No Right Answer: Attack on Attack on Titan

[Spyre2k]

I highly recommend Madoka Magica. I originally found out about it when http://sfdebris.com/ did a review on it and gave it glowing praise. Which was kind of a surprise because he is an admitted anime novice and not really interest in it, he only did it because of a request. The series is very concise with every episode building the characters, plot, and world over the 12 episodes.


I saw some people recommend Steins Gate and I'm kind of mixed on that one. I do think it's good given the overall story and twist but it does have the pacing issue you guys mention in the episode. I originally watched the series based on a recommendation from a guild mate who claimed it was the best anime ever, I have to disagree on that one. The first episode was hair pullingly slow and frustrating to sit through. The main character was obnoxious and annoying beyond anything I had seen in any other anime. But after the extremely slow first 5 or so episodes things pick up and it does get better as the main character gets dialed down a lot to not be as obnoxious. Though a few more slow episodes do pop in during the rest of the run but it finishes on a strong note which I think is what sticks with most people.

 

[ryazoph]

Psycho-pass is on Netflix Instant.

So, try it out.

 

[Therumancer]

Well, I'm not as big an anime fan as I used to be, but I think I understand the problem. A lot of the "big" series intended to occupy long term spots on TV like Bleach, Naruto, Dragonball, etc... tend to involve tons of filler because they are something people tend to get into as part of a routine, and it's set up where missing an episode or two isn't likely to be a big deal. This becomes more noticeable if you sit down for a few hours for some video entertainment as opposed to seeing it spaced out over a period of time. Now that Anime is better known, the novelty of it and it's unique tropes don't carry things so well. I get the impression from things I've heard that "Attack On Titan" was probably conceived as a show in that vein but for various reasons it might not peak out that way.

That said, I think one of the big problems with Anime is that attempts at drama and more serious storytelling don't always pan out because of localization issues... and yes, fan translations can be better than professional ones, in part because the fans just sit down and do it, and are motivated to do it right for reasons of love (though this is not always true), the pros drag their feet instead of planning for immediate localization, and then when they finally get around to it, it seems the people they get have a sort of "why bother" attitude, especially if someone else already did a version as accurate as anything they could turn out.

I think series like "Higurashi: When They Cry" (basically an anime-horror version of Groundhog's Day, where you have a few episodes of nothing much happening, followed by a massacre and a reset) never caught on, because they were so heavily dependent on translating a drama without a whole lot of frequent action to tie things together, not to mention that a lot of it is a mystery and certain hints or things that are supposed to make you wonder can revolve around something as simple as a turn of phrase.

That said while it's a mixed bag there are a number of Anime series that I think do well at not having a huge reliance on drama and a lot of stuff going on so things happen in each episode.


Outlaw Star
Escaflowne
Gantz
The Dirty Pair (just about everything)
Coyote Ragtime Show
R.O.D. (Read Or Die)
Fushigi Yuigi: The Mysterious Play (and it's sequel)
Revolutionary Girl Utena (the series, the self contained movie is even more surreal and works best if you see series 1st)
Gundam W
Gundam Seed (less impressed with it's sequel)
Noir
Baccano
Deadman Wonderland
Dagan Rompa
Spiral
Dual
Lost Universe
Ruruni Kenshin (the TV comedy series, not so much the Samurai X stand alones)
Rune Soldier
Soul Eater
Soul Hunter
Hellsing
Bubblegum Crisis 2040
Corpse Party (anime viewable on Youtube still I believe)


I could go on, this is a mixed bag, ranging from truly surreal comedies, to the fairly serious. I don't want to post a huge message full of nothing but titles (as my messages tend to be long enough). While a lot of those series might have a filler episode or two (the cast goes to a hot spring!) they generally stay on target and have things happen to move the story forward in pretty much all the episodes and/or do episodes with a self-contained plotline. "Ghost In The Shell" (two seasons) is an example of a series that does both "metaplot" episodes and ones that are self contained representing other cases the cyborg police get involved in outside of the main plot (since the world doesn't stop) and need to be dealt with.

