The light novel – a genre which at its loosest could be defined as any novel with an anime-style cover, periodic illustrations and, of course, a sparsity of text inversely proportional to the length of its title – having apparently long since outstripped manga and visual novels as the premier source material for late night anime adaptations, it is only fitting that the best such adaptations be ranked by the viewers who lap them up.
1. Infinite Stratos
2. Sword Art Online
3. A Certain Magical Index
4. Sakura-sou no Pet na Kanojo
5. Hyouka
6. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai
7. Baka to Test
8. Ore no Imouto
9. Haruhi
10. Bakemonogatari
11. Kokoro Connect
12. Accel World
13. Chuunibyou
14. Spice & Wolf
15. Durarara!!
Why don’t people ever recognize Full Metal Panic…
Is Hyouka a light novel? I thought it’s just novel, but I might be wrong though, since I’d also considered Nisioisin’s works to be novels(jeez, not a single pic within the story and that thickness?)
Kokoro connect #11? “…………”
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!!!!!!—-
where are kara no kyoukai and fate/zero? .___.
If “A Certain Magical Index” is not on top then I call bullshit on the list.
this thing is full of awards for it story and characters:
Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! (このライトノベルがすごい!) 2009
4th Place in Best Novel Series, Kazuma Kamachi
3rd Place in Best Male Character, Kamijou Touma
1st Place in Best Female Character, Misaka Mikoto
3rd Place in Best Character, Kamijou Touma
6th Place in Best Character, Misaka Mikoto
Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! (このライトノベルがすごい!) 2010
9th Place in Best Novel Series, Kazuma Kamachi
Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! (このライトノベルがすごい!) 2011
1st Place in Best Novel Series, Kazuma Kamachi
1st Place in Best Illustrator, Kiyotaka Haimura
1st Place in Best Male Character, Kamijou Touma
2nd Place in Best Male Character, Accelerator
1st Place in Best Female Character, Misaka Mikoto
3rd Place in Best Female Character, Index
7th Place in Best Female Character, Itsuwa
1st Place in Best Character, Kamijou Touma
2nd Place in Best Character, Misaka Mikoto
3rd Place in Best Character, Accelerator
Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! (このライトノベルがすごい!) 2012
2nd Place in Best Novel Series, Kazuma Kamachi
2nd Place in Best Illustrator, Kiyotaka Haimura
2nd Place in Best Male Character, Kamijou Touma
4th Place in Best Male Character, Accelerator
1st Place in Best Female Character, Misaka Mikoto
2nd Place in Best Character, Kamijou Touma
3rd Place in Best Character, Misaka Mikoto
5th Place in Best Character, Accelerator
Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi! (このライトノベルがすごい!) 2013
2nd Place in Best Novel Series, Kazuma Kamachi
1st Place in Best Female Character, Misaka Mikoto
2nd Place in Best Male Character, Kamijou Touma
3rd Place in Best Male Character, Accelerator
Of course, rewards bought by misaka mikoto fantards who make everything for see your waifu in the top.
Only sword art online has managed to top it in rankings the last years
Wait from what i remember infinite stratos was considered as fail.
where… the FUCK. Is full metal panic?
where is hidan no aria?
Baka to Test New Season Plizzzzzz!!!
Need Moar Yoshi lol
Ha, ha, ha, it’s funny because the first four are horrible! Never change, Japan!
no Baccano!! ??? sucks list is sucks
Slayers…. I mean freaking slayers
Top 15 Anime Based on Light Novels, as voted by people whose opinions you can safely ignore.
bakemonogatari and spice and wolf so low in the list? this sucks.
Not a terrible list, though I’d change the order myself and cut it down to 10.
746 votes for IS.
Why the hell is this very popular? I guess it comes from the amount of waifus it unleashes.
Kids don’t care whether something is generic. They only care for what’s often called “wish fulfillment”, that is, being able to project themselves onto the walking plank of wood MC and pretend the girls are lusting after them. The less they can project onto the MC, and the more they have to think, rather than be titillated, the less popular it will be, and hence it won’t be on top of the list.
am I the only one who hated index? well I also hate SAO and sakura-sou, and infinite stratos looked like a really boring fanservice shit and didn’t watched in the first place
Index and no Railgun?!
Actually, that’s correct, as Railgun is garbage. 😛
That’s because Railgun is not an LN.
Hmmmm I’m surprised Tora Dora is not on the list. It started as a light novel and was a very popular series.
Mayble I’ll sound as a broken record but, no Slayers?
No Toradora? That series was a masterpiece.
I was surprised.
But then again, by otaku standards, it’s ancient history.
Toradora was magnificent!! 😀
[quote]1. Infinite Stratos[/quote]
I stopped reading here.
I stopped watching Infinite Stratos after like 3 episodes lol. Baccano!! is amazing tbh.
True popularity: Votes / Years Since Screened Squared.
