I verge on calling it my favorite, but I feel like Bebop or Eva could also take that spot pretty easily.
(edit: I hate to feel the need to clarify that I mean the ORIGINAL 6-episode show FLCL, and not the 4 extra seasons of tacked-on bullshit that Adult Swim cooked up.)
You got me! 😅 Well... Was there really a better time for anime?
I am quite fond of some of the 80s (Gunbuster and Z Gundam are cool!) and 70s (Lupin the 3rd and Galaxy Express 999) shows.
Other honorable mentions from my favorites: Ghost in the Shell SAC+2nd gig, Diebuster, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, Tatami Galaxy, Ping Pong, Kaiba, Trigun, Trava First Planet, Space Patrol Luluco... too many more to name.
Last year was pretty great too, with GQuuuuuuX, New Panty and Stocking, and CITY!
I think I've got some unconventional choices there but if you're looking for something new I would recommend any of the above. Space Battleship Yamoto 2199 in particular is spectacular.
Mushishi is my favorite show to watch when I'm sad or bleh. I have the intro song favorited on my playlist too. It's called the Sore Feet Song and it's weird and wonderful
Dragon Ball (not Z at all), Akudama Overdrive, Summertime Rendering
Teenager me liked way different list but idk if I could say if any aged well from my PoV like Trigun, Outlaw Star, Blood+, Kill La Kill, Gurren Lagann, Armor Hunter Mellowlink... many more. Not that I mind if it's cheesy. I started watching One Piece at 35 years old lmao.
Red-liiiiiiine, red-liiiiiiine, directed by Takeshi Koike wiki-wikiwiki-wiki.
Technically a movie and not a show, but also one of my all-time favorites. :)
I love Trigun, and I think the characters and world-building hold up today, but the show definitely gets a little shoddy just before the end. Tsuneo Imahori's soundtrack for Trigun is incredible.
I think Gurren Lagann also holds up. There's a couple lulls in the show for sure, but overall it's got great action and drama and some amazing animation set-pieces. (I never liked Kill La KIll that much.)
Going back to Outlaw Star is tough, imo, it's waaaay cheesier than I remembered it being.
I pretty much never rewatch anything but I've rewatched steins gate and steins gate 0 about 3 or 4 times because it's such a good show and they tie in so well despite being in alternate realities to each other. Edgerunners was what got me into cyberpunk and now I'm obsessed with it. Initial D is what got me into car culture, it's a bit dated and I've never rewatched it but eurobeat paired with 90s JDM cars battling down a mountain is amazing. Dimension W is a good story but the only reason I chose it over something like Dr Stone or Rising of the Shield Hero is because I really like the 2000GT that the main character drives.---
From your list, I've only watched Inuyashiki, which I do like, but it's pretty different. That said, it's a series I'd recommend to most people. It has a little bit of everything: Drama, comedy, slice of life, action and above all, a ton of well-written, interesting and, well, eccentric characters. Definitely helps if you like Japanese folklore and mythical creatures as well.
If you've watched "The Tatami Galaxy", that's by the same author and kind of has the same feel and philosophy. But The Eccentric Family has a more coherent narrative and is a bit more down to earth.
Disclaimer: I've only watched like 10-20 so I can't exactly say it's the best of all animes
Steins Gate
Spy x Family
Death Note
Code Geass
I don't think I really watch enough to fill out all "top 5"
Honorable mentions:
The Promised Neverland (S1 ONLY)
Detective Conan - Was nostalgic for me, I remember watching it in the Mandarin dub, I loved to like pretend to be a detective as a kid, now its kinda... eh
Re Zero: Great premise... then story got boring and the special ability of the MC gets used less, and the story became much less fun... don't think I even cared to finish s3
I get very picky about watching stuff, so if the premise reads slightly boring, I don't watch it. Which is precisely why I only have about a dozen or so Animes watched.
