summer vibes : the anime edition

is it really summer if you're not watching anime?

for me, it isn't.

although I've been on a huge supernatural binge lately (heh don't ask me how I managed to jump from season five to season eleven in a month...I'm not even sure how that's physically possible...), I'm still making time for anime. because anime is just so perfect for summer, especially the romantic comedies. they've always got great music, good stories, and the animation is typically light and very artistic. even the darker animes are great for summer--last year, I devoured Death Parade, and already I'm gearing up for my third rewatch of Psycho Pass this year (yeah, it's a problem.)

so without further ado, here are my top ten anime picks for summer watching.

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10. Kamisama Kiss

Kamisama Kiss is just...sweet. it's about a high school girl who has a rather unfortunate life, what with her dead mom and her deadbeat dad, but despite this, she's chosen to be kind and considerate to those she meets. when she runs into a land god in disguise, her kindness and compassion to his plight leads him to give her his power, so that she becomes a god in his place. Nanami doesn't really know what she's getting into, especially when she meets her guardian, the fox spirit Tomoe, and encounters various enemies who want her killed.

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watch for: Tomoe's sass, general cuteness, the flute scene, a beautiful beautiful ship that we may never see come to fruition in the anime (but it actually happens in the manga, I think), interesting look on mythology

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9. Haikyuu

well, you all know I love Haikyuu. I LOVE HAIKYUU. Hinata is determined to play volleyball, even though he's only 5 foot 4 inches. He wants to follow in his hero the Little Giant's footsteps in becoming an ace, beat his archenemy from a brutal middle school match, and make it to Nationals, but when he joins the Karasuno high school team, he encounters a huge problem: his middle school rival, Kageyama, is on his team as well. these two--and the rest of the team as well--have to learn to work together if they're going to make it to the top.

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watch for : PAIN. LOTS OF PAIN (just kidding. kinda). all the teams are lovable and the characters are so intricate and funny and make me cry a lot. beautiful discussions on what it means to be a team. laughs for days.

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8. Bungo Stray Dogs

Atsushi is a down-on-his-luck orphan who was driven out of his orphanage because he was considered useless and unimportant. when he saves a drowning man named Dazai (who really  didn't want to be saved) he is dragged into the Armed Detective Agency, where he meets people with peculiar powers. this group solves crimes together while they fight against the Port Mafia and other dark, mysterious forces.

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watch for : really funny but also really dark. Dazai. just watch this for Dazai. secrets. really cool powers? characters named after famous literary figures in Japan--even the title literally means Literary Stray Dogs. beautiful animation. lots and lots of characters, but not in an overwhelming way.

also, an exhibit of 4 gifs of why you should love Dazai and his extra self with all your heart

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7. Erased

Satoru is at odds with the world. he lives a mediocre life, trying to write manga, barely managing to survive, when his mom is suddenly killed in a mysterious incident and he is left with blood on his hands. Satoru isn't just an ordinary person, though. he has a special gift, something called revival, that enables him to turn back time to stop things from happening if he can find the trigger. he struggles to start the revival, desperate to go back and save his mother, but when he wakes up in his eleven year old body, he knows something isn't right. instead of going back directly before his mother was murdered, he was sent back to a much later time in order to find the original trigger--the murder of a young girl he could have saved.

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watch for: really cool concept? satoru being a giant awkward teddy bear. creepy villain. dope symbolism (THAT SHOWDOWN SCENE, MAN). kids fighting for their friends and banding together to keep each other safe. barely any romance. really good ending. will make you feel things.

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6. Barakamon

Handa is a famous calligrapher who, after a nervous breakdown over his art, gets shipped off to an extremely rural area, where he meets all sorts of strange characters who remind him about what life truly means. he makes one peculiar acquaintance in particular--a six year old girl who latches onto Handa as her friend and helps him to see the joys in a simple life.

