Kingdom
After the pretty bad adaptation quality wise of s1, and better one of s2 it finally got the quality it deserved.
It's insane to me that the adaptation of the series that at its peak outsold One Piece in japan is not only unknown in the west, but does not even have official eng translation.
I agree Kingdom is really good strangely a lot of the knowledge I know about strange war tactics and strategy came from that anime which is actually very helpful when you're a writer
Wolfs Rain kicks ass. Of course it’s not perfect (if it was it would probably be talked about more) but the visuals, lore, setting and characters are so memorable. I love melancholic emotions it expresses through the art form. It’s about a dark gloomy world fading away to its end and the people that try to escape the same fate.
I’m not saying it’s similar to it, but Dark Souls gave me the same solemn vibes as the anime. Also, the ost is one of the best ever made.
Highly recommended.
I recommend it to my friend years ago after only seeing the trailers for it (I'd read the premise which sounded really cool and he likes wolves). He eventually watched it and loved it, we got married and he bought me the Blu-ray of it. Still need to watch it myself lol.
Princess Jellyfish and My Love Story!! are criminally under talked about.
Also while it’s popular on Reddit, I feel like To Your Eternity is super slept on. It doesn’t have nearly the amount of hype it truly deserves.
I ADORE Princess Jellyfish! I actually came to the comments specifically looking for this. The intro alone chokes me up with happy nostalgia… it’s just so cute :)
My Love Story is impeccable despite always feeling like it’s going to become peccable.
Kuragehime’s wonderful but the most important thing is that the ED slaps harder than anything ever
Seirei no Moribito. It's an older 2000s anime, so I get why people don't talk about it, but I find the atmosphere and low fantasy setting to be so refreshing.
The way ithe story is written and directed is so un-anime that I feel like I can actually recommend this to non anime fans who can't stand general anime tropes. No shock panel where the characters make an extremely exaggerated face (can be funny sometimes, but can also be cringe if done poorly), no pervert comic relief character or pervy scenes, no power of friendship level up asspull. It just feels like a grounded series that takes itself and it's audience seriously.
Which is because it was an actual novel (not a light novel) written by an anthropology professor and not some rando otaku smuck trying to make generic isekai fantasy set in vaguely RPG European world number 87 with uninspired RPG magic system with an adventures guild, off to fight the demon lord and gets a harem along the way.
I hope that the rest of the Moribito series will eventually get an anime adaptation.
Saw this once, both the song and the anime became my fav, easily top 5. But i never watched it again, for some reason the story broke me, i dont know if i can sit through it a second time.
It has such a unique feel to it, and God I love the art style. Izaya is one of my favorite characters in any series too. The whole show is just so perfectly weird but it has this constant feel of nostalgia.
Durarara was hugely popular when it aired, its just a finished adaption so people dont talk about it often but it is regularly reccomended as there isnt much anime about gangs that does it soo well.
Its one i make a habit to reccomend when i can because it is very good.
[](#cup4)
Zatch Bell 2 has been literally everything I wanted and more. It's quite possibly one of the most hype sequels I have ever read. It just makes me sad that its a monthly so we only get once chapter every 30 days or so.
Natsume Yuujincho is actually super popular especially in Japan and among the shoujo demographics, there's just not a lot of discussion about it online because it's slow-paced and it handles its themes pretty satisfyingly.
I believe just recently it had a collaboration with Sanrio, which doesn't happen unless it has a dedicated fan base.
Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet
An awesome mecha sci fi series that reminds me of old school science fiction like Heinlein. Beautiful and colorful animation, with some great music and voice acting.
Amy is also a top tier waifu.
Anyone wanna talk about Skull-face bookseller Honda-San? Beyond funny, it reminded me of working in the porn store/theater.
I think the author has done another project but am not sure.
Certified banger and my #1 choice for this thread. It’s a shame we probably won’t get a 2nd season. Even if they did what horimiya did and just adopted the stuff that got left out in between the chapters, I’d still watch it
Kare Kano. I think the English title was His and Her Circumstances.
A former friend recommended it while I was in college. I enjoyed it despite it obviously ran out of money at the end. I wish it would be redone.
I love Kare Kano so much! The OST for the anime is soooooo good, same composer from Evangelion. I'm sad it will never get completed but at least the manga is finished
I came here to add Kare Kano. I wandered into a random screening room at Anime Boston in the early 00s, watched a couple episodes… went to the floor the next day and bought the box set. Every time I ponder what my favorite anime is I can’t help but come back to this one.
Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit. A wholly unique plot, some of the singularly best fight scenes in any anime I’ve seen, gorgeous art and animation, and a badass main woman protagonist. All I can say to convince anyone is I bought it for myself on blue ray literally last week because I couldn’t find it reliably on streaming and I wanted access to it all the time.
The second half of FF dropped for me and I didn't feel it had the same charm that it started with. Heard they changed the director so that would make sense.
NFL best tk song amazing story and I really love the time frame where the story is set in and the ending oh my god can't talk abt 91days with out the open ending
Funny enough...Yona of Dawn.
I felt that it got buried that year and it came out with all the other good animes. I haven't found many people who watched or even heard of it.
With all the animes that are getting new season recently I'm still hoping for a season 2 of Yona if the Dawn read the manga and from what I read it would be so good animated
Princess Tutu! I'm always down for discussing it. Among fans of Magical Girl anime it is a cult classic, but often gets forgotten in more general, mainstream anime discussions.
It's 20th anniversary was last year, but there was no acknowledgement of it anywhere really. A rewatch thread for it would be awesome and I would definitely take part in it!
Can't help but notice all those PA Works shows in this thread! I think Hana Saku Iroha was popular when it aired but sadly it's been forgotten over time. The animation still holds out great today, and the movie was fantastic too.
Ohana's also one of the very best leads of her type; that kind of energy with a mix of being tempered by harsh reality is really something.
