Your Top 5 Anime Recommendations

[Redwyrm]

I am looking to start binging some anime soon and could use some recommendations. There are a lot of anime series out there. Everything from horror (Attack on Titan, Castlevania) to superhero (My Hero Academia). And just ones with a good story (Avatar). And I know I am barely scratching the surface on what's available and worth the investment. I am mostly looking for something with good action, a compelling story and complex characters.

Basically give me your Breaking Bad of anime series.

So if you could list your top 5 anime (was going to do a poll but I know there is no way to list every worthwhile anime and not leave out a bunch) it will help me narrow down my candidates.

[Swnem]

So, if you want to binge and watch an ending, i recommend you avoid ongoing series.
That includes some you mentioned such as my hero academia. Attack on titan has not finished in anime form, even though the manga has. Once it does, i can recommend it.

1. Cowboy bebop series and movie.

I can't recomend this enough. Probably the best anime ever imo. Space pirate action, a crime story, jazz. I'd say this one is the breaking bad of anime.
I have not watched breaking bad though, so i'm supposing from what i know.

2. Death note

A young man finds a notebook wherein he writes peoples names and they will actually die. What will he do with it?

3. Evangelion (i believe the latest movies are enough)

Erm...difficult to explain. Mind f*ck - the anime. Great animation, great mechs, existencial crisis under an Alien invasion.

4. Ghost in the shell stand alone complex (2 seasons and a movie. There are 2 GITS main movies which are good as well. Skip the netfix series in CG).

Cyberpunk near future special police team. Conspiracies and societal messaging abound.

5. Code Geass - Lelouch of the rebellion (2 seasons)

An exiled prince in a near future where Japan was conquered by the Brittania Empire that spans continents awakens to a power of domination after meeting a certain individual. What will he do with this power? Conspiracies and wars abound.



The order is not from best to worst, though Cowboy bebop is certainly my pick for the best one.

I got excited making this list. I wish i was gonna watch these for the first time. Enjoy!

[Val the Moofia Boss]

I can't narrow it down to a top 5 list.





Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is set in a fantasy world that resembles 1910 Germany. Two brothers who are alchemists (aka wizards) lost their bodies in a ritual gone wrong, and sign up in the army as military mages so they can gain access to restricted knowledge so they can try repair their bodies. Meanwhile, there is a conspiracy within the military. Lots of intrigue. Adventure/war story/thriller. 64 episodes, English dub is great.





Seirei no Moribito is set in fantasy Edo period Japan. A female mercenary, Balsa, is tasked with hiding the prince from assassins sent by his own father because he's supposedly possessed by a demon. Slice of life with some drama. 24 episodes, English dub is good.





Kekkai Sensen. New York city becomes taken over by aliens from the Cthulu realm. Our protagonist, Leonardo, goes to New York and gets caught up in fun shenanigans. 12 episodes, English dub is good.





Gundam (The UC saga by Tomino)

In the future, the nations of Earth have been absorbed into a single state called the Earth Federation. Humanity begins expanding into space and building space colonies. However, people yearn from freedom from the Federation. In one space colony, an independence movement begins forming, eventually resulting in them declaring themselves a new country called Principality of Zeon. This results in a war between the Federation and Zeon, called the One Year War. Warfare has been revolutionized by the invention of the mobile suit (giant robot).

Watch order is: Gundam the Origin > Mobile Suit Gundam > Zeta Gundam > ZZ Gundam > Char's Counterattack

Gundam the Origin establishes the backstory that leads up to the One Year War, which is explored in Mobile Suit Gundam. Zeta Gundam and ZZ Gundam explore the post-war situation, concluding in Char's Counterattack, the final dying breath of the Zeonist movement.

Anime episodes are 19 minutes long (22 minutes but if you skip the 90 second opening song and the 90 second ending song, then it's 19 minutes). Gundam the Origin has 12 episodes. MSG has 42. Zeta has 50. ZZ has 47. CCA is a 2 hour long movie. Yoshiyuki Tomino's whole saga is about 47 hours long.

If you finish CCA and want more Gundam, then there are also spinoffs and side stories (not by Yoshiyuki Tomino) also set during the time period. The best ones are War in the Pocket and 08th MS Team.

Do not watch the English dubs. The only decent English dub is 0080 War in the Pocket.





Legend of the Galactic Heroes

Two superpowers are at war with each other: the Free Planets Alliance, and the Galactic Empire. The story follows two opposing heroes: Yang Wen-Li, who fights for a corrupt democracy, and Reinhard von Lohengramm, who seeks to become a benevolent dictator. Their struggle will decide the fate of the galaxy.

Watch order is My Conquest Is the Sea of Stars (a movie that establishes the central cast) -> Overture to the New War (a movie remake of the first three episodes) -> watch the 110 episode series, starting at episode 3.

LoGH episodes are 21 minutes long (24 minutes but if you skip the 90 second opening song and the 90 second ending song, then it's 21 minutes).My Conquest Is the Sea of Stars is 1 hour and Overture to the New War is 90 minutes. If you start at episode 3, then the whole story will take you 40 hours to complete. If you finish the series and want more LoGH, there is a series of side stories called LoGH Gaiden.

