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Apr 8, 2013 4:30 PM
#1
Hi guys, I’m new to the forums and just starting to get really into anime after being a casual fan for many years. I’m currently looking for recommendations for a decent shounen title - to be more specific, I’m actually trying to choose between a few titles I’ve heard of. I’m not really that into “typical” shounen anime, but every once in a while I do enjoy it. I have to admit though, I have a pretty specific set of criteria. The shows I’m choosing between are: One Piece Katekyo Hitman Reborn D. Gray Man Fairy Tail Soul Eater And the qualities I’m looking for are: Plot. I know it’s kind of a lost cause looking for a good plot in long-running shounen titles, but which of the above do you think has the most interesting plot? Quality of episodes. The fewer fillers, the better, though if the fillers are interesting and add something to the story (e.g. character development), then that's okay too. Something a little bit “different”, in the sense that it doesn’t hit you over the head with shounen tropes you’ve seen a million times before. For all I know they could all be like this, but which one does it the least? Ending. I know One Piece hasn’t even ended yet so I guess it can be exempt from this criteria, but I did hear that a few of the others had rushed endings due to cancellations and the like. I guess I don’t mind cliffhangers or a few loose ends in the plot, as long as I get SOME sense of satisfaction from the ending. I don’t have that much time to watch more than a few of these shows, especially because they all have substantial episode counts, and knowing myself if I watch too many of them I will probably lose interest at some point and completely forget to finish the series. So if you could only choose one or two of the above, which would be your picks? Please don’t recommend me something unless you’ve watched at least 3 of the shows I’ve listed, unless you really love the one or two shows you’ve seen and you think it fits my criteria perfectly. Thanks in advance for your suggestions. :) |
"Go bald, Kurosaki." |
Apr 8, 2013 4:34 PM
#3
LanaNi said: Ignore all of them and watch Shingeki no Kyojin Soul Eater seems interesting. Haven't bothered watching any of em. |
Apr 8, 2013 4:36 PM
#4
I've seen all of them, completed all of them aside from the currently airing One Piece and dropped Fairy Tail. One Piece is probably the 'best' on that list. Although my personal favorite would be more along Soul Eater and D.Gray Man. Anyways, I'll chose Soul Eater since it's actually the shortest and stays on track most of the series. The only notable 'filler' episodes are with Excalibur. First 3 episodes are just introduction to each main characters. |
Apr 8, 2013 4:41 PM
#5
Although I haven't seen them myself, Soul Eater and Hitman Reborn. |
Apr 8, 2013 4:42 PM
#6
One Piece is the best in terms of plot, the rest of the titles you list really lose focus and have lots of retarded plot twists later on. However, the quality of all series leaves something to be desired. I suggest you read the One Piece manga and try out Fullmetal Alchemist and the new Jojo and HxH adaptions. |
Steel Ball Run anime when? |
Apr 8, 2013 4:45 PM
#7
Haven't seen Hitman and D. Gray Man. One Piece: although being good it's long and has good amount of filler. Nakama tail is alright, but has its share of filler which,in my opinion, are pretty bad. Even though Soul Eater's ending is filler, I'd go with it because it follows the main story for 40(?) episodes and is a very good watch. |
Mike_the_GreatApr 8, 2013 4:51 PM
Apr 8, 2013 4:51 PM
#8
Paul said: One Piece is probably the 'best' on that list. Although my personal favorite would be more along Soul Eater and D.Gray Man. I would say One Piece. Then D. Gray Man; lastly Hitman Reborn. |
Apr 8, 2013 4:52 PM
#9
D.Gray Man |
Apr 8, 2013 4:53 PM
#10
One Piece of those five. |
Apr 8, 2013 4:54 PM
#11
D. Gray Man might be best, haven't watched One Piece so im not sure and considering how disappointing Soul Eater's ending was you come out better reading it's manga adaptation. Also all of them are like the shounen troops you've seen before |
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Apr 8, 2013 5:01 PM
#12
Linus-SAMA said: One Piece of those five. |
Apr 8, 2013 5:08 PM
#13
Wow, you guys are quick! Thanks for your suggestions, I'll tally them as we go. One Piece seems to be leading so far, I guess I'll just have to stop being intimidated by the huge episode count and try it out... |
"Go bald, Kurosaki." |
Apr 8, 2013 5:28 PM
#14
I think you should start with DGM. From what I know it's the least shounen out of all. Fairy Tail is the epitome of shounen tropes but I love it to death. |
Apr 8, 2013 5:31 PM
#15
Fairy Tail cause it's look's better than One Piece But One piece is a good anime to The two :) Actually |
Apr 8, 2013 6:11 PM
#16
