GOTTA WATCH 'EM ALL!!!

Let's talk about anime!

Ha. Ha ha ha.

I have to admit, I'm not the biggest, or the best fan, but there's just something tremendously...endearing? About Japanese culture? And how they display this through their animation is really neat! I don't know a lot about the really big, super long magical, action, fighting once. (The time I spent in the Bleach fandom eventually grew too much to bear. I ended up only watching it for the sake of a certain short white-haired ice controlling captain, but I digress.)

That being said, shows like Naruto, Pokemon, Fairy Tale, etc, I just haven't really been into in a while. The prolonged fight scenes that last like, five episodes to go in depth into the commentary of every character involved like AGH. So eventually, whenever I had the time, I'd start exploring different kinds of animes. I wasn't aware that there were so many different genres! It sometimes takes a while to find one that you're really interested in, but the reason many people don't like anime is because they haven't found one to like! I love Avatar - The Last Air Bender (as anyone will know who has watched it, the movie is a disgrace. Just - no.) but as it was a popular American cartoon as well, it is't exactly characterized as an anime. So here's a list of some of the best ones I've watched!

1. BARAKAMON; also, HANDA-KUN

These two are probably in my top five! It's a greatly inspiring story! Handa-kun is the kind of prequel that follows the main character of Barakamon in his high school years, and it's more a classic slice-of-life comedy, good for laughs, that I recommend after watching the first one. Barakamon is a really great story, following the life of a famous, young calligrapher named Handa Seishuu. After having his piece insulted by a critic, and acting rashly against him, his father forces him to move and spend some time on a somewhat remote Japanese island. You can imagine what happens next - he meets lots of new, exciting characters, including little Naru, a little girl with a lot of personality (and might just be my favourite character of all time!) From them, he is once again inspired to create his art. It really is a beautiful story!

2. YOUR NAME

This is actually a full length movie, it follows the body-switching trope between a girl living in a remote village and a boy from Tokyo. There's tons of comedy, stunning animation, and is a lot deeper than you first think. I really loved the story line here, it was captivating in a way, and also left me very shocked!

3. ERASED

"Your Name" actually reminded me of Erased in a sense in that it involved trying to solve a dark problem. Here, it follows the story of a man who has this unique ability of going back in time to prevent bad things from happening. Usually, he only goes back in time a couple minutes at most, but soon problems in the present are surfacing that relates to a tragic history of one of his school mates when he was an elementary student. The mystery/time travel/detective-like vibe this one gives was really interesting and a definite watch!

4. CHIHAYAFURU

I JUST HAVE TO SAY I REALLY REALLY REALLY LOVE THIS ONE. It's got two seasons, and might seem kind of long, but the characters are vibrant, the story is great, and you also learn a lot about Japanese culture! Chihaya is a teenage girl with great passion for the Japanese poetry card game "karuta", and has been playing it from a very young age. (The game is actually really cool, I'd love to learn how to play, but unfortunately it requires a lot of...well...Japanese. Maybe someday...but, I'm surprised at how much I learned about and understood it from watching this show!) I really love Chihaya, she's one of those protagonists that really stands to be there! It's funny, it's heart-wrenching at times, and it can probably be qualified as a sports anime, if you're into that, but also not if you're not into it. It's just really really good!!!!

5. YOUR LIE IN APRIL

This was a tear-jerker. The story as a whole was simply beautiful and extraordinary! The element of music in here was done very well too, however, there may have been one too many deep moments watching them play on stage and having this whole, long internal monologue, but otherwise, It was superb! Really funny at times too, and really made you think about life the meaning it holds. It was really moving, beautiful animation. So much symbolism. STUPENDOUS CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT! And the opening theme is really nice and catchy! I really liked it.

6. NODAME CANTABILE

Speaking of music...

Nodame Cantabile is just really really funny, but also teaches you about music and I don't know how...

I actually haven't watch this one all the way through yet, I believe I'm almost starting the third season but I haven't watched it in a while, so I'm not exactly sure. Anyways, this is a great one for laughs! It might be kind of long if you're into really short, thirteen episode animes, but the story line progresses fairly well and the characters are all lovable and entertaining so I think it's a great watch for casual times!

7. KIMI NI TODOKE

This was a pretty good one! It's a bit lengthy, and full of a lot of angst and so, so many misunderstandings...but these are what continue the plot! The characters really likable, and our heroine, Kuronuma Sawako is just really really cute but incredibly misunderstood, and though her outward demeanor is kind of scary and intimidating, she's really just innocent, and the way she thinks and her values and beliefs just make for a great role model! Like, I watched this and I was like "I wanna be like Sawako when I grow up!" Yeah. It's a good one!

8. HIMOUTO! UMARU-CHAN

I would like to be like Sawako, but I'm probably more the protagonist of this slice-of-life. If only I could manage it as well as her! Lovely, beautiful Umaru Doma lives a secret life when she comes home. To the outside world, she's perfect and flawless in every way. But in actuality, she's a major otaku, who sits around all day doing nothing but playing video games, reading manga, watching anime and pigging out on a steady diet of chips, chocolate and cola. Oh, and bossing around her older brother, the only person who actually knows she lives this double life. It's weird because she also takes on this new, smaller form that is not humanly possible. She basically turns into a chibi character and it's real because no one can actually tell it's Umaru. They think she's another person entirely. So yeah, that gets real interesting! I cosplayed as her once. No, you will not see photos.

Anywho, that concludes the list for now! Hope you enjoy these if you do watch any of them! And tell me how you like them! If you can somehow contact me. Yeah, I may have an email up soon. Or not. Who knows. Oh well. Anyway, stay salty!

#bestshows #notvfor1000years