Epic Win Blog » Best of 2007 Anime Awards, Day 7

Best of 2007 Anime Awards, Day 7 - Anime of the Year

Posted by 0rion on January 1st, 2008 - 12:00 pm

It’s the Year of the Dango, doncha know

Well, at long last we’ve come to the end of our little farcical award show. Much like “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”, the awards are made up and the prizes don’t matter, but it’s been a lot of fun to write nevertheless. Now finally, we are ready to unveil our favorite series of the entire year!

We’ve had quite the enjoyable time reminiscing about all the great moments of ‘07; hopefully its been a fun experience for you as well. As we crown our “Anime of the Year”, we also look ahead to the new year with high hopes and great anticipation.

Most Anticipated Upcoming Series

Winner: The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya

Runners-up: Gunslinger Girl 2, ARIA the Origination

Grrr…grrrr…why KyoAni, why must you make me wait for more Haruhi? Why do you insist on animating more stupid Key games?

Unfortunately for most of us, KyoAni has decided to devote all their time and expertise to Key game adaptations in order to satiate the hordes of melancholic, obsessively devoted fans and make huge piles of cashmoney. This would be far less egregious if only it was not preventing the comedic brilliance of the SOS-dan from reaching us sooner.

Needless to say, I’m in rapt anticipation for the unveiling of Haurhi’s second season. Unlike my esteemed colleague, I haven’t read any of the light novels, so I’m very excited to see what sort of events transpire.

In addition, the new season of Gunslinger Girl is also a Priority Number One in new anime for next year. The series is just so bloody heroic and touching that you’re constantly torn between being awestruck and being emotionally stirred. It’s just so well crafted, with a compelling plotline, an endearing cast, and an amazing score. All I can really say is, “More please!”

I’m also very eagerly looking forward to the upcoming third season of ARIA. I just can’t get enough of that show.

“Dekkai osewa desu.”

“Ara ara~”

“Hazukashii serifu kinshi!”

“Heeeee?”

I’m a huge slice-of-life fan, and ARIA is the pinnacle work in that genre, so right now I’m more excited than Potemayo during a rainstorm.

Speaking of which…

Best OVA

Winner: Aria the OVA ~Arietta~

Simply breathtaking. This OVA captured everything that is brilliant in this series and made it look twice as good. I liked Akari’s new look quite a lot, too. ARIA is one of those series that’s often hard to write about, simply because nothing happens and everything happens. I can’t really say much more than that it was amazing, and you should go watch it if you haven’t already.

Ah yeah, and Akari’s timeskip dream was also pretty cool.

Best New Manga

Winner: Saki

I randomly stumbled across this manga while browsing through the Book-Off store in Harajuku earlier this year, and bought the first couple tankouban on a whim.

It’s kind of a fanservice series, which is a genre that I generally find exceedingly boring and trite, but this one is about mahjong. I happen to love playing mahong, and was also a big fan of Akagi, so I’ve enjoyed this manga quite a bit. Basically take Akagi, but replace all the ugly pointy nosed men with cute lolis, replace the yakuza gambling dens with highschools, and replace the badassery with moe fanservice, and you’ve got Saki.

The story’s titular character, Miyanaga Saki, is a highschool girl who has an amazing genius for mahjong and who comes from a family of mahjong players. Unfortunately, she doesn’t enjoy playing the game at all because she was made to play it from a very young age, so the local mahjong club (consisting primarily of hawt girls, naturally) tries to rope her into playing for them (similar to Tamaki from Bamboo Blade). Over the course of the series she gradually begins to discover her love for mahjong, and lots of wacky hijinks ensue, etc.

(click for below larger size versions…)

Best Feature Film

Winner: Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo

Runner-up: Byousoku 5cm

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time was one of the highlights of the year for me. It’s not often that I see a story with such grand ambitions played out in such an effective manner. Usually stories that mess with time traveling have a tendency to get hopelessly complicated as the narrative loses focus through the constantly shifting perspective. This film, however, firmly plants itself on a specific course, and leads the viewer carefully through it with plenty of specific visual cues to help you keep track of what’s happening and when.
One of the main strengths of the story is in the strength of its main character, Makoto. Her primary distinction is, in fact, that she’s perfectly ordinary. She has no grand ambitions or schemes to leap back through time in order to play the stock market and get rich, only small dreams and simple priorities. Redoing that test she failed, going back to eat the pudding from the fridge before her sister can swipe it, rewinding to avoid an awkward conversation - the important things from a highschool girl’s perspective.

