Anime Recommendation Thread

[Smooth Criminal]

I dunno. I picked it up for its artwork, then stuck with it in hopes that Bones would do something awesome with it. Wasn't a bad series, but didn't really stick out to me much. Nail in the coffin was /* the rushed ending. */


Just my opinion though, it's not like I'm voting against this. I'm typically not into fighting series anyway, aside from a few choice favorites (some of which are favorites only because my childhood is associate with them).

/* COURAGE */ , goddamn. Soul Eater had never really struck me as that great. It's got some stylish animation and art- the Jack the Ripper fight at the beginning of the series was very well done. Some of the backgrounds and locations are really creative and unique- like the moon in the background that has a good deal of inspiration from Tim Burton's style. And well, art was done really well overall- can't really give examples right now, thoug- memories are a bit foggy. Still, plot was never something that great, even in the manga. Fairly generic shonen, and that's all it ever really was. It's at least bareable, but nothing too special. The fact that when the anime had to deviate from the manga totally BS'ed the plot into something rushed and stupid because /* COURAGE */ from episode 35 an on or so also makes this anime lowers my opinion of the series to. Still- tolerable, and the comedy is pretty funny- that much I'll give it. Not recommending against it.

Since I mention shonen, add in Fullmetal Alchemist's first series as a separate entry with 51 episodes. I'll vouch for that as well. Spidey's vote also counts there too.

[butterfλi]

Since I mention shonen, add in Fullmetal Alchemist's first series as a separate entry with 51 episodes. I'll vouch for that as well. Spidey's vote also counts there too.

done.

also putted up:

Kimagure Orange Road	Romance	Slice of life, Comedy, Drama
Cardcaptor Sakura	Shoujo	Fantasy
Shugo Chara!	Shoujo	Comedy, Drama, Supernatural

i've heard good things about those.

[Khoi]

Oh, Cardcaptor Sakura wasn't bad. And speaking of anime, uh, on SmashBoards, there's a massive tsundere thread, like over several thousands hundreds of pages, and all these people use MyAnimeList to keep track of their anime. I should do that, because I lose track of which anime I'm supposed to watch or whatever. Any of you guys use those? >_>;

[Pikachu]

Vouch for The Girl Who Leapt Through Time.

That movie made me tear up the first time I watched it in my anime club at school.

[madanthony]

Really guys, we missed Nanoha? Not that I love the show, but I feel like someone would have hit that. 13 episodes per season for S1 and A's, 26 episodes for StrikerS (I still haven't watched it) Hardcore Shoujo and I guess Adventure.

++: I support
--: I oppose
No comment: no comment

Also
Dennou Coil. 26 episodes. Sci-fi, adventure
++Minami-ke. 13 episodes. Slice of Life, Comedy (Haven't seen the later seasons)
Kiddy Grade. 24 episodes. Adventure, sci-fi
Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~. 26 episodes. Action, drama
Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens. 13 episodes. Comedy, romance
Darker Than Black. 38 episodes. Sci-fi, Action
++Ghost in the Shell
++Baccano
Black Lagoon
++Paprika. Movie. Supernatural, sci-fi, adventure, psychological(?)
++Cowboy Bebop
++TTGL
++Bakemonogatari
--Zero no Tsukaima. I want to take a huge, steaming pomegranate on this show. I will never forgive myself for finishing one season, let alone getting into the 3rd one. Kept holding out for the "ONE DOES NOT SIMPLY WALK INTO MORDOR" moment and was supremely let down.
++Kaiba
++Mushishi
++Miyazaki (Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Ponyo, Nausicaa, Howl's Moving Castle, and Kiki's Delivery Service in particular.) Gonna call all of those Adventure/Fantasy/Drama
--Dance in the Vampire Bund (If it ends up on the list)

[butterfλi]

++Miyazaki (Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Ponyo, Nausicaa, Howl's Moving Castle, and Kiki's Delivery Service in particular.) Gonna call all of those Adventure/Fantasy/Drama

Miyazaki has enough movies to go into his own category. Miyazaki -- so awesome, KEY parody'd him in Angel Beats... TWICE

Spoiler

Howl's Moving Castle


Castle in the Sky

But Key's been picking up protips from Shaft by learning to make obscure references

Spoiler

[Dyxanije]

Nodame Cantabile should have music under other genres.