Tbh SLF came to mind probably due to some recency bias, I could list something else. However it pushed a nostalgia button for me -- bygone carefree days of playing WoW for too long, as well it felt refreshing to have a fun series with mystery and stellar animation that didn't have world ending stakes.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (2006 & 2009) - amazing in every way. Every arc is perfect and it's the greatest character study ever in the medium of anime.
Kareshi Kanojo no Jijou (1998) - this one is Hideaki Anno's best work. The same depth of characterization as Eva but without the scifi or action.
Hibike! Euphonium (first two seasons, 2015 & 2016) - kinda a retelling of Aim for the Ace (1973) in my mind. Really great characterization.
March comes in like a lion (2016-2017) - another fantastic drama and hits really hard emotionally.
Nana (2006) - more drama. This one has a great vibe and has a really unique feeling of yearning and incompleteness... Mostly because it's forever incomplete.
Wait is The Melancholy that weird one where they were constantly sexually harassing some poor girl and then they literally animated the same shitty episode 5 times back to back with no script changes?
Yes!
The sexual harassment is definitely a major part of the show and while I think its portrayal is very nuanced, many would disagree and that's also a valid take. "Endless Eight" is the arc where they reanimated and rerecorded the same episode (8 times actually), but each episode was directed by a different person. It's probably my favorite part of the whole show but again, many disagree and think it's just boring.
And if the rest of the season is as good as the pilot episode, Journal with Witch. I've been waiting for the episode to comes out so I can hear what Asa was singing before the Bieber joke. It was delightful.
Eh, I'll throw Sword of the Demon Hunter there aswell. I'm in my mid 30s so I don't really care about battle scene as much, though I wish it got better animations. You could say the story is similar to Frieren, though not as tight.
No particular order but the first two resonated with me albeit in different ways. The latter 3 just land really well in the humor department. There's a heavy bit of nostalgia for Azumanga and Ouran specifically, and Ouran itself is definitely dated in a lot of ways. But a recent rewatching of Ouran cemented my enjoyment of it even today, along with making me realize that I just really like melodrama.
This is a tough one to answer. I think Kyousougiga, Madoka Magica, and Wixoss (the first two seasons) are definitely there. In no particular order.
But I'm not sure about the other two. I currently have 33 favorites on my Anilist, and while certainly not all of them are equal, I can't single out two more that stand out from all the others. Fate/Zero, Parasyte, Sakura Trick, Kill la Kill, Asobi Asobase, Dorohedoro, Flip Flappers, Die Neue These, Healer Girl, Dekiru Neko, Delico's Nursery, To Be Hero X, and City all qualify equally imo.
-Gurren Laggan
-Trigun
-Code Geass
-FMA
-Tanya the Evil
For FMA, start with the original, because they spend more time during the opening chapters, and switch to Brotherhood at the exact scene when they vault the labratories fence.
74 Comments
emb@lemmy.world · 23 pts · 233d
I'll go ahead and knock out the 'normie that watched anime on TV twenty years ago' list.
I've got a handful of others I've seen and liked, plus some older and newer ones I plan to watch. But I need to really branch it out a little.
mrmaplebar@fedia.io · 19 pts · 233d
In no particular order, I think...
Makhno@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 233d
Love to see FLCL up there
mrmaplebar@fedia.io · 4 pts · 233d
One of my all time favorites.
I verge on calling it my favorite, but I feel like Bebop or Eva could also take that spot pretty easily.
(edit: I hate to feel the need to clarify that I mean the ORIGINAL 6-episode show FLCL, and not the 4 extra seasons of tacked-on bullshit that Adult Swim cooked up.)
Suck_on_my_Presence@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 233d
I see you grew up in the 90s
mrmaplebar@fedia.io · 4 pts · 233d
You got me! 😅 Well... Was there really a better time for anime?
I am quite fond of some of the 80s (Gunbuster and Z Gundam are cool!) and 70s (Lupin the 3rd and Galaxy Express 999) shows.
Other honorable mentions from my favorites: Ghost in the Shell SAC+2nd gig, Diebuster, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, Tatami Galaxy, Ping Pong, Kaiba, Trigun, Trava First Planet, Space Patrol Luluco... too many more to name.