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watch for : adorableness, BEAUTIFUL ANIMATION, kids being kids, adults being adults, if you live in the country you will probs love this one, soft, simple plot with no drama or intrigue (except bug catching). NOTE: I have not finished this. but i plan to. someday. also, Handa is absurdly relatable. take exhibit a below as an example.

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5. Lovely Complex

she's freaking tall, he's freaking short--and neither of them want to be known by this particular feature, as luck has it, they get saddled with a joint nickname that haunts them throughout high school. they're best friends, and wouldn't be caught dead having *le gasp* feelings about each other, but also as luck has it, fate has other plans.

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watch for : THE FACES. good friendship vibes. old sort of nostalgic feel (like, most of these anime are pretty recent but this is from 2006 and you can totally tell with the animation style). hilarious dorks. drama. no love triangle really? (if my memory serves me correctly...) good luck finding it tho because I've only seen this once on youtube a million years ago and I cannot find it anywhere except in box set form on amazon.

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4. Chihayafuru

As a child, Chihaya Ayase never had many interests of her own. that is, until she met a boy name Arata Wataya who helped her fall in love with the game of karuta, a Japanese card competition. it became Chihaya's goal to become the best female player in Japan, and to play next to Arata's side, but when the two are separated, that dream fades away until high school. there Chihaya reconnects with an old friend and, finding her passion again, puts together a team of rookie karuta players to try and win it all.

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watch for: intense card playing. like, INTENSE. beautiful animation. teamwork, once again. the best ship ever (if you ship Chihaya with Taichi pls pls pls whyyyyyyyy). on that note, a very frustrating love triangle. really great character dynamics, and a great story about a subject that you will draw in somehow, especially if you're a naturally competitive person.

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3. Psycho Pass (of course)

dystopian crime fighting squad takes on a criminal mastermind whose game is giving the tools to latent criminals so that they can wreck havoc behind the Sybil System's back. (read my blog post about why I love this show so much here, it does a much better job of explaining it all).

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watch for : my babies Akane and Kogami supporting each other like a true couple even though they don't know they're together pfft, intense action/gore/suspense, big brother kind of concept, questionable morals, cool technology, cyberpunk, bone-chilling villains that make you question things, LOTS OF PAIN, Nobuchika Ginoza is my love just fyi

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2. Toradora (currently rewatching)

Ryuji Takesu has the face of a thug and the heart of a housewife. Taiga Aisaka is the size of a bean but has the spirit of a tiger (hence her name). they're both in love with each other's best friends--but don't know how to approach them with their feelings. these two "thugs" team up together in attempt to become closer with their specific crush, but what they don't expect is for their friendship to become something a lot deeper over time.

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what for : MY ULTIMATE SHIP!!! cute high school antics, a great opening song, friendship friendship friendship, two adorable kids falling in love but it is so not instalove which I adore, really good ending. just a feel good (but also makes you cry sometimes) story.

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1. Kimi ni Todoke (currently watching)

Sawako Kuronuma looks like the girl from the Ring, and her reputation is that she can see spirits, but deep down, all Sawako wants is to make people happy and to find friends. when her role model Kazehaya accidentally hears her talking about how wonderful he is, the two become unlikely friends, and Sawako finds herself surrounded like a small cluster of friends who help her find her way through life and who support her against bullies and her mean classmates.

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watch for : the hilarious dichotomy of animation styles, oh my gosh. a somewhat naïve protagonist becoming aware of the world around her and choosing to keep that child-like wonder instead of becoming angry and jaded at those who have done her wrong, THE BEST GIRL FRIENDSHIPS, Chizu and Ryu can I get an amen, just gorgeous animation, really peaceful and relaxing and nostalgic.

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what are your favourite animes for the summer? do you have other seasonal faves--or what about animes that work all year round (for me, this is definitely Psycho Pass) would y'all be interested in a post about my summer to-watch list too, or is that too much anime goodness for you to handle?

have a spectacular weekend, you guys!

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