This show has plenty of action, violence & horror, but is mostly a thought-provoking story that makes us reconsider our position at the top of the food chain, what makes us human and separate us from other animals & even monsters, what we define as good & evil and our morals & values, to name just a few. These themes and the comparisons between humans & parasytes are a big part of what makes the story both interesting & entertaining. The pacing is awesome and will keep you in the edge of your seat as you wonder what will happen and how the situations will be solved.

'I may be a little biased here, given that I enjoyed the story and anime as whole so much. But to me, this anime really was beautiful. Though the main character experiences a great deal, he is still portrayed as a human struggling to come to terms with his humanity. Not everyone experiences anything close surely, but his reactions and feelings aren't unrealistic. For anyone who's just become 'tired' of something, what is the logical thing to do? Either run, or face your fears. In this anime we see both, and in comparison to the Parasytes, the main character and the humans are all quite weak. No amazing secret power, no special forces, nothing but humans and their threat. As a result, I believe this made the battles so much more intense. With all the different parasyte types, all with slightly different motives, you realize that the possibilities of something going wrong are very possible. No one is truly 'invincible' here. Add all of this, with the crazy EDM music, the fights were always super engaging, and felt threatening. The lack of emotion displayed by these Parasytes really added to this as well. You never could really grasp what an enemy was up to. 

In the end, I really loved this anime a lot. I know it's just a show. But seeing all of the struggles the characters face (especially the main character). It felt very bittersweet, peaceful, yet also inspiring to see someone pull thru and become a true hero despite all odds. It's no surprise either seeing how so many great opportunities arise from this. Confidence really can make the difference in ones life. How having a purpose, can cause you to seem mysterious, and maybe 'cool' in the eyes of the opposite gender. 

If there's one great thing I could say about this anime, it's definitely character development. It truly does shine above all else.' -levinix

The dub is great.

This has a very similar situation and feeling to Gantz, but not exactly the same setting, focusing primarily on friendships & trust in order to survive.

One of the great things about the show is to see how the protagonists are given a set of rules for how the games should work, that hide unfair situations, but they are able to deconstruct the rules and setting they have in order to figure out how the games really work and what to do in order to beat them, so the show is more about strategy & tactics. In a way is similar to games when you know the opponent is cheating, but you have to play anyway and try to beat them at their own game, however, they are risking their lives at every step and the show is full of thrillers, violence, gore, and quite a few surprises. How long can they keep surviving by beating the odds?

I wish this show had continued, it certainly shows great potential! Instead, they made it into a live-action TV Series, which turned out ok, but I definitely prefer the anime.

The dub is good.

The Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works story could be considered a standalone series and works well like that, but you should be aware that this forms part of a larger series and a franchise with many spinoffs, so I rather recommend you follow this guide:

Fate/Series Watching Guide

Although this special is not essential, it is a good intro to the Unlimited Blade Works storyline.

This is a retelling or alternate world, that reuses the same characters and their personalities from the 2006 anime, but they play a different role and events are also different. This is because its based on a game that has 3 different paths to the story. So each of the main anime series depicts one of these paths, using a different girl as the heroine. In this series the main heroine is Rin.

By the way, don't watch the 2010 movie of the same name, as its basically the same story condensed and will spoil everything. This is the better version of the two.

Fate/Series Watching Guide

The dub is great!

Continuation of Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works story.

This is like Gundam 00 + Code Geass, as they try to stop a conflict from people who want to profit from war and they use strategies & tactics based on logic to fight and defeat the enemies, not just raw power. It's full of political drama, action, mysteries of lost but more advanced technology and good music. The production values are very good.

One thing this series does well is to depict how the path of a hero can be warped by the wrong decisions and the loss of hope, and how they are unable to stop themselves when they find in the darkness. The comparison does a great job of contrasting that to the true hero that remains true & loyal to their values.

The enemies are not black & white, but rather brought about complex situations that have real-life similies to our world.

'Unlike other Mecha Series that is completely supplied with Powerful Supernatural Forces. Aldnoah doesn't tackle on that part mostly except for those martian genes that activate the Mechas other than that it is completely surrounded with analytical skills, commanding leadership, forming strategies and establishing connections to form peace with Martians and Earthians. ...(The Main Protagonist) assesses the situation calmly, analyzes his environment, explores the enemies strengths and weaknesses. Even though they lack the power to defeat the Martians, he still finds ways to defeat them.' -Pratisalva

The dub is excellent!

Continuation of the story.

This is a familiar adventure story, where the princess loses everything and starts her journey to get it all back while finding allies. What makes this latest iteration work is good storytelling, dramatic action moments and then, they go beyond that as they also add social criticism, like politics, government & human trafficking for example. The pacing of the show and the comedy keep the story interesting and there is good character development as well, at least for the main character.

However, you should be aware that this is just the introductory arc, and although it concludes the arc the main plot is barely touched, hopefully, the story will keep going in future seasons.

'I really wasn't prepared for watching Yona of the Dawn. I was expecting it to be a slow paced anime with not much action, as well a boring plot. Watching it anyways, since I had nothing else to watch. But I was wrong, the characters were amazing, they all had their unique characteristic traits and the animation was on point, HD. 

I love how the story started right away with something very unexpected from the first episode. Kept me curious and wondering the whole time while watching. 

Once you watch the go through the first and second episode, trust me. You will become completely hooked to this anime! Do not judge by the cover, this anime is amazing!' -Candies

The dub is barely ok, the main character has a very annoying voice that sounds very forced, everyone else's sounds fine.

Side Story.