Seconding:
Escaflowne
Bakemonogatari
Gundam Wing
Arakawa Under the Bridge
Higurashi no Naku Koro ni

++Minami-ke. 13 episodes. Slice of Life, Comedy (Haven't seen the later seasons)

The later seasons are done by different studios and have slightly different art than the original. The third season has quite a few noticeable anatomy flaws. The comedy also goes downhill in my opinion.

I'm also seconding the first season of Minami-ke.

['Lexy]

Action/Adventure
Spirited Away: I love this movie. Best Miyazaki work out there.


Comedy
Gintama. I don't know how you people can even talk about comedy without mentioning Gintama.
Lucky Star (also slice-of-life).
Kannagi: Very funny, until the end. Still, a superb show.

Sports
Beck: Epic stuff

Sci-fi
Personally, I don't think this category should be here. It covers all mecha, yet Gundam is in action/adventure...
Anyway, Dennou Coil.

Mahou Shoujo
Tweeny Witches: Great show, even if the art sucks.

Misc.
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya. Simply superior.

Second for...
Mushishi
Clannad
Planetes
Seto no Hanayome
Eureka Seven (And a triple too.)
true tears (which isn't on the list, but Dyxanije suggested it)
Higurashi
Sora no Woto

Againsts for...
Blood+ : it's definitely not for everybody. Women who like action might like the series, but I certainly hated it.
Digimon: Not worth it.
Yu-Gi-Oh: Maybe the first season. Everything past that was absolute junk.
B Gata H Kei: Not good enough. Funny, but fails horribly when it tries to go generic romantic comedy.
Hidamari Sketch: Boring. I know a bunch of people who like it, but I know more who share my view.
Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou: Generic ecchi harem show.
Sora no Manimani: Not special.
Sora no Otoshimono: Better than your average ecchi show, but still bad.
sola: First half is completely boring and the second half isn't worth it.
Ladies vs. Butlers: Bad.
Ookami Kakushi: I have NEVER heard any good things about this show as a whole. This should be taken off asap.
Umineko no Naku Koro ni: I've heard terrible things about the latter half of this show.

P.S.: Arakawa Under the Bridge is primarily a comedy. The romance is tiny in comparison.

P.P.S.: I don't like this recommendation stuff. The chart from /a/ works pretty well, and I don't like seeing good shows like Death Note not make lists because people think it's 'overrated' (and then see shows like Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou make it because it's 'underrated'). But what do I know, I'm just another one of those elitist bastards.

P.P.P.S.: To reinforce the elitist bastard thing, here's my list:
10/10

• Eureka Seven
• Mushishi
• Planetes
• Gintama
• Seto no Hanayome
• CLANNAD ~After Story~ (because S1 sucked, duh)
• Baccano!
• Lucky Star
• The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya

9/10s that could be 10/10 on most other peoples' lists (not all my 9/10s, of course)

• Code Geass
• Sayonara, Zetsubou Sensei
• Higurashi no Naku Koro ni
• The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
• Beck
• True Tears
• Detroit Metal City
• Death Note
• Welcome to the NHK!
• Dennou Coil

'Underrated' anime (meaning "why the hell don't people say anything about these shows?)

• Sora wo Kakeru Shoujo (yes, that's SORA and not TOKI)
• Strike Witches (I hate fanservice but I loved this show)
• Shinigami no Ballad
• REC
• GA: Geijutsuka Art Design Class
• Moyashimon
• Ushiro no Shoumen Daare
• Tweeny Witches

[Nikkey]

I dunno. I picked it up for its artwork, then stuck with it in hopes that Bones would do something awesome with it. Wasn't a bad series, but didn't really stick out to me much. Nail in the coffin was /* the rushed ending. */

Just my opinion though, it's not like I'm voting against this.

Same here. I'd really recommend the manga though, which is really good. Some periods are surreal, which makes the horror/mystique even better.

Umineko: I've heard terrible things about the latter half of this show.

Shouldn't you have seen the series to actually comment on it? I dunno.

Anyone's thoughts about Koukaku no Regios (Chrome Shelled Regios)? I think it's, uh, above avg, but not above enough.

