10 Best Anime For People Who Don’t Like Anime Update 04/2024

Anime For People Who Don't Like Anime

Many current anime shows have offended viewers with their exaggerated antics. Fortunately, for those who don’t, there are a number of options.

As recently as a few years ago, many Westerners saw anime as a specialized pastime. As a result of its restricted distribution outside of Japan, as well as the nature of its content, it was mainly unavailable to Western audiences. However, despite the advent of streaming services like Netflix and Crunchyroll, there is still a problem for westerners who want to catch up on the latest and greatest anime.

Although anime has grown more widely available in recent years, there are many people who refuse to watch it because of the socially awkward and irritating clichés that are prevalent in many Japanese anime series. For those who don’t like stereotypical anime, there are plenty of great shows that aren’t reliant on over-the-top antics or questionable depictions of young women.

10 Full Metal Alchemist

Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood

Full Metal Alchemist is a series aimed for a more mature audience, even though there are still moments of fan service sprinkled throughout. As a result, cringe-inducing situations are few and far between, and idiotic actions are kept to a minimum.

The action sequences in the series are also of the highest quality, and they never fail to impress. In the end, it’s the tale that shines, set in a fascinating steampunk setting, about two alchemical brothers who are on a quest to find the Philosopher’s Stone after a failed attempt to resuscitate their dead mother nearly lost them their lives.

9 Samurai Champloo

Because of its use of hip-hop themes, Samurai Champloo has a distinct feel compared to other Japanese anime shows. It’s even better that it’s available for free on YouTube. Another plus is that it has a terrific English language dub and a plot that may elicit an array of emotions from its audience.

There are some aspects of Japanese humor that do not translate well to the west, but those who have lived in Japan know that the contrary is also true. Anyone familiar with Japanese media will have observed this. However, in Samurai Champloo, most jokes and one-liners closely adhere to the universal meaning of hilarious, therefore this is rarely an issue.

8 Dragon Ball Z

Dragon Ball Z

Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball is one of the few anime series that have had such a profound impact on Western culture. This is an area in which Dragon Ball Z excels over the original series, which had its fair share of awkward and inappropriate moments involving either Bulma or Master Roshi.

As a result of Toei Animation’s obligation to release an episode each week, some may find the show’s sluggish pace and constant pauses to be frustrating, however there is a remedy for those who are impatient.

As a result, Dragon Ball Z Kai reduces the original series’ 291-episode run to just 167 episodes.

7 Cowboy Bepop

Dragon Ball wasn’t the only anime series to enjoy success in North America and Europe before the year 2000, despite being the most popular.

A neo-noir anime series set mostly in space, Cowboy Bepop blends western concepts and ideals. To some, this might bring to mind the cult great series Firefly, created by Joss Whedon. However, other than a few loose parallels, it’s tough to draw any comparisons between the two.

Many of the obnoxious cliches found in more recent animated shows are absent in Cowboy Bepop, making it an excellent choice for individuals who are put off by overblown antics. Even though it still has its lighter moments and isn’t hesitant to poke fun at itself every now and then, these moments are usually well-executed and rarely detract from the main storyline.

6 Attack On Titan

Attack On Titan

Attack on Titan gets off to a solid start, offering a fascinating notion and supporting it with some fantastic visuals and engaging plotlines, much like the anime series Sword Art Online, which is focused around games. Attack on Titan, on the other hand, is able to sustain these high standards over its first few seasons.

While the plot occasionally stalls or stumbles, it is able to recover before falling flat for the most part. There are some big and terrifying Titans action scenes, but character development never goes fully over the top and maintains an authentic tone.

5 Castlevania

Netflix’s Castlevania series, according to some anime purists, should not be considered anime because it was created outside of Japan. When it comes to animated shows based on video games like Castlevania, it’s among the greatest and a must-see for Castlevania aficionados.

The fact that the majority of its four seasons were produced by Westerners surely had its merits, as many of the more off-putting anime cliches were absent. Even if the program stumbles a bit in the middle, it ends on an epic note that is both thrilling and fulfilling because to the excellent animation and great fight scenes.

4 Neon Genesis: Evangelion

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Some characters in Neon Genesis: Evangelion will be disliked by first-time viewers. Fortunately, the series boasts a large and diverse cast, with characters from nearly every possible typology appearing onscreen in some manner. As a result, there will be characters that viewers can identify with, and each undergoes a gratifying level of development over the course of the series.

However, it’s probably Shinji’s inadequacy in his role as protagonist – which allows other characters to shine brighter – that ultimately makes the show so great to watch. A dystopian future where bio-mechs and alien beings known as Angels fight in huge battle scenes is also part of the amazing narrative.

3 Death Note

Death Note, created by Tsugumi Ohba, is a critically acclaimed and widely remembered psychological anime series. The story revolves around a Japanese teenager named Light Yagami, who discovers a mysterious notebook that has the power to kill anyone whose name is written on its pages. The novel is jam-packed with suspense and excitement.

Those who have only seen the horrible Netflix live-action rendition of Death Note will have a very low opinion of the series. The original 37 episodes, on the other hand, are well worth the time investment because of the outstanding production value and the gripping intellectual rivalry between Light and L, the man tasked with putting an end to Light’s murdering spree.

2 Psycho-Pass

Psycho-Pass

Almost five years after the end ofDeath Note, another psychological anime series,Psycho-Pass, was able to fill the vacuum left by it. The three-season series, written by Gen Urobuchi and Makoto Fukami, blends elements from several genres, deals with some dark topics, and, like Death Note, raises some important concerns about morality and ethics.

The 41 episodes of this show are jam-packed with memorable characters and thought-provoking plots. To help potential viewers decide if they want to watch shorter episodes or deeper dives that are more in accordance with the official Psycho Pass novel the first season was also released before of the second season.

1 Hellsing

There are few anime heroes as cool as Alucard, and he is a big part of the appeal of Hellsing. Dracula’s ancestor Abraham Van Helsing’s great-great-grandson, Integra, is vowed to defend the heiress to the Hellsing family from the wrath of the vampire anti-hero.

One of Alucard’s many adversaries in the series is the vampire lord himself, who is on the verge of being defeated by a battalion of Nazi vampires and an immortal Vatican priest. It’s gruesome at times, but if you’re into that type of stuff, you should check it out. Hellsing Ultimate, the follow-up OVA series, isn’t quite as good.