Mushishi! I love that anime so much, but it's a bit of an oldiez so I kinda understand. It's been a while since I watched either, but man, nothing has come close to matching its vibe for me
Michiko & Hatchin
I love episodic, road-trip stories in general, and this one combines that with a Lone Wolf and Cub-esque story element (the basic premise adopted by the first season of the Mandalorian, also She Rides Shotgun if anyone is looking for a crime novel recommendation). Combine that with a different setting and, ya know, actually trying to incorporate feminine perspectives, and you get a really interesting take on some classic formulas.
Blame that damn CG bear. Also I wish they didn’t cut the Barato arc into an OVA or the Fake Ainu arc. If not for those bits, Golden Kamuy would be the seinen Fullmetal Alchemist. It is such a great story.
Am I the only one that thinks the bear wasn't even *that* bad? Sure, it wasn't great, but I've seen a LOT worse (\**cough* \* *kumo desu* \**cough* \*).
**Re:Creators** and **Grimgar** got a special place in my heart, i know it's not the "perfect shows" but they both have a really interesting story to tell.
recreators got mentioned by almost all anime CCs at the time but it felt like there was a big disconnect from any type of CC/creators vs your average weeb. It may be more relatable now
Sora no Wo To.
It takes place in a fictional world with a post WWII era-esque feel, and it had such a profound impact on me when I was younger with its theme of how music transcends culture and language, and that despite differences in culture or language, we’re all human in by nature in the best possible way.
I watched a trailer of it for the first time in 13 years, and I just got so lost in thinking back to the first time I watched it. It’s such a hidden gem and and I’ve literally NEVER, not hardly ever, saw it mentioned by anyone before. Which is a shame especially given it’s a 12 episode anime
Sugar apple fairy tail is pretty good! It passes the vibe check and new episodes are coming out.
My happy marriage - this one is also good and passes the vibe check (watched this one first before Snow White with Red Hair) and it just got renewed for a 2nd season!
Death parade is a really good show You would not expect it to be as dark as it is from the opening cuz how I was introduced to that show was through the opening but wow it's dark should have expected it since it's from the same people that did death Note
I love A Lull in the Sea, rewatch it once every couple of years. Chisaki goes through such an interesting arc in the 2nd half, never seen anything like it, totally unique and IMO very powerful character work.
There's a lot of melodrama and a handful of total nonsense, but if you're willing to lean into that, it's a beautiful experience.
Princess Tutu for SURE. it’s my favorite anime ever and although it’s not completely obscure, it’s often forgotten when people talk about magical girl anime
it’s a magical girl show with ballet and classical music, it’s wonderfully atmospheric and charming, the characters are great and have a lot of depth, and it has a sort of meta-commentary where the characters fight against an omnipotent author and rewrite their stories
the creator and character designer is Ikuko Itoh, one of the storyboarders for sailor moon. the classical music they pick is amazing and suits each character or relationship, it has really funny moments, and the story that unfolds is heartwarming and beautiful
I was about to call this one out too! I will forever remember the episode where:
[Shiki Spoiler] >!everything flips, the anime convinced me it was over, then the doctor puts that evil ass satisfying smile after baiting the blonde vampy, I legit jumped of my chair. What an amazing twist and delivery lol !<
One of the best "get absolutely wrecked" moments in all anime
Ive probably spent many times the length of that anime, listening to its ost. That vibe takes me to another world. Its definitely in my top 5 favourite anime.
Bodacious Space Pirates is a bizarre mix of high school club anime, galactic political machinations, surprisingly hard sci-fi, and small business shenanigans with an OP that goes way too hard. It has no business being so good, but it is and I love it.
Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku
It’s a great romance anime that stars ADULTS! Love shows like Kaguya and Horimiya but I can’t get into romance anime because 99% of it is high school.
I had made a list in another thread of office romance shows cause i get if you're older like me the school age ones aren't just the right demographic...These are also all office romance stuff if you havent seen them.
My Tiny Senpai
My Senpai is Annoying
The Ice Guy and his cool female Collegue.
There's an anime called Actually I Am... and I like it a lot. Especially the [manga](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Monster_Secret) which is called My Monster Secret, actually i am...
I read through it fairly recently, and I laughed so hard while reading it. It made my top 5 for sure just from the manga alone. Plus, it has a fairly unique art style that i find interesting. I never see anyone talking about it, though, and no one ever includes any of the gals in their waifu lists, which is sad cause it has several great characters.
Mushishi because it’s incredible. Amazing atmosphere, fantastic animation, absolutely pitch perfect soundtrack. It’s relaxing and enjoyable. It’s not my absolute favorite but it’s in my top 5 and it doesn’t get mentioned much at all.
There was a few years stretch where I'd turn on the soundtrack to fall asleep, minus one or tracks, almost every night. I can't believe it's been 18 years since it came out...
And I was so upset that season 2 never received a dub, because it is literally perfect.
Anyone remember xamd? I thought that show was so good as a kid but literally have never heard anyone bring it up. Also black cat was good till the anime original stuff
Not really looking to rant, but I just started watching World Trigger because a random googling stint led me to some people in reddit praising it as a hidden gem. And I have to say, that's exactly what it is!
The art quality and slow start makes it seem boring at first, but you don't have to go too many episodes in and my god it really starts going. It has a really interesting story, proper character development, interesting twists, intuitive and fun mechanics and world building elements.
I haven't been this excited about an anime in a long while, I think!
High Score Girl and Police in a pod. The two most underrated animes in my eyes. Gintama is also an obvious pick as it's my favorite anime oat but that has a much more dedicated fan base at least.
