What's Your Favorite Anime Series?
COMMUNITY QUESTION | With Evangelion's resurrection comes anime discourse.
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Neon Genesis Evangelion is on Netflix, which is a pretty big deal. Evangelion is, well, it's a huge inspiration for a lot of video games. For some people, the original run even proved to be a gateway anime that opened to other anime and games with similar themes ("EVA PILOTING: NOT EVEN ONCE").
This might be a good time to give a shout-out to your own favorite anime series. Try to narrow things down to one, though we're probably asking the impossible here.
Kat Bailey, Editor-in-Chief
Believe it or not, I'm not a huge anime viewer. My favorites are mostly oldies: Yamato, Cowboy Bebop, Slayers. The one I follow most closely is, of course, Gundam. I'm sure I've mentioned more than once how much I like its anti-war message, its unique setting, and its really awesome mech designs.
I'm often asked, "Kat, where should I start watching Gundam?" The correct answer, as always, is either Gundam 0080 or 08th MS Team. Both are relatively lean shows with great stories, interesting characters, and amazing animation. 08th MS Team in particular has what is probably the greatest mech fight ever—an all-out mecha brawl if I've ever seen one.
If you can't love either of those amazing shows, then Gundam probably isn't for you. But I still love it, and it will probably remain my main anime habit going forward.
Eric Van Allen, News Editor
This is a really tough question! My top 10 list changes a lot, depending on the day and my mood. There are a few regulars, like Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Cowboy Bebop, and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. But the one that’s always at the top is Shin Sekai Yori, or From The New World.
Shin Sekai Yori is told over multiple points in time in the lives of a group of children, growing up in a rural village. As you quickly learn, things are a little amiss—everyone has telekinetic powers, and there are many rituals and laws to uphold. It’s clear that something has happened to humanity, and as the children discover knowledge they shouldn’t, things start to fall apart.
It’s a brilliant, contained run that I can’t recommend enough. The pacing can get a little bumpy at times, but other than that, it’s an anime I love re-discovering every couple years. There’s romance, action, drama, mystery, sci-fi, and a whole lot of heart, and some of the best writing I’ve seen in an anime. Incredibly underrated and highly worth your time.
Mike Williams, Reviews Editor
Like Eric, this is a very hard question for me to answer, given that I've been watching anime for a very very long time. Been a long time since I've done a Top 10 or 20 anime list for myself, though I do a Top 10 at the end of each year. (My Top 10 anime for 2018 is right here.) My all-time list probably includes shows like Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Nichijou, Gurren Lagann, Eureka Seven, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, Mob Psycho 100, 08th MS Team, Gundam 00 S1, Monster, Haikyuu, Hajime no Ippo, Samurai Champloo, and more.
So I can't pick just one, not off the random on Friday before I shove off for the weekend. So I'll just say, watch JoJo's Bizzare Adventure, as Nadia is beginning for herself this week. Stretching across several different story arcs focused on a different protagonist named JoJo, it's one of the most "out there" manga and anime around that's still somehow platable to mainstream audiences. There's weirder and equally inventive stuff to be sure: I've found One Piece to be a hard sell, because people have to get over the initial art style, and stuff from Kunihiko Ikuhara (Mawaru Penguindrum and this season's Sarazanmai come to mind) are wayyyyyyyy off the beaten path. So just watch JoJo. It's weird, it's funny, folks get shonen battle manga already thanks to Naruto and Bleach, and it'll open you up a bit.
Nadia Oxford, Staff Writer
The thing about me is, I don't watch too much anime. I'm more of a manga reader. In fact, one of my earliest regular jobs as a freelance writer was reviewing manga! By the time I was done with that gig, I considered taking the tupperware storage container of Boy's Love manga I had, dumping it on the library's doorstep, ringing the doorbell, and running away.
Despite not being a regular anime connoisseur, I still have some series I like very much. Mushishi one series I can easily recommend: It's gorgeous-looking, its soundtrack is to die for, and I'm forever interested in stuff that explores humans' place in the natural world. Its protagonist, Ginko, is also just the kind of character who's great to "travel" with because he's gentle and has a calming aura. Given how crazy upside-down the world is these days, I whole-heartedly recommend Mushishi if you need a good, restful show that'll calm you down.
Oh, and I just started JoJo's Bizarre Adventure literally yesterday, so ask me this question again in a few months I guess.