Manga & Anime Recommendations

Read - note, read, not watch - Samurai Deeper Kyo. Huge cast, and while they aren't all important to the plot, they are all significant.

Angel Beats.

Baccano for a given value of "protagonist".

Tiger And Bunny, but mostly developed in their limelight moments.

Kyoukai Senjou No Horizon if you're looking for something a little weirder.

I was waiting for Noaqiyeum to suggest Baccano You ruined it.

Personally, I am rather fond of Simoun. My Animelist lists 12 main characters for it, and while some get more development than others, they are pretty much all developed in some way over the course of the anime.

edited 3rd Oct '12 1:48:28 AM by flygon250

Is Angel Beats a harem-like series? The premise as described on its work page here suggests there may be harem-like dynamics, and that's not quite the same as having a team where everyone puts in roughly their share (even if it's not perfectly "fair" by screentime).

Tiger & Bunny seems like it'd have two main characters.

Simoun seems kinda like it, though the premise is a bit outlandish for my taste.

Samurai Deeper Kyo seems a bit crazy...

This Horizon thing sounds like it'd be interesting, too.

Nope. At most two love interests

If you think Simoun and Samurai Deeper Kyo are too outlandish, Kyoukai Senjou No Horizon is not something I'd recommend

edited 3rd Oct '12 2:09:06 AM by Hylarn

Well, Simoun has a gender-based premise that I'm not yet sure will sit well with me, and I can't tell whether SDK actually involves George Washington or if that was just illustrative language in the work page description.

Is the setting of Horizon taken seriously?

edited 3rd Oct '12 10:06:40 AM by GlennMagusHarvey

Angel Beats doesn't have harem dynamics, which is one of the reasons it's so great. It's worth noting that the main character isn't the leader, and the leader although female doesn't appear to be the love interest.

Kyoukai Senjou No Horizon I think might actually take itself 100% seriously. It is crazy.

I gave up on Kyoukai Sen pretty early, so I can't say how serious everything is treated in the long run, but it has a lot of goofy elements

The setting is pretty definitely taken seriously though. I think the goofy elements primarily come from the characters.

But it was remiss of me not to also take this opportunity to recommend Code Geass and Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood as sprawling stories driven by Loads And Loads Of Characters, multiple plot threads running at once and more than one team of "protagonists" per show.

edited 3rd Oct '12 3:01:01 AM by UltimatelySubjective

If SDK had included George Washington, believe me, it would have enhanced his awesomeness, not diminished it.

Oh, and if you like stuff like The Idolmaster, you should watch AKB 48's promotional anime. It doesn't fit your criteria exactly, but it's still the best idol-themed show I've ever seen.

Oh yeah, AKB 0048! One of my friends is part of the fansub group that worked on that show.

What is SDK (the anime series) about, anyway?

And is Horizon intentionally or unintentionally goofy?

edited 3rd Oct '12 10:07:33 AM by GlennMagusHarvey

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It might be quicker just to watch it, I think one episode should be enough to grasp the tone.

The main character is intentionally goofy, he acts like an idiot most of the time. All the other characters are serious though but their designs can be insane. Like a bunch of jelly blobs, a mecha acting like a human, a hat person, one that looks weirdly racist, some kind of naked devil and two yuri fanservice witches with wings.

So much like the setting it probably ultimately depends on how seriously you can take them. I don't remember the slightest hint of irony in the setting but I could be wrong.

I'm going through withdrawal.

Anime's just not enjoyable anymore to me. Every time I try to start a new series, I get bored within a few episodes.

I'm looking for series that are difficult to classify. Typical science fiction plots aren't what I'm looking for here. On the other hand, I despise Slice of Life, so I'd like to avoid that, too.

I also like it when the darkness in a show lies under the surface, and the ending deliberately contrasts with the outset, often with one or two major paradigm shifts.

Anything like this?

Baccano

Mirai Nikki? Narutaru?

...is that 'under the surface' in a Surprise Creepy sense, or a Fridge Horror sense?

Fridge Horror.

Jinrui Wa Suitai Shimashita. Let me put it this way: It's set in a post apocalyptic/singularity world... With Fairies! Who never stop smiling. Just make sure to adjust your viewing mindset for heavy satire occaisionally. Oh, and it's also told in Anachronic Order.

What other shows have have you enjoyed that are close to meeting your criteria though?

I tried that already. I didn't really like it.

Not just because it's surreal either, I'm not some kind of philistine.

edited 3rd Oct '12 5:24:24 PM by Brushguy

Have you tried Mushishi? Each episode is pretty much stand alone, but there's pretty big fridge horror when you think about all the Mushi we don't see.

I would also have to assume you've already watched/tried Princess Tutu, Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Haibane Renmei (which I assume you won't like since it's almost entirely a slice of life)? I would have thought a lot of other Magical Girl shows fit the bill too, but I'm a little ill equipped to recommend stuff in that genre.

Kiddy Grade.

• one or two major paradigm shifts (at least one; two if you count the more subtle difference between the first and second thirds)
• impression of the show at the end is significantly different from impression at the beginning (at least it was for me)
• sci-fi setting but not a typical sci-fi plot; political and philosophical themes are explored
• not slice-of-life at all (to me, the story felt more like a "legend" than a typical storytelling)
• may be difficult to classify (touches on a few different genres/ideas)
• also one of my favorite series

edited 4th Oct '12 1:00:39 PM by GlennMagusHarvey

Cardfight Vanguard: Not what you are asking for, but I am in a similar boat as you and that show is one of the few exceptions. The main character and how the plot is handled is so "refreshing" after all the over-the-top shows I've seen. Just try a couple of episodes and get past the beginning "tutorial" to see what I mean.

Hagure Yuusha No Estetica: Also "refreshing" but for a different reason. Here, the main character is a "Crouching Pervert, Hidden Genius and Nice Guy" and the females react (mostly) appropriately to his actions. It puts a whole new look on the Slice of Life aspects when the main character is completely competent, can beat up everyone else (if he chooses to do so), and uses the cliche antics to reach his own goals.

Blassreiter you might find interesting... been a while sense I've seen it, but it gets fairly dark. I remember various plot points and the overall feel of the show, but can't remember enough to give it a good description.

[C] – Control: Talk about Fridge Horror if you think about the implications. The main character even goes through a crisis because of that Fridge Horror. Though it is much more interesting if you understand the economic terms being used. Might want to pull out the wikis for this one.

Deadman Wonderland: not much "fridge" with this "horror," but you still don't want to think about it too hard. the Manga continues past the end of the 1st season of the anime.

Future Diary: Same as Deadman Wonderland.

Denno Coil: I remember it as being an... interesting take on Augmented Reality tech, creepy, and involving little kids.

Serial Experiments Lain: I'm not even sure how to describe this one. Suffice it to say it gets REALLY CREEPY by the end.

edited 4th Oct '12 6:41:15 AM by Belian

Still scientific - I prefer works with a more teleogical approach, like the aforementioned Utena.

I'm actually familiar with most of those.

Perhaps I should also cross out Seinen works?

edited 4th Oct '12 11:59:20 AM by Brushguy

Not sure what you mean by teleological approach, as opposed to scientific approach.

Try Boogiepop Phantom. I've only seen a bit, but it's pretty damned fucked up.

(... huh? Wait, Brushguy... I get the strange feeling we've had this conversation before...)