: Spring 2010

Tatami Galaxy is an arthouse sort of show. Its abstract imagery and groundhog day presentation is as unusual for TV animation. Despite all these barriers, as long as I gave it a chance, I found the animation very compelling and moving. At first I was indifferent with the source material, but the various shapes and faces moving on the screen told a story in some visceral way that I couldn't write it off as anything other than that it was just great animation transcending the limits that bounded it.

The source material, thankfully, wasn't too bad and it was a story for people who may have lived through the same juncture in life that the protagonist did, now thinking back with a taint of regret. It is both humorous and serious, romantic and realistic. As realistic as cartoons can be for a story about man-children, anyways. Also, wall of boobs.

Director Masaaki Yuasa is one of the rising stars of anime, and he's got his fingerprints all over this thing. I think it's just another step in his maturing as an auteur. He has toned things down for Tatami Galaxy just a little and I think the restrained approach  made it just a little more accessible than his earlier works like Mind Game or Kaiba.

2. Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt
Studio: Gainax (Gurren Lagann, Neon Genesis Evangelion)
Director: Hiroyuki Imaishi (Gurren Lagann)
Season: Fall 2010

Gainax fans, eat you ate your hearts out for this one. Putting up with wildly varying animation from The Studio Descended From The Heavens, all because of some serious fanservice.

You disgust me.

1. Jersey Shore
Studio: MTV (My Super Sweet 16, 16 And Pregnant)
Director: SallyAnn Salsano
Season: Summer 2010

Rarely have we encountered a show with such meaningful relationships. Season two of Jersey Shore pulled everyone's heartstrings as Ronny and Sammie's drama continued through the hot streets of Miami this past spring. All the while, we're watching a changed group dynamic with Angelina "Trashbags" returning to the cast, only to leave once again by the end.

Ronnie's drunken tailspin was one of the centerpieces of the crew's time in Miami, and I know many of you cheered him along, hoping for him to fix things up. At the same time, there was The Situation's comedic mishaps in the lady department, consistently landing himself in the middle of a grenade zone.

Truly, this is Japanator's show of the year -- an epic tale of modern youth culture that will resound in hearts from shore to shore. Readers constantly clamored for more insight during each week's Annotated Anime.

Alright, I'll stop this sham. Time for the real #1:

1. Durarara!!
Studio: Brains Base (Baccano!)
Director: Takahiro Omori (Baccano!)
Season: Winter and Spring 2010

What makes Durarara!! our top series of 2010 is, for one thing, our staff has a hard-on for Celty and Shizuo. Seriously, you wouldn't believe the fanfiction that the staff circulates.

Beyond that, though, when I talked to people, they mainly cited the effective handling of a wide cast of characters, with significant development amongst them all. Everyone here connected with the characters on a deep, emotional level, bringing with it unbridled excitement from episode to episode.

That, I think, takes an anime to the next level: when you really feel a deep connection -- almost an addiction -- to the show, and your life isn't quite the same afterwards.