[Rob]

After reading, seconding Bakemonogatari and Planetes. I really want to watch the latter after watching the 1st episode.

Also, Chobits isn't on the list ;_;

EDIT: I realize most of you don't even know the series but... Captain Tsubasa anyone?

[madanthony]

P.P.S.: I don't like this recommendation stuff. The chart from /a/ works pretty well, and I don't like seeing good shows like Death Note not make lists because people think it's 'overrated' (and then see shows like Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou make it because it's 'underrated'). But what do I know, I'm just another one of those elitist bastards.

You don't get a little tired of the "I don't know what else to watch" threads that pop up every few weeks with the same answers? The list is still being populated. And since you mention it, I'm also surprised Death Note isn't there. I don't think it's a matter of "ugh, totally overrated" I think we just missed it. I'd like to think in the future, people could just come to this thread and ask "I've exhausted what I thought looked interesting on the list, what else is there or what on the list should I reconsider and try given x, x, and x." (Yeah, it was probably too soon for me to say I was surprised Nanoha wasn't mentioned. I just saw the Shoujo section and and thought "huh?")

And as for sci-fi, I think it's a good secondary label to denote stuff like mecha, or that the setting is futuristic, out in space, or whatever else like that. As a primary label though, I think it should be applied to shows that really spotlight technology and its implications and consequences. Stuff like Denno Coil, Ghost in the Shell, Serial Experiments Lain, even Eden of the East and Summer Wars to an extent. There aren't a ton of shows that fit that bill, but it's my absolute favorite genre/subject matter, so I'd like to see if any more good shows I haven't seen pop up by my definition. I won't ask things to be rearranged, but there's my two cents on sci-fi.

Some more stuff
Death Note. 37 episodes. Psychological, drama (You know I still haven't finished this show?)
++Summer Wars. Movie. Sci-fi, comedy
Mnemosyne. 6 episodes. Supernatural, horror, action
Michiko to Hatchin. 22 episodes. Drama (Could probably use another tag or two. No good generic desciptor comes to mind)
My-Hime. 26 episodes. Shoujo, action
My-Otome. 26 episodes. Shoujo, action
Shigofumi. 12 episodes. Drama, supernatural
++Tekkonkinkreet. Movie. Adventure, drama
++Mind Game. Movie. Adventure, comedy, psychological
FLCL. 6 episodes. Drama, comedy, sci fi

[Johnson]

Shouldn't you have seen the series to actually comment on it? I dunno.

This is one of the few problems expected. Exactly how far do you have to watch something to vote against it? Not many people go on watching something they think is bad. For example, I've actually watched 11/12 eps of Strike Witches, 27/29 eps of .Hack//sign and 8/12 of Ookami Kakushi. I thought they were all terrible and would feel comfortable voting against them. However, I've only seen 3 eps of Gintama and 2 of Hidamari Sketch before I dropped em. See what I'm getting at?

Another thing bugging me is seperating seasons because some were inferior. "Season X and Y sucked ass, but season Z was DA BOMB". It's one thing when they're completely different storylines (ie Mai-Hime/Otome, Ef A Tale Of Memories/Melodies); It's another to ignore bad seasons that add to the storyline, however poorly (ie Zero no Tsukaima, Shakugan no Shana). Same goes for ignoring fillers (Naruto, Pokemon).

And finally the biggest and most apparent problem: differences of opinion. How good is good? How bad is bad? Some anime I've seen I thought weren't good enough to be on the list, and yet someone suggests it a few posts later. Others are anime that are pretty popular, but don't meet my personal preferences so voting against them is a bit unfair. Some that are on the list that I've seen and enjoyed, but are flawed somehow (poor quality, unimpressive endings, fillers, etc), dropping them in the mediocre bin. I was under the impression this list was to help others pick anime that could be described as awesome. Ookami Kakushi is still up there despite being (agreed upon as) terrible and there are some award winners up there with 2 votes or less. The only salvation for this thread is people taking a chance and watching. And the way this thread is going, it really will be taking a chance. /rant


P.S: Props to butterfλi for shouldering this burden. Despite all my bitchin' this thread has already helped me pick out a few gems.

