(Everything is split into +/ /- to define quality within groups; a '+' indicates that it was close to the above number whereas a '-' indicates the opposite)
10: The best of the best -- an experience I enjoyed enough that I don't care about any flaws.
(Something here usually will either capture something I find special and/or impress me with how well it's put together.)
[In grading terms, this would be an A+.]
9: A great experience, but falls a little short of one I can call the best.
(At this level I still notice things that bother me about the show, but they’re not omnipresent or enough of gripes to tarnish much about the experience.)
[In grading terms, this would be an A or A-.]
8: A very good experience, but one that had at least one crippling flaw dragging it down.
(I first and foremost respect something about these shows, and if I think others will feel the same way I'll happily recommend anything here or higher. That being said, they still have a pretty clear issue that I can't ignore.)
[In grading terms, this would be a B or B+.]
7: A good experience, but a pretty noticeably flawed one.
(These are shows that I enjoyed comfortably overall, but also shows I can tear into and criticize a lot about. I'm mostly indifferent on recommending these; I will only do so if I think it'll match the person's taste.)
[In grading terms, this would be a B- or C+.]
6: A positive experience, but not significantly so.
(This is where I start to think shows aren't very good -- I enjoyed these more than not, but it was close. A lot of hot messes and mostly forgettable experiences go here.)
[In grading terms, this would be a C or C-.]
5: A negative experience, but not significantly so.
(This is about where I start considering shows 'a waste of time' if watched for unironic enjoyment; I definitely don't hate these, but they were not good. Shows where my enjoyment was ~neutral also go here -- if I didn't really care either way, then what was the point?)
[In grading terms, this would be a D or maybe even an F.]
4: A bad experience, but one with a few redeeming factors.
(This is where I start putting shows I found aggressively bad. There were enough things I liked about them that I don't quite hate these, but I certainly don't think those parts were enough to overcome all of the bad things.)
[In grading terms, this would be an F.]
3: A very bad experience, but one that manages to at least do a couple things right.
(This is where I start to hate shows -- I generally hate anything here or below that wasn't watched for ironic enjoyment. There’s tangible moments I liked, but they are few and far between.)
[In grading terms, this would be a rather large F. Like, the word FAILURE stamped at the top of your work.]
2: A dreadful experience, but they have something I appreciated enough to give them minimal credit.
(This might be my hardest score to achieve. I hated anything I’m putting here (outside of memes), but still found some unironic value in them — just very little.)
[In grading terms, I would simply take your assignment and put it into a paper shredder.]
1: The worst of the worst -- an experience that had no noteworthy redeeming qualities.
(The only real enjoyment I found here was ironic; I loathed watching anything here if I wasn't just laughing at it.)
[In grading terms, I would take your assignment and light it on fire in front of you. This is probably why I'm not a teacher.]
Notes:
-Shows being bad in funny ways is a lot better than them being bad in boring ways.
-I find most stories are more enjoyable than not; therefore I would argue the most average quality anime out there is somewhere around a high 6.
-Every show has flaws, so the hallmark of a 10 can't be perfection; therefore I would argue a 10 is any show the viewer enjoys enough to not want to pick at anything.
-On-Hold is a pretty useless section for anime, so I mostly use it to help sort my extensive Plan to Watch.
-If something doesn’t have a blurb, it usually means that I watched it recently and am still unpacking my thoughts on it.
-I tend to change my opinions slightly over time.
-I'm easier with my scores than most critically inclined people out there (something I'm pretty happy with, actually) but for those who think I have too many 10s or something just subtract two-thirds from my scores for a more 'conventional' scale.
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I don't drop anime because I'm not a coward. (In other words, I enjoy picking things apart and also have an insatiable sense of curiosity.)
I'm also not one for milestones... but my 666th anime completion was Sono Bisque Doll and I think that's kinda funny.
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