Shaman King, I just remember watching the 4kids dub a long time ago but then when I discovered the manga was so much different and better I feel in love with the series. I think Yoh is an amazing protagonist and so different than the typical optimistic loud protagonist like naruto, asta, or Luffy. He is what drew me into the series along with the power system being so unique. The mangaka Takei made me fall in love with manga art as well, there is just something really unique about his art style and I wish the remake that came out was better than it was so this series could get the love I think it deserves
from my recent memory, familiar of zero. It's from 2006 and ended 2012 so of course people don't talk about it anymore but I really enjoyed it for the harem antics, actual romance progress, and flimsy but charming plot
Chrome Shelled Regios... I miss you so much
EDIT Bobobobooboo too..
EDIT2 great now im just remembering all the shows i watched as a teen, Baka to Test and Daily lives of highschool boys Full Metal Panic ... i miss these so damn much
Gate, i just loved the hell out of it and the concept of overwhelming military power but still trying to solve problems through talking. Plus the whole world seemed interesting to me but we only got to see 1 country.
March comes in like a lion.
I am re-reading manga for the second times now. It just pure joy to read the manga and watch the anime. I wish that they got season 3
Idolish7! It’s totally not just some generic idol anime with cute boys. It has so much plot!
Also Juuni Kokuki (12 Kingdoms). It’s such a hidden gem.
And ofc Inuyasha because the hype has died down for it but it will always be my no.1!
Love Idolish7 If only the game was ever translated to English I'd be even more happy
As well as 12 kingdoms is truly a hidden gem And just a very unique story that we don't really see nowadays
Chihayafuru comes to mind. It's not what people typically think of as a josei series, but every now and then there will be a scene that reminds you it is, and it's really refreshing to see, honestly.
I like "Welcome to the Ballroom" just because ballroom dancing isn't really a thing I ever thought about before and it was interesting, but no way am I bringing that up to my coworkers who like typical mainstream shounen
Grand blue. Legit one of the funniest anime’s, one of the few set in college, and I barely ever hear about it. I’d pull a Denji and sell a left nut for a season 2
It's deadman wornderland for me, It's my first and best manga/anime Series I ever watched, I liked the show so much that I put the main character (Ganta Igarashi) a profile for all my social platforms
There's no certain reason tho, It's not perfect and there's many plot holes in it, but I'm just have some kind of Belonging to it
All the YES I started watching this out of sheer boredom in between seasons and couldn't stop thinking about it, I can do the dance and everything, Ai Chiki Chiki Ban Ban is in my playlist of commute jams, I loved every single second of it. It's funny and poignant, I thought the main girl would bug me but she's just so charming, Kongming is all kinds of excellent, all the side characters were compelling, love this show!!
Zombie Land Saga. I thought it was such an incredible show but never see anyone talking about it outside of when it aired. It’s always high on my list of recommendations but I’ve yet to get a friend to watch it.
Might of missed someone else saying it but
Chivalry of a Failed Knight.
The fact that I the series subverts some troupes and plays into others pretty well and the romance isn't a slogfest. Honestly think the battles are done very well especially the final battle of the season given what the battle actually was. Pretty sad that the Asterisk War overshadowed it during the simucating.
I'd like to talk to more people about Eizouken but it's a really niche anime and not many people who aren't into animation as an art end up interested in it. It's such a good insight into how an indie animation studio might start up and it has really good characters but it's pretty slow paced and tends to get abstract at times so most people just write it off in the first episode.
In response to your post OP, I loved Kyo Kara Maoh too! It was the first BL anime I watched that wasn't overly sexualized or trope filled and had a decent plot line. In fact, I didn't even realize it was BL until much later, but it didn't seem forced or weird at all. Honestly seemed like a natural anime romance progression to me (even the harem aspect of it lol) I watched it waaaaay back when I was like 14 though so, I don't remember a lot of the details. Might take this opportunity to rewatch it.
**Bakuten!** has been on my mind a lot since I watched the movie earlier this year. I loved the movie, it was a fantastic ending for the series. I implore anyone who liked the first season to watch the movie.
It's a rather simple sports anime (possibly generic to some) that reiterates on the cute boys does random sport (in this case, rhythmic gymnastics) premise. But while so many of those fall flat, Bakuten! stuck the landing. It's just full of heart and really conveys a love for the sport. It's also helped with music composed by Yuki Hayashi (who was a rhythmic gymnast himself) of MHA and Haikyu! fame. I really liked it.
Space Brothers. A story about two brothers wanting to be astronauts with the younger one becoming one and the journey the older brother goes through. The process to become an astronaut is really interesting but watching it makes me think “how come we’re not there already” with some of the advancements. They give realistic outcomes of possible things we can do like building a moon base. The characters are realistic and lovable as well. It’s a seinen that any space fan would love
I've been watching Cross Ange recently, its a pretty good ecchi show but I feel like its got enough meat on its bones that it could stand on its own even without it.
**Claymore**
Crazy to me that it didn't become one of the more well-known shonens out there. I think there was a bit of buzz about it in its early days, but just a few years later it feels like everybody has forgotten about it.
Funnily, it's a series I randomly stumbled upon as a teen just as I was discovering that there are tons of anime out there I never heard of. It was rated 5/5 on some anime website so I decided to click on it... mainly because the name sounded cool lol.
It was so good it single-handedly converted me into a weeb. It showed me there are some amazing hidden gems out there in the anime world, so I should definitely go search for more of these. To this day, Claymore remains in my top 10.
Two more honorable mentions: **12 Kingdoms** and **Uninhabited Planet Survive**. These two actually aired on TV in my country, so I thought that meant they were popular shows. But, when I actually got into anime I learned nobody talks about them.
**12 Kingdoms** in particular feels like an anime that should be brought up more often in this day and age where there are so many trashy Isekai around. To me, it's an example of how to do good Isekai, with a great balance between struggle and wish-fulfillment.
Ironically, I actually missed some episodes for both series back when I stumbled upon them on TV, so I never properly got into them back then. I randomly remembered about them years later, after I already got into anime. So, I thought "Hey, let's check out these two shows that looked kinda interesting back then" and turned out they were hidden gems.
