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The List - Our Top 5 Anime Premieres For Spring 2021
The best shows as rated by ANN's critics in the Preview Guide. We watched everything available to stream and these are the series that rose to the top!
― After a winter season of titanic highs and disappointing lows (who can forget The Promised Neverland season 2?) we're ready to take a moment to smell the roses with the new Spring anime season. While My Hero Academia season 5 and the Fruits Basket ...
The List - 10 Best Spring 2021 Anime Openings
Our top 10 picks are in for the best spring 2021 anime opening songs. Put up your dukes, 'cause there's gonna be a fight.
― 10. Tokyo Revengers “Cry baby” by Official HIGE DANdism Let's kick it off with something jazzy. This is a unique pick for a story about time-traveling delinquents but it's got the right level of emotional intensity for Takemichi's journey. If I'm honest, I liked the beginning a...
The List - 5 Best Anime Dubs of Winter 2021
Cartoon Cipher's Eric weighs in on the best performances this season!
― With this anime season having come to pass, the western anime industry is still working hard to catch up and provide English dubs for those who prefer them *while* the shows are airing in Japan, and while some are still going from previous seasons, today we're talking about the brand new ones. None of the shows from the Winter 2...
The List - Top 10 Anime Opening Songs of Winter 2021
Typically for The List we've limited the choices to just seven or eight entries but this season is ripe with toe-tapping bops. Also, rules are fake.
― Hey everyone, Jacki Jing here to countdown the best opening songs from the Winter 2021 anime season! Typically for The List we've limited the choices to just seven or eight entries but this season is ripe with toe-tapping bops. Also, rules are fake. Le...
The List - 5 Christmas Anime Episodes to Get You in the Holiday Spirit!
Ho ho, it's time to hang up the mistletoe and tune in to some very merry holiday anime episodes!
― With the end of 2020 on the horizon, and a festive cheer in the air it's no surprise that we're all in the mood for some feel-good anime. And what better to give us that dose of ‘wholesome’ than some Christmas themed episodes? From celebrating friends and family to love confessions and wacky antics - t...
The List - 5 Anime That Made Us Go WTF!?
I'm sorry, WHAT just happened?! Jacki counts down five of anime's wildest, most unexpected moments on The List!
― Anime series can stir incredible emotional responses. In one episode, you can go from laughing to crying to being so frustrated you're not even sure you want to watch the next episode. And then there's those anime moments that completely shock you. The crazy plot twists, surprise endings...
The List - Our 5 Favorite OPs from Summer 2020
It's time to update your playlists because the summer season is dropping hottest beats yet.
― Anime opening songs can truly be an iconic part of each season. Think of songs like Dean Fujioka's "History Maker" or Linked Horizon's "Guren no Yamiya" - you only need to hear a few bars and you're transported to the ice skating rink of Yuri on Ice or an epic battle with titans. With the summer anime seaso...
The List - Our 5 Favorite Premieres of Summer 2020
Jacki counts down the most promising anime series this slimmer season.
― While we've all been looking forward to the summer anime season, there's also been an air of apprehension around it. Many highly anticipated shows have been delayed until later in the year due to the ongoing pandemic, leaving a rather sparse summer line up. But just because there's slim pickings, doesn't mean all is lost. What ...
The List - 5 'Must Watch' Anime by MAPPA
MAPPA's latest series The God of High School is full of high-flying action but the studio has been BRINGIN' IT for years. Check out the five series you gotta see!
― When MAPPA, also known as Maruyama Animation Produce Project Association (that's a mouthful!), first opened its doors in 2011, it's not a stretch to say the anime world had its eyes on it. The studio was founded by Masao Maruyama, who ha...
The List - 5 Anime That Need a Reboot, Now!
Those pesky anime-original endings, lackluster animation, or straight-up cliffhangers can leave fans asking for a do-over. Here's our 5 picks for anime reboots!
― With each anime season, we're introduced to new stories, worlds and characters. But it can be just as exciting to jump into an old story with new tricks. Rebooted anime have become center stage over the last few anime seasons, from this ye...
The List - 5 Awful Horror Anime
Horror anime is supposed to make you scream...wait, no, not like that!
― We're changing tone and having a look at the spine tingling and spooky. Horror anime can be some of the most intense, confronting shows you can watch. Series such as Monster and Higurashi When They Cry question what it means to be human and push the boundaries of the surreal and the grotesque. On the other hand, there are horro...
The List - 5 Anime We're Excited for in 2020
If you thought 2020 was a bust, we've got news for you. There's still lots of great anime to look forward to this year!
― The Promised Neverland season two, Higurashi When They Cry, The Seven Deadly Sins:
Anger's Judgment are just a few of the many anime series that have been postponed in
response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. With so many delay announcements, it's
easy to think that there might...
