Anime What makes a good anime?

[Hiei Jagashi]

[COLOR=red]What makes a good anime?What do you haft ot have in a show to make it one of the best?Action,love,drama,blood.Blood is one of the by far best.Tell me what you think makes a good anime or anime character and why and give an example of an anime you think that should be reconized.[/COLOR]

[Flashlight]

When is comes to anime, I like to think I'm very open minded.
There is so much that can factor into a good anime.
Good animation, voice acting, plot, characters, music. There are to many distinct anime to get any more specific than that. Heck, even those criteria may be too specific.

I mean, I'm a huge action fan, so that easily factors in, but I'm also a huge romance fan, and those shows/movies/ova's ect usually have very little action, if any at all. I like my anime (And anything else that I watch/read/play) to be epic, something huge, but sometimes it's better if an anime is more centered and the things that happen in our heroes lives barely affect the world, or even a small city, at all.

I think what I'm trying to say is, a good anime is one that succeeds at what it's trying to do. If it's a comedy and it leaves you with a grin on your face afterwords, or if it's a drama and it makes you cry, that is what makes a good anime. To me anyway.

And you asked for an example, right? Well, Grave of the Fireflies is an anime that fits perfectly into my definition of a good anime.

[Zen]

[B][SIZE=1]

What I look for in a good anime are pretty much the basics. I like me a great and compelling story, but not too dark because then I feel depressed after watching it. I like cool and lovable characters, that are beleivable at the same time, and you relate too. A good voice cast, cuz they bring the characters to life. And I like it all to wrap up into one, cool show that's blast to watch. Animation value is a great plus to me, but just as long as its above watching pictures on cue cards by a few steps, I don't mind. Another thing I like is a show that builds its own universe, like Gundam. There are so many options on the Gundam (U.C.) series that it would take a long time to dry the well. I love it to be open ended like that.

And these qualites all wrap up into my favorite anime list:

FLCL
Cowboy Bebop
Trigun
Mobile Suit Gundam (U.C.)
Naruto
Ruroini Kenshin[/B][/SIZE]

[eleanor]

[size=1] Blood....not exactly what I would call an element to excellent animes. *shrugs*

What I look for in anime is strong plots, good characters, non-repititive episodes, action, and parts that we really get me emotional. Animes that I think are the best are usually ones that can make me very sad, angry, happy, etc. It takes a lot of talent to make something like that, and I respect it. I really hate repeating something over and over. For example, in DBZ, the plot always follows the same idea.

Art styles are also something important to me. It's shallow, but I usually don't enjoy animes if they have ugly animation and art. *shrugs*[/size]

[Guest angelaanime]

Most of the time when i look into anime i search for Fantasy or comedy. I have always liked video game RPG's. Animes like .hack//sigh, Star ocean Ex, Sakura Wars TV, and Persona have my vote for Fantasy and Full Metal Panic!, Inuyasha, Excel Saga, and Houshin Engi for comedy.

[Dagger]

1. A plot which makes me think, but isn't overly convoluted.
2. Strong, compelling, well-developed characters.
3. Attractive artwork and fluid, consistent animation.
4. A healthy balance of drama, comedy, romance, and action.
5. Originality, particularly in terms of storyline and characterization.

As of now, my favorite animes are RahXephon, Boogiepop Phantom, Shamanic Princess, Read or Die, Voices of a Distant Star, Yu Yu Hakusho, Revolutionary Girl Utena, and Gravitation. Not all of these shows meet every one of the above requirements--for example, by today's standards, Yu Yu Hakusho's animation can only be called sub-par. But its interesting characters and perfectly timed humor definitely make up for that shortcoming.

~Dagger~

[Ayokano]

[size=1]What I look in anime or manga...... well that may have to be broken down by genre.

Action anime must have good plots, and not repeat themselves over and over. It is nice and dandy that Goku is saving the world, but why? Why must he fight the bad guys who have no real reason to destory Earth? Also if they are going to have jokes...... make them funny, and not repeat themselves also.

Drama, comedy, romance are all pretty much the same type of anime. I rarely see them not mushed together. If they have jokes in them, like I said before, make them funny. Also, they should have a very good plot that pulls you into it.

Anime shouldn't have these long lines of saga and video games that make you have to play, see, and read them all to understand the saga. This is why .hack// and Dragon Ball are so bad to me. You will have to buy everything from the saga to understand it. Gundam differs from these because it is more of anime stringed together then one whole thing.