To be honest my problem with Anime oftentimes revolves around terrible endings, many of which can actually be worse than the end of "Mass Effect 3" and that can take some doing.

I'll include an honorable mention for "Hell Girl" which is kind of grim, but pretty much every episode is self contained. It's basically about a demon people can summon and sic on other people to take them to hell, but in return when they die they go to hell themselves. So pretty much every episode ends with everyone being doomed to eternal agony, though whomever summoned The Hell Girl usually has things turn out a bit better for them on earth for a bit. It follows a pretty standard formula (bad stuff happens, person calls Hell Girl, is shown that the cost of justice/revenge/setting things right is going to hell, the person usually refuses, things get worse, hell girl is called again, unholy vengeance is wrecked on the tormentors, and things get better for the summoner but they are also equally doomed). I could personally only take so much of a series where nothing good happens to anyone, ever, I mean even the demon seems perpetually depressed and unhappy with her job.

 

[mrwolfdw]

Good English dub?
Trigun
Ninja Scroll
Samurai X: Trust
Samurai X: Betrayal
Anything made by Studio Ghibli

Worst English dub ever for one of the best anime series ever?
Vision of Escaflowne

It's best and probably easier to find a good subtitled edition. The original Japanese voice actors are much better at actually acting, instead of just reading a script into a microphone.
Then watch GTO (Great Teacher Onizuka) and Samurai Champloo. And Vision of Escaflowne. And Trigun and Ninja Scroll and the Studio Ghibli films again. But not Samurai X. That's the only anime I know that's better in English.


Be advised, these are my opinions and not objective fact.

 

[Recaxion]

Gantz
Ergo proxy
Trigun
Berserk (both old and new version)
Black lagoon
eureka seven
A Certain Scientific Railgun and/or A Certain Magic Index
Afro Samurai
Steins Gate

 

[[Kira Must Die]]

Dan seems like a guy that won't like anime no matter what you show him, and will use any anime he deems bad as an excuse to continue hating anime in general, despite the, what, two? Three? Four anime he tried? And the fact that you keep giving in to his hatred rather than try to argue against it, for the people watching who are avid anime fans, makes arguments like these feel very bias. I may be wrong, but that's how it's coming across.

Maybe try getting someone on your show who is big into anime to help counter his arguments. I remember a while ago you guys did a debate about Anime vs. Western animation, but both debaters were people who only seen a handful of shows. It didn't seem like a fair argument when one guy is bashing anime and the other guy's simply like "Yeah... you got a point...." I'm not angry or offended, it's just rather depressing having to hear anime discussions from one person who hates anime and another person who's only mildly interested.

My anime suggestions? Well, my two favorite anime are FLCL and Puella Magi Madoka Magica. I see you enjoyed FLCL, but Madoka would probably rub you guys the wrong way. It's a magical girl show, in the same vein as Sailor Moon, but a much darker take on it. It's on Netflix and it's a very popular anime. But again, it might be a show that both of you will take issue with. So no, I got nothing. For Dan, I don't think there is an anime that would win him over. There might be an anime he'll like, but nothing that will convince him that there's more to anime than DBZ or Fullmetal Alchemist. I, like most anime fans my age, got into anime very young. If he never got into it before then at his age he's far too jaded and cynical to be open with it.

As for Attack on Titan, I still enjoy the series. Not one of my favorites, but it's a fun ride, and for me that's all it really needed to be. Honestly I like the second half better than the first.

Also, I've seen some truly, truly terrible anime, so if you think Attack on Titan is terrible, then lets just say you came off easy.

 

[Bombiz]

if want a cool cyber punk action detective story that doesn't take forever to get going you should try Psycho-Pass.

 

[Sir Shockwave]

So in no particular order, from the perspective of a guy who is very stingy about his Anime -

- Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Pretty much an Anime free of my usual berzerk buttons.