Last year was pretty great too, with GQuuuuuuX, New Panty and Stocking, and CITY!
otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 231d
Cowboy Bebop hooked me deep the first time I just saw it, and just at the intro... 🤘🏼❤️🔥
shittydwarf@piefed.social · 14 pts · 233d
I think I've got some unconventional choices there but if you're looking for something new I would recommend any of the above. Space Battleship Yamoto 2199 in particular is spectacular.
Feyd@programming.dev · 13 pts · 233d
otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 231d
Oh, good ol' Mugen 🥰🤘🏼
village604@adultswim.fan · 13 pts · 233d
yyprum@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 13 pts · 233d
PonyOfWar@pawb.social · 8 pts · 233d
Mushishi is a great one. Love the calmness of that show.
Suck_on_my_Presence@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 233d
Mushishi is my favorite show to watch when I'm sad or bleh. I have the intro song favorited on my playlist too. It's called the Sore Feet Song and it's weird and wonderful
yyprum@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 3 pts · 233d
The whole soundtrack is another piece of art at the level of the anime. And indeed, Sore Feet Song is wonderful!
shittydwarf@piefed.social · 4 pts · 233d
Oh shit I forgot about Mushishi this one calms the soul
BurgerBaron@piefed.social · 12 pts · 233d
1 - Redline
2 - Cowboy Bebop
3 - Clevatess (so far)
4 - Gungrave
5 - Yu Yu Hakusho
Runners up:
Dragon Ball (not Z at all), Akudama Overdrive, Summertime Rendering
Teenager me liked way different list but idk if I could say if any aged well from my PoV like Trigun, Outlaw Star, Blood+, Kill La Kill, Gurren Lagann, Armor Hunter Mellowlink... many more. Not that I mind if it's cheesy. I started watching One Piece at 35 years old lmao.
mrmaplebar@fedia.io · 4 pts · 233d
Red-liiiiiiine, red-liiiiiiine, directed by Takeshi Koike wiki-wikiwiki-wiki.
Technically a movie and not a show, but also one of my all-time favorites. :)
I love Trigun, and I think the characters and world-building hold up today, but the show definitely gets a little shoddy just before the end. Tsuneo Imahori's soundtrack for Trigun is incredible.
I think Gurren Lagann also holds up. There's a couple lulls in the show for sure, but overall it's got great action and drama and some amazing animation set-pieces. (I never liked Kill La KIll that much.)
Going back to Outlaw Star is tough, imo, it's waaaay cheesier than I remembered it being.
TheWeirdestCunt@lemmy.today · 12 pts · 233d
I pretty much never rewatch anything but I've rewatched steins gate and steins gate 0 about 3 or 4 times because it's such a good show and they tie in so well despite being in alternate realities to each other. Edgerunners was what got me into cyberpunk and now I'm obsessed with it. Initial D is what got me into car culture, it's a bit dated and I've never rewatched it but eurobeat paired with 90s JDM cars battling down a mountain is amazing. Dimension W is a good story but the only reason I chose it over something like Dr Stone or Rising of the Shield Hero is because I really like the 2000GT that the main character drives.---
Aralakh@lemmy.ca · 4 pts · 233d
Ohh cool to see Dimension W mentioned, it surprised me with how enjoyable it was -- of course the car helped!
AfterNova@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 233d
I am copying down some of the animes listed here. Thanks.
otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 2 pts · 231d
cries in Rebecca
makeshiftreaper@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 233d
Recency bias go!
caurvo@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 2 pts · 233d
I did the same thing with Solo Leveling. Can't wait for the adaptations, animation is crazy good.
Broadfern@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 233d
Wait. Does Castlevania count? If so I put that as my last entry instead.
PonyOfWar@pawb.social · 11 pts · 233d
Hard to decide, but trying to put some variety into it, no particular order:
capuccino@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 233d
Do you recommend The Eccentric Family? You can see what animes are my favs, also I commented them here.