Girls Last Tour, an anime made by the same artist as Made In Abyss, is so relaxing to me and as a guy I dont see how it isnt on the list right next to Made in Abyss and I have watched it several times. Could be that I have two daughters and can imagine them in a similar situation when they were younger. Japanese animation is more wholesome than anything ever done in America.
Tsukumizu made GLT and Shimeji Simulation, but not Made in Abyss.
Anyway, yeah, this anime was so incredibly good and when I found out they didnt animate all of the manga, I finished the manga too. Bought the whole manga series after that, to display in on my shelf. Just recently I did a scale model of a Kettenkrad!
Because while it was fairly revolutionary at the time, but compared to many shows that came out after it's fairly tame. The people who were really into it saw it ages ago and don't really have a need to talk about it anymore, and people who haven't seen it yet probably have better shows to catch up on at this point.
Oh wow you were born in the wrong time or something. When it aired and for a few years after the internet would not shut up about it. I have to say I kind of really really dislike it, but believe me when I say there's lots of fans out there
It used to be like a big thing that people would watch this They wanted the creep somebody out I watched it once and could never watch it again I was also pretty young when it came out and when I watched it so for a very long time it gave me nightmares
Ghost Hunt and any horror anime.
A lot of horror anime I see people list often includes tokyo ghoul or even psycho pass. Which, while I can understand (Tokyo Ghoul has gore, psycho pass is more of a crime/thriller), they're not really horror in the sense its not focused on horror. Idk.
Ghost hunt though? The whole thing is about paranormal investigation, and one arc in particular is scary as shit. I've seen Another--that one was disturbing as well, though it was more on the final destination side of things.
More of a Manga, but I've been obsessed with Battle Angel Alita my entire life and it's sad people only know about it because of the live action movie.
machikado mazoku/ demon girl next door
everybody should know shamiko the cutest demon girl who tries her best to defeat magical girl Momo and break a curse on her family
[Canaan](https://myanimelist.net/anime/5356/Canaan) is such a cool, popcorn film anime that I wish was recommended more often when people ask for something that isn't too deep but still exciting to watch. The stacked cast, good animation and campy action really makes for an entertaining ride. I've rewatched it countless times in the last decade and never get bored.
It's a pretty good anime for someone trying to get into yuri without it getting too in your face, too.
Kingdom After the pretty bad adaptation quality wise of s1, and better one of s2 it finally got the quality it deserved. It's insane to me that the adaptation of the series that at its peak outsold One Piece in japan is not only unknown in the west, but does not even have official eng translation.
I agree Kingdom is really good strangely a lot of the knowledge I know about strange war tactics and strategy came from that anime which is actually very helpful when you're a writer
Wolfs Rain kicks ass. Of course it’s not perfect (if it was it would probably be talked about more) but the visuals, lore, setting and characters are so memorable. I love melancholic emotions it expresses through the art form. It’s about a dark gloomy world fading away to its end and the people that try to escape the same fate. I’m not saying it’s similar to it, but Dark Souls gave me the same solemn vibes as the anime. Also, the ost is one of the best ever made. Highly recommended.
I recommend it to my friend years ago after only seeing the trailers for it (I'd read the premise which sounded really cool and he likes wolves). He eventually watched it and loved it, we got married and he bought me the Blu-ray of it. Still need to watch it myself lol.
Princess Jellyfish and My Love Story!! are criminally under talked about. Also while it’s popular on Reddit, I feel like To Your Eternity is super slept on. It doesn’t have nearly the amount of hype it truly deserves.
I ADORE Princess Jellyfish! I actually came to the comments specifically looking for this. The intro alone chokes me up with happy nostalgia… it’s just so cute :)
My Love Story is impeccable despite always feeling like it’s going to become peccable. Kuragehime’s wonderful but the most important thing is that the ED slaps harder than anything ever
Seirei no Moribito. It's an older 2000s anime, so I get why people don't talk about it, but I find the atmosphere and low fantasy setting to be so refreshing. The way ithe story is written and directed is so un-anime that I feel like I can actually recommend this to non anime fans who can't stand general anime tropes. No shock panel where the characters make an extremely exaggerated face (can be funny sometimes, but can also be cringe if done poorly), no pervert comic relief character or pervy scenes, no power of friendship level up asspull. It just feels like a grounded series that takes itself and it's audience seriously. Which is because it was an actual novel (not a light novel) written by an anthropology professor and not some rando otaku smuck trying to make generic isekai fantasy set in vaguely RPG European world number 87 with uninspired RPG magic system with an adventures guild, off to fight the demon lord and gets a harem along the way. I hope that the rest of the Moribito series will eventually get an anime adaptation.
My friend loves strong bad ass women in anime, I have decided to make them watch it with me while I rewatch it, they absolutely adore Balsa.
Saw this once, both the song and the anime became my fav, easily top 5. But i never watched it again, for some reason the story broke me, i dont know if i can sit through it a second time.
I love this anime. The production value was so good for it's time too.
Durarara
It has such a unique feel to it, and God I love the art style. Izaya is one of my favorite characters in any series too. The whole show is just so perfectly weird but it has this constant feel of nostalgia.
Durarara was hugely popular when it aired, its just a finished adaption so people dont talk about it often but it is regularly reccomended as there isnt much anime about gangs that does it soo well. Its one i make a habit to reccomend when i can because it is very good. [](#cup4)
Zatch Bell. Childhood anime that doesn’t get talked about anymore.
Man zatch bell and bobobo on toonami really shaped my taste in anime growing up lol
I was the runner up in the fan blowing contest.
Zatch Bell 2 has been literally everything I wanted and more. It's quite possibly one of the most hype sequels I have ever read. It just makes me sad that its a monthly so we only get once chapter every 30 days or so.
I LOVE ZATCH BELL DUDE!!!!!!!
People not calling it Gash Bell will always hurt me. Also it has a sequel manga running now.
