Red Data Girl Archives | 100 Word Anime

Maybe it is because I’ve recently watched Tsurune but I wanted to come back to this list. There’s been a minor change to the order and the addition of Masaki to the list. Why not Minato? Because he isn’t quite ripe just yet. Give him a few more seasons (assuming the anime gets any more) and he’ll definitely find his place.

Please note: there may be some spoilers below.

Honourable mentions this week go to Sailor Mars and Madoka. Also adding in Borgoff Marcus from Vampire Hunter D who dropped out from 5th place.

Number 5: Miyuki from Red Data Girl

We see Miyuki training at archery regularly and we know he was trained as a mountain monk. Throughout the series we see him use both the bow and a staff to try to defend Izumiko (though his spiritual power is a little low when not being given a boost by Wamiya). Still, he looks pretty good when drawing his bow.

Number 4: Yona from Akatsuki no Yona

It would be almost criminal to make this list and not include Yona. She starts out having never been allowed to touch weapons and she spends a lot of time training. Yet all that hard work pays off because she becomes very competent with that bow by the end of the series. This one I particularly like because she didn’t start off an amazing archer but we saw her develop this skill over the course of the series.

Number 3: Masaki from Tsurune

No matter how you look at it, Masaki is gorgeous to look at when he is shooting. So calm and stable. Unlike so many other characters on this list he isn’t shooting to harm or to defend himself. He’s simply embracing the art itself and it is beautiful to watch. As someone who had to recover from target panic, he’s come along way and while he might make some missteps, he is really the coach the boys needed and has done a great job at helping them along. Really hope this gets another season and really hope to see more of Masaki shooting.

Number 2: Tigre from Lord Marksman and Vanadis

The show is called Lord Marksman so of course there was an archer involved and Tigrevurmud Vorn (no wonder he gets called Tigre) is the main character. In fact, bows are looked down upon as a coward’s weapon and one of not much use early in this series and Tigre faces all kinds of discrimination from the other Lord’s. However, that doesn’t last as Tigre shows time and again what a bow can do in the hand of a competent user. He wins the trust of Eleonora who ends up backing him as he fights to first defend his lands and then his kingdom from invasion.

Number 1: Ishida from Bleach

It was always going to take something a little bit special to beat Tigre on this list, but Ishida is always going to hold a special place in my heart. My favourite character from Bleach and proving just how cool a bow can be, Ishida well and truly deserves the number one spot on my list. I also love the variations of ‘bow’ Ishida uses throughout the series and it was always interesting seeing how Ishida adapted to different enemies. A far more refined fighting style than Ichigo’s swing the sword and see if it connects approach.

And that’s my list this week but I’ll hand it over to you and ask who your favourite anime archers are.

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Karandi James

While P.A. Works doesn’t excite me as much as BONES when looking for anime to watch, I have to admit, over the years P.A. Works have definitely been responsible for some of my favourite anime – and some that I’m not so fond of. Today I’m listing my favourite 5. No real criteria other than I enjoyed them. Basically all of these are really pretty anime (though the other common feature will be slightly problematic storylines). Feel free to add your favourite in the comments or tell me which studio you like.

For patrons my lesser 5 are up though there are actually only 3 titles on my list of P.A Works anime that I just don’t like (though there’s a few I’ve yet to see).

Please Note – There will be spoilers below.

Honourable mentions go to: True Tears and Hanasaku Iroha. A more recent entry would be Sirius the Jaeger. I really enjoyed it but couldn’t justify moving anything else off the list.

Number 5: Charlotte

For all the complaints about the story in this anime, I loved Charlotte. It started off really ho-hum and then it just took off and while not every part of it landed smoothly it was ambitious and it worked really hard. Plus, there was just kind of something about Charlotte that appealed to me. Whichever way, this is an anime that stuck with me after I finished watching it and every now and then I go back for another run through it just to see if I’m deluding myself but I always enjoy that watch.

Number 4: Red Data Girl

Another one where it is pretty easy to make fun of the story. Admittedly, I don’t like the rest of the series as much as I loved the first three episodes, but I still really enjoyed it. There are some good ideas and visually it is great. The story itself doesn’t really manage to achieve what it sets out to do, much like Charlotte it is overly ambitious, but it is entertaining and I quite liked the journey this anime took us on.

Number 3: Another

Classic horror, of course Another made the list. When you take P.A. Works and their very pretty, atmosphere dripped animation and couple it with horror you have a recipe for something very beautiful (in a gore covered fashion). Again, it isn’t like Another isn’t without a few issues in its story but it is great for the horror fans fo the world as this slow burning story plays out before we go to the climax where clearly the writers just went for maximum carnage (though they weren’t willing to knock off the main characters which kind of took a bit of the suspense out of it all).

Number 2: Angel Beats

It really was difficult to not put this at number 1. It is one of my favourite anime ever and it makes me laugh and cry every single time I watch it. There are some amazingly beautiful scenes in this anime as well as some awesome music. The characters are all really interesting (not very believable but interesting) and the story just drags you in and you just want to know why the characters are where they are and what they will do next. I love the crazy and over the top violence of this paired with the quieter refective moments and while I know it isn’t to everyone’s taste Angel Beats will always come up if I’m discussing my favourite anime.

Number 1: Uchouten Kazoku

So what can beat Angel Beats? Try a family of Tanuki living in Kyoto. Four brothers all working to overcome the death of their father in their own special way (including one who chose to transform into a frog and live in a well) while trying to avoid being eaten themselves. This has magic, great dialogue, humour, interesting characters, some interesting action sequences, and a lot of heart. It’s brilliant. It’s also one of those anime that I keep forgetting about until I see it again and then I remember how amazing it is. Definitely worth a watch if you haven’t seen it before. And they’ve announced a second season which normally doesn’t get me overly excited but this world was just amazing fun (please don’t mess it up).

So that’s my list this week. Your thoughts?

Thank-you for reading 100 Word Anime.
Join the discussion in the comments.
Karandi James