Media Anime and Manga Thread MK3 - Beware Spoilers

Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
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I've been streaming an old favourite anime in my personal server tonight, called Warau Salesman, sometimes known in English as The Laughing Salesman. This is an absolutely ancient series dating back to a manga from the 1960s, being older than even Doraemon. To be specific, I've been revisiting the 1989 anime that my dad used to watch a super choppy subbed version of back in uhhh 2005 or something I think? This anime was huge back in the day, spanning over 90 10-minute episodes, as well as a couple of specials and a 4-minute "Episode 0" that was lost media for a while. It even got a few video games, if you can believe that.

So, what's it about? A fedora-wearing salesman called Moguro Fukuzou walks around Japan, looking for individuals who lack fulfillment in their lives. He then, effectively, solves all of their life's issues, be it in a literal way or something more abstract. This is all completely free of charge, but there's always a catch: they must follow his directions when using his solution and not betray his trust. Normally, someone will either take credit for everything, betray his trust, break a condition, or fuck up in some other fantastic way once they "get comfortable" with their new life, exposing their avarice. Then, Moguro punishes that with something that I can only describe as fantastic, before he walks away with a life lesson.

This format never changes, but the creativity is astounding. Rarely is there ever an episode I can say is a "rehash" or "too basic". The way the "fall" segments play out is timed perfectly and subtly, but the core narrative is always well-explained and/or made clear, so you don't get completely lost or anything. For the time period and limitations it places on itself, it's just great. The comedy is done in a very Japanese way, but god it just hits perfectly.

If you ever watch this, I recommend going about it in short bursts, otherwise the show wears itself out. It wasn't built for on-demand streaming because, well, it was designed for airing on TBS's variety show in 1989. Ergo, you've gotta treat it that way, but if you do, it really shines. This isn't to say you can't binge all 103 episodes, as it is possible!

You may know of this series for "Warau Salesman NEW", a 2017 series that brought this old titan back to the present. It unfortunately received little fanfare, because, well...it used the exact repertoire from the traditional anime, down to the bone. With the point about its origins in mind, as you would expect, it does show its age and follows a very set formula, which makes it difficult to binge in a modern era. I personally loved it as an appreciator of the original, because, well, it plays to my sense of humour perfectly. If you do go through with this season, treat it like the '89 show, and it'll show what it's worth.

I think the main problem with this anime is that, well, it's different. Very, very different. It's nothing like anything you'll find on the modern market, so many an average anime binger will likely be taken aback by something like this. I also think there are times where it isn't "in-touch" with modern society: this was built as a commentary on Japan during a period of great change, so...yeah, sometimes it can be hard to "get it". Regardless, the people who watched it with me in my server adored the first 13 episodes of '89, so I hope it stays that way while I stream it. It's very unique and truly deserves more than it gets.
 
Hello all, could use some help, does anyone know what episode this was from? I was going to clean up the wiki page for team rocket disguises but I don't know what episode this picture is from. It said ultra legends but I'm sure I've never seen this in ultra legends and I'm pretty good at remember specific scenes for the majority of pokemon episodes.
Any help would be appreciated.
 

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Martin

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Hello all, could use some help, does anyone know what episode this was from? I was going to clean up the wiki page for team rocket disguises but I don't know what episode this picture is from. It said ultra legends but I'm sure I've never seen this in ultra legends and I'm pretty good at remember specific scenes for the majority of pokemon episodes.
Any help would be appreciated.
You might have more luck in the PokéAni thread in Orange Islands; someone here might know where it’s from, but I expect regulars there are probably more likely to recognise more stuff.

https://www.smogon.com/forums/threads/general-pokémon-anime-discussion.3469495/
 
If you forced into only reading one manga/watching one anime series exclusively for the rest of your life, what would it be?

For me it would be Yu Yu Hakusho. No matter how many times I re-read or re-watch it, it never gets old. If for some reason I was forced into only one series for the rest of my life, I’d be happy having picked YYH.
 

Diophantine

Banned deucer.
If you liked Squid Game, you may also like what the director revealed he drew inspiration from: Kaiji, Battle Royale (which also has a film adaptation, and which also inspired The Hunger Games) and Liar Game (which I have written about in this post).

Kaiji follows the exact same premise of an organisation gathering indebted people and making them play games with each other. I'll say that while Squid Game had far better characterisation, Kaiji's games are more entertaining.

Battle Royale is about a class of school students that get forced to fight each other to the death.

