Last season's top 3

[Buffalobiian]

Spring 2011

1. Gosick - Detective anime (sort of). Great, entertaining interactions between the main lead characters. The show does (try) to blend the world's happening into the story to create something grander than just your 2-person classroom story. Not without its weaknesses, such as a rushed last arc. A word of caution to new watchers: The first case is probably the best case in the anime, and the rest of the story quickly focus more on the main characters more so than actual cases. Don't expect this to be a hardcore detective anime.

2. Moshidora - baseball/management anime. One of the rare sports anime out there that are told from the view of the manager rather than the player. Very slow start - something that may turn a lot of people off, but it's great if you can wear it out and be accustomed to it. Know that as a whole, the anime will develop to become much more of a story than the initial feeling that you're being taught a chapter of Peter Drucker's Management every episode. Bit of a hit or miss - but definitely worth checking out to see if it's your cup of tea.

3. Ano Hana - Drama. Also known as Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai. I'm not too sure how to put this show's appeal in words.. maybe the other guys can once this post kickstarts them. But two words: Watch This.

[shinta|hikari]

Spring 2011

1) GOSICK - Great relationship between the two leads. I particularly like how strongly they feel towards each other, but are not clingy and sappy. Victorique is amazingly cute, especially when she pouts. The VA also did a great job voicing her.

2) Ano Hana - The first episode really made this for me. The rest were either weaker, or a rehash of what the viewer already knows.

3) Sofutenni - Great fun show with comedy, some romance, and really nice fanservice. I really enjoyed watching every episode of this.

Honorable mention - Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko - This would have been great if it didn't abruptly end. This is only the first part of the story, and nothing is concluded. I hope this gets a second season though. I like the characters and dialog, probably because this was based on a light novel.

[Buffalobiian]

Summer 2011

1) Steins;Gate - Time-travel, Mystery, Thriller. It combines mindfuck (first 2 episodes or so), light comedy and seriousness all in one package. If I had to say this show did one thing right, it's pacing. The earlier episodes will grip you with humour and interest, while the latter episodes(with perhaps 2 exceptions max) will just grip you with... something else. I'll just say that the serious tone of the death in episode one does get addressed. The first 3 episodes or so can put you off, but trust me on this one, you'll get hooked. (being intentionally vague sin this IS a mystery genre).

It's by the people behind Chaos;Head, but I won't take too much note of that. A much better comparison would be Higurashi no Naku Koro ni. If you liked that show, I think you'll very likely like this one.

2) Usagi Drop - Man takes home an "abandoned" relative and raises her. Comedy, slice of life, coming of age. Out of the top three mentioned, I'd say this one's the most beautiful of them all, and not necessarily in visual artstyle. Usagi Drop covers the concepts of understanding your kid, the daily hardships of parents raising a child (it keeps it fresh, yet grounded in everyday routines), and the rewards a parent feels despite it all. Character dynamics are superb. Rin is such an adorable character that you can only hopelessly fall in love with her. Note that this is a light hearted show despite the slightly depressing/solemn first episode.

3) Kamisama Dolls - Mecha(?), Family feud, action. Right off the bat, great OP and ED. One big plus in Kamisama Dolls is its departure from the highschool setting. In fact, you don't see a single school* in this at all. Nearly all characters have some sort of backstory to them which drives their actions, again giving them depth not found in a great many contemporary shows out there. On the outside, the designs are also quite pleasing, with the older characters having smaller features where they should (head/body proportions, eyes), as well as larger features where they're nice (*wink wink*). Again, manages to mix comedy and seriousness in an excellent manner (seems to be a common trait between these top three shows). One strength of this show (which is also a weakness if you are too aware of this) is its successful use of the following formula pretty much ever episode: solving previously introduced problems, inserting humour/development, then finishing with a cliff-hanger right on the mark - just like any successfully written chapter that will keep you reading till 0400 in the morning.



