Top 30 Anime Series of All Time

Yep, I’ve finally put together a top shows list. As I hopefully made clear in part one and part two of my critical biases post, this is obviously my list – it represents the things I think are most valuable in stories in the way I think they’ve best been articulated. It’s also just a list of shows I enjoy – there’s no hard criteria here, so I wouldn’t stress the numbers too much. Also, it’s a bit front-loaded – I only started watching anime seasonally about two years ago, so the last couple years are disproportionately represented. Incidentally, I’m not including movies here either – I think direct comparisons between shows and films are a bit of a stretch, but if they were included, this list would certainly be somewhat different. And finally, I’m absolutely (and thankfully) certain this list will change over time – there are still piles of widely beloved shows I’ve never seen, so I’m sure the current rankings will be filled out in the years to come. So with that all said, let’s get to the list – Bobduh’s Top 30 Anime of All Time.

-edit- I have now created a Top Shows Addendum for shows that have either fallen off or just barely missed this list. Please enjoy these additional almost-top shows!

30. Flip Flappers

Flip Flappers marries the blossoming artistic vision of many of anime’s most talented young animators to a story teeming with the rich psychological inquiry that anime does so well. Centered on a girl on the verge of young adulthood who feels too paralyzed by consequences to decide who she wants to be, Flip Flappers takes her on a wild adventure through a series of evocative alternate realities, all of which ultimately reflect back on the human interiority of her own world. Flip Flappers appreciates the inherent beauty of our distinct internal worlds, and pairs a wild tour through the human experience with a core character arc that reflects thoughtfully on the complexity of love, identity, and growing up. Slotting somewhere thematically between FLCL and Evangelion, it is a can’t-miss addition to anime’s coming-of-age pantheon.

Here’s my review of Flip Flappers.

Flip Flappers is available streaming on Crunchyroll.

29. Gatchaman Crowds

Gatchaman Crowds Best Anime List

Gatchaman’s a goddamn busy show – in the course of a 12-episode run, it covers everything from internet culture to crowdsourcing to the necessity of leadership to social responsibility to human nature to… well, you get the idea. And it explores all these ideas while also staying remarkably light and breezy – you could enjoy the show purely as a fun, visually interesting, musically brilliant adventure without even thinking about how identity is constructed in the digital age, or whatnot. And when you combine these two strengths, you get a show that proves you don’t have to be dry to be smart – you can make awesome points about how the internet will change the world without ever giving up a sense of fun and moment-to-moment excitement. Brain food and comfort food at the same time.

Here’s my review of Gatchaman Crowds.

Gatchaman Crowds is available at Amazon and streams on Crunchyroll.

28. Giant Robo

Giant Robo Best Anime List

Giant Robo is Bombast Incarnate. Featuring an epic clash between the Experts of Justice and Big Fire, there’s no room for subtlety in this production – it’s all massive robots and deadly superspies and fights for the fate of the world. It’s also a beautiful thing – a series of seven OVAs released over most of a decade, the show is a gorgeous ode to classic super robot storytelling, brought to life with strong animation and rich colors and epic orchestral scores. And yet for all its larger-than-life size, the show also tells a gripping story, full of fully-articulated characters and reflections on family and human ambition. Giant Robo essentially feels like the final act of the Greatest Robot Story Ever Told – it has absolute confidence, and earns the viewer’s trust through constant dramatic hooks and total polish in execution. Even if you generally like smaller stories, I’d give Giant Robo a chance.

Here’s my essay on Giant Robo.

Giant Robo is vaguely available on Amazon.

27. Bokurano

Bokurano manages the difficult feat of staying tonally downcast and even desolate at all times while simultaneously conveying an unflinching message of optimism, and belief in humanity as a species. Its premise is terribly arbitrary and cruel, and very few members of its young cast survive, but the stories they tell in their leaving reflect the kaleidoscopic spectrum of the human experience. Its compelling scifi narrative ultimately becomes little more than a stage for its young stars to shine, as they each take up an impossible mantel and fight on behalf of their species, their cruel guide mocking them all the while. But Bokurano does not believe in its guide’s cynicism; though the world it posits is harsh, its young heroes shine all the brighter for it.