Although admittedly, who wouldn’t want to go back in time to eat more pudding, really?

The film’s sense of humor is top notch.

The dialogue is another strong point of the series. It feels perfectly natural and ordinary, thus reinforcing the setting as being one of complete day to day normalcy. Every character feels real, and every conversation has a natural flow that steers clear of the pretentious scripted feeling of so many film conversations. It makes a great contrast to all the sci-fi elements and serves to anchor the film in something familiar to counter all the trippy time warping.

It’s a film that relies on subtlety to draw the viewer into its pace, which serves to make its message about understanding the things that are really valuable in life all the more powerful. Whimsical and fantastic, yet never too unbelievable, Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo is without a doubt one of the most fun animated films I’ve seen in a long, long time.

Anime of the Year

Click to reveal the winner:

SHOW SPOILER

Winner: Mushishi

Mushishi is so incredible that it actually pierces space-time to win in a year in which it did not, in fact, actually air! But that’s what happens when you’re dealing with the greatest anime ever made!

Not only does it have the most awesome and GAR protagonist ever conceived (who also happens to be Epic Win’s patron saint), it’s a tale of amazing depth and character. It delves into history, mythology, philosophy, and psychology, asking some very poignant questions along the way, yet giving very few concrete answers. It’s a series that invites the viewer to listen, to think, and to learn as it teaches powerful life lessons through simple and captivating tales.

OK OK, just kidding!

While Mushishi may indeed be the greatest anime of all time, it didn’t air this year, so let’s move on to our real winner. And the envelope, please…

* drumroll drumroll *

All right, the real winner of Epic Win’s 2007 Anime Award Show, Anime of the Year is none other than:

Lucky ☆ Star

Runners-up: Darker than Black, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

Bet you didn’t expect that, did you? But quite honestly, we feel that Lucky Star was the greatest series of the entire year.

No other show made me laugh as long or as hard as Lucky Star did. No other show made me sit up and say, “Yeah, I do that all the time!” or “I totally know the feeling!” as much as Lucky Star did. No other show required 48 Reasons to describe its awesomeness. Simply put, no other show entertained me as much as Lucky Star.

This series really took me by surprise. In all sincerity, after watching the first episode of Lucky Star I would’ve expected things to progress in a similarly silly and comedic fashion for the whole season. I certainly wasn’t prepared for it to become such an anime juggernaut. What can I say, it’s just fantastic!

While the slice-of-lifeness of Lucky Star never disappoints, and the humor is always topnotch, the show as a whole also has a kind of hidden depth. Take for example the episode concerning Konata’s mother. Even as an essentially whimsical series, it had the gumption to have a more serious episode dealing with grief, sorrow, and loss. Normally such endeavors are forced or feel cliché, especially in a comedy series. Lucky Star, however, has the chops to pull it off brilliantly.

The narrative is genuine and the emotion is palpable and touching. It’s so difficult to craft a series that has such an everyday comedic flair and yet simultaneously develops characters that resonate with you. From my own experience, some of the most difficult elements of creating a story come from making the characters feel intriguing and real. Regardless of how captivating or original your concept might be, if your characters are stock and uninteresting then your narrative collapses. Lucky Star is a classic example of a show that has such a great cast that we’re content to watch them do anything, even talk about the various methods of eating baked goods.

However, Lucky Star doesn’t thrive on the characters alone. The show is replete with references to other anime and quirky aspects about Japanese culture that make it even more enjoyable to watch. At nearly every turn you find yourself relating to the characters and their predicaments. The small social idiosyncrasies of a culture are what give it its own unique imprint, its own indelible persona. Lucky Star captures this in virtually every episode.

If you’ve ever even visited Japan you’ll constantly find yourself saying, “That is so true…” It’s not often that a series is able to take a very stereotypical plot setting (school girls, otaku culture, etc.), and still develop such an enchanting cast. Not only that, but Lucky Star, like most good comedies, is very much “in on its own joke.”

While deciding anime of the year, one of the things we kept coming back to was the fact that there’s really no flaw in Lucky Star, no notable criticism concerning…well, anything. The vocal cast is phenomenal, the characters are well rounded, the plot, though whimsical, is still engaging, the music is pleasant, and the animation is solid. I mean, really what’s not to like?

