I believe that most of those who have been following my blog for at least a while have seen this coming. K-ON!! has indubitably been my favorite series of this year, which I've been missing ever since it ended. K-ON!! has just grown onto me. Some people might wonder how it is possible to consider a series without any real story as the best anime of this year. Precisely because it has no story in particular is an answer that only those who love K-ON as I do could understand. Therefore I'll try to give you a bit more specific answer, not as vague as the previous one.<iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="500" height="311" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/SM4W-tT5yHQ?hd=1" frameborder="0"></iframe>The splendor of K-ON lies in the characters and the bonds that are connecting them. They would never hurt each other. They would never betray each other. They are always there for each other. They care for each other. They would do anything for each other. They are the best friends and you can feel all of that friendliness emanating from them. The anime depicts their everyday life in which they enjoy every second they spend together. By observing their mundane activities, such as eating cakes, chin-waging together, pulling pranks on each other, you can get as close to them as it is possible to get to someone whom you cannot interact with. That way, you can start caring for the characters too and bonds between you and the characters are created.Thanks to the fact that the second season of K-ON was a full-fledged, 2-season-long series, the creators were able to show us a lot of various bonds between particular characters. In one episode, we could see Mugi with Ritsu hanging out together, which let us observe the relationship between these two in detail. In another episode, we could see the bonds between Azusa, Jun, and Ui. And so on.Another thing I noticed was that each episode revolved around a specific theme. For example, episode 17 was about learning the importance of something that you take for granted. The Light Music Club learned how valuable the clubroom is for them only when they couldn't use it, and Yui realized how important her younger sister is for her when Ui fell ill.<iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="500" height="311" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/1Ho3wZVAfmw?hd=1" frameborder="0"></iframe>A few words about music might be called for. I love Houkago Tea Time's songs. It might not be any spectacular music, but it's catchy and pleasant to my auditory system. Of course there are songs I like more and songs I like less, but on the whole I can openly say that I'm very fond of their music. If I don't count the opening and ending songs, my favorite songs by HTT are Fuwa Fuwa Time, Gohan wa Okazu, Tenshi ni Fureta yo, and Watashi no Koi wa Hocchikisu, I think.<iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="500" height="311" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/8j24InJyxbY?hd=1" frameborder="0"></iframe>When somebody asks me who is my favorite character from K-ON, I can't give them any answer. That's because I love them all and even if just one was absent, K-ON would stop being K-ON. Got it? ^^ Yet, I think that the most essential character for the atmosphere of K-ON is Yui. She's the one who radiates positive energy to all directions no matter what she does or what she says. Since she's played by Toyosaki Aki, her voice couldn't be more amiable. So you couldn't find any better voice for her.<iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="500" height="311" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/4_zDPNk8Pe0?hd=1" frameborder="0"></iframe>The warmth that was present in each episode of K-ON would always draw smile on my face and make me forget any unpleasant things. If you wanted to describe K-ON in one word, you could say kindness, tenderness, love, affection. There are no vile elements; it's all about friendship. Yet, how can so many people hate a series that glorifies friendship? I'll never know.<iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="500" height="311" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JA0R4NDthRY?hd=1" frameborder="0"></iframe>Raison d'etreSo much for K-ON!!, I believe I've expressed my opinion sufficiently. Now, here is my top 10 I've presented over past 10 days.1. K-ON!!2. Angel Beats!3. Nodame Cantabile Finale4. Ore no Imouto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai5. Seitokai Yakuindomo6. Amagami SS7. MM!8. Shinryaku! Ika Musume9. Shiki10. Working!It was very hard for me to choose my top 10 since I had about 5 anime on mind that could fill two remaining empty slots. That's why I've decided to do a round of Honorable Mentions, picking one anime from each season which hasn't made it to my top 10 despite me enjoying it a lot.Winter: Durarara!!Spring: Kiss x SisSummer: MitsudomoeFall: Yosuga no SoraBy the way, as concerns movies and OVAs, I needn't think twice to come to the conclusion that my favorite was Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu. One word is enough to describe it: brilliant.
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