Ignoring Buzzfeed’s focus on whatever’s popular right now; I decided to throw together a list of 10 anime that, regardless of anything, are shows considered mandatory if you are someone who watches anime.
Even at my old job, it seemed the only thing people had any focus or knowledge of was what had come out in the last 3 – 5 years. And ignoring my feelings about modern anime, this is not an accurate reflection of anything to do with the medium. And if you tried to discuss “anime” as a topic, you’ll find yourself very quickly being completely out of touch with other people who watch anime. Unless you ONLY focus on a specific fandom for one specific show.
But Some anime ARE staples of the medium. And regardless of personal taste, animation quality, how dated they might be now or popularity, some anime remain staples. And if you’re someone whose “Never Seen Anime” like the Buzzfeed article would like to suggest, you’ve got a much better chance looking to the titles that make up the foundation of the anime “fandom” than looking at whatever came out in the last 5 years or what’s trending on twitter or whatever the kids are into these days;
I chose these based on this. Not on my personal taste, or even popularity. But purely on their presence in the anime realm as a whole. I’ll even admit I might not even like all of these… But they remain staples. And even if you don’t sit down and watch them, you are required by anime law to at least know OF them.
1: Akira (1988)
The big one. EVERYONE knows about Akira. People who don’t know anything about anime know about Akira. People who don’t know about Akira have SEEN images and iconography from Akira.
Heck I don’t even like Akira that much. I don’t even think it’s that well adapted into a movie.
But I have seen Akira.
EVERYONE has seen Akira.
2: Cowboy Bebop (1998)
Almost always in the top 3 of people’s “top 10 favourite anime” lists, if not number 1. But Cowboy Bebop is not merely a “popular” anime. Often cited as being better dubbed than in its original sub, Cowboy Bebop is a medley of different genres, mostly inspired by Westerns, Gangster movies, as well as Jazz and Blues. Cowboy bebop is an anime anyone can access, even if they have little to no exposure to anime. Cowboy Bebop is very very easy as a starting point. But also has some of the most three dimensional flawed characters you’ll find in anime if not most television. Cowboy bebop succeeds because of its humanity.
3: Trigun (1998)
Often coming hand in hand with Cowboy Bebop if for no other reason than the fact that they premiered in the same year and both share a strong influence by Westerns. Trigun might not have the gut-punch existentialism of Cowboy Bebop, but is still considered one of the best animes released. A weird mix of Westerns, Mad max and sci fi, Trigun succeeds based entirely on its main character, Vash. Trigun as a show is more than anything a character study, as well as being a commentary on just how hard it can be to be a pacifist and how much courage it takes NOT to shoot, rather than glorify violence, and equate “bad ass” with killing.
4: Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)
*siiiiiiiiiiigh* Ok… So here’s the thing;
Eva is the black hole of anime. There is no escaping Eva. For better or worse, Eva is an all encompassing cloud over all of anime. And pretty much was the second it aired on Japanese TV. What started as a “giant robot” anime that explores how much being in a giant robot can mess up a kid (not new to Eva, in fact this is pretty much the basis for the first Gundam anime) but quickly devolved into a monster of a show. Its creator… well…. kinda lost his mind as the show went on. And it showed… it showed HARD.
The show went from a dark giant robot anime into an existential nightmare, exploring doomed characters in an apocalyptic situation as humanity slowly tumbled towards its destruction. Mixed with the main character, a truly hateful person who was written specifically to BE hateful, and his broken psychosis, the trauma of puberty, deep and inescapable depression, and his reaction to the people around, all of who also are written to be unlikable at least to a point if not completely detestable.
And then on TOP of this, Gainax (the studio) decided to use Christian visuals to give the anime a “stylistic edge” among the rest of anime being released at the time. Not considering the implications the Christian iconography would have for the western audience once it released overseas.
It reached a boiling point climax with the last two episodes in the series taking place entirely in the main character’s mind. This causing many insane fans of the show to send the director death threats for “disappointing” them. And then LATER causing an entire movie to be made called “the end of Evangelion” which was the ACTUAL end of the story… And now there’s like new movies being released as well to this very day and I have no idea how they even fit into this whole mess?
