Some while back, there was a meme going around on Twitter where folks were listing off their top ten anime episodes. I decided to make a full entry here at the Lounge instead, and somewhere along the line it morphed from favorite episodes into mostly favorite scenes. So it goes I guess, once you start writing you never know where the Muse will lead you.
Anyhow, hit the jump and take a look. Let me know what your favorite episodes and scenes are down in the comments!
These aren’t in any particular order other than a mix of “they occurred to me in this order” and maybe “this show belongs next to that one”. I also worked on this post here and there over a period of two or three weeks… If I were to do it again, some things would stay but others might be replaced with something else.
Sword Art Online – Episode 4, “The Black Swordsman” (Episode)
OK, at least in some quarters of the ‘net I’ll get a lot of crap for this. (For not hating on SAO.) Don’t care. A lot of them are right about Kirito… He’s way overpowered, a harem master, etc… All spot on. But he never gets credit for his desire to help other people, and this episode (which follows directly after his failure in that respect when he was adventuring with the Moonlit Black Cats) is where that is first illustrated.
This episode also resonates with me and really earns a berth among my favorites because I’ve been Silica. I played a Tamer back when I played Ultima Online in the early 00’s, and I’ve felt the pain of losing a pet that you’ve invested a long time in training and which has become a companion rather than just a pet. (Here’s some very bad fanfic that I wrote shortly after they introduced pet resurrection about losing a pet to a server revert and then finding him again.)
iDOLM@STER – Episode 21, “Like a Flower Blooming”, Chihaya sings “Nemuri Hime (Sleeping Princess)”
The end of Kisaragi Chihaya’s character arc… For several episodes, Chihaya was unable to sing for personal reasons. The previous episode, she was only able to get on stage and sing as part of a group because she had the support of her fellow idols. Now, it’s the day of the Idol Jam – and a rival production company has bribed the organizers to “lose” 765 Production’s music. While they are are trying to figure out what to do to fill time while the problem is fixed… Chihaya volunteers to sing solo and *a capella* – despite the risks to her reputation and career if she fails.
A Certain Scientific Railgun S – Episode 1 “Railgun”, The terrorists realize just who they’ve pissed off…
Honestly, I like this scene mostly because of the voice actor’s work… The way the terrorist gasps “Railgun” just as he realizes what’s going down is excellent.
Yuuki Yuuna – Episode 1 “A Maiden’s True Heart”, She will be a hero.
One of my all time favorite scenes. Yuuna isn’t at all sure about this whole magical girl thing until her friends are in danger. At that point she has had Precisely Enough and charges in… thus establishing not only her character, but one of the central themes of the show – heroism isn’t about yourself, it’s what you do for others. (You can also read my series review for more on Yuuki Yuna’s themes.)
Sound Euphonium 2 – Episode 5 “Miraculous Harmony”, Kansai Regional Competition performance.
Euph 2 suffered from sequelitis, the need to find a way to continue something that was never meant to be continued. The crux of this was the need for the Kitauji High School Music Club to win the Kansai Concert Band Competition so they could proceed to the Nationals. Making things worse, their performance would be a piece the viewing audience had already seen multiple times. Despite these handicaps, KyoAni managed to pull off a tour de force and drag the audience into pulling for them despite the foreordained conclusion. Two things contributed to this… First, using the non performing members of the band as audiences surrogates. Second, interspersing cuts from earlier in the series and of the band’s annotated scores with the performance. Together, these reminded the viewer than in-world, to the characters, that this was competition was real.
I’ll never forget holding my wife’s hand, leaning forward with tension – and when they cliffhangered to the credits, grabbing for the remote to see if there was a post credit scene. (There was! Oh, there was!)
Well, after fiddling with this for a couple of weeks in and among other things I’ve managed to come up with five… Good enough for the moment. Drop a comment and share your favorites!
Apprentice Mages Lounge. 
Yuyushiki: Pan Ningen
This scene works much better, though, if you’ve seen the show up to then and now all six girls. It’s the first time all six get together, and the dynamic summarises everything the show gets right.
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Sorry for the late reply, busy week/end!
That was very cute… I looked the show up on Wikipedia, and it looks like one I’d enjoy the heck out of!
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It’s pretty hard to think of great scenes and then also find a video. I commend you for coming up with so many (or do you make the videos yourself?). Many scenes I can think of are either too old, or spoilery, sometimes both. I really, really, really love the final showdown between Dom and Tyler in Irresponsible Captain Tylor. Best space battle ever!
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I do a lot of scene re-watching on YouTube, so availability there played a part determining which scenes I chose. But still, they’re all favorites – no filler.
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Those are all some good scenes. Haven’t had the fortune to watch idolm@ster yet though.
I think some of my favorite anime scenes include:
When Karin goes mankai several times in a row while proclaiming her the Hero Club’s five tenets in Yuki Yuna is a Hero. It demonstrated her love for her friends, showcased her acceptance of their ideals, allowed her to absolve herself of the guilt she felt over being the only one to escape the penalty for using mankai, and helped readers really see the girl in a new light.
