Anime I Judged too Early

I got this idea from user @ avvviso!

Here are some anime I ended up really liking despite being skeptical/judgmental of them before watching. Let’s get started!

Spy x Family

This might be a shocking first choice because so many people have been raving about this show recently, but due to all the hype I was skeptical that it was just another overrated comedy that had no substance. I was totally proven wrong by the first episode, it really is a sweet funny show that has good characters and an interesting plot. I don’t think it’s the best anime of all time but it’s definitely worth a watch if you enjoy light, cute comedies with a fun concept.

Dr. Stone

I had a friend recommend this show to me years ago, and I was pretty hesitant to try it because I don’t really care for isekai (which this show... technically is?) plus I am not a big science person, but after watching a few episodes I really appreciated how interesting and funny the show is, even if you don’t care for science. I genuinely learned a lot and I was on the edge of my seat. (I was also judging the character designs pretty hard but you get used to it/even grow to like them)

Haikyuu!!

So for years online, all I saw about this show was a looooot of ship content. Which is fine, it’s just not my cup of tea and gave me the false impression that the show wouldn’t have a strong plot. This is my bad for judging a show from its online presence, but I was very pleasantly surprised when I actually gave it a shot and realized how emotional and deep the stories in Haikyuu actually were. And yes, even though I don’t usually ship stuff, after watching the show I understand where the most popular ships are coming from and why they’re so beloved. But the show has a lot more facets to it that I didn’t know about.

Madoka Magica

I had been fortunate enough to avoid any spoilers about Madoka Magica for years, but because of that I almost had the opposite problem where I had actually no clue what it was about and genuinely thought it was some cute Sailor Moon type anime or something. I had no idea that in reality it was a very dark, surrealist show that was entirely up my alley. I really am glad I gave it a chance, because it’s in my top 10 anime of all time now.

Neon Genesis Evangelion

I’ve said before on this blog that I am not a mecha anime person, and since that was all I knew about Evangelion, for years I was like yeah no thanks. I didn’t know that it was intended to be a subversion of that genre until I had so many friends recommending it that I couldn’t take it anymore and just gave it a shot. I wouldn’t say this is one of my favorite anime ever or one I even love a lot, but I appreciate what it’s trying to do thematically and I definitely misjudged what the show would actually be about.

As a counterpoint to this post, there have been tons of shows where I pre-judged them and was completely right, but imo all shows are worth a try, even if that try is only watching 15 minutes of the pilot.

I know some people have a 3 episode rule; for me, if I can’t make it through the first episode I generally will just give up, but if I can do that much I will push through to 2 and by then I’ll know if I want to continue the show or not. Just in case people were curious about my process.

Anyway, thanks for reading! And thanks again to avvviso for the idea.

-threecheersforinking

My Favorite Anime Characters

Ed Elric (FMA/FMAB)

Hohenheim (FMAB)

Roy Mustang (FMAB)

Homura (Madoka Magica)

Misato (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

Kageyama (Haikyuu)

Shouya (A Silent Voice)

Ray (the Promised Neverland)

WIL Character Shoutout: Misato Katsuragi

**Why I Love**

Neon Genesis Evangelion isn’t exactly my scene, to be honest. I didn’t love the series personally, but Misato Katsuragi definitely stood out to me, and managed to make her way to my favorite anime characters list in a single bound.

Being a Misato fan isn’t exactly unpopular; I’m not super connected to the fanbase but from what my friends say, she is clearly one of the top favorite characters from this series. However, while I can’t deny her surface level charm, I have more of a personal connection to her than just thinking she’s cool (which she is, of course).

I was surprised upon Misato’s introduction, because her personality type is usually delegated to a male character. She’s an alcoholic, she’s messy, she can’t cook, but she’s charismatic and everyone loves her anyway. Because NGE is such an old anime, I made the assumption that all the female characters would be one dimensional and boring, but I was obviously proven wrong. Not just by Misato, but also by some of the other female characters in the show.

However I think my favorite thing about Misato is that she’s a hot mess who still gets her job done. I felt like I could relate to her in that way, being a pretty high-functioning mentally ill person myself. No one at my job/at school was aware of the troubles I was having. Also, I would similarly be on top of my game and organized at work then come home to the messiest apartment and make myself some microwave ramen. Just those little things made me feel like I was noticing an aspect of myself that I had previously been unaware of, and made me care for this character even more.

Overall, Misato is an extremely flawed, extremely interesting and fully realized character. I love her because I can see myself in her, and she helped me realize the things that I should be working on myself.

Thanks for reading!

-threecheersforinking

Best Anime OPs Part 2

I’ve already made a list for the Best Anime OPs, but since then I’ve watched more anime as well as looked back on some older ones, so I finally felt like I had enough to make a second list!

Evangelion OP (Cruel Angel’s Thesis)

I just got around to watching Evangelion recently aka I watched the entire thing in 3 days, which meant that this was on repeat in my brain for approximately 72 hours straight. And even though I’m kind of sick of it atm, It’s clear why this song is widely considered to be one of the best OPs/OP songs of all time.

Kaguya-sama: Love is War OP 1

I’m a big fan of Love is War as a show regardless, but this song has great vibes and the visuals are a beautiful trippy mess (inspired by the opening credits to some of the older James Bond films, actually)

Keep Your Hands off Eizouken! OP

Objectively the most popular OP of the Spring 2020 anime season, Eizouken’s opening is such a fun bop and the iconic poses of the three main characters became a redraw meme within artists’ circles.

Your Lie in April OP 1

Your Lie in April is one of my favorite shows, and this OP is comprised of beautiful watercolor stills in between really impressive, fun animation. Not to mention Hikaru Nara by the band Goose House is just a genuinely good song.

The Promised Neverland

The Promised Neverland opening has an awesome song, but it also manages to not spoil anything about this super tense mystery show.

Thanks for reading!

-threecheersforinking