'The people that appear the happiest, are often the most broken. This is true for all accounts of the yellow dragon Zeno. The last episode of the first season would have you think him a bit ditzy, and overall happy-go-lucky youngster. The Zeno Arc shows his character more in depth, along with not only his back story but the beginning of Hikryuu and his dragons. 

The two episode OVA special for Zeno really conveys a heart-wrenching tale and teaches people that appearances are deceiving. It's hard not to get caught up in your emotions when you finally see what really happened to this little guy, and is still happening currently. Overall, the story was great, along with the very nice animation and voice-overs.' -EmrynSigma

This anime deserves a Dub!

This is a fun and easy-going show to watch, the action is ok but not really the centerpiece of this show, what really makes it shine are the moments it gets serious and the characters' development, which explore themes of changing yourself for the better, believing in your friends, the consequences of your actions, etc. It has good pacing, storytelling and the animation is great, all of which helps to raise this show above the average. Give it a try.

The dub is very good.

Continuation of the story.

Black Butler - Watching Guide

The 'Book' arcs are sort of a restart of this series following only the Canon Story from the manga. You'll have to watch the canon episodes from Season 1 > Episodes 2-6 & 13-15 and then jump back to this season.

If you already tried watching the first & second seasons and you didn't like them, then you should still give this one a try as its different, and in my opinion, a better story.

The Ciel presented here is different from how its portrayed on the first 2 seasons, much darker. This story itself is a dark tragedy that portrays how cruel humans can be and its really well done like I have not seen in any other animes so far.

The dub is great.

Continuation of the Canon Story.

Continuation of the Canon Story.

There are many sci-fi stories that deal with digitalizing human life and artificial intelligence, what sets this one apart is the point of view, which comes from the perspective of someone who successfully lived all her life as a 'digital person' and then it goes to contrast that with our way of living and the potential to create new intelligent life with artificial intelligence. This is definitely a good sci-fi story for those who can read between the lines of what they are shown (don't have to read too deeply, it's not Ghost in the Shell either) and it's packed with lots of action towards the end. The animation is like a mix of 2d+3d+CGI and it's pretty good for its time, although it may not be to everyone's liking, but it does not detract from the story.

'It was very well done but if your going to watch this go into it with an open mind. I will admit that for about the first 20 mins in the art style had me thrown off a bit felt a bit wonky being used to watching only partially cgi anime's but its definitely by far the most impressive full cgi anime ive watched and really enjoyed it.' -teamblank

The dub is very good.

The plot of this show is one that we have seen over and over again in different sports animes, however, it is done exceptionally well in this iteration with a sport that is new and fresh to the anime scene, Volleyball (which is Haikyuu's meaning). And then we have the matches with interesting plays full of action, thrills and plausible real plays, which are what makes this show really shine, making you watch in a binge. The story also pays special attention to character development both physically and mentally and gives plenty of time to get to know each player, it's a team sport after all.

'I felt like the series was a pretty good introduction to the game of volleyball, considering it seemed fairly realistic in how it's played. The games were shown in a way that was easy to understand even for a novice and some things were explained (like the various player positions). Nobody has any seemingly inhuman abilities (like, for example, Kuroko's Basketball, which I couldn't finish), so I could get a decent grasp of what an actual game of volleyball would look like. I also liked that the protagonists couldn't always succeed on willpower alone, with multiple times where their inspirational speeches and the following ultimate attackes were shot down by the opponents, thus displaying their difference in skill.' -Margrigas

The dub is excellent!

Continuation of the story.

Continuation of the story.

So far this is the pinnacle of the story. I said so far because the most expected game is still to come in the future seasons but the current continuations are just average at best:

The Sequel OVA Riku vs Kuu (Land vs. Air & The 'Path' of the Ball) Is an average game that focuses on the main rivals (The Cats). 

Then, The Sequel To the Top Part I & II: Ignores the main characters almost completely to the point that might as well they become secondary characters at best. It wastes a lot of time on unimportant moments that might as well are fillers. You can completely skip Episodes 1-10 from part 1 and just start at Episode 11 and you won't miss anything important. The major problem with the games of these seasons is that they focus mostly on antagonist characters and try to add their backstories, but they do so in the middle of the games, so the momentum never builds up enough. You are in the middle of an important pass and then it goes into slice-of-life for the rest of the episode or 2-3 episodes to tell the story about a character. And such stories are quite uneventful, almost disjointed from the game, their motivations don't amount to much. I can only guess it's the change in Directors, the new direction didn't know how to break the story to keep it interesting and engaging during the games. The whole season suffers greatly from pacing issues to the point of stall during the most important moments of the games, so I cannot really recommend it. Hopefully, future seasons will fix this issue, but it may be best to wait for that so you don't waste your time.

This anime is not perfect, and your level of enjoyment may be tied to how much you like classical music, in particular piano & violin, and also how many more romantic/drama series have you seen before this one, as it can be very predictable and feel forced for the dramatic parts if you are an experienced viewer, but your going to love it if is one of your first shows. In short, this is an anime aimed at classical musicians or at least people who enjoy that kind of music scene; beginners at anime, and people who enjoy overdramatic romance, everyone else may think twice about watching it in full.

'Most anime exist to take the viewer away from the melancholy of everyday life and escape into a world of imagination. They travel to the realms of fantasy or creative “slice of life” scenarios that one would only dream of happening in reality. But once in a while an anime will touch upon a deeply personal part of the viewer's life to the point where the show is no longer simply a piece of entertainment, but a reflection of the conflicts and emotions of one's personal experience.