[butterfλi]

P.P.S.: I don't like this recommendation stuff. The chart from /a/ works pretty well, and I don't like seeing good shows like Death Note not make lists because people think it's 'overrated' (and then see shows like Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou make it because it's 'underrated').

It's just a list of what SP users are recommending. It's not something special where shows need to meet requirement to "make the list". Death note isn't on there because no one mentioned it (until now).

Adding:

Action/Adventure

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
Dennou Coil	Adventure	Sci-fi	26	madanthony, 'Lexy
Kiddy Grade	Adventure	Sci-fi	24	madanthony
Phantom ~Requiem for the Phantom~	Action	Drama	26	madanthony

Comedy

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
Kannagi: Crazy Shrine Maidens	Comedy	Romance	13	madanthony, 'Lexy
Gintama	Comedy	Sci-fi, Adventure, Fantasy	201	'Lexy
Lucky Stars	Comedy	Slice of life	24	'Lexy

Drama

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
Shigofumi	Drama	Supernatural	12	madanthony
FLCL	Drama	Comedy, Sci-fi	6	madanthony
Michiko to Hatchin	Drama		22	madanthony

Psychological

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
Death Note	Psychological	Drama, Supernatural	37	madanthony, 'Lexy

Slice of life

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
Minami-ke	Slice of life	Comedy	13	Dyxanije, madanthony

Sci-fi

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
Darker Than Black	Sci-fi	Drama, Action	38	madanthony

Shoujo

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
My-Hime	Shoujo	Action	26	madanthony
My-Otome	Shoujo	Action	26	madanthony
Tweeny Witches	Shoujo	Fantasy	40	'Lexy

Other/Miscellaneous

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
Mnemosyne	Supernatural	Horror, Action	6

Movies

Title	Genre	Other Genres	Episodes	Recommended by	Recommendations against
Howl's Moving Castle	Fantasy	Adventure	Movie	madanthony
Kiki's Delivery Service	Supernatural	Slife of life	Movie	madanthony, butterfλi
Mind Game	Adventure	Comedy, Psychological	Movie	madanthony
My Neighbor Totoro	Fantasy	Adventure	Movie	madanthony
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind	Fantasy	Adventure	Movie	madanthony
Paprika	Supernatural	Sci-fi, Adventure	Movie	madanthony
Ponyo	Fantasy	Adventure	Movie	madanthony
Princess Mononoke	Historical	Drama, Action, Supernatural	Movie	madanthony
Spirited Away	Fantasy	Adventure, Supernatural	Movie	madanthony, 'Lexy, butterfλi
Summer Wars	Comedy	Action, Sci-fi	Movie	madanthony
Tekkonkinkreet	Adventure	Drama	Movie	madanthony
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya	Mystery		Movie	'Lexy

Changes:
-Added movies to own section
-Arakawa moved from romance to comedy

Didn't add Beck recommended by 'Lexy because I found this which is about music and not sports. Wasn't sure if it was the right one.

I also might've missed one or two somewhere...

[Roxas]

Cencoroll as movie.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/ency...me.php?id=8264

[JoeTang]

>Lucky Stars

[butterfλi]

And finally the biggest and most apparent problem: differences of opinion. How good is good? How bad is bad? Some anime I've seen I thought weren't good enough to be on the list, and yet someone suggests it a few posts later. Others are anime that are pretty popular, but don't meet my personal preferences so voting against them is a bit unfair. Some that are on the list that I've seen and enjoyed, but are flawed somehow (poor quality, unimpressive endings, fillers, etc), dropping them in the mediocre bin. I was under the impression this list was to help others pick anime that could be described as awesome. Ookami Kakushi is still up there despite being (agreed upon as) terrible and there are some award winners up there with 2 votes or less. The only salvation for this thread is people taking a chance and watching. And the way this thread is going, it really will be taking a chance.

I usually don't pick up an anime before reading at least two reviews on it. Despite it's thread title, I see this more of an Anime Titles list rather than recommendation because people are always going to differ in opinion (dead obvious). I personally found The Girl Who Lept Through Time to be slow and boring yet plenty of people are saying it's good.

I'm wondering about Ookami Kakushi, myself. Keep it on to tell people to stay away from it or just remove it completely?

-List is updated.