I've spoken already about Liar Game in the post I linked, but it's still one of my favourite manga of all time. The games in it are incredibly entertaining, and has similar themes to Squid Game.
 

bdt2002

Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs superfan
is a Pre-Contributor
This will probably be the last post I make today on any of these threads. Or at least the last one before dinner. Knowing me I'll be back here in less than a half hour.

So why am I here all of a sudden, you may ask? Excellent question. Until college, I never thought much of anime or manga. A few of my high school friends were into it, but it was little more to them than a time killing hobby. For most of my life up to this point I had convinced myself that people only followed anime and/or manga because they were both popular topics that shared some sort of connection I didn't quite understand. In other words, it was a case of people hopping onto popular trends, something that I wasn't much of a fan of.

This changed significantly when I met my roommate(s) when I moved to college last year, however. The one I share a room with has been a huge fan of Japanese culture for quite some time now, and it also happened to be the case that me and him both had an interest in creative writing. Fast forward to the present day, and I can name multiple popular anime he's introduced me to watching, along the lines of Death Note, Demon Slayer, Akame Ga Kill, and Hellsing (the "Ultimate" version to be specific, I have no clue what the difference is), just to name a few of them. The jury's still out on me buying and starting a manga collection, but that's more so because I'm not allowed to drive on my own yet and the only good book/manga stores aren't that close by my school anyway.

Now that I've started to grow my interest in writing in other ways, and that I've become much more open to branching out into new interests as my old ones start to die out, I can finally understand the appeal of this neat little community of yours. I wasn't just going to watch and read popular stuff, though. As luck would have it, one of, if not my biggest interest period is the topic of neurodiversity. I've talked about my autism diagnosis and other details in different threads, but for the sake of this particular thread, it's probably best if I just cut to the chase.

Provided I most likely won't look into any of this until after exam week (next week) is over so I can study, this post marks the start of my search for recommendations of anime and/or manga (preferably anime if possible, remember what I said about book stores). This is the first time I've taken this "recommendation approach" of mine for something that isn't video games, now that I think about it. I'm specifically looking for anything that has as many of the following as possible. The more of these that are checked off, the better. Thank you very much for your help in advance, and maybe, just maybe, you guys will see me around here more often :)

1. Something with added emphasis on characters and neurodiversity/autism, whether it be main or side character(s)
2. Something that isn't exactly... well, inappropriate (this one's kinda important, I'd likely be watching this stuff at home where my family lives)
3. Something with a story I can relate to or learn from (Example: I really like and can sympathize with a specific character)
4. Something with good music, settings, etc. (The finer details are what separate the good from the greats)
5. This one's optional, but something I could share with my roommate(s) never hurts

Any genre is fine so long as (as many of) these details as possible and especially #2 is met. Thanks again for your help :)
 

Plague von Karma

Banned deucer.
Watched the 12eps of the new JoJo's Bizarre Adventure adaptation on Netflix a couple of days ago with a friend, very happy to see Stone Ocean getting justice. This part's presentation in the manga kind of sucked, honestly, it was sometimes a bit hard to follow. Not to say it was bad - far from it - but I can see why it was a bit of a black sheep in some of the splinter groups I follow prior to this.

I adored the Melt Your Heart sequence in ep4 and Jumpin' Jack Flash in ep10-11, it gives me great hopes for the presentation of some of the part's more...eccentric stands. I'm interested primarily in how Bohemian Rhapsody and Dragon's Dream will be interpreted, they were some of my favourites. I won't say what they do and all that, though, I want the non-manga readers to be surprised!

YongYea playing the part of Enrico Pucci in the dub is a surprise but a bloody welcome one, wow. Here's a video he did on the topic. I watched the sub, but I may just rewatch with the dub instead just for the performance.
 