Fairy Tail My favorite show, give the 1st episode a try to see if you like it :D You can watch Soul Eater along the way, since its not that long One Piece is a monster to tackle, since its really long and takes forever to get started, so I'd save that for maybe when you have time. I havent watched KHR and DGM though, so dont now about those |
Apr 8, 2013 6:21 PM
#17
LanaNi said: That's always an option. The MC is similar to Death Note's Light.Ignore all of them and watch Code Geass Out of the choices you listed, I'd start with Soul Eater. The fights are dope. The humor can be dull sometimes, but it improves later on once you get to know the characters a bit. On the other hand, I'd skip out on D. Gray Man. I didn't make it through the whole series, but the first 10-ish episodes don't seem that great. |
"Cheer up, you’re never alone! There is probably at least 1 bug in your room." |
Apr 8, 2013 6:39 PM
#18
I've watched all of em and i would rank them: 1.One Piece (might be too long, but it's the best out of the Big 3) 2.Reborn! (First 20 eps are like filler, character intros, and very childish. But when it gets good it's REALLY good. I actually would rather have you watch this first tho because there aren't enough KHR! fans) 3.Fairy Tail(Really has awesome all out fights and very good as well) 4.Soul Eater (Was at best, slightly above average, the fights are awesome though. But the manga is a lot better and the ending is too meh.) 5.D.Gray-Man(It's pretty good but kinda boring in the beginning.) |
Apr 8, 2013 6:49 PM
#19
gigglingidiot said: LanaNi said: That's always an option. The MC is similar to Death Note's Light.Ignore all of them and watch Code Geass Out of the choices you listed, I'd start with Soul Eater. Yep, Code Geass has been on my watch list since I finished Death Note and heard about it, I'm just holding off on watching it for now because if it lives up to its hype I may have trouble enjoying other series after it. x) And yes I decided I'll try out Soul Eater when I have the time because the ep count isn't that bad at all. Still iffy on the rest but will probably end up trying out One Piece at the very least, since I haven't heard anyone talk about it and not like it - and I don't mean just people from these forums, I mean everywhere. |
"Go bald, Kurosaki." |
Apr 8, 2013 6:52 PM
#20
But Katekyo Hitman Reborn! T_T |
Apr 8, 2013 6:55 PM
#21
MellowJello said: LanaNi said: Ignore all of them and go fuck yourself Soul Eater seems interesting. Haven't bothered watching any of em. Then don't even fucking bother to comment then. Imanza said: Please don’t recommend me something unless you’ve watched at least 3 of the shows I’ve listed, unless you really love the one or two shows you’ve seen and you think it fits my criteria perfectly. Cheers ^_^ In terms of plot: Reborn!, D Gray Man and Soul Eater definitely has a better plot than the remaining two. Fairy Tail arguably has no plot at all. One Piece has plot but isn't any different from the typical shounen plot One Piece has 62 filler episodes and counting Katekyo Hitman Reborn has around 28 filler episodes D Gray Man has around 24 Fairy Tail has 33 Soul Eater has 3 filler One Piece and Fairy Tail are no different from your typical shounen, so if you dislike shounen tropes then you will hate those two. Soul Eater had the terrible ending compared to the other 3 excluding One Piece. It stopped following the manga and made its original anime ending. It wasn't bad in a sense that it was an original ending but that it made little to no sense how it actually ended (pretty vague I know, but I can't spoil it) According to your criteria I recommend in order: 1. D. Gray Man & Katekyo Hitman (tie) 3. Soul Eater (unsatisfying ending, everything else was good) 4. Fairy Tail (you ain't tolerant of those shounen troupes bullshit) 5. One Piece (same as Fairy Tail, plot isn't interesting, piss poor pacing and isn't any different from any other generic shounen) |
Apr 8, 2013 7:37 PM
#22
Thanks Vandalyzm, very informative reply that took my criteria into consideration. Hitman Reborn and D. Gray Man are both fiercely defended by their fanbases everywhere I look, it seems. I think I'm just going to give in and try a few episodes of both and see how I go. |
"Go bald, Kurosaki." |
Apr 8, 2013 7:37 PM
#23
One Piece is the anime you really need to go for. It's the most rewarding, literally gets better and better throughout all 500+ episodes. There's really nothin' like a good One Piece marathon for the first time. You'll get to see some amazing intense battles and wars even, and a huge world full of everything you can imagine. The sense of adventure I felt from watching it is to this day unrivaled by any other anime. *edit* after reading your post I just have to say I found Hitman Reborn very disappointing and mediocre though it did have a few good moments. D. Gray-man is kinda cool but it also starts out slow and never even finishes. Soul Eater has an unsatisfying ending as well, and Fairy Tail just plain sucks most of the time it's a watered down version of OP. Again, out of the anime you listed One Piece is without a doubt the most rewarding. The others don't even have 1 fight that could compete with even the top 10 One Piece fights. |