The List - 5 Best Anime Opening Songs of Spring 2020
The List is back this week for a brand-new music edition. If you're looking for excellent tracks to add to your “OMG BEST SONGS EVAR” anime playlist, you've come to the right place. What, that's not the name of your highly-curated Spotify list?
― The List is back this week for a brand-new music edition. If you're looking for excellent tracks to add
to your “OMG BEST SONGS EVAR” anime playlist, you'v...
The List - 5 Worst Anime Relationships
Get out your binoculars, it's time to rubberneck at some truly awful anime romance trainwrecks!
― Anime, and fiction in general, can be a lot different things. You can meet characters that inspire you to be a better person, go on a fantastic adventure with a group of friends, learn to appreciate a new skill or sport, and maybe even meet the hero that gives you butterflies. Then there's this week Lis...
The List - Top 5 CLAMP Anime
Creator powerhouse CLAMP has a huge roster of anime adaptations under their belt and there's a little bit of something for everybody, whether you like your anime spooky, apocalyptic, full of giant robots, or magical girls.
― While maybe not as well known today, manga creator group CLAMP was a powerhouse, creating hit after hit series during the 90s and 00s. Before we dive into The List this week, le...
The List - Top 5 Crunchyroll Anime You Should Bingewatch Now
If you've cleared out anime backlog already, Jacki is back with five more series you have to check out. Get the popcorn bucket ready!
― Last month we gave the rundown of five of the best anime to binge-watch on Netflix while we're cooped up inside. Well, it's been a month and Netflix isn't the only streaming service in town. This time we're taking a look at Crunchyroll's giant catalog of titles to f...
The List - Our 5 Favorite Spring 2020 Anime Premieres
This is definitely the strangest Spring season in recent memory, but even with constant cancellations, we've found the cream of the anime crop.
― Hi everybody, we hope you're staying safe and healthy at home. If you've tuned into Anime News
Network lately, you probably noticed that a lot of this season's premieres got pushed back in light of the
COVID-19 pandemic. Popular shows like Re:Zero, Sword A...
The List - Our 5 Favorite Fruits Basket Characters
Fruits Basket back with its huge cast of lovable characters! Jacki makes the tough call and picks our favorite five!
― The spring 2020 anime season is in full swing and one of our favorite series is finally returning, Fruits
Basket! If you aren't familiar with the series, you're going to want to fix that immediately but to
summarize, the show stars our cheerful heroine Tohru, an orphaned girl just t...
The List - The Fascinating Mythology Behind Fate Babylonia's Characters
Learn all about the mythological stories behind some of Fate Babylonia's most compelling characters - and then let us know which servant class you'd summon!
― Outside some memorable quotes and the uniquely purple prose of the original visual novel's erotica, the Fate series is perhaps best known for its potpourri of characters picked from the entire length of human history and storytelling. That's n...
The List - Top 5 Netflix Anime You Should Bingewatch Now
Stuck inside? It's time to boot up the ol' Netflix and make some leeway on that anime queue you've ignored! Here's our top five choices for getting your bingewatch on.
― Jacki Jing here with Anime News Network — and guys, it's a rough time out there for everyone right now. Businesses are closed, from movie theaters to Disneyland to local shops — and it can be hard to keep your spirits up when it fee...
The List - Top 5 Mouthwatering Anime Food Scenes
It's time to brush up on your cooking skills! This week we're looking at some of the most delicious food to appear on screen. Don't mind the drool!
― I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm not much of a cook beyond following instructions on the
back of a box. While my skills would probably get me kicked out of Sanji's kitchen that won't stop me
from drooling over all the delicious meals anime h...
The List - The Top 5 Gen Urobuchi Anime
We pick the five greatest works from the mastermind behind Madoka Magica, Psycho-Pass and much more!
― Compared to other artforms, anime has very few creative personalities you could reliably refer to as “household names” in America – mostly we have Hayao Miyazaki, Anno Hideaki, and Akira Toriyama probably represent maybe half of the creators your average animation fan would recognize. One of the mo...
The List - Top 5 Magical Girl Series
Girls are taking justice into their own hands! Whether it's with a wave of a wand or perfectly timed punch, here are our favorite magical girls.
― Hey Everyone! It's Jacki Jing with Anime News Network! Who were your fictional heroes growing up? When I was a kid, the options were more limited when it came to TV and movie superheroes. I was running around with a towel cape pretending to be Batman or, ...
The List - 5 Anime We Most Want to See in Live-Action
Imagine if Hollywood gave us the keys to all that hot, hot live-action adaptation money...
― Live-action anime adaptations long had an iffy reputation. There's that Dragonball movie that nobody
talks about for good reason, but that doesn't mean Hollywood isn't trying. Popular shows like Cowboy
Bebop, My Hero Academia, Naruto, and even One Piece have live-action films and TV series in the
works. So I...
