Blog 122 > My 49 Anime in 2007

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Happy New 2008, my fellow anime fanatics!… Back in my Blog 061, I noted that I watched 58 anime titles-seasons in 2006. While I couldn’t match that number in 2007, watching 49 is still freakin’ huge (or frakin’ huge, for BSG fans), lol. That’s almost one anime title or season per week! From the war-torn and tragic 1988 classic film Grave of the Fireflies to the wind-blown and melancholic 2007 Shinkai film 5 Centimeters Per Second. From the heart-breaking Kanon to the hilarious Lucky Star to the haunting Kino’s Journey.

Needless to say, 2007 was an amazing year for both old-and-new anime watching! Maybe I’ll hit 60 in 2008, hahaha!… Now, without further delay, here are my speed reviews for all 49 of the anime titles-seasons I’ve finished in 2007.

My Top-3 Films > 5 of 5 stars!

  • [49] 5 Centimeters Per Second (2007)
  • [48] Paprika (2006)
  • [47] Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

My Top-10 Full Seasons > 5 of 5 stars!

  • [41] Hayate no Gotoku! (Combat Butler; 1-26 of 52)
  • [40] The Vision of Escaflowne (1-26) > Fave Romance!
  • [38] Da Capo – Second Season (1-26)
  • [36] Lucky Star (1-24) > Fave Comedy!
  • [27] School Rumble – S2 (1-26)
  • [26] Claymore (1-26)
  • [23] Kaleido Star – S2 (1-25)
  • [22] Death Note (1-37) > Fave Thriller!
  • [19] Kanon (1-24) > Fave Drama!
  • [10] Planetes (1-26)

My Top-7 Half Seasons > 4 of 5 stars!

  • [43] Kino’s Journey (1-13) > Soul-haunting Honorable Mention!
  • [42] Pretear (1-13)
  • [31] Manabi Straight! (1-12)
  • [21] Air (1-13) > Summer-blown Honorable Mention!
  • [11] Innocent Venus (1-12)
  • [03] Black Lagoon – The Second Barrage (13-24) > Fave Action!
  • [01] Rozen Maiden – Traumend (1-12)

Anime Rating

  • +++++ DOUBLE WOW! 5 of 5 stars! Maximum for full seasons or films!
  • ++++ WOW! 4 of 5 stars! Maximum for half seasons!

All 49 in 2007

  • [49] +++++ 5 Centimeters Per Second (Anime Film, 2007) –
    Started and finished 12/31. D-WOW! Soul-yearning melancholy and wind-blown distances. Five stars max!

  • [48] +++++ Paprika (Anime Film, 2006) –
    Started and finished 12/31. D-WOW! Mind-fraking and eye-popping descent into dreamland! Five stars max!

  • [47] +++++ Grave of the Fireflies (Anime Film, 1988) –
    Started and finished 12/31. D-WOW! Heart-breaking World War II tale of two struggling siblings. Five stars max!

  • [46] ++++ Highlander – The Search for Vengeance (Anime Film, 2007) –
    Started and finished 12/29. WOW! Gloriously vengeful anime interpretation of the Highlander saga. Four stars!

  • [45] ++++ Escaflowne (Anime Film, 2000) –
    Started and finished 12/29. WOW! Breathtakingly vivid but too short compared to the full-season 1996 version. Four stars!

  • [44] ++++ Bible Black (1-6) –
    Started 12/21. Finished 12/26. Explicit sex, violence, and witchcraft with a decent plot! Four stars!

  • [43] ++++ Kino’s Journey (1-13) –
    Started 10/23. Finished 12/20. Haunting exploration into the shadowy regions of the human psyche. Four stars max for half-season!

  • [42] ++++ Pretear (1-13) –
    Started 11/24. Finished 12/20. Emotional ride through magic and sorcery! Four stars max for half-season!

  • [41] +++++ Hayate no Gotoku! (Combat Butler; 1-26 of 52) –
    Started 12/02. Finished (first half) 12/16. Touching yet mind-blowingly hilarious! References to tons of other anime! Five stars max!

  • [40] +++++ The Vision of Escaflowne (1996; 1-26) –
    Started mid-January. Restarted 11/13. Finished 12/12. Older series yet still surprisingly heart-breaking and heart-warming! Fantastically epic orchestral soundtrack! Five stars max!