LayedBackApr 8, 2013 7:46 PM
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Apr 8, 2013 7:38 PM
#24
Fairy |
"Currently playing the Game of of Life" Poppin Pills is All We Know - Antidote |
Apr 8, 2013 7:56 PM
#25
From the responses I've gotten here, I've decided to definitely check out One Piece and D. Gray Man, will probably end up watching Soul Eater because it's fairly short in comparison to all the others, and if none of those satisfy me, I'll check out Hitman Reborn and MAYBE Fairy Tail, because from what I've heard it's more generically shounen than the others. Thanks a lot guys, feel free to keep the recommendations coming, it's really interesting seeing everyone's reasons for liking one series over another. |
"Go bald, Kurosaki." |
Apr 8, 2013 8:21 PM
#26
Of those I have seen Soul Eater, Fairy Tail, and One Piece and I personally enjoyed them all. My FAVORITE is, without a doubt, Fairy Tail. However, I would not say it is the best of those three. In regards to it's ending- The anime will be picked up again at a later point. It is currently on hiatus due to being too close to the manga and at a point where they can't compensate with filler episodes due to being right in the middle of a very large and important arc. One Piece is a very, very good series with animation, art, story, and world building that vastly overshadows most shounen. However, much like DBZ, stuff does tend to drag out for a long period of time. I am only on episode 113 or so myself, however. Soul Eater just kinda ends. I didn't mind the ending but many fans hated it. As for the series itself- I really liked all the goofy characters in it, the fun and quirky artstyle, and just the overall feel of the series. I guess it really comes down to what you prefer. Like I said, of the three Fairy Tail is MY favorite, although not the best one. I like it because it has a lot of things in it that appeal to a female demographic- moreso than most shounen. It has more female characters WITHOUT being a harem by ANY stretch (in fact it tends to boarder more on reverse harem in some instances), it has much more well-defined romantic pairings than most shounen (and a LOT of them), the author is very good at coming up with pretty and fun costume designs, it doesn't have any 'moe' (I refuse to call Wendy moe. She is genuinely cute, not stupid cute), it has a very large and consistant cast, Lucy is a very relateable main character because she's a REALISTIC 17 year old girl, and so on. My only gripe is that it also has more fanservice than most shounen, but it KNOWS it's fanservice is stupid so I'm able to forgive it. Many people don't like Fairy Tail because it doesn't take itself seriously and almost never shows blood so if you are a person who like super serious stuff and blood I wouldn't watch it. One Piece, on the other hand, has a much more consistent and driven storyline and really, really good world building. Every arc builds further upon the world and the characters are all really fun. The main cast is not as large but it has an enormous world cast. Soul Eater is just stylish, fun, and silly. I hope these descriptions help- I can't tell you which to pick because it really depends on what you like. |
Apr 8, 2013 8:49 PM
#27
soul eater and code geass are good |
Apr 9, 2013 1:43 AM
#28
Ok I've seen every one of these shows so let me try to break down their pros and cons as easy as I can. One Piece: PROS- Very fun to watch anime with tons of character and plot development. Animation is good and the for the amount of the show that is dubbed its pretty good. CONS- Its way too long. the show is currently at over 580 episodes which if you are just picking it up seems like an almost insurmountable task, but this can be reduced by cutting out the filler arcs which there are a ton of. Hitman Reborn: PROS-A nice lighthearted anime that is pretty damn funny at times. When it eventually picks up it's great. Also most of the characters are pretty damn awesome. CONS- The reason I said most of the characters are awesome and not all of them is because i hate the main character. He whines and complains more than any main character honestly should. Also this show has a bit of a slow start, can be a bit childish, and has no dub at all. D Gray Man: PROS-Excellent shounen anime with darker themes than the rest of these shows. The Characters have some very interesting powers as well. The filler episodes that are there are still enjoyable. Also the limited dub is pretty good. CONS-There really isn't much plot development early on. Fairy Tail: PROS- Very fun to watch because a good mix of comedy and action in the show. The show also had some pretty awesome characters all with