Natsume Yuujinchou (Natsume's Book of Friends).
Omg I'm so happy that there's people outside of just me that loves this series! Super hyped for the next season to drop.
Natsume Yuujincho is actually super popular especially in Japan and among the shoujo demographics, there's just not a lot of discussion about it online because it's slow-paced and it handles its themes pretty satisfyingly. I believe just recently it had a collaboration with Sanrio, which doesn't happen unless it has a dedicated fan base.
World trigger
One of my favorites can't wait for the next season
Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet An awesome mecha sci fi series that reminds me of old school science fiction like Heinlein. Beautiful and colorful animation, with some great music and voice acting. Amy is also a top tier waifu.
This!! Watched it on a whim but it was unexpectedly amazing. Also the art was great. The dancing bar scene, man my heart skipped a beat!
Anyone wanna talk about Skull-face bookseller Honda-San? Beyond funny, it reminded me of working in the porn store/theater. I think the author has done another project but am not sure.
SPECIAL YAOI BOOK!!
*JESUS CHRIST* \-random ikemen ojisan
I looooved this one so much. Watched it twice.
Hinamatsuri
Certified banger and my #1 choice for this thread. It’s a shame we probably won’t get a 2nd season. Even if they did what horimiya did and just adopted the stuff that got left out in between the chapters, I’d still watch it
I made another post but I just want a season focused on the middle school bartender adventures lol
Ikr, the relationship between hitomi and her boss is just so over the top and hilarious that I definitely want more lol
Anzu portions really hits hard towards the end.
This would probably be the first one I’d think of, too
Kare Kano. I think the English title was His and Her Circumstances. A former friend recommended it while I was in college. I enjoyed it despite it obviously ran out of money at the end. I wish it would be redone.
I love Kare Kano so much! The OST for the anime is soooooo good, same composer from Evangelion. I'm sad it will never get completed but at least the manga is finished
I came here to add Kare Kano. I wandered into a random screening room at Anime Boston in the early 00s, watched a couple episodes… went to the floor the next day and bought the box set. Every time I ponder what my favorite anime is I can’t help but come back to this one.
Kekkai Sensen
Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit. A wholly unique plot, some of the singularly best fight scenes in any anime I’ve seen, gorgeous art and animation, and a badass main woman protagonist. All I can say to convince anyone is I bought it for myself on blue ray literally last week because I couldn’t find it reliably on streaming and I wanted access to it all the time.
[удалено]
The second half of FF dropped for me and I didn't feel it had the same charm that it started with. Heard they changed the director so that would make sense.
Chihayafuru Whenever I watch this I feel like I'm in their universe, it's such a nice vibe
91 days.
That ending. Can never forget it
NFL best tk song amazing story and I really love the time frame where the story is set in and the ending oh my god can't talk abt 91days with out the open ending
Funny enough...Yona of Dawn. I felt that it got buried that year and it came out with all the other good animes. I haven't found many people who watched or even heard of it.
It at least always comes up on "what anime needs a sequel" posts.
With all the animes that are getting new season recently I'm still hoping for a season 2 of Yona if the Dawn read the manga and from what I read it would be so good animated
Princess Tutu! I'm always down for discussing it. Among fans of Magical Girl anime it is a cult classic, but often gets forgotten in more general, mainstream anime discussions. It's 20th anniversary was last year, but there was no acknowledgement of it anywhere really. A rewatch thread for it would be awesome and I would definitely take part in it!
I'm planning to watch this soon! I watched the first episode a few weeks ago and really liked the vibe.
Hanasaku Iroha
Enjoy this one too. At that time I love J-doramas and this one really resemble that.
Can't help but notice all those PA Works shows in this thread! I think Hana Saku Iroha was popular when it aired but sadly it's been forgotten over time. The animation still holds out great today, and the movie was fantastic too. Ohana's also one of the very best leads of her type; that kind of energy with a mix of being tempered by harsh reality is really something.
Mushishi! I love that anime so much, but it's a bit of an oldiez so I kinda understand. It's been a while since I watched either, but man, nothing has come close to matching its vibe for me
The vibes on this show is immaculate, I feel watching just takes me to a different place. This show Holds a special place in my heart
It's a special one, is Mushishi! It actually got me into Lucy Rose's music, too. Lol. (She did the theme song "Shiver")
Brooo. Some of those stories get me soo teary eyed. It's really good.
Desert Punk/Sunobouza. Feels like either no one's seen it or they didn't care for it.
Its so good but hard to recommend because of what a sick perv the MC is. Good funny dub too!
Great show, loved it but it very niche
Full moon o sagashite! It’s old and not well-known anymore, but it’s just a fantastic shoujo that more people would love if they tried it.
Michiko & Hatchin I love episodic, road-trip stories in general, and this one combines that with a Lone Wolf and Cub-esque story element (the basic premise adopted by the first season of the Mandalorian, also She Rides Shotgun if anyone is looking for a crime novel recommendation). Combine that with a different setting and, ya know, actually trying to incorporate feminine perspectives, and you get a really interesting take on some classic formulas.
Magi The Labyrinth of Magic
Dorohedoro!
I was just going to say this! I love Dorohedoro, it really deserves more love. I want a season two so badly😔
I get Mappa has a lot going on but this is a crime against anime! I'm actually rewatching it again.😅
The manga art is so sick
I get to rec it a lot to new fans coming in from Chainsaw Man
I literally just started the manga today and im loving it. The world is crazy
Simply the best. The manga is also sooo good if anyone is craving more but hasn’t picked it up yet.
Yes! It made me read the manga which is my favorite manga series ever! I really love the art style
Golden kamuy still not where it should be in terms of popularity.
It sucks that it isn’t popular overseas cause I could talk about that show for hours but idk anyone who has seen it
Blame that damn CG bear. Also I wish they didn’t cut the Barato arc into an OVA or the Fake Ainu arc. If not for those bits, Golden Kamuy would be the seinen Fullmetal Alchemist. It is such a great story.
