Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei

Abstract insanity in both of these classics, with Zetsubou being admittedly more "all-over-the-place" than Haruhi. Both contain great comic elements, and are highly entertaining. 

report Recommended by MarshallM

the relationship between sensei/fuura and kyon/haruhi are VERY similer as the guys regualr people who are realistic and don't believe a lot of things. basicly they can be quite negative because of their personality. and than you have hyperactive idiot girls who believe that ANYTHING is possible, you have to either try or believe. which makes a nice skit as there are like yin & yang to each other to create harmony....or somthing
as for the rest of the class (o, that reminds me, their both school life too), there also a bunch of weird people with "special" features/personalities/powers.
both our heroes wish they werent in the positions there in, getting dragged into their problems and being bothered by them. But alas, they have to deal with it....or do they??
the only difference between the guys are that in SZS the guy is a teacher and in the other he's a student. read more 

report Recommended by supermegasonic

Both are random. Both are entertaining by the cast of quirky characters. The art is well animated.  

report Recommended by Deer50

Ridiculous plot, genre-savviness and meta-humor. 

report Recommended by asada_lin

Satirical comedy as the main focus on the show. The main character is cynical and the rest of the casts are weirdly funny. Also had an interesting narrative in both two 

report Recommended by addictedtoliving

xxxHOLiC addpermalink

There are very similar to each other, although xxxHolic has a much darker perspective than Sayonara Zetsubuo Sensei, and Sayonara Zetsubuo Sensei has a much funnier comedic perspective? 

report Recommended by underMebius

Uramichi Oniisan addpermalink

Both feature leads working with kids and both are pretty pessmistic and both focus around comedy plots as well too. 

report Recommended by Disapeared_Ghost

Same voice actor for MC who is depressed, subservient and very analytical. Very adult dark comedy about work, unfulfillment and life in general. I had to check several times if Uramichi Oniisan author wasn't also Kōji Kumeta because humor is very similar. 

report Recommended by blackhaulmike

Life sucks hard and really is a pain in the ass when you become an adult. Both anime talk about the realities of modern society and deal with people with constant depression ... while still being hilarious.
Uramichi and Nozomu share most of their personality traits about being in despair, and are also voiced by the same voice actor, which is coincidentally ironic and funny. 

report Recommended by Gud91

Both are dark comedies. While SZS is more wacky, bizarre and has a ton of Japanese culture/folklore references, Uramichi Oniisan is very straightforward. The social commentary and humour are very similar, and the characters in both the series are named in ways that define their personalities. A fan of either is likely to appreciate the other.  

report Recommended by arne0

Black comedy with depressed main character who works with kids, teaches them important life lessons (for example, that some things in the modern society are stupid), whose name has not very happy meaning ("Despair" for Itoshiki if his name is spelled horizontal and its kanji are too close to each other, and "Depressing" for Uramichi).
Also, both anime have very little respect for the fourth wall. 

report Recommended by mirzamSch

Adult life SUCKS. This is the message that theses two series bring, full of nihilism, despair, depression, and fun comrades, theses two animes will unironically make you question your adult-life decisions.    

report Recommended by _Ganji

Kakushigoto addpermalink

Both series are made by Kouji Kumeta, so the comedy is very similar. The main characters are also voiced by Hiroshi Kamiya, which make them give off similar vibes. 

report Recommended by MoonPhos

Not only are the protagonists similar, both voiced by Kamiya Hiroshi and with almost identical designs, but some of the side characters in Kakushigoto also look a lot like characters from Zetsubou-sensei, often sharing surnames or having names that are anagrams of the names of Zetsubou-sensei characters. The style of humor is pretty similar, and Kakushigoto also has some drama. 

report Recommended by Kww_121

Shares the same original creator and voice actor for the main character. They have a similar style and tone, both being gag manga.  