Season Review (I'm still unemployed)

Shiroi Suna No Aquatope S2:

What did I say about this one last season?
SHIRO SUNA TO AQUATOPE: Speaking of soppy melodramas can very cute but tragic main character girl save her beloved aquarium from closing down? And in said aquarium people occasionally meet important deceased from their life! Unbearably cheesy stupid show that r/anime will probably deem AOTY once the big sad thing happens. I think the show could be significantly improved by removing all the extremely lame supernatural elements as it is already wanking itself off enough without them.
I am extremely pleasantly surprised. So the big sad thing happened near the end of the first season but then the show just kept going. This is one of the first times I have ever seen one of these melodramas really show the change in the status quo caused by its tragedy. The supernatural aspects have all but disappeared this season and the entire show has more or less morphed into a workplace drama about cute tragic main character girl and all the supporting cast growing up and finding their place in the world.
It doesn't exactly break ground but as a character driven show the second season has found its footing with much more real and engaging stories. The first arc in season 1 is still complete garbage but if you can sit through it Shiroi Suna has gone from being crap to being one of my genuine favourites of the season. also
I think this is the first time Ive ever seen an anime talk about the difficulties of being a single mother without putting some supernatural or symbolic spin on the whole thing. The fact that this character was presented antagonistically earlier on is a great device for showing how much more understanding of the world Kukuru (protagonist) has grown to be.

TSUKI TO LAIKA TO NOSFERATU:
The concept for this anime sounds like a madlib. Cute vampire girl is set to become the first human in space in a fictional analogue of the Soviet Union. The first 3 episodes of this show are hilariously awkward and weird and I began watching simply to laugh at the insane Japanese Soviet Russia setting and general direction. To my dismay something about a cute vampire girl trying her darndest to go to space slowly won me over and now I watch every episode of this biting my nails hoping everything will turn out alright for vampire and friends. Maybe I'm just a dumb cunt but I recommend trying this show. Just for the weirdly erotic salmon roe scene.

MIERUKO CHAN
I know I'm not breaking new ground here but this show is wayyyy hornier than it should be. You can't expect me to be scared of the monster in a scene when the camera is constantly showing me shots of a girl's camel-toe which is somehow visible through her winter pajamas. I recommend just setting aside two separate time slots to watch horror and pornography. Separately.

MUSHOKU TENSEI S2
This show is fucked up weirdo isekai shit but rest-assured that it is the best fucked up weird isekai shit you will ever watch. Shit has gone crazy this season. Sometimes I think the writer of this show is just trying really hard to justify his horniness in-universe but honestly I'm too invested to care at this point. Go watch this because at this rate it's going to be one of the defining anime of next couple of years.

ISEKAI SHOKUDOU S2 (restaurant in another world)
Lots of good S2s this season. Just taking this opportunity to say that you should watch the first season. Every episode is 23 minutes of an elf or some other stock fantasy race losing their shit at how good a kebab is or something. An utter masterpiece. This show could have 1000 episodes and I would still want it to keep going.

TAISHOU OTOME OTOGIBANASHI
Romantic slice of life set in 1920s Japan. Sadly not much screen time is dedicated to showing off how fucked 1920s Japan was. I can't really enjoy this show knowing that all the character's children are going to be drafted to commit warcrimes in the Philippines. If you like cute fluff and a Japanese historical setting sounds interesting to you give it a watch I guess.

KOMI SAN WA KOMYUSHOU
I can't believe I'm already jaded at the ripe young age of 21. People fucking love this show. I don't get it. If I wanted to watch a socially awkward selectively mute person repeatedly try and fail to accomplish anything I'd just call out to random cunts in my uni lecture hall. Hitori bocchi did the exact same thing as this show but much funnier. Watch that instead.

PLATINUM END
I'm still not entirely sure what the plot of this show is all I know is that it's Death Note 2.0 but the shinigami are replaced with weirdly fuckable angels. A very stupid anime but it's stupid in a way that lends itself to being binged in an entire night. You still probably shouldn't watch it though.

OUSAMA RANKING
I imagine that a lot of people are going to skip this show as it looks like a children's cartoon from the 80s but please stick with it. The story of a disabled little prince aspiring to be king through sheer force of will despite all the political scheming, dark fantasy shitfuckery and just plain old murderers out to get him is extremely gripping. I'm not a much of a monarchical man but I am an ardent supporter of King Bojji and you will be too. Easily my favourite show of the season.
 
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Another Season has come and gone

SONO KISEGAE NINGYO WA KOI WO SURU (BISQUE DOLL)
This is the breakout show of the season and I get it. What starts off as being an ecchi cosplay fanservice show quickly turns into an amazingly heartwarming romance of two very sweet admirable people growing closer together through the art and fashion they both love. Even its fanservice scenes are way more creative than competitors. The chemistry and sexual tension between the two main characters is insane. I actually screamed at my TV a few times. I cannot recommend this show enough. Also this


AKEBI CHAN NO SAILOR FUKU
In a bizarre echo of everything that made Bisque Doll good, Akebi chan is one the creepiest shows I've ever watched. In case it's not obvious I have no problem with fanservice or fetishistic content of any sort, but something about an anime that's about the daily life of high school girls, that is so well animated and with music, dialogue and tone that is supposed to make it come across as extremely wholesome is kinda fucking disgusting when half the show is insanely well animated shots of 15 year old girls' wet clothing, feet, smells, ears, and any other assorted body part or fetish you could imagine. That isn't to say the show isn't without its good moments. When its focusing more on being a cute slice of life it can be fun, and the background art is always incredible, but nah, not for me thanks.

