Yata’s 100 Favorite Anime of the 2010s

You’ve read the title. You’ve probably seen the hype posts. If we’re really close, you’ve definitely heard me begrudgingly complain about how much time this ate up. But I’ll be damned, if I’ve watched [checks the database] 127 days worth of anime between 2010 and now, I better put those hours of staring at screens to good use and…continue to do that, this time with a bit more reflection and a lot of typing.

To be absolutely clear, this is nothing but me taking the chance to plug my hundred favorite anime of the past ten years as they sit with me right now. It is not an attempt at curating some “definitive, objective” list of anime from the 2010s, nor is it indicative of shows I A) might have loved once but outgrown, B) still like overall but haven’t felt as passionately about in the long run, or C) have yet to watch. As a result, I’ve inevitably left off a title or two or hundred that you love—but tough luck. My tastes, my biases, my list. Even as it stands, this isn’t an exhaustive rundown of what I felt was worth watching.

A quick word on eligibility: with one exception that I think you’ll find spiritually justified, all these shows began in or after 2010. Some are still being adapted or have greenlit sequels that have yet to be released, but as long as the series in question has—as of this post—fit that criteria and aired a majority of its episodes during the decade, it’s eligible for a spot. Standalone movies are not eligible (that might be its own list once I’ve seen more of them), but if they’re part of a parent franchise that aired an eligible TV counterpart, I may discuss them here. Episode counts don’t reflect OVAs unless otherwise stated, and all information on the graphics should be correct as of this article’s publication in early February 2020.

The specific rankings are largely arbitrary but broadly get firmer closer to the top. Licensing information changes often, so regardless of when you access this page, if you’re looking for any show’s legal streaming status, check out Becuase.MOE. And of course, there were far more than 100 great anime this decade, so if you don’t find your favorite here, check my AniList profile to see if I’ve even watched it. Consider all the remaining 8s and 7s there which aren’t listed below my honorable mentions.

And that’s it for the preface. Without further ado, my 100 favorite anime of the 2010s:

Yata’s Top 25 OPs of 2012

Gotta give you a bit of backstory before we begin: Haru, L-K, and I founded For Great Justice in the late summer of 2014, but we had actually met each other online and started conversing about two and a half years prior. At the time, Haru and I in particular seemed to hit it off with similar taste, each of us just getting into the whole “watch a ton of shows as they air” trend, and the rest is more or less our site’s modest history. For that reason, 2012 (and its spring season in particular) has continued to hold a deep place in my heart, and lately I started getting nostalgic about those good ol’ days.

Then the epiphany hit me: that was five years ago.

My first thought was “Where the fuck did that time go?” My second was something to the effect of “You know, this would give me a reason to crank out another OPs list,” and that’s precisely what I’m gonna be doing here. If you’re familiar with my previous OP lists, the criteria and rules haven’t changed. If you aren’t, allow me to explain:

These ratings are by and large my own personal opinion (of which you are entitled to yours) and based on arbitrary factors including but not limited to melody, song composition, audio production, visual production, audiovisual sync, originality, relevance to the show (when I’m able to judge that), and my own miscellaneous personal enjoyment. Having seen a show isn’t a prerequisite for its OP to appear here, but OPs for shows I have seen are much more likely to be included and placed higher than those I haven’t, especially in this nostalgia-driven installment. The exact numerical rankings are pretty much irrelevant outside the top 10. OPs to shows which started airing before or finished airing after 2012 are eligible, but only if the OP itself first aired during that year.

Since 2012 marked the start of my anime-watching habits, this will also likely be my last retrospective Top OPs list going forward, so fasten those seat belts, plug in some headphones, and accompany me on this totally self-gratifying trip down memory lane.

Yata’s 25 Favorite Anime: 2010-2014

‘Sup folks, Yatahaze here. About a year ago, I noticed that the majority of the anime I’ve seen is recent, particularly shows from the last five years. I may not be as well-versed in series that came out before then, but I think I’ve seen enough shit and gold from this last half-decade to tell the difference between the two. From 2010 to the present day, I’ve been surprised and somewhat frustrated that a decent chuck of my favorites have escaped large-scale attention in the West. Not all of them, mind you, but a decent chunk, enough so that I decided to compile the following list of my favorite (and frankly, in my opinion the best) anime to come out of the last half-decade.