report Recommended by TheDataOvermind

Same author, same voice actor for the mc, same art style, same commedy. One is cute and melancholic, other not so much. Its possile that if you have seen Zetsubou Sensei first, Kakushigoto could be a bit creepy for you at first. Just imagine, Zetsubou Sensei but cute and colourful... ugh, super creepy. 

report Recommended by blackhaulmike

they're both made by kumeta kouji so the jokes and humor are fairly similar, but the biggest difference is the fact that zetsubou sensei was done by shaft, so zetsubou sensei is a lot more abstract 

report Recommended by fricksalot

Definitely was inspired by this one: protagonist (appearance, VA, behavior), art style (at least I can see some resemblance) and humor in some ways (in Kakushigoto it's a lot more tamed tho). I mean they even joke about it in one episode. 

report Recommended by rando_passing_by

Joshiraku addpermalink

The same type of satire, dark comedy, social criticism and parodies everywhere. 

report Recommended by okasion

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Gintama addpermalink

I think both of these are pretty similar in terms of random comedy and all the spoof/parodies they have. They're both pretty enjoyable. 

report Recommended by PandaPuff

Azumanga Daiou The Animation addpermalink

Azumanga Daioh and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei focus on the interaction between crazy teachers and zany students. Both are rather random and do not adhere to a strict plot, relaying on continous gags instead of storytelling. Azumanga Daioh is less insane, though, and its parodies can be enjoyed by all ages while Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei offers a kind of dark humour and a stock full of pop culture references that are aimed at an older audience.  

report Recommended by Nocturnal

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Negima!? addpermalink

Both shows are from the same studio, SHAFT, so they share quite a bit in terms of humour and style.  Zetsubou Sensei has much more dark humor though, and a more distinct artistic style (in some ways similar to xxxHOLIC). Negima is a bit more random, and focuses a little more on magic and jumbled relationships and such. 

report Recommended by Krelian

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The alternate version of Mahou Sensei Negima!, Negima!?, has a lot in common with zetsubou sensei, it has various parodies to other animes, randomness, and at times, cold humor 

report Recommended by Godel

Harems where the teacher is the guy and all or the majority of the class is girls.

I know your not suppose to recommend sequels or related series but I think this is a special case because Shaft did the animation production for both Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei and Negima!? which gives them a similar feel.

Just watch the opening theme for the two series, you will see what I mean.

report Recommended by Jackster27

New teacher gets a class that is full of weirdos and has to deal with them. The girls proceed to fall in love with said teacher. While Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei is a satire, Negima plays the harem tropes more straight, althrough thanks to this particular version of Negima also being done by Shaft, you can expect antics more similar to SZS than the original version of Negima has. 

report Recommended by abystoma2

Both are anime made by the same studio, which involves a male teacher whose girls in the class suddenly fall in love (literally) with him. Negima!? does play the harem part more hevily, while Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei keeps it as a subtext, but both are funny stories about the antics of quirky students and a quirky teacher. I'd like to note that Negima!? also differs in having supernatural elements like vampires or magic. 

report Recommended by eblf2013

Nichijou addpermalink

Wordy, yes. Daily life, yes. Trying to do stuff in a Mr. Bean way, yes times ten. Both show share the ways of being funny, if you can really overlook the art style people normally can't. 

Uh, sure, when you watch SZS it's feel like New Zealand All Blacks somehow dominate the monitor, but the real promise of SZS is just the wacky daily life of a very stereotypical cast of characters. Art style simply do the trick of differentiating the show from other school life.