  • [39] +++ Tsukihime (Lunar Legend; 1-12) –
    Started May-June. Restarted 11/29. Finished 12/03. Gentle melancholy loneliness. Three stars!

  • [38] +++++ Da Capo – Second Season (1-26) –
    Started 11/16. Finished 11/28. Heart-wrenching exploration. Five stars max!

  • [37] +++ Devil May Cry (1-12) –
    Started 10/27. Finished 11/18. Intriguing but not as emotionally engaging as other anime.

  • [36] +++++ Lucky Star (1-24) –
    Started 10/14. Finished 11/15. D-WOW! Outstanding and unorthodox otaku comedy and parody, hahaha! Five stars max!

  • [35] +++ Ikki Tousen – Dragon Destiny (1-12) –
    Started 11/03. Finished 11/12. Enticing panty shots and engaging blood battles!

  • [34] +++ School Days (1-12) –
    Started 11/04. Finished 11/11. Watch out! Unexpected darkness and twistedness!

  • [33] +++ Darker Than Black (1-25) –
    Started 10/20. Finished 11/09. Intriguing but not fulfilling to the end.

  • [32] +++ Genshiken – OVA (1-3) –
    Started and finished 11/04. Hahaha, nice bunch of otaku stories between seasons.

  • [31] ++++ Manabi Straight! (1-12) –
    Started 10/22. Finished 10/30. WOW! Endearing! Four stars max for half-season!

  • [30] +++ Dual! Parallel Trouble (1-13) –
    Resumed 10/23. Finished 10/30. A light-hearted Evangelion. Not bad!

  • [29] ++++ Gunsmith Cats (OVA 1-3) –
    Started 10/19. Finished 10/20. WOW! Matrix-like gun scenes and car chases 3 years before “The Matrix” (1999)! Four stars!

  • [28] ++++ Da Capo – S1 (1-26) –
    Started 10/03. Finished 10/18. WOW! Despite an uneven style, sweeping from comedy to mystery to unexpectedly tragedy and hope! Four stars!

  • [27] +++++ School Rumble – S2 (1-26) –
    Started 07/12. Finished 10/18. D-WOW! LOL, resuming the rivalry, regret, romance and friendship. Still laughingly yet tearfully fantastic! Five stars max!

  • [26] +++++ Claymore (1-26) –
    Started 09/15. Finished 10/14. D-WOW! Spectacular action and drama! Five stars max!

  • [25] +++ Le Chevalier D’Eon (1-24) –
    Started 09/09. Finished 10/04. Seemed a bit dry. Three stars.

  • [24] ++++ Someday’s Dreamers (1-23) –
    Started 09/21. Finished 09/30. WOW! Gently heart-breaking and heart-warming! Four stars!

  • [23] +++++ Kaleido Star – S2 (1-25) –
    Started 07/22. Finished 09/08. D-WOW! The fantastically acrobatic rivalries and challenges continue! Even more inspiring than Season 1! Five stars max!

  • [22] +++++ Death Note (1-37) –
    Started 08/01. Finished 08/12. D-WOW! Mesmerizing crime games and aspiring death gods! Mind-blowing and heart-stopping! Five stars max!

  • [21] ++++ Air (1-13) –
    Started 08/08. Finished 08/11. WOW. Amazingly gentle and windblown summer beauty. Tearfully unforgettable. Four stars max for half-season!

  • [20] +++++ Kaleido Star – S1 (1-26) –
    Started 04/06/07. Finished 07/22. D-WOW! Fantastically funny and chilling, yet realistically inspiring and heartbreaking! Five stars max!

  • [19] +++++ Kanon (2006; 1-24) –
    Started 07/10. Finished 07/15. D-WOW! Childhood romance, melancholy and mystery! Heartbreaking and breathtaking! Five stars max!

  • [18] ++++ Pumpkin Scissors (1-24) –
    Restarted 06/21. Finished 07/09. WOW, epic action, glorious inspiration, and demonic intrigue!