SLOW LOOP
So many cute girl doing cute things slice of life shows this season holy shit. If you liked Yuru camp and Non non biyori, this is more of the same but with a slightly shoddier production. There are some moments of very genuine emotions and the fluff is all very cute and fun. They also talk about fishing a lot which instantly makes any anime better.

THERMAE ROMAE
Isekai?? where an ancient Roman gets transported to modern Japan to learn about Japanese bathing culture. Very funny feel good anime with lots of great historical jokes and details. At the end of each episode the author of the manga visits some weird onsen in Japan and I recommend watching the anime just for this. Also hearing a naked ancient Roman with a giant cock say racist things about Japanese people is peak comedy.10/10

I didn't watch anything else this season, kinda weak honestly. Looking forward to Rise of a Bookworm s3 at least.
 

ryo yamada2001

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huh? bisque doll's second episode sees the 15 year old lead girl strip down to her swimsuit and having the main character take her measurements for 20 minutes straight. during one of the cosplay events they go to, the girl praises a young looking cosplayer and they speculate whether she's a middle schooler, or even a grade schooler. 2 episodes later this same "possibly even a grade schooler (but she's 17 yrs old so its 'okay'!(???)) is in the mc's bathroom, slipping and exposing everything bare to him. this character has an even younger sister with a massive chest. i don't know how you can praise Bisque Doll for crudely fetishizing its leading teenagers through "creative fanservice" or "insane sexual tension" while criticizing Akebi-chan, which is entirely about romantic (and subsequently sexual) sapphic awakenings. i agree it has its fanservicey moments that detract from the whole — clearly to satisfy its bisque doll-watching audience — but stuff like ep 3 and ep 6 are some of the best explorations of the sapphic gaze i've seen in anime. even the part where a side character in Akebi takes pictures of themselves in a bout of euphoria is far less sexualized and more nuanced than anything in Bisque Doll...
 
I'm not gonna engage in age-of-consent argument because I think we both agree that either of these shows would be perceived as weirdo pedo shit by a mainstream viewer, however the fanservice in Kisekae is simply fanservice. Its appeal doesn't derive from fetishing the high school-ness or teenage-ness of the characters. The fact it even takes place in high school feels largely incidental. Not saying this excuses it, but it makes it feel much less creepy. There are also many fanservice scenes that are used less as fanservice and more to create romantic tension.

Akebi's appeal on the other hand comes directly from the fact that these are young school girls with brand new uniforms who are constantly being depicted in an idolised school life with lots of shots of wet skirts, feet and whatever. The sexual content of Akebi is less sexual, but it exists purely for fanservice purposes in most scenes and is heavily tied into the fact that these characters are under-age schoolgirls. I would go as far as saying that the entirety of Akebi as a story exists to provide a setting for these fetishistic moments.

A quick glance across MAL and both English and Japanese social media shows I'm not alone. Even if it is irrational, Akebi elicits way more of a 'holy shit this creepy' response than Bisque Doll.
 
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ryo yamada2001

ryo yamada2001
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A quick glance across MAL and both English and Japanese social media shows I'm not alone. Even if it is irrational, Akebi elicits way more of a 'holy shit this creepy' response than Bisque Doll.
the mainstream anime watching audience has been known to enjoy sexualizing 15 yr olds anyway so i don't rly care lol. akebi-chan is far less sexual because, again, it's (mostly) abt the characters' sapphic gazes rather than the audience's satisfaction. it's framed thru the perception of characters experiencing those realizationstension thru distance, intimacy from close-ups — to achieve this goal, whereas bisque doll is an entire self-insert concept w/ Marin as the pixie dream gyaru hentai gamer + cosplayer inexplicably falling in love w/ some bozo. bisque doll always frames itself from either gojou's POV (pretty nsfw) or exposes marin as much as possible (again pretty nsfw) for its audience's satisfaction.