The List - 5 Best Monster Girl Anime
The world of monster girls is deep and diverse. Dive in with Jacki and meet anime's lamia, dullahans, and mermaids!
― As you probably heard, this season's Interspecies Reviewers proved to be too hot for TV. We'll keep our
fingers crossed for a home video release but if you're still looking to get your monster girl fix, we've
got five great alternatives full of comedy, romance, and just enough cheese...
The List - 5 Top Anime Opening Songs of Winter 2020
It's time to update your playlist! Jacki listens to all the opening songs from the winter 2020 anime season to find which ones truly rock! Wanna weigh in on which songs you think are the best? Be sure to vote in Anime News Network's poll
― There are tons of good opening songs coming out this season that it was really difficult to narrow it
down. There's a handful of idol shows focused squarely on pr...
The List - Our 5 Favorite Premieres of Winter 2020
Jacki Jing and Lynzee Loveridge watched all the anime so you wouldn't have to! Here are the top five best anime premieres of Winter 2020!
― You're bundled up with a hot cocoa while the snow piles up outside. Icicles hang perilously from your
front door frame. It's way too cold out there, so let's get cozy with five of our favorite premieres from
the Winter 2020 anime season! We've got mysteries, fan...
The List - The Top 5 Makoto Shinkai Movies
In celebration of the release of Makoto Shinkai's latest film, Weathering With You, we're counting down our favorite works from him - and don't forget to vote in the poll!
― Over the last 20 years, if there's one anime director people have heard of (who isn't named Hayao Miyazaki – it's probably Makoto Shinkai, the director of what is still the highest grossing animated film of all time in Japan, br...
The List - The Top 5 Goth Anime
If you've got a penchant for eyeliner, fishnets, the color black and Siouxie and the Banshees, these 5 anime will capture your wounded heart.
― The hair was big, the color was black, and the eyeliner was thick. More than aesthetic, goth is a mood. It's a subversive fascination with the dark, the occult, and rejection of the mainstream. It's rocking out to The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Nightwi...
The List - The 5 Best Studio Ghibli Films
Jacki Jing looks over Hayao Miyazaki and company's giant work of impressive films and narrows it down to the top five.
― Everyone knows the legendary Studio Ghibli– built out of the blood, sweat and tears of such creative titans as Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, Toshio Suzuki, and hundreds of other extremely talented animators, composers, production designers, colorists and so much more, Ghibli is w...
The List - 5 Best Pokémon Anime of All Time
Franchise mega-fan Callum May counts down the very best Pokémon anime series.
― Even after 22 years of airing, Pokemon is still evolving. Whilst it remains a kids series, it has so much heart and creativity that I believe anyone can appreciate it. The journeys of Ash, along with the three adjacent series Pokemon Origins, Chronicles, and Generations, have all worked to expand the Pokemon world even f...
The List - 5 Best Ladies of My Hero Academia
Jacki looks over the roster of female heroes and villains to finally proclaim which is "Best Girl."
― My Hero Academia is full of characters with amazing abilities and powers. Some can alternate between blasts of ice and fire! Others can explode with a clap of their hands. Not all powers are focused on strength, either. Sometimes nullifying other characters' powers or being able to out maneuver a fo...
The List - 5 Best Opening Songs of Fall 2019
Jacki Jing counts down the best new openers of the season. See if your favs made The List!
― It's that time again folks! We're smack dab in the middle of the season and what better time to start a YouTube debate about our completely subjective music preferences!? ::powerful face/fist look:: Okay, to be fair, we listened to every single new OP and it was really hard to choose! Here's our top 5! 5. “R...
The List - The Top 5 One Piece Battles
Join us for a journey through the 5 most memorable battles in the legendary Shonen Jump masterpiece - One Piece!
― The One Piece anime just celebrated its 20th anniversary—that's more than 900 episodes retelling Eiichiro Oda's best-selling manga, which chronicles the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his crew of pirates. Like any good shonen series, these adventures often involve beating up a lot of...
The List - 5 Unrealized Western Anime Movies
There have been a ton of floundering Hollywood adaptations of anime over the years - here are our five most wanted, from Tiger & Bunny to Taika Waititi's Akira!
― The live-action Cowboy Bebop series is really, truly happening after being floated for years around Hollywood. The series is coming to Netflix in the near future, even if it has hit a setback (get well soon John Cho!) The idea for Hollywoo...
The List - The Top Five Rumiko Takahashi Anime
We count down the five best anime adaptations of world-famous legendary mangaka Rumiko Takhashi's work, from Inuyasha to Maison Ikkoku!
― Rumiko Takahashi is a living legend. One of the most popular and successful mangaka of all time, she's created characters and stories – from fantasy to romance to adventure, sometimes combining all three - that have influenced and inspired millions of people. Ther...