- Robotech. You laugh but I've seen the outright dreadful ADV Dub of Macross. That particular dub suffers horrendously from being far too literal to the original Japanese version (you try saying the word "Batroid" in English without making is sound awkward), and Robotech actually managed to preserve quite a few scenes unaltered. That said, cuts and edits were made to tie it in with two other unrelated Anime and for Saturday Morning Syndication, so take that as you will.

- SoltyRei. The main protagonist is essentially Anime Bruce Willis.

- Digimon Tamers (aka, Season 3). Holy shit, a Season of Digimon that's surprisingly good and managed to avoid many of the 9/11 edits that were passing around at the time?

- G Gundam. Hey kids, you like Giant Robots? You like insanity? Meet the grandaddy of shows like Gurren Lagan and Megas XLR!

 

[mistwolf]

How is this not six pages of people only saying Cowboy Bebop?

 

[Richard Collins]

Gurren Lagann and FLCL are the only Animes I can recommend.

 

[The Almighty Aardvark]

While I very much liked Attack on Titan, I can agree with your issues with it. First half of the anime? Excellent, fast paced, things were happening. Even though they spent 7 episodes on a single battle, things were always moving forward. Second half of the anime? Should have been cut down massively. It easily could have been half as many episodes. I loved the introduction of the female titan, they built her up to be something terrifying and formidable. But after the first episode with her (and a bit before that too) things just went to such a crawl.

]Puella Magi Madoka Magica

First one I thought of. While I can't say anything about the localization if you're looking for dubbed (unless you count the subbed version on netflix as the localization) it sidesteps most of your problems with anime.

- Not based on a manga
- Short and sweet, only 11 episodes
- THINGS HAPPEN
- Has the two best episodes in anime

However...
- It spends a fair amount of time on character development. I liked this, because things are happening, it's a character driven story and by moving the characters you were also moving the plot
- Ending is a little anticlimactic

I'm someone who has a hard time saying I like anime because that feels the same as saying I like TV or movies. The majority of the anime I've seen, just like television, I haven't been a fan of. If anything anime is a step down because of all of the tropes. That being said, there's been a lot of anime I've liked, and a couple I've loved. So I'd say it's worth looking deeper into it because it's not all Naruto or DBZ.

Also, I thought Cowboy Bebop was just alright

 

[Axzarious]

The best anime that translate well to... anime are probably those done first as a medium itself - Anime for the sake of having an anime rather than an adaptation of a manga or other source. Second to that, I have found that light novel or novel adaptations tend to be better, as they have more WRITING behind it than an artist/writer hybrid. In some cases there might be exceptions in things like Death Note that had a writer/artist combo.

Some of my top suggestions? Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (GITS is probably the best example of cyberpunk I have ever seen). Code Geass (The first season is MUCH better), Sword of the Stranger (Is a movie). Baccano! and Durarara (Even if they were done by different companies. A few crossover gags were lost because you would never recognize the character voices. Both light novel translations) Ergo Proxy. Stein's Gate. When They Cry. Madoka Magica. Eureka Seven.

Another note that's more for trivia: Gundam was done by the creator with an impressive amount of work put into the series. Mobile Suits were never intended to be used on planets, and their design was only because of the unique environment space required - as well as a bunch of invented technology that actually explains a lot of space-combat tropes instead of it being handwaved or ignored).

 

[Hectix777]

I recommend Tenchi Muyo, Slayers, Bobobo, GitS, and Appleseed.

 

[O maestre]

Kind of disappointed, they spent all their time discussing localization, when there are serious narrative flaws in AoT that I was expecting to be addressed. I don't often watch No Right Answer, and I don think I'll become a regular, it's a shame you guys didn't have some relevant criticism, like the pacing issues you made little mention of, which is a huge problem for all anime.

Perhaps I am misunderstanding the premise of the show, but it seemed kind of shallow. Unless the main topic was solely localization, which really isn't an issue exclusive to AoT, so the title seems misleading if that is the case.