Here’s my review of Bokurano.

Bokurano is available streaming on Crunchyroll.

26. Sound! Euphonium

Sound! Euphonium Best Anime List

Kyoto Animation excel at making quietly excellent little dramas, and Sound! Euphonium counts as one more feather in their distressingly pincushioned cap. The show is as gorgeous as you’d expect, the drama is understated but well-articulated, and the episodes are full of those alternately funny or poignant little moments that KyoAni’s mastery of animated storytelling always provokes. And Kumiko is one of the most fun people you could possibly follow around a story like this, with her snark and clumsy bluntness making her a refreshing and relatable protagonist. You can enjoy this show for its close viewing of the classic band experience, for its funny mess of jokes and characters, or for its well-articulated personal drama and reflections on goals and identity. It succeeds on all levels, making it one of the most impressive and fully realized high school dramas around.

Sound! Euphonium is available streaming on Crunchyroll.

25. Hunter x Hunter 2011

Hunter x Hunter 2011 Best Anime List

As the only long-running shounen on my list, HxH’s a bit of an outlier. But HxH is not your typical shounen – directed by Madhouse (likely my pick for the best studio of all time) and adapted from a source by the writer of Yu Yu Hakusho, Hunter x Hunter is basically a master class in what makes adventure entertaining. Though it starts off “only” demonstrating it knows how to make challenge-based television entertaining (in lieu of actual fights, it generally sets up compelling puzzles of all shapes and sizes for its heroes), it ends up jumping from genre to genre, dabbling in crime thriller, tournament shounen, and even war drama. And through it all, the show’s fantastic aesthetics elevate it above almost everything out there – in direction, in sound design, in pacing, in animation, in basically every relevant aesthetic metric, Hunter x Hunter triumphs. That it’s been maintaining this level of quality for well over a hundred episodes is nothing short of astonishing – in fact, I’d say Hunter x Hunter has only gotten better over time.

Here’s a critical breakdown of HxH episode 116, and here’s an essay on the recently concluded (and breathtaking) Chimera Ant arc.

Hunter x Hunter 2011 is available streaming on Crunchyroll.

24. Mushishi

Mushishi Best Anime List

Mushishi is one of those strange, special shows that seem to just emerge confident and fully constructed, exude excellence for all of their running time, and then go quietly on their way. Its vignettes are dreamy and ambiguous, full of resonance and compelling ideas but never didactic. Its world is mysterious and enchanting, evoking both a more resigned and possibly more dangerous version of Miyazaki’s mystical forests. Its production is fantastic, with beautiful backgrounds matching a wonderfully understated musical score and a great sense of pacing to conjure its powerful, singular atmosphere. And all this works in service of a show that’s fundamentally just incredibly calming and sedate – a series of long, lazy afternoons spent enjoying the company of a master storyteller.

Here’s my essay on Mushishi.

Mushishi is available at Amazon and its sequel streams on Crunchyroll.

23. Gunbuster! + Diebuster!

Gunbuster vs Diebuster Best Anime List

Grouped together because they really do feel like two sides of the same coin, both of Gainax’s Buster shows would also make this list independently. Flippant and heartbreaking, cynical and triumphant, personal and universal, each of these OVAs tells a story of humanity’s struggle against all the forces of the universe with style and heart. And each can stand alone, as well – Gunbuster is helmed by a pre-Eva Anno already exhibiting his unnerving style of direction, and Diebuster offers a very appropriate conclusion to the FLCL era of Gainax production. Only six episodes each, too – it’s pretty remarkable how much story each of these manage to tell.

Here are my essays on Gunbuster and Diebuster.

Both Gunbuster and Diebuster are available at Amazon.

22. Shinsekai Yori

Shinsekai Yori Best Anime List

Shinsekai Yori is basically tailor-made for fans of fantasy and scifi novels. Heavy on worldbuilding and questions of human nature, its story unfolds on a scale far greater than most anime, exploring a compelling dystopian society by following one generation from childhood through adolescence and well into adulthood. Though I often feel its characters fade into the background of its storytelling pretensions, it all works in service of an incredibly compelling central narrative, and its devastating conclusion justifies everything that came before. It’s a rare and valuable thing – few shows work on the scale of Shinsekai Yori.

