The SUTORAIKUanime Spring 2012 Awards

Hi, my name is Suri, and I would like to welcome you to the SUTORAIKUanime Spring 2012 Awards! After a bit of a delay, we are now ready to reveal our picks for the Spring anime season. The Spring season, was one of the most entertaining seasons we've had in awhile. We were also introduced to some great heroines and also saw the second seasons of two highly anticipated animes. We were also treated to some great animes that fans might of missed out on, and I hope our picks might make you consider giving them a try. Since all of us have our own tastes in anime, I have recruited some help from my fellow writers so they can give you their own awards for the Spring Season. We would also like for you to leave a comment in our comment section and give us your picks!

Best OP Theme Song

akinari-kun: Esoragato (Sankarea)

Akshay: Moeyo Chaos (Haiyore! Nyaruko-san)

Freddy: To the Beginning (Fate/Zero S2)

Suri: Borderland (Jormungand)
Etchimango: Borderland (Jormungand) - It's catchy. I just like it.

Best ED Theme Song

akinari-kun: Kimi ni Matsuwaru Misteri ED2 (Hyouka)

Etchimango: Koi no Beginner Nan Desu (Kore Wa Zombie Desu Ka? OF THE DEAD)

Akshay: Manten (Fate/Zero S2)

Freddy: Sora Wa Takaku, Kaze wa Utau (Fate/Zero S2)

Suri: Unfininshed (Accel World)

Best Male Character



akinari-kun: Oreki Houtaro (Hyouka)

Etchimango: Oreki Houtaro (Hyouka) - I like the voice actor and he is unique character. Lazy.

Akshay: Iskander (Fate/Zero S2) - Everyone loves Broskander. Nothing else to say.

Freddy: Kiritsugu Emiya (Fate/Zero) - A man with no hesitations about employing the most ruthlessly, efficient methods in order to accomplish his goals, Kiritsugu seems more fit for the villain's role. However, in F/Z, his desire for the Holy Grail is perhaps the purest and most selfless. When he learns of this nature, he has no hesitations about doing the right thing, even if his actions turn the world against him.

Suri: Jin Kanzaki (Zetman) - A hero who doesn't think of himself as a hero. Jin lost many of the people he loved and he had to keep the rest of the people he was closed to so they will be safe. The very thought of me having to do that just scares me. You need to be a very, strong individual to be able to sacrifice almost everything you hold dear to yourself.

Best Female Character



akinari-kun: Nyaruko (Haiyore! Nyaruko-san)

Etchimango: Kanoe Yuuko (Dusk Maiden of Amnesia) - Sexy. One of my waifus, has a nice body and voice.

Akshay: Koko Hekmatyar (Jormungand) - Koko ended up being the most kickass female character of the season. Being a weapons dealer and somewhat crazy, added up to make a very interesting and exciting character.

Freddy: KoKo Hekmatyar (Jormungand) - At first glance, Koko is flighty and whimsical, qualities not desirable in an arms dealer. However, even if she wields no weapons like her companions, she is just as, if not more, crazy as any of them, often playing with fire and leaping into the line of fire, all while making a profit and entertaining the audience. Besides, she has a badass knife-nut going lesbian for her.

Suri: Saber (Fate/Zero S2) - Saber had to go up against some of the greatest warriors in history in this Grail War. Underneath all that armor, Saber is still a woman, but she is still this amazing warrior on the battlefield. Her battle with Beserker was my favorite. Saber was always up to have an honorable battle but sometimes she would put that aside and give them a good ass whooping. So, yeah, she is a badass. 

Best Supporting Character

akinari-kun: Cthuko (Haiyore! Nyaruko-san)

Etchimango: None.

Akshay: Takumu Mayuzumi (Accel World) - Takumu ended up being a great supporting character by even professing how much he wanted to be the main character, but was thwarted by Haruyuki almost every time. It was a great moment when he and Haruyuki became friends again, and his depth as a character is interesting.

Freddy: Jeanne d'Arc, Fate/Zero S2–Despite having literally no lines and only a few seconds of screentime, Type-Moon's interpretation of Jeanne d'Arc plays a vital role in Caster's realization of his errors, along with a more…forceful force.

Suri: Saaya Agata (Sket Dance) - Saaya had the three things that make anime amazing. Oppai, Tsundere, and Kana Hanazawa. I'd say that is pretty much all it takes to make a great character.

Best Art Style



akinari-kun: Hyouka

Etchimango: Hyouka

Akshay: Sankarea - Sankarea was the show with the best art style this season, although none of the shows, Sankarea included, completely wowed me with the art. It was pretty though, so it makes the list.