Honourable mentions (more than I would like, but this season was rather good):

Hanasaku Iroha: If there was a 4th place, this would take it. Just didn't do everything quite as well as the above shows imo.
No. 6 and Ao no Exorcist may have made it to this list somewhere but were foiled by their endings.

* schools = high schools and elementary schools.

[Ryllharu]

Spring 2011

Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko: Shaft has gotten increasingly good in making particularly strange girls very alluring...in very ordinary ways. This series, as with many of their others, uses subtlty in lieu of overt ecchi or brazen moe appeal. One of the other things that impressed me is that while two characters (mother and daughter) are very, very different in personality and disposition, the two of them share expressions and idiosyncrasies that leave no question the two are related. Other girls have their own distinct expressions. It's all done is a subtle way that never brings attention to itself. The animation style might be odd at first (crescent moon smiles, shiny skin), but it's clear that there is a huge attention to detail that went into making this series. Everything animated feels very deliberate, and it lets the characters be a bit more expressive. Not much to speak of in terms of story, but it is a character driven series, which it does very well. The only downside is that the male lead is a bit bland, but that might be largely due to how eccentric the primary girls around him are.

Gosick: A strong mystery series. Where it excels is the high quality animation, good voice acting, and realistic approach to solving the mysteries. While the heroine does in fact declare she's figured it all out before revealing the truth, she typically does so in a way that uses reasoning from the provided hints, rather than pulling information the audience has never seen. Very strong voice cast, nice continuous storyline, and good character design. The male lead is weak (as above), but he has his moments.

Ano Hana: It is kind of hard to throw this into a genre. It's a Coming of Age story where it feels like most of them have already come of age. It hits home for me in a lot of tough ways, because at its core it is a series about friends drifting apart. Where it really stands out, far above the other series the past few seasons, is in character development. The characters in Ano Hana have depth. They're not simple. They have a lot of conflicts going on internally. They're not simply a hair color and a particular quirk. They are afraid of what others might think of them, they have torn loyalties, they hate each other, they love each other, they can't let go, they let go too easily. Voice cast is very strong (tearing my heart out sometimes), the animation is crisp, the pacing good.


Summer 2011

Kamisama Dolls: Why does this series stand out? Strong male lead with character depth. Don't see that very often, and certainly not to this sophisticated level. He feels...human. There is the face he shows to others, and the one underneath it all that he sometimes can barely control. He's not the only character like that. Most of the cast has that kind of detail to their personality. There isn't a clear cut, "good vs. evil" dynamic in the all-too-short feeling season. Everyone has motives, and they're all trying to fulfill their respective goals. The great cast is a strong reason for the excellent character portrayals. While the animation isn't as stellar as some other series, it's the little touches that make all the difference. Characters do actions that don't really have any purpose, like fiddling with objects. It comes off in a casual way that never feels forced, and it really adds to the whole environment of the series. Good pacing, nice interjections of humor to shift the mood at the right time. Best of all? Most of the characters are university-age. It's not yet another middle/high school series.

Mayo Chiki: Excellent comedy series. Why? The two female leads and their respective VAs. The first of them manages to perform a very convincing male voice for her secret identity. That alone was impressive enough to stand out. But it also features a second "heroine" who teases constantly, but also displays quite a range of other emotions. It is often only brief flickers, but that it also a testament to the subtlety of the animation. It's not overly crisp nor highly detailed, but is is very expressive. A key component to a great comedy like this. It is simply fun to watch.

Hanasaku Iroha: A standard coming of age story that actually pulls it off very well. There isn't anything particularly revolutionary in terms of character development, but it is all extremely well done. The animation is very crisp with vibrant colors, the characters are fun, the cast good, but it is the atmosphere of the series that really stands out. There are a few episodes here and there that feel completely out of place, but overall, the series is like a warm spring breeze.

Disclaimer: I did not watch Usagi Drop. I had re-read half of the manga right before it was announced, and finished the completed series before the anime aired. Downloaded, but did not watch.