Here’s my review of Shinsekai Yori.

Shinsekai Yori is available at Amazon and streams on Crunchyroll.

21. The Idolm@ster

The Idolmaster Best Anime List

An idol show?!? I could actually go on for a while about what makes various idol shows great (and I have), but as far as Idolm@ster specifically goes, this show is just a solid episodic drama that succeeds in almost everything it attempts. It’s got a rich and well-developed cast of characters, lots of great little character stories, and a bunch of fun adventures like “the team runs a Sunday game show” or “one idol ends up as a runaway bride while another fights yakuza goons.” On top of that, Idolm@ster features one of the best creative teams in recent memory – a bunch of former Gainax staff and other great creators combine to make this one of the most beautifully directed and animated shows I’ve seen. Even if you don’t have any interest in idols, Idolm@ster’s combination of fun stories and gorgeous execution makes it a rare and impressive show.

Here’s my review of The Idolm@ster.

The Idolm@ster is available streaming on Crunchyroll.

2,750 thoughts on “Top 30 Anime Series of All Time

    • +1 for Code Geass. Also, Fate/Zero! Would’ve thought you’d have remembered that one after mentioning the Urobutcher at least once. Mixed opinion for SAO though. I think it explores alot of areas but doesn’t particularly drive any point home for me.

        • Code Geass is cool with Lelouch and everything but you should try something new like Neon Genesis Evangelion, Durarara, Shingeki no Kyojin, Kuroko no Basuke, etc.. It’s your choice, Google it..

      • the big issue with Death Note is that the second part of the show is complete bullshit… The way things happens, the investigation, the narrative, Death Note is AMAZING!!! but the way they turn everything… the way they capture and kill Light Yagami… compared to the way he fight against L… please… -_-

        Evangelion is too perfect… the tech, the religious background… even the evas… everything is insanely well developed!!!! as with Akira, and Ninja Scroll, Evangelion is a game changer…

      • why not death note is just too boring ass much boring i just watch 20 episode but the best anime i think is naruto one piece and fairy tail

        • Are you freaken nuts! I watched through death note twice and skipped at least 50% of the bullshit content, filler and flashbacks they shove into naruto. Its like comparing a roast dinner to a pack of Doritos.

        • How could you even watch fairytail, it is so freaking boring! I am starting to think that show is for kiddies.

          • Death note is the best! After L dies it’s still amazing and perfectly write and the end didn’t sacrifice lights skill and intelligence because it was his servant who got him killed he was perfect! Smarter than everyone!

  1. I haven’t watched many of those shows and, yet, this is probably the best “Top x anime list” I’ve ever seen. You made me want to watch all this list.
    Keep up the good work! =)

  2. I never saw any of these. But m surprised not to see Dragon Ball, One Piece, naruto, Death note. I mean these anime are beyond great if any1 has seen them

      • Naruto is okay except for some too-boring fillers..
        But One Piece is not.. It’s manga is far better than anime.. Anime has just too many flashbacks and fillers.. But now that they reduced some flashbacks and fillers, the story is going too slow so as not to overlap the manga.. So, overall, not good on par with other awesome anime even though One Piece is one of the best Manga..

    • Those anime are popular and common. We all know those anime series are great, but talking about something new.

    • Yeah I agree that sword art online should be on the list but I also think stack on Titan devil is a part timer

        • I too like SAO, but I don’t think it’s really one that could be counted as “one of the greatest.” While SAO is visually stunning and has a particularly good story, there are a couple things about it that take it away from being one of the best. One of the major things with SAO is that after the first arc, there was nothing really going on. The anime turned into a story of “the prince saving the princess.” Also, in the first arc, many characters didn’t get a proper introduction, unlike Asuna. In my own opinion, the whole series should’ve been about them surviving SAO. So for now, SAO probably won’t be on this list. But I do agree that Attack On Titan should be on there!

