Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei

Both Welcome to the NHK and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei deal with the psychological aspects of suicide, depression, and other mental illnesses.  While Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei tends to be on the light hearted comedy side, each series touches on the seriousness of the situation.  If you liked this one, you will also love the other.

Plot aside, you'll find that Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei has very similar qualities when compared to Welcome to the NHK! Both series felt like psychological satires that covered almost every aspect of human thought and behavior. Not only do these two series share similarities in their comedy but they also do an excellent job at replacing the story with problematic characters living questionable lives. Even though the humor is darker than most comedies, you'll find that these two anime capture a very interesting view of social and metal disorders.

Both Welcome to the NHK and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei wraps up the problems of our society, and even mankind in great comedy. The series might not resemble each other plot-wise, but if you look past that you will see two very similar anime. It's very dark humour, the kind of humour you are not supposed to laugh at, yet it's hilarious beyond belief.

Both Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei and NHK share a very black sense of humour and are centered around people with personality disorders of one sort or another. Despite this both series are pretty light in tone and manage to be very strange without descending into irritating 'wackiness'.

Both of these series place focus on a darker and more serious side of life. Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei is primarily about a man who sees everything in a negative light, whilst Welcome to the NHK focuses on the struggles of being a hikkikomori and both have their fair share of dark humour. Although Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei is generally a lighter anime with more humour packed in, if you like taking a look at a more dim view of society then both of these series are a must.

both are psychologic dark psychological comedies about characters with negative views .believing that world is a hopeless place and there is no point in living .at the same time there are positive female characters with their own problems who come to their aid and together they try to find a meaning for their lives.

They both have this seriousness about psychological health, while at the same time mainly joking about same psychological problems. Also both series uses alot of Japanese social problems as joking material and uses an overly innocent girl as a protagonist.

Each series deals with the problems of Japanese society, and boasts a cast of quirky, flawed, but loveable characters. Sato and Itoshiki are both extreme pessimists who tend to let their imaginations run away with them and seem to find themselves in the most unusual situations. Both series are delightfully dark and bizarre, if you enjoy dark comedy you're sure to enjoy both.

Welcome to The NHK was a show that took modern Japanese culture and problems existing in modern Japan (rather) seriously. Lucky Star laugh at both. But Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei went much further than Lucky Star (can't find a proper word to express it). In NHK we had one hikikomori (and maybe a few more people with problems), but ZSZ doesn't stop there, why not have a whole class of problematic high school girls (mostly) and a ultrapessimistic teacher on the top of that. I can't guarantee that you are going to like one if you liked the other, after all one was a hardcore comedy while the other was quite serious drama, but their subjects were quite similar.

Welcome to the NHK and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei are very unique both in their subject matter, that of social phobias and mental issues, and their artistic styles that are quite original. Tackling severe problems that affect strangely endearing if flawed characters, these anime offer a glimpse into dysfunction even as they offer plenty of laughs. Very Japanese and modern, they differ in that SZS is a parody through and through while WttNHK is a bittersweet reflection wrapped as a comedy

Both Welcome to the NHK! and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei share a similar sense of black humor. Both series are hilarious critics on modern Japanese society, and perhaps society in general. If you liked either of these you are pretty much guaranteed to appreciate the other.

Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei and Welcome to the NHK! both tackle some heavy subjects, such as suicide. SZS does it in a much more lighthearted fashion, while also parodying other cultural facets. NHK is a much more drama-saturated show. If you a different take on these serious subjects, you can't go wrong.

One of the recent fads in anime is the production of anime layered with innumerable in-jokes, tailored to appeal to the fans. This sort of fanservice has always been around, but a swath of anime from the last few years shows extreme tendencies in this regard.

From the ubiquitous "in-joke" blackboard writings to the constant verbal references, Lucky Star and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei anime practically require a college-level course in Japanese popular culture and anime to grasp all the jokes. But if one of these appeals to you, then it's likely that you'll enjoy the other, as well.

If you liked either Lucky Star or Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, I'm sure you'd like the other. They both have a lot of otaku jokes and references that are hilarious. Lucky Star and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei are both set in a school environment. They are also similar in the way that they are both very laid back and don't necessarily need to be seen in any order. They are both great otaku comedy anime series.

If you enjoyed watching Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, and are looking for another random, sarcastic, WTF anime, then Lucky Star is perfect for you! Lucky Star's cast varies as S.Z.S. cast did, with some similar characters as: an otaku, a perfectionist tsundere, a plain baka, a doujin, a foreign returnee and many others! Although it seems more happy and colorful, behind all that, Lucky Star is very sarcastic towards issues of modern day Japan! All in all, I recommend it 100%

The appeal of both these series is undoubtedly the humour conjured out of sheer randomness and what should be the most unimportant aspects of life brought into the limelight. Where Lucky Star uses a lighthearted, more 'child-like' approach to the everyday questions in life, Zetsubou Sensei takes a much more cynical and self-deprecating path, but to the same high level of hilarious entertainment. Both series have a cast of high school girls, all with their own quirks and behavioural irregularities, and these are often used cleverly as the butt behind jokes. The lack of a strong story arc lends a free and easygoing feel to both series, which will provide hours of enjoyment to those looking for quick humourous amusement without feeling tied down by a more plot-oriented comedy.

Lucky Star and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei have a number of similar characters. The style of jokes is also quite similar, but ZSZ is much more hardcore (for instance, they put some yuri in opening). Still if you liked one of those shows, then the other should entertain you as well.

P.S. Its also a good idea to watch the sequel Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, which is somehow better than the first season.

Great humour which, unfortunately, is brought only to the chosen ones, who have watched either Lucky Star, or Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei. Both shows take place mainly in the school grounds and have many similarities in the use of jokes. Also, the characters in both anime are strange and are not the typical ones you can expect from the average school related series. While Konata in Lucky Star is presented as a hardcore otaku with questionable morals, Itoshiki Nozomu from Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei has somehow weird understanding of very much ordinary things. Well, one's for sure - you won't get bored while watching either os these series!

ever since i saw maria holic, i kept thinking that there's something similar about it to szs, not just because of it's humor, but also because of  it's illustrations. in both, you can find the main character constantly having 'accidents' that are pretty much INTENTIONAL. also, both animes have harems, although in maria holic, the protagonist is the one that chases after them, not the other way around.

if you like comedies and is open-minded about certain stuff (szs has a lot of panty-shots, so be warned; and maria holic, a rather pervy girl), there's a pretty good chance you'll like one if you like the other.

Same production company, Shaft, and they have a very distinctive animation style as well as sense of humour - while retaining the charm of the original manga. Many of the voice actresses are the same, there's loads of in-jokes, weird characters are present in both and the storylines are very episodic. While Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei is more of a satire filled with social criticism and black humour, Maria Holic takes a closer look at friendships, psychological manipulation and occasionally touches upon religious themes - sometimes seriously, oftentimes not.

OK, so the plots are centred on very different things, one is about a suicidal and highly negative teacher, the other a lesbian trying to find her fated partner while being tormented by a cross-dressing boy. Being from the same production company they have a similar style of animation ans well as sound design. However both series have a similar random quality to some of the humourous content so if you enjoyed that about one, then try the other.

The same type of absurd, cruel at times, humour that either makes you stay away from the show or keeps you laughing on the floor. The animation also follows the same pattern, which is swift changes between normal animation, too realistic animation, manga-like shots and totally absurd animation. The show formula is also the same - small, episodic sometimes even few stories inside one episode.

Chalk this up under the "obvious" category. SZS and Maria Holic were made by the same studio, and it shows in just about every conceivable way. If liked the style of one and want some more, then by all means go check out the other.