-Also thinking about moving Higurashi from "other" to "psychological".

[Khoi]

I usually don't pick up an anime before reading at least two reviews on it. Despite it's thread title, I see this more of an Anime Titles list rather than recommendation because people are always going to differ in opinion (dead obvious). I personally found The Girl Who Lept Through Time to be slow and boring yet plenty of people are saying it's good.

I'm wondering about Ookami Kakushi, myself. Keep it on to tell people to stay away from it or just remove it completely?

I'd keep Ookami Kakushi on the list, just so others don't make the same mistake.

[Spaz]

P.P.S.: I don't like this recommendation stuff. The chart from /a/ works pretty well, and I don't like seeing good shows like Death Note not make lists because people think it's 'overrated' (and then see shows like Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou make it because it's 'underrated'). But what do I know, I'm just another one of those elitist bastards.

You are clearly not elitist enough if you think Death Note is good.

Death Note--

[Yotsuba]

P.P.S.: I don't like this recommendation stuff. The chart from /a/ works pretty well, and I don't like seeing good shows like Death Note not make lists because people think it's 'overrated' (and then see shows like Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaou make it because it's 'underrated'). But what do I know, I'm just another one of those elitist bastards.

I don't really care if something is "overrated" or "underrated" really. If I like it, them I don't care what anyone else says about it.

• Strike Witches (I hate fanservice but I loved this show)

I was under the impression that this show was nothing but fanservice and WWII. Was going to give it a shot, but decided not to because of that thought.

Also, that's considered underrated? I always see people talking about that. Or at least, they used to back when it was airing.

EDIT: I realize most of you don't even know the series but... Captain Tsubasa anyone?

I've never been into sports anime, but I'm not into sports in general. Maybe I should just give one a try?

You don't get a little tired of the "I don't know what else to watch" threads that pop up every few weeks with the same answers? The list is still being populated. And since you mention it, I'm also surprised Death Note isn't there. I don't think it's a matter of "ugh, totally overrated" I think we just missed it. I'd like to think in the future, people could just come to this thread and ask "I've exhausted what I thought looked interesting on the list, what else is there or what on the list should I reconsider and try given x, x, and x." (Yeah, it was probably too soon for me to say I was surprised Nanoha wasn't mentioned. I just saw the Shoujo section and and thought "huh?")

And as for sci-fi, I think it's a good secondary label to denote stuff like mecha, or that the setting is futuristic, out in space, or whatever else like that. As a primary label though, I think it should be applied to shows that really spotlight technology and its implications and consequences. Stuff like Denno Coil, Ghost in the Shell, Serial Experiments Lain, even Eden of the East and Summer Wars to an extent. There aren't a ton of shows that fit that bill, but it's my absolute favorite genre/subject matter, so I'd like to see if any more good shows I haven't seen pop up by my definition. I won't ask things to be rearranged, but there's my two cents on sci-fi.

Agreeing with this. I don't think any of us thought "I would recommend this show, but it's totally overrated, lol!" when coming up with suggestions. The list is still being made, it's not like it's finalized. If you know something good that isn't there, then point it out. We probably just didn't have it on our minds at the time. I know some of the posts in this thread make me feel dumb for forgetting to give them a mention.

Besides, having a list more organized than the /a/ recommendation list (there are quite a few of them running around as well) is nice. Also gives you a nice idea of what the majority of SP likes and dislikes, so perhaps you can contact a specific member for more series that aren't on the list if you find you have similar tastes.

[Rob]

I've never been into sports anime, but I'm not into sports in general. Maybe I should just give one a try?

I love this anime, mainly because my country is pretty football biased. The second season was awesome.

Agreeing with this. I don't think any of us thought "I would recommend this show, but it's totally overrated, lol!" when coming up with suggestions. The list is still being made, it's not like it's finalized. If you know something good that isn't there, then point it out. We probably just didn't have it on our minds at the time. I know some of the posts in this thread make me feel dumb for forgetting to give them a mention.

Besides, having a list more organized than the /a/ recommendation list (there are quite a few of them running around as well) is nice. Also gives you a nice idea of what the majority of SP likes and dislikes, so perhaps you can contact a specific member for more series that aren't on the list if you find you have similar tastes.

I agree with pretty much everything you said.