Know of any mature/serious anime?

[PFCboom]

Kikaider. It's an android who, at first, doesn't know he's an android. Even after transforming from his human guise into full android, he can't quite believe what he is. Existential struggles and killer acoustic guitar riffs follow. It's one of my favorite animes because, considering what else was on Toonami at the time - FLCL, Trigun, etc. - that kind of drama was such a breath of fresh air. But it did have the odd android vs. android fight so it wasn't TOO bad.
You can find a few small sites streaming a half-way decent quality version. The individual volumes are cheap-ish, altogether.

 

[Austin Howe]

I really don't care who's already said it, Neon Genesis Evangelion is one of the top 5 things to ever air on television.

 

[BNguyen]

Try Fate/Zero, it's pretty dark and while I can't say how you'll accept it but I enjoy the dub
and have you tried When They Cry? and the anime made by the same group called When Seagulls Cry? When Seagulls Cry can get a bit more graphic with what it shows when compared to When They Cry - think of it like this: When They Cry shows the psychological aspects of murder and death while When Seagulls Cry shows the physical aspects.

Infinite Ryvius is also pretty good as well as Mushishi.

 

[James Joseph Emerald]

I actually just finished watching Berserk yesterday. It strengthened my suspicions that the "best anime ever" are actually just whatever happened to be picked up by Adult Swim in the early 2000's. Not that it's a bad show by any stretch of the imagination, but it ends at the moment the plot begins. Literally. Episodes 2-25 are an enormous flashback to previous events, and while the manga then returns to the present, the anime never does. It ends on the cliffhangeriest cliffhanger I've seen in my entire life.

Thanks for the head's up about Berserk. I really hate stories that don't end properly. They keep me up at night.
(I suppose I could read the manga, but there's something about manga/comics/graphic novels that bore me. They take all the effort of reading a book, but without the benefit of being able to imagine things how you want).

I'd like to point out, though, that you may not like what you think you like (insert Jimquisition episode on focus groups here). For example, everyone says: no highschool, no fanservice, no mecha, and the more homophobic and/or repressed ones say no effeminate guys. Well Code Geass has all of that, and everybody likes Code Geass*.

Perhaps so, but even Code Geass is right on the edge of my threshold. Although the plot is great, I often find myself thinking things like, "I'll give some leeway on the high-school setting, but come on, there's no way the Student Council President would have that much power. Where are the teaching staff?" and "why would a highly competent, robot-like ninja choose to fight in a fetishistic maid outfit with a skimpy thong underneath?" and "using bipedal tanks is one thing, but do they really have to be all colourful and impractical-looking? And why does everyone have their own personal model, each one more powerful than the last?"

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

I recommend Psycho Pass. Interesting universe setup which basically explores the notion of persecuting criminals before they actually commit a crime. Great soundtrack.

I second the notion, it's one of the most violent and thought provoking anime out there with Gen Unobuchi making the story a great debate about security vs. freedom. Add in one of the most violent, menacing and charismatic villains of all time with great voice work out of Takahiro Sakurai and it's a complete package.

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

A pretty obscure anime that I can't recommend enough is From The New World. It's about a civilization of psychics 1000 years after our civ ended. There's exploration of the culture as well as really interesting uses of their telekinesis. It's also on Crunchyroll, so you can find it easily and watch FO FREE.

Shin Sekai Yori? that show is good but it has a few issues: a few plotlines that go nowhere, odd animation, and varying emotional response

 

[Vausch]

Kaiba.

Don't let the art style fool you, Kaiba is one of the saddest and deepest stories I've seen in a long time. It has very sympathetic characters and villains as well as rounded responses from all arguments and some noticeable commentary on current affairs.

Also I'd bet money it was the inspiration for "Remember Me".

 

[Dr. Cakey]

I'd like to point out, though, that you may not like what you think you like (insert Jimquisition episode on focus groups here). For example, everyone says: no highschool, no fanservice, no mecha, and the more homophobic and/or repressed ones say no effeminate guys. Well Code Geass has all of that, and everybody likes Code Geass*.

