Anime you think don't deserve the heaps of praise, and why they don't.

[Mr. Hat'n'Clogs]

The best part is how all the extra stuff Hughes does in the first anime is shove a knife in some dude's hand and throw Ed a birthday party.

Hugely expanded role.

[blkmage]

Yeah, it's not that characters had their roles reduced for Brotherhood, but rather, characters had their importance inflated and exaggerated. I can't imagine how much it bugged manga readers at the time.

[Rocketshipper]

The best part is how all the extra stuff Hughes does in the first anime is shove a knife in some dude's hand and throw Ed a birthday party.

Its not really that he had more *importance* to the plot in terms of affecting things, its really just that he's *there* more. More screentime, more interaction with the characters. Its easier to see why Ed, Al, and Mustang end up so affected by what happens to him, because of that extra screen time. in contrast, in the other story, I found myself wondering why the other characters were so affected, because it seemed like there was much less interaction between them and Hughes. As a viewer/reader, I felt much more connection to Hughes and the event in the first anime than I did to the same material in the manga/brotherhood

[Yamamaya]

I fail to see how anyone could view the original anime as significantly better than Brotherhood.

The first anime was filled with meaningless story arcs that had nothing to do with the alternate story that the first anime weaved.

[Shao Feng-Li]

So, the first FMA anime isn't all that old and they remade it?

[bkilbour]

I like both FMA animes.
The first offers something unique, brings in good ideas (the movie knocked me to the floor, it was so good), has an awesome subdued atmosphere at times, and brings in depth to some characters that weren't explored as much in brotherhood. I liked the ending better in this one.

However, I loved the deeper dive into the ishval war in brotherhood, I like it's actions scenes better, and think that the overall production was more well-thought out than the first. It works out well for those who read the whole manga, and for the first twenty-ish episodes has the best openings/endings ever. Those who like more blatant edxwinry or royai stuff will always like this one better....

Both are good.

[Rocketshipper]

I like them both, about equally, and think both versions have their strong points and weak points. In the end, Brotherhood inches ahead just a little bit (mostly because my favorite character DOESN'T die this time!) But I still like the old series too. But the manga is the best version overall.

[goldenspines]

So, the first FMA anime isn't all that old and they remade it?

Not remade as much as retold. The first anime had to be finished before the mangaka finished the manga, so they made up an ending (then tried to fix it further with the movie >.<), while Brotherhood was created to amend this fault and make the anime how it was truly suppose to be.

Though I can understand people who are not fans of the manga liking the first anime better. The first anime is not bad, it's just lacking most of the beautiful and fantastic parts of the manga. *coughitdoesn'thaveOlivierArmstrongcough*

If you watch the first anime, you are only seeing a small taste of what the series is like.

But why are we talking about FMA? It deserves heaps of praise and does not belong in this thread. O:

Hopping back on topic, I think it was Sheol who mentioned RG Utena, which I'm inclined to agree with as one who actually saw the whole series (a long time ago, though). While ground breaking as it was, apparently, I don't think it deserves much of the praise it's given.
Though, I do give it extra points now for being a semi basis for Star Driver.

[Shao Feng-Li]

I've read 23 volumes of the manga and haven't seen even on episode of the anime. So I'll be watching brotherhood

[blkmage]

I hold the FMA manga and the second anime very highly, which is why I do think that the first FMA anime gets way more praise than it should. I mean, even when I first watched it way back when, as much as I liked it, the final arc just turned me off from it. I think that at this point, it's largely nostalgia and being unable to dissociate the new anime from the old one.

I watched the entirety of Utena a few months ago and it's my favourite 90s anime now. I've always thought that the space that it was born out of was the same as that of Evangelion, but I found Utena a lot more interesting. I'll admit that Utena is super obtuse, but it was a really enjoyable watching experience when I was watching it with another forum and everyone was actively dissecting it after each episode (which I think is necessary for this show). I think it's one of those shows that you really need to approach and watch with a certain mindset, otherwise it'll just be shadows and reuse of stock footage.

[Agloval]

Well, I watched Utena without analysis and without any particular mindset, and enjoyed it thoroughly: it has swordfights! and cars! and surfing elephants! and upside-down fairytale castles! For viewers whose tastes run in these channels, I think it's undeniably a good watch.

