Could Someone Give me Advice for Some Underrated Anime Series?

[Padrickk]

Hello there,

I am reaching out to the Anime-Sharing community because I am on the hunt for some hidden gems in the world of anime. While I enjoy the popular and mainstream series; I have found myself increasingly intrigued by lesser known or underrated shows that might not have received the attention they deserve.
I enjoy stories that offer something different from the usual tropes or that explore themes in a fresh way.

Whether it is a deep and complex protagonist or a cast with rich backgrounds and growth; character development is something I value highly.

I am curious to see what kind of experiences and storytelling come from outside the big names in the industry.

Anime that mixes genres or has a creative setting often capture my interest; whether it is a sci-fi/fantasy hybrid or something grounded in a unique historical or cultural context.

Also I have gone through this post; https://www.anime-sharing.com/threads/what-anime-are-uipath-you-currently-watching.112053/ which definitely helped me out a lot.

If you have any recommendations; I would love to hear them Please share the title, a brief synopsis, and what you think makes it stand out. Additionally; if there are any specific episodes or arcs you think are particularly notable.

Thank you in advance for your help and assistance.

 

[williamshuman]

Girls' Last Tour and Haibane Renmei come to mind. I really love both of those shows but it's a shame they're not more popular.
geometry dash breeze

 

[NekoYuii2]

Invaders of the Rokujouma

 

[Coffee Addict]

Shinsekai Yori and Shadows House seem like underrated hidden gems to me, both have original stories.

 

[KiryuuChan]

The Promised Neverland is another hidden gem anime to watch

 

[Coffee Addict]

Also "Shuumatsu Nani Shitemasu ka? Isogashii desu ka? Sukutte Moratte Ii desu ka?", I have just finished watching it a few weeks ago and it was really good, but seems underrated.

 

[朝神旭]

戦国鬼才伝

 

[Jelly-filled Donut]

First, define "underrated". Some shows are highly acclaimed, but aren't considered "mainstream enough" due to not appealing to the wider fanbase. Some are just way too complicated, hence their obscurity.

Second, tell me what movie shows you like. Maybe we can start from there. What elements do you even like in a story? High-octane adrenaline, ethereal mystery, thought-provoking social commentary, delve into the forbidden, mindless fun comedy, heartwarming / heartrending drama, etc. Name it, please.

Third, there are plenty of great shows out there. Often, they're just outside of the genre you usually watch. The question is, are you willing to give other genres a try?

 

[Jelly-filled Donut]

Also "Shuumatsu Nani Shitemasu ka? Isogashii desu ka? Sukutte Moratte Ii desu ka?", I have just finished watching it a few weeks ago and it was really good, but seems underrated.

Ah, SukaSuka. That one brought back some memories, alright. I suggest keep reading the LN, but I'm not gonna spoil.

Spoiler: Scarborough Fair

Always in my heaaaaaart! ...That song always gets me man

 

[Jelly-filled Donut]

The Promised Neverland is another hidden gem anime to watch

Yeah, the season one's fine. Too bad the second season for it doesn't exist

The way they ended the manga is kinda ass too, which is a shame. They failed to stick the landing.

 

[Jelly-filled Donut]

Girls' Last Tour and Haibane Renmei come to mind. I really love both of those shows but it's a shame they're not more popular.

Haibane Renmei kinda reminds me of Serial Experiments Lain with their ethereal atmosphere and thought-provoking themes.

Shoujo Shuumatsu Ryokou is a feel-good anime despite its unique setting, almost like a drab Yuru Camp. If I had to describe it, it's kinda like finding solace within simple things in life, in the midst of a somber, tragic situation. Solid picks, bro

 

[Coffee Addict]

Ah, SukaSuka. That one brought back some memories, alright. I suggest keep reading the LN, but I'm not gonna spoil.

Spoiler: Scarborough Fair

Always in my heaaaaaart! ...That song always gets me man

I downloaded the LN to practice japanese reading, I really plan to read it but I'll leave that for later, since I'm really busy nowdays

 

[Jelly-filled Donut]

I downloaded the LN to practice japanese reading, I really plan to read it but I'll leave that for later, since I'm really busy nowdays

Bruh, Japanese wasei eigo and katakana are atrocious. Sometimes even more than kanji, because you just dunno whether they're spelling English or some other foreign languages. Even more confusing if they spelled it wrong.

When the katakana are particularly confusing, I had to translate all of the text and cross-reference with previous chapters first, before I can read them all at one go and understand the story. LNs do be like that.

 

[Jelly-filled Donut]

(sic)

I'm not joking, btw. Some of the most headache-inducing texts I've had the displeasure to translate, came from wasei eigo katakana. A string of kanji of made-up words from fantasy / SF genres came in close second (cause they're usually cringefest names which are a nightmare to translate to English). I guess it's somewhat understandable that plenty of Japanese fantasy authors are also terminal chuunis.

 

[Coffee Addict]

I'm not joking, btw. Some of the most headache-inducing texts I've had the displeasure to translate, came from wasei eigo katakana. A string of kanji of made-up words from fantasy / SF genres came in close second (cause they're usually cringefest names). I guess it's somewhat understandable that plenty of Japanese fantasy authors are also terminal chuunis.

I actually tried reading the first page and this scared me: "星神(ヴイジトルス)"

 

[Jelly-filled Donut]

I actually tried reading the first page and this scared me: "星神(ヴイジトルス)"

That's exactly what I'm talking about. Now imagine you're a translator and to figure out what "ヴイジトルス" supposed to mean. Is it English? German (cause they love German so much idk why)? French? Who knows?

This time, you've got a hint "星神"（star god）but most of the time, you won't be so lucky.

Spoiler: The Answer

ヴイジトルス = visitors. But they mispronounced and misspelled it into "vigitors / vijitors". This time, it's English (hence, didn't take much of a guesswork). If its in a language God knows what, then it'll take some serious brainpower and a litany of foreign dictionaries.

Btw, the "star god" thing is kinda a red herring, instead of a hint. They're trying to insinuate that those "visitors" from outer space are some "divine entity". Alas, cramming all those "hidden meanings" inside a few letters (instead of the story), only breeds confusion and only ended up a red herring for translators, whom are torn to translate it as "star gods" or "visitors". Either way, context will be lost in translation. All because they insist on using Kanji as a logogram (like a traffic sign), rather than as letters. In a goddamn literature!

This is exactly why literature written in logograms (like Chinese), is rather complicated to be translated to English. Kanji basically condenses long sentences, into a few "letters" (logos). Inevitably, it'll end up as a string of long words, when translated to English. So translators had to rack their brains, trying to come up with the fewest words possible to translate Kanji into English.

Also, the Japanese sometimes does this weird thing, where they decide that the kanji and its supposed meaning are totally different. It's kinda like trying to read a kenning. I swear, sometimes you had to be a little bit of an actual professional linguist to understand and translate them faithfully.