Somewhat unexpectedly, and driven from the success of movies of the likes of “Demon Slayer”. “Jujutsu Kaisen” and “Evangelion 3.0+1.01”, it seems that anime are experiencing another golden era, with their box office results setting all time records at the moment, at least in Japan. Furthermore, a new trend, that of original series, which are not adapted from manga has also given a number of titles of excellent quality with Studio Wit being a pioneer in that regard. Lastly, another trend that of the humanization of animals also continued this year, even giving the number 1 in this list.
Without further ado, here are the 10 Best Anime Series of 2021, in reverse order, in a list that includes titles whose season or the whole series ended in 2021, with the exception of “Akudama Drive” which ended at December 24 2020, but I decided to include it in the end.
10. Jujutsu Kaisen (Park Seong-hu, MAPPA)
The character design by Tadashi Hiramatsu offers a rather impressive combination of the humoristic simplicity of “One Punch Man” regarding the majority of the good guys, while the villains seem to have been inspired by Guillermo Del Toro's work. The drawing in general is impressive, while the added brutality, as witnessed in the occasionally quite violent battles, the fact that the protagonist is swallowing fingers in a cannibalistic concept, and the presence of a number of characters that can only be described as creepy, also work quite well.
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9. Dr Stone Season 2 (Shinya Iino, TMS Entertainment)
Expectedly, the action takes over after a point, with the brute force of Tsukasa and Hyoga providing a worthy match for Senku's inventions and his efforts to mislead. The outcome however, is quite unexpected, as treacheries and switching of sides end up with many of the protagonists changing their alliances and the ways they perceive this new era. In that regard, the plethora of fights emerge as more violent than those of the first season, and, essentially, more impressive, particularly due to their impact on the overall story.
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8. World Trigger Season 2 (Morio Hatano, Toei Animation)
“World Trigger Season 2” in terms of genuine shonen titles, is right there at the very top, with its creators essentially doing what “My Hero Academia” should be doing. The title does not win any laurels in terms of originality, but every aspect of it is quite well done, which deems it one of the best titles of the year.
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7. Attack on Titan Final Season (Jun Shishido, MAPPA)
The analysis of the characters is once more, one of the best parts of the narrative, with the reasoning behind those who were considered as villains before adding even more depth to the story, as the series seem to move towards a distinctly anti-war, anti-racism path. At the same time however, the political intricacy has become a bit too complex and far-fetched, as each new character seems to add another element of treachery and new plot twists, whose number is obviously extravagant. At the same time, the way some of the characters continue to survive despite getting almost killed a number of times becomes annoying, particularly when compared with how easily some peripheral characters die.
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6. Jobless Reincarnation (Manabu Okamoto, Studio Bind)
Apart from the strictly entertaining aspects, the series is also filled with context. The backstory of the protagonist and the bullying it includes adds a rather dramatic aspect to the series, as much as the shenanigans of his father, whose complicated relationship with his son also induces a family drama element to the narrative. Furthermore, the coming-of-age element is also intense, even if moving in the aforementioned, sex-focused paths, while the story also comments on racism, friendship and companionship, mentorship, and the impact of the past to the future.
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5. Beastars Season 2 (Shinichi Matsumi, Orange)
Of course, action is not missing also, with the violence being another main element of the story, although the most intense one is kept for the finale. That all kinds of fights here have a contextual meaning and are not just present to draw the viewer's attention, emerges as one of the best traits of the series. Furthermore, the astonishing combination of hand-drawn and CGI animation finds its apogee in these scenes, although the movement of the protagonists throughout the title is excellent, in one of the best works in the field we have seen the latest years, with Orange's work being truly top-notch. The same quality applies to Satoru Kousaki's character design, who continues his great work from the first season, with every new character being rather unique and quite detailed in its drawing, with their appearance also having a contextual meaning, as with Pina's horns for example.
4. Akudama Drive (Tomohisa Taguchi, Studio Pierrot)
The overall characterization is also top notch, with the protagonists' and the antagonists' being rather well analyzed as intently different human beings, and their interactions being quite intriguing. In that fashion, Courier is the epitome of cool and his relationship with Swindler one of the most appealing traits here. Brawler is the typical brute with a good heart that sets him up to be exploited, while his relationship with Hoodlum, probably the most hilarious of the series. Cutthroat's paranoia is the main source of violence, with his affection for Swindler actually adding to it, while Doctor seems rather cunning, and she is also the main source of fanservice here.
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3. Wonder Egg Priority (Shin Wakabayashi, Clover Works)
The most obvious level the title excels in is the action. Despite the fact that the protagonists are teenage girls who fight against creatures that are kawaii for the most part, the tension during the battles, the occasional bloodshed, and most of all, the final bosses elevate this aspect to very high levels. Through an approach that reminds of Satoshi Kon's works both in visual style and context, the animation by Clover Works during those scenes is impressive, as much as the drawing of the villains, who are colorfully extravagant and appalling at the same time. The way pens and cute little animals become weapons that occasionally lead to true slaughters is ingenious here, highlighting both the animation and the excellent drawing and coloring by Saki Takahashi. The difference of the various villains and the level of detail in their sketch is only matched by the backgrounds, while the way the protagonists differ stylistically is equally impressive.
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2. Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song (Shinpei Ezaki, Wit Studio)
The narrative approach Shinpei Ezaki implements here, with each one of Matsumoto's appearances essentially starting a new arc, which is, though, part of the overall story, works exceptionally well, as it allows the presence of both new and recurring characters, and the presentation of a number of different and rather interesting comments, which gain an even additional level if AIs are perceived as a metaphor for immigrants.
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1. Odd Taxi (Baku Kinoshita, OLM and P.I.C.S.)
The character design by Hiromi Nakayama and Kinoshita himself follows one of the latest styles, as implemented in titles like “One Punch Man”, with the protagonists showcasing a simplicity that adds to the comic effect, while instigating the viewer to focus on the narrative instead of the visuals. The same applies to the animation work by OLM and P.I.C.S, with the movements of the characters being naturalistic but not extravagant in any way, although some action scenes are quite impressive, as much as Shirakawa's capoeira, which is always accompanied by a very fitting music score, that makes the whole thing even more funny. “Odd Taxi” is one of the funniest and most intelligent titles we have seen recently, and definitely one of the best anime of 2021.
