Your Top 5 Anime Recommendations

[Jester Joe]

A man of fine taste (same applies to @deenman). Well, I stopped watching Haikyuu after the small season about the preliminaries for the big tournament, but not because I did not like it (it's one of the only two sports anime that I've enjoyed, the other being One Outs).

It's because when the next season came after some gap there was a lot of other stuff to watch and it slipped between the cracks for me. Especially since due to the aforementioned time gap between the two I wanted to rewatch the earlier seasons first, which only compounded the issue. Which is still in the plans, but who knows when I'll get to that. Gurren Lagann is also on my "to watch" list of classics I haven't gotten to yet since forever.

But Re:Zero, Code Geass and Steins;Gate are top anime for me. Also Attack on Titan.

Not sure what to pick as 5th. Let's see... Mushoku Tensei is another great isekai (and I'm isekai trash), Konosuba is my favorite comedy anime (and also isekai), Jujutsu Kaisen is peak of modern shonen for me, Furumetaru Arukemisuto Brazahudo is a classic, Usagi Drop is my comfort food wholesome anime, Your Lie in April is my favorite romance anime and JoJo is JoJo. Throw a dart at one of these and the result would be worthy of my top 5 no problem.

Additional honorable mentions for Vivy, 86, Odd Taxi, One Punch Man, first season of Promised Neverland, Erased, Violet Evergarden and first 25 or so episodes of Death Note.

I appreciate the acknowledgement, also do vouch for most of these recommendations being really solid.

Especially the first season of Promised Neverland, just don't ever touch the second one. I haven't tried a few you listed though myself yet either admittedly hence the "most of these" comment, although intended to eventually like Violet Evergarden.

Konosuba I'm sad that I didn't put in the top 5 actually, it's just amazing. I was thinking of adding Erased but I figured I should add some variety with Haikyuu instead.

The only thing I might tack on that I haven't noticed mentioned actually is Parasyte, although that was quite a bit ago I watched it admittedly so I can't remember much besides finding it rather good.

Reason why almost noone named the big 3 of the last 15 years (Naruto, Bleach, One Piece) is beyond my imagination.

It’s like not suggesting trying WoW/Kotor/FF14 to someone asking for a good mmorpg.

Mostly why I wouldn't suggest any of those is because if someone is just looking to start to get into anime, locking them into 900+ episodes would be overwhelming to say the least.

Especially in One Piece's case which is only starting to show signs of getting close to the end....maybe.

I try to stick to series that are ~24 episodes for the most part, with a few exceptions. Well, moreso I guess under 100 episodes.

[unbound]

Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood is simply the best anime series beginning to end that is out there.

Ghost in the Shell anime movie is very well thought out and asks a lot of questions both in the dialogue and in the subtext

After that, I start breaking ranks with many other people:

Violet Evergarden - slow start but by the end, just wow.

My Hero Academia - a bit slow in the beginning, but very solid throughout for a long running anime.

Attack on Titan - excellent piece of world building


Also worth considering:

Sword Art Online
Assassination Classroom
Yona of the Dawn


Yes, I know my list doesn't include some heavyweights with high acclaim. Honestly, I didn't find them as compelling as my top 5 list.

[Mehrunes]

I would say all of Death Note is good. While it certainly isn't as entertaining after that point thanks to the status quo change, the rest of the story is still as dramatic and that particular point is a very poor place to leave the story at. Unless you WANT Light to win, that is.

It's not because of who won or not. It's because I find both Near and Mello to be completely insufferable and utterly unworthy of being L's replacement and the ones to beat Kira. I actually prefer the ending of the first Japanese film adaptation because of them not being in it, even though in the film Light lost even harder (and much earlier) than in the anime.

right back at you with the taste,code geass another classic that is good even as a non mecha fan

mushoku tensei is a close second to re zero for me (if you know the light novel stuff),also how do you feel about reincarnated as a slime?

i never rly liked your lie in april as a romance,there wasnt all that much romance in it lol,clannad or ef:a tale of memories/melodies are winers for me

just finished vivy recently,writer of re zero,pretty good

promised neverland and attack on titan however sadly i consider they completly bombed their endings,but until then,they were both amazing

When I said that Your Lie in April is my favorite romance anime I meant it in the way that it's generally seen as in the romance genre. Other than that I like it for its overall story, not specifically for the romance. There may be other anime that do romance part itself better, but I just like them less as a whole.

With the caveat that it's when it comes to anime shows, as I limited my whole list to just them. If we're also including movies, I'd put both A Silent Voice and Your Name above Your Lie in April and both of them are also (at least in part) in the romance genre. Kinda forgot to mention movies in my original post by the way, so I'm rectifying that here.