When Arata fights tooth and nail against strong opponents (excluding Seiko) in the semifinals in Saki Achiga-Hen. I don’t even like Arata all that much but her devotion to her idol and her team is so touching no matter how many times I see it.
When Tomoya asks Ushio if he can be her father among the field of sunflowers in Clannad Afterstory.
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If you like idol shows, I’d say you really should check out idolm@ster… it’s basically the root of the current generation of idol shows.
Honestly, Karin’s mankai scene was my second choice (though only by a hair) from YuYuYu for pretty much the same reasons you give. (That and the subsequent scene with Yuna… whole armies of onion ninjas.)
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I will have to get at it in due time. I do love me some idol shows.
Mmm the show was just so amazing in general with great scenes (the onion ninjas always get me).
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Nice, we picked the same YuYu scene. Fun fact: Arata and Fuu have the same seiyuu (Yumi Uchiyama). I wasn’t as big a fan of Achiga-hen as the original series, but I did like Arata, although maybe that’s because she had the whole bowling theme going (I used to bowl in rec leagues when I was in college). The scene I really remember from that series was Kuro finally discarding the damn dora tile against Teru.
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Woo-hoo yay!
Oh I wasn’t aware. Such a talented seiyuu.
Fair enough. I really liked Achiga-hen (probably one of my favorite anime series ever), but it did have a few flaws (also whoa that’s pretty cool. No wonder you appreciate Arata).
Wahaha yeah it took Kuro a while!
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I was actually just thinking about this not that long ago! It was easier for me to divide them up categorically rather than trying to rank anything.
Two of my favorite establishing character scenes:
“Please give me back my book.” Read or Die OVA, episode 1 (establishes main character Yomiko Readman)
Visiting the library. Hyouka, episode 2 (establishes Mayaka, and the group dynamics of the future Classics Club)
Two of my favorite fight scenes:
Karin’s awesome fight. Yuki Yuna is a Hero, episode 11
Van vs. the Slayers. The Vision of Escaflowne, episode 14
The former is my favorite scene in that entire series (as good as the other scene you highlighted is also), an emotional tour-de-force that’s simultaneously thrilling and heartbreaking. The latter fight gave me my first, “Whoa, that was totally badass!” reaction as a fledgling anime fan back in ’98.
Two of my favorite heartwarming scenes:
The hospital scene (both parts: the Kyon/Haruhi reunion, and Kyon’s defense of Yuki). The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya
Kaede teaches Renge to ride a bike. Non Non Biyori Repeat, episode 10
Two of my favorite crying scenes:
Taiga’s epiphany. Toradora, episode 19
After the concert. K-On!! season 2, episode 20
Notable that both of these came from shows that were mostly light-hearted comedies.
Two of my favorite “twist” scenes:
The ending of episode 23, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
You know the one. Madoka Magica, episode 3
GitS: SAC 23 is one of the few times I can remember being completely fooled by an ending I never saw coming. Madoka’s is one of the most discussed and spoiled scenes in anime history, but it’s so well-crafted that it still retains its impact in the moment, even when you already know what’s going to happen.
Two of my favorite parody scenes:
The rules of animation, featuring “Sailor Moon.” Excel Saga, episode 17 (“In the name of the toons, Excel will punish you!”)
Apocalypse Now & several other A-list Vietnam War movies. Magical Witch Punie-chan, episode 5
Two of my favorite “surreal” animation scenes:
The parade. Paprika
Fish hunting. Angel’s Egg
I’ve always been a fan of surreal/experimental animation when it’s done well, going back to Dumbo’s Pink Elephants on Parade and works by animators like Rene Laloux (Fantastic Planet) and Gerald Scarfe (Pink Floyd’s “Welcome to the Machine” video). Anime doesn’t go there quite as often as I might like, being almost strictly a commercial medium, but these are two of the best examples of it that I’ve seen, courtesy of Satoshi Kon and Mamoru Oshii.
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Interesting that two people chose Karin’s mankai scene… and it just missed my cut. (I decided to limit myself to one per show.)
Yeah, Madoka 3… I once read a comment on “Credens Justiniam” (Mami’s Theme) that I agree with – “the song you can’t wait to hear again, and then never want to hear again”. The scene was so well done that even the music from it brings strong associations.
I’ve seen you link to that Excel Saga scene before, and it is funny as all get out.
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The right music can definitely elevate a scene to another level. I have a similar reaction as that commenter to “Lost My Pieces,” which is the music from the Toradora scene on my list. Mami’s Theme is definitely a highlight track from Madoka’s OST, though.
You know, I once saw a “top five” anime list on YouTube where all five entries on the list were from exactly two anime (Clannad and SAO). I felt kind of cheated by that. So yeah, I’m glad you mixed things up, and the scene you picked from YuYu was the one I would’ve guessed, since I remember us talking about it before.
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