Have you ever watched an anime or manga and thought,"How the heck did it became so popular"?

Jul 18, 2019 2:10 AM

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Aug 2018

387

Of course FullMetal Alchemist Brotherhood.
My rating of FMAB: 9/10

"The most amazing and interesting story in this world ever existed is the story of the world itself where all stories happened"
-Hassaan Lightstone-

Jul 18, 2019 2:11 AM

#152

Chadler

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Sep 2014

Samurai Champloo. The show just didn't hold my interest and I fail to see what makes it stand out other than the music, yet I've seen nothing but praise for it. Maybe I just don't appreciate hip hop.

Jul 18, 2019 4:04 AM

#153

JoyBoy_316

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Nov 2016

2008

AnimeFeminist said:
I have jojo. I don't understand how can this misogynistic anime that promotes toxic masculinity be this popular.

This is genuinely hilarious congratulation

Jul 18, 2019 4:42 AM

#154

foxtail9

Offline

May 2018

Guilty Crown. I really tried to like it but I ended up dozing off literally. The writing wasn't captivating in the least, and I haven't seen characters this boring since Kaichou wa Maid-sama

"If you liked Code Geass...then you might like Guilty Crown" Seeing this in the recommendations makes me want to give others a warning sign. I understand they have a similar atmosphere but don't even try to put them on the same level y'all

Jul 18, 2019 8:54 AM

#155

mwalimu

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Mar 2017

2847

Dante012 said:

mwalimu said:
Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san - They make bullying out to be cute. I don't get how people could enjoy watching that.

But... Takagi-san is not a popular anime ^^'. We're hearing about it now because the second season is airing, but once it's over it just goes into oblivion like most seasonal animes.
Also, it's not bullying, it's teasing. Not the same thing at all. Takagi is not bullying Nishikata, she's hitting on him. The difference is pretty clear...

That would depend on where you draw the line between teasing and bullying. Some of Takagi's actions have tangible negative consequences for Nishikata, and in my opinion that puts them over the line from teasing into bullying.

A møøse once bit my sister...

Jul 18, 2019 9:03 AM

#156

mwalimu

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Mar 2017

2847

Kadmos said:
Some of those cute girls doing cute things series come to mind!

You mean like K-On!? I somewhat agree on that one. For me it was generally good and enjoyable but it was rather unremarkable, having no wow factor, leaving me struggling to understand why people uphold it as the ultimate example of the CGDCT genre.

The same goes for Cardcaptor Sakura and the magical girl genre.

A møøse once bit my sister...

Jul 19, 2019 4:45 AM

#157

Play2X

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Apr 2013

635

mwalimu said:

Dante012 said:

Just no. Teasing and bullying are completely different things. The one thing is done with the intention to harm, while the other is just making the day a little bit funnier. I DO understand where you come from though, since you are probably hining at events like episode 4 of the first season, where he has to clean the science room as punishment. But two things you might consider: A Takagai helps Nishikata (and just wanted that as a pretext to spend time together) and B she also helps him along by studying with him.

Considering popularity: I do think that Takagi is rather popular. Of course it is by no means Death Note level of popularity, but the first season had both a good overall rating AND an overall watchcount. As a reference number, Takagi Season 1 has 100k completed watches, Gintama Season 1 is at 160k. 100k examples other than Takagi would be Zombieland Saga, ef: A Tale of Memories, and Little Busters.

mwalimu said:

Kadmos said:
Some of those cute girls doing cute things series come to mind!

You practically answered your own question there. It was good and enjoyable. It doesn't have some high entrance hurdle, it is relaxing, it is fun. And in contrast to most other CGDCT anime, this one shows us some growth and emotional impact. Also, it has waifus.
Most CGDCT anime can get at least some popularity this way. So, if we tie this to the main question 'How did this become popular': Well, obviously it would. Large target group, low entry hurdles, lots of waifus and relaxing is literally MADE to be popular.

For magical girl (or Cardcaptor) I can't really speak, because I watched next to none. I assume it is pretty popular because it is kinda the same for girls what shonen is to boys?

Jul 19, 2019 8:41 AM

#158

mwalimu

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Mar 2017

2847

Play2X said:
... she also helps him along by studying with him.