The List - 5 Best New Anime From Fall 2019 Season
If you're looking for the skinny on which anime you should devote your time to, Jacki Jing has our top five picks. We narrowed it down by sticking strictly to the new stuff; no sequels!
― Fall brings with it my favorite things: cozy sweaters, pumpkin spice coffee, jack o lanterns, GHOSTS...and about 35 new anime series! If you're looking for the skinny on which anime you should devote your time to, ...
The List - 5 Best Boys-Love Anime
Yuri on Ice premiered three years ago and absolutely took the anime world by storm. Jacki Jing takes a look back at this amazing anime and more heart-warming BL series. Also: The reader poll returns!
― Who doesn't enjoy a good love story? Their eyes meet, sparks fly, their hands graze one another and...! Ah, but it's just an anime series! I've rewatched Yuri and Victor's partner-skate routine so man...
The List - 5 Best Anime Opening Songs of Summer 2019
Summer season is drawing to a close but Jacki Jing will still be grooving to these anime opening themes.
― Summer season is drawing to a close but Jacki Jing will still be grooving to these anime opening themes. Which songs did you add to your playlist? Let us know in the comments! 5. Dr. Stone: "Good Morning World!" by BURNOUT SYNDROMES Burnout Syndromes are pack with a snappy opening after working...
The List - 5 Best My Hero Academia Battles
Jacki Jing puts on her brawlin' gloves to knock out the five most nail-biting fights from My Hero Academia! It's PLUS ULTRA!
― Jacki Jing kicks it into high gear before My Hero Academia Season 4 premieres in October. Get your blood-pumping with the shonen action show's five most spectacular brawls! 5. Stain vs Todoroki, Iida, Deku (Season 2) Stain's self-righteous sense of “justice” and “truth” led ...
The List - The Top 5 3DCG Anime
Special guest host The Canipa Effect runs down the top 5 3DCG anime of all time!
― It wouldn't be farfetched to say that the presence of 3D anime within the industry is growing. As the technologies become more accessible and fans become more accepting, we're seeing more producers open up to the possibility of creating 3D works for the anime market. Now even studios like Polygon Pictures, who had bec...
The List - The Top 5 Studio Trigger Anime
In celebration of the theatrical release of world-famous and undefeatable Studio Trigger's feature PROMARE this week, we've got a list of their 5 best works. What's your favorite?
― Studio Trigger is legendary for the sheer amount of power and intense animation behind their incredible anime – and their latest work, a theatrical feature called Promare, is out in theaters here in the US this September...
The List - 6 Best Anime Dogs
Jacki Jing gets a little help from her furry friends for this doggone edition of The List.
― Hey Everybody! I'm Jacki Jing with Anime News Network. And for this week's edition of The List we are talking about five of the best anime dogs. The woofsters that never quit. The doggos you can't help but cuddle. Some genuine A+ Good Boys that we just want to scratch behind the ears and give them a box of m...
The List - 7 Heart-Pounding Swordfights
The List returns with a brand-new video series by host Jacki Jing! Discover seven of the most heartstopping swordfights from across anime history, from Utena to Fate/stay night!
― Nothing gets my blood pumping more than watching a well-choreographed sword fight. Two people squaring off in close combat with the shing! of blades slicing into one another. Will the hero manage to complete a series of fa...
The List - 7 Crazy Pieces Of Gundam Merchandise
It's the 40th anniversary of legendary mecha franchise Mobile Suit Gundam, so it's time to take a look back at some of the most fascinating pieces of merchandise in the show's history.
― The anime merchandise machine has churned out some truly outrageous product tie-ins from Sailor Moon tampons to Evangelion fishing tackle. When a series reaches the two decade mark, any kind of collaboration is up f...
The List - My 5 Favorite Anime Works by Kyoto Animation
Words can't actually describe the heartbreak and loss the entire anime industry felt this week - so the best we can do is talk about the art Kyoto Animation made that we loved.
― I'm writing The List this week a somber heart. As of this writing on Friday, 34 staff members from Kyoto Animation have passed away due to senseless act of arson. These are immensely talented people with family, friends, an...
The List - 7 More Deadly Games of Survival
There's no shortage of death game stories in anime, where a group of players, willing or unwilling, must outwit and outlast one another in a brutal game of survival. Here are 7 more of 'em!
― There are few quicker ways to ramp up tension between a group of strangers than throwing them headfirst into a battle of kill or be killed. There are tons of manga centered on the topic, for example Yen Press' ...
The List - Summer 2019's 6 Most Appealing Isekai Parties
Lynzee attempts to put together a solid adventuring party out of the summer anime season's fantasy isekai protagonists, of which there are many. Who makes your list?