What makes Your Lie in April special is the respect with which it presents its music. Your Lie in April places more focus on the details of the performances, making them the cornerstones of the anime... Very few anime show entire songs unabridged and dedicate whole episodes to a performance, which Your Lie in April did on multiple occasions. Finally, never have I seen an anime more accurately depict the thoughts and emotions of a musician before, during, and after each performance. The dialogue and voice acting were excellent in this regard, but the attention to detail in the overall animation and sound design brought the anime to another level.' -Xplayer

'Honestly, this show had promise for the first couple episodes. The music was good and it seemed like it was going to be a slice of life romance with some tragedy thrown in. Then suddenly the plot became swamped in a veritable deluge of death flags as the show tried to turn on the serious feels.

However, the incredibly sudden changes in tone from tear-jerking drama to mindless still-frame slapstick completely ruined the series. And as if that wasn't enough, the plot decided to drive itself into the ground with the most contrived events to ensure that it could set the audience up for MAXIMUM FEELS. Instead, it comes across as forced. If you haven't ever seen an anime that focuses heavily on drama, maybe you'll fall for its tricks, but if you've seen your fair share already I'd be surprised if any of the events in this series shock you.' -bakagenius1

'I cant overlook all its flaws, but this is one of the best animes I have seen. It left a mark in me. If I had the money I would probably be trying to fit a piano right now into my campus room. Wonderful characters , great evolution, top class music and a game of ping pong with your emtions. I strongly recommend you give it a chance. Watch 3-4 episodes before dropping it, even if you dont like it at first.' -noname0302

The dub is good.

'This episode helps to shed a little more light on Emi and Takishi as kids. It's important to watch if you are a die hard fan so you can get the full story because they talk about some things in here that aren't very well explaied in the series. If you loved the music in the main series you will love this too.' -thoravalkyrie

Another slice-of-life Studio Ghibli movie with excellent animation. This movie is very slow, but the ending is well worth the slow-moving trip through the narrative. I can't really say anything about the themes without giving away the plot, as any hint will be detrimental to the enjoyment of this film, so it's one of those cases that you either commit to watching the movie in full, or you don't.

'When Marnie Was There is simply a lovely, moving, heartwarming tale. Really, there's nothing more to add to that.

The story is quite simple, but it's narrated in a sweet and delicate way flowing very nicely and effortlessly to a happy ending. It never drags and the pacing is perfect. 

The animation is beautiful. The backgrounds are incredibly detailed and the colours are amazing. Many scenes are so pleasing to the eye that you can use them as wallpapers for your pc. I really love how they drew the old mansion. But, in general, the animation is carefully perfected with attention to the finest detail.

The soundtrack is very good as well. I think the ending song is a perfect fit for the story.' -haize78

The dub was very good. I didn't watch the sub for this one because I prefer dubs with slice-of-life, and to better enjoy the graphics.

So this one is violent and grotesque but is also a metaphor for how humans trample over each other to survive and how different worlds collide, with each group doing their best they can for their people but unwilling to understand each other to stop the conflict. This story is great at showing how everyone has the potential to become a monster, without even realizing it while fighting for what they believe.

If you can't handle violent, gory graphic scenes with some weird fetiches, then you may want to skip this show.

'Tokyo Ghoul’s story is ABOUT balance.  It juxtaposes the violence that Ghouls can perpetrate with the tranquil life in Anteiku beautifully.  We frequently jump from gut wrenching violence and gore to slowly pouring coffee in a second.  It excellently portrays how the species known as Ghoul has split into two factions, and how these two differ.  It also very well balances the telling of the story from both the side of the Ghouls and that of the CCG investigators - or humans, though one can’t be sure how human these investigators really are - with Kaneki right in the middle as a half-half. His unique perspective endears one to the Ghouls, and alienates one from your own human side, whilst at the same time showing us the moral dilemmas each faces and the crimes each side perpetrates.

Tokyo Ghoul is a marvelous piece of art.  It explores the changes in the protagonist and his world very well.  At every turn and every opportunity, it stuns and horrifies you without it becoming repetitive or boring.  It is a story that I can’t wait to watch more of, and will definitely revisit in the future. I recommend this to anyone looking for a thought provoking, entertaining, and unsettling story.' -ShojiroKatsuragi

The dub is excellent, but be careful of censored versions, if you are seeing scenes with blue where there should be red blood or dark scenes where you cannot see everything, then look for an uncensored version of the show.

Continuation of the story, but you should consider if you want to keep going.

This season is not perfect and you should be aware that the whole season is filler, and while the previous season was thought-provoking and a psychological thriller in addition to the action, this season basically discards all those themes and focuses only on the action, leaving many things unexplained through the story, like why some characters made a certain decision that doesn't seem to make sense based on their personalities. So this is a different kind of show, more shounen based.

I still recommend you give it a try, for the action alone, which I found thrilling as they face overwhelmingly strong opponents and the visuals are good. Most of the bad reviews are due to the story diverging from the manga and not developing the themes & characters enough, leaving you with more questions and an incomplete story with no end.

However, I don't recommend you keep going into the third season :Re, which although is fully canon, it is also completely incoherent, choosing to keep focusing on the action alone, you'll find enemies have become allies, friends have become enemies and no one is on the group they originally belong, but no explanation is given at all for these actions. Note also that these issues are not caused by the filler 2nd season alone, but within :Re's own story, which is only explainable by lack of direction and storytelling. It seems they crammed too many chapters into the story but discarded many important things that leave the story full of holes. The production values are very low, with many repeated scenes, panned still frames and the action choreography seem to come directly from Popee the Performer, which in the case of Popee was an intended parody, but within this story is just plain inexcusable. Furthermore, many characters shift personalities as they were bipolar, without any explanation other than trying to force some drama and plot twists. In the end, the filler√A season was way better than the canon:Re, which is a shame.

