Ranking of Key Visuals 2021

It's December - exactly three weeks before the end of the year, to be precise. You know what that means? It means that time has come to look back on the year and its many bangers. This is Erufailon4's Best Anime of 2021 series, part 1: my top 10 key visuals of the year. 

Included may be any anime series that aired at least a half of its episodes in 2021, and anime movies that were released in my home country (and usually also internationally) during the year. Without further ado, let's get started. 

10. Takt op. Destiny KV2 

It's not a very flashy or otherwise eye-catching KV, but despite that I personally like it quite a bit. Takt op. Destiny is a road trip series (at least that's my impression based on the admittedly few episodes I have seen) and this KV certainly communicates it at a glance. Having the characters in the middle third and the upper and lower third be filled with the open blue sky and the asphalt of the road creates a nice balance. The character art is nothing special but the poses do represent their personalities pretty well. 

9. Evangelion 3.0+1.0 Beach Poster (Sunset Ver.) 

This is the first time Shin Eva appears in this list, but it's not going to be the last. Now, as I have talked about previously on this blog, I have a bit of a relationship with this franchise. To put it simply: I love it. That's why this poster is so beautiful to me - seeing these characters waving goodbye to the audience in the twilight of their long story is a sight that would make any Eva fan emotional. There's gonna be more Shin Eva goodness further down the road, so I'm gonna save the image analysis for that. 

8. Blue Period KV1 

I have to say I wasn't very impressed with the first 2 episodes, so I to this day haven't watched further than them. Regardless, it's hard to deny the quality of this KV. Even with the little I've seen of the series I understand how important the blue-tinted view of Shibuya at dawn is to the protagonist, and this KV captures its cold, dream-like beauty really well. The canvas in the middle is a clever way to visually highlight the protagonist. 

7. Ranking of Kings KV1 

It was about damn time the anime this blog post was named after appeared in the list. Ranking of Kings is a unique and refreshing take on high fantasy and this KV illustrates it dramatically, with little Prince Bojji in the center facing off the big world with his companion Kage on his side, the rays of light from the sky shining down on them. It's powerful, eye-catching and beautiful. The reflections in the swords and the shield also tease future locations and characters - only one of those I'm currently familiar with, as I'm regrettably quite behind on the series. 

6. Evangelion 3.0+1.0 Train Tracks Poster 

As promised, here's some more Shin Eva goodness. Train tracks are a common sight to fans of Eva and Hideaki Anno, which should surprise no-one as his love for trains is only second to Makoto Shinkai's. This particular angle is older than you'd think: it first appeared in an early poster sketch for End of Eva, and later in the poster of Anno's live-action film Shiki-Jitsu. And for a good reason: the composition takes better advantage of the vertical shape of a poster than perhaps any other entry on this list. The train tracks effortlessly guide the viewer's eye between the title at the bottom and Shinji in the distance at the top. 

5. 86 Part 2 KV 

Good god, I love 86. Brilliant series, one that you'll certainly see on my top 10 anime list later this month. This KV in particular is excellent: the burning cityscape, Shin's grim look of determination, the red streak in Lena's hair. All brought together by good compositing work. *chef's kiss* 

4. Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song KV1 

They really should've just used this as the main KV of the series. Nothing that came after it comes even close to its gorgeousness and dramatic flair. The duality of its two potential futures is visualized in a striking way and the protagonist herself walks up towards this dichotomy of chaos and harmony with her arms spread out and a song - a Fluorite Eye's Song - on her lips. 

3. Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid Season 2 KV3 

Maidragon was a new discovery for me this year, and I ended up enjoying it more than I thought I would. KyoAni's craftsmanship is as strong as ever, which is also evident from this KV. The fiery confrontation between Ilulu and Tohru echoes some of the many sakuga scenes of the season, while Kobayashi in the corner and the most notable side characters in the lower third remind us of the more comedic and down-to-earth (but not any less good-looking) aspects of the series. It's such a fun visual for such a fun series. 

2. Moriarty the Patriot: Part 2 KV 

"Duality" has been a bit of a running theme with these KVs, and it all culminates with this. Sherlock Holmes and William James Moriarty stand - not face-to face but their backs against each other like the two sides of the same coin - as half of London goes up in flames in the background. It's a bit of a black-and-white visual for a series that is significantly more nuanced, but it's saved by the fact that it just looks so. God. Damn. Good. Clean character art, clean backgrounds, clean effects work. Everything's so clean. If this KV doesn't convince you to give this anime a try, nothing will. 

1. Violet Evergarden: The Movie Main Poster 

And finally, the number one spot goes to an anime that needs no introduction. Violet Evergarden is a beautiful series, but this poster for its sequel movie is breathtaking on a whole another level. The incredible use of color in the background art, the detailed character drawings, the small touches added with the effects... everything comes together to depict Violet and the Major standing on a beach at the edge of the world, a moment that is as close to a dream as it is to reality (I won't spoil which one it is!). If I ever get a chance to get this poster on the wall of my room, you can bet I'm gonna take that chance. 

Next week, on Christmas Eve, I'll go over the best OPs and EDs of 2021. See you then!