― There are a lot of light novel anime adaptations heading to the airwaves this summer and (conveniently) six of them are built off the popular "alternate world" (isekai) premise. Either our characters are reborn in another world, trans...
The List - Get to Know Seven of Evangelion's Angels
Get up close and personal with seven of Evangelion's famous Angels and the fascinating ancient mythos that helped inspire them.
― Neon Genesis Evangelion is one of the most influential anime series of all time and after spending far too long out of print, is finally available again in the U.S. courtesy of Netflix as of Friday, June 21st. What makes the series so evocative all these years later is th...
The List - 8 Boneable Skeletons
The most serious and sincere column in the history of The List counts down anime's hottest skeletons and their individual pros and cons. You've been warned.
― Today's column is inspired by Kunihiko Ikuhara who, when conceptualizing and creating Sarazanmai, no one told him 'no, you can't do that.' In that same vein, I bring you skeleton characters rated by sexual appeal. I pitched this idea fully exp...
The List - 6 Strange Anime Cuisines: The 2nd Dish
Food Wars is wrapping up soon, so it's time to revisit some of the strangest cuisines in anime history!
― The word on the street is that the Food Wars! Shokugeki no Soma manga is wrapping up soon and with it Soma's gastro-experiments. The series introduced a world of mouth-watering animated food for my eyes as well as some stomach-churning options that I'd never eat if given the opportunity. The man...
The List - 6 Pieces of Attack on Titan Merchandise That No One Asked For
Attack on Titan is a global phenomenon, but as with any giant media franchise that generates a ton of merchandise, there's bound to be some duds. Here are some fun ones!
― When any piece of media hits its popularity zenith, you can expect all kinds of merchandise to come out of the woodwork to capitalize on its fanbase. If you watch the Star Wars episode of Netflix's The Toys That Made Us you can se...
The List - 8 Sonic The Hedgehog Cartoons That Are Probably Better Than The Movie
The new movie isn't out yet, but here are 8 Sonic the Hedgehog cartoons that will satisfy your need to... well, you know.
― So your CG Sonic film design went "boom" and now you're this week's internet laughingstock? I don't have any advice for the crew on the Sonic the Hedgehog movie and its soon to be overworked staff. We'll all have to wait to see what kind of design overhaul the titular blue hedg...
The List - Five Anime That Relied On The Zodiac
Here are five anime brave enough to swagger on up to you and ask - what's your sign?
― Astrology might be the most mainstream form of fortune-telling. Most people know their Zodiac signs but probably haven't studied palmistry. Your weekly newspaper has the horoscopes in the back with the funnies and classifieds. I haven't checked my own horoscope in awhile but I got to thinking it again after a frie...
The List - 6 Shojo Anime That Need a Remake ASAP
There's a big splashy remake of Fruits Basket out now - here are six other beloved shojo anime deserve another shot!
― It feels like shojo manga adaptations, things like Marmalade Boy and Fruits Basket, weren't as scarce as they are now. Every once and awhile we'll get something like Say, "I Love You." or Blue Spring Ride but they aren't a regular season occurrence anymore. Fruits Basket getting a s...
The List - Card Captor Sakura's 8 Most Useful Clow Cards
Sakura Kinomoto has a pretty big stack of magical Clow cards, but some of 'em are more useful than others - here are eight of the handiest!
― I've lived my whole life sharing a birthday with April Fool's Day, perhaps the the second worst holiday to have as a birthday behind Christmas. No one believes you when it is your birthday and as unfortunate coincidence, I'm sometimes spend a good portion of i...
The List - 7 Times Anime Doubled (or tripled) the Romance
A surprising number of romance and romantic comedy anime have leaned on twins (or triplets, or quadruplets!) as the chief love interest for the hero - here are seven of 'em!
― If you want to experience a distinct type of terror, become an expecting parent in a family where multiples are the norm. I am personally only the mother of singletons but going into the whole motherhood thing with twins on bo...
The List - Seven Orphans That Beat the Odds
Being a kid without a dedicated parent is a rough way to start life, but these seven anime heroes made the best of it!
― If you're watching at least one show this anime season, it's gotta be The Promised Neverland. Zac and I talked about it over on the podcast yesterday. I wanted to reiterate that Emma's resolve is what sells that show (and its manga) to me again and again. You just can't help but r...
The List - Girls Gotta Go Fast
Ladies, start your engines! International Women's Day this week inspires Lynzee to list off nine anime featuring some of the speediest women in anime.
― Hey, everybody! It's a been a little while. Maybe you noticed (maybe you didn't) that The List has been a bit spotty lately, but it was all in service of a relaunch with a few tweaks. What does that mean? Don't get too twisted up, The List is still ...
The List - 6 Times Evolution Went Horribly Wrong
Anime is overflowing with villains playing God, trying to determine the next stage of human evolution. Here are six times where mankind was the endangered species.