PonyOfWar@pawb.social · 5 pts · 233d
From your list, I've only watched Inuyashiki, which I do like, but it's pretty different. That said, it's a series I'd recommend to most people. It has a little bit of everything: Drama, comedy, slice of life, action and above all, a ton of well-written, interesting and, well, eccentric characters. Definitely helps if you like Japanese folklore and mythical creatures as well.
If you've watched "The Tatami Galaxy", that's by the same author and kind of has the same feel and philosophy. But The Eccentric Family has a more coherent narrative and is a bit more down to earth.
Melobol@lemmy.ml · 9 pts · 233d
Sailor Moon
Apothecary diaries
Dragon Ball
Reincarnated as a slime
Dan da dan
Obviously the first of those is a have to, rest is to be changed as it comes and goes :D
missingno@fedia.io · 9 pts · 233d
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 8 pts · 233d
Disclaimer: I've only watched like 10-20 so I can't exactly say it's the best of all animes
Steins Gate
Spy x Family
Death Note
Code Geass
I don't think I really watch enough to fill out all "top 5"
Honorable mentions:
I get very picky about watching stuff, so if the premise reads slightly boring, I don't watch it. Which is precisely why I only have about a dozen or so Animes watched.
AfterNova@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 231d
Code Geass is good.
Suck_on_my_Presence@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 233d
In no order.
eightpix@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 233d
Im ready for the hate, but I content myself that I've gotten through these before having kids:
Fullmetal Alchemist
Hellsing
Voltron (80s, I think I saw them all)
Serial Experiments: Lain
And since having kids:
Neon Genesis Evangelion
One Punch Man
buddascrayon@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 233d
These are ones I end up rewatching with pretty regular frequency. I don't claim they are the best, but they are what I enjoy the most.
Aralakh@lemmy.ca · 7 pts · 233d
In no particular order (subject to change):
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 233d
Future GadgetLemmy Comment 204 "Top Anime List" - List subject to editAralakh@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 233d
It's what you agree to when you sign the T&A of my mind :p
BurgerBaron@piefed.social · 3 pts · 233d
While it wouldn't make my top 5 probably Shangri-La Frontier is top 20 for me, it's way better than it should be given the premise!
Aralakh@lemmy.ca · 3 pts · 233d
Tbh SLF came to mind probably due to some recency bias, I could list something else. However it pushed a nostalgia button for me -- bygone carefree days of playing WoW for too long, as well it felt refreshing to have a fun series with mystery and stellar animation that didn't have world ending stakes.
capuccino@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 233d
No order:
Also I would add One Piece, but particularly, I'm not a fan of the anime series. I'm a constant reader of its manga, making theories and so on.
Kolanaki@pawb.social · 6 pts · 232d
Inuyasha
Cowboy Bebop
Trigun
FLCL
Fullmetal Alchemist (OG, not Brotherhood)
AceFuzzLord@lemmy.zip · 6 pts · 233d
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 233d
Detective Conon!
Very nostalgic childhood memories. I used to watch it in the Mandarin Dub (one of my native languages)
sockenklaus@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 232d
Those two are soooo underrated. <3
Edit: Oops, I mixed up Dororo with DoroHeDoro. Whatever, now I have a new series to look into. :)
anon6789@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 233d
In no particular order:
isyasad@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 233d
cornshark@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 233d
Wait is The Melancholy that weird one where they were constantly sexually harassing some poor girl and then they literally animated the same shitty episode 5 times back to back with no script changes?
isyasad@lemmy.world · 0 pts · 233d
Yes!
The sexual harassment is definitely a major part of the show and while I think its portrayal is very nuanced, many would disagree and that's also a valid take. "Endless Eight" is the arc where they reanimated and rerecorded the same episode (8 times actually), but each episode was directed by a different person. It's probably my favorite part of the whole show but again, many disagree and think it's just boring.
