Fifty-One Anime From the 2000s I Wanted To Watch (And Still Do)

Happy New Year! (pixiv link)

I’m not going to fool myself into thinking I’ve seen enough series to construct a proper best-of-2000s list of anime, considering I only really started around 2005 and have gotten lax about keeping current with each progressing season of new material. I had an idea on New Year’s Eve that I could do a list of series I had wanted to watch from the decade yet hadn’t (but still want to). When I tried to starting writing it after coming home from a New Year’s party, I wasn’t feeling much energy behind the idea and so I was about to give up until later in the day I read Kiriska’s post about a similar sort of list, albeit hers was more ones she meant to watch and mine seems broader as the ones I had a general interest in. (We had two in common, for what that’s worth. I’ve seen parts of five others.) So I mustered enough energy to construct a want-to-watch list and I have tried to briefly explain each one below.

(Note: the following are all series I have not watched an entire episode of so I didn’t include things like Oofuri/Big Windup and Ristorante Paradiso. I also chose to exclude things that are in my physical backlog, which means Chobits and Koi Kaze are not listed.)

[listed in the order each came to mind]

Kino’s Journey (2003)
I always seemed to see trailers for this on ADV releases but never got around to renting it. All 13 episodes are available on the Anime Network’s online player and since I’m a subscriber, I should try to watch it that way first.

Millennium Actress (2002)
This is the only Satoshi Kon-directed work I have yet to watch (I’ve seen the 1st segment of Memories, “Magnetic Rose”, but not the other two) and maybe I’ve saved the best for last, given it seems like his most well-received film. I’ve had the rent-by-mail disc sitting in an envelope for a while so I’ll try to watch it in the coming week to cross it off my list (and so I can get Bee Movie next).

Carried by the Wind: Tsukikage Ran (2000)
I first saw this spotlighted in a back issue of Anime Insider (March 2003) and hadn’t previously known that Bandai had brought it over. It helps that it was mentioned in Ask John’s response to a question of anime swordswomen.

Hajime no Ippo (2000-02)
Boxing is a sport that I pay attention to every once in a while (e.g. the Manny Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton bout) but seems to have lost its general luster with the rise of MMA. I liked most of the Rocky movies including, surprisingly, Rocky Balboa as well as boxing scenes in other movies & TV shows including The Wire, Snatch, and even Teen Wolf Too.

So why do I want to watch Ippo – or Fighting Spirit as it’s called stateside? Part of it is the gradual training of and another is the catchy first opening theme, “Under Star”, by Shocking Lemon, which makes me want to start jogging and punching the air whenever I hear it.

NieA under 7 (2000)
Main draw is that it has Yoshitoshi ABe character designs and I guess being directed by Tomokazu Tokoro, who helmed Haibane Renmei a few years later.

Eyeshield 21 (2005-08)
Another sports series, this one about football. This actually debuted on Toonami Jetstream in December 2007 with an English dub before that service folded. (Even though the English-cut opening sounds horrible, I’d like to find and listen to those dubbed episodes.) It was added to Crunchyroll in January 2009 and CR is where I’ll likely be watching it.

Basquash! (2009)
Sensing a trend? Stylish basketball with mecha involved. Co-creator and art director Thomas Romain also helmed Oban Star Racers, which I’ve occasionally seen mention of but have not watched.

Great Detectives Poirot and Marple (2004-05)
The only Christie novel I’ve read with either of these characters (Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple) was The A.B.C. Murders and that lack of background with her writing is what has kept me from jumping into this.

The Daughter of Twenty Faces (2008)
I heard Narutaki of Reverse Thieves talk about an Ani-Gamers podcast episode last year.

I Me My! Strawberry Eggs (2001)
Why: the core concept of a guy crossdressing to teach at a middle school because the principal hates men as well as seeing an AMV to the expected Aerosmith song. A Pioneer release that felt under-the-radar.

Kamichu! (2005)
Widely-praised slice-of-life about a middle-school girl who unexpectedly got Shinto god powers.