― They say people never change. Humanity, as a whole, seems to have reached its physical limit. We're taller and faster. We climb higher and jump further. In fact, much of the next stages seem tied to possible biotech and enhancing existi...
The List - 7 Anime for Grown-Up Romantics
Romance stories in anime usually follow high school students, chronicling the thrill of first love - but what if you've graduated? Here are 7 shows that aim for the hearts of a slightly older, more experienced crowd.
― Romance anime, or the medium in general, is dominated by adolescent stories. Characters between the ages of 14-18 getting in trouble, saving the world, or enjoying club activities mak...
The List - 6 Anime to Remake Like It's 1999
It's time for the year 2019, so what anime from 20 years ago deserve a triumphant resurrection?
― 2018 just kicked the bucket and clear a spot for the shiny new year of 2019. You know what means, right? It means 1999 is Twenty Years Ago and I am very, very old. I remember plenty of anime series fresh off the TV from 1999 like it was yesterday. Some of have stood the test of time while others look li...
The List - 7 Christmas Anime To Ring In The Season
Looking for the perfect anime to spice up your yuletide? The List has seven jolly recommendations perfect for the season.
― Christmas is largely celebrated as a couples' holiday in Japan, with a focus on cake, with the usual decorated trees and Santa Claus cameos. Anime series will throw in a Christmas episode the same way there is a "beach" episode and cooking episode. Here are seven favorites to w...
The List - 7 Ho-Ho-Horrible Santas
Get ready for the holidays with seven of the strangest Santas from across anime history.
― The holiday season is upon us, although department stores started blaring Christmas music over the intercom well before Thanksgiving. Whether you're already over the festivities (STRESS! AWKWARD FAMILY GATHERINGS!) or will be up on Christmas morning with bells on, the season is on its way. The holiday is a sha...
The List - 7 Western Live-Action Anime Adaptations in Development Hell
A live-action Cowboy Bebop is right around the corner thanks to Netflix after being in development hell for years. Here are 7 other live-action anime projects that haven't been quite as lucky!
― The live-action Cowboy Bebop series is really truly happening after being floated for years around Hollywood. Originally optioned as a film with actor Keanu Reeves and writer Peter Craig (The Town, Hunger Ga...
The List - 8 Strange Anime Cuisines
Exotic, unusual, and sometimes downright inedible food shows up all the time in anime - here are 8 examples that likely wouldn't show up on your Thanksgiving table.
― Winter is closing in and one of the scariest days in the United States is underway. The crazy 4 a.m. dash called "Black Friday" is here. For those of you who don't head to your major department stores in hopes of carrying out a 50" TV ...
The List - 7 Fishy Tales of Merfolk in Anime
Most people might be familiar with the Disney version of The Little Mermaid, but anime has riffed on merfolk legends countless times - here are 7 of 'em!
― Before The Little Mermaid recast seafolk as tragic romantic heroes, sirens were creatures you never wanted to encounter on the open ocean. Spotting one or more appropriately hearing one meant you and your fellow shipmates earned a one-way ticket ...
The List - 6 Examples of Futuristic Space Travel
There are countless cool and creative examples of advanced space travel in anime - here are 6 of 'em!
― Modern space travel is largely dictated by complicated math equations. Scientists have to carefully plot the trajectories of its satellite probes to utilize gravitational forces of other heavenly bodies. How else would we get the New Horizons to Pluto in only nine years? Manned spacecraft accompli...
The List - 8 Ghost Bustin' Anime to Keep Spirits Away
If there's something weird, and it don't look good, common wisdom suggests it's difficult to know who to call - unless you've seen one of these eight spirit-hunting anime!
― When there's something strange in your neighborhood and Dan Aykroyd is busy, there's plenty of competing ghost busters available to take on your ectoplasmic problems. Investigating the things that go bump in the night is a time-...
The List - 6 Spooky New Anime for October 2018
Tired of the same ol' horror movie recommendations? If you're looking for something a little different to watch this Halloween, here are six great - and recent - horror (and horroresque) anime to liven up your spooky season.
― The average annual Halloween movie marathon has a tried and true list of the usual suspects. If you're going live-action, there's plenty of entries in the Halloween, Nightmare...
The List - 7 Pairs of Long Lost Anime Twins
Were these anime characters separated at birth? Not quite.
― Were these anime characters separated at birth? Not quite. We're used to seeing certain style characteristics to easily signify which character is the tsundere, the quiet bookworm, the gung-ho fighter, or the sneaky villain. With the huge number of anime, light novels, and manga produced each year, there are bound to be some design overlap...
The List - 7 Times Western Music Invaded Anime
From Radiohead to the Backstreet Boys, here are 7 times Western music found its way into some of your favorite anime opening and closing theme songs.