Perhaps so, but even Code Geass is right on the edge of my threshold. Although the plot is great, I often find myself thinking things like, "I'll give some leeway on the high-school setting, but come on, there's no way the Student Council President would have that much power. Where are the teaching staff?" and "why would a highly competent, robot-like ninja choose to fight in a fetishistic maid outfit with a skimpy thong underneath?" and "using bipedal tanks is one thing, but do they really have to be all colourful and impractical-looking? And why does everyone have their own personal model, each one more powerful than the last?"

I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of all the awesome.

But no, I actually agree with you, at least to a certain extent. As I said, Code Geass is my second favorite anime, but I also think it could be twice as good as it was.

You're ultimately going to have to do some experimenting to find out what your likes and dislikes really are. Some show at the edge of your comfort zone (say, Madoka Magica) will catch your attention, and you'll pursue more things like it. Or you'll find studios or directors you think you might like and skim what they've produced.

And before you know it you'll have Attack on Titan next to Danganronpa next to Monogatari Season 2 next to Sunday Without God in your watchlist. And you'll wonder where you went wrong.

EDIT: And yes, I make monster posts. I take the "discussion" part of discussion boards and reply to pretty much every post that I have the slightest thing to say about.

 

[mrhateful]

snip

While i too find it annoying, I gotta agree that Code Geass have very little in the fanservice department, I mean when you have finished Code Geass and want more(obviously) then you will find other animes have an absurd amount of fanservice compared to Code Geass and you almost wish for it to just be on Code Geass level.

 

[Zetatrain]

I'm actually surprised no one has mentioned this yet

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex

I guess you could call it a Cop show in a cyberpunk setting. It has good action, political drama (mostly in the second season), and philosophical discussion on existence, specifically about the line that separates man and machine.

Others

Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket

Not sure if you know much or anything about the Gundam franchise or the universe this OVA is set in, but it's still a very stand aloneish series and avoids a lot of the stand Gundam tropes that may annoy some people.

The series is about a young boy named Al who lives in a neutral space colony that has been virtually untouched by a war that has been raging on for nearly one year between the Earth federation and the Principality of Zeon. However, when the colony is discovered to be housing a top secret military project for the Federation the fighting comes to Al's homeland. Thematically, I guess you could call the series a deconstruction of what a child's fantasy of war is (black and white morality annd good guys vs bad guys that kind of stuff). The series is only six episodes so at the very least it won't take long to finish

Attack on Titan

As someone who rarely watches shounen anime, I really had no idea what to expect going into the series even with all the hype surrounding it. Now, I'm currently up to episode 18 and I have to say I'm really enjoying it. Yeah, it definitely has its shounen roots, but personally I don't think their much of a detriment to the series...yet. The only thing that might turn you off are some elements that you might consider "Weird Shit", but I personally think they add a good amount of mystery to the series.

I've actually just shown this series to a friend of mine whose tastes seem to fit your general description and he couldn't stop watching it.

My general advice would be to at least watch this series up to episode 8, by then you should have a good understanding of what you're in for.

 

[Tsun Tzu]

My recommendations have been mentioned several times over...

But I have to echo the sentiment behind Black Lagoon.

Throw in Spice and Wolf (calm, generally serious study of economics) and Usagi Drop (relatively light hearted show about parenting) and you've got a pretty well rounded set of shows in a more "mature" vein. I don't really believe "mature" has to include blood and tits, but eh.

 

[Mid Boss]

Attack on Titan has great action, good writing, and strong characters. It's pretty new and hasn't finished the first season.