I'd agree that sometimes rather extravagant claims are made for its significance, though.

[Cognitive Gear]

I never understood why the first FMA anime got so much praise in general. Someone had to nearly force me to start the manga after I had given the anime a chance and been very confused as to why it was so popular. I'm glad that they did, because the manga was excellent. (and I am assuming the Brotherhood was as well, given that it follows the manga very closely.)

[Fish and Chips]

I have seen exactly all of five minutes of Utena. Some dude standing under a mobile castle piloted by straw dolls with headsets got impaled by a motorcycle driven by two naked women.

I wasn't sure what to make of it at the time.

[crazypackersfan]

We'll see. When I'm finished with FMA: Brotherhood, then I'll have a definitive opinion on it. Also, Brotherhood is still fresh in everyone's minds; we'll see how it holds up a few years from now.

[the_wolfs_howl]

Come to think of it, yeah, the first FMA doesn't deserve quite the amount of praise it gets because of all the plot holes and the ending (and the huge letdown of a movie). But then, Brotherhood also doesn't deserve quite as much praise as it gets, though I generally prefer it to the first one because the manga is a masterpiece. (I could go into more detail, but then we'd be here all day.)

Basically, if you could just take the part of the first series before it split off from the manga, and all of Brotherhood after that point, and stick them together, you'd get the perfect FMA. *sigh*

[mouse]

I don't really get My Neighbor Totoro. I rewatched it several times, but still nothing. Since it's for kids, I think it should be either really fun or exciting to watch, or just easier to understand. I don't really recommend others to watch it.

[airichan623]

I don't really get My Neighbor Totoro. I rewatched it several times, but still nothing. Since it's for kids, I think it should be either really fun or exciting to watch, or just easier to understand. I don't really recommend others to watch it.

I kinda agree, but i still love Totoro. However, Kiki's Delivery Service wasnt all that amazing.

[ShiroiHikari]

I don't think Totoro is for kids as much as it is for the young at heart.

[Atria35]

Angel Beats- I can't tell you how many people think this is one of the best shows to come out since Haruhi. I don't get it. While the visuals are great, and the music not half-bad, the plot and characterization fail on many levels. Most of the humor, instead of being Kyon's witty observations, is the cast calling eachother ruse names or is violent slapstick comedy. It's a big deal when one of them 'dies' even though they're immortal in this world.... and they all know that the person will be back in business in a few minutes or so. And a lot of plot threads are left hanging.

Because of all this, I could never get into the anime that much, or understand all the buzz about it.

[Asuka Neko]

Kind of just jumping on this having only read the first page, but...

I personally think everyone has different opinions about all anime and it all depends on what you like. For instance, I don't like Fullmetal Alchemist, Bleach, Naruto, One Piece, and other stuff like that because I find fight scenes boring. But I might just not like shonen anime. And I know people who absolutely LOVE it and can't get enough of it, but I just can't see why.

The one anime that I'm not sure whether I like or dislike all of the attention it's getting is Hetalia. It's a very creative idea and I agree that it's somewhat funny, but I don't really like the fact that they have all of these crazy yaoi fangirls. It creeps me out when people try to "pair up" countries. They're COUNTRIES, for crying out loud! It's just kind of weird. I'm not sure whether I like it or not. And if you like Hetalia, please ignore my random ranting, I promise I do not absolutely hate it!

Most of the time, I just like the manga better and that's that.

And Lucky Star is like "what, an anime needs to have a plot?" most of the time.

[TopazRaven]

B-but pairing up countries is fun! xD I guess when you look at it in some ways, yes, it is a bit creepy. However, the whole point of the series is that the countries are now being represented as human-like beings with feelings and emotions. Why deny them love? I will agree that the fandom can be a bit daunting. Some of the fangirls can get really nasty, especially if you bash their favorite pairing. I don't mind the yaoi at all {then again, I have a different view on homosexuality then most of the Christians here, not getting into this anymore then that because 1. I don't want an argument and 2. this is not what this thread is really about} but I despise USxUK which is probably the most popular pairing in the series. I literally want to slam my head against a wall whenever I hear fans talking about how 'hot together' or 'meant to be' they are. It's just gross, England is practicaly America's dad. You don't think of someone as your kid/younger sibling one day and then want to get with them once they're all grown up. Meanwhile, most of the yaoi is actually fan-based. The anime/manga pick fun at it, but you can easily take it as just a joke or ignore it. Sorry, as a Hetalia fan I felt the need to try and defend it. By the way, love your icon. Demyx, yes?