        • HA SOK??? SERIOUSLY?? THE STORY IS FUCKING SHIT LIKE JESUS ARENT YOU A STUPID LIKE ERIN DOESNT CHANGE AT ALL AND ITS ONE OF THE MOST OVER HYPED ANIMES EVER. all the weebs argue ooooh animation ooo visuals well man FUCK THE VISUALS the story is shit and it should be regarded as such. like even guilty crown blows sok (attack on titan for all the begginners) out of the fucking ocean. screw sok

  3. I’m glad that you put OreGairu as one of your top, it’s one of my all time favorites too, loved the mc.

  4. This is a great list. I’ve only gotten into anime recently, and I’ve been using this list for recs. I think most anime just isn’t my thing, but everything I’ve watched on this list is fantastic – nice job!

  5. A bunch of good ones in the list, but missing some in my op essential ones, like Ghost in the Shell Series (how is Psycho Pass rated better?).
    Also worth a mention: Natsume Yuujinchou, Sekai no Senki, Gintama, No Game No Life, Eve no Jikan and Nodame Cantabile.

    • I agree with the Psycho Pass part. I got really impressed to see such a mediocre anime in that solid list

  6. This is based not on what you like, because I’ve only seen a few of the amines you named, and the ones I have seen I enjoyed. However, this is based on what I think you NEED to watch, whether I actually think you’ll enjoy them, or at least see them as a standard anime that I’m shocked you haven’t seen. There’s four:
    Death Note: Interesting concept. A few small plot holes, and one or two throw-away characters, but in my eyes, a solid anime. One of my favorites.
    Eden Of The East: Another favorite of mine. I actually really think you’d like this, it’s almost like Psycho-Pass in a way, but definitely different enough to merit a watch.
    Mirrai Nikki/Future Diary: I never finished this one, myself, but it’s entertaining and even suspenseful at some points. Similar, and yet, vastly different from Eden Of The East.
    Deadman Wonderland: pretty much your classic action-packed anime, in the vein of classics like Dragon Ball Z, Bleach and Inuyasha, but with a brighter art style, and a MUCH darker theme. Interesting contrast. Another one of my favorites.

    • friend if u r looking for a best anime then there are three best anime first naruto second one piece and third fairy tail

      • Look I agree that one piece is great but I know what this guy is trying to do:hes trying to get non mainstream anime into the list but what I hate about it is the stupid romantic anime all over the list, which is making me and a lot of others mad. However, when you say the top 3 anime of all time are naruto, one piece, and fairy tail then you obviously need to do more homework and watch more anime. I would respect your opinion if you had one of these three with some other eccentric choices. The guy that made this page obviously knows more about anime than you, although I hate his choices, I somehow agree with how he made the list based on his opinions, but my list would probably not include many of these; my top 4 are one piece, gurren lagann, death note, and fma brotherhood. This guy obviously doesn’t like these types of anime and is more into the love type of thing or the emotional anime and you can see him say that gotten lagann is” definitely not [his] kind of show”. Anyways, the point is, no offense, you know nothing.

  7. it is so strange not seeing naruto – one piece – attack on titan – death note- bleach – fullmetal alchemist

  8. I like this list very much (no naruto, onepiece, doragonbol, death note, sao, shingeki, etc thats all anime ialrdy known and nice ofcrs), i want know some anime that is not mainstream and dificult to find, but good quality. 😀 😀 😀

    • Lol you know nothing about life. Just because you placed one piece on that list of yours you are not human. You are dead to me. I bet you haven’t even watched it so don’t go calling it mainstream until you fully watch it, grasshopper.

      • dude i mean its mainstream for call it good and nice anime, i alredy watch them all. and love them all. nevr said that is piece of trash and comon.

        • What do you mean you watched them all already? One piece is still going, you know, for probably another ten years, and right now the episodes are getting fucking intensely astronomically amazing. So don’t tell me you watched til episode 50 and gave up because I won’t talk to you if you did. You have to keep going. Personally, I loved the show ever since episode 1 but I can’t seem to understand why anybody would drop it so early on.

