Serious Animes

[Abedeus]

So I just finished watching Cowboy Bebop my first trek into the anime genre and I loved it. I then went looking for anime shows supposedly similar to Bebop.

I watched the first episode of Trigun and was disgusted, it was basically everything I don't want it an anime. Bad/childish voice acting, weird anime faces, and a bunch of little kids/girls running around with guns.

Are there any serious animes out there that are similar to Cowboy Bebop?

Berserk stands out in my mind as a serious anime that is also excellent.

See if this appeals to you.

I'll just quote-reply.

Berserk. You'll have to read the manga after you finish watching the anime since it never went past the first arc.

Or he could just start reading the manga from the start and avoid the bad animation, art direction, and voice acting all together.

Watched maybe an episode of anime after reading the entire manga (holy shit it's long, even for a 20 years of existence). Wasn't nearly as good as manga... Great on its own, but manga blows it out of the sky.

 

[Zeraiya]

Check out Samurai Champloo. It's somewhat similar to the style of Bebop and not childish.

Samurai Champloo is a fantastic anime. Definitely one of my favourites.

I would also recommend Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, if you haven't seen it. That show can get pretty heavy and it has a very good plot and well fleshed out characters. The morals behind the story are inspiring.

And if you're looking for a mind-breaking anime that challenges you intellectually, you can try Ergo Proxy. I think that anime is either something you hate or love.

 

[chiMmy]

the reasoning behind why all the cyborgs are girls no older than 13 or so is quite... Strained.

Well duh, who would expect an assassin or whatever to be a 13 year old girl?
That's the perfect situation for a group of super cyborgs.

 

[Ghengis John]

Watched maybe an episode of anime after reading the entire manga (holy shit it's long, even for a 20 years of existence). Wasn't nearly as good as manga... Great on its own, but manga blows it out of the sky.

Ah you're preaching to the choir, amigo (see if you recognize commenter 45 under the latest chapter http://www.evil-genius.us/2011/07/berserk-324/#comments) but you know, it makes a great jumping off point for the manga, and at least it delivers some of the story to people (like relatives of mine who've loved the show) who'd never think of opening up a comic book.

For what it's worth though the manga offers up unparalleled levels of awesomeness. No animation project could ever hope to capture the detail of Miura's drawings and the scale of the story from interpersonal character relationships to massive wars is the kind of thing only matched by some of history's great epics. The only downside is the story, while long for even 20 years of existence is not half as far along as I wish it were. I'm worried at the rate of releases that Kentaro or I will not be around to see the conclusion.

 

[CrystalShadow]

the reasoning behind why all the cyborgs are girls no older than 13 or so is quite... Strained.

Well duh, who would expect an assassin or whatever to be a 13 year old girl?
That's the perfect situation for a group of super cyborgs.

Well, yeah, that part makes sense, but that's not the reason given by the series itself.

When Jose asks why all the cyborgs are little girls, he's given two reasons:
1. Children are better able to physically adapt to the trauma caused by the cybernetic implants.
2. Girls are easier to control than boys because they're less aggressive.


Meanwhile this also reminds me of some really weird conclusions I came to after watching season 2.

When I tried to figure out exactly how old Triela was (since she physically seems the oldest in the anime), the available evidence led to some rather weird conclusions.

Basically, it suggested she could be anywhere from about 12 to 20. Initially it seems obvious to go with whatever they look like, which makes the lower ranges more plausible.
But then you notice that she's been there for several years at least (judging by her teddy bear collection and several other background details), the nature of the cybernetic modifications and various comments suggesting the vast majority of the cyborg's body (including their bones, muscles, and even their eyes) are artificial, and then upon noticing the back-story which shows she looked much the same before she became a cyborg as she did in what clearly should be at least several years later... And suddenly you reach some really weird conclusions...

 

[jsfrance]

Make sure you watch the bebop movie!
give trigun a few more episodes, it really starts getting good and has some especially poignant moments.

Gunslinger girl is another great show but again give it a couple episodes if you aren't sure. The first few can be confusing. Also stay far away from the second season.

Samurai champloo is almost as good as cowboy bebop so that's a definite yes. It isn't as melancholic as bebop but it pushes the comedy and violence a bit more.

Great teacher onizuka I would say is about as good as bebop and champloo.

5 centimeters per second and voices of a distant star are two amazing movies both by the same director.