Planetes (2003)
Another critical favorite, this one is about space debris workers.

Fantastic Children (2004)
The simple look of it, mainly. Story could make for good adventure.

Mai-HiME (2004-05)
Action, art style, and strong female characters.

Black Lagoon (2006)
Gritty, action series a lot of people love. Once watched a clip where Revy speaks some Engrish but that’s pretty much it.

Kaze no Stigma (2005)
Saw this profiled in Anime Insider‘s Flash in Japan segment (Nov. 2007). Even though Scott-san didn’t like it, I still want to try it out for myself.

Tekkon Kinkreet (2006)
Studio 4°C film directed by Michael Arias, who helped with the computer graphics in an Animatrix short called “Beyond” (the one about the glitchy building). Viz brought over the originating manga so I might look at that as well.

Kakurenbo (2004)
Seems like a Halloween time of year movie but it should still be fine other points in the year. Also, it’s only 25 minutes long!

Dead Leaves (2004)
FLCL was one of my favorites of the decade so I assume I would like the fitfulness of this Production I.G film.

Ergo Proxy (2006)
Cyber theme and dark art style. Main girl Re-l reminds me, visually, a little of Amy Lee (Evanescence).
[Re-l's MySpace page is still up.]

Utawarerumono (2006)
No real idea what it’s actually about aside from a guy in a mask with no memories of his past.

Brave Story (2006)
I bought a plush creature from GONZO’s clearance sale and apparently the originating novel is good.

Origin: Spirits of the Past (2006)
Another GONZO film from 2006 but this one has been released in the US.

Natsu no Arashi! (2009)
I kept reading Author and wah talking about this series so it’s been in the back of my mind for a while. I even picked up on my way from AX but haven’t started those yet. Both seasons were simulcast on Crunchyroll.

Maria-sama ga Miteru [Maria Watches Over Us] (2004)
Probably only the first season to see what this Class S stuff is about and maybe the second season after that.

Kara no Kyoukai [The Garden of Sinners] (2007-09)
Series of movies based on light novels authored and illustrated by Type-Moon guys Kinoko Nasu and , respectively, before their other visual novels came out.

Sword of the Stranger (2007)
BONES movie that is supposed to have good action.

Tetsuko no Tabi (2007)
It’s a comedy about a train obsessive travel writer who brings along a manga-ka to ride with him and observe. Based on a real arrangement: the writer was Hirohiko Yokomi and the artist Naoe Kikuchi the illustrator. Unfortunately, I believe this has not been subbed past the first episode.

Kimikiss: Pure Rouge (2007-08)
OGT wrote an analysis of its three main arcs earlier this year so there must be some depth to it.

True Tears (2008)
Another romantic-centric series, though this seems like it has more “sad girl” moments. Bandai finally released it this year after some Bandai Visual strife.

Hatsukoi Limited (2009)
The playfulness attracts me. I remember seeing a number of positive blog reactions about it.

Strike Witches (2007)
Simply to see if I’ll end up liking it or not by abandoning preconceptions.

Majin Tantei Nogami Neuro (2007)
Maybe this is a combination of Hinano mentioning the manga some months ago and seeing it on the Reverse Thieves’ list of detective series. Art style looks interesting and so is the title character gaining energy from solving mysteries and puzzles.

Sidenote: A little surprised that the manga has to be localized by Viz or another publisher. It ran in Shonen Jump and Viz has brought over Muhyo and Roji’s Bureau of Supernatural Investigation, a 18-volume Jump manga – Neuro went for 23. Mind you, I haven’t read either manga so I can’t anything about their quality.

Macross Frontier (2008)
My only experience with the Macross metaseries is seeing the first half of Macross Plus on cable. For the songs and the competition between the two female idols, I guess.

Tentai Senshi Sunred (2008)
Boldly colored comedy with non-traditional characters.

Zettai Karen Children (2008-09)
Read wah talking about this a few times; also saw it in an issue of Weekly Shonen Sunday.