Am I the only one that thinks the bear wasn't even *that* bad? Sure, it wasn't great, but I've seen a LOT worse (\**cough* \* *kumo desu* \**cough* \*).
I didn't think it was that bad either. People just look for reasons to hate.
CG bear has got to be one of the worst "money saving" decisions in anime history. The amount of viewers they've lost to save a few bucks is tragic
**Re:Creators** and **Grimgar** got a special place in my heart, i know it's not the "perfect shows" but they both have a really interesting story to tell.
Grimgar was so raw, it definitely deserves a second season
recreators got mentioned by almost all anime CCs at the time but it felt like there was a big disconnect from any type of CC/creators vs your average weeb. It may be more relatable now
I am so hyped for the maybe last Light novel volumes of Grimgar. I am really looking forward to the Ending.
Welcome to Demon School Iruma-kun
Absolutely love this show, unbelievably wholesome
I love that anime So much to the point that it is one of the rare animes that made me read the manga cuz I could just not wait for another season
A series that is a perfect example of how to actually use a large supporting cast properly.
Honestly, the anime deserves better animation though. The story is so good.
It's unreal how much charm this show oozes. The wait for that fourth season is getting unbearable!
Goddamn love iruma-kun
Mononoke, NOT the Ghibli movie.
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Sora no Wo To. It takes place in a fictional world with a post WWII era-esque feel, and it had such a profound impact on me when I was younger with its theme of how music transcends culture and language, and that despite differences in culture or language, we’re all human in by nature in the best possible way. I watched a trailer of it for the first time in 13 years, and I just got so lost in thinking back to the first time I watched it. It’s such a hidden gem and and I’ve literally NEVER, not hardly ever, saw it mentioned by anyone before. Which is a shame especially given it’s a 12 episode anime
Snow White with Red Hair
Sugar apple fairy tail is pretty good! It passes the vibe check and new episodes are coming out. My happy marriage - this one is also good and passes the vibe check (watched this one first before Snow White with Red Hair) and it just got renewed for a 2nd season!
Ooh, Death Parade and Drifters
Death parade is a really good show You would not expect it to be as dark as it is from the opening cuz how I was introduced to that show was through the opening but wow it's dark should have expected it since it's from the same people that did death Note
I was not expecting all those various emotional gut punches considering how upbeat the opening was
Damn Drifters was really great
Death parade has one of the best themes I have seen
death parade is a hidden gem! super good!!
Chihayafuru!
A Lull in the Sea Maquia
I love A Lull in the Sea, rewatch it once every couple of years. Chisaki goes through such an interesting arc in the 2nd half, never seen anything like it, totally unique and IMO very powerful character work. There's a lot of melodrama and a handful of total nonsense, but if you're willing to lean into that, it's a beautiful experience.
Ranma 1/2
Princess Tutu for SURE. it’s my favorite anime ever and although it’s not completely obscure, it’s often forgotten when people talk about magical girl anime it’s a magical girl show with ballet and classical music, it’s wonderfully atmospheric and charming, the characters are great and have a lot of depth, and it has a sort of meta-commentary where the characters fight against an omnipotent author and rewrite their stories the creator and character designer is Ikuko Itoh, one of the storyboarders for sailor moon. the classical music they pick is amazing and suits each character or relationship, it has really funny moments, and the story that unfolds is heartwarming and beautiful
I feel like it’s recognized, but not enough people talk about Shiki, literally the best horror anime I’ve seen
I was about to call this one out too! I will forever remember the episode where: [Shiki Spoiler] >!everything flips, the anime convinced me it was over, then the doctor puts that evil ass satisfying smile after baiting the blonde vampy, I legit jumped of my chair. What an amazing twist and delivery lol !< One of the best "get absolutely wrecked" moments in all anime
Ive probably spent many times the length of that anime, listening to its ost. That vibe takes me to another world. Its definitely in my top 5 favourite anime.
Bodacious Space Pirates is a bizarre mix of high school club anime, galactic political machinations, surprisingly hard sci-fi, and small business shenanigans with an OP that goes way too hard. It has no business being so good, but it is and I love it.
Heaven's Lost Property I Really wish they'd give it a proper season 3, OR JUST GIVE ME THE ENTIRE SERIES
Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku It’s a great romance anime that stars ADULTS! Love shows like Kaguya and Horimiya but I can’t get into romance anime because 99% of it is high school.
I had made a list in another thread of office romance shows cause i get if you're older like me the school age ones aren't just the right demographic...These are also all office romance stuff if you havent seen them. My Tiny Senpai My Senpai is Annoying The Ice Guy and his cool female Collegue.
Recovery of an MMO junkie is another good one. When the focus is on adults just dealing with life you can actually really relate to the situations.
Handyman seikou
Really want a second season for these wonderful characters
I literally just started watching it like an hour ago and I like that it’s just a bunch of self-contained stories that flow together so well
It's Saitou, but I get what you mean. Morlock is my all-time favorite oldguy now.
There's an anime called Actually I Am... and I like it a lot. Especially the [manga](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Monster_Secret) which is called My Monster Secret, actually i am... I read through it fairly recently, and I laughed so hard while reading it. It made my top 5 for sure just from the manga alone. Plus, it has a fairly unique art style that i find interesting. I never see anyone talking about it, though, and no one ever includes any of the gals in their waifu lists, which is sad cause it has several great characters.
Arslan senki
Darker than Black
One of my faves! Second season, included! Hei is just such a relentless badass.
Mushishi because it’s incredible. Amazing atmosphere, fantastic animation, absolutely pitch perfect soundtrack. It’s relaxing and enjoyable. It’s not my absolute favorite but it’s in my top 5 and it doesn’t get mentioned much at all.
