I've only thought about series, but here are the top five that are seared into my mind. #5 Katanagatari If you've watched this you probably already know I'm going to say... (SPOILER) Togame's...
I've only thought about series, but here are the top five that are seared into my mind.
#5 Katanagatari
If you've watched this you probably already know I'm going to say... (SPOILER)
Togame's death.
Having been pretty skeptical of watching this in the first place, I made it that far and did not see this coming at all. I was totally dumbstruck. I'm thankful that I didn't see this when it originally aired, because there was no way I would have been able to wait a month for the next episode.
#4 Mononoke
The exorcism sequences.
I would link the first scene, but the only high-quality sources I can find are on YouTube, and their video compression simply cannot do it justice. If you are interested in this show at all (and you definitely should be, it's truly a work of art!), don't try to find out too much, just go in blind.
This just blew me away when I first saw it. I still think of this anime as the benchmark for art direction, and any of those scenes could probably qualify as the best-looking clip I've seen in the animated visual medium, period.
#3 Shigurui: Death Frenzy
Irako Seigen vs. Iwamoto Kogan fight
Even without knowing how the details of this scene fit into the wider context of this near-masterpiece of a show, this video speaks for itself.
#2 Aku no Hana
The classroom scene.
This show is SO good at building tension, and this scene was almost as cathartic a release for me as it was the characters. At the end of this episode, I was just stunned. Lovely cinematography as well.
#1 Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex: 2nd Gig
When the Tachikoma... (SPOILER)
sacrifice themselves to stop the nuclear attack.
The Tachikoma are one of the best examples of character development I've seen in anime, if not the best. By the time this played out, I couldn't believe those silly little spider tank robots managed to make me shed a tear..
So, what are yours, and why? Please tag spoilers as necessary!