Interest Stacks

on the surface, it looks like a group of young girls fighting a war (and kissing each other quite a lot). but if you look deeper, it's a really well written story about kids who don't want to grow up. all the characters get their share of screen time, and their interactions show how they're all different in their own ways, but they share the desire to be kids forever, and avoid the burdens and choice of adulthood. this would be a 10/10 from me apart from some jank in terms of the voice acting and animation.

while it may seem on the surface to be a show about scantily clad women with large breasts fighting with fantasy weapons, there is so much more to it than just that. so many of the characters have great depth, as we explore their often damaged personalities, their motivations, their relationships with others, and the desire to have or misuse the bonds of family. so many moments in this show were unexpected to me, but from them i immediately knew that there's a lot more going on than just action.

twelve girls, blessed with the powers of a "battle princess," are gathered together at a school and made to fight against dangerous creatures that threaten everyone in attendance. the first half of the show is fun and games, however, compared to the dangerous twist that lies half way through the series (i won't spoil it). suffice it to say, the series explores the bonds of love, how all of the characters are imperfect people who just end up hurting one another, and eventually learning what it means to be close to people and hold them in your heart.

while a lot of this show, from the characters to the settings, seems weird and nonsensical, i find it really shines in terms of telling interesting episodic stories. a girl goes on a mission through a "library multiverse" looking for her lost sister, and each book/universe they travel to has some unique mini-story going on.

girls fighting for justice against shadowy organizations with guns and mechs.. does it have to have a deeper meaning to be fun?

a delinquent high school boy gets caught up in a war between heaven and hell, both of whom recognize him as the savior with the spirit of a powerful angel inside his body. the anime only adapts the first 3 volumes of a 20 volume manga, which is one of my favorites of all time. i would recommend this if you want a taste, but the manga has a much longer adventure where the interesting character development happens.

in this series of three movies, a young girl survives an attempted murder and goes on a multi-faceted mission to seek revenge. there's some fun action along the way. i think the worldbuilding is really cool, sort of cyberpunk in some ways. and the art style is absolutely fantastic!

a space battleship with mechas goes on a mission to defend earth from alien invaders. on top of personal conflict and relationships among the crew, they also have to balance wartime tensions between their employer, the military, the aliens, and find a way to bring peace, all while learning things about the universe and themselves they never thought possible. there's some major twists which i won't spoil, but just trust me it's more deeply written than it appears on the surface.

in this series of movies, shiki ryougi is a girl struggling to find a purpose in life, oh and she's also a serial killer. through the use of non-chronological storytelling we learn more about the why and how, her magic powers, fights with all manner of obstacles, and her process of self healing.

i like to call this one the "immortal lesbian detective agency." a pair of women who are incapable of dying navigate an ever changing world and explore the fact that immortality isn't actually that desirable. they're hunted by different groups, either trying to kill them or take their powers. the story degrades into a fight for "survival" and the fate of the world. also it is VERY MUCH FOR ADULTS ONLY! lots of content warnings, but the main ones are gore and sexual content.

a sci-fi naval adventure that has some fantastic sea battles, but also has themes of humanity vs artificial intelligence. it explores how being human can be one's greatest strength and also their greatest weakness. also if you like this, you'd probably like the manga way more, as the story is longer and more fleshed out.

thematically very similar to bakuretsu tenshi above, but with a far stranger title. two esper girls work for a space law enforcement agency, but their story takes an interesting turn when their morality clashes with orders from the management. i won't say any more because of spoilers, but it's a fun ride.