FEATURE: Anime-Planet Recommends... Short and Sweet Edition

Hello again, and welcome to another edition of "Anime-Planet Recommends...", where each week we showcase some of the anime you recommend people might like on Anime-Planet. 

 

It's been a pretty intense week on the A-P front - this week we launched personal suggestions (an alternate way to get recs of what to watch next) and also manga suggestions and some other bits. I haven't had as much time as I'd like to compile the recommendation list this week, so please forgive me, this week's edition will be short and sweet! 

 

 

On to the recommendations!

 

Galileo fanboys and fangirls might appreciate Nadia: Secret of Blue Water and Galilei Donna.

 

kodr says:

 

"The adventure of a group of people, searching for the mystery around a treasure left by Galileo. The dynamic between the characters and the different enemies reminded me of Nadia, with also crazy inventions."

Socially inept? No problem! You might find solace with WATAMOTE or My Teenage Romantic Comedy SNAFU.

 

Famine08 explains:

 

"Both anime feature a protagonist that has a problem with social interaction. The characters are quite different while Hachiman is analytical to a fault, Tomoko allows her imagination to dream up the worst possible case scenario and usually winds up there. Both protagonists both have very little desire to change, Hachiman admits this openly while Tomoko strives to be more social in theory but in reality is simply happiest remaining a shut in otaku. If you like one it is likely you will enjoy the other but Watamote is more realistic, nobody will come to save poor Tomoko which leads to very cringing comedy while Hachiman enjoys a much more refined sense of comedy surrounded by characters who are drawn towards him"

It seems like everyone out there must have seen Deadman Wonderland and Future Diary already - but in case you haven't, many people on the site think you'd like one if you liked the other.

 

Here's what elliotmarshal has to say:

 

"Both stories feature a morally "weak" character facing life-or-death circumstances while teamed up with a mentally unstable female love interest. They both feature a significant amount of gore/violence and utilize psychological testing plot twists."

  

There's no denying that anytime a 'trapped in a game' anime comes out nowadays, there's an immediate comparison with Sword Art Online. If you've been into anime for awhile, you likely remember the far earlier .hack//SIGN.

 

 

Wandervox thinks you shouldn't write off SAO's predecessor:

 

"It's almost certainly been said before now, but this recommendation is an absolute no-brainer. If you'd already seen one of these, watching the other surely brought this comparison to mind almost immediately. These two stories share so many elements -- they each take many pages from the same book... great book it is, mind you.

You have the main character that's stuck in an online game. Uneasy alliances are forged. Strange happenings abound. There are even some commonalities in the shows' visual design. "So what's left to make me want to watch the one of these I HAVEN'T seen," you ask? There ARE differences, and they take two very similar shows in two rather different directions.While .hack takes more the form of a mystery, preferring to keep you watching by taking you from one oddity to the next. SAO leans more toward action and offers clear, shocking reveals. .hack's main character questions who to trust and why, SAO's whether they should trust at all, and how to even do so.

.hack does suffer slightly from age, and SAO from a spot or two of questionable writing. Regardless, both are interesting and entertaining, and well worth watching, particularly if you are a fan of what either brings to the table."

 

You've heard of and seen Attack on Titan like the zillions of other anime fans out there - but what about the much more obscure Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse?

 

invalidname thinks you'd like these because:

 

"Both series start with a colossal (see what I did there?) setback for mankind, with friends and family devoured alive by man-eating monsters, trauma that hardens a main character for life. Each series then jumps ahead a few years to show our heroes in training for a counterattack, but consumed by rivalries, racism, and the quick willingness of humans to turn on each other. Attack on Titan benefits from snappier pacing and less indulgence of otaku fanbait, lacking Total Eclipse's boob-hugging plug-suits or sapphic bathtub romps."

On the lighter side, fans of Otome Youkai Zakuro or Natsume Yuujinchou might appreciate the other.

FrankiGii explains:

 

"They're both sweet anime with generally kind characters figuring out how humanity and yokai can coexist. Natsume doesn't have much of a romantic element, while OYZ does, but it's incredibly heart warming, humorous, and has wonderful friendships. I couldn't recommend it more."

For deity/human friendships in a medieval setting, look no further than Spice and Wolf and Maoyu.

JtbBasketball says:

 

"Both of these are in Medieval times and have a diety along side a human character. They are very both deal with economics and a non typical love story. "

For post-apocalyptic and thought provoking titles, try out Sunday Without God and From the New World.

corkboard describes:

 

"Both these shows have a very similar ambiance and a common (though very different) post-apocalyptic setting.  They are both beautifully drawn but at the same time required a great deal of the reader in terms of suspending disbelief in a world that is supposed to be theoretically contiguous with our own.  From the New World does a much better job of this with a much more coherent story line, but if you enjoyed the experience of either both are likely to hold your attention (particularly since Sunday without God is only 12 episodes)."

Finally, if you're looking for a random comedy, check out Daily Lives of High School Boys and Nichijou.

 

 

AngelBeatsYui says:

 

"To start of both really have no storyline, they are all over the place. But this randomness is what makes these two similar. In both the art style is very simply and they use a similar structure in how they present each scene. In the end Daily Lives of High School Boys is just like a male version of Nichijou,and vise versa. Another think is that they are based around high school students even though in one the main characters are boys and the other is based around a  group of girls, these anime are quite similar and I say if you enjoyed one ypu should enjoy the other."

That's it for this week! As always, add your recommendations on Anime-Planet each week for a chance to be featured in this column. Enjoy your weekend and see you next time!

 

-------

Kim Cameron is the CEO and founder of Anime-Planet, a Crunchyroll partner and the world’s oldest anime and manga recommendation database site. Follow her on Twitter at @AnimePlanet or on Facebook.