[Kraco]

Steins;Gate. The main character is my idol, seriously. A dude who calls himself a mad scientist and even pulls it off. Looking at Bill's rambling up there, I see he mentioned two shows I dropped in the middle, so I would compare to neither. This was clearly an intelligent show, but it had also jolly characters with well written personalities and quirks, not mention events evoking strong emotions. Just the way I like it.

Usagi Drop. This show made it to the list by not animating the latter portion of the manga. Perhaps it's because I have watched so much anime and read so much manga already that this show didn't have an impact as big as Aishiteru ze Baby all those years ago, but objectively speaking this was just as nice and warm. Only a hardcore shounen watcher or a child-hater wouldn't like this story.

Hanasaku Iroha. I can't really say it any better than Ryll. There was absolutely nothing revolutionary about this show, but neither did it boast any weaknesses. It was an altogether wholesome packet with good characters and lots of energetic and lively movement.

[Ryllharu]

Fall 2011

Note: Both Fate/Zero and Horizon were known to both be split series months before they first began airing. Since the general rule is to only do series that have ended in a particular season, the two series have been excluded for now.

Tamayura

(I also watched the OVA right before, so this addresses them both)

While other slice of life series excel at evoking a mood, Tamayura goes a different route, and focuses on capturing a particular mood. It really exemplifies the saying, "the best camera is the one you have with you." Fuu takes her father's tiny, ultra-portable Rollei 35S everywhere with her, and is able to get it all, even amid her countless failures. Each of the girls have their own particular quirks, and how they pull it off is by making those facets particularly unique.

Sight, smell, taste, and sound. Each of the four girls find their happiness in one of the five senses. In addition to Fuu, there's a girl obsessed with smells and enjoys making potpourri, a shy girl who loves music so much she whistles more than speaks (and amazingly, you start to understand it a little bit), a high school girl very clearly obsessed with young boys...and handcrafting gourmet desserts. What sets this apart from the average slice of life is that the girls, quirks and all, feel genuine. They're not sure what they want to do, or some always knew what they wanted to do. They feel ill at ease, they feel confident, they persevere, they lose their will. One can't seem to settle on what it is she wants do to, and it all feels familiar. It's a comforting slice of life series, rather than a relaxing one or one mired in melodramatics.


Mawaru Penguindrum

It made me laugh often, it made me smile, it disgusted me, it made me tear up, it confused the hell out of me, left me always wondering between one episode and the next. But where it truly stands out as unique is the way it left me. It wasn't bittersweet, no, it was more than that. It left me numb. Not the numb where you don't care, the numb that comes with nerve damage.

Sometimes the visual analogies got a little heavy toward the end, but for the most part they were cleverly done. The series has a style all to itself. It was like a mystery, coming of age, and a redemption story all in one. Excellent cast with a nice mix of rookies and veterans.


Boku Ha Tomodachi Ga Sukunai (Haganai)

While the characters can make a show, for this, it was really how the characters interact with each other. The two main girls are incredibly mean to one another, largely verbal abuse and pranks, though one of them isn't nearly as good at it as the other, and typically runs off in tears. Yet she keeps coming back, so there's this air of desperation for comradeship that gives her some charm. The male lead also stands out on his own. He's not whiny, he's not a pervert, he's not an alpha male, he lacks confidence in his own way, but he's mature, responsible, and sensible. It's strange. He doesn't really stand out aside from his appearance, but that pushes him past the usual clichés of the genre. He's the voice of reason in a cacophony of the ever-so-slightly insane. His sister gives off a similar refreshing air despite nearly being a cliché herself, yet is distinctly not one, it's all an act. A subtle difference that makes her a solid character.

The fun aside, some of the characters really do have some legitimate issues they need to get over. Feelings of betrayal, loneliness, isolation, hazing, being affected by the snap-judgments of others, etc. Unfortunately, they only barely got into covering and resolving them in this season. I wish the series would have gone further than it did, but I've got strong hopes for a second season.

