WXIII Kidou Keisatsu Patlabor

OVA/Movie Timeline:
Patlabor: Early Days
Patlabor: The Mobile Police
Patlabor 2: The Movie
WXIII: Patlabor The Movie 3

TV Timeline:
Patlabor: The Mobile Police - On Television
Patlabor: The Mobile Police - The New Files

Reboot Timeline:
Mobile Police Patlabor Reboot

The criteria here is simple: Anime released in any year, with under 15,000 MAL Members, and which I've rated a 6 or higher.

Now that I'm including anime from any year, I've lowered the MAL member threshold. The rating threshold remains at a 6, because sixes are still pretty good.

It is perhaps worth noting that I rate things entirely on gut feeling. It's just, "I like that, that was good, it gets a 7.", that's the whole process. I can also find enjoyment in just about anything and there's very little that bothers me.

Ascend: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/9615
Descend: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/13938

Tags: Old, Obscure, Oldtaku, Retro, Underrated, Hidden Gems

Anime that uses music very sparingly, or uses silence as key means to emphasize emotion or narrative.

No OST? No problem! It's just you and your thoughts now.
Yeah, we hate music here.
Get out, sound.

Correct me if your opinion differs! I don't want any nasty noise around here.

Every anime I could find that still used cel animation during the early 2000s

"It's not a matter of good or evil; it's simply not possible to do it any other way."

Noir is characterized by such elements as cynical heroes, stark lighting effects, frequent use of flashbacks, intricate plots, and an underlying existentialist philosophy.

The isolation from society of the typical noir hero was underscored by the use of stark high-contrast lighting. Classic images of noir included rain-soaked streets in the early morning hours; street lamps with shimmering halos; flashing neon signs on seedy taverns, diners, and apartment buildings; and endless streams of cigarette smoke wafting in and out of shadows.

The inherent subjectivity of Expressionism is also evident in noir’s use of narration and flashback. An omniscient, metaphor-spouting narrator frequently clarifies a characteristically labyrinthine noir plot or offers a subjective, jaded point of view. Tension and suspense are increased by the use of all-knowing narrators and flashbacks, in that the audience is always cognizant of impending doom.

The heroes of noir generally share certain qualities, such as moral ambiguity, a fatalistic outlook, and alienation from society. They also exhibit an existential acceptance of random, arbitrary occurrences as being the determining factors in life. Such compassionless pragmatism is found in the most noble, as well as the most tarnished, of noir heroes. The weakest of such characters exhibit an abundance of tragic flaws.

Noir villains are often characterized as homme fatales or “spiders”; in the words of one critic, they are “comfortable in the world of cheap dives, shadowy doorways, and mysterious settings.” They cunningly and ruthlessly manipulate their counterparts to gain power or wealth.

Nevertheless, the noir villains often evoke sympathy, as they are frequently victims of emotional or physical abuse, with such victimization providing impetus for their vengeance. They are trapped in passionless or violent bonds of contract/servitude and resort to murder as a means of escape, usually destroying their conspirators in the process.

Source: Britannica - list will be kept updated

Every cinema or direct to video anime film that came out in 2002.

2001: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/34837
2003: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/34840

Disclaimer: There are a few hentai movies, that could be counted as well:
- 69 Pink Riders 2 (2002)
- Happy Day (2002)

All 2000s anime entries that mainly used cel animation, as opposed to digipaint, for all their episodes.

Series which played on the various Encore and Starz channels. Ordered alphabetically by their English titles.

Anime with a focus on a futuristic police force.