The first anime I started with was One Piece, but that was back in the early 2000's. it was a bit less daunting back then lol. I have been meaning to check out Kaiju 8. I hear it is really good.
It must have been such a fun experience to follow One Piece since back then! My first anime was Naruto, another show that is way too long now to recommend it to beginners haha
Kaiju no. 8 is fun! The fight scenes are amazing, and the main character is really charming.
Yeah, fell off the anime around the Dressrosa arc. But I've been reading weekly for over a decade. That manga has influenced me and my art more than anything else. it is crazy how much a good story can impact you. If I find some time I'll give Kaiju a shot. I've been recommended it a ton, so I guess it is finally time haha.
I only recently started watching the anime (I'm caught up on the manga since 2021) so I haven't gotten to Dressrosa yet, but I've heard about how bad the pacing is. I hope Toei gives Dressrosa the Fishman Island treatment 🤞🏻
One Piece has also had a great impact on me, I'm glad to find other OP fans on here.
I would love to hear your thoughts on Kaiju no. 8 if you do watch it, I think it would do for an interesting Feats N' Faults topic.
Enjoyed reading this! I like that you highlight a lot of lesser-known ones as well as classics. I should probably try Frieren, I just finished Dungeon Meshi and am getting withdrawals.
Thanks for reading! Yeah, I wanted to have a very diverse list and not just the big names everyone always recommends. Dungeon Meshi and Frieren are compared a lot, and I think they are both great for different reasons, but if you like one it's very likely you will like the other
Oh I would love to know which ones you think aren't good for beginners? I tried to have some unique shows to highlight how diverse anime can be, which is why I included some "weirder" stuff :)
The big one is Chainsaw Man, just because of it's subversions from traditional tropes. I would replace it with JJK or Magi (though that could fit into fantasy and is pretty long, I've noticed you tried to keep the series mentioned shorter).
Note on CSM: I love the show and I am current with the manga, it is excellent and I do love it but it wouldn't be the first anime I chose for someone (Kind of like how I wouldn't suggest Dandadan for a newer person.)
I would have replaced A Sign of Affection with Wotakoi or Horimiya (if you wanted something longer Kaguya Sama)
I think ping pong is a choice but is an interesting art style for you get Respect +++ for that.
But my singles list would be
Romance:
Kaguya-sama Love is War or Your Name (if you wanted to throw a movie in)
I did consider several of the shows you mention, but I wanted to keep the shows as short as possible because a lot of times people think anime shows are too long (since they are used to the streaming model of shorter seasons), so I chose things with one season and as short as possible. Monster, Vinland and Jujutsu Kaisen are all above 40 episodes (and Kaguya has almost 40). GWitch has two seasons, and I never finished the second so I didn't think it was fair to recommend it, but I agree it may be good for beginners, although mecha anime can be a bit too silly for some people. Your recommendations are solid, just not what I was looking for when making the list :)
I'd argue CSM doesn't include many of the tropes that we associate with action shonen, and not having these tropes does not necessarily make it a subversion. CSM is more of an horror/psychological take on action shonen, while JJK is much more of a subversion (in my opinion). It's also easier to get into CSM because the worldbuilding and magic system is quite simple, whereas JJK is more confusing. With JJK, you also have to explain that the movie is a prequel to the 1st season, and I've seen lots of people get confused with the timeline and the mechanics of sorcery. There's too much information you have to remember in order to keep up with the fights in JJK and too many characters, CSM has a more minimalistic approach.
Ok with that context the list makes sense. Another ghost pick would be Megalobox (and it's follow up Megalobox Nomad).
Witch from mercury gets dark when you realize that the school exists to train the children or workers of oligarchy family's to pilot weapons incase a war breaks out.
I really liked that twist and the darker tone, I just fell behind when the 2nd season came out and never got around to it, but I definitely will finish it at some point!
Kaguya Sama Love is War(Romance): Two brilliant high school students too proud to admit their feelings try to make each other confess their love.
Horimiya (Romance): A popular girl who is secretly a homebody and an otaku who is secretly a punk find out each other’s secrets and become friends.
The Daily Life of Saiki K. (Comedy): A story about a teenager with godlike psychic powers trying to live an ordinary life.
Mob Psycho 100 (Action): Similar premise as the one above. A heartfelt emotional story and god-tier animation.
Monster(Psychological): A doctor saves the life of a child who grows up to be a serial killer. After learning of his actions, the doctor sets off to kill him. If you’re going to watch any one of these recs, watch this one.
Great recommendations! I really wanted to include mob, kaguya and Monster, but I decided to go with shorter shows. These are definitely good shows for beginners tho, if they want something longer!
As someone who is trying to get into slice of life anime, your suggestions sound great I’ll take a look at them soon! I’d also recommend Cyberpunk Edgreunners for a mix of sci fi, action and romance for anyone interested, so so so worth it!
Oh I hope you enjoy those! Both Barakamon and Skip and Loafer are some of my all time favorites! I have been meaning to watch Cyberpunk Edgerunners, it seems very interesting :) I didn't include it because I haven't watched it yet, but I have seen it recommended a lot for beginners
The first anime I started with was One Piece, but that was back in the early 2000's. it was a bit less daunting back then lol. I have been meaning to check out Kaiju 8. I hear it is really good.
It must have been such a fun experience to follow One Piece since back then! My first anime was Naruto, another show that is way too long now to recommend it to beginners haha
Kaiju no. 8 is fun! The fight scenes are amazing, and the main character is really charming.