It's amusing and a bit sad to see a group that gathered because they couldn't find any friends, and still not one of them realizes that they have all become friends already. It's a good comedy with excellent character design and animation, bolstered by a strong cast.

[Uchiha Barles]

Spring 2012:

1. Fate/Zero
2. Sakamichi no Apollon
3. Tasogare Otome x Amnesia

Summer 2012:

1. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita
2. Kokoro Connect
3. Natsuyuki Rendezvous

In hindsight there are a few things I should've watched over the summer that I didn't give a shot to. SAO was just SO bad that it really turned me off to anything that was remotely like it.

[Buffalobiian]

Spring 2012
-Fate/Zero: needs no introduction. Prequel to F/SN
-Sakamichi no Apollon: Post WWII, musically themed, coming-of-age anime
-Moretsu Pirates: Space opera with an easy start, grand development

Summer 2012
-Binbougami ga!: slapstick comedy. Hilarious.
-Hyouka: mystery, moe.
-Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita: smarter comedy, social commentary.

[Ryllharu]

Well, I'll forgo a long writeup in order to do a quick catchup. As usual, series ending in the time period.

Fall 2012:
Girls und Panzer - Surprisingly entertaining tank warfare.
Jormungand: Perfect Order - Sequel to previous season, good tactical action.
Robotics;Notes - Subdued and mostly realistic "let's build a giant robot" anime
[ added here because Fall 2012's two-cour series were really strong and I ran out of room, see below. ]

Winter 2013:
Shin sekai yori - Strong fantasy series, Espers and monsters. One of the best series of 2013.
Zetsuen no Tempest: The Civilization Blaster - A legitimate adventure series. Contemporary fantasy, great characters.
Mondaiji-tachi ga Isekai kara Kuru Sou Desu yo? - Another entertaining fantasy series where ridiculously overpowered protagonists are transported to another world where they can wreak even more havoc.

Spring 2013:
Chihayafuru 2 - Sequel to the surprisingly tense antics of the karuta-playing high schoolers.
Suisei no Gargantia - Science fiction series where a space pilot and his AI mecha find themselves sent to a water-covered Earth.
Kakumeiki Valvrave - Surprisingly good mecha series with a unique different take on its pilots. Lots of politicking, not Gundam, but doesn't take itself that seriously either.

Honorable mention: Hataraku Maou-sama - Demon Overlord expelled from his world, gets a job at a burger place on Earth. Comedy.

Summer 2013:
Gin no Saji - Agricultural School series. Protagonist learns to find himself at an unconventional school. Created by the FMA mangaka, and the quality in the writing shows.
Servant x Service - Civil Service Office comedy.
Uchouten Kazoku - Fantasy series about the family life of tanuki in modern day, and their interaction with humans (who are fond of eating them at the end of the year), tengu (who theoretically run the area) and a particularly capricious demi-goddess.

Honorable Mention: Rozen Maiden (2013) - Reboot of the series to realign it with the manga. Very well done, but seeing the original series (despite their different take on the story) is a bit of a requirement to follow along.

Fall 2013:
Kakumeiki Valvrave (2013) - Sequel to the above.
Sekai de Ichiban Tsuyoku Naritai! - Excessively trashy girls wrestling series. I have to admit that it was pretty engaging, in the end.
Kyoukai no Kanata - Story about an immortal half-youma boy and the exorcist who is trying repeatedly to kill him.

Things you could be watching right now (ongoing and quite good):

Kill la Kill
Golden Time
Nagi no Asukara
Log Horizon

[Ryllharu]

Winter 2014

Noragami - Solid series from start to finish. Good Great cast, good fights, fun. It's nothing revolutionary in terms of plot, but the execution was flawless. Best OP of the season doesn't hurt either (tie with KLK's 2nd OP).

Mikakunin de Shinkoukei (Engaged to the Unidentified) - A nice show with really fluid animation and a warm, if slow, romance. That said, comedy is really the highlight here. It took me a while to recognize it, but it is very similar to in feel to Acchi Kocchi (another favorite). Really strong cast with entertaining characters and recurring gags.