Zozano@aussie.zone · 5 pts · 233d
Lemmy! Give me your power to overwrite everyone's tier 0 choice!
Sergio@piefed.social · 5 pts · 233d
vga@sopuli.xyz · 4 pts · 233d
Madoka
Frieren
NGE
Ghost in the Shell: SAC
Haibane Renmei and/or Serial Experiments: Lain
Cowboy Bebop, FME:Brotherhood, Steins:Gate are good too. 5 is not enough.
Tikiporch@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 232d
In this thread, people reveal their high school graduation year.
Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Gundam Wing, Dragon Ball Z, Ghost in the Shell.
Any guesses?
GreenKnight23@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 232d
2001-2005
AfterNova@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 231d
What is Berzerk like?
leave_it_blank@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 233d
Honourable mention: Kemono Friends (a show based on a bad mobile game, kids oriented, does not deserve to be that good, but it is)
steeznson@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 233d
gajahmada@awful.systems · 3 pts · 232d
In no particular order
And if the rest of the season is as good as the pilot episode, Journal with Witch. I've been waiting for the episode to comes out so I can hear what Asa was singing before the Bieber joke. It was delightful.
Eh, I'll throw Sword of the Demon Hunter there aswell. I'm in my mid 30s so I don't really care about battle scene as much, though I wish it got better animations. You could say the story is similar to Frieren, though not as tight.
HollowV@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 233d
Yugioh, Jojo's Bizzare Adventure, Devil May Cry (2025), nichijou, Noragami
HetareKing@piefed.social · 3 pts · 233d
FanciestPants@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 233d
Devil Man Crybaby
Berserk '97
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust
Hamtaro
Ninja Scroll
turbulentMagma@lemmy.zip · 2 pts · 233d
LettyWhiterock@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 232d
Frieren
Girls' last tour
Azumanga Daioh
Monthly Girls Nozaki-kun
Ouran high school host club
No particular order but the first two resonated with me albeit in different ways. The latter 3 just land really well in the humor department. There's a heavy bit of nostalgia for Azumanga and Ouran specifically, and Ouran itself is definitely dated in a lot of ways. But a recent rewatching of Ouran cemented my enjoyment of it even today, along with making me realize that I just really like melodrama.
LuigiMaoFrance@lemmy.ml · 2 pts · 231d
I don't watch much anime, but from the shows I have watched I view fondly and can see myself rewatching:
ouRKaoS@lemmy.today · 2 pts · 232d
In no particular order:
Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Outlaw Star, Samurai Champloo, DBZ
Pamasich@kbin.earth · 2 pts · 233d
This is a tough one to answer. I think Kyousougiga, Madoka Magica, and Wixoss (the first two seasons) are definitely there. In no particular order. But I'm not sure about the other two. I currently have 33 favorites on my Anilist, and while certainly not all of them are equal, I can't single out two more that stand out from all the others. Fate/Zero, Parasyte, Sakura Trick, Kill la Kill, Asobi Asobase, Dorohedoro, Flip Flappers, Die Neue These, Healer Girl, Dekiru Neko, Delico's Nursery, To Be Hero X, and City all qualify equally imo.
Elaine@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 232d
Bahnd@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 231d
-Gurren Laggan -Trigun -Code Geass -FMA -Tanya the Evil
For FMA, start with the original, because they spend more time during the opening chapters, and switch to Brotherhood at the exact scene when they vault the labratories fence.
NanoooK@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 232d
GrammarPolice@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 231d
The fable is wild work
NanoooK@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 231d
A pleasant surprise. I started the show without knowing much about it and then had to control myself to not finish it in few days.
FRYD@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 232d
STUNT_GRANNY@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 231d
Initial D
Kaguya-Sama: Love is War
Cowboy Bebop
Jojo's Bizarre Adventure
Neon Genesis Evangelion
cyberpunk007@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 233d
Dragon ball, bleach, initial d. About all I know. 🤣
dditty@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 232d
Here are a few faves that I don't see mentioned yet:
Code Geass
Baccano!
Monster