1. One Piece - Random - "Rubber proves ineffective as a floatation device."
HMs:
Alex - "Man harnesses the supernatural power to become the world's most skilled lover, yet remains perpetually unsatisfied."
Andy - "Dying prisoner incites worldwide increase in crime."
Andy's is probably what I'd use in a contest, but somehow Random's caught me just the right way with an off sense of humor that still gives huge hints at the show. Props to Alex for random sex joke.
2. Bleach - Doma - "Temp tries to bring back the worker he replaced."
HM
Andy - "Mexicans declare war against fashion, die pointlessly."
Doma's is far and away the winner here.
3. Dragonball Z - Doma - "Linear fighters, quadratic monkeys."
Double here. I don't think in a million years I could come up with something as good as this.
4. Neon Genesis Evangelion - Excal - "Young hero gets his mommy to save the world."
HMs:
Djinn - "You All Have Daddy Issues."
Alex - "An isolated research station in the Antarctic wastes stumbles upon a dangerous alien life form; psychological horror ensues, ending in most of the cast transforming into grotesque monstrosities, getting blown up, or both, until the final two survivors are left alone in a nihilistic wasteland, realizing it is futile to doubt the other's humanity."
Another great entry here by Excal. Perfectly encapsulates the series. Djinn's was winning until Excal jumped ahead. Alex also wins for ironically going against the spirit of the contest for a pretty good entry.
5. Akira - Alex - "Substance abuse scandal wrecks Japan's Olympic bid."
HM:
Doma - "Friends don't let friends destroy their city."
Excal - "The tender love story between a boy and his blob."
Alex's entry is so damn good it actually made me a little angry. Doma and Excal's are a worthy effort though.
6. Slayers - Andy - "Infamous criminal saves world, leaves thousands homeless."
HMs:
Jim - "A ravenous fiend uses the power of a dark god to indiscriminately destroy entire villages. Later, she fights some bad guys."
Doma - "Phenomenal cosmic power, itty bitty restraint."
Andy sneaks in at the last moment to win this one. Both Jim's and Doma's are good though.
7. Berserk - Doma - "Man is unhappy with his old boss, perhaps due to workplace hazards."
HMs
Jim - "Jock waves around a huge phallic symbol. Everyone assumes he's gay."
Alex - "Child abuse comes back to haunt a dysfunctional dynasty."
Doma wins this one for a few reasons. Jim and Alex had good ones but... didn't quite hit me like Doma's. He was a stone's throw from a perfect entry here. I put Berserk on because I honestly couldn't come up with my own for the previous two, and at the very least his sparked one for me.
8. Code Geass - Jim - "Obnoxious young man thinks his charisma is so high he can make people be his friends."
HM
Doma - "Man works with the enemy to fight his home to defeat the enemy. His friend does the same."
Jim's wins on the sheer fact of how long it took me to wrap my head around how good Doma's was. I'da dropped the "his charisma is so high" part and just went with the result though.
9. Higurashi no Naku Koro ni - Jim - "Really bad things happen to sorta good people. Repeatedly."
HM
Alex - "Linkin Park craze sweeps rural Japan."
Didn't get many actual entries for this one, so Jim's wins by default for being both reasonably funny and accurate. Alex's also at least gets a chuckle.
10. School Days - Random - "Girl resolves relationship issues and takes a pleasant cruise."
HM
Doma - "World's worst pregnancy test."
I originally was going to veto any entry with Nice Boat or Trainwreck in them... but I have to admit Random uses it cleverly here. Doma wins points for wrongness.
Thanks to everyone for entering!