2 0 0 7 IN MEMORIAL

2007 was my first year as an otaku, and my first year as an anime fan with internet capabilities. I was only 4 years old when Neon Genesis Evangelion came out. I ave not seen Martian Successor Nadesico. In the eyes of the true otaku, I am probably little more than a halfling. Of my top 5 alltime favorite shows, 3 aired in the past year. However, I am going to tell you about how 2007 moved me, how it captivated me, and how it was the greatest year of anime ever – my only year.

Because 07 was my first year, it’s only natural that I didn’t only watch shows that aired in 07, so my thoughts looking back a re a little skewed. If you only watching things as they aired this year, I watched 4-5 times more shows then you even if you were keeping up with virtually everything. To say I was active in 07 would be an understatement. However, I am not here to talk about what shows I watched in 07, I’m here to talk about what O7 produced.

I’ll start from the basics. Manabi Straight is probably the most brilliant thing in existence, ever. If you didn’t like Hidamari Sketch, you are a douche, and if you didn’t like Sayonara Zesubou Sensei, you’re a liar or an idiot. You probably didn’t watch Baccano which means that you deserve to die in the most painful way imaginable (probably by being dragged under a train). Hearing “Potemayo” probably makes you think of some convenient store snack which isn’t far off, but still makes you fail. You probably loved Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, which is fine, but go watch the other shows I just mentioned or you aren’t any more of a person.

…and that’s it. What? yes, I watched a lot more shit that I either dropped, hated, hated and dropped, or just haven’t watched yet I.E. most of the Fall season, though we’ll be getting back to that in a bit. I missed 5cm, found Bokurano stupid, dropped Claymore for no reason except I could, saved Gode Geass for DVD, professed what a load of shit Code-E would be, got bored of Darker than Black, got REALLY bored of Death Note, and fuck this alphabetical crap you get the point.

What matters is that I watched Hitohira and felt bad then watched Manabi Straight and had a mental breakdown, lurching and crying in the fetal position for hours, shaking as I typed to ask my college buddies for advice.

The point is that I watched Hidamari Sketch, rewathed Hidamari Sketch, and STILL haven’t seen the last 2 episodes of Hidamari Sketch, but smiled while I watched, made Yunocchi into my alltime favorite character, and fantasized about cuddling under a blanket with a close friend and warming our hearts to the adorable antics of my favorite bunch of cute gals.

Most importantly was getting through Lucky Star and enjoying the buhmillion memes while listening to Koi no Minoru Densetsu and Ore no Wasuremono a good 500000 times.

What blew me away was watching Baccano! with my friends and going ‘YES!!!’ and laughing aloud along with all the wild antics, amazing fights and slick stylistic finishes. Or marathoning Potemayo at a friend’s house and rewinding to see the tiny shinigami pull things out of her magic diaper over and over again.

What stuck me was having the picture from the beginning of Zessei Bijin as my birthday cake as Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei taught me how Akiyuki Shinbo would become my god and the man who would inspire me more than anyone.

What REALLY FUCKING KICKED ASS was watching all of Gurren Lagann pumping my fists in the air, screaming the subs aloud as I read them to my bro and jumping out my my chair with him in unison as things reached the most amazing climax to ever befall my eyes whilst monstrous beauty danced into my pupils, fueled my heart and left me screaming with uncanny pride all night as my brother and I ruthlessly defiled a phonebook.

For me, though, all of this will only be a small ounce of 07. When I think back, the first things that will come to mind are the first anime of my fandom, Air, the show that changed my outlook on life, Welcome to the NHK, the show that showed me just how much I love yuri, Simoun, the show that made me realize just how much I can watch in a brief time, Revolutionary Girl Utena, and the show that took that to the next level, Eureka Seven. It will be the many, many, many, many, many shows that I began and got no where with as well as the short films such as Comedy and Candy Boy that touched my heart. And most of all, it will be the 30-some shows that stand out as my alltime favorites, none of which I will ever forget.

There were times in 07 where I was watching only what others were, times when I wasn’t watching anything for a full month, times when I wrote a stupidly huge list of 60 shows to watch, and times where I was watching 60 shows in the course of a couple months. From the very start watching Air and Kanon and Manabi Straight and Hidamari Sketch to the very end watching Genshiken 2 and Black Heaven and Escaflowne and one more thing yet to be noted, 2007 was all about anime for me, and it’s no surprise that it was the happiest year of my life, and it’s no surprise that my dream is to become a director.

I’d like to throw in that SHAFT fucking won 2007. They fucking owned it. Nothing that has been made in 07 can touch SHAFT, shit, I doubt there are many shows out there that I can possibly like more than the things SHAFT created in 2007.

So I think it’s time to get right to the heart of the matter. What was my favorite show of 2007? I’m actually a little bit mad that this was my choice because I would have lived to have something as gracefully amazing as Potemayo or Manabi Straight for my number one, but then again, I didn’t pick Tengen Toppa Guren Lagann in the end, so I guess I’m still as indie as ever.

Yes, odd as it is, I watched my favorite anime of all time on new years eve, concluding with the last 2 episodes after the new year had already begun. I had alrady seen the first 6 episodes before, and t was already my favorite show of the season, however, I am much better at marathoning and saved it. Which I also did for all of Fall’s shows. The plan was to wait till 1 week before 08 and watch them all, but that plan failed. however, I KNEW I couldn’t finish the year without watching this show, and I KNEW I could not write the year in review until I had watched this show.

Yes, I am talking about ef ~A Tale of memories~. This is, by FAR the single greatest show I have ever seen. I don’t believe that anything else came remotely compare to it, and I doubt I will ever like another show this much again unless Shinbo hand-writes his next show with every ounce of his soul. ef. Is. perfect. Visually, it is the most intriguing, creative, beautiful, amazing, insert superlative thing ever. Emotionally, it touched me deeper than anything EVER. PERIOD.

And that’s on 2 fronts even. For one thing, the romance stories were the most well-told romance stories of all time They were NEVER cheap. They were NEVER stupid. The characters were all realistic, enthralling, they beckoned every emotion of the watcher. From start to finish this show ‘glistens’. From 2 still images that will shake the foundations of your SOUL to the first climax to make me cry, on-spot, ever. The fucking OPENING SONG of the last episode made me tear up. The ending was MOVING.

However, the shows message is what presses it deeper and deeper into the core of my heart. This show truly expresses the feelings of a dreamer, and artist, it sits exactly where I sit, at the penultimate decision of the beginning of one’s future. around 8 hours before watching this show, my new year’s resolution was already set. I resolved to BECOME and this show WAS THERE. To put into words how this show made me feel cannot be possible – unless I can make you cry, make your heart pound, make your lips curl into a smile that hurts your face muscles, make your skin tingle, your body shake, and give you the feeling that you are rising from your chair, maybe you’d get the gist of it.

Or maybe I’ll pick up my camera, tun it on, and show you exactly how I feel.