As for Promised Neverland, as I said, it's only the first season for me. The second may be flaming garbage but the first one is amazing. Probably the largest dip in quality between seasons of anime that I've watched. Though I'm willing to give the manga a try. In regards to Attack on Titan, I'm talking strictly about the anime adaptation. And while I didn't react as negatively to the manga's ending as some, the anime is not there yet either way. Besides even once it's completed the earlier seasons will continue to be giants of anime for me, especially 2 and 3.

And Slime isekai is on my "to watch list". There were just so many other isekai (and other fun anime) when the first season aired that I put it on the backlog for later consumption and I just never gotten to it. I may give it a try now, because nothing in the current season really grabbed my attention. Then again the last two seasons were probably the best ever for anime, so I'm generally taking a break from it for now.

[StillMcfuu]

I will start with Cowboy Bebop and Hellsing, these are both great and you can watch the English version as they are just as good as the Japanese.

Moving on to ones I haven't seen suggested (or not suggested enough)

Megalobox
One Punch Man
Redline
Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans
Sword of the Stranger
Ninja Scroll
Afro Samurai
Samurai Champloo

If you like being teased with series that never get finished:
Berserk 97: the newer fake animation one is awful
Airgear

Guilty Pleasure:
Cromartie High School

[AcidicSyn]

I'll stick to stuff that has an ending

1. Trigun (this was my first anime)
2. FMA: brotherhood. (Original is not bad either but I prefer brotherhood)
3. Dragon Ball -> Dragon Ball Z (not kai, but stop after buu saga to remain in MU-canon) -> DragonBall Super.
4. Ruroni Kenshin & Samurai X ova
5. Death Note
6. If you are into shojo: Fruits Basket
7. Food Wars (I promise its not porn, no seriously, its really not. Stop looking at me like that!)

Okay I lied; Stuff that doesn't have an ending yet but I haven't seen mentioned so far:

1. Restaurant to another World (just....effing relaxing to watch)
2. Helpful Fox Senkosan - another one thats just relaxing
3. Ben-to
4. kakuriyo bed and breakfast for spirits (No ending as well as no new season in sight but I loved it)
5. Noragami (also no new season renewal which is a travesty)
6. That Time I got Reincarnated as a Slime (not sure if this one has been mentioned yet but whatever watch it anyway)




Oh one more, I see many listing guilty pleasures so here's mine:

Fairy Tail (first story ended but continuation was just announced. There is NOTHING complex about its plot or its characters but fight me I love it)

In the category of watching stuff to get angry over suddenly stopping:

Deadman Wonderland

I'm gonna stop before I list 50

(I didn't list AoT, MHA, One Piece etc because so many already have, but toss my hat in those piles as well- especially One Piece)

[Doctor Amadeus]

Voltron
The Transformers
Robotech

[Mehrunes]

I appreciate the acknowledgement, also do vouch for most of these recommendations being really solid.

Especially the first season of Promised Neverland, just don't ever touch the second one. I haven't tried a few you listed though myself yet either admittedly hence the "most of these" comment, although intended to eventually like Violet Evergarden.

Konosuba I'm sad that I didn't put in the top 5 actually, it's just amazing. I was thinking of adding Erased but I figured I should add some variety with Haikyuu instead.

The only thing I might tack on that I haven't noticed mentioned actually is Parasyte, although that was quite a bit ago I watched it admittedly so I can't remember much besides finding it rather good.

I touched the second season of Promised Neverland and damn, do I regret that. As I mentioned in my reply to deenman I haven't read the manga, so at the start of it when people were complaining about the anime skipping their favorite arcs I remained optimistic that it can at least take an interesting original route instead, because of how good the first season was. And then it kept on rushing and rushing and rushing, ending in an utter mess. The last bit was literally a slide-show...

Anyway, Violet Evergarden is amazing. It's a slow slice of life, but it hit me right in the feels. Well, I wholeheartedly suggest any of those I've listed that you haven't watched, even though (or maybe because) they are quite varied.

And yeah, Parasyte is also great. I've actually been thinking about giving it a rewatch since I randomly stumbled upon a meme with it recently. But with how many shows there are on my list either because I was already watching too much during their season or because they are from before I started watching anime regularly I don't know if I'll get to it. Then again I've watched most of the shows from my list at least twice...

Oh, and since it slipped my attention (despite already being mentioned in the thread before) I'll throw Made in Abyss to honorable mentions as well. And Re:Creators, while I'm at extending that sub-list. Maybe even the Kumoko/Shiraori parts of spider isekai, though that's kinda stretching things, because the boring human shite takes up half of the anime.

[chiddie]

I appreciate the acknowledgement, also do vouch for most of these recommendations being really solid.