If you're out to have your heart broken look up ef a tale of the two or watch clannad and then clannad after story.

Two shows that turn out unexpectedly spectacular are Noein: Mou Hitori no Kimi e and Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica. Noein seems a little boring at first and just looking at shoujo madoka will probably turn you off it but they both turn out to have very engaging story lines and good characters.

If you don't mind a bit more length definitely watch full metal alchemist brotherhood. There are almost no bad parts in it.

also just look here:
http://myanimelist.net/topanime.php

 

[goldendriger]

I would honestly say Trigun, the first 3-4 episodes are character building and introductions but about episode 6 shit goes down and it gets hella serious. THEN it becomes legendary

 

[snappydog]

I'm pretty fond of Monster, it's about a doctor who saves some kid who then becomes a serial killer and it rapidly becomes quite complicated but very good.

 

[jsfrance]

Black lagoon has that problem where it pushes realism so hard that it stops being realistic. It has plenty of grit which is great if you like that but there are some things in it that really come across as trying too hard. The twins were cool and creepy but calling them vampires just seemed stupid and plenty of the dialog that comes from revy is just juvenile swearing.

 

[jsfrance]

ahem.......

Elfen Lied

I don't think anymore needs to be said.

My only issue with Elfen Lied is that serious is really all it has. The happiest moments in that show are when whats her face gets naked. Everything else is just girls getting their limbs ripped off.

 

[k-ossuburb]

I hope I'm not ninja'd with this but Grave Of The Fireflies is supposed to be really, really good. I've still not seen it yet but I've only heard good things.

 

[Mike Laserbeam]

Samurai Champloo, Baccano!, Durarara!!, Bakemonogatari, Welcome to the NHK!, Darker Than Black, Paranoia Agent, Perfect Blue, Monster, FLCL and TTGL.

They're not all serious, but I would say that if you liked Bebop, you should like these.


P.s. Fuck you Darker Than Black series 2, you shouldn't exist and nobody should watch you.

Edit:

I hope I'm not ninja'd with this but Grave Of The Fireflies is supposed to be really, really good. I've still not seen it yet but I've only heard good things.

You're right, it's really good

 

[rayen020]

outlaw star would be my suggestion. anime varies greatly and is very hit and miss. also quality voice acting is gonna be rare if you watch english dubs, just thougth you should try and get used to that idea now.

I really liked cowboys bebop but then so do most people.

Gundam wing or robotech may strike your fancy.

Captcha;dialialL called, they want they're shirt back.

 

[Edgeless]

If you want a good and serious anime, go for Planetes. It does go for a bit of slap-stick and childish humour in the first few episodes, but once the character roster is filled up it becomes an emotional rollercoaster of epic proportions. I won't beat around the bush, I cried at the end. It is extremely emotionally driven and the characters are developed in a way not seen by many anime.

 

[Hunter15]

HAHHAHAHHAHAHA thats hilarious 2 words that dont go together anime and serious

 

[Daystar Clarion]

HAHHAHAHHAHAHA thats hilarious 2 words that dont go together anime and serious

Oh this is great.

Explain to me how anime can not be serious.

Don't worry. I've got all day.

 

[SaberXIII]

I feel the necessity to be a bit of a dick now, I just cannot stand it:
The plural of 'anime' is 'anime'. I don't know if anybodys said this yet, but I MUST >_<

 

[theonecookie]

HAHHAHAHHAHAHA thats hilarious 2 words that dont go together anime and serious

Oh this is great.

Explain to me how anime can not be serious.

Don't worry. I've got all day.

Don't bait the troll that's how they feed

OT: I'll have to go with both darker than black and blue gender but be wary with blue gender it starts of dark and then jumps in the crazy pool at about the halfway point still good though and they both have good dubs

 

[crono738]

Berserk. You'll have to read the manga after you finish watching the anime since it never went past the first arc.

Or he could just start reading the manga from the start and avoid the bad animation, art direction, and voice acting all together.

I've seen worse lol

 

[TheAceTheOne]

Death Note.
its about a guy who can kill anyone with their face and name.
so he kills criminals.

THEN GOES BUGFUCK CRAZY.

Aw, man. You beat me to it.

Yeah, DEATH NOTE is definitely the best anime I've ever seeon.

If you don't mind messaging me, Trilby, are you a Kira or L fan?