People will still defend the manga story, but I'm not a manga fan, I'm an anime fan and I won't be reading the manga, so the series ends for me in utter disappointment :(

Differences With The Manga:

Many manga fans loathed this season but is certainly not as bad as they said, you should make your own mind in this regard. If you want to know the differences you can read these posts, just beware they contain spoilers:

• Tokyo Ghoul: How is the Anime Different to the Manga?
• Why did Tokyo Ghoul √A completely deviate from the manga?
• Tokyo Ghoul Root A is Significantly Better Than the Manga
• ‘Tokyo Ghoul’ Season 2 Anime Director Explains Why ‘Root A’ Anime Changed Ken Kaneki’s Story From Manga

The dub is good.

This is not perfect but it's a good action/murder show with lots of violence & gruesome fighting scenes. Unfortunately, the story is not very deep, it gets sidetrack at times by the comedic relief and feels rushed at times, it's straight forward fighting between two opposite factions and that's all, never the less, if you like action then you'll probably want to give this one a try.

'This anime surprised me. It manages to be lighthearted and fun at times, but also has some gruesome, dark scenes as well. If you want to try this show out, make sure you watch the ENTIRE first episode. When I started the first episode I thought it would be very predictable, but getting to the end I was completely hooked. If you didn't enjoy the first episode, then chances are you won't enjoy the rest. It gets to the point pretty quick.

I feel like this show is a good mix of action and comedy and would recommend to those who just want to have a bit of fun, but keep in mind it is not for the fainthearted. People will die, I mean it's a show about assassins literally titled 'Red Eye Killer' so you should probably already know that. Like I said it gets to the point fairly quickly.' -staceylee07

'...this anime is good, if you're not seeking a deep, meaningful, mind-blowing, world-changing show. This is a good anime for entertainment, because that's all it is unfortunately entertainment. I am not saying this show does not have serious moments, it definitely does have them, what I mean is they're not as serious as they need to be (or seem to be)...

I enjoyed everything, yes it's not as profound and meaningful as I'd like it to be, but it's still enjoyable if you're not too focused on that. You'll definitely enjoy this if you like action, fantasy, comedy, violence and entertainment.' -Loneashild

The dub is good.

This is a good short with lots of action and an awesome art style & music.

The setting of a Magic Academy has been overused through the years, but this show manages to break enough of the mold to make it seem anew.

First, it doesn't focus exclusively on magic and fights, there is also discrimination of social classes, political entanglements, and corporate espionage. The magic is treated as only a tool and in this world is part science.

Second, this show finally breaks apart from the main protagonist being either weak falling unable to even talk to girls or being strong and an idiot. This protagonist is smart and strong, which sets him apart from most protagonists of the same era.

Third, the story takes a more serious tone, there are little comedy and fan-service that tends to plage the Magic Academy setting.

However, this is not a perfect show either, although the main protagonist is not weak, almost all other characters are. There are plenty of other cliches, including the ever so prevalent brother/sister love that can only make you question the sanity of the Japanese culture. If they just make her his girlfriend instead of his sister then the show will truly be unique. In the end, the show is above average but still far away from a masterpiece, although this is just the first part, while the arc finishes, the story is left open for new seasons.

'I have read several posts from many websites claiming the main character, Tatsuya, is a cool character.  It was one of the reasons that prompted my interest in this anime.  It is certain, he is a cool character. He also wonderfully lacks many of the most annoying traits so frequently seen in practically EVERY other anime, such as: perversion, stupiditiy, immaturity, harem, constant whining, being too small or feminine looking (I am not being biased, but this point gets a bit tedious when seen so freaking often), or weak, or too isolated (yet technically he is but his charisma carries him out of this natural tendency), or having annoying best friends or childhood friends.  Pretty much all of the most repeated main character traits so boringly seen in so many anime as if it were not some imaginative quality but a standard rule.  He breaks the mold from many of the most common lead characters.  There is a bit of a bro complex desire exibited by his sister but he never demonstrates any weakness or desire to take her up on her seemingly innocent attempts to make passes or seduction.  Then again, Miyuki, the sister, although she seems infatuated with her big brother constantly denies any interest beyond sibling love.  

This however is one of the minor downsides to this story.  The constant morally bankrupt obsession with so many studios to include overt or subtle incestuous behaviors is a bit annoying...

The commraderie in general is also one of the shows strong points.  The mood is fairly light, friendly, open, close knit, trusting, honest, and genuine.  It feels far more natural than what I usually see in a typical anime.  Characters also play off each others strengths and aid the weaknesses more than expected as well which is also a big plus.' -Epimondas

I found the Movie: The Girl Who Summons the Stars below average, the animation is great but the story is not as good as what we see on the TV Series, so I cannot recommend it.

The Visitor Arc is average, so only continue if you really loved this anime, but don't expect anything better than season 1. The dub is good for this season.

This anime deserves a Dub!

The Seven Deadly Sins - Watching Guide

Yet another familiar adventure story, where the princess loses everything and starts her journey to get it all back while finding allies (the princess is a secondary character on this one). However, while the plot is predictable, the execution is very good, with a good balance of comedy, drama, serious moments and action. The biggest flaw for me was the excessive and constant fan-service, I almost drop it initially because of that, but then the stories within the story (usually flashbacks) keep me going (as they also meant a break from the fan-service).

