GotWoot's Annual Anime Awards 2006!

[masamuneehs]

well, no there really isn't an annual award or anything like that, but I do seem to recall there being a similar thread this time last year. And besides, with the year drawing to a close (under 10 days), it's customary to look back and reflect on everything 2006 gave us. There's no official awards, just opinions, but it makes for good reminesing.

I would like to discourage people from revealing too much about their "nominations" though. I hope people who read this thread get interested in some of the animes people discuss and then watch them. So I'd hate for that to be ruined by someone giving away endings and all that jazz.

Well, so what did 2006 give us? Well, it was a full year of Naruto fillers, and more than half of the year was Bleach fillers as well. For me that meant going out and finding lots of new anime series. So which one's impressed me? Well, read on!

Masa's Annual Anime Award (AAA) for Best Male Character

Hakuoro (Utawarerumono) - Hak is the man, the man with the plan, the man with the fan, the man in the mask, the man on the task. He's smart, caring, and had a relatively unknown voice actor do one hell of a job on a lead role. Helps that he was in one of the best fantasy series of 2006, which leads me to...


AAA for Best Fantasy Anime
This one goes to

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. The first of what I'm sure will be many awards for Haruhi. This show had a fantasy setting quite unlike anything I'd ever seen. Sci-fi, supernatural, all somehow blended together with excellent comedy in a typical school setting.
Mentionable runner-up: Shakugan no Shana for its excellent plot concept.


AAA for Best Animation

Mushishi. Nothing else comes even remotely close to rivaling this one. Won an anime award in Japan for best animation as well. random sample of its beauty


AAA for Best OP and ED combo

Zegapain. Two of the most beautiful OP and ED sequences I've ever seen, excellent and fitting music. Zegapain OP video
...goddamn the site with the OP on it is slow as fuck. They were down frequently for maintenence all day today... maybe still doing some... it's worth a watch though.
Honorable mention goes to Black Lagoon.


AAA for Best Line in an Anime
"Amen, hallelujah, peanut butter."

The writing for Black Lagoon blows all the other shows away. Realistic gangster speak, even some amusing English. This award also represents the anime I thought had the best dialogue.


AAA for Best Vampire Show

Chevalier d'Eon A wicked and more medieval piece than the other big '06 vamp anime (Blood+). The setting, characters and evil blood suckers are just a little more dark and nasty in this show than any of the others.


AAA for Best Mecha AND AAA for Best Sci-fi

Zegapain No, I'm not joking, this show really is that good. I seriously considered this show for best anime of the year. While themes from The Matrix and Evangelion have been done to death in anime, this show somehow presents them in a fresh manner that stimulates thought and emotion. Excellent plot and characters as well. 06 was a real weak year for mechas, and the mechs in Zega sure are ugly, but the action is rather good.
btw, both these awards would have gone to Eureka SeveN, if it had been a true '06er...


AAA for Best Action

Black Lagoon. Unrealistic gunfights? You bet. Some cold-hearted, crazy gangster shit? You bet.
Second place goes to the one that also won the...


AAA for Most Overrated Anime
Fate/Stay Night. I know, I know, so many other users are going to defend it. "It was awesome!" "Saber's the coolest!" But I thought it was a stale plot with cliche characters that relied on good animation. Its large following also is part of why I made this award.

AAA for Best Romantic Item
Is there really any competition on this one? Well, surprisingly, yes. The love story in Shana was one I considered putting in this spot, the Uta romance getting a distant third. Black Lagoon was considered, but is that really romance? Oh, the award went to Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya


AAA for Most Realistic Anime

What? A realistic anime? But how the hell could they do that and keep it interesting? Well, it's not that easy, and since most anime viewers tend to want to use anime as an escape from reality, it's little wonder that the winner of this one got very little attention throughout the year. It goes to Rescue Wings, which chronicled the lives of pilots who risk their lives flying rescue missions for the Japanese military.


AAA for Best Female Character

"Two hands" Revy from Black Lagoon
This category had some stiff competition. Haruhi, Shana, Karura (sp?) from Uta, and I'm sure F/SN fiends will clamor for Saber in this one as well. But, let's face facts, no chick has anything on Revy. Sexy, crazy, badass bitch = win.

and now you must be wondering, what was the best anime of 2006? Well, you're going to be disappointed, because I'm copping out on this one. That's right, it's the old "each one is special and is the best in their own special way" cop out! But seriously, I don't think putting these shows head to head would give you a clear winner. Some nights when I want to clear my mind, nothing beats an episode of Mushishi. For engrossing plot I'd go with Zegapain (tho Death Note will probably be the best story of the '06 class once it's done). I want to see someone get blown away; I watch Black Lagoon. I want to laugh; I watch Haruhi. I don't think you can reconcile all the different ways you can get enjoyment from an anime and say "This was the best anime in '06!"

...unless we're including Eureka SeveN...

and i hope other people throw in their nominations into the ring as well! The animes I've put here are all only out of the ones I've watched. There had to be other award winners out there, so let's here about 'em!

edit to below- never seen it.