If I like Nichijou I will like SZS, you kidding? No. Darker atmosphere in SZS is not real, it is at most halfway to being black comedy, the real show is pretty much daily life comedy that also discuss politics and social issue in an epic funny way. Nichijou jokes didn't relate much to current social issue though. read more 

report Recommended by lapisdragon

Great Teacher Onizuka addpermalink

Teacher+ many students with problems... this feels just like GTO 

report Recommended by Vin-nii

FLCL addpermalink

crazy fast insane wtf humor 

report Recommended by Classicola

Sakigake!! Cromartie Koukou addpermalink

They both have a similar type of random humor. Zetsubou Sensei is faster paced however and Cromartie relies more on timing with its humor and makes fun of all the high school delinquent anime stereotypes. If you found one funny you'll probably enjoy the other as well.  

report Recommended by Danish

Natsu no Arashi! addpermalink

Both anime are comedies, both are made by shaft, and they have somewhat similar humour 

report Recommended by hajil

Bungou Stray Dogs addpermalink

The animes share a similar tone of comedy.
SZS is slice of life whereas BSD is action.
The main character in SZS is a suicidal maniac, similar to Dazai. 

report Recommended by kumihoe

Kuuchuu Buranko addpermalink

Both anime are crazy comedies about psychological issues. They include playing with different types of animation and are drawn in an uniqe way.    

report Recommended by Snowley

Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou addpermalink

Despise the fact that SZS is fucking surreal and DKNN never ever defy gravity in the slightest, they both share notable similarities.

Humor, the vein of all comedy show. It's True that black comedy in SZS is way different than puns and slapstick used in DKNN, but you could see that the pacing is pretty fast in both of the show. Sometimes they slow down to let audiences catch their breath and get a hold of the joke, but for most part they are Speed Racer.

Pacing, like I say in the humor part, they both are blazing fast. DKNN is a proof that slice of life don't necessarily need to have an easy-going sleep-inducing pace like Aria, Honey and Clover, or Natsume Yuujinsho.

Voice acting, and I am not talking about the cast. It's the instruction the actors received. Their script are all about over-reacting for most part of the show except explanation phase or non-slapstick time. Not exactly Japanese-learning environment.

Setting. If you ignore the occasional dimensional warping in SZS, they are both school comedy with plenty of students discussing nonsense you never actually talk about back in high school. Or did you?

That's pretty much it. A comedy lover like you will casually enjoy both. But if you have stricter taste and dislike either run-of-a-mill daily jokes or sarcastic black comedy with some gores you might find one of them less interesting than the other. read more

report Recommended by lapisdragon

Anime: Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai: Tensai-tachi no Renai Zunousen

Kaguya-sama wa Kokurasetai: Tensai-tachi no Renai Zunousen addpermalink

Episodic comedies that are filled by dark humor and satirical joke, although Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei take it in a more extreme way while Kaguya-Sama take it in a light way and is more a romantic comedy. The way Ishigami was presented also remind me the protagonist of Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei 

report Recommended by addictedtoliving

Anime: Heppoko Jikken Animation Excel♥Saga

Heppoko Jikken Animation Excel♥Saga addpermalink

Both shows are very comical and make funny references to other anime and pop culture.  They also have very obsessive female characters being obsessive toward an unwelcoming male and make light of very controversial issues. 

report Recommended by ziplap

Osomatsu-san addpermalink

Good puns, terrible puns, and lousy puns (or should I say osomatsu puns? Ho ho ho). I pity the fansubbers and translators. Both series rely quite heavily on Japanese wordplay, so it's quite a treat if you understand at least a little, otherwise you are at the mercy of the subbers.

Great comedy shows with little continuity, but plenty of random surrealist gag skits and dark humour; full of pop-culture references and more self-aware than an average adult. The colour palettes are also pretty wild in both and the art style is quite different from the average anime.

report Recommended by Lemon

Asobi Asobase addpermalink

Very Similar sense of humor and aesthetic. with the cute girls and everything. 

report Recommended by shirogane-san

Hoozuki no Reitetsu addpermalink

Both are comedies with references to japanese culture and other anime. The main character is an adult and the anime is happening mostly at the place of their jobs. 

report Recommended by abystoma2

Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan addpermalink

If Hiroshi Kamiya ranting about the absurdities and logical inconsequences of Japanese society and humanity in general sounds like your idea of fun, both series are right up your alley.

The protagonist also plays a similar role in both series, being a reluctant helper for the bunch of dysfunctional beings that in turn make him find his human side. 

report Recommended by Sarubadooru

Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru addpermalink

Similar randomness & comedy. Similar fluid animation. 

report Recommended by xjason

Anime: Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Comedy wa Machigatteiru.

Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Comedy wa Machigatteiru. addpermalink

They don't have the same premise but they sure are entertaining especially through the usage of their dialogues. In fact, the dialogues from both series are quite memorable, catchy, and has a moral to them as opposed to just being just talk. 

The main male protagonist from both series also has a very indifferent outlook on life. They also attracts the attention of others but sometimes in ways they don't want them to be.

Both series has a lot of humor and great style of scenes portrayed at school.  

report Recommended by Stark700

Ansatsu Kyoushitsu addpermalink

Both are comedy animes focused around a unique teacher. 

report Recommended by Mr_Skylight

Nisemonogatari addpermalink

Similar:
The pacing of action.
The use of color. 
The attitude of the main character. 
The main character: A bewildered male surrounded by a bunch of crazy chicks. 
Style. The psychotic little inserts, artfully translating the moodswings of the characters.  
I Love both.  

report Recommended by Tsukin3Hoshi

Hidamari Sketch addpermalink

Loads and LOADS of one-shot jokes. A method where a joke is told and a corresponding picture is flashed on a screen usually under a second. It's a form of comedy but for the ones that understand the jokes it is also a very rewarding style that enhances the joke. 

Anyways loads of one shot gags and loads of girls although the mood are both complete opposites of each other. Still, its worth giving both a try if your really into that style of comedy.  

report Recommended by Ranivus

Seitokai Yakuindomo addpermalink

These two shows are comedies based on subjects that are considered taboo or inappropriate. Both shows act as sketch comedies as they primarily feature strong running gags. Neither show establishes a main plot. The shows feature a male main character, followed by extremely odd females.

"Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei" discusses common situations as they can be seen from an eccentric outlook, while "Seitokai Yakuindomo" uses slapstick humor as punchlines in common situations. "Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei" is random in their themes, while "Seitokai Yakuindomo" predominantly makes sexual jokes. 

report Recommended by Cased

Gakkatsu! addpermalink

Class debates over small problems, similar tone 

report Recommended by flopan

Isekai Shikkaku addpermalink

Both are tightly written dark comedies, parodying a specific genre of otaku media with nihilistic-minded protagonists who are heavily inspired by the author Dazai Osamu as well as his most popular novel, "No Longer Human." Isekai Shikkaku is also clearly influenced by Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei itself, or at least is similar enough with its approach that it is rather reminiscent of it.
An absolute must-watch if you like Dazai-inspired anime or Kamiya Hiroshi's voice work. 

report Recommended by miwa_nee

Vlad Love addpermalink

Vlad Love and and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei both are set in a school, but lack a school themed plot. Rather, an eccentric teacher and a group of equally wacky students are used to discuss sophisticated themes and take ensemble roles in random settings. SZS  covers mainly social commentary on idiosyncrasies of Japanese society, while VL mainly deals with the arts and cultural themes (movies in particular). Both use countless references to to their sophisticated non-anime subject matters casually. This often requires side-reading and a rich education to understand all the gags. Both shows have an experimental animation style, episodic structure, and random gag based dark humor. read more 

report Recommended by inim

Hayate no Gotoku! addpermalink

Both contain a lot of references to other anime/manga works and are hilarious, especially SZS. 

report Recommended by DragonsWhip

Seitokai no Ichizon addpermalink

Just like this series, Zetsubou Sensei has many many hidden anime parodies. 

report Recommended by Sereeney

Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu addpermalink

They very much remind me of each other, not because their humor is very similar but because they have the same way of spitting at klichés. They both deviate from what is "classic" anime comedy, and both does so brilliantly. 

report Recommended by Volbla