'First off, let me start this review off by saying that I have noticed how this show has been given a ridiculous amount of undeserved good reviews...

Simply put, the story was extremely basic with a few good twists thrown in, it is riddled with overused tropes that had me rolling my eyes, but the ride was a lot of fun. They took me by surprise with the first episode, in regards to the identity of the main(?) character, and the hero's quest the characters set upon was predictable but still felt rewarding regardless. It is a simple plot, to begin with, character on a mission to save their home, assemble a team, take down the big bad. If the story wasn't SO full of generic events and subplots it could easily get a higher rating from me, because as I said, despite all the bad elements I enjoyed myself a lot.I'm a sucker for medieval/magic/knight stories, & I was mostly happy with the world they built.

However, in terms of delivering the story and keeping you engaged, the story did very well! The pacing was phenomenal, one of the best aspects of the story, I never felt bored or overwhelmed. All the important information was delivered exactly when you needed it, and while I said it was like being spoon-fed, it was somewhat refreshing to let the story do all the legwork without effort on my part. The character's past connections and history were given through character interaction as well as flashbacks.' -NanashiSama

Unfortunately, for the next seasons, the animation and sound are still good, but the overall show is just average, there are some good moments here and there but not enough to raise the story above average.

• The 2nd Season 'Signs of Holy War' is just filler comic relief and the important stuff only happens in the last few minutes after the credits. I recommend skipping it, as it basically gets ignored in the next season.
• The Movie: Prisoners of the Sky, is just average filler material. I can't recommend it either, but some people like it.

The dub is excellent!

The Seven Deadly Sins - Watching Guide

'The Seven Deadly Sins OVA consists of two things:

• The first episode is Ban's backstory with Elaine. Which really makes you crave his full backstory. 
• The second episode is a compilation of funny skit type of things, along with the final one being canon backstory to how Meliodas and Hawk meet. 

This is really worth your time if you're a fan of the seven deadly sins' -LagannZ32

The Seven Deadly Sins - Watching Guide

Continuation of the story.

This 3rd season is just average, the next season it's a little bit better, but it is necessary you watch this in order to understand the story, so you'll have to decide if is really worth it for you based on your own enjoyment.

This season introduces an annoying and ridiculous system of measuring the power levels of each character with points and they focus on that to create the challenge of the new enemies instead of developing a story. There are many plot inconsistencies, stupid decisions made by the enemies just so they can be defeated, and lots of Deus Ex Machina to save the day, so I cannot recommend it, but it gets better for next season.

The Seven Deadly Sins - Watching Guide

Continuation of the story.

This season is much better as they focus mostly on the shounen fights while comedy is kept to a minimum. You get to finally see the backstory of the main characters. The story is really fast-paced, but still, has some inconsistencies that you'll have to overlook. The story does not complete the arc, leaving you in a cliffhanger, so you'll have to wait for another season.

The Seven Deadly Sins - Watching Guide

Continuation of the story.

The next and final part of the story is the Cursed by Light movie, but it's just average, so watch only if you absolutely want to see everything about the Seven Deadly Sins.

This is a Tom & Jerry type of show but with only the characters and some objects being animated over the 'real-life footage'. The quality of the animation is not what you usually expect from these short comedy sketches, exceeding all expectations the quality is impeccable, they really blend the characters as if they belong in the 'real world'. At the end of some episodes, they show how they created the animation.

Since this is a Slapstick Comedy there is no story to follow or rather each episode concludes its own story. Everything is episodic, but there is some continuity to the events. You can just watch the first episode and that will give you an idea for the whole show. The quality of the comedy is pretty consistent, but it can get a little repetitive if you watch all episodes continuously. I prefer to watch these types of shows sporadically for that reason.

The music and sound effects are spot-on for this type of show. There is no dialog.

All characters are likable, you get to identify with their struggles from their own point of view. There are also secondary characters that serve as sort of 'special guests' for some episodes.

Overall, if you like Slapstick Comedy this is an excellent funny show that showcases the capabilities of blending animation on top of real-world objects & backgrounds. I strongly recommend you give the first episode a try to see if you would like to continue watching.

Continuation.

This one has quite a unique nasty, minimalistic, exaggerated style with bright colors and excellent choice of music and sound effects. It's all about the style to the point that at times it forgets to show the story, yes for this one, the story is here to complement the style and not the other way around. At the very least it does for an experience outside the norm.

'So why is Ping Pong such a special anime? It is a blast not only for the senses, but for the mind as well. As it was directed by Masaaki Yuasa, the man behind Kaiba and Tatami Galaxy it is no wonder. But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

What is Ping Pong? Well my friend it is a show about Ping Pong, the only thing more boring than regular tennis. But Pinky-sama why is it a good anime if it focuses on something as boring? Well, simply because it does not focus on the sport, but rather because it focuses on the characters. Basically the same thing that makes Neon Genesis Evangelion the best mecha, use the mecha (or the sport in this case) only as a part of the form, not as the sole point of the show.

So what exactly does make the characters so special? Well there are quite a few and each one has a story behind himself...

The animation was outstanding. As you already know who directed it it is no wonder. The style itself is very different from the standard anime norm which alone makes it a bit more fun, but that alone doesn't mean much. What is important is using animatiion as a medium different to all other mediums. And that it did, it used visual symbolism, odd angles and cut out fights to make people playing a sport actually interesting. You might say that the 'action' works better than in most actual action shows.

