Well, I'm a sucker for romance, and BSSM has it in high dosage. But beyond that, it's a story with many endearing characters, emotional themes, and memorable music. Of course, I started out by watching this on television, dubbed, and I'm too embarassed to say how old I was when I was still waiting for it to show every afternoon. What can I say? Something about the characters, something about the storyline hooked me even throught the hacking of the dub. But once I found out that there were more than a hundred episodes out there that I had never seen, I found my way into the online BSSM world...and the rest is history. ^_^
Card Captor Sakura
It quite honestly took me a long time to get truly addicted to Card Captor Sakura. The early episodes always had some cute moments, but overall the plot moved awfully slow. That's not to say I didn't enjoy them, but it was when the show finally moved on to the later plot arcs that I was definitely in love. Shaoran and Sakura's relationship, which gets more focus in the second half of the show, is one of the sweetest developments in the show, subtle and well-paced, and in my opinion, matching Kaitou Saint Tail's couple, Meimi and Asuka Jr, for cuteness. Characters such as Touya and Yue and the stories behind them, also made me a permanent addict of this show, as well as the layered plot and the wide range of adorable characters (Yamazaki and Chiharu, anyone? :).
Fruits Basket
Hands down the best anime series of 2001, it's actually no surprise that the show is based on the popular manga series still running in Hana to Yume. Still, the anime itself has lovely music (the opening is my favorite), and does a wonderful job expressing the emotional depth of the story and characters. I love Kyo, and Hatori's story (episode 8) ranks among my most favorite individual episodes ever (probably right alongside the second half of episode 8 from Kare Kano).
Hana Yori Dango
I think I was probably hooked on this series by the scene that Makino declared herself to be a "no-brand woman" and rejected Doumyoji's arrogant offer of a relationship when no one was looking. (Serves him right! :P) Or maybe it was when Doumyoji woke up early on the first day of school with the brilliant idea to harass Makino by dangling a caterpillar-ish thing in her face. Gripping even when predictable and involving though at times repetitive, this series had me immersed in watching this story with these amazing characters.
Hime-chan no Ribbon
I didn't expect to be addicted to Hime-chan's Ribbon, but once I started watching I simply couldn't stop. Every episode was genuinely heartwarming, and I couldn't but help and like Himeko - and I loved Daichi too. I mostly enjoyed watching those two develop a strong friendship, reinforced in things like the Valentine's Day episode, or in the episode where Hime-chan tries to write her own romantic play. It was just the little touches in this show, as when Daichi opened his umbrella to protect him and Himeko from the splashing of rain puddles by an oncoming car, or when Himeko left a batch of "Pokota" cookies for him in their secret hideout, that made me love it all the more. I enjoyed the show so much that I went and bought all ten volumes of the manga--this is very rare, indeed. ^_-
Kaitou Saint Tail
Kaitou Saint Tail was the first series to have me in the throes of agony as I waited for the next episode to download. I didn't have any high expectations for it first - but the parallel relationships between Haneoka and Asuka Jr, Kaitou Saint Tail and Asuka Jr, made for an engaging story. Just a light touch of romance here and there made every episode sweet and worthwhile, such as the mirror episode (13). And in my opinion, no other series finale has matched the beauty of the ending of Kaitou Saint Tail (episodes 39-43), which resolves the themes of the show superbly as well as giving the characters a heartwarming conclusion.
Kareshi Kanojo no Jijou
It's not even funny how many times I've watched the beginning episodes of this series. Gainax's screwy style sometimes elevates, sometimes degrades the original story, but the characters are always fabulous and I was adoring Miyazawa, Arima, and the story before I had even seen it - I had read about it first in someone else's review and I was hooked. Miyazawa and Arima are by far my favorite characters, although I think Maho is pretty psycho too (in a good way). Incredibly romantic while still maintaining a deeper (and darker) plot that moves along briskly as the characters develop, Kare Kano is simply marvelous. One of my most favorite series ever.
Kodomo no Omocha
At first I thought it was just headache-inducing, but I should have known better. Once I discovered why troublemaker Hayama acted all screwy, and how Sana actually cared about why...and when Sana's mother decides to publish a story that has Sana crying, worrying for the first time about her happy life. While it's better known as a series on crack, Kodomo no Omocha is a heartwarming, heartwrenching story at its core, and is even more memorable for that.
Princess Tutu
My favorite anime from 2002, I haven't finished watching the series yet--but it's already made its way to my favorites list. What's so special about it? The originality, the characters, the story--every episode has me waiting desperately for more. The way it combines fairy/folk tales and classical music make for an extremely special show, and not to mention, Ahiru and Fakia are two wonderful, complicated characters who struggle to do what is best.