Yeah, fell off the anime around the Dressrosa arc. But I've been reading weekly for over a decade. That manga has influenced me and my art more than anything else. it is crazy how much a good story can impact you. If I find some time I'll give Kaiju a shot. I've been recommended it a ton, so I guess it is finally time haha.
I only recently started watching the anime (I'm caught up on the manga since 2021) so I haven't gotten to Dressrosa yet, but I've heard about how bad the pacing is. I hope Toei gives Dressrosa the Fishman Island treatment 🤞🏻
One Piece has also had a great impact on me, I'm glad to find other OP fans on here.
I would love to hear your thoughts on Kaiju no. 8 if you do watch it, I think it would do for an interesting Feats N' Faults topic.
Enjoyed reading this! I like that you highlight a lot of lesser-known ones as well as classics. I should probably try Frieren, I just finished Dungeon Meshi and am getting withdrawals.
Thanks for reading! Yeah, I wanted to have a very diverse list and not just the big names everyone always recommends. Dungeon Meshi and Frieren are compared a lot, and I think they are both great for different reasons, but if you like one it's very likely you will like the other
Toradora still remains of my all-time favorite anime, the nostalgia is real
It's one of my favorites, I've rewatched it a couple times and it always makes me happy
Some of these are hard recommends for a 'first' anime but there are some peak choices here.
Oh I would love to know which ones you think aren't good for beginners? I tried to have some unique shows to highlight how diverse anime can be, which is why I included some "weirder" stuff :)
The big one is Chainsaw Man, just because of it's subversions from traditional tropes. I would replace it with JJK or Magi (though that could fit into fantasy and is pretty long, I've noticed you tried to keep the series mentioned shorter).
Note on CSM: I love the show and I am current with the manga, it is excellent and I do love it but it wouldn't be the first anime I chose for someone (Kind of like how I wouldn't suggest Dandadan for a newer person.)
I would have replaced A Sign of Affection with Wotakoi or Horimiya (if you wanted something longer Kaguya Sama)
I think ping pong is a choice but is an interesting art style for you get Respect +++ for that.
But my singles list would be
Romance:
Kaguya-sama Love is War or Your Name (if you wanted to throw a movie in)
Action:
Jujustu Kaisen
Fantasy:
Frieren (peak)
Drama:
Vinland Saga
Sci Fi:
Gundam: Witch From Mercury
Thriller:
Monster
Thanks for the insight!
I did consider several of the shows you mention, but I wanted to keep the shows as short as possible because a lot of times people think anime shows are too long (since they are used to the streaming model of shorter seasons), so I chose things with one season and as short as possible. Monster, Vinland and Jujutsu Kaisen are all above 40 episodes (and Kaguya has almost 40). GWitch has two seasons, and I never finished the second so I didn't think it was fair to recommend it, but I agree it may be good for beginners, although mecha anime can be a bit too silly for some people. Your recommendations are solid, just not what I was looking for when making the list :)
I'd argue CSM doesn't include many of the tropes that we associate with action shonen, and not having these tropes does not necessarily make it a subversion. CSM is more of an horror/psychological take on action shonen, while JJK is much more of a subversion (in my opinion). It's also easier to get into CSM because the worldbuilding and magic system is quite simple, whereas JJK is more confusing. With JJK, you also have to explain that the movie is a prequel to the 1st season, and I've seen lots of people get confused with the timeline and the mechanics of sorcery. There's too much information you have to remember in order to keep up with the fights in JJK and too many characters, CSM has a more minimalistic approach.
Ok with that context the list makes sense. Another ghost pick would be Megalobox (and it's follow up Megalobox Nomad).
Witch from mercury gets dark when you realize that the school exists to train the children or workers of oligarchy family's to pilot weapons incase a war breaks out.
I really liked that twist and the darker tone, I just fell behind when the 2nd season came out and never got around to it, but I definitely will finish it at some point!
Great list! Few of my starter anime recs:
Kaguya Sama Love is War(Romance): Two brilliant high school students too proud to admit their feelings try to make each other confess their love.
Horimiya (Romance): A popular girl who is secretly a homebody and an otaku who is secretly a punk find out each other’s secrets and become friends.
The Daily Life of Saiki K. (Comedy): A story about a teenager with godlike psychic powers trying to live an ordinary life.
Mob Psycho 100 (Action): Similar premise as the one above. A heartfelt emotional story and god-tier animation.
Monster(Psychological): A doctor saves the life of a child who grows up to be a serial killer. After learning of his actions, the doctor sets off to kill him. If you’re going to watch any one of these recs, watch this one.
Great recommendations! I really wanted to include mob, kaguya and Monster, but I decided to go with shorter shows. These are definitely good shows for beginners tho, if they want something longer!
As someone who is trying to get into slice of life anime, your suggestions sound great I’ll take a look at them soon! I’d also recommend Cyberpunk Edgreunners for a mix of sci fi, action and romance for anyone interested, so so so worth it!
Oh I hope you enjoy those! Both Barakamon and Skip and Loafer are some of my all time favorites! I have been meaning to watch Cyberpunk Edgerunners, it seems very interesting :) I didn't include it because I haven't watched it yet, but I have seen it recommended a lot for beginners
I can’t wait to check them out :)
Full disclosure you will be depressed after seeing edgerunners 😅
Oh I would be super interested in reading that if you get around to writing it!