Are you referring to the math test scene in episode 5? As I recall he failed the test after she misled him into studying the wrong material. It was a golden opportunity on her part for some redemption but she chose to twist the knife instead. I seldom drop an anime once I start but that scene led me to do so in this case because after that it was too unpleasant, even painful, to continue watching.

A møøse once bit my sister...

Jul 19, 2019 8:59 AM

#159

Play2X

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Apr 2013

635

He failed the test, but she actually didn't mislead him. If you watch that epsiode closely, she merely helped him with the problems he (and prolly his classmates) chose to study. Also, I even if he ended up failing that test, he learned a lot of new stuff. Also, in the the sequel he actually became a teacher himself, so it can't be that much of a problem, right?

Jul 19, 2019 9:04 AM

#160

Nxt_Arsenic

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Jun 2019

163

Haha...talk about subjectivity

-any anime is popular if people appreciate it..which clealy means that they understand what writer wants to say..what story itself wants to convey....
and this 'Understanding' is something that varies from person to person...some can understand only 5% n some can understand even 95-99%.....
>>> as for me such an anime would be -Angel beats!
Oh man! I was never able to understand its main theme but I got little after that TUNNel episode little bit....but to me logics in anime were too vague.....

PS- I would have also added OPM if I answered it few days ago but....I now understand it ✌✌👋

Jul 19, 2019 9:20 AM

#161

TheoPKTNS

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Jan 2019

188

I really haven't, when I see something incredible popular and I think it is trash (like in my case 90% of isekais, NGNL above all) I know from friends of mine that at least they have some atractive for some people like: animation, artstyle, things as simples as the palette of colors, etc. It's either that or maybe those shows are easy to watch to a person that is new to the medium and can't really judge the quality of what they are watching (like most of the people that like SAO or NGNL)

Jul 19, 2019 9:32 AM

#162

Ayann

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May 2019

i had no clue how did the shows re:zero and darker than black became so popular, watched more than 4 eps from each..they were just..okay for me

Jul 19, 2019 9:34 AM

#163

Dante012

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May 2018

347

@mwalimu :

Like I said, the line between the two is pretty clear ^^'. Play2X said it better than myself: its bullying if there's an intent to harm. Takagi clearly does not want to hurt Nishikata.

As for K-On, I can speak for myself here: I loved this show, overall for one thing : the direction.
KyoAni has this magic in their animation where they make believable characters and lively worlds even when there's no story. Natural movements, small details that actually add a lot to the characters, and the overall "realistic" atmosphere. Like, their world is actually believable, despite the moe stuff.

There's also a level of detail that makes it actually clever.
- When the girls pet the turtle statue, that's a symbol of their affection towards Yui,
- the dream sequences, they are so much more accurate than what we can see in many other shows. Like, this is the kind of dreams I actually have irl.
- actual body language. In the anime industry, there's this trope where the characters say everything (if a character is sad, they'll have an entire monologue "this happened, that hurts me, I can't take it, I have to do something, [...]", bla bla bla), it's just so cheap!
"Show, don't tell", that's exactly what K-On does that most animes don't.

Long story short: there's just so much more than meets the eyes.

Also, there's the awesome music. K-On is one of the very rare animes about rock songs, and man did they nail it. Yui's voice kind of ruins her songs (personally I love them, but I understand why others would be annoyed), but the best has to be Mio's songs. Her voice is just amazing!
And the instrumental is always gold. They made me love keyboard when I never really found any musical appeal to it.

Finally, it may be a CGDCT, but it's a comedy above all. There's plenty CGDCT that are really just that: moe stuff and nothing more. Love Live, I'm sorry for the fans but this is really just a moe show, as all the cute stuff happens for no reason. In K-On, most of the moe stuff is here for the comedy. Mio's cheesy lyrics, it's cute but more importantly it's here for the others to make fun of her.
Basically, the big difference is: the point of K-On is the comedy, when average CGDCT actually shows cute stuff for no reason (other than "it sells").

I could go on and on about it xD! Long story short, K-On is actually deep, even though it doesn't look like it. The music is worth it, the moe stuff actually has a point (as most of it serves the comedy), and it feels more natural than other CGDCT.

Everything changes. Even the happy and funny things eventually disappear. How can I still enjoy this place then?
- Furukawa Nagisa (Clannad)

You have to make a choice. Either you give up on your soul for the sake of science, or you give up on science to save your soul. In my case, the soul was already in pieces.
- Lloyd Asplund (Code Geass)

Do you understand the meaning behind Nunnaly's smile? She can't see or walk. So there are things in this world that she knows she can't do alone. Her smile... is her only way to show gratitude.
- Lelouch Vi Britannia (Code Geass)

Death is part of Life.
- ... Me.