I'm done.[/size]

[Katana]

My favorite genere is humor. I can't watch an anime that has (example) a goth theme or something to it. They're no fun and I'll lose intrest in probably five seconds.
Also, like what Ayokano said, I don't like animes that repeat themselves over and over again. That's why I was happy when Gohan beat Cell and not Goku. That was a happy moment. ^^
The one thing I cannot stand: MAIN CHARACTERS! Okay, what I mean by this is that there's one character who will always come in to save the day, one character who is always the best, and one character that all the good stuff happens to. I like it better when there are more main characters and not just one. Those dudes drives me CRAZY!
Like I said earlier, humor is what I look for. And sometimes action. But I don't like it when there are fifteen minute fight sceens that could've been done in two minutes.
The very last thing I don't like is that usually, the main character is a guy. :mad: It's just so obnoxious how the characters repeat themselves, like in every episode they try and get the same girl but fail miserbly. It seems that in the world of anime, guys can do everything and girl's can't. *walks away steaming*

[Dagger]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Katana [/i]
[B]The very last thing I don't like is that usually, the main character is a guy. :mad: It's just so obnoxious how the characters repeat themselves, like in every episode they try and get the same girl but fail miserbly. It seems that in the world of anime, guys can do everything and girl's can't. *walks away steaming* [/B][/QUOTE]

What about Noir, Princess Nine, Vision of Escaflowne, Fruits Basket, Card Captor Sakura, Witch Hunter Robin, Serial Experiments Lain, Sailor Moon, and Revolutionary Girl Utena? Many, many series have strong, likeable female leads, who can hold their own against any man or woman. Sure, few of these shows will ever come to Cartoon Network--but then, has CN's roster [i]ever[/i] contained the proverbial cream of the anime crop?

EDIT: I forgot to mention Magic Knight Rayearth and Slayers. Also, I'm of the opinion that Kagome is the star of Inuyasha (rather than Inuyasha himself).

~Dagger~

[Zen]

[B][SIZE=1]

Wow, you took that idea apart, didn't you, Dagger? But your right. (Except for the CN part. - Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Ruroini Kenshin, and as you mentioned, InuYasha and Sailor Moon.)

There are several more, including Silent Mobius, where the male characters are actually weaker than the female's , FLCL ( you gotta admit that Haruko kicks some A'.), and .hack, in which Mimiru, the blue haired girl (I obviously don't follow the series) and Tsukasa (who said he thought he was a she).

For just about every 3 male characters, there is an anime based on females. And you have to admit, most of Cartoon Network's shows are aimed at 10 year old boys. Thats why they run Adult Swim, to remedy that in some way. [/B][/SIZE]

[Dagger]

I may have gone a bit overboard there. ^_^;;

In the past, CN has had some fairly decent shows, including Outlaw Star, Yu Yu Hakusho, and Tenchi Muyo (in addition to those you already mentioned). All I meant to say was that so far, it's only aired one show which could truly be considered [i]great[/i].... and that, of course, would be Cowboy Bebop. I'm not actually a big fan of the series, but I'll readily admit that it's good.

By the way, has anyone noticed that a number of shows have male leads who are intentionally portrayed as weak and/or dorky? There's FLCL, which DBD already mentioned.... but let's not forget Neon Genesis Evangelion, Love Hina, and Chobits. It's almost as though nerds are the anti-heroes of the new millenium.

~Dagger~

[AzureWolf]

Dagger, I think Katana was referring to comedy anime's, considering that "guy chasing girl" comment.

[Dagger]

Ah. I thought that her remark "guys can do everything and girls can't" was made in reference to action-oriented shows. Then again, I could have been jumping to conclusions. *shrugs*

EDIT: I didn't mean to pick on your post, Katana. I've always seen anime as being a fairly egalitarian form of entertainment, and I wanted you to be aware that there [i]are[/i] shows in which the girls aren't just damsels in distress, just in case you were ever interested in watching any of those series.

~Dagger~

[flint_djinni]

Good anime comes from good voice acting, nice colors, music is extremely important, animation quality, and character design.

[Cahoots34]

An anime show, much like the 'ideal' college student, should in theory be exceptionally well-rounded. Of course, in the precarious balance of art, storyline, characterization and overall effect, there's going to be more than a little give and take. A show with unappealing animation will often give the nicest mix of action/comedy/romance/ect. (examples: Ranma 1/2, Yuu Yuu Hakusho), while a more artistically-oriented series might skimp a bit on the general quality of storylines and charactizations (examples: INVU, King of Bandits Jing). So long as the show (or student, whatever the case) can find a point of relative balance between appearance and 'inner' depth, it can usually find widespread approval.

[Guest rttocs77]

In terms of importance:

1) Quality and detail of animation
2) Quality of the story (i.e. is it consuming and/or enveloping?)
3) Quality of the seiyuus/voice actors
4) How well the music fits with the story

[ElrickOtaku]

I believe that the very finest anime should be a fine blend of comedy and action, with some drama. If the mix of these three key elements is right, then a good plot, universe and characters can be achieved. Here are some series which I believe achieve this right sort of mix:

Martian Successor Nadesico
Cowboy Bebop
Outlaw Star
Neon Genesis Evangelion (at the start to the middle of the series at least)
Tenchi (primarily Muyo but also Universe - I don't rate 'in Tokyo' very high)
Gundam Wing
Excel Saga

[CB Shin]

Anime, more or less, can be catergorized as a book. Something that makes you wanna keep reading/watching. Of course there are many other factors in an anime that make it more interesting then a book or manga. One of the most important things to me is music. It adds the moods and it truly lets you feel the story. Yoko Kanno for her work in Cowboy Bebop and Macross Plus should be recognized, if not already. Also, a good anime needs a past, ex. Cowboy Bebop or Rurouni Kenshin, something that adds another element to make you want to keep watching. The past really affects the plot and what happens in the present of an anime. The most important factor to determine a good factor is, of course, what it's trying to achieve or what the point of watching it was is recognized clearly. If you can identify it whatever it was suppose to be, then the director has achieved the purpose he/she was trying to fufill through the anime. The more elements to an anime the better, like Cowboy bebop.