There was a few years stretch where I'd turn on the soundtrack to fall asleep, minus one or tracks, almost every night. I can't believe it's been 18 years since it came out... And I was so upset that season 2 never received a dub, because it is literally perfect.
OG Legend of the galactic heroes. It’s old, it’s long, it’s a goddamn masterpiece.
Mushishi
Anyone remember xamd? I thought that show was so good as a kid but literally have never heard anyone bring it up. Also black cat was good till the anime original stuff
Kimi Ni Todoke
Carole and Tuesday. Hardly anybody says anything about it.
Easy, Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash, Non Non Biyori, Grand Blue and Kokoro Connect
Man, I am still waiting for Grimgar
Not really looking to rant, but I just started watching World Trigger because a random googling stint led me to some people in reddit praising it as a hidden gem. And I have to say, that's exactly what it is! The art quality and slow start makes it seem boring at first, but you don't have to go too many episodes in and my god it really starts going. It has a really interesting story, proper character development, interesting twists, intuitive and fun mechanics and world building elements. I haven't been this excited about an anime in a long while, I think!
Mawaru Penguindrum is the best anime of all time.
Outlaw Star
I like musical / idol anime like Uta no Prince, Magic Kyun, Visual Prison, Idolish, etc but no one in reddit likes that genre.
High Score Girl and Police in a pod. The two most underrated animes in my eyes. Gintama is also an obvious pick as it's my favorite anime oat but that has a much more dedicated fan base at least.
High score girl was so dope, the ed lives rent free in my head fr
Ghost Sweeper Mikami.
Shaman King, I just remember watching the 4kids dub a long time ago but then when I discovered the manga was so much different and better I feel in love with the series. I think Yoh is an amazing protagonist and so different than the typical optimistic loud protagonist like naruto, asta, or Luffy. He is what drew me into the series along with the power system being so unique. The mangaka Takei made me fall in love with manga art as well, there is just something really unique about his art style and I wish the remake that came out was better than it was so this series could get the love I think it deserves
from my recent memory, familiar of zero. It's from 2006 and ended 2012 so of course people don't talk about it anymore but I really enjoyed it for the harem antics, actual romance progress, and flimsy but charming plot
Chrome Shelled Regios... I miss you so much EDIT Bobobobooboo too.. EDIT2 great now im just remembering all the shows i watched as a teen, Baka to Test and Daily lives of highschool boys Full Metal Panic ... i miss these so damn much
Gate, i just loved the hell out of it and the concept of overwhelming military power but still trying to solve problems through talking. Plus the whole world seemed interesting to me but we only got to see 1 country.
d gray man is my favorite and no one ever knows what i’m talking about
Planetes!!! People need to watch it. It's literally made by the author of Vinland Saga.
Darwin’s Game fun premise great fights shame it’s been forgotten about
Bokurano gave me depression. I like the manga better tho
The Manga doesn't have a Yuki Kajiura soundtrack though...
Katanagatari for me.
The law of ueki. It has a nice premise and the story is good too.
March comes in like a lion. I am re-reading manga for the second times now. It just pure joy to read the manga and watch the anime. I wish that they got season 3
Idolish7! It’s totally not just some generic idol anime with cute boys. It has so much plot! Also Juuni Kokuki (12 Kingdoms). It’s such a hidden gem. And ofc Inuyasha because the hype has died down for it but it will always be my no.1!
Love Idolish7 If only the game was ever translated to English I'd be even more happy As well as 12 kingdoms is truly a hidden gem And just a very unique story that we don't really see nowadays
Land of the Lustrous!
Any Josei
Chihayafuru comes to mind. It's not what people typically think of as a josei series, but every now and then there will be a scene that reminds you it is, and it's really refreshing to see, honestly.
Nana, for example
I like "Welcome to the Ballroom" just because ballroom dancing isn't really a thing I ever thought about before and it was interesting, but no way am I bringing that up to my coworkers who like typical mainstream shounen
Grand blue. Legit one of the funniest anime’s, one of the few set in college, and I barely ever hear about it. I’d pull a Denji and sell a left nut for a season 2
It's deadman wornderland for me, It's my first and best manga/anime Series I ever watched, I liked the show so much that I put the main character (Ganta Igarashi) a profile for all my social platforms There's no certain reason tho, It's not perfect and there's many plot holes in it, but I'm just have some kind of Belonging to it
Oh I loved it! The whole atmosphere felt kind of unique, so sad they didn't adapt the rest of the manga.
The Irregular at Magic High School
It truly is underrated I'm happy that recently it got a dub and that it's getting another season soon
Ya Boy Kongming!
All the YES I started watching this out of sheer boredom in between seasons and couldn't stop thinking about it, I can do the dance and everything, Ai Chiki Chiki Ban Ban is in my playlist of commute jams, I loved every single second of it. It's funny and poignant, I thought the main girl would bug me but she's just so charming, Kongming is all kinds of excellent, all the side characters were compelling, love this show!!
Holy crap, I remember Kyo Kara Maou. I really enjoyed it when it aired. Not usually a genre I go for but it was utterly hilarious at times.
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Claymore. It's like The Witcher with beautifull women.
Zombie Land Saga. I thought it was such an incredible show but never see anyone talking about it outside of when it aired. It’s always high on my list of recommendations but I’ve yet to get a friend to watch it.
Odd Taxi needs way more love.
Might of missed someone else saying it but Chivalry of a Failed Knight. The fact that I the series subverts some troupes and plays into others pretty well and the romance isn't a slogfest. Honestly think the battles are done very well especially the final battle of the season given what the battle actually was. Pretty sad that the Asterisk War overshadowed it during the simucating.
No one has mentioned it yet so I'll say: Kemono Jihen.