Lucky Star is just one of those shows that has such broad appeal that it’s hard not to enjoy. If variety is the spice of life, then you could say this series is a veritable spice rack. If you saw the first few episodes but lost interest, I highly suggest you give the series another look. And if you know and love Lucky Star, then you understand precisely where we’re coming from.

Bye-bee~!

Informations

Date : 1 January 2008
Categories : Year End Anime Awards

37 responses to “Best of 2007 Anime Awards, Day 7 - Anime of the Year”

1 01 2008: xXMikotoNakadaiXx (12:15:31) :

Hmm, strangely, the last pic on Saki reminds a lot of Hikaru no Go.
1 01 2008: lk (12:28:13) :

>>ARIA is one of those series that’s often hard to write about

There’s only one thing that needs to be said.

>>Hmm, strangely, the last pic on Saki reminds a lot of Hikaru no Go.

It’s the speed lines and pose… she’s CREATING THE UNIVERSE!!

EDIT: I just saw the spoiler tag and clicked it. I applaud your use of whitespace, and all, but seriously… the most self-referential production studio’s exercise in masturbation is the best anime of 2007?

Hard to swallow, in more ways than one.
1 01 2008: ahbonk (12:33:29) :

Hey guys, been reading your blog for a while but this is my first comment lol

I have to say that you have the most interesting categorization for the anime awards i’ve ever seen hehe… very good read!

But what I’m most happy about is the fact that I agree with most of your prize giveaways. It’s really nice to see others who share kinda like the same opinion as me, since I too love animes that take their time to tell their story.

I also have my “award ceremony” in my blog, though not as epic as yours. You could see some small similarities

Happy new year, and may epic win be more epic in 2008!
1 01 2008: Calawain (12:49:37) :

While I didn’t like The Girl Who Leapt Through Time nor 5cm, I can understand why you would like them. And hey, I love Key game adaptations, and I have no problem with having other stuff aside from all Haruhi. I like just about anything KyoAni puts out, so I really don’t have a problem with it. I would agree on LS being the best anime of 2007, I waited for each episode with baited breath like no other. I could write leagues about it but you pretty much covered it.
1 01 2008: Adun (12:58:36) :

I too look forward to the 3rd season of ARIA, although people say that there is nothing to talk about, I don’t think that true at all. The series itself may not have much happening, but it’s the underlying message and how we got to that message is what you can normally talk about. Although I can see that being difficult depending on the person’s writing style.

Saki looks to be an interesting manga. Mahjong and moe looking characters look to be a winner.
1 01 2008: Jayme (13:21:14) :

Wow, Just Wow. I absolutely positively undeniably never ever saw Lucky Star winning the best anime award. Haha.

These awards have added intrigue to me, I haven’t got around to actually seeing Mushishi as of yet, But I’m seeing it around more and more people are saying its really fantastic, So thanks to you, I’m going to be purchasing it (w/ Artbox) methinks.

I would have to also agree with Toki wo as the great feature film winner, For one I haven’t really seen that many this year and it was a pure joy to watch throughout.

I’m expecting awesome things from the new Haruhi and that reminds me. I need to get back to reading the light-novels.

Them there awards were epic. Bai~
1 01 2008: Sagacious C (14:14:50) :

My memory is probably screwing with me, but didn’t Tokikake come out in 2006? Regardless, it’s still damn good enough to warrant another mention…even if it is a year late.

…unlike Lucky Star, on the other hand, which was just a handful of fail. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the whole slice-of-life genre, but this show was a chore to get through. The characters rivaled the blandness of cardboard, only distinguished by their respective moe elements. I didn’t care about them or their boring every day adventures. Why watch others go through the randomness of daily life when we already experience that in our own time? Seinfeld pulls it off because it’s consistently funny, as opposed to Lucky Star’s hit-or-miss, often mundane, jokes.

The only saving grace was the Lucky Channel segments, which, sad to say, got stale pretty quickly. At least Akira and Shiraishi closed it out with a bang.

Granted, the show wasn’t HORRIBLE, but I guess I’m just a little ticked such mediocrity gets put on a pedestal, whereas brilliant shows that aren’t exactly mainstream like Dennou Coil, Baccano!, and Mononoke fly under the radar.

