I would say that it’s not particularly anime due to the fact that they have a different style of art, I’m not completely sure what I would call if but I would say that if it’s not in a Japanese production and style personally wouldn’t classify it as an anime.
I would say it doesn’t count, but I also feel as though it would be the opinion of the person watching/reading it.
Lessee…
Astro Boy, because I liked his horns. I used to bend a wire coat hanger and put it on my head and run around the back yard. I also liked how his feet were rockets.
Marine Lad, because I liked the idea of chewing gum to be able to breathe under water (cos my mom wouldn’t let us have gum). Also his mermaid girlfriend made eight-year old me feel kinda funny inside.
Gigantor, because he made me feel safe and protected. And I thought it was hilarious that the kid with the remote controller always for a suit and tie!
Mushoku Tensei really disappointed me, because…
- Season 1: Rudeus is reborn into a fantasy world that is shattered by a magical catastrophe that scatters his family and friends to the ends of the world.
- Season 2: Rudeus attempts to deal with his erectile dysfunction. Seriously.
To me, no. Just as manhua and manhwa do not count as manga.
Astro Boy doesn’t have horns. That’s his hairstyle.
Has anyone watched The Eminence in Shadow?
In my opinion the first season was just watchable, second season was terrible. Kind of edgy, creepy and not really going anywhere all at once.
It has a surprisingly high score on MAL, an 8.23. So it looks like mine is a minority opinion.
I’d distinguish between “most enjoyable” and “most respect”. Like, One Piece is surprisingly enjoyable but it ain’t Grave of the Fireflies.
In general, I haven’t seen much anime since the 00’s, I think, so I can’t say anything about Attack on Titan nor the OP’s Akame ga Kill.
In terms of enjoyment, it’s hard to beat Cowboy Bebop. And, towards the end, I’d say that it even does veer into substance, not just fun.
In terms of pure fun, it’s hard to beat some of the crazier titles like Excel Saga, Proton, and Burn-Up Excess, since these start getting into Looney Toons level craziness and zanity. (Unfortunately, the latter two also go pretty hard core into fan service.)
On the more serious side, though, I’d like to point out:
Grave of the Fireflies
Princess Mononoke
Most of Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water (There’s a few episodes where it feels like they were asked to remember that it’s a kid’s show, somewhere in the middle, and it goes stupid for a bit, but then it goes back to being good.)
Darkside Blues
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust
Perfect Blue
Jin-Roh
Akira
The Wings of Honneamise
Most of The Hakkenden (There’s one episode where they screwed up all of the animation but, outside of that, it’s good.)
Key: The Metal Idol
Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal
Honorable Mention:
The Secret of NIMH
That all said, some of the best material only exists as manga.
Hehe, I’ll watch Gigantor just for the theme song. It rules!
Skipping several already mentioned:
Food Wars is a personal favourite, and it’s for the food porn, same as Delicious in Dungeon.
Counterpoint - the test tournament episodes were great, and subverted the tropes well enough for my liking.
I’m watching it now, I like it.
I prefer the Dickies’ version
Hehehe, I like the Dickies’ cover (and even Helmet’s cover) but when it comes to that song, I prefer the original. It’s so weird, and of course it gets stuck in my head. The jazz flute and synth mixed with the bassy triumphant vocals is crazy.
But if we’re talking about the intersection of rock and anime, gotta mention FLCL. I can’t say I recommend it, because it’s surreal to the point where it basically declares it not making any sense is a you problem. The first episode that I saw, I thought “Wow, there must be a lot of backstory that I would need to catch up on.” Nope! That’s the first episode, and it really doesn’t explain itself further, and you just kind of have to accept its kind of pervy, very surreal take on the coming of age story (most likely not Cron’s cup of tea). But I still found it kind of heartwarming and wholesome, none the same. I’ve watched it a few times. If nothing else, the Pillows rock their way through it, and the original is a short series.
Err, I’m an idiot and I can’t edit it because I embedded a video. That should be “not Kron’s” instead of “not Cron’s”.
I haven’t mentioned many series in this thread because there are so many that I enjoyed when they were new 20 years ago that on recent revisiting don’t really stand the test of time for some reason or another. But tonight something made a couple of series cross my mind that are (probably?) worth mentioning. Kron mentioned not wanting to see shows about kids. These are about kids, but they aren’t all sweetness and light.
First mention is Narutaru. Narutaru is like Pokemon in that some kids find some odd creatures that evolve in form under their care. Narutaru is unlike Pokemon in that some of the kids use the creatures to brutally murder each other and attempt global domination. The opening credits, of course, reflect on the dark and twisted nature of the series:
The other is Alien 9. Aliens are constantly showing up on Earth, some of them harmless, some of them dangerous, some if them looking like Pierson’s Puppeteers. Tween girls are tasked with handling the alien menace because Japan.
I’ve seen both seasons, and while it’s solid, I didn’t find it amazing. But again, -for me-, I read the Webnovel/Light novel translations first, and it’s missing so much more of our protagonist winging it and it working out as genius where his enemies and fans assume it’s foreknowledge and planning.
It’s the details and the rest that elevate it over and above the fanservice of the slime suits, the tropes (many of which it makes fun of) and the swings from serious to silly.
An additional comment for this one, the soundtrack is frigging AMAZING (so I have the DVD and the soundtrack) and every time I hear “A bit(e) of Hope” it hits me in the feels.
Wings of Honneamise: It’s an alternate-world story of a people just barely starting into spaceflight, and the conflict between those who want to do it for science or for its own sake, and those who want to militarize it. Plus reflection on how our idols are really just humans like the rest of us.
Princess Mononoke: I’m sure everyone knows this one, but what I like about it is that, first, neither side of the main conflict is really evil, and second, that it acknowledges that there is no easy solution.
I was thinking about Christmas-themed anime episodes and googled for lists. Some mentioned the movie The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya taking place around Christmas, which made me want to revisit the series. I watched the first chronological (second aired) episode and it was stll interesting, though I wish it had been made in a more realistic animation style than semi-moe. I watched it the first time during the original airing in 2006 as the fansubbed episodes became available. I may have rewatched season one at some point, and I’m pretty sure I haven’t rewatched season two, but I’m going to give them all a go again. (I know I rewatched the movie once.)
The series is weird in that they intentionally aired the season one episodes out of order, even though they were not stand-alone. And in the second season, they had a Groundhog’s Day time loop that lasted eight full episodes.
The set on the Internet Archive is internal chronological order for season one, not original airing order.
Here is a good Reddit thread from 9 years ago about the series. The series (or at least the discussion) is definitely worth checking out.
Some current watches:
The Ancient Magus’ Bride - This is one of those “fantasy world hiding in the real world” shows. I find it heavy going at times, and often not in expected directions. But it’s well-made and well-told.
This Monster Wants To Eat Me - I take it back - this is heavy going. A young girl with a tragic past encounters a mermaid who agrees to eat her (that’s literally eat her, you perverts) at some point in the future. Having an actively suicidal protagonist does not tend make for a cheery series*.
Tower of God - There’s a tower you have to get to the top of and then you get your wishes granted. I’ve just started S2, but S1 ends with a serious twist.
* An exception being No Longer Allowed In Another World where the actively suicidal protagonist, a mopey writer who guzzles pills, is somewhat entertaining.
I loved “Sword Art Online Abridged”.