Shopping Guide
From Aug. 14–19, Anime!Anime! conducted a reader survey. Twenty anime titles that remind one of the arrival of summer where lined up, and readers chose from them three anime. The survey received over 600 respondents, and the top 10 results will be introduced here. Of respondents, 60% were male and 40% were female.
■ Recent anime dominated the ranking - No. 1 is Anohana followed by Summer Wars and Free!
Shining at No. 1 is Anohana: The Flower We Saw that Day. It received an impressive 40% of the votes. Broadcast in 2011, the series is a wildly hot topic with a live-action drama broadcast confirmed and the same staff working on the forthcoming Anthem of the Heart.
At No. 2 is director Mamoru Hosoda’s Summer Wars. This also received high support just like Anohana, gathering 40% of the votes. Hosoda’s newest film The Boy and the Beast is currently in theaters and gaining high acclaim, and a reason for this title being chosen may have something to do with it having “summer” in its title.
Free! came in at No. 3. With its first season in 2013 and second season in 2014, the series’ popularity spread due to the TV anime. The series is likely associated with summer due to it broadcasting during summer, being set in a swimming club, and constantly showing guys in swimwear. Votes for this series overwhelmingly came from females.
From No. 4 onward, things get even closer in terms of number of votes. Just like Summer Wars, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is another of director Hosoda’s works. Compared to No. 5, it had a difference of 0.3% of the votes. Its outcome also seemed to be influenced by the broadcast that just began with a Friday roadshow.
Tied for No. 5 are the two works Air and Waiting in the Summer. Having broadcast in 2005, Air is the oldest TV anime within the top 10 on the list. Waiting in the Summer is a series also directed by Tatsuyuki Nagai of Anohana with character designs by Masayoshi Tanaka as well.
On the whole, except for My Neighbor Totoro, the results show a relative favoring of recent anime. There are also several series on the list created by the same staff, including directors Hosoda and Nagai. It appears that how summer is expressed and drawn in anime is something that lingers in the hearts of viewers.
“Anime That Remind Us of the Arrival of Summer” (Multiple choice, up to 3)
1. Anohana: The Flower We Saw that Day
2. Summer Wars
3. Free!
4. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time
5. Air
5. Waiting in the Summer
7. Higurashi When They Cry
8. Big Windup!
8. Nagi-Asu: A Lull in the Sea
10. Tari Tari
10. My Neighbor Totoro
(Survey Period: Aug. 14 (Fri.) – Aug. 19 (Wed.), 2015)
Source: animeanime