Well, enough of my rant…Happy New Year, folks! =)
1 01 2008: Steven Den Beste (14:43:37) :

On that manga, man, do you think the skirts are short enough? Yikes!
1 01 2008: DS (14:56:52) :

lk >>
“the most self-referential production studio’s exercise in masturbation is the best anime of 2007″

Yes. So swallow that!

And you gave Haruhi a 2 ?!? Well, F**k y*u too!
1 01 2008: korosora (15:11:41) :

T_T I was going to write my own best of 2007.

But you guys are too GARsome.

Sweet year in review writing guys. I hope 08 will be awesome as 07 was for us! Oh happy 2008!
1 01 2008: TheBigN (15:42:10) :

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeh?

Lucky Star is good to me, but not great (now Manabi Straight on the other hand…). But I’m glad that it had that great of an effect on you guys. It’s been a fun set of arbitrary awards (still miffed that “Best Trap” was in the Worst Awards section though: Traps are awesome), and I hope you can do the same this year. :3
1 01 2008: shirokiryuu (16:29:32) :

I almost choked there when Mushishi came up. XD I always enjoy any love for Mushishi. Any time.

I was surprised (and yet not surprised at the same time) when Lucky Star was chosen. I enjoy these Best of posts.
1 01 2008: Hiyuu (16:43:44) :

Definitely going to check Saki out ASAP! Somehow, it gives me a feeling that most of the plot/characters will be much alike the development style of Bamboo Blade, and that’s all good.

らき☆すた～万歳！　I’ve got a box of collectables and two posters awaiting lamination. Now all i’m lacking are plushies of every single character in the cast! らき☆すた大好き！万歳！
1 01 2008: J (17:41:14) :

O_O DAMN YOU! When I saw Mushishi I freaked out so bad I knocked my MG Turn A Gundam off the shelf! Be glad that the mustache didn’t break, or I’d be really pissed.
1 01 2008: 0rion (17:43:57) :

@ Everyone who was surprised by our choice.

1. Deal.

2. It’s just our opinion, but it’s our honest opinion based on a lot of consideration. I know many people didn’t get into the humor, but we definitely did.

3. As always, feel free to disagree and propose a different show you thought was the best. This isn’t an echo chamber where we delete comments we don’t like.

@ lk

Nice link, I have to agree with you there on ARIA.

@ ahbonk

Glad you enjoyed the funky categories. Your awards look pretty cool as well.

@ Calawain

I certainly don’t dislike Clannad, etc, I just feel KyoAni’s other series (Haruhi, FMP) are much more deserving of new material.

@ Adun

I maybe it’s more that it’s hard to sum up easily. You either end up writing a paragraph or writing a novel.

@ Jayme

Go for it! You won’t be disappointed.

If we can bring the awesomeness of Mushishi to even one person, then this blog has not been in vain!

@ Sagacious C

First allow me to refer you to points #1 and #2 above, since you’ve got #3 down already.

“I guess I’m just a little ticked such mediocrity gets put on a pedestal, whereas brilliant shows that aren’t exactly mainstream like Dennou Coil, Baccano!, and Mononoke fly under the radar.”

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I would hardly agree with calling LS “mediocrity”, clearly, or I wouldn’t have voted to call it the best anime of the year. As for Dennou Coil and Baccano!, we’ve tried to give both of those a bit of time in the spotlight as well (you may recall that Baccano! won “Most Underappreciated”), and they certainly deserve it. They’re fantastic.

But at the end of the day, I still enjoyed watching Lucky Star far more than either of those.

“…didn’t Tokikake come out in 2006?”

Yes, TokiKake was in theaters last year, but the DVD didn’t come out until this year, so we counted it as being from 2007.

@ shirokiryuu

Glad you liked the Mushishi shout out.

@ Hiyuu

Banzai! Banzai!

@ J

Haha, oops! Sorry about that.
1 01 2008: Guff (18:52:33) :

@ Sagacious C

Lucky Star used the moe elements of the characters intentionally, and played against a very ordinary background to illustrate everyday humor. If you missed that or didn’t appreciate it then I could understand how the series could be unpleasant. It’s similar to how some people don’t enjoy films like “The Big Lebowski,” “Dr. Strangelove,” or “The Life Aquatic with Steve Sizzou.” That sort of humor doesn’t appeal to everyone.

Personally I thought Lucky Star managed to provide near-ceaseless hilarity and also had enough depth to be sincere and touching at times.

