Usagi Drop - 9/10
I had high hopes for this after seeing what a high score it had on ANN and MAL, and I'm pleased to say it absolutely lived up to my expectations. It's a breeze to whip through too, at only 11 episodes. It's just the most utterly adorable, feel-good thing I've seen for a long time, and it just continued to astound me at how effortless it made that goodness seem. Whereas some great series really feel like they're working hard for that quality, with Usagi Drop, it's the smallest, most inconsequential things that bring out the charm. The relationships between the characters, the nuances in the dialogue, and the broader themes of what it means to be a working adult/parent/man or woman in modern society were just done to perfection. I'd have loved to have seen a second series of this, although I understand the manga starts to get a little icky with it themes after where the anime leaves off. But yeah, I'd heartily recommend this to anyone - it's almost like an anti-Clannad After Story in a way, the flip side that just utterly restores your faith in humanity.
Trigun - 8/10
I have really mixed feelings on this one, so much so that I'd be tempted to call it a deeply flawed masterpiece. There's elements of it that are just so perfect, like the emotional tone as a whole, the character designs and the philosophical themes, as well as the rollercoaster flip in tone between the first and second half. But equally, boy oh boy has this show dated badly. It looks super ugly, has limited animation, and I think many of the episodes drag or don't explain themselves well enough in many places. It feels pretty bogged down at times, hammering home points again and again that it's already illustrated perfectly well the first time. I love the lightheartedness of the early episodes and their self-contained Cowboy Bebop style storytelling, but it's the final run of five or so episodes that really did it for me in terms of emotional pay-off. There's a particular scene, that I'm sure everyone that's watched the show knows about, that is just completely and utterly devastating. So, for all its flaws, if you've ever wanted to watch something that really gets you invested in its core cast and their place in the world, Trigun absolutely does that.
Fruits Basket - 8.5 / 10
Another one that had been on my to-watch list for a while. I think its age and art-style had always put me off a little, and I think I had an image in my mind of it as some kind of dated comedy series - but as it gets into the swing of things, it becomes so, so much more than that. I'd even go as far to say that the whole 'people turning into animals' thing can be pretty much dismissed out of hand - I just didn't find that aspect of the show interesting. For me, Fruits Basket was far more about getting to the crux of Tohru's world-view and her handling of various situations - this adorable, cute as a button girl that is an absolute paragon of good and how she helps the people she meets come to terms with their problems. I watched the English dub version, and Laura Bailey does her voice so well too, you just end up falling in love with the character and her absolute, unwavering innocence. And then you get the final two episodes which are arguably pretty dark in places, and the tension the show manages to conjure up in that respect just caps things off so well. I'd probably say the other best episodes are probably the ones which centre around Tohru's two schoolmates, as they carry some really emotional resonance too. But yeah, this definitely got me wanting to check out more shojo stuff.