The sound was equaly pleasing. Using sounds to make the visual metaphores more vivid or simply the opening and the ending. The voice acting was also on a high level as they actually bothered to bring in a person who speaks Chinese to voice a Chinese character. That gave him a lingual background and made him distinct from the rest of the crowd.

Overall Ping Pong is quality wise the best non-sequel we've had in years, basically since Tatami Galaxy.' -PinkyI

'Although there are various battle sequences which are beautifully stylistic and engaging in themselves, Ping Pong is nonetheless first and foremost a coming-of-age drama. Although each of the main characters we are introduced to are somewhat unhealthily obsessed with Ping Pong, the sport itself is a transferable plot device. Whether it is Ping Pong or any other sport or shared interest between the characters, the purpose of Ping Pong in the narrative is to highlight each of their own personal struggles and conflicts of interest between them. Matches give way to elaborate abstract visual poems played out to a soundtrack of each of the players’ competing soliloquies and associated musical themes, such as Smile’s recurring Hero theme song' -Caterlyn

The team behind this show is:

• Taiyō Matsumoto best known for Tekkon Kinkreet.
• Masaaki Yuasa is best known for directing Mind Game, The Tatami Galaxy, Kaiba, and Devilman: Crybaby.

The dub is good.

This show is not perfect, it starts strong, especially the first 5 episodes presenting an intriguing sci-fi setting with the harsh realities of being drifting in space for hundreds of years while being pursued by the enemy. However, after that, a lot of slice-of-life is introduced, detracting from the main plot, and by the second season, the story starts to lose focus, is it a mecha? is it a slice-of-life? is it a harem/ecchi show? is it a kids drama? is it a romance story? When are they going to back to sci-fi? Apparently, the manga was still ongoing so a lot of these issues may be created by filler material, but I have no way to confirm which parts are canon and which are not, but the whole second season feels like filler to me, so I cannot recommend it and this first season will leave a lot of questions unanswered. Even so, I think you should watch the beginning and drop it when you get bored. The visuals and sound effects are superb, especially when you consider they are all CGI.

Don't be afraid of the CG animation, at this point in time the technology has evolved enough to create some really amazing visuals, especially with what CG does best, which are things like mecha, particles & lights effects, rocks & planets and basically anything that is not a living being (although some types of fantastical creatures seem to do fine). The sound effects are also excellent and an important part of what brings this show to life. The characters and facial expression still suffer from the CG, but it's way better than in the past and not bad enough to detract from the story. The technology used on this show will become the base for future Netflix shows.

'Knights of Sidonia is based on the manga by Tsutomu Nihei and was animated by Polygon Pictures, a studio known for their 3-D animation expertise... the series doesn’t pull any punches. When stuff gets real on Sidonia – people die, get eaten by horrifying space monsters, get slapped by a bunch of clones — and that’s just the first 3 minutes of episode 6. The story mostly focuses on Tanikaze Nagate, a younger dude, who was raised under the surface of the Sidonia, but has mysterious ties to several ongoing events.' -kidkonseptual

'Overall, the art is surprisingly good. Especially for CG animation. It brings the world of Sidonia no Kishi to life and allows the characters to thrive in it. Don't get me wrong, the flaws in human movement can get annoying, but are not too big a thing. Still, I'd hesitate to say anything is great other than the backgrounds, super-slow-motion bits, and the sound effects. That's enough to be called a good showing all the same.' -Gzerble

The Dub is excellent!

This underrated or overlooked show is really a hidden gem. It is not a show that focuses on mecha and fights to move the story forward, but rather is a dark psychological drama that deals with a chain reaction of bad decisions and regrets that have brought the world to the point where this story is set, creating unfair situations for everyone involved, and at the core, this is the focus of the show, How to deal with the unfair situations that life present you?

If you are expecting to see awesome mecha fights and lots of action, this show is not for you. As I mentioned before, this is more for people that enjoy psychological dramas and in this case, it uses mystery to try to figure out what's going on and what is the solution to dissolve the immediate threat. Dealing with emotions play a big part in this story. The show is well planned from beginning to end, it constantly moves to the final outcome and no major mysteries are left unexplained.

I'm not saying this show is perfect or a masterpiece, but it is definitely better than average and well executed with a purpose in mind. If you like psychological shows and mysteries you should give this show a try.

'M3 is a strange series when it comes to the plot, characters, and setting. As you'll find out, everything about it seems cliched at first, but that is executed so well it almost seems intentional. Well, I think it is intentional, as that would fit the style and themes very well. M3 is very much a, for lack of a better term, deconstruction of the 'mysterious godlike enemies slowly encroaching on humanity' trope that's become increasingly common in new anime. There are no handouts here, characters have to earn their survival. Even the main robots (Ma-Vesses) face great difficulty facing the supernatural monsters, and are basically just sandbags in a one-on-one with the Corpse, which really drives home the horror and dread elements.

I absolutely love the pacing in this series. I don't think I could imagine a better way to do it. It starts off on a slow boil, and it just builds up more and more. I think it starts gaining steam around episode 3 or 4, but when you get around episode 10, the show gets really good and it only gets better each episode from there.

I don't want to give away much about the plot or the underlying messages, since, well, they're more enjoyable if you just view M3 and go for it yourselves. It doesn't pound themes into your head and instead lets the narrative show what it's trying to get across with the characters and the story. M3 is one of those series that you have to see firsthand, and it's nearly impossible to talk about what makes it so great without spoilers.

