Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World

insert wojak meme

Anime where the story takes place mostly in rural areas or far from urban cities. (In construction)

Next (Part 2): https://myanimelist.net/stacks/9968

Worldbuilding - "the process of constructing a world, originally an imaginary one, sometimes associated with a fictional universe." These kinds of shows are usually set in a fantasy and/or sci-fi world, and excel at establishing & showcasing the rules/history/economy of their fictional universe. List was created through collective data from multiple websites of people's answers as to what shows are considered to have great world building.

Critics & Connoisseurs was a club that was founded in 2008 and ended club activities on the 31st of 2022.

The goal of the club was to come up with a list of highly recommended quality shows that are exemplary either within its genre or universally. An anime needed a 70% approval rate in our voting to get on the relation list. The following anime are all part of said list.

You can see the club page here:
https://myanimelist.net/clubs.php?cid=2913

Anime Relation List Part 2: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/328
Manga Relation List: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/334

Studio Ghibli, naturalistic vibes.

Facing reality, rejecting the fantasy, and not running away from our issues. Embrace life!

Added Hayao Miyazaki's recent masterpiece, The Boy and the Heron. Mahito choosing to embrace reality, learning to value his current connections and partially overcome the immense grief caused by the death of his mother.

List is up to date as of 01/06/25

BANG BANG BANG ★
An anime in which handguns are coolly portrayed and used as the primary weapon.

Every animated media that has been made has the idea to tell a story and to express a feeling on the watcher. But then, there are some series which has a particular way to evocate their sentiments and they use different tools to do that. Thought provoking writing, displaying the characters' internal monologues, their struggles and fears, using particular cinematographic angles and by blending contrasting styles of animation, coloring and highly symbolical and metaphorical imagery - these are some of the many hallmarks signifying the said animation has psychological themes, and that it is avant-garde in it's approach. This method of expression is not limited to any genre, as well.

I do realize that animation like this may not be for everyone, but I firmly believe in it's artistic merits and integrity. Media like this allows us to peek into the human psyche and probably our own too, and it provides us with often interesting viewpoints of our world, even if fractured through the prism of the animated fiction. Shows like that also likes to ask us questions without answers, to give us moral dilemmas without solid conclusion or in summary, to provoke us to think.

The shows that were picked follow a pattern - the ones which are more straightforward, less abstract and easier to get into will be first and the more complex and obscure the works will be at the end.

List of anime featuring at least one LGBT+ character that aren't BL or GL. I try to only put those that are either confirmed canon (in story or by the author) or so explicitly implied that there's little to none other interpretation.

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>>> SOME NOTES:

- Not all of these are "perfect" representations. Some more controversial portrayals have a warning in the comments.

- (Recent update) Edited the list so that characters who's sexuality is more "up for debate" are now written down as MLM/WLW instead of the mouthful Gay/Bi/Pan (which I'd forget to write in some places anyway)

- All nonbinary people are transgender. If a character is described as nonbinary instead of trans it's just to specify that that's what the anime more heavily points at.

- For the "not BL/GL" rule I went with whatever the anime is tagged as on MAL (though some of these I believe should've been tagged when they're not...). List might change as MAL keeps editing stuff.

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Please note that some of these I either haven't seen at all (look at the ratings to tell which ones they are) or watched long ago and don't remember well, so don't expect this to be 100% accurate.

--- Includes suggestions from AnnaSartin, Zuclyn, eblf2013, DigiCat, Mione48, RetroHead_ and gareki8

This list consists of psychological titles, which helped me to accept inevitability and cope with alienation, as well as some other existentional fears, thereby affected my personality above all others. Anime that makes you realise a lot about the meaning of human life and death, relationships, principles and most important: "self-concept".

Nearly all of them induce depressive thoughts, portray social problems that we face IRL, have biblical references and slow pacing. So be sure that you are in the right mood and prepared to face dark side of reality.

P.S. Despite the hopelessness and predestination you may feel while watching, these works of art still bestow warmth and hope through understanding the uniqueness of existence. The world is truly a cruel place and life is lacking meaning and purpose, yet we got the flustering chance to experience ourselves and the universe we share.

English dubs that I found to be really good and are at least comparable to (if not better than) their subbed counterparts. Part 1 - https://myanimelist.net/stacks/885


PM me if there are titles that I've missed.

This is the kind of stuff you'll want to show to your older relatives or a friend / significant other who isn't into anime in particular but is open to new experiences. Not necessarily to hook them on anime but simply to share a good time together.

What helps an anime end up on this list:
* either subdued or distinctly avant-garde appearance that transcends common anime design sensibilities;
* mature, adult-life-related themes;
* well-crafted, compelling story and character interactions;
* fresh and daring ideas or their execution;
* being otherwise remarkable as an art piece;
* moderate length.

What DOESN'T help an anime end up on the list:
* referencing or pandering to otaku culture, incessant fan service, and all that crap;
* slow-burn slice-of-life narrative;
* overly random, absurdist, reference-heavy humor;
* being too long or narratively incomplete;
* being too tropey;
* not being very good in general (regrettably, this includes bad and mediocre adaptations of good manga/LNs, so no Berserk, My Home Hero, or Golden Kamuy on the list).

These aren't absolute rules but they're hard enough that I would only consider minor exceptions. There is most certainly not enough room for every single piece that fits the bill, so take this as my personal, heavily curated top-50. If there is a sequel or a side-story that also deserves attention (or, conversely, one you should skip), I will mention it in the annotations, so please watch them.

List is subject to revisions and reordering.

A list of anime I believe share a similar style of storytelling to the works of highly revered author, Haruki Murakami.

I drew upon the subject matter and allegories frequently covered by Murakami in his stories. Those of escapism, eroticism, surrealism, loss, depression, loneliness, identity, and redemption.

More titles will be inducted over time, suggestions are welcome.

take the lainpill (estro)

anime featuring liminal spaces and which may or may not also embody the liminal. a transitional space, unsettling un-belonging, altered reality

"Elitist" has been a very generic and broad term to generalise many types of not-so-mainstream or "deep" anime, so this list is very diverse and it's criteria are not always clear cut and objective. Nonetheless I try to provide a proper explanation for why each entry is included. Generally speaking these are shows that fit one OR more of these adjectives: Experimental, Avant-Garde, Psychological, Philosophical, Obscure, Classic, Critically Acclaimed, Artsy, Old, etc...

Some shows here are not necessarily obscure or underground at all, but they are still here because they have been stereotyped as "elitist" by the community over time, due to their experimental or artsy nature. Similarly, some shows here are not necessarily artsy or experimental in nature, but their old/underwatched/obscure nature gives them a reason to be here. Not all aspects have to be checked to be included. Only one per franchise.

I have personally watched the great majority of the anime in this list, but there are a couple which I haven't. Still added them because of how strongly they are stereotyped as "elitist" or have fitting characteristics to be classified as such. I know my list still lacks many essential classics, I will continue to add and expand into this list as I watch those personally.

For more recommendations, go to my other Interest Stacks, "Elitist Anime 2" , "Elitist Anime 3" and "Elitist Anime 4", whose links are:

- https://myanimelist.net/stacks/4256
- https://myanimelist.net/stacks/4756
- https://myanimelist.net/stacks/10188
- https://myanimelist.net/stacks/15961

anime heavily leaning on atmosphere, often set in sad scenarios but not overly dramatic

These travelers wander from place to place for various reasons. They may travel the land for their job, be on a journey due to a strong sense of wanderlust, or are adventurers on a quest of some sort. Others may be homeless, exiled, or on the run and have no place to put down roots. Basically, a list of non-isekai shows from various genres where the characters change location frequently.