Sorry if it wasn’t your cup of tea. I’d strongly recommend watching Mushishi to quell your disappointment.

@TheBigN

Sorry about the Trap placement, we’re consulting with Admiral Ackbar about possibilities for next year.

@Jayme

Every time we cause a reader to check out Mushisihi, we taste a bit of sweet vindication. I’m certain you will grow to love the incredible travels of Ginko soon enough.
1 01 2008: Zeke (19:11:31) :

I am soooo glad that you guys really stuck with Lucky Star and gave it the attention and honor it deserves.

Well I look forward to a new year of Epic Win, so DONT DISAPPOINT ME!!!!!!!!!
1 01 2008: lk (19:11:36) :

>>This isn’t an echo chamber where we delete comments we don’t like.

But the internet would be so much more dramatic and lulz-worthy if you did!
1 01 2008: Sylon Beta (20:13:30) :

Well, it’s nice that you gave Mushishi some attention, it’s one of my favourite anime. (And yes, I watched it because of Epic Win’s banner).

And I, too, am looking forward to ARIA the Origination.
1 01 2008: CalAggie (20:32:08) :

Mushi-Shi was picked as Best (American-Released) Series of the Year by one ANN reviewer and another placed it second behind Death Note so does that count?

I watched the first episode of ARIA a while ago and found it to be very slow but considering how I kind of liked the first episode of Sketchbook, which seemed to be similarly paced, I might give ARIA another shot.
2 01 2008: blue (01:23:32) :

To me, Lucky Star was nothing more than light entertainment, but your opinion is your opinion. Mushishi deserves all the attention it can get though.

there is an entire magazine dedicated to mahjong manga, I am sure there are other series that don’t rely on fanservice and cute girls to get readers, lol.

TokiKake was great. The dialogue of the teenagers feels very real.
2 01 2008: Nekonron (01:49:53) :

I think Lucky Star is a great choice as anime of the year, or any other year for that matter. It’s one the best anime series around, period!

I’ve only read a few volumes of Haruhi’s light novel so I’m totally clueless with what happened during the Disappearance of Suzumiya Haruhi. Haruhi is definitely one of my most anticipated shows of 2008 but unless I missed something (which I hope I did not), isn’t it likely that Haruhi will only start airing in Fall?
2 01 2008: IKnight (06:36:31) :

Saki sounds so crazy it might just work.

Lucky Star was, as far as I was concerned, good but too ambitious. I intend to elaborate on this when reviewing minami-ke. Though your previous ‘48′ post is a good justification for picking it.

But this is coming from someone in the ‘Code Geass should win. No really.’ camp. [It’s so lonely out here, someone visit me please. Bring hot food and warm clothing and a proper tent and cookies.], so my criticism might not be worth much.

And I’m with TheBigN on the ‘Best Trap’ award. Deserves a post of its own, frankly. And a ‘Best Reverse Trap’ award too.
2 01 2008: berkles (07:35:46) :

I’m of the party which says that mushishi should win every year quite frankly

looking though some of your other posts on here it all points to you guys naming LS the best of the year and reading through the monstrous 48 reasons has made me miss its glory…I wanna go back and make it higher up on my list now.

also saki manga sounds like epicsauce
2 01 2008: Martin (12:40:13) :

Ah, Mushishi. If ever there was one series that deserved to be called true Epic Win, that would be it. It’s great to be revisiting the show on DVD actually.

Like you guys, The Girl Who Leapt Though Time and Byousoku 5cm were two of the biggest highlights this year. It’s good to know that there’s still outstanding new feature-length anime out there. As for Lucky Star, I never thought I’d agree on its greatness, but I do. Never judge a show purely on its character designs…

Oh yeah,

In addition, the new season of Gunslinger Girl is also a Priority Number One in new anime for next year. The series is just so bloody heroic and touching that you’re constantly torn between being awestruck and being emotionally stirred. It’s just so well crafted, with a compelling plotline, an endearing cast, and an amazing score. All I can really say is, “More please!”