Especially the first season of Promised Neverland, just don't ever touch the second one. I haven't tried a few you listed though myself yet either admittedly hence the "most of these" comment, although intended to eventually like Violet Evergarden.

Konosuba I'm sad that I didn't put in the top 5 actually, it's just amazing. I was thinking of adding Erased but I figured I should add some variety with Haikyuu instead.

The only thing I might tack on that I haven't noticed mentioned actually is Parasyte, although that was quite a bit ago I watched it admittedly so I can't remember much besides finding it rather good.



Mostly why I wouldn't suggest any of those is because if someone is just looking to start to get into anime, locking them into 900+ episodes would be overwhelming to say the least.

Especially in One Piece's case which is only starting to show signs of getting close to the end....maybe.

I try to stick to series that are ~24 episodes for the most part, with a few exceptions. Well, moreso I guess under 100 episodes.

Oh, yes, you surely have a point with their length, especially OP and Naruto are really huge (also, OP has not even that many fillers, it’s “slow” by design). Luckily enough if you skip the openings, endings and the spots in the middle every episode is roughly 20 minutes, even with 1 hour per day you can watch roughly 1080 episodes in one year.

I remember I discovered Naruto slightly before Shippuden started, i catched up in 3 months (if you are watching ongoing series there’s one episode per week only, ah the good old times going into dattebayo.com and horriblesubs.com when “it was the day”).

[Zenfoldor]

Reason why almost noone named the big 3 of the last 15 years (Naruto, Bleach, One Piece) is beyond my imagination.

It’s like not suggesting trying WoW/Kotor/FF14 to someone asking for a good mmorpg.

I recommended Hunter × Hunter instead.

[Jester Joe]

Oh, yes, you surely have a point with their length, especially OP and Naruto are really huge (also, OP has not even that many fillers, it’s “slow” by design). Luckily enough if you skip the openings, endings and the spots in the middle every episode is roughly 20 minutes, even with 1 hour per day you can watch roughly 1080 episodes in one year.

I remember I discovered Naruto slightly before Shippuden started, i catched up in 3 months (if you are watching ongoing series there’s one episode per week only, ah the good old times going into dattebayo.com and horriblesubs.com when “it was the day”).

On the topic of filler episodes, this site has been pretty handy honestly to use when I was watching Naruto in my spare time recently-
https://www.animefillerlist.com/

[LedZeppelin]

All anime is degenerate so no.

[chiddie]

I recommended Hunter × Hunter instead.

Everything named so far deserves a vision, including HxH, I was only curious about why almost no one named them. But the point “dude it will take forever to see them” is surely a good point.

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On the topic of filler episodes, this site has been pretty handy honestly to use when I was watching Naruto in my spare time recently-
https://www.animefillerlist.com/

Oh didn’t know that site, good suggestion!

Also, yeah, of all the long anime I watched so far Naruto is surely the one with the highest number of filler seasons.

[KrayZ33]

It's difficult but I'll just mention the first 5 that come to mind that I judge to be *way* above the average/rest.

Bebop
Vinland
Grimgar (probably my all time favorite)
Jobless/Mushoku Tensei
And since I'm a mecha fan: Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans

Death Note would've made the list if the 2nd part didn't exist.
Goblin Slayer if it had better animation.

edit:

Movies:
I'd recommend a lot of them.
Silent Voice above most probably.

[Poppincaps]

1. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Literally widely considered to be the greatest anime of all time for the past decade. It's not my favorite anime anymore, but it took that spot for a very long time. Has tons of great fights, humor, and sad moments. Just an incredibly consistent and amazing show. It's also pretty accessible since it doesn't really have a lot of weird anime tropes.

2. Attack on Titan. As long as they stick the landing with the final season, this will likely be a modern classic. A great story that with an incredible mystery. The show from Season 1 to Season 4 changes pretty drastically and so do the characters. It can be a little edgy at times, but overall a really great story.

3. Kaguya sama: Love Is War. If you like comedy with some romance thrown in, then this is the show for you. It's honestly one of the funniest anime in my opinion and the romance is very cute and charming. May not be for everyone, but I didn't want to just list off 5 basic shonen. One of my favorites for sure.

4. Haikyuu. Sports anime about boy's volleyball. If you're not into sports or just not into volleyball don't let that turn you off. It's a great story that has amazing characterization. Almost every character in the show has their moment and it makes the show feel really engaging. The games and the strategy are incredible and there are some really emotional and heartpounding moments. It currently sits as my favorite anime. It's generally highly regarded, but I put it at 4 because I know not everyone rates it as highly as I do.