      • Someone is salty, lol.
        take my advice dude, stop acting like a child and don’t get worked up over anime, people have opinions ( not saying OP isn’t good though )

        • Well it’s a good thing to get worked up over something you love. Just saying coz I’ve watched so many anime and probably almost 50 percent of this list and I can say that op must be on this list. Everything from music, story, and emotional connection is perfected by oda. Itd just what I believe. i do respect different opinions but I just don’t think one piece fits in with that list of mainstream stuff, even though it is mainstream. My top 4 anime are one piece, death note, gurren lagann, and fmab n no particular order after one piece (1st place). And this is coming from a guy who watched so much so I’m not a newbie. I’ve even watched the top on this list, evangelion, and hated it. So it’s just my opinion.

          • i mean i watch them all that i use for example, not all episode. and i mean mainstream is not for the story or for the all negative things. i dont know i forgot my last episode i watch OP meybe only till episode 30 and im FUCKING LOVIT okay.. =__= stop being rude man, and think positive. i have seen many “best anime list” that include that anime in my exmple, “come on dude make another list with another anime title” <thats what i mean by mainstream here

          • just gotta say one piece was great until the last two arcs. If you think its “astronomically interesting” right now you must be crazy. literally like 6 minutes of plot per episode right now. I’m about to give up on it as the pacing is miserable and the quality is really…and I mean really dipping.

          • Lol don’t call me crazy there are a lot of people who love the current one piece episodes. The pacing is pretty good imo and I hate people who just want Luffy to beat doflamingo without watching through the whole story so if you are crazy then stop watching it its not my job to keep you interested

  9. I watched nearly all of them.
    Solid list, though I have some complaints… Where is Monster, Fate/Zero or Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood?

  10. Bless you for not including Clannad, one of many pieces of contrived drivel that tugs at pleb heartstrings. For that matter I don’t know why everyone wets themselves over Madoka. It was an interesting idea that was hamstrung by its brevity, formulaic characters, and plot (just not a plot usually found in a magical girl show, but that doesn’t make it original). Not the worst by any means, but #2?

    Yay for Utena and Mushishi, though I’d have the latter higher.

  11. I like how everyone is tripping over the fact that mainstream choices aren’t in the list. Of course OP is mainstream, doesn’t mean it’s bad, just means it’s an obvious choice, and there is definitely BETTER than OP out there. I personally consider FMA Brotherhood to be the best anime I’ve seen, but it is mainstream.

    Now about the list itself, I’m very happy about that list because the descriptions are very detailed and inspiring. Aside from Bebop and FLCL, I haven’t seen any of those but I will definitely look up some of them.

    Thank you for your originality and for the effort that was put into the writing of this list.

      • agree with jonathan, OP is mainstream choice, its obvious choice for “best anime list. and yeah its doesnt means its bad. and what do u mean by “I just said it doesn’t fit with the other mainstream ones”.

  12. you have no taste. What about fullmetal alchemist of kill la kill or Sao or code geass? There are so many more anime I could name that would top all of these.

  13. kingdom 1&2, full metal,
    afro samurai, Hajime no Ippo,
    darker than black, Gintama
    tokyo ghoul.
    these deserve to be on every list.

  14. For me Death Note is THE BEST of all time.
    AND Attack On Titans and Naruto are also among the best

  15. i like your list. i’m looking for a list of animes with preference to human nature. I’d recommend monster and durarara

  16. I enjoyed this list, it had a lot of of great and underrated animes. Although, where is Yu Yu Hakasho!?! Chapter Black is the best anime arc of all time. The show was released in 1990 yet it still looks great even by todays standards. It is a classic.

  17. Out of curiosity, in those higher ranked shows, what makes you rank one show higher than the other (this is particularly for the top 10)? You explained your reasoning for placing Eva over Madoka, and I would say that it is not a terrible decision, but some of the listings do not seem to add up in quite the same way.

    I will first concede that it is in no way an easy decision to make when making a list such as this, that attempts to compile a bunch of “greats,” often times with few flaws, into a list in order of “who has the least flaws” or “which is able to do more things more perfectly than others” or “who is able to specialize in their given task and execute it better than another is able to execute their respective task.” Particularly, this seems to be a problem when evaluating the top 10, as many of them do not tell very explicitly laid out stories (I am looking at you, Monogatari).