pretty interesting powers. CONS- It feels like it gets very repetitive as if they follow a formula for each arc. MC encounters new enemy group, gets ass kicked, than comes back later and tries again, and just when it seems like he's about to lose again he summons incredible strength and wins. Rinse and Repeat. I just hated it when the MC would get his ass kicked even though he just defeated some super powerful enemy 2 episodes ago. Soul Eater: PROS-I loved this show. The action was excellent and it was pretty funny as well. The characters are all pretty awesome and seem very human. When i say that i mean that all the characters have flaws in there personalities or in their abilities. Fairly low episode count and only 3 fillers which can be easily skipped over. Show also has an excellent dub. CONS- First the show can be a bit childish at times but it grows on you pretty fast. Most importantly the ending. Now let me say this if you don't ever look at the manga or find out how the manga ends you'll probably be fine with the ending, but if you do you will be thoroughly disappointed with the way the anime ends. Now Personally i feel like you need to watch FMA Brotherhood, Code Geass, and Hunter x Hunter first though. If i could only watch 3 anime for the rest of eternity whose would be my 3. Although Code geass may not be a shounen anime, it is still one of the best out there. FMA Brotherhood is also one of the great animes that every person need to watch. Hunter x Hunter has to be the greatest shounen anime i have ever watched. I have thoroughly enjoyed every single minute of that show so far. The only thing that pisses me off while i watch that show is that i have to wait a whole week for another episode. |
Apr 9, 2013 1:52 AM
#29
Soul eater is good, especially the art. Haven't really seen the rest though |
Apr 9, 2013 2:09 AM
#30
fidwa634 said: Now Personally i feel like you need to watch FMA Brotherhood, Code Geass, and Hunter x Hunter first though. Oh don't worry, I will definitely watch them all. I loved Death Note and checked out the first episode of Code Geass because a lot of Death Note fans recommended it, and I could already tell it was right up my alley. I'm currently watching FMA the original series and Brotherhood will follow after. I watched Hunter X Hunter the original series and it's probably my favourite shounen as well, so I did plan to check out the 2011 version at some point. I just wanted to know which of the other popular shounen series could be a good watch as well. Thank you for your very detailed response, what you said pretty much backs up what I've gotten from the rest of the replies, namely that One Piece and D. Gray Man are at least worth a look, Soul Eater and Hitman Reborn have a certain appeal which isn't for everyone (but personally they do sound interesting to me), and Fairy Tail is more of a generic shounen which I can probably live with not seeing for a while. |
"Go bald, Kurosaki." |
Apr 9, 2013 2:35 AM
#31
one piece>d-gray man>hitman>soul eater>fairy tail Skip to like ep 40 for reborn its where it starts to get interestitng |
Apr 9, 2013 2:37 AM
#32
I only watched One Piece, Hitman and DGM and out of those animes I enjoyed Hitman the most so I recommend you that. The first 20 episodes are shit, though. D Gray Man is decent, but it has a slow start and its ending is pretty lackluster. One Piece is the most "shouneny" among those 3 and I found it kinda boring. |
5 main aspects I base my ratings on: 1. Did DramaEnthusiast make a thread about it? 2. Is it better than Breaking Bad? 3. Did MellowJello recommend the shit out of it? 4. Has it caused a (very entertaining) shitstorm on MAL? 5. Is it actually good? Scratch the fifth point, it's not very relevant... |
Apr 9, 2013 6:53 AM
#34
Well OP's fillers are even fun to watch.... With that in mind I'd suggest you watch One Piece first, Should keep you occupied for a while.... KHR story hasnt actually ended according to the manga and there are chances that It might continue from where it was left off... Still try that second.. Fairy Tail after that..... but the episodes stopped at 175 for some reason.. I recommend reading the manga though! Finally D-Gray Man and Soul Eater |
Apr 9, 2013 8:27 AM
#35
I'd watch Soul eater. |
'If people refuse to accept you, then I'll just accept you even more.' |
Apr 9, 2013 8:36 AM
#36
Idk why people keep saying One Piece is plagued with fillers... They're like 40 filler episodes tops out of over 550 episodes. And at least half of those fillers are so decent that you won't even be able to tell, at least I wasn't able to. If anything the pacing has been screwed with especially as of late but considering a new watcher can marathon that point hardly matters. I will admit though as far as flaws go Toei seriously screwed up the Fishman Island Arc. That's undeniable but everything before that has been pretty damn good in my opinion. |