not like you have to like akebi-chan but i've heard "that is weird but bisque doll is okay" before and it just baffles me bc one is far more sensitive (and less sexualized) while the other is so much more cynical, exploitative, and directly made for the audience's gaze... wish they'd just make characters 22 yrs old adults working part-time jobs and shit instead
 

Surgo

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whereas bisque doll is an entire self-insert concept w/ Marin as the pixie dream gyaru hentai gamer + cosplayer inexplicably falling in love w/ some bozo. bisque doll always frames itself from either gojou's POV (pretty nsfw) or exposes marin as much as possible (again pretty nsfw) for its audience's satisfaction.
This take feels a bit unfair given who the author is, how they've claimed they've written Gojo, and how Gojo is pretty much entirely meant for the female gaze. Both what you and I said can be simultaneously true, but it does feel somewhat reductive.

Sexualized teenagers is a horse that's been beaten to death in anime and I'm not looking to beat it further here, I just want to acknowledge that finally a series as popular as My Dress-Up Darling is has major aspects for the female gaze as well, something that feels incredibly lacking in the medium (or at least the stuff that hits seasonally).

Of course, I'm a hypocrite because meanwhile I'm just sitting here waiting for two of my favorite stories involving high-functioning sociopaths (Tsukimichi where it's the main character, That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime where it's a side character) to come back with their next seasons and both of those are 100% male gaze.
 
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I get that yeah. I think it's interesting to note that the original Akebi manga was written by a male and the Bisque Doll manga was written by a female. It's not like that makes either one more or less okay nor does it change the actual content, but it does make me consider how much of Akebi is Sapphic gaze vs fetish excuse content.

Bisque Doll is also a lot less of a self-insert show than you give it a credit for. Gojou is far more admirable than the overwhelming majority of protagonists I've seen in fanservicey romance anime. I have no proof for this beyond anecdotes but I regularly browse Twitter in both English and Japanese and the dialogue about Gojou is hugely positive and a lot of viewers explicitly cheer him on.

I think ultimately we're just willing to excuse different things. The budding romance and sexual tension between two very socially non-conforming nerds greatly appeals to me to the extent that I'm willing to excuse some of the show's more awkward aspects. Meanwhile, though I can appreciate the amazing animation and the lesbian undertones of Akebi, it's not something I particularly enjoyed, nor is it an aspect of the show I think is complemented by fanservice.

Ultimately anime can do whatever the fuck it wants. But I did find Akebi very creepy whereas Bisque didn't evoke the same feeling. I have no doubt the opposite is true for you and I don't think you're wrong for enjoying Akebi.
 

ryo yamada2001

ryo yamada2001
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This take feels a bit unfair given who the author is, how they've claimed they've written Gojo, and how Gojo is pretty much entirely meant for the female gaze. Both what you and I said can be simultaneously true, but it does feel somewhat reductive.
intent is lost in translation to adaptation so i don't think it matters per se—neither does akebi-chan's author being male—because the productions are fundamentally different. akebi-chan's is all female (director, scriptwriter, designer) whereas bisque doll only has a female scriptwriter... when my issue w the show is pretty much entirely the lens thru with its underaged characters consistently are framed. Marin is a cool bisexual tho

Of course, I'm a hypocrite
in the end anime is kind of picking your poison always so i don't think this is hypocritical/that being hypocritical is bad. but i felt bisque doll was particularly bad abt this n im just frustrated they can't be in college instead or w/e
 
I agree that the fanservice in Bisque Doll largely served to both push the romance forward and act as part of the other subject of the anime (cosplay). It was also hella gratuitous. Can't really compare it to Akebi much since I got bored of the latter pretty quickly.

I didn't watch anything else this season, kinda weak honestly. Looking forward to Rise of a Bookworm s3 at least.
The latter part of the season definitely felt a bit dry but I partly blame that on how two of the more noteworthy anime (JJBA part 6 and Demon Slayer s2) ended early.

And then Attack on Titan "Final part 2 except still not actually Final whoops" was largely still wrapped up into trying to focus on dull political drama with awful pacing instead of being the action show that everyone actually liked.

And Princess Connect s2 strayed from its initial comfort zone of Konosuba knockoff into some sort of plot-heavy nonsense that seems like it was made exclusively for people who played the source material, which is a pity since the first season was one of the rare good gacha game anime.

Even Ranking of Kings lost some momentum towards the end though I can safely still say it was a good show and worth watching.
 