    Actually, that got me thinking of a better, more succinct question that might have an easier answer: why is Monogatari not rated higher (now that I am looking at the list again, specifically, why is Monogatari not rated above Katanagatari)? It is clearly not the case that Monogatari is a flawless series, but the only edge Katanagatari might have over it is a more well-established story and maybe “sincere” rapport (of which I would argue that Monogatari does not even bother doing) and that it does not have some of the well-known put-offs that Monogatari does. So again I would ask, are these benefits enough to not only put Katanagatari above the Shaftian behemoth?

    • I would not sweat the numbering. Art doesn’t really lend itself to this kind of hierarchical evaluation in the first place – our experience of shows is too complex for that to be meaningful, and there’s far too much you could focus on as particularly valuable. How much do we value music? How are we critiquing pacing? Is this scene emotionally resonant, or does it fall into manipulation? All of these are questions we can engage with on a personal level in individual critiques, but attempting to assign numbers to things like that and then put them in line with other shows that have utterly different mechanics and priorities is far from science, and more importantly, it’s just not something that results in greater insight.

      • I am unappreciative and entirely dismissive of your well thought out reply, hereby donning you with the title “person with poor taste.” Please re-rank the anime in the order that I would prefer them in to have your title revoked.

  18. This list is not very good, it is not the 30 best anima it is the 30 best in someones opinion. I cant say iv watched them all but i checked out a few on this list and they are not very good, so not to see full metal or dragon ball Z, (dragon ball z) being the only anima show to break the most popular show on television record in 2002. I dont know if any other anima has done that in the american main stream tv. When u do a list like this you have to take in what is actually better not just personal opinions. When i rate a movie if i only decided to give good ratings to things i like ignoring story, plot how well it was filmed compaired to the next movie ext, i would be a horrible critic. Reading through the comments i see the concerns is that dead note should be on there and a few others alot of people are suggesting in unicence.

  19. Where’s Dennou Coil? Where’s Pani Pony Dash? Where are my car keys?
    Where am i?

    who am i

    where did this gun come from

    help

  20. I have to agree with almost every aspect of this list. I find every anime on it to be excellent, especially the top two (my personal favorites) also FLCL is excellent and deserves to be at the top.

  21. This seems like a great list. Hopefully I can find something I like here. I really appreciate the efforts it took Bobduh to create the list. I am not an anime guru and I haven’t heard about the most of anime in Bobduh’s list but here is some feedback along with my own list.

    The series that I really like (I tried to put them in order starting with my most favorite):
    Full metal alchemist; FMA: Brotherhood
    Hunter x Hunter
    Avatar: the last airbender (though it isn’t Japanese)
    Naruto, Naruto: Shippuden
    One Piece
    Natsume’s Book of Friends (mystical, cute)
    One outs (sports anime)
    Kaiji: the ultimate survivor (+second season)
    Glass Mask (girly)
    Psycho Pass
    Lovely Complex (romantic)
    xxxHOLiC
    Boys over flowers (romantic, very girly)
    Attack on Titan

    Anime series I also like but slightly less:
    Hajime No Ippo (all seasons) (sports anime)
    Death note
    Nodame Contabile (romantic)
    Gantz (brutal)
    My little monster (romantic)
    Beelzebub (funny)
    The garden of sinners (brutal, mystical)

    Claymore, Deadmen Wonderland, Hikaru No Go, Eyeshield 21, Samurai Champloo, Kamisama Hajimemashita, Blue Exorcist, Knights of the Sidonia, Pet Shop of Horrors, and Elfen Lied are not great in terms of characters and are not very original, but they are not too bad.

    Favorite Anime Films:
    Spirited away
    Howl’s moving castle
    Into the forest of fireflies’ light
    Children who chase lost voices from deep below (is okayish)

    I like romantic anime and I appreciate good music, but what is the most important to me in an anime is the storyline that keeps a viewer interested. For instance I really appreciate the anime Mushishi and I do like it a lot but it’s not as fun to watch as something like Naruto or FMA. In Mushishi every episode is a separate story, an interesting story, but there is no character development which is highly crucial for me in anime.