[Heretic_Hatred]

Ill list some stuff.
1. The Animation
2. Cool Music
3. A funny main character, in other words..comedy (sometimes)
4. The action/blood.
5. Suspense, definitely.
Some of my fav animes that fall into these categories are Trigun, DragonBall Z, maybe Ranma 1/2.

[Snufkin]

Ahh, there are many things to look for in a good anime ^_^ Usually I tend to look for the following:

1. Storyline. If the storyline is just a normal "have to save the world" kind of thing it usual has to be very deep for me to see it as original. I like the plots to have many twists and turns in order to enjoy it so much.

2. Artwork and music. I don't really judge an show by its art, but I don't want it to be too hard to look at either O_o And the music is definately a big thing I like about most of my favorite anime ^_^ The music pretty much helps develop the anime.

3. The characters. Quirky characters, mysterious characters, a hidden past, a bright future. I like the anime to have a wide variety of characters of all sorts of well thought out personalities.

4. Emotion. Does it make me laugh or does it make me cry? Usually good anime will make you do both throughout the series.

~_^ That's just what I look for anyway.

[Orcus]

Personally, I believe a good anime consists of:

>A good storyline, one you can follow and will keep you on your toes
>Action, adventure, romance, comedy is good, but I prefer a darker storyline
> Cool characters, a mixture og girls and guys working together
> And of course, a tight opening(and ending) theme song:devil::angel:

[Marron347]

What makes a good anime? Has to have an intricate, thought out, and even sometimes mysterious storyline.

The personalities of the characters have to be consistant. Plus there has to be lots of characters with different personalities.

The voices have to fit the characters well so that viewers aren't distracted from more important aspects of the anime.

The artwork has to be done well and worked hard on. Even when you want to get done, these things can't be rushed. I like an anime to be detailed when it comes to the artwork, but it doesn't have to be.

There has to be plenty of music involved, but it has to fit because it has to help illustrate the mood of what's happening.

Every part of life has to be addressed. From friendships to rivalry; from magic to logic; from happiness to sorrow to hate.

There must be humor. A good anime should make you laugh. Not all the time, just occasionally throw in a joke or a funny facial expression or something.

There should be subplots. There should of course be a main plot that is focused on throughout the entire anime, but every once in a while smaller problems should arise to be solved within a couple of episodes or so.

Personally, I enjoy plenty of violence in the animes I watch; I really don't care what kind as long as it's good. (Most of the time that means closely matched in my opinion, however I do think the participant should show some skill in their fighting abilities.)

I also hate it when characters wear clothing that's too...revealing.

These things that I listed are what I think would make a good anime. They are not listed in order of importance, just in order of when I thought of them.

[DBZgirl88]

I think a good animé should have an interesting and well though out storyline. There should alos be a wide range of personality types among the characters. The music should suit the mood of the animé. Friendship, romance, adventure, comedy, and mystery should all be part of the overall theme.

The art should also be well drawn. The style should remain consitstent. For instance, one of the most annoying things I find in Dragonball Z is the characters' looks keep changing. I know, sometimes they look better, but then suddenly out of nowhere, they have the shabbyest art I've ever seen and it drives me nuts! I also think the art should be inspiring to the artists, just watching the anime makes you want to pick up a pencil and start drawing!

[ilikepie]

I think there are many important qualities. Things I look for (in order of importance cuz im cool like that ^_^)

1- The Animation
The animation absolutely MUST be well-drawn and very smooth for me to like it. This is probably my favorite thing about anime. I just love the art in anime.

2- The Plot
Kinda obvious. Needs to have an interesting and original plot.

3- The Music
I like an anime a whole lot better if the music is good and it matches what the the series is conveying. I think .hack//SIGN does a great job with this.

And that's it! Voice Actors are important too i guess but if Iliked the anime enough i really wouldn't care too much what they sounded like. And if worse comes to worse, there's always subtitles ^_^. It also makes an anime better if it matches the manga but i really don't think its too important.

[ninj4_monkey]

it makes are world a better place (mostly when its got comedy mixed into it)

for instance FLCL thats funny as all hell even thought there blowing things up

a good anime char. also needs these two thing the essence of death and making fun of those that they kill (like knives from trigun):devil: