CAA: Christian Anime Alliance

Let's play a game.

Have you ever watched a show that no one else here has ever watched or heard of? I have! Some of them are pretty good! Some of them aren't.

In an effort to explore new things, let's introduce each other to shows (especially good ones!) that we're pretty sure no one here watches.

Now obviously, it's hard to tell if someone's seen a show or not. A pretty good heuristic is searching the Anime subforum to see if anyone else has mentioned it. Another good heuristic is if you're friends with a bunch of people from here on MAL and you can just see if they've watched it by going to the statistics on the show page.

Choose a show. Introduce it to everyone. Talk about it. Why is it great and why should everyone watch it? Why is it terrible and why should we thank God that you're the only one who had to be exposed to it? The possibilities are endless! You can ask questions about the show and maybe even start watching them. You might want to thank someone for a show that they introduced. Alternatively, you might want to curse them for introducing it and yourself for not ignoring their warning! What fun!

What happens if you think you're the only person who's seen a show and someone else has? Well, the other person should mention it so you can be publicly shamed for not knowing the watching habits of this community, I guess. And then, we'll probably move on or something.

Let's run through a few examples.

blkmage wrote:Hey guys, I bet no one watches Durarara!! It's pretty great.

Everyone else wrote:You are dumb]

blkmage wrote::<

---

blkmage wrote:Hey guys, I bet no one watched Kaiba! It's pretty great!

Fish and Chips wrote:You are dumb, I watched it. It was pretty great.

Everyone else wrote:What's a Kaiba?

blkmage and Fish and Chips wrote::<

---

blkmage wrote:Hey guys, I'm pretty sure no one has watched Gakuen Utopia Manabi Straight! It's pretty good.

Everyone else wrote:What is that? Maybe we will watch it.

---

blkmage wrote:Hey guys, I'm pretty sure no one has watched H2O ~Footprints in the Sand~. Good thing, because it is pretty awful.

Everyone else wrote:I guess we won't then!

---

So yeah, I guess you can play out other scenarios in your head.

Anyway, I think I'll start with Shigofumi, which is a show that aired in Winter 2008 that not many people watched. It's about a girl who delivers letters from the dead. On the surface it looks like a lovely little episodic feelgood kind of show, where the dead get a chance to let the living know one last thing. It isn't. There is some pretty grim and dark stuff that it covers. The ending to the first arc caught me by surprise because I'd assumed that I knew what kind of show it was.

Pssh, "pretty" sure? I'm 100% positive nobody else here watches the anime I do.

First up is Heartcatch PreCure, which is the latest in the line of the Pretty Cure series. I actually got into it because /m/ recommended it. Guess it's got a lot of mecha references in it. Not that I've seen enough mecha to get them all, but it's still a good series.

But, in the extremely off-chance that someone else is watching that, though I highly doubt it, I've got an anime that I know for a FACT that nobody else here has seen. The Imagin Anime, based on Kamen Rider Den-O! It's pretty much just a silly side-project to Den-O, starring the Imagin going around doing silly things...such as the second episode where Urataros gleefully states how his lies are blooming, and lies to Kintaros and Deneb...only to have his lies turn out to be the truth, which causes him to sink into depression.

It's a series that people won't understand at all unless they've seen Den-O. And nobody would have even HEARD of it unless they've seen Den-O, so I can state with complete assurance I am the ONLY ONE. *wins*

blkmage (post: 1398912) wrote:Anyway, I think I'll start with Shigofumi, which is a show that aired in Winter 2008 that not many people watched. It's about a girl who delivers letters from the dead. On the surface it looks like a lovely little episodic feelgood kind of show, where the dead get a chance to let the living know one last thing. It isn't. There is some pretty grim and dark stuff that it covers. The ending to the first arc caught me by surprise because I'd assumed that I knew what kind of show it was.

This has been on my to-watch since FOREVER, but I can never seem to find time for it! ><" I really want to see it, and since it's summer I now have the time- it's moved up my piority list.

Ghost Hound is one of my most favorite anime. Not only does it have awesome visuals and music, but the story... Well, every episode is named after a psychological term, and that episode will explore themes related to that term. It goes deep into the psychological, and plays around with ideas about the subconcious and alternate realities. While it does go out there in the last few episodes, it does have a lot concerning memories, being influenced to see stuff and follow others, and end up being a bit of a mystery as well.

Then there's also Mononoke, which I really like as well. Not Princess Mononoke, just Mononoke, a series that came into being as a spinoff from the Bakeneko arc of the series Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror. This is a supernatural/psychological mystery series, that explores facets of people and the lies they tell, as well as featuring different spirits from Japanese mythology. And it can be fairly frightening at times. It's also worth a look merely for the experimental animation they used, which takes a while to get used to, but really draws the eye.

@ Nate- I've heard of Heartcatch Pretty Cure, and it's had a lot of good things said about it. Is it really worth a watch?

If you like magical girl type shows, Heartcatch PreCure is up there in terms of quality. The stories are good, the characters are fun, there's enough mystery to keep you interested, and the bad guys are a legitimate threat. Dark PreCure is amazing, and Kumojacky is totally sweet. So yeah, if you like magical girl stuff, you seriously can't go wrong with Heartcatch.

Nate (post: 1398940) wrote:If you like magical girl type shows, Heartcatch PreCure is up there in terms of quality. The stories are good, the characters are fun, there's enough mystery to keep you interested, and the bad guys are a legitimate threat. Dark PreCure is amazing, and Kumojacky is totally sweet. So yeah, if you like magical girl stuff, you seriously can't go wrong with Heartcatch.

I shall keep that in mind, and put it on my to-watch list. Wooo! I've missed Magical Girl...

Nate (post: 1398936) wrote:First up is Heartcatch PreCure, which is the latest in the line of the Pretty Cure series. I actually got into it because /m/ recommended it. Guess it's got a lot of mecha references in it. Not that I've seen enough mecha to get them all, but it's still a good series.

Man, between this and Nanoha, /m/ is looking more like /m/agical girl than /m/echa. Speaking of Nanoha (which, unfortunately I know someone else has watched), if you like mecha tropes (red/white/blue colour scheme, friendship and burning passion, funnels, etc.) with your magical girl, Nanoha is for you.

I was actually deciding whether or not to get into Ayakashi and Mononoke today, but I decided to hold off on it and continue on with Mushishi instead for now.

Well here's the super catchy opening, with a nice preview of the kind of battles you can expect from the show at the 50 second mark.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j74UJ5bde5k

blkmage (post: 1398946) wrote:I was actually deciding whether or not to get into Ayakashi and Mononoke today, but I decided to hold off on it and continue on with Mushishi instead for now.

They're both great series, and I hope you consider picking Mononoke/Ayakashi up after finishing Mushishi.

Nate (post: 1398947) wrote:Well here's the super catchy opening, with a nice preview of the kind of battles you can expect from the show at the 50 second mark.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j74UJ5bde5k

I like Shugo Chara and Princess Tutu, I think this'll be nice to cheer me up! Definately on my PTW list!

Atria35 (post: 1398937) wrote:Ghost Hound is one of my most favorite anime. Not only does it have awesome visuals and music, but the story... Well, every episode is named after a psychological term, and that episode will explore themes related to that term. It goes deep into the psychological, and plays around with ideas about the subconcious and alternate realities. While it does go out there in the last few episodes, it does have a lot concerning memories, being influenced to see stuff and follow others, and end up being a bit of a mystery as well.

I've also watched Ghost Hound, and it is one of my favorites as well. The psychological aspects in the series are fascinating, and I was surprised with how wonderful the characters turned out. A trio of bratty teenaged boys? And yet I cared about all three by the end. But speaking of that end...I hated it.

@Nate: You’]Yumeiro Patissiere[/B]!

It’s just about the most sickeningly sweet shoujo anime out there (literally, since it involves lots of cake!), and pretty much covers every stereotype shoujo anime has ever garnered...but since I haven’t watched an ultra shoujo like this in a while, I’m fine with it. I’ve actually kind of missed this...ridiculousness. Sugar, cute clumsy girls, chibi fairy mascots...it’s got it all. Not sure if I’m recommending this or not, since it is definitely not everyone’s slice of cake (pardon the awful pun), but it is a show I just don’t have the heart to dislike. I don’t think any “serious otakus” out there have been following it, but I’m proud to say (okay, maybe a little embarrassed...but just a little) that I will follow Amano Ichigo to the end!

Another show I watched and enjoyed a lot was the 2007 series, Hitohira. It is about a very timid girl who is pressured into joining her high school’s “Drama Research Society”, a small spin-off club on the school’s much larger drama club. I found it was surprisingly engaging compared with most other anime of the slice-of-high school type out there.

Yumeiro Patissiere? I've heard of it, but you're right- no desire to watch it! XD

Hmmm. I'll up the stakes with Aoi Bungaku and Kobato. Aoi Bungaku is classic Japanese literature turned into anime. Blue because it's kinda depressing, I suppose, but also a great historical/psychological/thriller anime. Animation is awesome, stories are well-done... It's pretty awesome. Kobato is based off of CLAMP's latest manga. A girl is trying to get enough 'Happiness points' (my term for it) after making enough people happy to fulfill a wish of her own, accompanied by an adorable-looking but rather rude blue stuffed dog. While it seems somewhat incomplete, due to the manga still being ongoing, it's still pretty good.

I have gotten my more obscure anime from recommendations here, so I really can't pull out Kure-nai or Denpateki na Kanojo. However, I'm willing to wager that no one here has seen the Naruto OVA "Battle at the Hidden Falls". Once upon a time, the only anime I watched was Naruto. And since I thought watching it in Japanese was for obsessed weirdos(which I totally was at the time), I was desperate for more stuff while the dub was slowly going through the fillers. Now, I'm not a hater of older Naruto stuff. While it isn't the best, it hold a special place in my heart that probably looks better when viewed through nostalgia filters that I have and others don't. This OVA was terrible. Never watch it.

Mr. Hat'n'Clogs (post: 1398964) wrote:However, I'm willing to wager that no one here has seen the Naruto OVA "Battle at the Hidden Falls".

Saw it when my sis was watching it on tv just to see it. It was amazingly terrible and we both laughed and facepalmed at it the whole time.

I'd actually passed over Aoi Bungaku because no one was subbing it at the start of the season it was airing. I take it that it's subbed now?

I watched all of Kobato and I'm not really sure why. It was okay, I guess, but it reinforced my suspicions that I wouldn't like CLAMP shenanigans like the stuff that happened towards the end.

blkmage (post: 1398967) wrote:I'd actually passed over Aoi Bungaku because no one was subbing it at the start of the season it was airing. I take it that it's subbed now?

I watched all of Kobato and I'm not really sure why. It was okay, I guess, but it reinforced my suspicions that I wouldn't like CLAMP shenanigans like the stuff that happened towards the end.

Yep, Aoi is now totally subbed!

Kobato, well, the end went off the manga. The manga isn't done, and it shows in the anime. They were too eager to animate it, unfortunately >.>" But I'd recommend other CLAMP anime/manga, for sure.

hmmm....looking through my anime list, it doesn't seem like there's much that is really truly obscure. I'd guess the least well know anime I've seen is Bokurano. I've watched Kobato. too, but thats CLAMP so its not likely to stay obscure for long. It also seems to me that generally Getter Robo and Mazinger Z aren't watched by that many people these days. I enjoy those series quit a bit (yay Musashi and Boss!!)

Does Super Sentai/tokusatsu count or are we doing anime only?

ShiroiHikari (post: 1398975) wrote:Does Super Sentai/tokusatsu count or are we doing anime only?

O.O! ....is that...Power Rangers? lol. IDK, if this counts...but, I'm pretty sure anyone who is familiar with Power Rangers has heard of this.

One anime that I've seen (but dropped, because it just wasn't right for me....and the dub was...awful in my opinion) is called Fancy Lala. I'm not sure if anyone else has heard of it. It kinda a similar theme to Fullmoon. A young girl is granted the ability to turn into a 16 year old girl, and becomes a famous singer/actress/model. It's cute, but it was kinda cheesy for my taste.

Rocketshipper (post: 1398973) wrote:hmmm....looking through my anime list, it doesn't seem like there's much that is really truly obscure. I'd guess the least well know anime I've seen is Bokurano.

Seen and for the most part, enjoy You're right, though, it is fairly obscure.

ShiroiHikari (post: 1398975) wrote:Does Super Sentai/tokusatsu count or are we doing anime only?

Anime only, I think.

steenajack (post: 1398978) wrote:One anime that I've seen (but dropped, because it just wasn't right for me....and the dub was...awful in my opinion) is called Fancy Lala.

Heard of it. Figured Full Moon was enough for me on that front

The Z Project was intended to give the new generation a break from caring for the old. The original intenion was to create a machine to care for them without any intervention. At first glance, it looked like an excellent plan, and many of the younger generation approved of its application. But when old Mr. Takazawa become the test subject for the Z-001 machine, Haruko questioned both the tactics of the hospital and the moral implications of the machine. This is just the beginning, as Haruko has not just the hospital, but the odds against her. But then, she discovers an odd quirk about the machine: it uses a biochip, and it eventually acquires a mind of its own!

It's a biting critique of how Japan treats its Elders.

[quote="Nate (post: 1398936)"]Pssh, "pretty" sure? I'm 100%]

*Raises Hand*
Ummm I know you read my intro thread because you posted in it. I have seen the entire first season of the Imagine anime and have the second sitting on my comp. and I have the first two episodes of Yes! PreCure on there as well waiting to be watched.
Oh and also to 1up you. I have seen SD Kamen Rider which I'm sure no one or at least almost no one has seen. It was an OVA that had all the riders up to RX having fun adventures. It was hilarious and I recommend it strongly. Especially to those who are Kamen Rider fans.
Also I have seen several anime movies that I do not think anyone else has. Such as Once upon a time. Which was an awful adaptation of Romeo and Juliet and I would recommend staying far away from it. I would say the same thing about a movie I watched last night called Strait-Jacket. Really bad story, writing, etc...and it was just plain dumb. The only thing that made it the slightest bit cool was that Steve Jay Blum acted in it.

ShiroiHikari (post: 1398975) wrote:Does Super Sentai/tokusatsu count or are we doing anime only?

I was considering it, but then I realized that it would be too easy.

Detroit Metal City. There seems to be a significantly small amount of people on here who have seen it.

Basically it's a satire of the metal genre and fanbase(as well as the pop fanbase). The main character is a young strapping lad who wants to make Swedish pop music his mom can listen to. He's a bit of a wuss. However, he ends up joining a heavy metal band. He gets the corspe paint and all the works.

He ends up developing two personas, his wuss side and his metal side. The two mix in hilarious ways. His songs are so outrageously vulgar that it's funny.

(If you're easily offended, this isn't the anime for you.)

Falx (post: 1399003) wrote:

The Z Project was intended to give the new generation a break from caring for the old. The original intenion was to create a machine to care for them without any intervention. At first glance, it looked like an excellent plan, and many of the younger generation approved of its application. But when old Mr. Takazawa become the test subject for the Z-001 machine, Haruko questioned both the tactics of the hospital and the moral implications of the machine. This is just the beginning, as Haruko has not just the hospital, but the odds against her. But then, she discovers an odd quirk about the machine: it uses a biochip, and it eventually acquires a mind of its own!

It's a biting critique of how Japan treats its Elders.

This sounds like a really interesting concept! Would you say it's well done/worth watching?

I'm mostly using this thread to find things that sound interesting, because the obscure anime I've seen are very few and far between. XD Most of the things I've seen either are licensed and well known, or were only unlicensed and fairly obscure back when I first watched them years ago (like AirTV and Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha). I have read some fairly obscure one-shot manga, but this isn't a thread about that, so this is really all I have to contribute! XD

Wolf-man wrote:I have seen SD Kamen Rider which I'm sure no one or at least almost no one has seen.

I've seen clips of it, but never seen a full episode or anything, so I guess I can't count that.

Falx (post: 1399003) wrote:It's a biting critique of how Japan treats its Elders.

I saw part of this a looooong time ago when SciFi still showed anime on Saturdays. My husband saw the whole thing recently. He said it was actually pretty good.

So no Sentai or toku, eh? :<

Oh heck; I'll just make a list. Pretty sure nobody else here has seen any of this stuff:

ZZ Gundam
Mazinkaiser
Armored Trooper Votoms
Betterman
Hades Project Zeorymer
Beast King GoLion
Swan Lake
The Little Mermaid

The anime version of The Little Mermaid is actually pretty cool. It's true to the original story and the animation looks good for its age (mid 1970s, I think).

I'm one of five people on Earth that liked ZZ Gundam. But I can't recommend it unless you've seen First Gundam and Zeta Gundam.

Zeorymer is pretty good for being only four episodes long.

GoLion is pretty fun, though not the greatest thing in the world. I would only recommend it if A) you like and are used to watching old anime B) you like giant robots C) you liked Voltron as a kid.

I watched Betterman, ShiroiHikari. And I liked it.
Here's some more titles I think no one here watches but I do:
Kekkaishi
Noein (I even submitted a review after its first run on Sci-fi)
Gad Guard
Gunslinger Girl
Gintama

rocklobster (post: 1399057) wrote:I watched Betterman, ShiroiHikari. And I liked it.
Here's some more titles I think no one here watches but I do:
Kekkaishi
Noein (I even submitted a review after its first run on Sci-fi)
Gad Guard
Gunslinger Girl
Gintama

I've watched Gunslinger Girl and some Noein. I've also seen about the first 20 episodes of Gintama, then gave it up. But, I watched a video of a few clips from it recently and saw someone make a "hard-boiled" joke (see Kamen Rider W), so I may start watching it again.


One series I've never seen anyone else mention is Earl and Fairy. I might be the only one who lasted through its confusing plot. XD; All in all, it was cute, but someone in the story writing department could not make up their mind on what story to use...so, they used them all.

And has anyone besides me watched the Japanese version of Sonic X? (the dub does not count as watching it, at all >_>; ) I'm almost positive I'm the only one who enjoyed that series because they put in a lot of references from the Sonic and Hedgehog games.

And I used to be the only one who watch Tegami Bachi, but apparently other people do now. \o.o/

Hey hey! I watch Tegami Bachi!

And I've only seen clips of it, but I don't think anyone else here has seen more of Victory Gundam than me.

Rocketshipper (post: 1398973) wrote: I've watched Kobato. too, but thats CLAMP so its not likely to stay obscure for long. QUOTE]
A friend of mine (from China though so she watches a lot more obscure stuff since its a little easier to get) recommended that so I might buy and/or watch that.

A friend of mine (from China so she sees a lot of obsure stuff, and she's a CLAMP fanatic (minus the shonen ai stuff)) told , I should so I probably should try it out so I probably will soon.

rocklobster (post: 1399057) wrote:Here's some more titles I think no one here watches but I do:
Kekkaishi
Gintama

Kekkaishi I started watching on Adult Swim. Seems fine though I think AS is having a Vic Mignogna overdose. (like him, but he does too much) I'll probably stick with it to see how it is.

Gintama is a favorite of two of my friends, one being the one mentioned above, the other an avid reader/watcher Shonen series. I will probably start soon.

I am pretty sure no one here has watched Kirarin Revolution. For the most part its a great starter series for younger anime newbies. (with the exception of there being a Seiko(Lovely Complex)-like character (see the Love*om CAA review for details) its a little like a Japanese idol/ anime version of Hannah Montana, without the "hidden identity."

ShiroiHikari (post: 1399051) wrote:
The Little Mermaid

The anime version of The Little Mermaid is actually pretty cool. It's true to the original story and the animation looks good for its age (mid 1970s, I think).

Is that the one where most of the mermaids (including the main character) run around topless for most of the movie.
It reminds me of a review I read once.
http://www.retrojunk.com/details_articles/507/