Mankind has been pushed to the brink of extinction by a race of creatures called the Titans. They range in size from 3 to 15 meters tall and resemble perpetually smiling, genderless, deformed, men. They are almost completely mindless and don't need food but are obsessed with eating humans and only humans. To kill a Titan requires a precision strike to the back of the neck. To reach this, humans have invented the "3D gear". Natural gas powered hip mounted grappling hook launchers they use to maneuver around the Titans to reach their weak spot. But, even with the 3d gear and years of training, most humans die, HORRIBLY, before ever landing a single titan kill. Every encounter with the Titans results in massive casualties and almost inevitable retreat. Faced with such overwhelming power and numbers, what's left of mankind has walled itself into a massive city and have lived in peace, safe from the Titans, for 100 years.

What I particularly love about the series, other than the horrific slaughter the Titans visit on the humans, is that there aren't any weak, helpless, crying female characters. The women of Attack on Titan are almost as numerous and are just as capable as the men are. Something you almost.... NEVER see in an anime.

 

[Casual Shinji]

The women of Attack on Titan are almost as numerous and are just as capable as the men are. Something you almost.... NEVER see in an anime.

You are kidding me, right?

You do know nearly every (shounen) anime is packed to the gills with hot action ladies, don't you? Seeing as their target audience are men. Bleach and Black Lagoon, just to throw out a few examples.

 

[Legion]

I'm actually surprised no one has mentioned this yet

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex

They mentioned having seen it in their opening post, which would most likely be why. I assume they meant Stand Alone Complex as they talk about the "cutesy robots" and they are not in the original movies.

Elfen Lied

I'd be inclined to say don't watch Elfen Lied because it's a terrible show, but of course I shouldn't say that because people like this show. Those people are dumb (Hate the sinner, not the sin, I say). Luckily, you're averse to anime tropes, because Elfen Lied has most of them, so I can just say don't watch it for that reason instead.

While I do not agree that it is terrible, or that the people who like it are dumb (that could be seen as a personal attack by the way, considering it's basically calling everybody in this thread who recommended it dumb), I do have to wonder why so many people have recommended it despite it quite overtly being full of the kinds of things the OP said that they didn't like.

Perhaps so, but even Code Geass is right on the edge of my threshold. Although the plot is great, I often find myself thinking things like, "I'll give some leeway on the high-school setting, but come on, there's no way the Student Council President would have that much power. Where are the teaching staff?" and "why would a highly competent, robot-like ninja choose to fight in a fetishistic maid outfit with a skimpy thong underneath?" and "using bipedal tanks is one thing, but do they really have to be all colourful and impractical-looking? And why does everyone have their own personal model, each one more powerful than the last?"

To be honest, I find it best to remind myself that such things are not that much more unrealistic than most of the common things we see in Western shows and films. Most car chases would end in cars being wrecked and the protagonists being crushed to death were they to happen in real life, cars are simply not that durable. Most heroes would have been shot to tiny lumps of meat if the supposed elite soldiers they were facing hadn't conveniently forgotten how to aim. Somehow men in scenarios where they need to kill lots of people always seem to come across a beautiful woman who only has eyes for them. It's just as ridiculous really.

The list could go on really. If you really wanted you could take any work of fiction and dissect it the way you are doing. I am not suggesting you are wrong to look at it that way, but when it comes down to it, it really isn't that much stranger than the kind of things we are used to in non-anime fiction.

If anything anime actually makes "more sense" because they frequently feature worlds and settings that are not even remotely possible. When you get protagonists capable of using what is essentially mind control, having brightly coloured mech's isn't all that strange. On the other hand we get things such as James Bond and most action movies, which are set in the real world, but full of completely impossible things that are supposed to seem realistic.

What I particularly love about the series, other than the horrific slaughter the Titans visit on the humans, is that there aren't any weak, helpless, crying female characters. The women of Attack on Titan are almost as numerous and are just as capable as the men are. Something you almost.... NEVER see in an anime.

I always find it strange when people say that. The vast majority of anime I have watched have women who are as strong if not stronger than the men around them. I cannot help but wonder what kind of anime those people like to have such a view. Because I cannot think of a single anime I have seen where the women are all the weak and helpless type.