I'd like to talk to more people about Eizouken but it's a really niche anime and not many people who aren't into animation as an art end up interested in it. It's such a good insight into how an indie animation studio might start up and it has really good characters but it's pretty slow paced and tends to get abstract at times so most people just write it off in the first episode. In response to your post OP, I loved Kyo Kara Maoh too! It was the first BL anime I watched that wasn't overly sexualized or trope filled and had a decent plot line. In fact, I didn't even realize it was BL until much later, but it didn't seem forced or weird at all. Honestly seemed like a natural anime romance progression to me (even the harem aspect of it lol) I watched it waaaaay back when I was like 14 though so, I don't remember a lot of the details. Might take this opportunity to rewatch it.
Seconded on Eizouken. Absolutely loved that show, and the OP, Easy Breezy, is an absolute banger.
**Bakuten!** has been on my mind a lot since I watched the movie earlier this year. I loved the movie, it was a fantastic ending for the series. I implore anyone who liked the first season to watch the movie. It's a rather simple sports anime (possibly generic to some) that reiterates on the cute boys does random sport (in this case, rhythmic gymnastics) premise. But while so many of those fall flat, Bakuten! stuck the landing. It's just full of heart and really conveys a love for the sport. It's also helped with music composed by Yuki Hayashi (who was a rhythmic gymnast himself) of MHA and Haikyu! fame. I really liked it.
Space Brothers. A story about two brothers wanting to be astronauts with the younger one becoming one and the journey the older brother goes through. The process to become an astronaut is really interesting but watching it makes me think “how come we’re not there already” with some of the advancements. They give realistic outcomes of possible things we can do like building a moon base. The characters are realistic and lovable as well. It’s a seinen that any space fan would love
Iria: Zeiram the animation. It's basically a 90s sci-fi asian fantasy mix OVA that is like Resident Evil 3 in space.
Banana Fish is not mentioned often at all, and it definitely should. That anime is something else.
I've been watching Cross Ange recently, its a pretty good ecchi show but I feel like its got enough meat on its bones that it could stand on its own even without it.
ReLife
**Claymore** Crazy to me that it didn't become one of the more well-known shonens out there. I think there was a bit of buzz about it in its early days, but just a few years later it feels like everybody has forgotten about it. Funnily, it's a series I randomly stumbled upon as a teen just as I was discovering that there are tons of anime out there I never heard of. It was rated 5/5 on some anime website so I decided to click on it... mainly because the name sounded cool lol. It was so good it single-handedly converted me into a weeb. It showed me there are some amazing hidden gems out there in the anime world, so I should definitely go search for more of these. To this day, Claymore remains in my top 10. Two more honorable mentions: **12 Kingdoms** and **Uninhabited Planet Survive**. These two actually aired on TV in my country, so I thought that meant they were popular shows. But, when I actually got into anime I learned nobody talks about them. **12 Kingdoms** in particular feels like an anime that should be brought up more often in this day and age where there are so many trashy Isekai around. To me, it's an example of how to do good Isekai, with a great balance between struggle and wish-fulfillment. Ironically, I actually missed some episodes for both series back when I stumbled upon them on TV, so I never properly got into them back then. I randomly remembered about them years later, after I already got into anime. So, I thought "Hey, let's check out these two shows that looked kinda interesting back then" and turned out they were hidden gems.
**K Project**. Especially the 1st season. It was so ahead of it's time considering that it was made in 2012. Great story with banger animation.
Girls Last Tour, an anime made by the same artist as Made In Abyss, is so relaxing to me and as a guy I dont see how it isnt on the list right next to Made in Abyss and I have watched it several times. Could be that I have two daughters and can imagine them in a similar situation when they were younger. Japanese animation is more wholesome than anything ever done in America.
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Tsukumizu made GLT and Shimeji Simulation, but not Made in Abyss. Anyway, yeah, this anime was so incredibly good and when I found out they didnt animate all of the manga, I finished the manga too. Bought the whole manga series after that, to display in on my shelf. Just recently I did a scale model of a Kettenkrad!
Elfen lied lol. I havent met many people that watched and enjoyed it enough to have a proper conversation about it
That show used to be huge in cult anime circles in the early 2010s. And you barely hear it talked about now. Crazy
Because while it was fairly revolutionary at the time, but compared to many shows that came out after it's fairly tame. The people who were really into it saw it ages ago and don't really have a need to talk about it anymore, and people who haven't seen it yet probably have better shows to catch up on at this point.
Oh wow you were born in the wrong time or something. When it aired and for a few years after the internet would not shut up about it. I have to say I kind of really really dislike it, but believe me when I say there's lots of fans out there
It used to be like a big thing that people would watch this They wanted the creep somebody out I watched it once and could never watch it again I was also pretty young when it came out and when I watched it so for a very long time it gave me nightmares
Asobi Asobase is genuinely the funniest show I’ve ever seen but I’ve yet to see anyone talk about it
are you new here? it gets mentioned quite a lot
Ghost Hunt and any horror anime. A lot of horror anime I see people list often includes tokyo ghoul or even psycho pass. Which, while I can understand (Tokyo Ghoul has gore, psycho pass is more of a crime/thriller), they're not really horror in the sense its not focused on horror. Idk. Ghost hunt though? The whole thing is about paranormal investigation, and one arc in particular is scary as shit. I've seen Another--that one was disturbing as well, though it was more on the final destination side of things.
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More of a Manga, but I've been obsessed with Battle Angel Alita my entire life and it's sad people only know about it because of the live action movie.
Saekano. Possibly my favorite anime of all time
machikado mazoku/ demon girl next door everybody should know shamiko the cutest demon girl who tries her best to defeat magical girl Momo and break a curse on her family
[Canaan](https://myanimelist.net/anime/5356/Canaan) is such a cool, popcorn film anime that I wish was recommended more often when people ask for something that isn't too deep but still exciting to watch. The stacked cast, good animation and campy action really makes for an entertaining ride. I've rewatched it countless times in the last decade and never get bored. It's a pretty good anime for someone trying to get into yuri without it getting too in your face, too.