I just came for the pic…
HS DXD should be on the list!
how is bakemonogatari only on 10th ?
also IS on 1st ? it was good, i really liked it, gave it a 10 out of 10, but compared to index,bokuwa tomodachi, and bakemonogotari, it pales in comparison…
Wait.. if it “pales in comparison” to other anime, then why would you give it a 10/10? I can understand “I enjoyed it a lot” but why even rate out of 10 if you’re giving away the 10s? Doesn’t that defeat the whole point of a system like that?
I’m glad I don’t need to agree with these lists. Because I don’t.
I find the lack of Fate/Zero on this list disturbing…
Because Type-Moon makes games and visual novels not light novels. There is a difference.
Oh god, I can’t believe I just read a comment this stupid and ignorant…Here, go and have a read: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fate/Zero
Zero no Tsukaima! The anime is quite average, but I enjoyed reading the LN.
Welcome to NHK not on the list?
Fuck this shit.
Index in third? Misaka Mikoto fantards trying to transform shit (index) in masterpiece.
pff
I was actually disappointed when Char (charles?) turned out to be a girl. :/
Personally, I would go for Yamada-sensei . . .
I’m disappointed at how much the fanbase eats up the reverse-trap. I’ll stick with the English ojou-sama, thank you very much.
Eh…hit and miss with this list…
As much as I disliked Chunibyou, having it ranked lower than the anime of Sword Art Online baffles me.
Bear in mind that the story of the LN is different from the anime.
Exactly. If the topic was “Top 15 Light Novels that were made into Anime.” I could understand.
Don’t care about list.
Picture fucken saved.
We have a winner!
IS is in 1st?
It was okay, but not remarkable… standard harem anime with mecha suits.
Spice and Wolf and FMP would tie first for me, the tie breaker would depend on my mood that day.
Durarara would be up there a bit, and I can’t comment on 2nd because I have not watch and 3rd is okay, but I guess more recent so it ranks higher.
Spice & Wolf so low and no Baccano?
And where’s Fate Zero?
Still believe Japanese rank ?
lurk more dude !
The list is indeed a crime.
Fate/Zero is a VN, not a LN…
Go find a rock and live under it.
They tried. Cirno had made herself a home there already.
Fate/Stay Night is a VN….Fate/Zero is a LN
You should be ashamed
Do your research before you embarrass yourself.
Fate/Zero is a novel….
The Twelve Kingdoms?
Crest/Banner of the Stars?
FMP?
No Haruhi?
At least Spice and Wolf is there, but, what? 14?
Garbage lists are garbage.
Another example of default hater of SanCom whining because your favorite titles aren’t in the list.
Haruhi is # 9.
My bad. I didn’t see that. I was looking for the full title.
Haruhi is # Shit
Orenoimo $ Tomodachi, but no FMP, at least here – on source site FMP has honorable last place with 4 votes.
I say they’re retards.
The fuck?! Bakemonogatari at 10. And SAO gets number 2. I’m really starting to worry SAO got 2nd it’s so terrible the concept is quite good but the story sucked. Yet people love this shit. I wonder how people even vote for anime nowadays.
Why is Infinite Stratos even on this list?!? It was so bad…
The animation was good, and the mecha fight scenes were actually pretty interesting. But the story was so bad and cliché, that you have to wonder if it was intentional.
I agree. I was immensely disappointed by the series – it was entirely forgettable.
Also describes SAO a bad plot that reads like a rip off of dot hack crossed with a side plot from GiTS SAC but it has nice art work ,fight scenes and some moe characters.
Of course the GiTS crew would have solved the hostage situation in a single episode.
It was intentional.If you look at it at a marketing stand point,that kind of story sells and that is exactly what he did.
Bad is your comment, loser!
Infinite Stratos, really? *doublefacepalm*
i need more hands to triplefacepalm.
i nid moar hands …
1. Infinite Stratos – Pretty but generic harem anime with archetype characters and contrived plot setting, though atypical mech designs.
2. Sword Art Online – Pretty but GODAWFUL STUPID with terrible writing. Also a harem series.
3. A Certain Magical Index – Pretty but GODAWFUL STUPID with terrible writing. Also a harem series.
4. Sakura-sou no Pet na Kanojo – Pretty and atypical but overly dramatic at times. That’s ok though, it at least only has one character that falls into generic molds. Surprisingly not a harem.
5. Hyouka – Slow paced and definately “small-scale” with its mysteries, but still somehow really engaging and entertaining. Also not a harem.
6. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai – Original characters that eskew their archetypes and humorous writing. High on fanservice and also a complete harem but still entertaining and original.
7. Baka to Test – Original characters that eskew their archetypes and humorous writing. High on fanservice but still entertaining and original, though the premise is stupid. Not a harem, but close to it.
8. Ore no Imouto – Original characters that eskew their archetypes and good writing. Entertaining and original, and almost believeable. Almost a harem, though.
9. Haruhi – Good stuff. Original, very entertaining, and a strong cast of characters (particularly the protagonist). Almost a harem, though.
10. Bakemonogatari – Good stuff. Strong writing, good cast of characters, and uniquely interesting stories. Very close to a harem setting, though.
11. Kokoro Connect – Haven’t watched it, so I defer to others.
12. Accel World – Interesting plot idea (albeit fantastical) marred by generic battle situations, standard arbitrary separations, and a completely pathetic protagonist. Interesting use of CG though, and also not a harem.
13. Chuunibyou – Interesting premise and imaginative characters (c wat I did thar?). Fun stuff if you’re looking for something wacky and/or embarrassing. Almost a harem, though.
14. Spice & Wolf – Good stuff. Slow paced and low on action but well written with interesting characters. Not a harem.
15. Durarara!! – Not as good as Baccano IMHO, but pretty good. Interesting characters and very well written, and while the “main” protagonist is kind of uninteresting the large and varied cast keep flavorful (though in some respects the cast may actually be “too” large). Not a harem.
Polls taken by young people whose perspective is the only most recent stories.
Nothing to see here.
Saying they have “perspective” of any sort is already incredibly generous. They just want to pretend they know what they’re talking about, because they’re young enough to have to justify themselves that way.
No Fate/Zero? The only reason I can possibly think of to explain it’s absence here is because the Fate universe started as a VN, if that’s not the reason then I call bs.
Spice and Wolf and Chuunibyou should be at top 5 -_- Chuunibyou novel was kinda dull though
Wasn’t Chuuni’s novel based on the anime and not the other way around?
Only ones I liked are 14 and 15 but besides Bakemonogatari I haven’t watched any of the others…
Thanks for sharing. What did you jave for breakfast today?
Today I had a french baguette with liver sausage, sunny-side up eggs and a cup of coffee. I don’t really know why you would want to know that but there you go.
Now I’m hungry. Ugh.
what about brotherhood that shit was the bomb
FMA was a manga, not Light novel…
was there a light novel about brotherhood?? did not know that
Infinite Stratos is first? Good taste.
But Index should be topping SAO.
No FMP? No Baccano? Oh, rly?
Here comes the fanboy whining because your favorite animes aren’t in the list.
someone’s probably never heard of baccano before.
No Full Metal Panic? 🙁
No full metal panic…
Seriously, why is it do hard to understand that FMP was not THAT popular in Japan. It did OK, but it was nowhere near as good a seller as other LN adaptations.
Exactly. FMP was much more popular especially in the US and other Western countries than it ever was in Japan.
oh wait, I just checked the full listing. FMP did make the list… at last (25th) place…. with 4 votes… and 24th place got over 40 votes…. and Hidan no Aria ranked 17th…. and I think I’m gonna be sick.
The vote pool seems awfully small and the options awfully limited.
still, being one of KyoAni’s earlier projects should at least make it pretty noteworthy.
While it actually was great, especially first season.
Well…no. Since it sold poorly… not that many people might have seen it. And those who saw it, and didn’t buy it, didn’t think it was a good adaptation, or good anime.
Remember that people who vote on these lists have a memory span of about 2 years at best. I agree though that FMP should be near the top.
O hey, someone else was wondering the same thing!
My thoughts exactly
IS SUCKS.
You accidentally English.
By “IS” I think Dan meant as Infinite Stratos.
Actually, he’s right. IS is an abbreviation. Then I capitalized the “SUCKS” for emphasis. I even bothered to use proper punctuation.
You know, nobody writes sensible posts with CAPS only. It is likely to be a mistake.
Hmm List seems legit.
Wow….
Is it ok.. to like everything on that list!?. Because.. I Liked it!. They were “good”.
>No High School DxD
>No OniiAi
>No Oda Nobuna.
Yep, this is a BS poll.
It looks like animes based on mangas or light novels are usually better than original animes.
infinite fucking no story stratos at first? are you kidding me?
From that list Spice and Wolf should be number 1.
Stratos, whew I thought it was infinite ryvius, that anime is fucking shit.
Infinite Stratos? Are you kidding me?
That was pure crap. Oh my god.
1. Infinite Stratos
The LN is canned/dead already. Due to the author having a bad attitude/reputation…
You need to update your news. Novel is going to be resumed in Apr. 2013
I agree with the number one. Infinite Stratos is amazing!
I disagree, but I want to know from a fans point of view on why it’s amazing.
The girls are cute, but the story is mediocre. From my perspective, if you don’t have a girl you like then this anime doesn’t offer anything else.
Because it’s designed around wish fulfillment, and does so incredibly well. All it needs is a plank of wood they can pretend is them, and a cool character or two they (ie, the MC) can aspire to be. And IS does those things perfectly without threatening to challenge them. It’s basically the perfect titillation for those who don’t want to be challenged, and just want to wind down after a day of dealing with teenage hormones as they sit in class.
Charl.
And if you read the LN, Tatenashi 🙂
Reason enough i think!
SAO wasn’t so good, and yet it has a huge hype. Not that IS was any better though.
Why is IS #1? When the anime came out people were complaining that it was too generic and despite that it still became extremely popular. And please don’t give me the “the light novel is better” because if an anime adaption with music, voice acting, and animation couldn’t convince me, then I doubt a light novel can.
“…despite that it still became extremely popular.”
You answered your own question.