  • [17] +++++ School Rumble – S1 (1-26) –
    Started 01/30. Finished 6/29. D-WOW! LOL, hilarious! Plus rivalry, regret, romance and friendship. Fantastic! Five stars max!

  • [16] +++ You’re Under Arrest – The Movie (1999) –
    Started and finished 06/26. Not bad! Starts slow but picks up and concludes with an action-packed bang!

  • [15] +++ Starship Operators (1-13) –
    Started 03/10. Finished 06/23 via Netflix. Not bad! Battleships, politics, drama, tragedy and hope. Yet too short to bond!

  • [14] ++++ The Third (1-24) –
    Started 06/03. Finished 06/23. WOW! Epic yet heartfelt blend of Sunabouzu, Shana, Revy, especially Alita!

  • [13] +++++ Red Garden (1-22) –
    Started 05/26. Finished 06/03. D-WOW! Stylish blend of song, mystery, tragedy and reality! Five stars max!

  • [12] +++ Black Blood Brothers (1-12) –
    Restarted 05/06. Finished 05/14. Action-packed mix of cute and violent!

  • [11] ++++ Innocent Venus (1-12) –
    Started 04/24. Finished 05/01. WOW! Formulaic but unexpected twist and amazing piano! Four stars max for half-season!

  • [10] +++++ Planetes (1-26) –
    Started 09/??/06. Finished 04/02/07. D-WOW! Spectacular sci-fi realism, tragedy, hope and love! Five stars max!

  • [09] +++++ Fushigi Yuugi (Second Half: 27-52) –
    Started 07/08/06. Finished 03/24/07. D-WOW! Older but complex quest and love story! Five stars max!

  • [08] +++++ Angelic Layer (1-26) –
    Started 03/09/05. Finished 03/18/07 via Netflix. D-WOW! Cute, colorful yet heart-breaking, inspiring! Five stars max!

  • [07] ++++ Sailor Moon – S1 (1-46) –
    Started 02/11. Finished 03/15. WOW! Older, but surprisingly funny, energetic and lovable!

  • [06] +++ Kono Mini (This Ugly Yet Beautiful World: 1-12) –
    Started 02/17. Finished 02/19. Enigmatic yet nostalgic!

  • [05] +++ Nanaka 6/17 (1-12) –
    Finished 01/25. Cute, funny, yet intriguing!

  • [04] +++++ You’re Under Arrest – S2 (1-26) –
    Finished 01/25. D-WOW! Continuing the action, comedy, drama and romance! Five stars max!

  • [03] +++++ Black Lagoon – The Second Barrage (13-24) –
    Finished 01/22. D-WOW! Even blacker, bloodier, and more twisted! Five stars max!

  • [02] +++ Burst Angel (1-24) –
    Finished 01/11. Pretty but not quite satisfying. Not bad!

  • [01] ++++ Rozen Maiden – Traumend (1-12) –
    Finished 01/05. WOW! Still a miniature yet captivating package! Four stars max for half-season!

P.S. For 2008, Daphne in the Brilliant Blue (1-24) is already my first 5-star anime series. Meanwhile, Sky Girls (1-26) and Code Geass (1-25) will easily earn 5 stars once I finish them, lol. Gonna be an interesting year!

Otakurl it! >>
Blog 061 > Just Eleven So Far >>
Blog 017 > 55 Anime in 2006! >>
My Anime Viewing List >>

2 thoughts on “Blog 122 > My 49 Anime in 2007”

  1. wow, that’s a lot of anime! inspires me to make a list, hehe. i have to say that Escaflowne the series is one of my all time favs, maybe because it was one of the first full series i’d watched, but it tore me apart. I agree with you assessments of the ones I have watched (death note, esca, red garden, paprika, genshiken), there are a couple i’d started but haven’t gotten completely into yet (black lagoon, kinos journey). i am very curious about Kanon now, hmm. thanks for the reviews!

  2. You’re welcome! And thanx, yeah, I was definitely impressed at how well the “Escaflowne” series has held up since ’96 (even “Sailor Moon” of ’92 and “Fushigi Yuugi” of ’95), especially among recent classics like “Death Note” and “Kanon”. Haha, some I can’t quite finish (like the second half of the “NANA” series, lol). But can’t wait to see your list too, lol. =)

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