My Thoughts on Various Anime Genres

Published on Thursday, 06 July 2017 07:09

Faelandaea

The following article is based of an online listing of anime genres I read recently, which prompted me to use it to answer a question I get asked very often … “Which kind of anime do you like?”  Well, I may as well give my thoughts about every single genre, so here goes …
… Wait … before I get started, many thanks to Cheeky Kid for writing the article that inspired this journal entry.

Action:  Oh I definitely dig action.  My favorite in this genre definitely would have to be SAO (Sword Art Online), which in my eyes easily falls under Fantasy as well. 

Adventure:  Adventure definitely also falls within my most liked genres.  This is especially true if the show not only has adventure, but also romance mixed in.

Comedy: With how my life goes, if there is one constant in the universe, it is the need for a good laugh.  That is why I tend to hide behind humor to mask when I am the most stressed.  In a third person sense, watching humor and actually laughing (and not faking it) actually really makes me feel a lot better most times.  My favorite comedy type is that which is harem or romance based (see below).

Demons:  On this one, it’s neutral.  I am not attracted to demons as a genre.  A lot of other genres I watch happen to have demons in them, though, so they don’t put me off.  But they aren’t the main reason for me to watch an anime.

Drama: This one I am extremely touchy on.  Drama with a happy ending … hell yes.  I love Drama.  But in the world of anime there is plenty of Drama that has some seriously fucked up endings that leave me more depressed and sad than when I started to watch the show in the first place.  I see enough fucked up endings in real life … so I steer clear of those for entertainment.  But make a good Drama that has a good ending that isn’t seven kinds of fucked up and I am a happy camper.

Ecchi:  Yup.  I watch it.  But mainly for the comedy aspect.  Panties do absolutely nothing for me.  But in Ecchi and Harem anime, I get so many laughs that it definitely improves my mood.  Both genres are centered around perversion a good portion of the time, but how they present it makes me laugh like mad.  The best comedy I have ever watched has been in Ecchi and Harem categories.  That is why on my anime list on my web site you see a lot of titles from these genres.

Fantasy: Definitely a top category for me.  This one is a no-brainer.  I mean … just read my profile … if you know me as a person and think I am not into anything adventurous, then you definitely do not know me at all 🙂

Game: This one really depends.  SAO is an AWESOME game Anime.  But others I never really got into.  Some of the mainstream ones, like Yu-Gi-Oh and Dragon Ball Z I never could seem to get into (maybe because they are all over the place and string on for hundreds of episodes), but there are a few game genre anime out there that have captured my heart. 

Harem: This is a touchy subject for some.  For me it really depends on the plot.  I am always supportive of the knight in shining armor that swears to protect females at all costs, or simply stick up for what is right no matter what.  If people fall in love with him for that … who can blame them?  In other aspects, though, I think I relate to harem male characters a lot… especially the awkward ones that seem clueless at times.  To some folks, harem is nothing more than some guy fantasizing about being surrounded by females.  For me … the male protagonists in this genre seem to always strike home when it comes to being the awkward underdog trying to do what is right in the world.  Other anime genres have protagonists like this, also, so my feelings on this aspect are not limited to harem.

Hentai:  For those that do not know, Hentai literally is Japanese for “Pervert”.  Honestly this is not a genre that attracts me, because a lot of it is pretty much just an animated variant of porn, and I am not a big fan of porn.  But there are a few titles out there which can be classified as Hentai that are frankly hilarious.  But if I had my choice of watching Hentai or Harem, I’ll choose Harem any day.

Historical: This is not a genre I go out of my way to watch, but I can say that a lot of my favorite anime has a lot of historical elements to it.  Some of my favorite titles do fall within this category.

Horror: Count me out on this one.  And I feel the same about anything horror related.  Due to events in my life, I definitely have a bit of PTSD when it comes to blood and gore.  I also have an extremely visual mind and horror genres in all aspects of entertainment, anime or live action, tends to hit me hard in a very negative way.  I have seen enough crap in real life to watch stuff like that on a screen.  I watch entertainment titles to forget … not to remember.

Josei: This genre is aimed at women from ages 18-40 by itself, but there are anime titles that fall into this category in ties with other genres as well.  If the plot is romantic enough, I’ll enjoy it.  Let the “Chick Flick” jokes begin, but I don’t care.  I watch what I watch.

Kids: Nope.  Hate to say it but anything rated for kids I can never seem to watch.  Anime for me has to have some adult natured plot and a serious aspect to it (even in the comedy genre).  Fortunately, kids level anime is rare and I don’t have to sift through much of it to find other anime that I actually do like.

Magic:  Yes, please, but only if it has other elements I like, such as romance and adventure.

Martial Arts: Just like Magic, a good martial arts anime has to have a plot that has romance and adventure/action in it as well.  Shows that are strictly fighting do not excite me that much.  Mix in the other stuff and it works out good, though.

