At the end of June, I said this anime watching had gotten out of hand. After 24 shows and 5 movies, I was ready for a break.
I made it into the middle of August before I watched another show. So pretty good restraint I would say.
The shows of second half of 2019, in watch order:
And the movies:
That's 22 shows and 11 movies. Approximately on pace with the first half of the year despite that month and a half of break.
Frankly, there has not been a show or movie that I've come back and fully watched (yet). I have gone back to watch the best parts of Rising of the Shield Hero, Akame ga Kill!, and Goblin Slayer. However, I feel like to win in this category, the entire thing needs to be re-watchable.
The show I feel most confident I'll be hitting up again is The Devil is a Part-Timer! Lots of fun moments in each episode.
I probably shouldn't keep judging these by how much these make me cry.
At the end of Descending Stories: Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju, I was ready to get soaked. You watch these characters over the course of their whole lives. You get attached to there failures, flaws, and regret. But it all went so fast, and I got blindsided by the feels train.
I found the movie to be complete tedium, but AnoHana (the show) did deliver on the feels it had promised.
Going through Dr. Stone, every next episode I thought, "Ah, shit. What's Senku cooking up for us today?" He's not just blowing your mind, the entire cast is right there with you.
Steins;Gate was also carried by its main character. I still don't know if this guy had any idea what was going on, but his vocabulary was certainly entertaining. While I came into this anticipating a lot more, the show was enjoyable for sure.
Dr. Stone has a great execution of a goal: teach some science. It is so much more than that though.
Take Calls at Work, another interesting way to approach teaching, where cells in the body are personified to demonstrate their roles and their perceptions of what's going on in and outside the body. It's got a limited set of themes: learn this cell (which is the primary goal), cells don't understand the macro events (a scrapped knee is the world tearing open), and shipping the two main character cells.
Dr. Stone offers a much richer story surrounding the science.
The Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu series demonstrated an art form I did not even know existed. Main story aside, the culture captured in these episodes I am glad were exposed to me.
Despite not liking the show and hating Haruhi as a character, Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu did present an interesting world. For those who sometimes pause and think "does the world revolve around me?" this is a must watch.
Since I finished Akame ga Kill! I've been cycling through the music at least once a week.
Rising of the Shield Hero wins opening themes with some high energy jams. Goblin Slayer's music does a great job of matching and setting the tone of the show.
Noragami's Hiyori is a goof and despite being the mostly only human character manages to be the glue holding the show together. She's also just so sweet and gives so much of herself.
Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica's Homura I'd also like to praise here. However, the show was spoiled for me so I'm just not gonna get into this one for your sake.
This is covered in the overall year review.