The legal rights to LoGH have been lost. Technically no one can license the series, nor is there anyone left who can sue you. So you're fine watching LoGH on whatever site you want. HiDive and VRV threw the whole series up on their platforms just because (no one left who can sue them, after all).

Subs only.

- - - Updated - - -

2. Death note

A young man finds a notebook wherein he writes peoples names and they will actually die. What will he do with it?

Disagree with the rest of the list but Death Note was really good. If I could have picked a top 10 it might have been on on it.

[froschhure]

"5. Code Geass - Lelouch of the rebellion (2 seasons)"

did not know this one thanks for sharing and i'm watching it right now *popcorn*

[Redwyrm]

Thanks for the suggestions. Hope to hear more (or for/against the ones already mentioned)

And the series doesn't have to be finished. As long as the series has maintained its quality so far.

[Absintheminded]

I don't watch anime as prolifically as I used to, but for sure check out Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo. FLCL is also pretty good.

[Biomega]

Cowboy Bebop
Overlord
Ergo Proxy
Full Metal Panic! - Fumoffu?!
Scrapped Princess

[Vakir]

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is the gold standard for shonen. Other than the first 13 or so episodes being heavily truncated in response to the 2003 version being already widely watched, it is about as close to perfectly constructed as a piece of media with its target (i.e. for mid-teens and up) can be.

Agreed on Cowboy Bebop on the seinen end of things. If you're someone who craves plot and continuity, there's a lot of "filler," but I don't see it that way. It's a lot of episodic storytelling that's driven by characters and style with some narrative through lines and primary plot eps that pay off.

[RobertoCarlos]

I recently watched goblin slayer and The rising of the shield Hero and those were instantly my favorite anime that I had seen.

Defiantly recommend those two shows

[Seiklis]

Goblin Slayer, HunterxHunter, Death Note, Cowboy Bebop, Trigun off the top of my head.

Kingdom is actually improving qualitywise as well (God those first 3 episodes though)

[Jester Joe]

Steins;Gate.
Re:Zero.
Code Geass as mentioned.
Haikyuu is great, it's sports but still great.
Gurren Lagann.

[deenman]

Thanks for the suggestions. Hope to hear more (or for/against the ones already mentioned)

And the series doesn't have to be finished. As long as the series has maintained its quality so far.

https://myanimelist.net/anime/5114/F...t__Brotherhood one of if not the best complete shounen


https://myanimelist.net/anime/9253/Steins_Gate very good time travel that makes sense,psychological and very dramatic


https://myanimelist.net/anime/31240/...sekai_Seikatsu not done,but as isekai goes its by far the best and most unique


https://myanimelist.net/anime/2001/T..._Gurren_Lagann a classic complete story of zero to hero


https://myanimelist.net/anime/34599/Made_in_Abyss this one is a wildcard,as a pretty big anime fan this one was a big surprise,it gave me the feeling of wonder like an old adventure rpg would,feels very nostalgic somehow,do NOT let the art style fool you,its not for kids


https://myanimelist.net/anime/1535/Death_Note another classic


if you watch any of em and want more hit me up

[kail]

Want a bit of "historical" anime that's an all-around masterpiece?

Vinland Saga

[draynay]

Trigun

Kill la Kill

Gundam - anything UC, Val mentioned all of them I think, except I would watch in the order they were made instead of chronological

Evangelion - get in the fucking robot, Shinji

[Ashleyxoxo]

I'm not telling you, because I don't want them to get popular.

[TEHPALLYTANK]

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (both season 1 and 2), and Mob Psycho 100.

[Master Guns]

This many replies and no mention of Dragonball Z, probably the great martial arts anime of all time? Gross.

As for a list, I’d recommend

DBZ
Fullmetal Alchemist
My Hero Acadamia
JoJo
Trigun
Cowboy Beebop

[TwistedSkull]

One Piece. It's my guilty pleasure anime and it's a mastodon of a series, it will give your months of content. It gets really good after the third saga. And Oda is a master of foreshadowing and world building.

The other one i really like is Fullmetal alchemist: Brotherhood but others already mentioned that one.

[Redwyrm]

One Piece. It's my guilty pleasure anime and it's a mastodon of a series, it will give your months of content. It gets really good after the third saga. And Oda is a master of foreshadowing and world building.

The other one i really like is Fullmetal alchemist: Brotherhood but others already mentioned that one.

Please mention a series even if it has been mentioned before. It helps to get a picture of which animes are more generally liked in the community.

Edit: And the reason this has suddenly entered into my "want to do" list is because I have been replaying Xenogears currently. I had forgotten how good the cutscenes and music were. The sense of mystery and dread

[Lanrefni]

Cowboy Bebop
Full Metal Alchemist:Brotherhood
Darker than Black
Hellsing
Psycho-Pass
Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex
One Punch Man
Ronin Warriors