All in all, when a series has great characters, an interesting plot, and is decent from a technical standpoint, what's there to complain about? It's all about the story, and M3 went above and beyond my expectations and I hope that it can for you, too.' -Raikou

'This was a really good anime. It is a bit dark but it teachs a moral lesson about people who are trapped in their own darkness and only seek light. Some might not understand this but many do.

The story line itself is really good, it does seem very confusing at the start but you start to understand the why part later on as the story progresses. The story line is dark and psychological along with a bit of scifi.

The animation is really good, the artists really put effort into the background and looks really good espacially if played in HD along with the sound that makes you feel as if you are part of the action.

The characters are all very paasionate and intelligent kids. The main character is not a wimp (unlike in neon genesis) and is very strong willed even though he locks away his heart from others by trying to to feel pain.

Overall story was really good and i enjoyed watching it to the very end. I cant really say much since it would spoil the show. I've watched alot of good pyschological shows and M3 is one of my favorite for this year. I hope more anime comes out like this one.' -blkcross

This anime deserves a Dub!

This Korean movie is so out there that I really have nothing to compare it to, except to say is completely surrealist, it is just like a dream where you find yourself from one crazy situation to another one, without realizing the moment of transition, and you don't realize what you were doing until you wake up!

It is not as crazy as movies like Trava or Hells Angels, but there is a lot of originality in the ideas for the characters and its wacky symbolism is quite unique, to say the least. Unfortunately, while I'd like to say that the originality alone does for a great watch, but the truth is that the movie fails to create an emotional connection and is at times unable to maintain the tone through their disjointed ideas, in short, it fails at the execution of the story a little.

The story is about learning to appreciate the people who love us and let go of our stereotypes & prejudices to understand and accept our feelings. Even though there are lots of symbolism in the story, nothing is really deep or complicated, it's a kid's story after all, so it's done in simple terms.

The characters and their wacky quirks are probably some of the best parts of the show, where the creativity really shows. There is a mix of mythologies from Merlin, The Witch of the North, Terminator, I mean Incinerator to a Mazinger Girl, Toilet Paper & Milk Cow; crazy, I know, but somehow they blend together in the story.

The animation is both good and bad, on one side is a nice departure from the traditional Japanese style, including all of their cliches in both characters and interactions. It has a colorful palette and original character designs. On the other side, the foreground characters seem like it was cut and paste into the backgrounds, creating almost 2 different qualities for the animation. 

Music plays a big role throughout the movie and both Korean & English songs are good, likable, soft, pop songs. I prefer the dub, but that is my opinion.

The dub is great. The voice actors do a good job both for the voices of the characters and singing the songs in the dub.

Overall, this is a good watch if you value originality and creativity over a cohesive story and emotional connection to what's happening to the characters. It is at the very least an interesting watch to see what else is out there besides Japanese animation and shows a future of open possibilities for the Korean animation industry.

'Korea's animation industry is largely unremarkable, which is really a shame because the country has shown through its live-action productions that it is certainly not lacking in artistic talent. Satellite Girl and Milk Cow, however, shows promise for the future of the industry. Its charm and earnestness are reminiscent of similar Japanese animations, while still maintaining its originality. Although it may be rough around the edges, and you can't expect much in terms of animation, it's still enjoyable and is hopefully a sign of more good things to come.' -JRossi

This movie tries to create a realistic adaptation of The Night on the Galactic Railroad mergin the story with the events of WWII. If you have already read the book or watched the movie, then you already know this story and will find it somehow repetitive, but at the same time, interesting for how the events are merged with reality, rather than fiction, poetry, and fantasy. If you haven't watched the original movie or read the book, then I recommend you do so after watching this movie, to avoid spoilers. This movie is a great adaptation of the source material and it's probably best to leave the fantasy elements to a later time, in order to preserve the freshness of the story.

The movie is not perfect either, at times, it seems to lack an emotional connection, perhaps due to trying to keep a positive attitude and make it more watchable for kids.

'Giovanni's Island is a story about a Japanese family living on an island off the coast of Japan post World War II. The Russians have taken over the island (along with most of Japan), yet life still remains relatively peaceful on the island of Shikotan. Junpei and his younger brother Kanta base their thoughts and ideals off of the book Night on the Galactic Railroad, a book written by Kenji Miyazawa in the late 1920's. The children view 'The Galactic Railroad' as an imaginary train traveling through space via the fourth dimension; they believe it can take them anywhere in the universe. The book itself has such a significant role in the movie's story that even the two children were named after the two main characters of the novel (Junpei for Giovanni and Kanta for Campanella).

Now, if you do not know the story of this book, I suggest you do not look it up (if you planned to) until after the movie, due to spoilers.' -kaileir

The dub is very good.

A violent tale of revenge, think Kill Bill, made with an awesome art style to convey the ruthlessness of the story. It leaves you wanted for more, I hope they expand the story in the future.

Don't be fooled by the pop idol image and dance music, this is a violent, dark, gory, and very grotesque video with social critique, but not for everyone's taste and stomach.

'Me!Me!Me! is a very graphic and brutual depiction of what I think is an otaku's relationship with his waifu going sour. One idea was that this music video is about escapism after a relationship breakup. A very informative comment I read stated that these ideal waifu fantasy relationships can start benign, but eventually become unhealthy as a person becomes more engrossed in such a relationship. The main character has his unhealthy relationship's corruption manifest.

This video is a modern representation of idol worship and lust. It represents destructive pleasures and fully embodies the unexplainable feeling of rare dreams/nightmares where you wake up questioning from what creature's subconcious did those images in your mind originate. The Evangelion characters further reinforced that dark human subconcious sentiment from the music video.