Kamen no Maid Guy (2008)
The premise of a burly man as a protective maid seemed funny when I first heard it.

Baccano! (2007)
Recommended by many, its style and number of characters somehow appeal to me. It also takes place in 1930s America so there’s a period angle as well.

Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu (2008)
Romantic comedy about a closet female otaku. First season to start out, have heard it falls off in season 2. (CR link)

Kaiba (2008)
Arty and caused divisive opinions so it caught my interest.

Real Drive (2008)
The trailer Production I.G. played at their 2008 AX panel looked nice at the time. Main science fiction element is a socially-critical technological network that people regularly connect to with their consciousness.

Shangri-La (2009)
Range Murata character designs in a scenario caused by global warming. (CR listing)

X’amd Lost Memories (2008)
A BONES action series in what looks like a nice landscape. Music by Michiru Oshima (who also scored 1st FMA series) so it’ll be grand-sounding, which could be a good or a bad thing.

Ryoko Yakushiji’s Strange Case Files (2008)
Tokyo policewoman investigates paranormal cases. Character design caught my eye.

Jin-Roh (2000)
Mamoru Oshii film so I feel like I should watch it. Counting this as 2000 (Japanese premiere) even though its world premiere was in 1999.

Over Drive (2007)
About a high school student striving to becoming a great cyclist.

Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004)
Saw the first one so it’s only natural that I’d want to watch the second.

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I didn’t think it would be right for me to include new series from 2009′s summer and fall seasons in the main mix (too recent) so I’ll mention them separately here [mentioned three in a summer preview]:

Kimi ni Todoke (2009)
Lots of praise for this romantic comedy. Main girl’s look reminds me of Sunako from The Wallflower.

Taisho Baseball Girls (2009)
It’s set in the past and it’s about girls playing baseball. Those two elements are enough for me.

Element Hunters (2009)
Oriented at kids but it’s about trying to retrieve disappeared chemical elements from another dimension. I liked chemistry in high school and somewhat in a few college courses so that’s the main hook for me.

Canaan (2009)
Type-Moon character designs paired with what seems to be a not-too-serious action plot.

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So that’s…*counts* fifty-one in all – you can tell I have somewhat broad tastes. I guess my goal is to dip into each of these over the next five years and write about whatever comes those viewings, if anything.

An alphabetical year-by-year listing since the above is somewhat jumbled (by debut year):

2000: Hajime no Ippo; Jin-Roh; NieA under 7; Tsukikage Ran
2001: I Me My! Strawberry Eggs
2002: Millennium Actress
2003: Kino’s Journey; Planetes
2004: Dead Leaves; Fantastic Children; GitS 2: Innocence; Kakurenbo; Mai-HiME; Marimite; Poirot and Marple
2005: Eyeshield 21; Kamichu!; Kaze no Stigma
2006: Black Lagoon; Brave Story; Ergo Proxy; Origin: Spirits of the Past; Tekkon Kinkreet; Utawarerumono
2007: Baccano!; Kara no Kyoukai; Kimikiss: Pure Rouge; Majin Tantei Nogami Neuro; Over Drive; Strike Witches; Sword of the Stranger; Tetsuko no Tabi
2008: Daughter of Twenty Faces; Kaiba; Kamen no Maid Guy; Macross Frontier; Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu; Real Drive; Ryoko Yakushiji’s Strange Case Files; Tentai Senshi Sunred; True Tears; X’amd Lost Memories; Zettai Karen Children
2009: Basquash!; Canaan; Element Hunters; Hatsukoi Limited; Kimi ni Todoke; Natsu no Arashi!; Shangri-La; Taisho Baseball Girls

SOME OUTSIDE READING
- ChaosTangent made a nice video with all the decade’s anime titles flashing past, each year with its own song.
- Japanator’s top 50 list – in five parts: 50-41, 40-31, 30-21, 20-11, 10-1 (I’ve seen at least part of 41 entries.)
- Kurutta’s favorites of the decade in manga, Japanese film, anime, and visual kei (via @aicnanime)