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[Cruxador]

So, use ratings rather than popularity to choose what to watch

MAL ratings aren't exactly that reliable either, though.

If you're filtering out and ignoring all the good stuff, and only importing the trash, that's not the fault of the creators.

Indeed. A lot of what one might perceive as indicative of the quality of anime in general is actually heavily warped by the lens through which you experience it; in this case what anime community you're part of.

I still wonder if the Western comic market will ever see the diversification that the manga market has.

Manga, like LNs, benefits a lot from Japan's commuter culture. Lots of people read, because they ride trains. It also probably helps that Japan is behind the west technologically, so there's less of an invasion of internet and phones and video games into the lives of young people, and the relative complexity of the Japanese written language might also contribute.

[Antioch]

Ohw btw, if we are talking about Western comics/cartoons:

Go watch Rick and Morty if you haven't already.

You are hurting yourself if you don't.

I dunno, I really disliked the early episodes... they were very rough and unfunny.

Wut, the only weaker episode is the pilot IMO.

It is currently the best rated animated series on IMDB (which includes both anime and cartoons).

[Reelya]

Both Rick and Morty and One Punch Man are sitting on 9.3/10.0. So, it's close. But these scores are pretty bullshit. One Punch Man is good, but it's not like "wow! literally the greatest anime, ever!"

What actually happens is that the "latest cool thing" always gets voted up unreasonably, because of people who have already rated the previous "latest cool thing" highly, but now this new show is really doing it for them, and thus they have to rate this new thing even higher.

It's like if you gave the last thing 9/10, but now you're over that, because you've seen it to death, everyone's talked it to death, then the next thing comes along and you're really into it, so you have to give this a 10/10 to indicate that at this very moment, you're liking it more than the thing you gave a 9/10 before. This is why you should go through and adjust your previous scores on myanimelist and similar sites every so often.

[Cruxador]

But these scores are pretty bullshit. One Punch Man is good, but it's not like "wow! literally the greatest anime, ever!"

It would be hard to name a better one though, not because it's necessarily the best but because once something is the best at what it does, and has no real flaws of much substance, all comparison becomes entirely a matter of subjective preference.

[Reelya]

Agreed. Picking another anime at random, the "Aria" series. Everything about it, the artstyle, soundtrack, pacing, characterization makes that show, and it's very consistent. So, there's very little you could say where they should have changed any specific thing, the only real criticisms lie in saying "well it's not for me".

[Flying Dice]

Yep. The main reason Aria isn't more well-known is the same one for pretty much every good series: it's not what appeals to the highly vocal lowest common denominator. Stateside at least, that's the haremshit pedo/cest battle arena wish fulfillment author insert trash that's popular with greasy basement-dwellers and younger teens. Those are the people who bray the loudest about their new best evur, buy $300 figurines to wank to, and populate a lot of the populist-rating sites.

It's not any different with any other medium, it's just more visible because of the import filter and the way that self-selecting interests doesn't shield you as much from bad anime as it does from other types of media. If you avoid trashy genre fiction, at worst you glance at it on a shelf as you walk by and think, "Wow, do people actually read that crap?" The answer is yes. And a hell of a lot more people read that than anything with even the slightest semblance of quality. The only appreciable difference is that you're less likely to notice.

[Reelya]

btw, in some more good anime news, Natsume Yuujinchou is getting a 5th season. If you like the concept of a supernatural slice of life series set in the countryside, with episodic mysteries, you should check this show out. Would probably appeal to people who like Mushishi, Aria, that sort of thing.

[Cruxador]

How can any anime with five seasons still be good?

[Orange Wizard]

Go watch Rick and Morty if you haven't already.

Oh yeah, I watched a bit of it, and I didn't enjoy it.

How can any anime with five seasons still be good?

Dumb luck, I suppose.

[Reelya]

It got 5 seasons because the manga is still good. #31 highest rated manga on MAL.

[Neyvn]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

[BFEL]

Well finished up the 3rd season of Highschool DxD. REALLY hope it gets more, because I am pretty much officially addicted to this.

Yep. The main reason Aria isn't more well-known is the same one for pretty much every good series: it's not what appeals to the highly vocal lowest common denominator. Stateside at least, that's the haremshit pedo/cest battle arena wish fulfillment author insert trash that's popular with greasy basement-dwellers and younger teens.

...does this make me part of the problem?

But yeah, self reflection aside, I loved nearly everything about this show. The battles scratched my shonen loving itch so hard that its now raw and bloody, while the harem stuff was tempered by the protag actually being a decent guy who could reasonably attract women and not just a mary sue author insert. Not only that, but it could be gut-wrenchingly hilarious when it wanted to be.
And yes it of course had the obvious tits.

DO have a few complaints though.
1. Despite the protag's relationship with the girls evolving he never gets farther then he did in LITERALLY THE FIRST EPISODE. This is a problem because it just DESTROYS the suspension of disbelief and turns every ecchi segment into my brain screaming JUST FUCK ALREADY. TVtropes has informed me this is because of Executive Meddling however, so I'll forgive it while I write down a list of names.

2. The only relationship that felt like a total asspull, where the one girl who disliked the protag for his perverted ways instantly flipped to another haremmate after he helps her out one time. It MIGHT have been ok if it had been more gradual but nope, halfway through she insta-flips from thinking he is "the enemy of all women" to sleeping naked in his bed with all the other girls.

3. The protag's main ability is that he can double his power every ten seconds (it becomes more frequent later on and depending on his emotional state) so WHY IN THE FUCKING SHIT does he never ONCE start doing this before a fight begins? There was an ABSOLUTELY PERFECT opportunity for this too! There was a point where they were LITERALLY WAITING FOR THE BAD GUY TO BE UNSEALED. RIGHT NEXT TO HIM. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?

[Flying Dice]

By my understanding, it shakes out like this: The Sarclacc's stomach is the ultimate abyss of terrible anime. Mahouka is Boba Fett. Highschool DxD is Han Solo.

[JoshuaFH]

And Leia is SAO.

[Flying Dice]

Cowboy Bebop, appropriately enough, is a ship in orbit?