So, like… what were some good or overrated shows that aired in 2012?

This post was written by Dark_Sage. He is Dark_Sage.

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Trying to get my powerlevel up over the next few days, so I only have a few shows I can marathon and would like to know the best options. [stealth best animes of 2012 thread] [Edit: now you can choose multiple options]

Blah blah blah, I need to prep for heckling the “Top 10 Best Animeses of 2012” panels at Ohayocon, and to do that I need to finish watching the shows that were either really good or really fucking overrated. Yes, this will affect post speed, but it can’t be helped.

Sword_Art_Online_kawaii_no_desu_yo-san

Which of these were the most bestest shows OR the most overrated piles of shit?

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If you’re wondering why certain shows aren’t on the list, it’s because they’re either regarded as shit by most people, or I already watched them.

As indicated in the post preview comment, you may also consider this a “stealth best animes of 2012” post. I know you’re fucking dying to let everyone know how edgy and original you are for liking Fate/Zero.

149 thoughts on “So, like… what were some good or overrated shows that aired in 2012?”

    • Three main reasons why you won’t see a show in that poll:
      I’ve already finished it or plan to finish it before the con
      It’s a sequel and I’m not watching like 39 episodes to catch up
      MAL determined it was too shit for them (7.5 or below)

      Another falls under the “already watched it”. And can’t say I was a big fan. It tried to do “horror” and utterly failed, often with humorous results.

      Reply
    • Wait, men showing their nips is illegal in America? That’s a little prude. Also, lol at “don’t break the law”. As if that only applies within the con.

      Reply
      • Certain places forbid nipples altogether so they don’t have to deal with any “if he can show his nipples, why can’t I?” bitching from drunk sluts.

        Reply
        • I was going off the implication that it was actually illegal. Not letting shirtless yobbos into your establishment is a decision I can respect completely.

          Reply
    • I wasn’t being serious with the heckling part. It’s annoying as fuck for everyone and a pretty dick move to presenters who are volunteering their time and effort to try to make the con an enjoyable experience for everyone (including themselves).

      Panels tend to ask for audience feedback though, and I’m certainly willing to give my feedback when people give some seriously bad advice to people looking for good advice. (Like last year when they recommended Gundam Age as an amazing anime and Horizon as a super shitty anime. Couldn’t leave that alone when they asked for people to comment.)

      Reply
  1. Just wanted to use this space to thank for recommending Shinsekai Yori. I would have missed it if it wasn’t for your recommendation. High-motherfucking-five, man!

    Reply
  2. Only one choice per person allowed? Tch.

    Hyouka, Tari Tari, and Inu x Boku SS were all excellent.

    I went with Inu x Boku SS as my one choice.It has lovable characters, a fresh sense of comedy, and a heartwarming plot.

    Reply
  3. Vote for Joshiraku because I like watching cute girls doing and talking about nothing.
    And I don’t agree with MAL or Anidb scoring system. Why don’t you used BD sales instead?

    Reply
    • Because a lot of good shows don’t necessarily sell a lot of BDs, and because lots of BDs sold doesn’t make a show good per se?

      Reply
    • I don’t what American BD sales are. I don’t particularly care what Japan thinks when I’ll be interacting with Americans.

      Reply
      • Dang. Anyway, best series this year.

        1. Natsume Yuujinchou Shi (fourth season, eh)
        2. Daily Lives of High School Boys
        3. Hyouka
        4. Tsuritama
        5. Hidamari Sketch x Honeycomb (fourth season, eh)
        6. Kimi to Boku 2 (second season, eh)
        7. Binbougami-ga!
        8. Teekyuu (seriously, watch it, it’s short and awesome)
        9. Humanity has Declined
        10. Sakamichi no Apollon

        But if you want to appeal to the masses, you have Sword Art Online, Hyouka, Fate/Zero, Nisemonogatari, Chihayafuru, Accel World and the likes.

        Reply
  4. Best:
    Hyouka
    Oda Nobuna no Yabou
    Tasogare Otome x Amnesia
    Papakiki

    Overrated piles of shit:
    Inu x Boku SS
    Kokoro Connect
    Tari Tari

    Reply
  5. Fate-Zero and Space Brothers were the only things halfway decent to come out in 2012. The rest you can pretty much take or leave.

    And no, I don’t think I’m edgy – I think they did F/Z really well, considering the other Fate series that came before.