 

[Mid Boss]

The women of Attack on Titan are almost as numerous and are just as capable as the men are. Something you almost.... NEVER see in an anime.

You are kidding me, right?

You do know nearly every (shounen) anime is packed to the gills with hot action ladies, don't you? Seeing as their target audience are men. Bleach and Black Lagoon, just to throw out a few examples.

LOL! No no no. I'm not having another one of THESE conversations. Thanks anyway!

 

[vIRL Nightmare]

Phantom: Requiem for The Phantom.

About a guy who was abducted and basically brain washed and trained to be the best assassin, using is predecessor as the prototype. There are no heroes in this show. Villains, anti-heroes sure, but no heroes.

If you haven't watched it yet then do it. Now. You're missing out.

 

[vIRL Nightmare]

Phantom: Requiem for The Phantom.

About a guy who was abducted and basically brain washed and trained to be the best assassin, using is predecessor as the prototype. There are no heroes in this show. Villains, anti-heroes sure, but no heroes.

If you haven't watched it yet then do it. Now. You're missing out.

Also Darker Than Black is amazing.

 

[Morthello]

Ive gotta mention Shiguruieath Frenzy. Very dark, realistic and un-romanticized depiction of the samurai era. Somewhat slow-paced and contemplative in parts; similar to Texnolyze(same art design as well),but the story and ambient atmosphere are very engaging. Except for a couple of scenes the fights have the most realistic sword fights ive seen in any anime; very visceral and fast paced with a victor being decided in a couple of seconds of the start.
Modern animation with a very old-school feel in pacing. This series somewhat spoiled most anime for me when it come to looking for a mature/serious anime to watch. If you try it go with the sub as the english voices are way to light and upbeat sounding and really take away from the atmosphere.

 

[Kitsune Hunter]

Not sure if I can recommend anything new, I definitely recommend what's already been said (Madoka Magicia, Berserk, Death Note etc.)

I give a high recommendation for Shiki which gives us an interesting take on what it would really be like to be a vampire.

I recommend Attack on Titan as well, good animation, good soundtrack, interesting premise and characters, it shouldn't disappoint

Also there's Ninja Scroll, both the film and the series, but mostly for the film, it was the best thing I watched in awhile

 

[Dr. Cakey]

Eva series - You may as well watch it and make your own mind, it's overrated, pretentious and grating but that comes with analysis and time

Yeah, I agree complete - whoops, I thought we were talking about Wolf's Rain. My mistake.

Oh, bite me.
I like the Eva series but damn it's stupid shows rather than tell

Ooh, a slip of the Freud there. I assume you meant it tells instead of shows, but I'll take the compliment.

and the symbolism is shot at you with a cannon just for the hell of it even if it doesn't serve the narrative.

Evangelion doesn't have symbolism. It's not that the religious symbols are meaningless, it's that they aren't symbols. You could write a paper on Evangelion and disconnect of mythic resonance. Even most Eva fans don't get this, to my eternal irritation.

Plus Whiny, obnoxious teenagers *shudder*

As opposed to Wolf's Rain...?

And it's a far better analogue than Eva could ever be.

Analogue of...? I've seen any number of people describe Wolf's Rain as an allegory, and I don't dispute them, but they never quite seem to go the extra inch and say what it's an allegory for. I can think of a couple of things it might be an allegory for, but it fails at doing any of that well, so it must be something else.

I'm also tempted to point out that an allegory or morality play is essentially the crudest kind of story there is, but that's just me being vindictive, so I won't. Even though I just did.

Dubs better too, even the rebuilds

I'll just pencil you in under "dubs of things I like are good". You're right next to JesuOtaku, though, so you're in good company. Wolf's Rain was a solid dub, probably average or even a bit above average for the time, so it's about equal to the original NGE's dub performance, but nobody but nobody can touch a contemporary Funimation dub.