Freddy: Fate/Zero S2 - It's really no surprise that I love TYPE-MOON's works and part of that comes from the somewhat simple but attractive character designs. ufotable did an excellent job of carrying those over to this anime.

Suri: Hyouka - Hyouka's art really stood out from all the rest. It doesn't need to overwhelm you with amazing visuals to be great. The animation makes me feel calm and I'm able to enjoy the story and the interactions between the characters. Studios should watch and take plenty of notes.

Best Drama



akinari-kun: Zetman

Etchimango: Aquarion Evol

Akshay: Fate/Zero S2 - I like Type-Moon, and with Fate/Zero they nailed the Drama for me. I felt for the character, and completely enjoyed watching the show.

Freddy: Kids on the Slope - While I'm not as taken with this show as many others seem to be, it certainly is the most drama-like in my mind, though that seems to be more romantic drama than anything. Oh well.

Suri: Fate/Zero S2 - There were some emotional and disturbing scenes in F/Z that really made me wanting more. The struggles between these characters and the branching of their stories is what makes F/Z truly stand out from other animes.

Best Comedy



akinari-kun: Kore wa Zombie Desu ka OF THE DEAD - Absolute nonsensical, slapstick-to-the-core laugh-out-loud hilarious randomness, while still maintaining a distinguishable plot.

Etchimango: Kore Wa Zombie Desu ka OF THE DEAD.

Akshay: Haiyore! Nyarko-san - Nyaruko was the best comedy show this season, and was very enjoyable to watch. The character were great for the show, and Nyaruko was a great character out of the rest. The MC was fairly standard, but it didn't really ruin it for me at all.

Freddy: Haiyore! Nyaruko-san - Cthulhu Mythos. Moé-fied. References. It was quite enjoyable, despite some awkwardly written situations. I haven't read Lovecraft's works, so this doesn't turn me away in disgust.

Suri: Haiyore! Nyaruko-san - Slapstick, anime/Cthulhu parodies, and eroge fun. Haiyore! Nyaruko-san was so crazy and random, mixed in with Kana Asumi's role as Nyaruko, really made me, literally, laugh out loud every time. And, c'mon, the villain is an eroge-loving monster!

Best Action



akinari-kun: Accel World - When a drama-filled plot, along with a solid traditional animation go hand-in-hand, we have a winner.

Etchimango: Fate/Zero S2

Akshay: Jormungand - Jormungand ended up being the best in the action genre, although Fate/Zero was extremely close. The gunplay and animation were great, and I really liked the show's action over Fate/Zero's.

Freddy: Fate/Zero S2 - Not really much competition here. I loved the fight scenes. In addition, they weren't ridiculously reduced to a bunch of random blurs.

Suri: Fate/Zero S2 - My favorite action scene, in F/Z, was when Archer and Gilgamesh were having an aerial fight with their planes. The visuals were amazing and thrilling. There were many great battles in F/Z that can leave you at the edge of your seat.

Best Character Cast



akinari-kun: Hyouka - Characters are filled with uniqueness and depth. Each one has their own individual train of thought and not a single one fits a cliche.

Etchimango: Fate/Zero S2

Akshay: Fate/Zero S2 - The best cast of characters this season was undeniably Fate/Zero. The characters were very deep and compelling, and blew the rest of the season out of the water in character development as far as I'm concerned.

Freddy: Fate/Zero S2 - Urobuchi did an excellent job covering every character, from the heroes to the villains to everyone in between. Characters grew, characters fell into despair. Characters changed. These aren't static characters in any way.

Suri: Sakamichi no Apollon - There were three main characters in Sakamichi no Apollon: Kaoru, Ritsuko,and Sentarou. These three characters felt real and were able to carry their relationships with each other very well. Adding in the supporting cast into the mix, made their interactions even more better.

Best Couple



akinari-kun: Tsumiki and Io (Acchi Kocchi) - It's nice to see a departure from the typical lovey dovey-ness. A well-balanced mix of high school romance and everyday slice-of-life.

Etchimango: Kanoe, Yuuko and Niiya, Teiichi (Dusk Maiden of Amnesia)

Akshay: Haruyuki & Kuroyukihime (Accel World) - What can I say, they were cute together. Haru is very unassuming, and as far as I can tell Hime really likes him as well.

Freddy: Irisviel von Einzbern and Kiritsugu Emiya (Fate/Zero S2) - No competition here. They both knew what would befall them at the end, yet they continued to love each other. For Irisviel and Kiritsugu, they completed each other.

Suri: Kanoe, Yuuko and Niiya, Teiichi (Dusk Maiden of Amnesia) - A romantic story between a human and a ghost with a split personality. There were other couples out there but, nothing like this relationship where both can lose each one another at any moment. And even though they could not speak or see one another, they still continued to be with each other.

Best Villain



akinari-kun: Sanka Danichirou (Sankarea) - Taking photos of his daughter naked? Saying he'll chop off the boyfriend of her daughter's dingaling? Hmm...

Etchimango: Kotomine Kirei (Fate/Zero S2)

Akshay: Chinatsu (Jormungand) - Chinatsu was a very, interesting antagonist in Jormungand, being a complete badass and not wearing panties. She didn't wear panties, and was an assassin. Case closed.

Freddy: Kirei Kotomine, Fate/Zero S2 - Kirei stands out because he didn't realize that he would become a villain. Over the course of the War, he evolved into someone fit for a villainous role from his origin as a dispassionate priest.

Suri: Kotomine Kirei (Fate/Zero S2) - Kirei is a cold-blooded murderer who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. I was leaning towards Heitani of Zetman, but Kirei seems like more of monster than Heitani would ever be.

Most Disappointing



akinari-kun: Eureka Seven Ao - Besides making absolutely no sense and having no feasible connection to the original Eureka Seven, every aspect of the show really disappoints, particularly in the action department.

Etchimango: Haiyore! Nyaruko-san.

Akshay: Sakamichi no Apollon - I tried watching the show, I really did, but it didn't turn out so great. I actually ended dropping it after a few episodes.

Freddy: Medaka Box - I've heard good things about this, but I suppose the beginning is truly bad. Flawed logic abounds and dull jokes are overused. One thing that stands out is a boy who stands for justice and upholding the rules casually destroying school property. No matter how I look at it, that seems more than a bit weird.

Suri: Mysterious Girlfriend X - I actually enjoyed MGX, but, I've heard a lot of great things about the manga before it was announced it was going to get animated. So, I was going into this with a lot of hype. It didn't quite deliver but maybe it can wow us with a 2nd season?

Worst Anime of the Season



akinari-kun: Eureka Seven Ao - See above.

Etchimango: None.

Akshay: AKB0048 - The reason this didn't get Most Disappointing is because I didn't have any hopes for it in the first place.

Freddy: Shining Hearts ~Shiawase no Pan~ - Reading the plot description and knowing that this came from an RPG, I figured it would involve a bit more adventuring, as opposed to wandering around selling bread and having bad existential crises. The only things this really has going for it are a decent OP and nice character designs.

Suri: Natsuiro Kiseki - I am a fan of slice-of-life animes, but this anime almost had me day dreaming or on the verge of dozing off in my chair. I made sure to watch the whole season, but it didn't do it for me. Not even the Sphere cast was enough to keep me entertained. I did like Yuka's hairstyles, though.

The Most Underrated Anime of the Season



akinari-kun: Acchi Kocchi - Filled with moe and light-hearted humour. It's something for everyone.

Etchimango: None.

Akshay: Kuroko no Basuke - In all honesty, this show wasn't exactly underrated, but compared to how many people watched other shows like Sankarea or Fate/Zero, it sort of was. I like sports anime myself, so I would say that's why I like this show lot and think that it needed more recognition.

Freddy: Mysterious Girlfriend X - In my experiences, not very many people have been watching this. Perhaps they were turned away by the use of drool as a plot device, but, past that, it's a good show about a relatively normal guy dating a mysterious girl, as the title says.

Suri: Tsuritama - Going into this anime, I didn't really think an anime about fishing would be any good. Well, I'm glad I was wrong. Tsuritama reminded me of Mawaru Penguindrum with it's art and dark story. DUCKU!

The Weirdest Anime of the Season



akinari-kun: Mysterious Girlfriend X - Seriously, sharing saliva? 

Etchimango: Accel World or Jormungand.

Akshay: Upotte! - To me, the show didn't make too much sense. I mean, girls that turn into guns? Really? That's what really confused me, but the rest is a lot of fanservice, which is rather normal.

Freddy: Kore wa Zombie Desuka? OF THE DEAD - This really shouldn't be surprising, considering that it's a comedy that involves a necromancer, a zombie magiclad girl/boy, more than a few vampire ninjas, etc. But, if someone is watching this, they've probably already seen Season 1 and already know and expect it.

Suri: Upotte! - If you were to ask me to describe Upotte!, I would say, it is about Guns shooting Guns at other Guns. And sometimes those Guns have sexy moments. Weird? Yes. Fun? Yes.

Best Moment



akinari-kun: Can't think of any off the top of my head, but I know Kore wa Zombie Desu ka always cracked me up.

Etchimango: Kore Wa Zombie Desu ka? OF THE DEAD.

Akshay: Fate/Zero S2 - Saber using Excalibur. This scene was honestly the best moment of the season. The entire battle against Caster had been veering towards it, and it didn't disappoint at all.

Freddy: Fate/Zero S2 - Rider vs. Archer, This might just seem like a badly thought out, Deus ex Machina-type curbstomp battle to someone not paying attention. However, Archer makes use of his previously-described greatest treasure against Rider, followed by his most favored Noble Phantasm, the Chains of Heaven. Above all that, Gilgamesh, who respected no enemy in the Fifth Grail War, does this because he respects the Rider of the Fourth Grail War, not because he'd lose if he didn't use those Noble Phantasms. He even uses a different, more respectful pronoun when talking to Rider at the end. Man, the stuff we lose in translation.

Suri: Sakamichi no Apollon - The unexpected concert that took place in the gym between Kaoru and Sentarou had such great energy and emotion. It really took me back to my days when my friends and I used to jam out together. Almost got me all teary-eyed.

Best Seiyuu



akinari-kun: Kana Asumi - Nyaruko. 'Nuff said.

Etchimango: None.

Akshay: Kana Asumi - The voice of Nyaruko, Kana was amazing in her role. All that ranting about Mahiro and CQC, and I loved every minute of the dialogue. I've already said how much I like Nyaruko, but here it is again w/ her VA.

Freddy: Rikiya Koyama - Kiritsugu Emiya in Fate/Zero S2 - Portraying a killing machine isn't exactly easy, but portraying the same machine's human emotions is even harder. Koyama manages this splendidly, from cold, harsh scenes to scenes laden with feeling.

Suri: Kana Asumi - There were many great seiyuus this season that were amazing, But Kana Asumi really made Nyaruko-san a great show to watch and laugh your ass off. Kana has had many great roles, but her role as Nyaruko is her best by far!

Best Moe’ Character



akinari-kun: Miniwa Tsumiki (Acchi Kocchi) - Moe, moe, moe, moe, and more moe.

Etchimango: None.

Akshay: Eru Chitanda (Hyouka) - Chitanda is moe', You can't deny it. You can't refute it. I don't even need to explain.

Freddy: Toki Onjouji, Saki: Achiga-hen ~Episode of Side A~ - Going back to a definition of "moé" involving a desire to protect, Toki stands out strongly. She is frail, sickly, and prone to hospitalization, yet does her best to support her team. It's hard not to like her determination.

Suri: Eru Chitanda (Hyouka) - Hyouka had a late entry into the Summer season. But Chitanda quickly took the internet by storm. Everywhere you look, people were talking about her and it didn't even take a day before her fan art were everywhere!

Surprisingly Good Anime



akinari-kun: Zetman - A seemingly straightforward shounen anime with a wild twist.

Etchimango: Jormungand.

Akshay: Tsuritama - It was a rather under-appreciated show, but it was really good. I thought a show about fishing would be boring, but the art and general difference from what I was expecting made it a great show that I initially wasn't expecting much more from.

Freddy: Space Brothers–I didn't think this would be anything special, but it turned out to be quite good. The quirky and somewhat childish protagonist is entertaining to watch and the show uses comedy and tension equally well.

Suri: Jormungand - I got into Jormungand late because I didn't find the synopsis that appealing. Some readers told me they were enjoying it, so I decided to give it a go. I instantly liked the action and, of course, Koko who is played by Shizuka Itou. Now, I can't wait for the 2nd season to start already.

Best Overall Anime of the Season



akinari-kun: Hyouka - Exceeds all aspects of the criteria of a good anime.

Etchimango: Fate/Zero S2.

Akshay: Fate/Zero S2 - It probably was expected, but Fate/Zero made my top pick for the season. It was an amazing show, and a great second season as well. It beat out the other shows by a reasonable, but not extreme margin. It took a variety of good parts from shows, and combined them into an enjoyable experience.

Freddy: Fate/Zero S2 - The first season involved a lot of setup. The second season is the snowballing of all that, resulting in death after death to reach the foregone conclusion leading to the events of Fate/stay night. The masterful writing of Gen Urobuchi combined with the talents of both ufotable and Yuki Kajiura form a most excellent anime, despite a few hiccups here and there.

Suri: Fate/Zero - It was a difficult decision to make. It was either Sakamichi no Apollon or Fate/Zero. For the best of the season, I picked Fate/Zero as the winner. Part two of Fate/Zero had a lot of hype coming into this season. It seemed like every episode delivered another great experience after another. Even though this series is about Emiya Kiritsugu and his struggles for the grail, we were also introduced to many great characters and their stories. And, of course, we are also reminded why Saber is one of animes greatest characters. It is one of those animes where you can go back and relive the experience many times.

Well, thats it for Spring 2012. See you again in the Summer!