    Reply
  6. Hyouka, Tsuritama, and UtaKoi are the only things on that list worth watching. UtaKoi only if you liked the poetry aspects to Chihayafuru.

    Tsuritama and Hyouka were both great however, and are strong contenders for AOTY.

    Reply
  7. Aquarion Evol doesn’t need the first season to be watched at all for full enjoyment. It’s dumb but in the best possible sense – completely self-aware – and has an awesome set of characters, music and art.

    Tsuritama has a really well constructed story with a good sense of humour though, not for myself, many found the characters irratating, if you don’t like the first episode, you won’t like the show overall.

    Inu Boku SS is really good for the 50% of the time it’s being a comedy and not a loli-bait melodrama.

    For stuff I’m more critical on though:

    TOxA has a real indentity crisis as what it wants to be and quickly becomes a trainwreck, almost recovers it at the end, then becomes a plane crash.

    Tari Tari is just a bad version of Hanasaku Iroha, worse characters, humour and the melodrama is even more in your face and ruining. Theres a fair few highlights that keep me from hating it though.

    Accel World is pretty bad. If there’s anything it’s got going over SAO, it’s that it isn’t half as serious. Still, SAO is a mess too.

    But meh, I’ve watched about all of these, but 6 is more than enough to talk about for one comment…

    Reply
  8. Kokoro Connect was well on it’s way to being amazing, but it sort of went downhill after the first arc. It was still okay after that point, but not a lot of creativity came out of it despite the flexibility of the premise.

    I gave my vote to Accel World as it is my personal favorite of 2012. The premise is good enough to have me hooked in on the third episode and it progresses at a fairly consistent pace too. Although the final arc did feel like it was unnecessarily dragged out at first, it actually does pull through with a very satisfying finish that was well worth the build up. The overall animation quality is about as great as you’d expect from a Sunrise anime. The action scenes are flawlessly executed and a step ahead of most that share the genre. While the anime doesn’t go so much into development from anyone other than the MC, it does have a pretty interesting character base within the main cast as well as a handful of support characters. The plot is not yet complete and will require an additional season to finish, but it’s good for what it has up to that point at least.

    In short, it’s awesome enough for me to write this giant wall of text.

    Reply
  9. Best title of the year for me was Hyouka. It’s the only series where I actually stayed up waiting for subs (last time I did that was years ago). It’s also the only show of last year I’ve already watched more than once.

    It wasn’t a bad year for anime overall, I think, with a few hidden gems such as Binbougami, Oda Nobuna and Jinrui wa Suitai.

    Reply
  10. Accel World was shit. I was really excited about the scenario + Sunrise, and it was cool but started to get worse and worse until it degenerated until the characters crying (actual tears, multiple scenes) about a fucking prank that any other ordinary human being wouldn’t give a shit about.

    Reply
  11. Went with Tasogare Otome, but I don’t know if you’d actually like it. It certainly wasn’t overrated. You should probably watch Hyouka if you want to raise your power level. It was a pretty popular show. Every one of my roommates that saw me watching it thought it was boring as fuck, but I really liked it. You should also definitely finish Kokoro, I know you really liked it when you were reviewing it. I need to finish the last 4 eps of it as well. Only other thing I can think of is Accel World; I loved it, but I have a high tolerance for whiny bitches (Haru takes the cake), and there’s also the fact that the anime did not even come close to resolving the story. You may want to watch that for your “overrated pieces of shit” category.

    Reply
  12. The only show worth watching on that entire list is Lupin, seeing as everything besides Lupin and the last 4 episodes of Kokoro Connect are shit.

    Reply
  13. Most underrated show on that list: Tsuritama.

    This is OT, but Tari Tari and Kokoro Connect reminded me: I’m pretty sure you had a review of Underwater’s Tari Tari and a translation party of Kokoro Connect? I can’t find either, what happened to them?

    Reply
    • I lost like a month of reviews. I’m pretty sure I still have the writing and pictures in an xml document somewhere, but I need to figure out a way to get them back onto the site.

      Maintenance mode, grabbing this site’s xml, and then copy-pasting the missing reviews into it would probably be the way to go, yeah?

      Reply
      • Any idea what the exact format is of the XML files? Would you mind creating a pastebin of one of the files (or if all the posts are in one big XML document, the beginning of the XML document, at least down to where the first post in the document starts, should be enough)? I doubt it’d be enough to just paste the contents into some file on the server, since the actual posts are likely stored in e.g. a MySQL database.

