Anime community is really judgemental and cold-hearted when it comes to criticizing shows & many a time even shows you found interesting. Now, after watching a couple of reviews and knowing what people have to say about something you’re watching, you end up questioning yourself,” Is my anime taste really that bad?”
Well, to begin with not every show is meant to please everyone. So don’t feel down when someone bashes your favorite show. However, when it comes to spotting a good anime, there are some parameters which will guarantee the show is worth your time. So without any further ado, here are some key points that will help you pick a good anime.
How To Pick A Good Anime To Watch
Finding the reviews and community opinions misleading? Just give the show a chance and watch the opening episode. Usually, a well-executed first episode is a good indication that the show will turn out to be great in the long run. What do I mean by well-executed? An opener is meant to introduce you to the premise the show takes place in coupled with a good introduction to story characters and plot elements while maintaining a steady narration.
Consider this season’s “Megalo box”. You’ll get a clear picture of what the show is trying to present in a neat 7 minutes. The plot, the characters & what’s making them act the way they are, everything is established in a neat package with some seriously great music to hype it up (we’ll get to this further on). What’s more? The narration kicks in further developing existing characters & introducing new ones that actually help the plot to catch pace. Finally, to end it in the best possible way, you’re left with a Cliffhanger(it’s basically clear next episode’s gonna be lit )
Before you know, you’re absolutely hooked…There, you found yourself a good show!
Music & Animation
For someone who jams to anime OSTs and music, soundtracks are really crucial to make an anime capture my attention.be it something like the scene in “My Hero Academia” where Almight acknowledges Deku’s dream to become a hero or some crazy fight scene. good soundtracks just enhance the overall impact the scene makes on the viewers. OSTs are a major factor that hooked me up with shows like Megalo Box & Champloo.
Artstyle and animation is an obvious thing really. like, if someone were to recommend you Devilman, what would you really find feasible? The Newer Devilman: Crybaby or the original 90s Devilman? it’s a no-brainer. However, many a time, unique and wacky art styles do help to highlight show aesthetics, making them more impactful. Take Mob psycho 100 or something like Nichijou as a reference.
Relatable characters & Steady plot progression
People tend to generate affinity towards characters they could relate to. If the show fails to present its characters in a way viewers can connect to them at an emotional level, it’s usually not worth your time. This is the sole reason behind Naruto’s success as an anime. Despite being a show with tremendous fillers, it managed to connect with the audience. Everyone who’s watched Naruto is able to picture themselves in his shoes. The reason alone made us plow through 800+ episodes to end up with more fillers (ok just kidding. No offense, Boruto).
Moving on, a steady plot indicates fluid narration. Everyone knows that slow or non-existent plot pacing is a bummer. A classic example of bad pacing is this year’s “Black Clover”. The show is completely generic with all the shounen tropes you’ve ever come across (everything is predictable). To make things even worse, its narration is heavily dragged. (I still watch it for some reason).
The uniqueness of the show
Take One Punch Man as an example. How many shows have you come across where all it takes is one punch for the main character to save the day? None. Shows that explore new territories and dare to try something new will definitely be worth your time. For instance, try watching “Golden Kamuy” airing this season. You’ll get what I’m trying to say here.
Take a look at staff working on the show
If still in doubt, just look out for the staff behind the anime. The director & animation studio to be precise. Take a look at director’s previous projects. If you’ve watched his previous works and found them interesting, chances are you’ll find newer shows he’s worked on, interesting too.
Some basic guideline…Anything (I mean anything) from Studio Ghibli, is worth watching. In terms of Animation standards…Studios like Madhouse, Bones and Kyoto Animation are top tier. Anything they’re working on would basically be good.
Your taste matters
A person with a good taste in anime is someone who doesn’t care about what other people think about his taste in anime.
Now at the end of the day, watching anime is fun. If you’re enjoying something, don’t be too judgemental about it. Try different shows and have fun while expanding your anime list.
These points are purely subjective and my personal references that I consider while picking up shows that I find worth spending my time on. Do let me know if you agree with these and let me know what you think makes a good anime.
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