― A recent article about the potential death of the 90-second anime song intro got me thinking about some of my favorite opening and ending sequences. I realized that while the vast majority of anime credit songs are in Japanese (with a few English fla...
The List - 6 Anime Series to Help You Relive Your Goth Phase
Bust out the black eyeliner and the London After Midnight albums, because it's time to take a sadtastic voyage through 6 anime series guaranteed to return you to your goth phase!
― In the west, the phrase "going through a goth phase" evokes a particular image - black eyeliner, fishnets, clove cigarettes, Anne Rice novels piled on top of horror DVDs, a Siouxie and the Banshees decal on the back of a ...
The List - 7 Heart-Pounding Anime Sword Fights
Are you ready to fight for your life? The List counts down seven of the most thrilling sword fights in anime, from Fate/stay night to Samurai Champloo!
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Nothing gets my blood pumping more than watching a well-choreographed sword fight. Two people squaring off in close combat with the shing! of blades slicing into one another. Will the hero manage to complete a series of faster-than-the-eye swipes a...
The List - 6 Dragon Girls to Set Your Heart Aflame
While they never amassed the same following as catgirls, it wasn't too long ago that dragon girls reigned supreme. Here are just six scaly favorites from the '90s anime to the present day!
― The characters of Kyoto Animation's Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid have warmed viewers' hearts this winter. At first glance, Tohru and Kanna appear to just be an extension of the "monster girlfriend" trend, but dr...
The List - 7 More Bizarre Spin-Offs
If an anime gets popular enough, it's bound to spin off into side projects, but some of these spinoffs are worlds apart from the thing that inspired them. Here are just a few of the most unexpected examples.
― Modern-day anime series usually come from three major categories: a light novel or manga adaptation, a mobile game or idol group promotion, or a completely original project. However, there's a...
The List - 7 Notorious Animation Meltdowns
Sometimes scheduling problems lead to recap episodes or unplanned hiatuses, and sometimes they result in an entire show's artwork slipping into insanity. Here are seven of the most memorable animation meltdowns.
― There's a lot of variables that can cause an anime television production to go off schedule and affect the quality of a show. Poor animation quality is not always, or even usually a reflec...
The List - 7 More Deadly Games of Survival
Can't get enough of battle royale tournaments where only the strongest and wittiest survive a gruesome demise? Here are seven more survival game anime to scratch that itch!
― There are few quicker ways to ramp up tension between a group of strangers than throwing them headfirst into a battle of kill or be killed. There are tons of manga centered on the topic, for example Yen Press' release of Though...
The List - 6 Worst First Kisses in Anime
From Dio's infamous stolen first kiss to the unspeakable acts inside Prison School, these are six of the absolute worst first kisses ever depicted in anime.
― A first kiss can be a special, a treasured moment shared between two romantic partners. Or it can be haphazardly stolen by some jerk trying to one-up his friend or caused by a pratfall down a flight of stairs. Today's list ticks off the absolu...
The List - Anime's 6 Most Haunted Homes
These spooky spirit roommates just aren't worth the tradeoff for low rent. Here are six infamous anime haunts to avoid.
― I don't know about you, but I watch series like House Hunters and other HGTV real estate programming to debate which home most likely has a few spectral residents. By contrast, I don't usually watch those paranormal investigator shows because I can only stand so many dudes standi...
The List - 7 Horrifying Magical Girl Anime
Magical Girls aren't just sugar, spice, and everything nice anymore! Here are just a few dark magical girl series to watch between your fingers with the lights off.
― One of the first Lists I ever wrote was titled "6 Trailblazing Shojo 'Deconstructions' You Should Be Watching." At the time, I wanted to write about other magical series that approached their formula the same way Madoka Magica was at t...
The List - 7 Drastic Character Design Changes
When anime characters get a facelift, the results aren't always beloved (or even recognizable)! Here are just a few examples of art style shifts radically changing a beloved design—for better or for worse.
― I'm in Anime Expo recoup mode, guys. I braved miles upon miles of foot traffic, over 100,000 people crammed into Los Angeles Convention Center and lines out the door to get those panel reports a...
The List - 7 Anime Counterparts to Marvel's Avengers
From alchemists to assassins to angry hunks of muscle, there's an anime hero to match every icon in Marvel's Avengers lineup. Here are just a handful who could go toe-to-toe with their spiritual siblings.
― Now that the Avengers: Infinity War memes have begun to die down, I can finally launch into my picks for the Anime Avengers. No, no, I don't mean Marvel Disk Wars: The Avengers or Iron Man: Rise ...
The List - 7 Soccer Anime to Celebrate the World Cup
GOOOOOOOOAAAAL! Bust out the vuvuzelas, because it's time for some anime fútbol favorites to celebrate this year's main event!