Diophantine

Banned deucer.
Death Note is one of (if not) the greatest manga ever written (fuck you haters the ending and third arc were great). Thrilling plot twists with both realistic characters and well-written characters that were extremely gripping and used to dictate the story's themes. I decided to give Platinum End a go because of this and ended up dropping it after 12 episodes.

It's so weird to see that writers as good as the ones that write Death Note can bore me with a series as bad as Platinum End. The main character's moral dilemma was boring given the context of the series, and that seemed to be what it hinged on. Death Note's moral dilemma wasn't even the main part of the show, it was just the medium to push the themes. Light's justification for his true desires. Watching the lengths Light would go to, seeing L's view on justice, questioning if either one of them are right, and how they would be in the other's shoes, etc etc. Death Note had tons of content, Platinum End was dead.

Someone please tell me if it gets good or is worth continuing with.

If you are a Naruto fan or have any views on the series, I strongly recommend this channel. He easily has the best Naruto discussion videos I've ever seen tackling a lot of the most controversial parts of the series, and giving fresh perspectives that I don't think other Youtubers have given. (Tagging Posho coz I know he'd love this)
 

bdt2002

Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs superfan
is a Pre-Contributor
This will probably be the last post I make today on any of these threads. Or at least the last one before dinner. Knowing me I'll be back here in less than a half hour.

So why am I here all of a sudden, you may ask? Excellent question. Until college, I never thought much of anime or manga. A few of my high school friends were into it, but it was little more to them than a time killing hobby. For most of my life up to this point I had convinced myself that people only followed anime and/or manga because they were both popular topics that shared some sort of connection I didn't quite understand. In other words, it was a case of people hopping onto popular trends, something that I wasn't much of a fan of.

This changed significantly when I met my roommate(s) when I moved to college last year, however. The one I share a room with has been a huge fan of Japanese culture for quite some time now, and it also happened to be the case that me and him both had an interest in creative writing. Fast forward to the present day, and I can name multiple popular anime he's introduced me to watching, along the lines of Death Note, Demon Slayer, Akame Ga Kill, and Hellsing (the "Ultimate" version to be specific, I have no clue what the difference is), just to name a few of them. The jury's still out on me buying and starting a manga collection, but that's more so because I'm not allowed to drive on my own yet and the only good book/manga stores aren't that close by my school anyway.

Now that I've started to grow my interest in writing in other ways, and that I've become much more open to branching out into new interests as my old ones start to die out, I can finally understand the appeal of this neat little community of yours. I wasn't just going to watch and read popular stuff, though. As luck would have it, one of, if not my biggest interest period is the topic of neurodiversity. I've talked about my autism diagnosis and other details in different threads, but for the sake of this particular thread, it's probably best if I just cut to the chase.

Provided I most likely won't look into any of this until after exam week (next week) is over so I can study, this post marks the start of my search for recommendations of anime and/or manga (preferably anime if possible, remember what I said about book stores). This is the first time I've taken this "recommendation approach" of mine for something that isn't video games, now that I think about it. I'm specifically looking for anything that has as many of the following as possible. The more of these that are checked off, the better. Thank you very much for your help in advance, and maybe, just maybe, you guys will see me around here more often :)

1. Something with added emphasis on characters and neurodiversity/autism, whether it be main or side character(s)
2. Something that isn't exactly... well, inappropriate (this one's kinda important, I'd likely be watching this stuff at home where my family lives)
3. Something with a story I can relate to or learn from (Example: I really like and can sympathize with a specific character)
4. Something with good music, settings, etc. (The finer details are what separate the good from the greats)
5. This one's optional, but something I could share with my roommate(s) never hurts

Any genre is fine so long as (as many of) these details as possible and especially #2 is met. Thanks again for your help :)
Hey there, everyone. It's good to be back here. Some of you might remember when I made this post. In hindsight, this was a little too... you know, wordy? So I do apologize for that. Anyways, here's why I'm back. In the recent months, it's come to my attention that there may actually be a good reason I haven't gotten any anime or manga requests since I started sharing this list with people (I've used this list outside of the forums, too). What I've found is that, supposedly, neurodiversity isn't viewed the same ways in some Eastern countries (like Japan for instance) as it is where I come from in the United States. I don't like to do that thing where I call people out for not answering me unless I absolutely have to, but this time, I'm actually okay with doing this, and that's because it's not any of your guys' faults that I can't find any recommendations given what I'm looking for, outside of the occasional one from my roommates. It's not like you're the ones writing these... are you? (Hey, you never know. The Internet's a funny place sometimes; for all I know there could be one of us who's secretly a big-time manga author here listening to me.)
 
so annoyed, must've seen a meme or something from the trailer for spy x family bc i totally thought episode 1 came out last night for some reason. must've been april fools or something lol. really looking forward to that tho, been holding off on it for a while so i could watch the anime instead.