        Reply
  14. If you’re looking for popular shows that are sure to come up at the con: Kokoro Connect, Hyouka, and Accel World.

    Better shows: Inu x Boku SS, Oda Nobuna.

    Reply
  15. Ok… I’m new to this, but still, WTF is going on?
    For the most part, I don’t get the concept of voting for the most hyped up but shit shows, or the best show of the year. They are completely different concepts, how can you fucking mix those together???
    Secondly, I don’t think anyone’s qualified to vote for such a thing, unless they’ve seen every fucking show aired in that year, which I very much doubt that many people do. I only know a few people who do. That’s why there are committees for these things. But then again, this is a fan post.
    On another note, of the shows listed above, I’ve only seen 3. Which I’m sure I watched so fucking much more shows than that in that year.
    I also would like to apologize for any inconveniences I may have caused. As I said, I’m new!

    Reply
    • He is looking for shows to put down. What is a show that you did not think was good, but lots of other people liked?

      TL Note: For some reason trying to type in simple English makes me want to use only my index fingers.

      Reply
    • Welcome.

      D_S likes to mix shit up. Get used to it :P

      You don’t have to be “qualified” to vote when it’s subjective. You just vote for which show you liked or hated most, or in this case, both.

      But I guess it really is pointless to vote when D_S is probably just going to totally disregard the poll and watch some shit like AKB0048 :'(

      Reply
  16. >mfw I can’t vote for SAO for most overrated show

    SAO is probably the most overrated show since Madoka, and those two are easily the most overrated shows in the past like 5 years. The hype and fanboyism around them is ridiculous.

    Also Space Bros best show.

    Reply
    • I would say SAO is more overrated than Madoka ever was. I mean for someone not a fan of either franchise I found it easier to get into Madoka than into SAO since SAO to me started off to slow and become too annoying to bother following after episode 2. Although the BD specials were fun with Offline best bit of the anime to be honest.

      Reply
        • Yea SAO got hyped up way to much before it aired and while it aired you got SAO fans hype it up too much but I hardly found it to be as good as its hype, I mean out of 2012 Sakurasou was the best for me. Well to be fair Madoka was short and straight to the plot without any fillers and it did ease you into the show much better than SAO did but got to admit its not for everyone.

          Reply
  17. Disclaimer: below are just my opinions, even if my limited bakagaijin vocabulary delivers some lines as if those were objective facts.

    The bad:

    Accel World – is it overrated? I mean, do a lot of people think it is actually good? All my friends watched it, but nobody enjoyed it. Overhyped would probably be a more fitting description.
    Every single character except one is an idiot; problems MC had to face IRL in the second half were ridiculous and the non-solutions were even more ridiculous…
    The kind of show that you watch while constantly facepalming. Maybe I cannot understand what fat otaku weaklings have to live through? Oh wait, I am a fat otaku weakling and I still find MC pathetic here.

    The good:

    Kokoro Connect – emotional trollercoaster at its finest. Gets somewhat repetitive after first arc, but recent four episodes more than make up for it.
    Psychological, but neither “deep” as in “last episodes of Evangelion are deep” nor using forced boring lectures that do nothing for plot or character development; a story that can change the nature of a man, or rather make a man think about his nature.

    Tasogare Otome x Amnesia – would have been “average” if not for the ending. I do not want to spoil anything so I’ll just say that very rarely endings like this feel “proper”, neither dragged out, nor rushed, not fanservice-y or openly referencing something just for the hell of it, not contradicting previous plot points or otherwise leaving a bad aftertaste.

    The average:

    Joshiraku “features unobtrusive dialog” on political/economical/social or “meta” stuff. All the time. Okaeri Zetsubou Sensei…
    I enjoyed the show, but realise that it is certainly not everyone’s cup of tea.

    Hyouka is OK, not really great, but not bad either. Moeshit amount was just right, enough to generate a huge fanbase (and appeal to KyoAni regulars), but not enough to completely crush the plot underneath it.

    Tsuritama is… weird. Not in a “lolrandom=comedy” way. That and “nakama shounen” core but with fishing in place of generic martial arts or proxy battles made me consider dropping the show more than once.

    Also average: Ikoku Meiro no Croisée, Nazo no Kanojo X, Sankarea. These three are fine in their own ways, but nowhere near AOTY candidates.

