Not so Random Top 5

If I said this was going to be one of my random posts, I would be lying. Well sort of lying. I mean, it doesn't really have anything to do with magical, talking ponies, or writing fan fictions, but it's also something that I've been toying with doing for a while, so I guess it's more of a planned out post. Anyway, recently I've found myself getting back into anime, checking out some new shows, catching up on some that I'd missed out on because I kinda had a falling out with anime, and even rewatching some old favorites. It's partly due to the fact that my sister has moved back that got me back into those wonderful cartoons from Japan; we used to watch pretty much every show we could find together, and when she moved over seas, well, that kinda became impossible. Oh, and I also got a premium subscription to Crunchyroll, so I have more access to anime than I did before. But enough about that, let's get into the post. Here's my current top 5 favorite anime in no particular order (because honestly, it would be impossible for me to choose which one I like the most).

5. Monster Musume (Everyday Life with Monster Girls) - This show is about a man named Kimihito Kurusu (or Darling, as he is lovingly called by Miia), who finds himself the accidental host to a colorful collection of monster girls who have moved to Japan as part of a cultural exchange program. Oh, and to make things crazier, he is also tasked with choosing one of the girls to be his wife. The quesiton is, who does he choose? The stereotypical girly-girl Miia, who is a lamia (she's half snake), Papi, the cute, bird brained harpy, the loyal Centaur Ceara, Mero, the mermaid obsessed with tragic love stories, the slippery slime Suu, Rachnera the Arachne (she's got the torso of a woman, and the lower body of a spider), or the headless, emo Dullahan Lala. This show takes me back to my early anime days; when I was in high school, some of my favorite shows were Harem anime, like Love Hina, and Negima!, and this show certainly captures everything that I enjoyed about those shows, from the comedy, the awesome roster of characters, and nearly indestructible protagonists (both Keitaro Urashima from LH and Darling from MM both have a knack for receiving blows that would kill a normal human being). Oh, and there are the accidental mishaps, and misunderstandings, that lead to hilarity. Seriously, I almost never stop laughing at this show. One thing that I will say though, is that this show does go a bit over the top almost all of the time (and you know how I mean), so only watch it if you don't mind that stuff.

4. Actually I am (My Monster Secret) - I've only just watched a couple episodes of this show, and I already know that I'm going to love it. It's about a highschool boy who can't keep a secret (his friends refer to him as a basket I think). One day he goes to confess to a girl he has a crush on, only to find out that she's keeping a shocking secret from everyone: she's actually a vampire. Now the protagonist must keep her secret, or else she will have to leave school. From what I've seen of this show, it reminds me of My Bride is a Mermaid, as both female characters have a secret identity to keep, and neither is very good at doing it. It also kind of feels sort of like a reverse Rosario + Vampire, except instead of a human secretly going to a school for monsters, monsters are secretly going to a school for humans (and yes, there are more monsters). I haven't seen much of this show yet, but I can't wait to get into it.

3. Gundam Iron-blooded Orphans - Now, I've never been one for the Mobile suit genre (with the exception of Gurren Lagann), but I found myself loving this series. The series gets kinda complicated (and this post is getting long as it is), so I'll keep it short: former child soldiers must accompany Mars activist to Earth (and honestly, I can't really remember why right now, but it's most likely for freeeeeeeedoooooommm), and they get into a ton of space battles, with huge ships, and mobile suits. Honestly, the reason I actually started watching this show was because I bought a few Gundam model kits, and I wanted to check out the source material. I ended up getting hooked. This show ended up having a lot of heart, and I found myself laughing, and crying (and I never cry). Season 2 is currently airing, but I'm holding off so I can binge watch it later.

2. Spice & Wolf - I know it's an older show, and there are others that I would have liked to have added to this list (maybe a part two?), but I just love this show so much that I just had to add it. Spice & Wolf tells the story of a traveling merchant named Kraft Lawrence, and his companion Holo a beautiful young girl who is actually a centuries old giant wolf, and their journey to return Holo to her home in the north. Along the way they meet many colorful characters, like a scheming former trading partner of Larence's, and a beautiful Shepherd girl who can navigate even the most dangerous roads without too much trouble. The thing I love most about this show is the back and forth between Holo and Lawrence; almost every conversation between the two of them is a battle of wits (which Lawrence almost always loses) that is enjoyable to watch. Unfortunately they've only made two seasons of the show, but if you watch it and like it, check out the manga, or, if you're like me, read the original Light Novel series.

1. Sword Art Online - This show has everything I love about anime all rolled into one package: adventure, comedy, tragedy, and romance. I'm not really sure if I need to get into it since I'm pretty sure anyone who has watched anime has seen this show, but for continuity sake: This show is about a virtual reality online game, the creator of which has pretty much trapped the concisenesses of all 10,000 or so players within, and the only way they can get out is by beating the game. Oh, and if someone attempts to remove the virtual reality headset in the real world, or if a player dies in the game, well, they die irl. SAO focuses on Kirito, a solo player who works hard to become one of the best in the game so that he can beat it and save everyone, and Asuna, a tough, charming girl, who despite having once cried at the idea of being trapped within a death game, finds strength and determination through her interactions with Kirito, and becomes one of the most competent fighters in the game. This show had me hooked from episode one, from it's amazing, likeable characters, to it's beautiful artwork. I'd put off watching this show for a while because I'd been a fan of the .hack// games back in the day, and the concept felt too similar too me. After having actually watched it, while I do find the similarities, I found it to be a wonderful experience. It actually makes me want to dig out my PS2 and play those games again. Just like Iron-blooded Orphans, this show has a lot of heart, and I highly recommend it to anyone. Oh, and Asuna is right up there along with Holo as one of my favorite anime characters (I've got a figure of her arriving in the mail any day now).

So that's it for this list. I know there are more anime that I could have put on here, and many more that I would like to see, so perhaps in the future I might do another one of these (that is, if enough people enjoyed this one). What about you guys? What are you're favorite anime (you know without spoilers)?