Hey there, everyone. It's good to be back here. Some of you might remember when I made this post. In hindsight, this was a little too... you know, wordy? So I do apologize for that. Anyways, here's why I'm back. In the recent months, it's come to my attention that there may actually be a good reason I haven't gotten any anime or manga requests since I started sharing this list with people (I've used this list outside of the forums, too). What I've found is that, supposedly, neurodiversity isn't viewed the same ways in some Eastern countries (like Japan for instance) as it is where I come from in the United States. I don't like to do that thing where I call people out for not answering me unless I absolutely have to, but this time, I'm actually okay with doing this, and that's because it's not any of your guys' faults that I can't find any recommendations given what I'm looking for, outside of the occasional one from my roommates. It's not like you're the ones writing these... are you? (Hey, you never know. The Internet's a funny place sometimes; for all I know there could be one of us who's secretly a big-time manga author here listening to me.)
hard to be specific on 1 and 3 bc there isn't anything besides conjecture for 1 and opinion for 3 but let me give my best shot. almost all of these satisfy 2, 4 and probably? 5, will specify if they don't. a lot of times in anime/manga neurodiverse/autistic characters are just quiet kid so i'm gonna try to minimize those.

Mob Psycho 100-
Shigeo "Mob" Kageyama is an eighth-grade student blessed with extraordinary psychic powers. However, Mob decides to suppress his abilities in public due to its destructive and conspicuous nature. To keep his psychic powers honed, he works under Arataka Reigen—a self-proclaimed esper looking to make use of Mob's skills. Alongside Reigen, Mob spends his days exorcising evil spirits at Reigen's behest. With the simple wish to impress his childhood friend Tsubomi Takane, Mob works toward making himself more desirable. But troubles keep on bombarding his daily life, slowly breaking his shackled feelings. With his repressed emotions welling up, there's no telling what will happen once he reaches his limit.

mob probably fits 1 the best out of all these options, and this is an all time great anime. good dub. definitely anime.

March Comes In Like a Lion-
Rei Kiriyama is an extraordinary shogi player. Among the few elites to have gone professional as a middle school student, he is considered a genius. But what lies behind his prodigious facade is a teenage boy who suffers immense pressure from both his family, and from the high expectations from the shogi community. Rei moves out to live a more independent life away from his family, but his unorganized lifestyle and unsociable personality show no signs of improvement.

i have not watched this so cannot say but it is very highly regarded in general. from my understanding it is popular fan interpretation that MC is autistic. either anime or manga are good

Asper Kanoji-
Yokoi Taku has trouble getting along with people, so he moved to Tokyo as soon as he graduated from high school. He now lives alone, making a living by delivering newspapers and drawing doujinshi, though people totally ignore his non-erotic works. One day, a girl named Saitou Megumi suddenly shows up at his door, claiming that she came all the way from Tottori to meet him because she's a big fan of one of his doujinshi. It ends up that she has faced many hardships herself, and with no intention of leaving, she ends up living with him.

haven't read this either, but remembered it last minute. romance manga and female love interest has aspergers; this seems to have a dedicated fanbase. manga only.

Great Teacher Onizuka-
Great Teacher Onizuka follows the incredible, though often ridiculous, antics of the titular teacher as he attempts to outwit and win over the cunning Class 3-4 that is determined to have him removed from the school. However, other obstacles present themselves throughout—including the frustrated, balding vice principal, Hiroshi Uchiyamada; old enemies from his biker days; and his own idiotic teaching methods. But Eikichi fights it all whilst trying to help his students, romance fellow teacher Azusa Fuyutsuki, and earn his self-proclaimed title.

this one is completely out of left field compared to the rest of these but i feel like it fits really well. kinda graphic? not sure if thats the right word. this does not fit 2. i think onizuka is such a unique character and he just sees the world differently than everyone else around him and affects them. one of best manga ever written. definitely manga.

