LogFAQs > #968576893

94. Monogatari
https://myanimelist.net/anime/5081/Bakemonogatari
Summer 2009 (15 episodes), Winter 2012 (11 episodes), Fall 2012 (4 episodes), Summer 2013 (26 episodes), Spring 2014 (5 episodes), Fall 2014 (4 episodes), Fall 2015 (12 episodes), Winter 2016 (12 episodes), Summer 2017 (7 episodes) plus 3 movies
My Score: 7/10, MAL Score: 8.34 S1, Im not listing all of them
Best Character: Hanekawa Tsubasa

My Hanekawa Figure: https://imgur.com/W8TYEd4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9b0BKGCr3I

Premise: After surviving a vampire attack, Araragi Koyomi was left with certain abilities. When he realizes Senjougahara Hitagi is afflicted by something strange as well, he resolves to help her.

The Good: Ah, Monogatari. This was tough to rank because I have so many conflicting opinions about it. It has lots of genres (romance, supernatural, action, mystery) but this anime isnt so easily defined because its unlike any other story Ive ever seen. Its sprawling, divided into numerous arcs. At the most basic level, Araragi usually helps a girl with a supernatural problem. In the first story (which isnt the first chronologically its a series thats even complicated to figure out how watch!) he helps Senjougahara with her mysterious weightlessness, for example.

There are lots of deep themes, and even while watching it I felt like lots of it went over my head. Even for confused viewers like myself, however, Monogatari is so stylized that its still fun to watch. It has beautiful animation and art. Even the most straightforward scenes are filled with things like still frames of text and lots of jumpy cuts from strange angles. Monogatari is a unique series, and when its good its really damn good. Hanekawa and her arcs were my favorites, as Ill cover in her write-up, but I liked most of them.

The Bad: When Monogatari is bad, its really damn bad. This series has enough arcs that are all so different from each other that it manages to hit the entire scale of 1/10 to 10/10. Tsukihi Phoenix is one of the worst things ever, and no one can convince me otherwise! That toothbrush episode should be erased from reality. Thankfully, there were only four arcs I considered bad, so its easy to ignore them and give Monogatari a decent ranking. The thing that mainly holds it back is that I hate Araragi. Yes, I enjoyed this in spite of its main character. There were times where his self-sacrificing nature made things compelling, but hes also an annoying pervert who sexually assaults all the ladies, including a little girl.

Overall: Monogatari was difficult to rank, difficult to describe, and difficult to fully understand. Still, it was also worth the effort! I dont like Araragi, but there are countless wonderful stories worth watching despite him. Even at its absolute worst, Monogatari had stylized animation that was interesting to see. And when it was good, like in the Hanekawa arcs, it was one of the best things Ive ever seen. I think everyone should give Monogatari a try just for the experience of watching it alone.

Anyway, Ive also included my story arc and character rankings. I didnt rewatch Monogatari for this ranking (its way too long to rewatch on a whim) but I posted these after I first saw it. I guess potential spoilers for character and arc names for anyone who hasn't seen this and wants to go in fully blind.

STORY ARC RANKING
Tsubasa Tiger > Kizumonogatari > Tsubasa Family > Hitagi End > Tsubasa Cat > Suruga Devil > Mayoi Jiangshi > Shinobu Time > Ougi Dark > Mayoi Snail > Shinobu Mail > Suruga Monkey > Hitagi Crab > Nadeko Medusa > Ougi Formula > Mayoi Hell > Hitagi Rendezvous > Yotsugi Doll > Nadeko Snake > Sodachi Lost > Sodachi Riddle > Karen Bee > Tsukihi Phoenix

(Tsubasa Cat and above were all amazing and then it's a steady downfall in quality until we reach the bad tier at the Sodachis and below.)

CHARACTER RANKING
Hanekawa > Shinobu > Kaiki > Ougi > Hachikuji > Ononoki > Kanbaru > Senjougahara > Nadeko > Tsukihi > Sodachi > Karen >>>>>>> Araragi