But Eva is a neutron star, collapsing in on itself. And it doesn’t matter if you love Eva, hate Eva, or are completely indifferent to it. There is no escaping Eva.
It changed anime forever. And there’s nothing that can be done about that.
5: Mobile Suit Gundam… like…. ANY Gundam. (1979 – current)
I can’t remember where I heard it, but someone once described the level of impact Gundam has and the level of fantacism from its fans as being the Japanese equivalent to Star Trek. And really that’s the best way to describe it. Starting in 1979, Gundam took the “Giant Robot” concept and instead turned it into an allegory for War. Gundam, regardless of which series you watch/read is always a mix of Shakespearean drama and the horror of war.
Hell, This is a… THING so important to Japanese culture that the country decided to build a LIFE SIZE replica of one. Part of Japan’s Self Defense forces are codenamed “Gundam”!
Probably a little difficult to approach as a westerner, but one should at least be AWARE of Gundam if nothing else.
6: Fullmetal Alchemist (2003) or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood (2009)
In my mind FMA is still a “recent anime”, but seeing it actually aired in 2003, I guess I can’t make that statement any more. FMA is a series that, despite being insanely popular when it first came out, only started gaining traction as a real “Classic” within the medium after its second adaptation “brotherhood” probably finished. I’ve heard many people say Brotherhood is better, but having only seen the original, I can tell you if Brotherhood is better it’s probably one of the best damn anime ever made since FMA on its own was already no small contender.
I can probably blame this show as the start of my ongoing existential crises when I first watched it around 2004 or so.
A difficult one to pin down compared to the others. I think FMA has such lasting power because it’s a mix of a unique setting and ideas, has extremely strong world building, has a lot of political intrigue, but at the end of the day, just like Cowboy Bebop and Trigun, it’s its characters that keep it strong. Whether it’s the brotherly ties between Edward and Alphonse, or their relationships with the characters around them, or their loss and ways in which they’re prisoners to their past, or its the sheer weight of the drama, both personal and on a worldwide level that they go through. Something about FMA’s characters elevates it so far above so many anime, as well as its absolutely perfect story progression. I remember this is the first time I watched a show where, in the second or third act, I remember longing for the earlier episodes… where the characters were happier and life seemed so much simpler.
Whereas a few years ago I’d still be calling all this “popularity”… it’s getting to the point now where its long lasting impact can’t be ignored, and it deserves being recognised as a medium classic, rather than just “really popular”.
7: Visions of Escaflowne (1996)
A weird one this. Visions of Escaflowne is a show that doesn’t come up in conversation as much as the others, but if you talk to anyone who’s more serious about their anime, they’ll be aware of it and know of it among the “classics”. Escaflowne is very similar to the shows above in that it mixes genres. It’s a “giant robot” anime, however it is unique in being a giant robot anime that takes place in a fantasy setting. A setting one would more associate with mages and dragons, Escaflowne has those…. and then also giant robots. A mix of a much more western idea of fantasy, political drama, as well as a coming-of-age love story (with giant robots) and a fish-out-of-water story as our main character is a girl from contemporary Japan, caught up in this fantasy world’s politics.
Escaflowne was originally planned and written to be 39 episodes, but after a very difficult production time, it ended up being only 26 due to budget reasons. As a result however, there is VERY little time wasted in the show. Probably the only anime in existence where there literally was not a single second for any kind of “filler” because it had to condense its plot into the shorter frame. As a result, the show focuses only on the very most important points of its story, and its characters. No moment is wasted or feels like it’s just there for no real reason.
It’s a story that never puts on the brakes, because it simply cannot afford to. And for a show supposedly cut down due to budget… it damn well doesn’t LOOK like it’s got a small budget. damn.
8: Ghost in the Shell (1995)
Another Big One.
Ghost in the Shell can probably be contributed as being one of the major forces that made the West take more notice of anime. Anime had been slowly creeping to the west since the 80s with VHS becoming more widespread, but Ghost in the Shell marked a point where people started realising there was more to Japan’s animation than “violent Porn Cartoons”. Although still not main stream, Ghost in the Shell was at least a major factor in making people realise that Anime had some serious weight to it.
