Favorite Japanese Animation Studio

[rocklobster]

Early in my time on this site, I did a poll about various anime studios in Japan. I decided to revisit it just to see which studios have the most fans here. Personally, I like the following in descending order: (I've included examples from each)
Ghibli (Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke)
Bones (Eureka Seven, Heroman, Wolf's Rain)
Sunrise (Gundam franchise, Inuyasha)
Madhouse (Monster, Paranoia Agent, Trigun)
Gonzo (Last Exile, Tower of Druaga, Chrono Crusade)
Pierrot (Bleach, Saiyuki)
Toei (Galaxy Express 999, Dragonball franchise)
So, let's see what happens!

[Atria35]

My vote goes to Madhouse. Pretty much all their series have top-notch animation, plus the majority of my favorite series come from them. They're eye-candy for the soul.

[the_wolfs_howl]

I chose Bones, because I love the way every anime of theirs I've seen looks. They have this really beautiful, sharp style that I just adore. Even in a show like Scrapped Princess, where I didn't particularly like the story, I was totally in love with Pacifica's curly hair <3

...and it miiiight have something to do with Bones being the studio that did my favorite anime of all time, Full Metal Alchemist

Of course, that's not to say that I don't love some of those other ones too. Bones just comes out on top for me.

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

Studio Brains Base has done Baccano!(10/10), Durarara!!(9/10), Natsume Yujincho(9/10), Kure-nai(9/10), Kamichu!(9/10), and Denpateki na Kanojo(7/10). Their lowest scored title that I've seen would have been at least a 9/10 if it had gone on for longer than two fourty-nine minutes OVAs.

I'd say the answer is pretty obvious.

[blkmage]

I will say Akiyuki Shinbo and his merry band at SHAFT. They have more of a cult following, especially since not a lot of their shows make it over here. They may not always hit it out of the park and they may be plagued by production issues, but when they nail a show, they nail a show. And when they don't, there's still something interesting to glean from Shinbo's weird direction.

So this is stuff like Hidamari Sketch, the Negima?! spinoff season, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, ef, Maria+Holic, Tsukuyomi, Pani Poni Dash, Arakawa Under the Bridge, Bakemonogatari, and Madoka Magica.

[rocklobster]

For those out there who are scoffing at me for not liking Gainax, I would, if they weren't so ready to use the mind screw and sex in lieu of substance. Yes, Paranoia Agent (and others like it) use the mind screw too, but at least there's still some substance.

[mechana2015]

What, no DEEN on this list?

[ChristianKitsune]

I don't see Studio I.G....

[goldenspines]

So, are we saying animation as in art only or are we covering story quality as well (which may or may not relate to the animation)?

Regarding animation quality and not story content whatsoever in any of my comments from here on out, Studio DEEN is okay on very rare occasions (mainly, Vampire Knight's animation was rather pretty), everything else from them is eh.
I didn't used to like Shaft's animation until Madoka Magica. The art style of MM made me wary at first, though when it was evident they were using it cleverly, I gave them props.
I tend to always enjoy the clean cut and flowing work of both Bones and Brains Base.
Sunrise was spiffy with Cowboy Bebop and all right with Code Geass. Both seemed a bit over stylized though (CG more than CB). They pulled off Gin Tama's art style rather nicely though.
Madhouse is one of my more widely watched animation studios. Good looking stuff comes from them (i.e. Casshern Sins, Hellsing Ultimate, Paprika, Millennium Actress, and Birdy the Mighty).
Toei did great work with especially One Piece, Air, Clannad, and Heartcatch Precure all have brilliant animation quality, I think.
Pierrot gets half a vote from me. They made Tegami Bachi look gorgeous, but then they ruined it by adding terrible CGI. ;o;
And Studio I.G. gets my vote because I enjoy looking at Clamp's artwork and Eden of the East was very nice and clean cut in their animation.

EDIT: Oops, forgot that I need to add Gainax to this list because I like the animation quality of Gurren Lagann.

I don't really favor Studio Ghibli for animation quality so much (with the exception of Spirited Away), but I tend to like their creativity of story and characters much better than their animation.



Overall, I have likes and dislikes, but not really a favorite. :I

[ST. Attidude]

Decisions, decisions....

I would say Bones because of the Fullmetal Alchemist series, and one of my favorite films, Sword of the Stranger...
But then there's Studio I.G. for making the Ghost in the Shell SAC series, xxxHolic and other shows...
Manglobe for Samurai Champloo...
And there's Gonzo which have done quite a variety of animations, hit and miss ones to say the least, but nevertheless a highly talented studio...

[blkmage]

Shinbo Tier: Shaft
As explained above.

Top Tier: Kyoto Animation, Brains Base
Brains Base does consistently good stuff, as Mr. Hats'n'Clogs describes. KyoAni, for all the flak that they get for their shenanigans, still do some masterful production and writing. Clannad, Disappearance, and K-ON!! have their position at the top sealed for me.

Respect Tier: Madhouse, Bones, Production I.G.
They generally do good production on their shows and a lot of different kinds of shows. While I'm not always a fan of what they make, they have a large and diverse enough pool of stuff that I can always find something to like.

Okay Tier: Sunrise, Gainax
I don't feel like their average output is that great anymore, especially over the past decade, but they definitely come out with some gems once in a while.

（　´_ゝ`） Tier: J.C. Staff, P.A. Works, A-1 Studios
I probably give them a harder time than they deserve, since they do have some good output, but they make some baffling choices in the shows that they produce or the direction that they take them.

lol Tier: Deen, Gonzo
Like Leibniz and Newton discovering calculus, these two studios somehow independently invented efficient machines for squandering potential.