    Reply
    • “Tasogare Otome x Amnesia – would have been “average” if not for the ending. I do not want to spoil anything so I’ll just say that very rarely endings like this feel “proper”, neither dragged out, nor rushed, not fanservice-y or openly referencing something just for the hell of it, not contradicting previous plot points or otherwise leaving a bad aftertaste.”

      I have never disagreed with an opinion more than I do right now. The ending DOES contradict previous plot points and DOES leave a bad aftertaste. Did you not watch the last minute of the episode or something? I really do not see how you can justify anything here. It’s an insult to everyone who ever took the show seriously.

      I would like to say more, but i’m afraid of dipping into spoiler territory.

      Reply
  18. Voted for Hyouka and Tsuritama for being excellent and Accel World for being an overhyped, overrated, steaming pile of dog shit.

    Reply
  19. Watching Accel World from where I left off, and what the fuck is wrong with people? Why would anyone watch this of their own volition?

    I now remember why I quit watching it at episode 8 — I was vomiting so much I thought I was gonna puke up my intestines.

    Reply
        • There are a lot of areas where Accel World could use improvement, but it’s been a pretty crappy year and there aren’t many that I actually liked. Even Hyouka bored the hell out of me on several occasions.

          Reply
        • Why would you Dark_Sage? After watching such an realistic setup of human interaction! Who wouldn’t agree that the lusting of at least 2 hot high school girls over one fat guy, who can’t do anything for about half of the show is an everyday happening and completely normal.
          As a girl I can say that this show must have done great deeds for emanticipation in Japan! Just look at the level 9 burst linker Snow Black who can do nothing without her cute kouhai.
          Rant finished…I still gave it a 5 cause it was at least entertaining.

          Reply
  20. Go ahead and bash on Accel World then.

    I saw about half of that list and don’t really have strong feelings about any of them, except
    (1) ugh Accel World
    (2) wtf that Tasogare Otome x Amnesia ending

    Hyouka and Kokoro Connect were decent, out of those.

    Didn’t watch it, but supposedly Oda Nobuna may be like top tier among genderswap Sengokushits?

    Reply
  21. > most overrated piles of shit

    > Hyouka (35%)
    > Kokoro Connect (26%)
    > Accel World (21%)
    > Tasogare Otome x Amnesia (12%)
    > Sankarea (11%)

    Looks alright to me.

    Reply
  22. I’m currently watching Hyouka, I’m up to episode 11. From what I’ve watched, I think I can say it is the best show of 2012, although Kokoro Connect is equally good. Accel World, Tari Tari, Sankarea and Oda Nobuna are also really good.

    Reply
  23. Best 3 of 2012:
    1. Fate/Zero 2nd Season
    2. Jinrui wa Suitai Shimashita
    3. Tie: Space Brothers and Kokoro Connect
    Worth Mentioning:
    Sakamichi no Apollon
    Hyouka

    Reply
  24. No Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou? Did you already watch that, D_S?

    Out of this list, I only watched three. Kokoro Connect is my favourite.

    I refuse to watch SAO. It looks terrible.

    Reply
  25. I’d like to add Moyashimon NEXT in the under-the-radar column. I’ve only watched two eps so far and it’s not quite as good as the first season, but in terms of bringing something unique to the anime landscape, you’d be hard-pressed to find anything similar.

    Reply
  26. Nazo no Kanojo X’s music was probably my favorite OST this year, and while the anime didn’t stack up to the manga as much as it could have, it was still quite good.
    Then again, I generally prefer those non J-pop soundtracks.

    Reply
  27. Hyouka and Sankarea were pretty overrated shows to me, because at times they can get boring. But I’m just not a fan of slice of live and moe. Regardless I would recommend watching Hyouka, cause it has great animation and at times even plot.
    I really liked InuxBoku, the ending was nice. AKB was one of those animes I watched with the expectation to drop it after the first episode…but then it got me hooked! It has good plot and nice characters and even without knowing AKB before the insert songs were catchy.
    Great to know, that I’m not the only one who loves Shinsekai Yori.

    Reply
  28. AKB0048 and Milky Holmes II
    were best non-popular shows of the year.
    AKB was the best show on the list by far, with hyouka being the only competition.
    PapaKiki was ok, but incomplete…the same can be said for the rest of the manga adaptations I watched

    Reply

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