I tend to describe Ghost in the Shell as more of an essay than a “movie”. Although it has a “plot”, the movie’s main focus is in exploring our main character, a cyborg called Major Motoko Kusanagi, and her struggle trying to grasp her own humanity. Or what is left of it. Being in a completely artificial body with only her brain surviving as her “human” part. The movie is primarily interested in her questions of whether or not she’s still human, and where exactly does the line for “human” begin and end.
Accompanied by a haunting musical score, often including traditional japanese religious chants, and Mamoru Oshii’s atmospheric direction, it’s gone on to be a major influence on most modern sci fi, as it itself was influenced very much by Blade Runner and continues with the themes set up by the Ridley Scott film.
9: Rurouni Kenshin (aka Samurai X) (1996)
Rurouni Kenshin has more in common with live action Japanese cinema than it does anime… to a point at least. Kenshin is, at its heart, a chanbara. That is, an anime (or film more typically) focusing on samurai in historical Japan. Kenshin however, has no interest in being 100% historical accurate, as a lot of its characters are inspired by arcade fighting games.
Also noteable, despite being a chanbara, Kenshin’s time setting is not the Edo period, but instead the Meiji period (roughly around 1868) a period of time where Samurai were starting to die out as Japan slowly opened its doors to the west and western development. During this period it was illegal for anyone apart from Police to carry swords any more, and the story takes place a few years after what is historically known as the Bakumatsu. A short but violent civil war marking the end of the Edo period and the beginning of the Meiji, where the Shogunate ended and the country returned to Imperial rule. A setting which is important not only for its world building but also for our main characters.
A mix of historical drama, and typical “shounen” beat the bad guy, a love story, a tragedy, a comedy and a lament for a time now lost, The Kenshin manga has not only been the source for the anime, but also 2 animated motion pictures, 2 OVAs, 2 live action movies (with a third I believe still coming), several stage plays, light novels as well as 5 video games.
Also the orchestral soundtrack (that is not the jpop used for the intros) is some of the best damn music television anime has ever had.
Also seriously this…
And this….
Are from the same story.
How am I suppose to find a single gif that can encapture all of the emotions in this show from the ridiculously silly to the soul crushing heartbreak???
10: Tenchi Muyo! (1995)
Tenchi Muyo is a weird one. Because Tenchi Muyo started out as an OVA, and even as an OVA its first episode is completely and utterly different from its last episode. Characters’ personalities in episode 1 seem completely different to every other episode. That’s because they were basically writing this show as they went along. And yet, through sheer grace of its characters and its setup, Tenchi Muyo is not only a staple of anime today, but has a hardcore fanbase and countless adaptations into other anime series, OVAs, light novels, Video Games, Audio Dramas, movies and manga.
So what is it? Well, technically, as in TECHNICALLY it’s a harem anime. A harem anime is typically about a single “everyman” male main character who finds himself living together with several female characters through weird circumstances. Usually its typified that there’s a chance that ANY of the female characters will end up with the main boy character, but there’s usually also a “main” girl character who the audience more or less knows he’ll end up with. It’s kinda a weird cousin of the dating sim video game genre I guess.
But so what? Why is Tenchi so special then? Well… mainly because its female cast are all fucking nuts, and ALL of them are amazing characters with really strong personalities, backs stories and agendas. Also they’re all aliens.
You have a Space Pirate queen, an alien princess and her little sister, a mad scientist, 2 police-women set to CAPTURE the space pirate queen, a literal Goddess, and a weird cat-rabbit creature.
Also, this isn’t some domestic “let’s all be perfect wives for our man” anime. The characters are constantly attacked by aliens trying to achieve one thing or another and there’s usually a lot of fighting and stuff.
….
The literal Translation of the title is “No Need for Tenchi.”
And really I couldn’t have put it any better myself.
Tenchi Muyo is also considered a staple since it was one of the first anime to play on Cartoon Network’s “Toonami” back in the day, and therefore was a lot of people’s introduction to anime as a whole.
Honorable mention to FLCL (2003)
OTHER MENTIONS:
Dragon Ball, Serial Experiments Lain, Berserk, Hellsing, Perfect Blue, Chobits, Sailor Moon, Card Captor Sakura, Anything and Everything with Captain Harlock in it, Lupin the Third, Death Note, Ranma 1 ½
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