May 7, 2020 11:58 PM

#164

thedestroyership

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Nov 2019

mwalimu said:
They make bullying out to be cute. I don't get how people could enjoy watching that.

Thing is, most anime fans are masochists. Why do you think BDSM exists.

May 8, 2020 12:03 AM

#165

ya_hallo

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Sep 2015

795

mwalimu said:
Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san - They make bullying out to be cute. I don't get how people could enjoy watching that.

Interesting. I never thought of it like that. That said, is it really that popular though. I feel like a good majority of people aren't even aware of it.

May 8, 2020 12:08 AM

#166

Nikiforova

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Jul 2019

3314

I was thinking the same when I watched BNHA and Kimetsu no Yaiba. I can't think of legitimate reason for them to become so popular. They are pretty mediocre and they didn't bring anything new and unique. The only thing that comes to my mind is that people prefer style over substance.

⊛ 𝕞𝕪 𝕡𝕣𝕠𝕗𝕚𝕝𝕖 ⊛

⊛ 𝕒𝕟𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕤𝕥 ⊛

⊛ 𝕞𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕒 𝕝𝕚𝕤𝕥 ⊛

May 8, 2020 12:25 AM

#167

Fuwa_san

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Mar 2013

2082

I read Arifureta manga/LN before the anime was release.

I don't expect there to be an anime with a lot of viewers. maybe 30k ~ 50k.

But it got like over 200k viewers. I'm pretty sure isekai is hated, but people still watch it regardless. And worst of all, they would finished a series regardless of how bad the adaptation is.

Hating isekai but still watching, 200k ppl, how does that even make sense.

Sep 1, 2021 3:45 PM

#168

CrimsonCW

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Mar 2016

757

Anything by CLAMP. I've never seen anything more repulsive and simplistic in my life.

Life can be cruel and unfair. At worst it can traumatize and cripple you. The desire for wanting things to return to the way they were can cost everything and changes nothing. The best way is to keep moving forward, struggle on.
Anger can be powerful but can only get you so far. Let people into your life even if some of them leave you in time.

Fight. Like. Hell. For everything and everyone you love. Always.

Sep 1, 2021 3:59 PM

#169

ProxyLain

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Apr 2019

1666

Basically all these bad popular animes.

Sep 1, 2021 4:01 PM

#170

MonkeeDan

Ooga Booga

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Jul 2020

9099

I think almost everybody has made some experience like that.
It's a pretty common thing that the shows for a broader viewership are not liked that much by specific groups. Theres nothing wrong with it. Everybodys taste is different

♡

smoochie smoochie[/center]

Sep 1, 2021 5:07 PM

#171

yarwe

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Mar 2021

2116

code geass

i mean it is 9/10 for me but i still can't understand how it got popular

Sep 1, 2021 9:36 PM

#172

CrimsonCW

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Mar 2016

757

yarwe said:
code geass

i mean it is 9/10 for me but i still can't understand how it got popular

What kind of post is this, seriously?

People like you spreading the misinformation that it's good, I'd say.

AnimeFeminist said:
I have jojo. I don't understand how can this misogynistic anime that promotes toxic masculinity be this popular.

I fucking HATE JoJo almost more than anything else.... and your post even makes ME want to die of cringe.

CrimsonCWSep 1, 2021 10:27 PM

Sep 1, 2021 11:21 PM

#173

Mahikari

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Jul 2020

843

There are some that don't deserve their popularity imo

Sep 1, 2021 11:32 PM

#174

snowykevin

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Aug 2019

5524

yes there are quite a few shows that I never would’ve expected to become popular before they aired

May 14, 2022 4:14 PM

#175

CrimsonCW

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Mar 2016

757

That Kaguya Love is War anime I just dropped after a single episode. Golly gee, nothing more enjoyable than constant narration and/or exposition to tell you exactly what to think at all times in something billing itself as "clever".

Yikes, so these are the fad animes that everyone goes crazy for every season. I will never check out another. Ever. Holy shit, the anime community is embarrassing.

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Have you ever watched an anime or manga and thought,"How the heck did it became so popular"?

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