Nagi no Asukara - It was a long, slow start, but worth the wait. The characters felt human, the plot familiar to anyone who's felt a little out of place or left behind. The animation is of course, flawless, though I have to admit it doesn't really stand out (it looks like most of the shows P.A. Works has done). Bonus points for being an original work. A coming of age drama done right...though that's starting to be what P.A. Works is known for.

Honorable Mention:
Pupipo! - Short episodes, but they crammed a lot in there anyway. Three characters get a well-developed character arc, and usually leaves you with a warm and fuzzy feeling. The art style is particularly interesting.

[shinta|hikari]

I agree with all 3.

[MFauli]

Spring 2014:

1.) Baby Steps - Really hitting all the right strings. That´s how a sports anime should be done, sympathetic hero, reasonable learning skills, good enough action and a good pacing, where training, matches and outside-stuff don´t interfere negatively. Maruo is a great lead. Bonus-Award for hottest girl, too. Brunette glasses-girl is best of the season :>

2.) No Game No Life - An anime made for otaku. Some of the weird stuff was a bit too weird for my liking, mainly the unnecessary siscon element, but the rest was superb. Many sentences and situations that should be considered classics from now on. I can´t get over the scene where he tries to remove some npc-girl´s pants and it doesn´t work, and not only him but the whole male portion of his kingdom are full of disappointment. Fantastic.

3.) Ping Pong - The Animation - This could easily have been my number one, but the super crappy animation and artstyle ruined it. Really sad, because I can´t see a lot of non-anime enthusiasts give it a fair chance due to the visuals alone. Absolutely masterful characterization of four completely different heroes. Best of all, it´s a complete package: The story covers what is initially promised to be covered, and ends it with full cosure. If you like table tennis, it´s a must-see, despite the visuals.

Excluding Hunter X Hunter, since it started in 2011, otherwise it´d be my obvious top spot.
Mushishi didn´t make it, despite me liking it a lot. But I always have to get in the mood for it first, whereas I´m actively looking forward to watch the other series as soon as possible.

Edit: I wont change the above ranking for various reasons. But it needs to be mentioned that, had I watched it before, Knights of Sidonia would have undoubtedly been my number #1 anime this season. Fantastic, just fantastic.

[Kraco]

No Game No Life - I was first dubious of this, but it really grew on me. The artistic style was brave, the humour was good enoug, the characters varied and amusing. I even liked the fanservice in this case because it felt more natural than in many more generic boobs and pantsu shows. Maybe because there was always so much stuff going on that it didn't feel like the show existed for service alone. The smartness and intelligence, which should have been very integral to the story, were a bit so-so but the series had its moment.

Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii - I don't watch enough shoujo to be tired of the tropes and cliches, and so this was perfect for me. Fantasy adventure shoujo could be said to be perfectly matched with my interests. I don't like stock shoujo because I'm not interested in pure drama. However, I really like it when other stuff like action and comedy is mixed with the real relationship progress that shoujo provides, as opposed to shounen, where the dudes are regularly denser than tungsten or impotent harem leads.

Knights of Sidonia - Actually I'm kind of divided between this and Hitsugi no Chaika. I'll go with Sidonia because it seems like a more solid packet, despite the graphics. Chaika's title character was a bit annoying and the story quite meandering, as good as it was otherwise. Sidonia gave a good, solid military story that was easily ruthless, deadly, and cold enough to be believable, which is not given in nearly all series that are supposed to tell about battles. It was also nice to not know where the story might be heading.

[KrayZ33]

No.1 Hitsugi no Chaika - the show was good overall, I liked every episode of it and the fights were pretty cool. MC isn't overpowered and its nice to see him struggle...the ending was really satisfying too. Can't wait for the next Season

No.2 No Game No Life - the games were fun to watch, thats all it needed to be and it succeeded doing it

Didn't really care much for the rest (unless I forgot something) but I'd say Ryuugajoi Nanana no Maizoukin was okay.