Quoted for truth. The most promising 2008 title I’ve heard about so far. Happy new year indeed.
2 01 2008: Kabitzin (12:59:12) :

This Saki looks interesting. Must use the heart of the tiles!
2 01 2008: J (13:02:37) :

I have a lot I can say, but I won’t. All I will say is that there’s never been an anime that I didn’t enjoy at least a little. Well, except for some kiddy anime like the Maplestory one, but that just pissed me off because I play the game.
2 01 2008: lanie-emon (15:29:01) :

Not surprise that Suzumiya season 2 is one of the most highly anticipated anime for 2008. And I agree that Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo is made out of awesomeness and win. Watch it recently and, well, my jaw just went slack seeing how it turn out ^^.
2 01 2008: 0rion (15:52:22) :

Sylon Beta: “…Mushishi…favourite anime…watched it because of Epic Win’s banner…”

Waha, sweet vindication and glorious victoly!

blue: “I am sure there are other series that don’t rely on fanservice and cute girls to get readers, lol.”

You say that as though it was a bad thing.

IKnight: “It’s so lonely out here, someone visit me please. Bring hot food and warm clothing and a proper tent and cookies.”

How about some cake? Just step onto this convenient moving platform and you will be swiftly delivered to the party for Code Geass fans. Then there will be cake.

berkles: “…looking though some of your other posts on here it all points to you guys naming LS the best of the year…”

Yeah, not too hard to see it coming if you watch closely.

It just took a lot of people by surprise, since the show has gotten such mixed reviews.

Martin: Ah, Mushishi. If ever there was one series that deserved to be called true Epic Win, that would be it.

Which is exactly why we had to give it mention even though it technically isn’t eligible.

Kabitzin: This Saki looks interesting. Must use the heart of the tiles!

And also discover the RON of God!
3 01 2008: Korina (21:57:39) :

I stuck around reading epic win because of the Mushishi banner.

Mushishi is one of the favorite animes.
4 01 2008: Echonov (00:02:31) :

I really enjoyed reading these best of 2007 awards and I hope you continue doing them in the future!
I’ve got a couple more anime on my to-watch list now, thanks for the heads up.

I can’t say I disagree on LS as it was one of my fav series as well, and I’m glad that Minami-ke was also put in the spotlight.

I dropped Gurren Lagann when the quality nose dived early on, but maybe I’ll rewatch it sometime in the future (even though I’ve been spoilarized on a lot of things)

And Mushishi - definitely an excellent anime with few peers, but if I had my own epicwin site, it would be Planetes that would steal awards.

keep up the good work
26 01 2008: Kaioshin Sama (04:54:09) :

This may just be the most studio-biased blog I have ever seen in my life. Apparently everything Kyoani does is masterful and everything Sunrise does is terrible. How enlightening. Beyond a shadow of a doubt this blog picks by who is doing the series and not what they amount too.

Yeah I must have been the few that saw this one coming a while away. I know it’s cliche, but this is Epic Fail. I mean all of the most blatant biases I see in the anime community are right here for us to look at.
27 01 2008: J (19:52:04) :

Oh yeah, and if I ever remember to, once Kusou Rumba gets out of my head, Ill get around to recommending this blog to all American “fans” who only know Naruto, FMA, Bleach, and Death Note.
22 02 2008: Cal (22:35:53) :

Uhh… If you’re talking about the fourth episode, Echonov, that was directed by a guest director. The quality picks right back up again afterwards. Maybe you should actually watch the show instead of dropping it like a hot coal the minute it does something slightly unpleasant?
22 02 2008: 0rion (23:05:45) :

@ Cal

Uhh…care to explain what you’re referring to? You sure lost me on that one, so instead I’ll just give a generic blanket answer that probably applies to whatever you’re talking about anyway.

Answer: “No! Here at Epic Win we demand only the very best! The show must be absolutely flawless in every respect or I will immediately stop watching it and will say bad things about it on the internet! Thus saith the e-mighty and e-famous Epic Win!”
25 05 2008: Eyestrain (22:26:40) :

Little sad about Gurren Lagann not sweeping it, but it does pique my curiosity to check out Lucky Star. I’ve been meaning to for a while, but the cuteness kind of chased me away.

Interesting list! I’m definitely checking out a lot of titles on it I hadn’t thought of or come across before. I also wish Mushishi could have won, even though I haven’t seen a lot of this year’s anime. Mushishi is just one of those gems that makes me feel validated in sinking so much of my free time into animation!
18 06 2008: 2007 Flashback: The Rundown » Incredible Nothing! (03:14:46) :

[…] surprise by crowning Potemayo ^^ while the guys at Epic Win championed the best of the best: Mushishi! (Okay their real choice I wasn’t as excited about). Besides these that come to mind, there […]