What defines a good anime for y'all?

[Gonstroph]

This topic can also be thought of as what do you guys want to see in whatever shows you watch. 

 

For me, I put a very strong emphasis on two things:

1: consistency with established rules

2: strong characters. 

There's a lot more that can make good shows, such as a good storyline, but these two aspects of a show can easily make or brake one for me.

When I want a show to have consistency with established rules, I mean if something is established about a character, or a magic system, or the world and how it operates, ect., it's important to make sure none of that is just conviniently ignored for the sake of the plot or else the story won't make its intended impact, because it would be contradicting itself. So for example, plot armor I really don't like because it's like I'm supposed to be feeling something but I don't because I can't take it seriously because consequences really should have been there. (Established rules also referrs to what the show is based on. There are invisible established rules the show makes simply because it may be based in reality, or the social structure of the fictional world is similar to our own.)

 

Shows with good characters I really like. I like to say that I can judge the strength of a show based on its side characters. If the show can manage to make every side character really well (bonus points for well-made background characters,) that's a good sign it's amazing, it makes the world feel a lot more alive. 

 

[Animedragon]

What defines a good anime is an interesting question.

I think the answer is the same as what defines any good storytelling medium be it a book, a film, a TV show or yes, even an anime!

For me, a good storyline is important but no matter how good the story is, without a good cast of characters with engaging personalities who you care about and draw you into the story the series is not going to have much appeal.

But I think there's more to it than just a good story with likeable characters the background for the story has to be consistent and believable. It doesn't matter if the story is set in the present day, sometime in the future or even another world but however far fetched it is it has to be consistent and believable.

The other thing that can make or break an anime is the quality of the artwork and animation, a soundtrack that captures the mood and atmosphere of the story is a big asset as well. In fact the soundtrack is every bit as important as the visuals, that doesn't mean that there must music behind every scene, sometimes silence works better than any musical score.

[MediaConsumesMe]

I suppose there are many aspects, one think I really like is originality. Now nothing in media is ever really original, however if a work can feel fresh and innovative it really helps stick out more and thus grab my attention and is something I look for. For example Evangelion was an innovative Mecha series, same could be said for Madoka Magical which also brought a new spin on Magical Girls. Then I think another think that can help an Anime (or any other work of fiction) is it being more introspective and thought provoking. Shows like ones previously mentioned, but others including Wolfs Rain, Fate/Zero and Monster are all great examples. But even shows like Gurren Lagann which seems silly and goofy on the surface actual hold's some pretty profound ideas about 'growing up', 'believing on oneself' and 'moving on'. 

So those are defiantly some of the things that I find most of my favourite anime share or have in common. It not so much that they have the tightest of plot lines or have a solid cast of characters - those are defiently bonuses and really add to a work. But Eva cast isn't packed full of A-list characters (imo), and Ergo Proxy plot and consistency can become incomprehensibly meta and requires out of show study to understand what's going on in it.

But Ergo, Eva, Madoka, Hunter x Hunter, Fate/Zero and Monster (which is practically perfect in my opinion) are always gonna stick with me as I watch more anime. 

[MarathonGuy1337]

1: Visuals;

If a show looks good, then the battle is pretty much won. Anime a visual medium so I guess that makes sense in a way. To be fair I do watch a lot of shows just for the overall aesthetics, Such as old vintage OVAs and the sorts like Riding Been and other  shows like Neon Genesis Evangelion.

2: Vibes;

Half the time I judge an anime about how it makes me feel, the vibes I get when I'm watching it. Example recently with Dragon Ball which I started watching I was mecha hyped so the vide I'm getting is that the show is good. If I was to be more objective I might say well the animation is dated or something but when I'm in the moment I can pretty much just ignore that and focus on the cool Guko fights and such.

3: Story;

Form the overall plot to the character arcs, story is one of those things that I can overlook in all honesty like if the visuals or character designs are just so good like in Venus Wars or Mobile Suit Gundam 0083 Stardust Memory , which have serviceable stories, that said good stories coupled with strong visual designs and audio just elevate any anime.

4: Audio;

Audio is another important factor, mind you I'm okay with classically bad dubs. Audio in this sense is more like the music and song used or overall world tone and sound effects again this is the area like story were I'm more flexible. I say that yet I edited in the original Japanese's opening for Zeta Gundam so maybe it is more important. 

These songs here boys this is what we need!

Also Mecha... Mecha makes any anime better, Being a mecha show is just better. I love the Mecha genre its like so cool honestly why did it have to disappear!

Edited July 12, 2022 by MarathonGuy1337

[Lone Lancer]

Chiefly, I would say the writing and characters. After that, the visuals and music. You can have a poorly written story with beautiful characters and music, but you can never have a good story without good writing. Echoing what Animedragon said, consistency is important in good writing. Even watching anime that I loved, I would sometimes be annoyed at the glaring inconsistencies in the plot. I still think "Fist of the North Star" is one of the best of its genre but, even that one is a case in point of a series that changes the established rules for its own convenience as it goes along. I probably can't say any more than that without revealing spoilers for those who haven't seen it yet. I will refrain.

@MarathonGuy1337 I think it's great that you appreciate old school anime, though you appear to like giant robots more than I do. Not that there is anything wrong with that, to each their own. I was never aware that the mecha genre was in decline though. I guess I never was really up on all the latest developments. Peace.

[KaiyaSaysHaiya]

Anything with lots of murder or that'll make me cry. Oh, and a pretty art style!

That's all I need lmao

Edited July 17, 2022 by KaiyaSaysHaiya

[Animedragon]

3 hours ago, KaiyaSaysHaiya said:

Anything with lots of murder or that'll make me cry. Oh, and a pretty art style!

That's all I need lmao

If you want lots of murder then Noir will do you as the per episode body count can be quite high.

If you want to cry then watch Clannad After Story.

If you want pretty artwork then anything by Hayao Miyazaki, Makoto Shinkai or Kyoto Animation will do you.

[KaiyaSaysHaiya]

5 hours ago, Animedragon said:

If you want lots of murder then Noir will do you as the per episode body count can be quite high.

If you want to cry then watch Clannad After Story.

If you want pretty artwork then anything by Hayao Miyazaki, Makoto Shinkai or Kyoto Animation will do you.

Okay, thanks ^^

I'll make sure to check them out...

One day

Hopefully