I believe the main character is also trying to make a stand against his own corruptions. The pure ideals he desired eventually became tainted from his human nature ensnaring him and he wants desperately to rectify his life returning to a previous pure state. Unfortunately people are not righteous and betray their own ideals because of weakness, lack of conviction, and pathetic fortitude, they are born and caught up in their own hells.

Me!Me!Me! also shows how people are cyclically trapped by their mindsets through the start and ending of the video.

I don't think I can call this video entertaining, but I've definitely never seen something like it. If you intend to watch it viewer discretion is advised from all the mature content it contains.

This video is more like a unique quote or phrase that will surely give rise to imitations. Yes, that might be it! It's a new type of modern genre that is painfully human.' -Scholek

Watch after Episode 663 to avoid spoilers.

This is a good special if you like One Piece, set during the time skip so watch between episodes 516-517. The first part is a quick recap of important moments of the show, but then it goes into an original story about friendship & betrayal with a different crew of pirates. It was much better than I expected, although I was not expecting much. It tells the story of the two year training period of Luffy.

Stay away from the dub for this one if you want to enjoy it.

So this is a notable mention as this show is far from perfect, it will only appeal to people who love the fantasy genre. The show feels largely episodic, while there is a larger plot throughout the story, there are many standalone episodes that only serve to expand the world or as fillers. So what do I like about this show? I appreciate the fact that dares to be different, both in the animation style and ideas of the show, it doesn't succeed every time, but it's a notable effort.

'I've never seen the original live-action series so I can't compare the anime to it.  That said, as a stand-alone series, this anime is pretty good.  While the story is nothing ground breaking, it does have some decent plot twists and it's pretty entertaining.  It takes a while for the main plot to get going (in fact, the anime feels somewhat episodic at times, especially early on), but once it does, you're in for an action packed ride.

Overall, If you want a pretty good somewhat dark-ish action/fantasy anime, you'll probably like this series.  It may not be the greatest series ever, but it's quite good and entertaining for what it is.' -LadyPsychic

The dub is good.

This show is pretty average, but still good entertainment if you like shounen. It has interesting sci-fi elements and it's all about friendship, loyalty, and adventure. It is aimed at a younger audience, so no intricate plots, no excessive violence, the story is predictable at times, its just fun shounen battles with an epic adventure. It is executed really well, which is why I'm including it in this list, but if shounen is not your thing then you'll be better skipping it.

This season ends when the story was starting to get better, but given that a sequel has been confirmed, there is hope for improvement on this show.

'This anime is the casual of all casual things that have ever existed, if you google casual it will just give you a link to the first ep of World Trigger. Ever want to watch an anime and do something else at the same time or wanting to sit on your ass and do nothing but pass that time without putting any work in then GREAT, World Trigger is for you. The score of 5 is not a bad in any form it just means its straight up OK. It's not good or bad, if your look for a brand new and exciting shounen you might have to look elsewhere, that doesn't mean not to try it, just dont expect it to be your favorite anime or something that will have you biting your nails and on the edge of having a mental breakdown waiting for the next episode.' -WiredBall

The dub is ok.

Continuation of the story.

Continuation of the story.

This is certainly not perfect. It's a classic boy meets girl coming of age story with a 'save the world' theme, however, it is a good iteration with likable characters. It's just fun & entertaining if you like this type of stories, but nothing more.

'This World is Still Beautiful is a surprisingly delightful treat.  Looking at the synosis, it looks like a standard tale of boy meets girl with the boy being a jerk.  It looks like pretty standard anime romance fair.  And for the most part....it is.  However, it is the standard romance done right.  In many shojo romances i've found myself frustrated by the sheer stupidity of the main characters at times.  In some anime romances problems and issues happen for petty reasons and the main characters take actions that are equally as petty. In this anime however, we have excellent character development with a romance formula that is not often used.' -alexnbl

This one turns out to be much better than I expected, although I'm not saying is perferct. It is another X-Men themed anime but instead of 'Mutants' they call them 'Espers' and that may be the weakest part that feels carbon copy of another story, but it is executed very well and they focus more on the dilemma of using your powers to your own personal gain or to do what you believe is right. In the end, is action-packed fun, and the story feels like the beginning of a larger plot. I found the characters very likable for the heroes but lacking substance for the villains, especially the new recruits.

I'm of two minds on this one. For the good points, I applaud the attempts at originality that you see through the story, especially at the ending that was surprisingly different from the norm, although not one that everyone will like.

On the other hand, I cannot ignore the numerous attempts where they are just trying too hard to make the plot interesting and they just end up overcomplicating things and making the events less believable, this is the aspect where this anime fails miserably as there are many parts where the main protagonist decisions just don't make any sense other than pushing the plot forward at the expense of logic. For a show with a realistic setting, this is a failure that takes you out of the validity of the story. Even so, it doesn't seem that many people complain of this in the reviews and the fact that it ranks high is also a statement these flaws are unperceived by the majority of just actively ignored in lieu of the good parts of the show.

The show is made by a renowned staff, so the animation, sound, and style are flawless.

'Terror in Resonance is a fine anime in terms of directing and tension. It’s not hard to see how it excited thousands of viewers into calling it anime of the year back when the first episode aired. That still doesn’t make up for its undeniably amateurishly handled script when it comes to mystery stories.' -roriconfan

An abstract surrealist short, with interesting graphics, no dialog, and using subtle color changes to aid the graphics into conveying a little story.