    I watched all of Suki-tte li na yo, Eve no Jikan, Monster, Durarara!, Usagi Drop, Kuroko’s Basketball, Noragami, Hakuoki Shinsengumi Kitan and I found these anime to be “watchable” but not great at all. The animes Bleach, TO: Great Teacher Onizuka, Soul Eater, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Hellsing, Kuroshitsuji, Another, Hakuoki Shinsengumi Kitan, Ouran High School Host Club, The Devil is a Part-time, were a total waste of time for me. I started watching Gurren Lagann, Spice and Wolf, Cowboy Bebop, Evangelion, Ghost in The Shell, Code Geass, Fairy Tale, No Game No Life, but could not get through first few episodes. Perhaps I already watched similar animes that I thought were better. I could be wrong. (there is a lot more series that I could not get through)

    I watched all of Sword Art Online and it was an okay anime but I thought the characters were not very well defined, too flat for my taste. There were a few interesting ideas and story line was not bad, but it is not one of my favorites. Stein’s Gate had interesting plot, but, again, characters were very poorly defined for my taste.

    I decided to watch Revolutionary Girl Utena from the list. For my taste it is quite an unoriginal anime. I do understand though why Bobduh likes it: the music is great while shadow theatrical scenes add to an interesting unique style. I also like the main theme of this anime: the great significance of protecting and caring for others. However, the way this theme is presented in the plot is highly unrealistic: not everyone has a mythical “prince guardian” to grant an inhuman strength. There are a lot of things in the storyline that really bother me: why use swords when just trying to knock of the flowers? how do duelists never actually cut each other (while cutting each other’s clothes)? etc. . I understand that in RGU things that happen are presented as a ‘metaphor’ but to me it is just a poor excuse for not putting time into the creation of a logical interesting story line. I do like that the ideas of sister/brother incest and lesbian/gay love are attempted to be normalized in the cartoon, however, the phrases such as “but he is your brother” or “I can’t be a bride, only a groom” (I don’t remember the exact words) do exactly the opposite and emphasize existing social norms. Therefore, I think that RGU has some interesting ideas that unfortunately were very poorly developed.

    PS: The following are the animes that were mentioned, but I haven’t watched and couldn’t really comment on:
    Baccano!, Mawaru Penguindrum, Suisei no Gargantia, Gatchaman Crowds, Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai, Gunbuster! + Diebuster!, Shinsekai Yori, Hyouka, Toradora!, Shiki, Kyousogiga, Ping Pong The Animation, Kino’s Journey, The Eccentric Family, OreGairu, Monogatari, FLCL, The Tatami Galaxy, Katanagatari, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Evangelion, Fate/Zero!, Yu Yu Hakasho, Kingdom, Afro Samurai, Darker Than Black, Chapter Black, Gintama, Tokyo Ghoul, Sekai no Senki, Eden of The East, Mirrai Nikki.

    Once more, thanks to Bobduh for taking time and effort to create the list! 🙂

    • Lol, that’s an “interesting” way to judge Utena. But I believe your taste are highly dictated for your preference to shonen type anime/manga. Also it is kinda funny how you judge it as “unrealistic” when none of your favorites can be consider “realistic”. The complaints about the duels … what? Was that the best “argument” you could come up with?

      Moving on to “poor storytelling” . How are metaphors a bad way to create a story? The characters in Utena supplement this themes unlike anything I have ever seen before, and the story in general (even taken at face-value) is entertaining and compelling. Different works of art use different methods to communicate with an audience, why should stories be limited to conventional storytelling?

      • RGU is just very unoriginal for my taste. Every episode is very similar to another. There are so many typical “girl in trouble” situations where Utena is the hero. I don’t understand the need to make so many episodes on the same topic. Reminds me of Sailor Moon…

        Anyways, the main reason I posted here is because I was looking for an anime to watch as most readers here probably do. So I decided to post my anime list along with my anime preferences and maybe it could help others to find something they like 🙂
        And thanks for your opinion Edowaado 😉

  22. I’m so happy to have stumbled upon your site via the latest in Log Horizon. Between this list and the addendum, I’ve seen a fair few of the shows you’ve selected- enough to make me realize that I’d probably enjoy the majority of the others.

