I think we all know harems based on VNs can become exasperating, when not quickly getting fully into the main heroine route (sometimes the only good one). Clannad could be an ambiguous example of this, while Shuffle is an excelent example of trolling through this and Canvas2 represents a good balance...

Althought I initially disliked the dinamic itself, the use of arcs have actually started to solve this; that way we don't need to see the entire shit, but just check on some list to know how are them organized and then wait/jump to the parts we're interested on. Yosuga no Sora made good use of this resource, whereas Amagami kind of failed because it never really had a special character/route to start with (IMHO, of course).

>>3260
>Canvas2 represents a good balance...

Can you explain more? I read one of the girl's routes in the VN, but didn't bother to watch the anime. Obviously, the VN gives you a number of girls to choose from.

>>3260

Adapting VNs is a lost cause in general and I hope someday they will finally give up on it. The only ones that could work as anime are the linear ones. Other than that it just can't work, as the only good thing about most VNs is their interactivity. Other than that, their plot is usually as forgettable as your average manga/light novel so there's really no point.

as for OP's question I agree with Death Note but overall I don't think there are that many. Of course, ~93% of anime can't keep up being as enjoable all the way through as their first few eps were but it's somewhat natural I guess, as part of the enjoyment comes from the novelty and it simply wears off over time. Gonzo used to be known for producing quality first eps. And that was all, as the rest was pretty bad (with few exceptions of course but I feel that even their flagship series such as Seto no Hanayome and NHK were getting worse with each episode - especially NHK).

I think Angel Beats could be good if you watched only some parts of it. Durarara!!'s second half was so boring and uneventful compared to the first that I think it sort of applies, too. Then again, even though it didn't match the first half's quality it's probably still better then 90% of anime out there so it would be a shame to drop.

>>3262
I may ask: what route did you finished?

Anyway: I think it was a good balance mainly because the central interest of the VN was the Elis VS. Kiri conflict (imouto VS. Osananajimi; adventure of vocation VS. stable lifestyle; bonds of blood and life renewal VS. bonds from the past and retribution) and that motto was kept on the series, leaving the rest of the girls as mere ornaments/counselors.

To be really specific: Elis route only truly develops quite lately: after the graduation ceremony; when (if you didn't fucked it up) she will be announced as eligible for a schollarship in France, thus pushing conflict to arise and Hiroki's feelings towards her to finally grow. Now, the anime understands the problem of this unbalanced timing; so it makes the announcement much earlier, letting then happening a kind of mixture between Kiri and Elis routes (a bit like Yosuga no Sora ended up mixing Nao and Sora arcs in the anime, to recreate the same conflict), wich just gets definately solved at the VERY end (and I mean it) of the series.

... and well: what else can I say? I just really liked this series, probably even a bit more than the actual game; so take all my statements here with a grain of salt.

>>3260
>Adapting VNs is a lost cause in general

I quite see your point but I have to disagree; they might NEVER be fair recreations of the games, alright, but sometimes they can become interesting revivals/re-takes/synthesis of them, turning them stories into uberclassics (v.gr. Schoold Days).

>>3317
Only Tomoko's, which didn't really have much of that conflict besides a few instances. Kiri and Elis are definitely the two girls that show up the most in the VN, outside of whoever you're pursuing, so it makes sense that's what they would focus on in the anime.

>>3257
The first two seasons of LOGH. It gets shit after then.