Fanart of Mikuru and Tsuruya from "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya", wearing their outfit from episode 12. Probably the best anime I've seen this past couple of years. Too bad it's only 14 episodes, and it's almost finished - but a second season should be on the air next year.

To those who've never heard of it, it's the story of Haruhi Suzumiya, a cute, smart hyperactive and extremely egocentric high school girl who is possibly god herself (but she doesn't know it). With an alien, a time traveller, and an esper in the cast the story is unusual enough, but the winning factor to me is the fact that the story is told and narrated by Kyon, a normal person (you don't see much of them in animes) who provides articulate commentaries on what otherwise is a slapstick situation. The episode order is also unusual, not being chronological at all but I think suits the quirkiness of the series well.

One thing this series does have is cuteness. Although the character themselves are pretty standard "moe" types, the animation quality is superb and some scenes just oozes cuteness. By themselves each character would be stereotypical, but they are put together so brilliantly that I'm starting to become a fan of the Moe style. Even Kyon's little sister (who's not even important enough to be given a name) has extremely cute scenes.

For someone who overanalyses anime like me, this anime is all I can hope for with so much originality and variety, and the voice actors/actresses are also great (I really like the insert songs in ep 12). And it's not like it's free of blood, as episode 10 has a great action scene with the battle between the two alien girls.