Most Underrated Animes & Manga

ZephyrStar · Post by **ZephyrStar** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 1:33 pm

Iced Earth Fan wrote:I haven't heard too much of Noir on here, its a great show.

x2

And it IS slow, but I think it worked for it in building the tension and atmosphere. I also like the fact that the firearms stuff wasn't really realistic. They didn't show blood at all either, so I think it was part of the style of the show. The ending I appreciated but was not amazed by. Still, has a special place on my anime shelf.

Big Dumb Face · Post by **Big Dumb Face** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 3:32 pm

ZephyrStar wrote:
Iced Earth Fan wrote:I haven't heard too much of Noir on here, its a great show.
x2

And it IS slow, but I think it worked for it in building the tension and atmosphere. I also like the fact that the firearms stuff wasn't really realistic. They didn't show blood at all either, so I think it was part of the style of the show. The ending I appreciated but was not amazed by. Still, has a special place on my anime shelf.

Be careful not to confuse lack of attention and mistakes for "style". They could have done the "no blood" thing effectively without letting the gunworkand the lackluster enemies go to pot. Also the constant repetition of the same musical cues and the same flashback sequences over and over again. At first it's intriguing but it eventually becomes filler for lack of any other content. Considering all those things, Noir comes off as lazy/ Too lazy to make the weapons realistic, too lazy to make the antagonists formidable, and too lazy to put any kind of thought into pacing the show or it's various dramatic aspects.
It portrays itself as a buddy-story ala Dirty Pair or Gunsmith Cats, but instead of taking the opportunity to wow us with how much "deeper" a story it can be than that, it disappoints.

Smt410 · Post by **Smt410** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 9:05 am

I think Requiem for the darkness is one thats overlooked sadly.

The artwork is wonderful even though at times it seemed like it was
a bit rushed.

Knappster · Post by **Knappster** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 9:27 pm

konjiki no gash bell

dj_ultima_the_great · Post by **dj_ultima_the_great** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 3:30 pm

I'm gonna say xxxHolic. I hear so few people even mention it, manga OR anime - which is really surprising, considering not only that it's a CLAMP production, but also that it's directly tied into the immensely popular Tsubasa series! Do a Super Search for it on this site and you get 39 results total, downloadable or not. Maybe it's just not a popular AMV source...? Whatever the case, I love xxxHolic and I'm sad to see that it's not more on the forefront.

- Jen

kikai_saigono · Post by **kikai_saigono** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 3:54 pm

Jen -- also, Tsubasa is being advertised on Gaia online, with an announcement and quests coming out each time a new volume is released...it's just getting more advertising, and people are clinging to it moar :o A shame, xxxHolic really is just as good as Tsubasa :(

SarahtheBoring · Post by **SarahtheBoring** » Mon Jul 30, 2007 9:50 pm

Antique Bakery, which is a four-volume manga. The only shounen-ai/BL-esque series I've seen that I thought was actually well-written and coherent. Not to say that such a thing can't be done. Simply that nobody seems to do it.

Doomed on the mainstream-otaku side because one of the characters is gay and the art is shoujo-feathery; doomed on the yaoi-otaku side because most of the characters are old (late 20s into their 30s), there's no hott sex0r, and the BL elements are just one subplot out of several instead of being the main focus.

Also, nobody has magical powers (unless you count "making straight men fall in love with you for no apparent reason") or a giant robot. But they do have cake. Come to the Dark Side!

CrazyLee · Post by **CrazyLee** » Tue Jul 31, 2007 11:52 am

I second 3x3 Eyes, Key, Birdy, Tsukikage Ran, Armitage III.

I don't have one myself that I can think of besides Ruin Explorers, which I'm not sure if it's underrated or over rated but it sure was obscure. I thought it was cute, but too short.

My ex-gf claims Knights Lamune/Ramume as underrated, but I can't vouch for that as I haven't seen much of it.

megaman917 · Post by **megaman917** » Fri Aug 03, 2007 1:35 am

One Piece

The 4Kids dub ruined One Piece's credibility. The uncut Japanese version is the shit! I guarantee that more you get into it, the more you'll be hooked. Hell, I've already watched 255 episodes already. It's that damn good!

CodeZTM · Post by **CodeZTM** » Fri Aug 03, 2007 1:54 am

I'd also like to add Gunslinger Girl. I hardly ever see it getting the recognition it deserves in anywhere. It's a beautiful and artistic anime that actually strays away from the typical japanese anime (it's actually set in Italy). The soundtrack is awesome too.