[MFauli]

1.) Barakamon

2.) Sword Art Online S2

3.) Aldnoah Zero

Really crappy season, and surpsringly so. Other than my number #1, I had to chose these top 3 due to a lack of better alternatives (Althought I just started watching Person 4 Golden, now that I finished the game. Could take a spot). This is the season of wasted potential and missed opportunities. Tokyo Ghoul, Tokyo ESP and Zankyou no Terror all had a promising premise and a captivating first episode. But neither managed to hold up to that promise. Ghoul had no character development. ESP couldn´t decide between a serious or younger audience-anime, and thus failed to leave any impact with all those people dying in almost every episode. And Terror just went nowhere and had not a single likable character - I kept watching, always expecting it to "start", but it never did.

As for my top 3, well, Barakamon was truly enjoyable. Was looking forward to every episode. It was fun, without devolving into the goofy, but still had lots of emotion. Only thing I´d have loved to see is the hero starting a romantic relationship with one of the two girls - come on. SAO 2, well, watching it for production values. WHEN there is action, it´s awesome to watch. Downside: The moment you start thinking while watching, it turns into laughable shit, revealing a most inept author/script writer. Truly embarrassing stuff. Aldnoah Zero had awesome Hiroyuki Sawano-music and somewhat okay animations. But the main character is a hate-inducing prodigy brat, and prodigy only because everybody around him is stupid, despite having way more experience.

As with last season, I only included new series (or such that had a clear break, like SAO). Otherwise, HXH would have been number one, Baby Steps number 2.

[shinta|hikari]

The shows aren't over, but my choices are pretty much set so here goes.

1) Barakamon - Very well written. The characters are all interesting, real, yet wacky enough to be engaging. I love the VA for the protagonist. I expected him to be the usual prude, but he turned out much nicer and open-minded than expected. I could relate to his struggles and felt emotional when he did. And no, Naru is too young a loli to influence my rating.

2) Sabagebu - I watched the first episode and felt that this was trash. Then I watched the golden 2nd episode, and this immediately became a favorite. Each episode had random gags and jokes that made my side split. Definitely the dark horse for this season. Momoka is the best comedy female protagonist ever.

3) Aldnoah Zero - Have not seen the conclusion yet, and this will continue in 2015, but the story and delivery has been really good so far. I love the art style. Inaho is Lelouch and Suzaku combined, which is a good thing for me who loves badass protagonists.

Special Mention: Nobunaga Concerto - One of the best Nobunaga story versions in anime. The art is pretty simplistic, but the story is really well done. All the characters are interesting, despite being realistic enough to fit the era. The reactions of the protagonist after being thrown to the Sengoku age were hilarious.

EDIT: @Mfauli - I think this top 3 thread was dedicated to shows that finished during that season, not started. Aldnoah should count because it is split into 2 seasons, like Log Horizon and Chaika were. And relax, it's just a comment from some random individual. Trying to find out his/her identity using mods is overkill.

[MFauli]

Due to a lack of quality NEW anime this past season, I´ll make an actual top 3. Otherwise, Assassination Classroom would be #1 by default victory, lol.

1.) Gundam Build Fighters Try

I wrote this repeatedly and I´ll do it again: This season absolutely blew the first one out of the water. Season 1 had some obvious advantages, the two biggest being the mystery characters (Reiji, Aila) and the 1 on 1-battles. The latter wouldn´t have been as much a problem if only our new heroes had used some real team-based strategy ... but every single battle starts with them flying next to each other, waiting to be attacked. I mean ... sigh. So much for team play. Anyway, the rest was amazing. Maybe the most surprising praise needs to go to this season´s soundtrack. Extremely captivating, heart rate-pumping, and sometimes simply beautiful. The visual presentation of most of the battles was so much better than in the first season, too. Even side-battles like when they first met Yuuma´s builder rival, turned out to be exciting. The direct continuation of the first season made this one more interesting, too. Now we just need a third season to have all this setup lead somewhere. Show us the world tournament, show us Sekai, Yori, Kawaguchi and Reiji fight it all out between each other!