5. One Piece. I deadass believe this is the greatest piece of fiction to have ever been created. Once it ends I really don't think we'll ever see another anime with the sheer scope of One Piece. It's super long, but it rewards your time investment with amazing world building and throwbacks to iconic moments. The main cast are super likeable and it can shift between hilarious moments to absolutely heartbreaking ones. The anime starts to have pacing issues about halfway through (it has them earlier but they aren't as noticeable), if the pacing really starts to bother you then look up One Pace which trims down a lot of the fat. I listed it at 5 because of how long it is, but I seriously think One Piece is the GOAT.

[Zafire]

Highly recommend Parasyte. Psychological action drama. It's my highest recommended anime to anyone who asks.

Jujutsu Kaizen is really good and isn't too long. The action scenes are great and the story/world is solid. The music is great too.

Demon Slayer is top tier right now in the animation department, and the battles have you at the edge of your seat.

Speed Grapher, although it's older and harder to find.

And I really liked Black Clover, although it's a much longer series and not everyone will like it.

Rising of the Shield Hero is another favorite. Really good story, and anti-heros always make better MC's.

[deenman]

As for Promised Neverland, as I said, it's only the first season for me. The second may be flaming garbage but the first one is amazing. Probably the largest dip in quality between seasons of anime that I've watched. Though I'm willing to give the manga a try. In regards to Attack on Titan, I'm talking strictly about the anime adaptation. And while I didn't react as negatively to the manga's ending as some, the anime is not there yet either way. Besides even once it's completed the earlier seasons will continue to be giants of anime for me, especially 2 and 3.

And Slime isekai is on my "to watch list". There were just so many other isekai (and other fun anime) when the first season aired that I put it on the backlog for later consumption and I just never gotten to it. I may give it a try now, because nothing in the current season really grabbed my attention. Then again the last two seasons were probably the best ever for anime, so I'm generally taking a break from it for now.

Oh yeah i completly agree on what you said about promised neverland,first season was gold,and i havent seen a worse dip in quality from 1 to 2 story wise in any other show so far

the manga also has its low points,but nothing compared to how the anime butchered it

also get to watching slime,if you like isekai its really up there,i would even sugest the manga or light novel,its atention to detail is insane,the anime tends to skip some of the more complex stuff,but the world and its magic system is some of the most well defined of any isekai

btw have you seen made in abyss?

[Mehrunes]

Oh yeah i completly agree on what you said about promised neverland,first season was gold,and i havent seen a worse dip in quality from 1 to 2 story wise in any other show so far

the manga also has its low points,but nothing compared to how the anime butchered it

also get to watching slime,if you like isekai its really up there,i would even sugest the manga or light novel,its atention to detail is insane,the anime tends to skip some of the more complex stuff,but the world and its magic system is some of the most well defined of any isekai

btw have you seen made in abyss?

Yeah, I've seen Made in Abyss. As I said in my last reply to Jester Joe it slipped my honorable mentions list by accident.

[deenman]

Highly recommend Parasyte. Psychological action drama. It's my highest recommended anime to anyone who asks.

Jujutsu Kaizen is really good and isn't too long. The action scenes are great and the story/world is solid. The music is great too.

Demon Slayer is top tier right now in the animation department, and the battles have you at the edge of your seat.

3 good ones indeed,parasyte is a fairly old manga also,the anime did a rly good job bringing it in a more modern setting

jujutsu has some crazy potential,anime is just starting out,but the manga isnt to far either but whats coming is so good,cant wait

demon slayer is one of those rare example of fairly mediocre done REALLY GOOD,and it also managed to elevate the manga like very few shows are able to acomplish,it ofc helps that the gods themselves ufotable are behind it

[Spike`]

I will repeat some but here it goes

1. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

2. STEINS;GATE

3. Death Note

4. Psycho-Pass

5. Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress

6. Demon Slayer

7. Elfen Lied

8. Love is War

9. The Seven Deadly Sins

10. Made in Abyss

and

11. Tokyo Ghoul

Also thank you for other posters, didn't know about some of them

[deenman]

Reason why almost noone named the big 3 of the last 15 years (Naruto, Bleach, One Piece) is beyond my imagination.

It’s like not suggesting trying WoW/Kotor/FF14 to someone asking for a good mmorpg.

I dont rly think those are shows worth suggesting to new comers,naruto for example drags on way to much and can turn people off very easily,one piece is much better but its a huge investment that wont be over still in some years

I think if you wanna suggest shounen to someone new to anime full metal alchemist or code geass are much better complete and smaler packages that dont spend 60-70% of their runtime on pointless filler or filler-ish feeling arcs

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I recommended Hunter × Hunter instead.

oh yeah hxh is also great,but i tend to give a big minus to shows that got abandoned by the author,but yeah,if he ever finishes this it can easily be a top 3 shounen ever