Mecha: I tend to pick up on Mecha anime if it has a great plot to it.  As with Magic and Martial Arts (see above), I don’t go out of my way for Mecha.  But if the plot has those other elements I love, then awesome.  I think one of my favorites in the genre would be Full Metal Alchemist.

Military: There are titles in this genre I like, such as Fullmetal Panic.  Code Geass is cool, also.  However, Military is not a genre I go out of my way to watch.

Music: You know what?  It may be just coincidence or just luck of the picks, but I have honestly not watched any anime with any major musical plot.  So on this genre, I can’t make any statement, really.  I never really knew music was a major Anime genre.  Now I am curious, so I am going to track down and watch some titles to check out the genre.  I play music in real life, so I guess I am a bit surprised at myself as I type this that I never took in any Music genre anime.  Hmmm.  Time to Google some titles.

Mystery: Oddly enough, like Music (see above), I haven’t watched any anime that is surrounded by mystery.  The reason I say this is odd is because as far as live action films go, I love mystery.  I am a huge Sherlock Holmes fan.  I am also an addict to NCIS and CSI.  So why the hell haven’t I taken in similar shows in the anime genre?  Good question.  Like the music genre above, I need to check this one out!

Parody: Parody that appears off and on in another series I am watching makes me chuckle sometimes.  But as a genre this isn’t one I go for as a whole.

Police: I am actually in the midst of watching a very bad-ass Police based series as we speak called Psycho-Pass.  Cool show.  This genre definitely has some cool titles in it.

Post-Apocalyptic: Not a theme that snags my attention by itself.  But if it has other elements I like, such as a romantic twist, then awesome.  Now, stop that face-palming and asking me “WTF? Romance in a post-apocalyptic state?”  Believe it or not, yeah, I fantasize about that a lot.  Honestly, the only thing that keeps me from really wanting the human race to plow itself into such a state in real life is I can’t fathom the amount of cats that would be victimized in the process.  Yeah … I said it.  Cats.  That’s my whole reason I hope for anything other than war.  I love cats and don’t want them caught in our idiotic crossfire.

Psychological: Oh fuck the hell yes.  Death Note was a favorite of mine in this genre.  Need I say more?

Reverse Harem: Not my cup of tea.  Probably because I am a guy.  But I have had roommates into this genre and I have seen some really hilarious stuff in this genre.  For you ladies, I’d imagine this genre strikes you the same way as harem strikes me … lots of romance mixed with comedy relief.  It’s a great mix.

Romance: I cannot emphasize enough that this is probably my top genre of anime interest.  Toradora, Kaichou wa Maid-sama,  Golden Time, Clannad (Oh definitely Clannad) Kimi ni Todake, My Little Monster … All are outstanding titles.  One on my wish-list as of tonight to watch is Sakurasou no Pet no Kanojo.  Remember how I said above I love cats?  This one should be awesome.

School: Let’s face it.  Like, 99% of anime seems to take place in some sort of school environment.  Be it high school or college or some fantasy school for wizards and mages … Suffice it to say I do not consider this a genre but rather an environment, I guess.  One thing I do love about a lot of school-based anime is kind of an alternate reality to my past type thing.  Growing up, I was bullied a lot and I never fit in.  So I find myself getting into school plots a lot and practically yelling at the screen for the underdog to succeed.  I believe in multiple lives, and I just hope that in a future life I can be as brave and pure as some of my favorite school-based protagonists.

Sci-Fi:  To me Sci-Fi, like School, as a genre is quite broad.  Throw in adventure and romance, mix it with some sci-fi, and you have a winner from me.

Seinen: Like Josei, this is a demographic and also a genre.  This one aimed at males 18-40.  Ergo-Proxy is one of my favorites in this genre.

Shoujo-ai: Not my cup of tea.  I know, I know … a lot of guys go bonkers for girls falling for girls … but it’s just not my cup of tea.

Shounen: I am not a fan of this demographic, mainly due to my age.  I think the only title that ever held my interest for more than 5 minutes in this category was Fairy Tail, and that one only lasted about 5 or 6 episodes for me.

Shounen-ai: Again not my cup of tea.

Slice of Life: I get enough of that in real life, I guess.  I have tried watching Anime from this genre and can never really get into it. 

Space: Space is cool, but like Sci-Fi, toss in some romance and adventure, please.

Sports:  Sports generally bore me.  I have seen some cool anime with a sports theme, but it’s not something I go out of my way to watch.

Super Power:  At the risk of repeating myself, I’ll just say “See Sci-Fi and Space” descriptions above. 

Supernatural:  Oh hell yes.  If the plot is good, though.

Tragedy: No, thanks.  I get enough of that in real life. 

Vampire:  if it has vampires, I will most likely watch it.  No, not cliché.  Just a lot of Vampire based anime has kick ass plots to it.  Hellsing was an awesome series and iconic to that standing.

Yaoi and Yuri:  Both genres do not really do anything for me.

Well, there you have it.  So if you are one of my anime friends and considering tossing titles my way to watch, this should give you a better idea of what I like and how I feel about certain genres.