New to Anime? Read This

27-02-2018, 12:26 AM

Angelic Wrote: Table of contents

• Introduction.
  
• What is anime.
  
• Where to start.
  
• Genres.
  
• Helpful sites
  
• Suggestions.
  
• Conclusion.
  

Hello, I thought I'd give those who are new to the whole anime scene a helpful little thread to get you started on your adventure so you don't get a bad taste in your mouth from the very few not so great anime. I'll try to make this as detailed as I can and get you into the swing of things faster so you can be apart of this awesome section with knowledge and enjoyment. All I ask is a bit of your time to read this thread and come into this thread with an open mind and don't instantly shut it down before you even give anything a chance!

What is anime?
I will simply find a brief official definition for you and you can go from there.



Where to start
Ahh, such a question is hard to answer in a brief paragraph. Everyone is their own person and thus each anime will likely appeal to different people. You just need to think of what you enjoy in movies you've seen, books you've read and overall genres you wish to get into. Take myself for example, I'm more into action, adventure, slice of life and romance. You could be into Echhi and Shounen. Try to match them with what your interests are, makes it easier that way for me anyway.

Helpful sites
Here are some great sites to get you started. (Click on them)

Streaming Sites:
CrunchyRoll
GoGo Anime
Kissanime
9anime
Funimation
Masterani

Anime Informational Sites:
My Anime List (MAL)
Anime Planet
Anime News Network
Kitsu

AdBlockers:
uBlock Orgin
Adblocker

Note: Adblockers are a must for most, if not all anime streaming sites since they are basically ad hell. Note that SOME sites don't allow you to use an adblocker, if that run into that problem, just find another streaming site.

Genres
There are a few genres but I'll go ahead and describe the more popular ones.

Action
Action anime usually include male main characters and have a fast paced story with many battles, deaths, injury and other things commonly found in action movies. Most great action anime back these elements up with a solid story line and likable characters. Action anime are considered to be much like adventure and shounen anime but instead have a more compelling, fast paced and shorter story and usually have a maximum of 24 episodes with most series having 12 episodes.

Adventure
Adventure anime is typically applied to anime in which a group of people and/or a single protagonist are placed in a series of events or one lengthy event which places their lives or the lives of someone they care about in danger. The protagonist/s will usually have to use his wits, allies, skills etc to navigate through these trials and eventually reach the goal they were after. Adventure anime usually have around 24 episodes and get stretch across multiple seasons. Unlike Shounen anime, adventure anime do not focus as much on hidden powers that the protagonist may have.

Slice of Life
Slice of Life anime usually tie in as a sub-genre of either comedy and/or drama genres. Slice of life is basically its namesake as in it is a ?slice of life the series usually follows a section of a characters life and the trials/events they encounter during that time. Slice of life rarely involves supernatural themes but like every rule there are exceptions. Slice of life anime usually have 12 or 24 episodes but rarely continue on for more than one season unless they get popular. Slice of life anime are excellent as sub-genre of both comedy and drama because they are usually fairly easy and enjoyable to watch.

Drama
Drama anime usually involve a protagonist or a group of select people and follows through a certain part of their lives. The protagonist is usually trying to achieve something in his life or he is unable to work out what he needs and what he wants. Drama anime usually have a very deep plot and character development is excellent. Majority of the time when watching a good drama anime you will be able to see as each character changes and grows because of the situations around then. Drama anime has produced some of the most influential series and has the ability to pull the heart strings of people who rarely get emotional.

Romance
Romance is almost always split into two sub-genre which are drama-romance and comedy-romance. Both of these sub-genre have produced great series. Drama romance usually focuses on the couple meeting and the struggles they encounter together while the comedy romance genre focuses on the couple and all the entertaining situations they find themselves in because of their different personalities. Romance series usually stretch for 24 episodes because they need the time to create an emotional link with the audience.

Ecchi
Ecchi or erotic anime is used to describe anime that focuses on sexually stimulating content and is predominantly aimed at a male audience but also aims towards a female audience but with fewer amounts. Ecchi is usually full of content such as conversations with sexual references or misunderstandings about sexuality in dialogue for example double meanings. In the Ecchi genre prepared to see a lot of underwear cos-play, fetish clothing, nudity, ripped apart, wet, malfunctioned clothing. Ecchi is heavy on fan service but is great to watch as a series that doesn't make you think.

Horror
The horror genre of anime is quite different from films. Its hard to find a physically scary anime but instead of spooky monsters anime defines itself extremely well by focusing on creating a creepy feeling which usually has a lot to do with characters mental stability and extreme amounts of violence and gore. The chances of finding an anime that wont let you sleep at night are low but a few series take psycho to a new level.

Credits to Tasemu for definitions

You can find other genres listed here:
MAL Genres

Suggestions/Recommendations
There are a few animes that I have enjoyed in the past. If you have a recommendation, post it on this thread or message me and I'll certainly add it!

Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan)
Genres - Horror, action, romance, drama, adventure.


Hunter x Hunter (2011)
Genres - Action, Adventure, Shounen, Super Power.


Clannad
Genres - Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance.


Clannad (After Story)
Genres - Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance.


One piece
Genres - Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Pirates.


Highschool DxD
Genres -Comedy, Demons, Ecchi, Harem, Romance, School


Cowboy Bebop
Genres - Action, Bounty Hunters, Detective, Gunfight, SciFi, Seinen, Space Travel, Tragedy


Death Note
Genres - Action, Detective, Shounen, Thriller


Kaichou wa Maid-sama!
Genres - Comedy, Romance, School, Shoujo


Sword Art Online
Genres - Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Game, Romance, Shounen


Kimikiss Pure Rouge
Genres - Drama, Romance, School


Your Lie In April
Genres - Drama, Music, Romance, School, Shounen


Parasyte -the maxim-
Genres - Action, Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Psychological, Seinen

Now, if you ever watch an anime and enjoy it. Most people ask "what are some anime like so and so." The BEST thing I suggest you doing is going to MyAnimeList and search for the show you enjoyed watching. You will be brought to the page, after doing that you will see tabs, click the one called "recommendations." So this is an example for Clannad.

http://myanimelist.net/anime/2167/Clannad/userrecs

You get user suggestions from people who actually watched the series, comparing them to others they have seen and it builds up a decent list and you will most likely find a few more anime that you will like just as much or even sometimes more than the one you compared it with.

Conclusion
Hope this has given you some insight on anime and what to start watching. This is mostly from my own experience so the thread can and will grow from other users too. I'll do my best to keep this thread up to date and add things when needed. Thanks for reading!