Five Years of Anime
When I published my first post on August 5, 2015, I had a general idea that I wanted to share my passion for anime by reviewing anime. That’s a little vague, isn’t it? I mean, there are a lot of review sites out there. I began to think about what would make my site any different from the others.
Over the years, I’ve refined my focus, and I think I have it to the point where it meets two major objectives: it reflects what I want to say, and it’s relatively distinctive. This site celebrates amazing moments in anime. I’ve focused the review format on that idea, and I’ve tried to work it into the post summaries that Twitter, Google, and others see.
I’ve also tried to improve my post format with two goals in mind. First, I wanted the post to welcome and accommodate my readers; I wanted to make it easy for them to find pieces of the post or reference the moment I’m talking about. Second, I wanted to to showcase the community of anime bloggers. That’s why most of my posts have links to reviews of the same episode on other sites. That gives the reader more material to enjoy. It also improves traffic to the other sites, even if only a little.
Confession time: I had an ulterior motive to starting the site: I wanted to test ideas for building an audience and for marketing the site. Why? So that when it came time to release my books, I’d have experience with the tools. Well, five years later, the anime site’s going strong, and I’m making progress with the books.
Maybe by the 10th year I’ll be able to celebrate Crow’s World of Anime and healthy sales of the first trilogy!
Five Most Popular Posts
I think I understand why some of these posts were popular. For others, I’m not so sure. Here’s a list of the top five most popular posts as of July 24, 2020. Note that this excludes the main page.
Fifth Most Popular Post
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Episode 17: Thunder Breathing, Only Form
This post starts a trend that you’ll see in the top five. Two in one, actually. Can you guess what it is? While you’re guessing, this was part of a collaboration with Irina from I Drink and Watch Anime. Collabs can be tough because they depend on a lot of things going right. Well, I hear they can be tough, because I’ve never experienced that. Irina makes it easy. In all of our reviews, she’s never been late once, and she always brings her A game. It really shows in this review.
Demon Slayer was hugely popular when it aired, so it makes sense that the review would do well. But just how well this post did surprised me. Maybe it had something to do with Zenitsu’s fight against Big Brother Spider and the Spider Heads. Or maybe it has something to do with the conversational tone of the collaboration. Or maybe it was the title? I’m particularly proud of this one.
I just realized that my collab reviews don’t link to other reviews. I’ll have to do something about that…
Fourth Most Popular Post
The Asterisk War Seasons 1 And 2 Episode Guide
I’ll be honest with you. This one surprised me. I keep an eye on my stats and I knew my reviews of The Asterisk War still had traction even though they came out back in early 2016, buy my episode guide for the series is my fourth most popular post.
I’m glad, because I really enjoyed the series. I loved the chemistry between Ayato and Julis. I liked the tragic elements of Claudia’s character. The animation was solid and the soundtrack by Rasmus Faber was fantastic. You can buy it from CD Japan:
Over the Christmas 2019 holiday, I took the time to update the post format for those reviews. I tidied up the images so they’d display better on mobile devices. Looks like I’ll need to add links to other bloggers’ reviews, too. These reviews pre-date that addition.
Third Most Popular Post
Review Of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Episode 03: A Long Nap And The Training Continues
The trend continues! This is another product of my collaboration with Irina from I Drink and Watch Anime. It’s another example of our collaboration on Demon Slayer. What I find curious about this entry is that it’s episode number 3. The trend I’ve seen on my site is that the first episode reviews usually score highest in a series. But not for this one. I’ll spoil a little suspense and tell you that our review of Demon Slayer episode 1 came in at number 6. Maybe by this time interest was starting to build instead of wane for the series?
Second Most Popular Post
Review Of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Episode 19: The Bonds That Tie Us And A Family Affair
Probably no surprise here. Demon Slayer episode 19 was astoundingly popular, so it makes sense it would generate a lot of interest. I still get chills when I think of the climatic fight between Tanjirou Kamado, Nezuko Kamado, and Rui. That might be one of my top ten anime moments.
Did you notice the trend? Three of the top five posts on Crow’s World of Anime were collaborations with Irina from I Drink and Watch Anime! Those reviews of Demon Slayer accounts for 10 of my top 20. I hope I Drink and Watch Anime’s stats showed a similar pattern in traffic. It was a popular collaboration for a popular series!
First Most Popular Post
5 More Funny And Light-Hearted Anime Series
This was the second of three posts where I shared funny or light-hearted anime. The first installment came in at number 25. I was glad these posts performed so well because they encapsulate my idea of celebrating anime. This post opened with Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun, which is a delightful comedy that stars Chiyo Sakura and Umetarou Nozaki. When a reader hits this post, I want them to have an affirming experience. That’s particularly true if they already like one of the series I present.
Have you ever seen that a blog has a review of a series you just adored? You dive into the review hoping to find more reasons to like it, but the review rips it apart? Maybe uses phrases like “dumpster fire,” but doesn’t explain why it’s a dumpster fire? I hate the feeling that generates. It actually pervades my opinion of some sites, and if it happens often enough, I find it a chore to visit.
I never want my readers to have an experience like that.
On a different note, you know how I’ve been on an SEO kick lately? The SEO plugin I’m using, Yoast, says the SEO for this post is terrible. Like, really, really terrible. I’m a little hesitant to mess with it, though, since it’s already my most popular post! Maybe I’ll try Yoast’s suggestions on the other two…
Thanks for Visiting!
Thanks for joining in on my fifth anniversary’s celebration! The site wouldn’t mean anything without readers like you. I hope that you enjoyed this little trip down memory lane!
Do you have a favorite post from this site? Or heck, even a favorite post from another site? Please feel free to share it in the comments!
Congrats on five years! 😀 A huge milestone to celebrate! 🎉
Thanks! I appreciate that!
Conga-rats! Five years is huge.
I’ll have to check out the Asterisk War pages… It’s not great series by any stretch, but it’s way better than magical battle at battle high school series usually manage.
Thanks!
That’s not a bad description of Asterisk War. It’s one of my favorites, but that’s because of the characters. I’m not going to pretend it’s Shakespeare! Though he was derided as a hack in his day…
Congratulations, and happy anniversary!
Congrats!
Congrats on five years Crow, it is well deserved!
Thanks! Glad you stopped by!
5 years. Wow that’s amazing, congratulations🎉🎉. I’ll be looking forward to your future posts😊.
Thanks! I’ll work hard to come up with something that’ll be fun and interesting for you to read!
I’m sure you’ll be able to come up with something interesting😊.
Happy 5th Blogiversary!
Thanks! I feel bad I didn’t offer any cake…
Congratulations on five years! Also congrats on working on your novels! It can be really hard to find time to write, I’m working on my second novel at the moment and it feels like a victory when I even put a sentence down. Have you read Stephen King’s ‘On Writing’? I found it very useful!
Thanks!
It is very hard to make time to write. Well, more accurately, it’s hard to find uninterrupted chunks of time to write a novel. If I get interrupted 10 times trying to write a Best in Show review, no big deal. I get interrupted twice trying to write a novel? I’m done. I’m holding too many variable in mind to keep reestablishing it.
So I completely get “it feels like a victory when I even put a sentence down.” It really does feel like a victory!
“Have you read Stephen King’s ‘On Writing’? I found it very useful!”
Yes! I thought it was amazing. He might be the most underrated writer of our generation. I’ve seen a lot of academics dismiss him because he’s popular. I draw a comparison to Shakespeare, because many of his contemporaries thought he was a hack. Time will tell, but “On Writing” was inspirational. Fun to read, too! Carrie came so close to not even being published!
Definitely agree about Stephen King! He’s a very thoughtful and interesting writer. It blew my mind when I heard about the Carrie manuscript almost getting chucked out, so glad it all ended well. His son also publishes novels under the name Joe Hill, you might enjoy his work too 🙂
I didn’t know about Joe Hill — thanks for the tip!
Congrats on 5 years. We already know that blogging for 5 years is a feat, especially not that many blogs last that long.
Yes, I have been using Yoast for a while now, although my theme has built in SEO functionality. I am quite curious, are you using the free version or the paid one? I never thought about getting the paid version, but the readability function from the plugin is very helpful in making the content more readable to the audience.
Thanks! And now that you mention it, it’s a bit depressing how few blogs make it this far. Lots of them seemed to have gone quiet in March/April this year. Not surprising, given everything, but still sad.
I’m using the free version right now. It’s helping me adapt my readers-first philosophy in a way that feels natural. I agree that the readability function helps. I’ve been writing for decades, and it still reminds me to cut back on passive voice. Very helpful!
My wife uses the paid version, and she swears by it. I don’t have nearly the business requirements she does. Once I start publishing novels (fingers crossed), maybe, but not right now.
Congrats on five years!
Thanks much!
Oh wow, congrats on five years! It’s so crazy to think about isn’t it along with it being no easy feat! Hope you stick around for longer!
Appreciate it! Yes, it is crazy. Never thought I’d publish 6 or 7 days a week, either. I must be insane.
Yeah, seriously. That’s crazy. 😮
Congrats on 5 years!
Thanks! It sure flew by…
It really does, doesn’t it? Especially when you’re enjoying doing it.
Congratulations for five years, keep up the great work that you are doing
Thanks! I appreciate you saying so!
I have been using Yoast on mine. I am getting more search engine hits but that’s I don’t think that’s where I get most of my new followers from. I suspect they are coming from the WordPress reader, award tag posts, and things like OWLS/JCS and the like.
Search engines are funny. Put something about “naked” or “nudist” in your keywords/keyphrases and you’ll get lots of hits, mostly from people who will never visit again once they see that you’re not a porn site. I get a ton of hits off Google that way. Most people don’t use those terms very often.
The anime-related blog posts that people hit on when they search tend all to be “Yosuga no Sora” and “Kuzu no Honkai.” I think I can guess why.
Your blog is focused narrowly on a specific subject – anime. Mine is whatever I feel like at the moment – and that can be any subject under the sun. It is also tightly organized, mine often wander. SEO will be more successful on yours.
“I am getting more search engine hits but that’s I don’t think that’s where I get most of my new followers from.”
For me, search engines are 10 to 1 over anything else. Pinterest and WordPress Reader switch places in the distant second slot. I’ve recently invested a little time in improving my Pinterest hits, and I can see it paying off.
“SEO will be more successful on yours.”
The focus really helps, at least here. I’m thinking through how I’ll organize my writing site, or my software development security sites. On one hand, they seem focused, but the topics range a lot more than here. It’s easy to optimize for SEO (well, easier) with such a narrow focus.
I don’t do Pinterest, so there is that. I just can’t work up the enthusiasm to do all the things I’d need to really maximize readership.
Great work keeping it up… Now, when are we going to get to read those novels? (I know, I’m a fine one to talk!)
Thanks! And believe me, I really, really want to get the novels in folks hands! I’m finally making progress on the beats again. I hope the recent changes you talked about on The Otaku Author are working for you!
Almost… see today’s post… work has ramped up at the moment which means the extra time I had freed up has already been absorbed, but work will quiet down again and I should see loads more time to write.
Just need to be ready to hit the jump to light speed as soon as we’re free of the tractor beam.
Glad you cut back so work didn’t bury you! Sounds like your timing was spot on, and the effects will only get better!
Congrats on 5 years! It’s been a pleasure reading your content and I am looking forward to seeing what you have in store for the future!
Thanks! Glad to hear that. Also glad you’re blogging again!
Congratulations! Here’s to another 5 years!
Thank you! That sounds like a good goal!
Oh wow 5 years! Amazing! My 5th most popular post is also on of our Demon Slayer collabs! Those were crazy
I’m glad to hear that! As far as Demon Slayer goes, those reviews continue to perform well. Too bad they can’t all do that well!
Wow! Happy early blogiversary!
Thanks! First post went live August 5, 2015. Seems like yesterday. Or maybe the day before.
You’re welcome. That’s a half decade come August 5th. That’s amazing!