Non Non Biyori-
Asahigaoka might look like typical, boring countryside to most; however, no day in this village can ever be considered colorless thanks to five students of varying ages occupying the only class in the only school in town. The youngest student is first grader Renge Miyauchi, who brings an unadulterated wit, curiosity, and her characteristic catchphrase, "Nyanpasu!" Then there are the Koshigaya siblings consisting of the quiet ninth grader and elder brother Suguru, diminutive eighth grader Komari, and the mischievous seventh grader Natsumi. The recent arrival of Tokyo-raised fifth grader Hotaru Ichijou, who appears overdeveloped for her age and thus naturally holds an air of maturity, rounds out this lively and vibrant group of five classmates.

This is one of my personal top 3 favorite manga so i can't help but recommend it. renge is one of the four MCs and she is similar to onizuka, albeit to a lesser extent, in the way that she sees the world completely differently than the rest of the characters. the anime also does the best job at atmosphere out of any show on this list and i adore it for that. super calming experience. no dub. definitely anime.

the rest of these don't have anything particularly related to 1 but heres some other anime that have little to no fanservice bc i know those are hard to find and i think they are excellent.

Uchuu Kyoudai (Space Brothers)- two brothers make a promise to become astronauts together. follows them when they've grown up and how they follow that dream. i love this one so much, underrated af and i recommend it every chance i get. negative amounts of general anime weirdness and 99 episodes so its nice and long while not dragging (23 min eps). only bad thing is that its not popular enough to get dubbed so you have to watch with subs.

Chihayafuru- high school girl strives to be the best at ancient japanese game called karuta. each card is based off of poetry so the players have to match the card on the mat to the lyric that is read aloud before their opponent is able to. very atmospheric, also has a great dub. definitely anime.

Link Click- photo studio where two dudes travel back in time to change events. simple premise but executed really well and one of my favorite thrillers. anime only. (this one is actually a chinese cartoon "donghua" so i would recommend chinese or english dub. annoying weebs stan jpn dub but its bad)

Vagabond- based on a novel on the life of the famous samurai Musashi Miyamoto. i assumed sexual fanservice was what you meant by 2 but this is very violent at times, just in case that bugs you. This is one of the most beautifully illustrated manga of all time. Mushashi's character development is one of the best in the medium as well. manga only

Yona of the Dawn- fantasy story following an exiled princess as she tries to reclaim her kingdom. only read the first couple volumes but its very interesting. probs would stick to manga since anime doesn't have a lot of material.

Ping Pong the Animation- artsy sports anime following kids playing ping pong. best animation other than maybe mob psycho on this list. definitely anime.
 
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Great teacher Onizuka is a show created by insane people, for insane people. Strongly recommend if you enjoy seeing the worst person ever somehow still manage to be charismatic. (I did actually like it btw)
Non Non Biyori-
Uchuu Kyoudai
Seconding these two. Non Non Biyori has mastered the art of presenting mundane cuteness as the most entertaining shit ever. Its very pretty background animation, and its insistence on holding pauses and stills always a bit longer than you think it will makes the comedy feel a lot more grounded and gives you time to appreciate the very pretty set-pieces. It also avoids the pitfall of the slightly comedic SOL animes having one character so annoying I actually want to fucking punt them across a footy field.
Even better when it decides to go all out in animation or story for whatever reason, it does so spectacularly without ever feeling cheesy or stupid. As someone who went on a lot of road trips to outback Australia with my parents as a kid, kids playing in rural areas brings back lots of warm fuzzy memories.

Space brothers is an amazing show that has a runtime approximately split in half. One half is dedicated to all the aspects of space and training to be an astronaut itself. The show animates a real interview with an astronaut and the studio got help from JAXA and NASA for some scenes.
The other half is dedicated to the human stories of the kinds of people that want to become astronauts in the first place. What drives people to put in so much effort for such lofty goals, the roadblocks the encounter and the sweet, uplifting, and sad stories that leading such a life causes. Never has an anime filled me with so much hope before as a few of the episodes of Space bros.
In its 99 episode runtime the show does occasionally suffer from its comedy being a bit too cringe and dips in the animation quality that really make you feel like you're watching a slide show, but even so it's one of my favourite shows of all time. It also has one of my favourite openings of all time:
 
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Totally forgot I used to post my anime progress by month on here. That became untenable when I was plowing thought 50+ shows a month in late 2020 and all of 2021. Now that I've reduced my consumption back to more regular levels, might jump back into light reviews/ratings
 

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