    I highly recommend Honey and Clover and Nodame Cantabile for the complex (and sometimes comedic) relationships between friends, mentors, and potential romantic partners. Then there’s the music, which adds a richness that lingers after the last episode.

  23. Hi! I wrote once to thank you for this amazing list, and here I am, doing it again! (can’t believe how many people complain about shows like death note not being on this list…. seriously they just don´t get the sophistication of the shows you listed)
    But I just have one question: what do you think of Durarara!! ? since Baccano is on your list, I’d just like to hear your thoughts about it (I LOVE both shows)
    ps: I am from Chile so please forgive the mistakes I might have made in English:)

  24. Wer s fairy tail naruto bleach n initial d these r da best anime i hv seen al da rest r bull shit m suprised none of these name came

  25. quite naming off the same trademark animes and start naming some that aren’t on every anime website out there. why not whatch some that are old like freeze or berserk or new school like shinmai maou no testament instead of shows that everyone in the world already no about

  26. Hunter X Hunter, Blue Exorcist, Fairy Tale, Attack on Titan.
    Those are the hands down the best anime’s ever made!

  27. Dude you forgot
    1. Bleach
    2. Death Note
    3. Full Metal Alchemist
    4. Naruto
    5. Get Backers
    6. Rurouni Kenshin
    7. Berserk
    8. Detective School Q

    I haven’t even heard of most of what you’ve listed. May be they are good but I haven’t seen them or heard about them before now.

    Thank you

    • Finally someone mentioned berserk! Jesus looked through all the comments to see if at least one person would mention it haha!

      • I love berserk. I wish it would have continued hands down the 3rd best anime of all time. Behind death note and attack on titan.

  28. Any opinion is accepted.
    However, some things can’t be sidelined like Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood.
    I can’t imagine a top list, actually a top-10 list, that FMAb is not included.
    By far the best shounen anime ever and one the best overall.

    Also, a good entry would be Darker than Black.

  29. Everyone can go on about what they believe is amazing and say how these inherently obscure anime’s are so amazing but we really know that these people are just trying to be individual. I watch anime and enjoy it but seriously when you say something is amazing but really it’s just shit you’re not doing yourself any favours by inhibiting your perpetual virginity. We all know and love dragon ball z but did you notice how each season was the same story over and over again. Bad guy comes, good guys fight bad guy and lose, good guys survive and have set time to train to defeat bad guy, good guys fight bad guy and win. Seriously it’s cool but it’s just the same. And SAO please for the love of god logic. Kazuto’s cousin sister surely would have recognised his voice over the microphone; as he would have recognised hers. Now I’m probably going to have a bunch of weoboos hating on me for all this logic but please I still really enjoy these anime’s but everyone is saying all these retarded anime’s are amazing but easily the best scored and the best written is Attack on Titan. It has an incredibly elaborate story, amazing score and voice acting. I also have to say that naruto has an amazing score but there are just too many flashbacks for me to handle. Neon genesis evangelion has a platinums worth story also but in my opinion. Attack on Titan easily is the best anime

    • You forgot death note and SAO is amazing but it does have it’s plot holes. Like the time kirito the man that can run up mountain walls and jump over dragons got cornered by shield guys and nearly died. He could have easily jumped over. Death note is just a bit better than attack on titan though AOT it second on my list.

  30. WHERE THE FUCK IS DEATH NOTE???????
    1-death note
    2-attack on titan
    3-cowboy bebop
    4-sword art online
    Well I hate hunter x hunter for it to be here and all the other animes I’ve seen are cringe worthy so…………..

  31. Was expecting this to be more of a discussion as to what the 30 best shows from an objective/unbiased standpoint are, rather than a “My favourite anime” type list (going from the title alone). However, it was still an enjoyable list and I enjoy your writing style. I might check some of these out!

  32. yay chuunibyou demo koi ga shitai! is the best romance anime ever! no harem shit or triangle love shit. the romance between yuuta and rikka is the best thing I’ve ever seen. but yeah the second season kinda dissapoint me though cause I’m not a fan of triangle love shit…..

  33. Hunter x hunter 2011 is actually available on Netflix [1st 5 seasons] and on crunchy roll.

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