[Asuka Neko]

B-but pairing up countries is fun! xD I guess when you look at it in some ways, yes, it is a bit creepy. However, the whole point of the series is that the countries are now being represented as human-like beings with feelings and emotions. Why deny them love? I will agree that the fandom can be a bit daunting. Some of the fangirls can get really nasty, especially if you bash their favorite pairing. I don't mind the yaoi at all {then again, I have a different view on homosexuality then most of the Christians here, not getting into this anymore then that because 1. I don't want an argument and 2. this is not what this thread is really about} but I despise USxUK which is probably the most popular pairing in the series. I literally want to slam my head against a wall whenever I hear fans talking about how 'hot together' or 'meant to be' they are. It's just gross, England is practicaly America's dad. You don't think of someone as your kid/younger sibling one day and then want to get with them once they're all grown up. Meanwhile, most of the yaoi is actually fan-based. The anime/manga pick fun at it, but you can easily take it as just a joke or ignore it. Sorry, as a Hetalia fan I felt the need to try and defend it. By the way, love your icon. Demyx, yes?

I understand where you're coming from as a fan of it, like I said, it's just my opinion. I also agree about USxUK, it is probably my least favorite pairing in the whole series. It's just messed up... I did like Hetalia more before I discovered the fandoms that come with it. I know that it is fan-based, but I have difficulty ignoring that and it makes it hard for me to watch a series.

X3 thank you, and yes, it is Demyx!

[Nate]

USxUK which is probably the most popular pairing in the series

More popular than ItalyxGermany? LIES. LIES, I SAY.

ItalyxGermany is totally canon and totally adorable. :3

[TopazRaven]

I understand where you're coming from as a fan of it, like I said, it's just my opinion. I also agree about USxUK, it is probably my least favorite pairing in the whole series. It's just messed up... I did like Hetalia more before I discovered the fandoms that come with it. I know that it is fan-based, but I have difficulty ignoring that and it makes it hard for me to watch a series.

X3 thank you, and yes, it is Demyx!

I know what you mean. The fandom actually almost scared me away from the series. I saw way to much pedo-like fan-art/fan-fics and got freaked out. I'm just more careful now about what I look at/read. Meanwhile, the fandom has totally scared me away from Black Butler. Not sure if I'll ever watch it now, but I might. I try not to let a fandom stop me from enjoying something. Yay Demyx! xD

More popular than ItalyxGermany? LIES. LIES, I SAY.

ItalyxGermany is totally canon and totally adorable. :3

I honestly think it is. I can't look up Hetalia anywhere without being plauged with USUK. And the sad thing is it's not even canon. I can't hardly ever find any cool fan-art for the actual canon couples like AustriaxHungary. Curses!

[blkmage]

Just gonna say that judging shows by their fanbase is silly goosery.

[crossovershippe]

i think that the haruhi suzuiyuma series is overrated

[Accelerator]

Probably mentioned already: But EVA is overrated as could be.

[jsav777]

I'm only 10 or so episodes in it, but I really don't get all the praise of FMA Brotherhood over the original. The animation seems more poorly made and the voice acting seems worse too. I don't know hopefully it gets better as the series goes on

[Accelerator]

I'm only 10 or so episodes in it, but I really don't get all the praise of FMA Brotherhood over the original. The animation seems more poorly made and the voice acting seems worse too. I don't know hopefully it gets better as the series goes on

Yeah it definitely does, don't worry you'll see it soon enough

[Atria35]

i think that the haruhi suzuiyuma series is overrated

Could you be more specific? It's nice to hear WHY someone feels something is overrated.

Though I do have to agree with you. I found Haruhi to be abrasive and annoying, Yuki far too quiet and having no personality, the other girl waaaay to much of a pushover (though I did pity her a bit). Kyon was actually a lot of fun, and I thought the plot was good. But the majority of the cast frustrated me.