Bonus point for continuously featuring the hottest girls. Seriously, for an anime that´s obviously targeted at a younger audience, the level of hotness/sex appeal in this show is ridiculous. I dont even want to think of a hypothetical return of Rinko in a hypothetical season 3. :>

2.) Parasyte

I´m not in the knowledge if that story is actually over. If it is, the ending is somewhat disappointing. Disappointing in that it just stops. Because, admittedly, it´s a good point in time to end it. The biggest threats have been neutralized, the hero has reached his own conclusion, and Migi said goodbye. If it was in my power, Id love to see how Shinichi reveals his situation to his girlfriend. Id like to see how the other parasytes further evolve within human society. THat´d be really interesting. But if that´s it, that´s okay, too.

3.) Ace of Diamond

It´s nothing special and I´m annoyed that Sawamura just seems to keep himself from ever becoming the hero ... that he should be, since the series clearly focused on him in the beginning and even now features him slightly more prominently than other characters. But right now it feels as if a single hit from an opponent batter could send him into deep depression again. Meh. Still, production value and animation is more than solid and I enjoy watching most of the players. Kuromochi is one of my favorites, really likable, dependable guy. Best of all, the next season is already confirmed. Yay!

[MasterOfMoogles]

So this is shows running/ending in Winter 2015?

This is probably the list of contenders, I would say:
Aldnoah Zero
Cross Ange
Death Parade
Parasyte
Shirobako
Seven Deadly Sins

I'd have to give the awards to:
#1 Shirobako
This show did everything right.
A great inside look at the anime industry with some funny meta-commentary.
Well-animated and with a fun cast of characters, Shirobako delivered right up to the end.

#2 Parasyte
A somewhat frustrating show to watch given the main character, but the world and situation is very compelling and there's a lot of edge-of-your-seat action where you just want to see how it turns out next.
Migi was fantastic (voiced by Aya Hirano aka. Haruhi) in her role and pulled off the super-intelligent/logical creature very well.
The show gets a little heavy-handed with the philosophical themes at the end, but can be forgiven due to the awesome, well-animated journey to get there.

#3 Cross Ange
Over the top and very self-aware, Cross Ange delivers exactly what it promises.
I haven't caught the last episode just yet, so hopefully it ends well, but at this point, it has been quite a ride.
The biggest problem with this show is that they perhaps spoil too much right off the bat with a flash forward and then the OP. It would have worked a lot better if they just told the story straight up.
If you like fabulous train wrecks in your mecha anime, then this is definitely for you.
Also, don't miss the hilarious next episode previews.

Honorable mentions this season go to:
JoJo - for being amazing
Yurikuma - for being ridiculous
Absolute Duo - for a pretty cool OP (gotta watch the real version that started in episode 3)
Death Parade - for another pretty good OP
Garo - for actually having cool battles, and for having a really neat OP 1
Gundam Reconguista - for being impossible to understand what is going on
Seven Deadly Sins - everyone's favorite giant girl
Aldnoah Zero - for being interesting but crapping out at the end
Saenai Kanojo - for the main character (voiced by Kirito) having figurines of the SAO cast in his room (and 2 for Asuna)
Dog Days season 3 - for delivering exactly what they promise, for the third time

[shinta|hikari]

You didn't watch Shigatsu?

1) Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso - Music, drama, and tears. And waki.
2) Shirobako - Must watch for real anime fans, especially those involved on the creative side.
3) Maria the Virgin Witch/Cross Ange (tie) - Haven't seen the ending for both.

Fafner would definitely be here, but it continues so it goes into the next season's top 3.

[MasterOfMoogles]

I thought Shigatsu was really bad.
The dialogue was so ridiculous/forced. I could never imagine anyone saying some of the lines in this show in real life.
The "lie" was dumb. Watari was pointless as a character.
A+ for music, though.