― The World Cup is currently underway in Russia, and fans around the globe have been biting their nails as upset after upset showed how the underdog can pull ahead in a dramatic way. One of the biggest examples so far is Mexico's win against Germany, a first for the European...
The List - 6 Anime to Watch With Your Dad
Introducing anime to newbies can be a weird experience, especially if that newbie is your own dad! Here are some pops-friendly anime options just in time for Father's Day!
― I just got back from camping out in the woods (okay it was a state park) and roughing it old school (in a cabin) but while much of America is barbecuing with their folks, it's the perfect opportunity to turn on one of these show...
The List - 6 Magical Boys
Punishing villains in the name of the moon isn’t just for the ladies anymore! Here are a few fellas with some sparkling superpowers of their own.
― Magical girls date back nearly 50 years but another group of transforming, magic-wielding, mascot-having characters are joining their female predecessors in the spotlight. MAGICAL BOYS. Sure, if we squint hard enough, Sentai heroes are a kind of magical ...
The List - 7 More Nonsensical Anime Titles
From gratuitous English to questionable references, trying to guess the premise of these anime by their incredibly silly titles is an exercise in futility. Where did some of these muddled monikers come from?
― We've all heard nonsensical English lyrics getting thrown around in Japanese pop music, and when that same principle, a sort of 'coolness' factor, also bleeds over into anime titles, this can ...
The List - 6 Royal Anime Fit for Prince Harry & Meghan's Wedding
Just in time for the royal wedding, these lovebirds have swept viewers away with their uniquely regal flavor of romance. See if your favorite fantasy couples made our list of happily ever afters!
― Today marks the nuptials of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, which, depending on your emotional investment in the Windsors is either a huge friggin' deal or just another celebrity wedding. The 33-year-old ...
The List - 7 Deadliest Children
They say children are the future, but these seven would prefer to bring a particularly painful end to yours.
― Sometimes big things come in small packages, and sometimes those packages are full of dynamite. Tiny tots wrecking havoc was my first ever topic for The List back in 2012. Even at the time it was published, I had to really shrink down the number of kids I listed. Evidently killer youngsters...
The List - 6 Things You Might Not Know About Naruto's Masashi Kishimoto
In this classic edition of The List, find out how much you really know about the man behind one of the most popular Shonen Jump series ever made!
― Masashi Kishimoto ended his main Naruto manga after 15 years of serialization in November 2014. The manga and its equally popular anime series introduced a whole generation to the medium, not unlike Dragon Ball Z and Sailor Moon before it. The anime rema...
The List - 7 TV Anime Affected by Japanese Censorship
These are just a few of the times TV anime was aired in a significantly altered state out of concern for Japanese broadcasting law, IP law or some other pesky reason - get ready for blinding lights!
― What sort of pesky things get anime censored on Japanese television? There's the standard "this is too scandalous for the airwaves" that causes an episode to be marred by steamy bathroom fog or obscuri...
The List - 6 Bizarre Magical Transformations
Sentai heroes look cool when they power up and magical girls transform with grace and beauty, but some magical metamorphoses are less comfortable to watch. These six examples are just plain weird.
― Let's talk about magical girl transformations for a minute. The first things that come to mind are sparkles, ribbons, cheery music, and maybe a few poses that only the most experienced gymnast could pull...
The List - 7 Appetizing Anime Restaurants
From festival food stalls to floating franchise eateries, these are just seven scrumptious spots to visit in the world of mouth-watering anime food porn.
― Anime is full of tasty restaurants that have seemingly grown in popularity as more and more series centered around cooking make it to the airwaves. There are even eateries staffed almost entirely by fluffy animals or attractive bakers. Since I wr...
The List - 7 More Weird Evangelion Products
From fishing gear to bullet trains, there really is nothing you can't buy with Shinji and his friends stamped on it. Here are seven more weird EVA collector's items from Japan.
― A few years ago, I wrote a column about some of the strangest Evangelion merchandise I've encountered while working for Anime News Network. Since that time, I've yet to find another series franchise that's been slapped on t...
The List - 6 Most Dangerous Military Institutions
One day they're swearing to protect your nation, the next day they're overthrowing your government. Anime frequently depicts dangerously powerful militaries, here are 6 of 'em!
― I'm wading through panels and cosplayers at Sakura-Con! Please enjoy this rerun until return! There are few tropes capable of mirroring real world fears like a world power gone corrupt and its military running rampant. The ...
The List - 7 More Visually Striking Anime Productions
Beyond the mountain of generic paint-by-numbers pabulum in anime, there's a whole world of eye-popping one-of-a-kind creations to discover. These are just seven of the most memorably gorgeous experiences the medium has to offer.
― In 2012, I'd written only two (2!) weekly installments of this column before tackling this topic. I wasn't exactly prepared for the response it got, but looking back on it...
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