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Apr 9, 2013 9:45 AM
#37
D. Gray-Man kicks ass, but I warn you it takes about half way to get really good. Soul Eater blows. Haven't seen One Piece or Fairy Tail, but I have no doubt in my mind that both are great, unless of course shounen isn't your thing. There's a reason they're so popular. |
Apr 9, 2013 10:44 AM
#38
All of them are fantastic in their own way Katekyo Hitman Reborn is fun , The Kanda factor makes D-Gray man amazing , and Fairy Tail is one of my fav ...I'd say go marathon watch them all Soul Eater has one my the better females in all anime . No one ever recommends Mushishi what's up with that people? |
Apr 9, 2013 1:23 PM
#39
Well I just saw the 1st episode Hitman Reborn. Despite that is subbed, I quickly enjoyed it. So I'll begin watching it. One Piece is awesome but very long. I just got thru the first 100 episodes and I'll likely start watching again over the weekend. I'm still waiting for some time to watch D Gray Man and Soul Eater. Fairy Tail is ok. The plot is VERY creative to me. So there's my two cents |
Apr 9, 2013 1:23 PM
#40
babymama said: All of them are fantastic in their own way Katekyo Hitman Reborn is fun , The Kanda factor makes D-Gray man amazing , and Fairy Tail is one of my fav ...I'd say go marathon watch them all Soul Eater has one my the better females in all anime . No one ever recommends Mushishi what's up with that people? Because he gave us a specific list, he did not ask for new recs. And LOTS OF PEOPLE rec Mushishi, just not IN THIS THREAD because it makes no sense here. Mushishi is a soft, slice-of-lifey seinen series. These are all action-packed shounen series. It's not even in the same ballpark other than having a male demographic (although Mushishi is one of those rare seinen that has a lot of female appeal as well). |
Apr 9, 2013 1:57 PM
#42
Hmm hard choice but i would recommend for you to watch Fairy Tail since it has like 175 episodes and its amazing but if there's like 10 Episodes that you would regret watching it and would want it to stop trust me i know but don't stop it after those "10" episodes it gets amazing of course if you're not sure about Fairy Tail then i would say for you to go to One Piece even tho its a bit big one :D |
You know what i do? Do you really wanna know what i do? I brush my f*cking teeth, i need them to be motherf*cking white, cuz b*tches like white teeth, this shit is a p*ssy magnet. Just brush em bruh |
Apr 9, 2013 3:48 PM
#43
I'd recommend Soul Eater out of all of those. It is really good, isn't too long, and stays on track pretty much the entire series. Also, it only has 3 fillers, which are all actually pretty funny. |
KaceSpace said: you never stated why it was ridiculous, we need trees to breath yet people take no heed, they always smoke weed. it's your choice to make, which is worse, using paper to smoke weed or using paper to draw little girl's panties |
Apr 10, 2013 12:55 AM
#44
Amberleh said: babymama said: No one ever recommends Mushishi what's up with that people? Because he gave us a specific list, he did not ask for new recs. Yep, that's pretty much it. This is a "help me choose between these shounen series" thread, hence no Mushishi, but it's already on my watch list anyway. And also (not that it makes much of a difference to me), just for the sake of clarity, I'm a she, not a he. xD Everyone's recommending everything and all of the series have their loyal fans it seems, so at this point I've given up and decided to watch them all when I get the chance. The agony of never knowing will probably eat at me if I don't at least give them all a try. =____= |
"Go bald, Kurosaki." |
Apr 10, 2013 2:46 AM
#45
If you are a she, you'd prefer D.Grayman and Reborn over the rest, but they both got cancelled. D.Grayman: it has a bad ending but it's all right if you are willing to read the manga, there isn't much filler either Reborn: it ends after a certain arc and the manga is over too, but around 100 eps the canon content per episode is like 20%, it drags a lot Both of them are still great shonen that are different from the rest |
Apr 10, 2013 3:38 PM
#46
Amberleh said: babymama said: All of them are fantastic in their own way Katekyo Hitman Reborn is fun , The Kanda factor makes D-Gray man amazing , and Fairy Tail is one of my fav ...I'd say go marathon watch them all Soul Eater has one my the better females in all anime . No one ever recommends Mushishi what's up with that people? Because he gave us a specific list, he did not ask for new recs. And LOTS OF PEOPLE rec Mushishi, just not IN THIS THREAD because it makes no sense here. Mushishi is a soft, slice-of-lifey seinen series. These are all action-packed shounen series. It's not even in the same ballpark other than having a male demographic (although Mushishi is one of those rare seinen that has a lot of female appeal as well). You should become a forum mod |
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