Summary
People find comfort in many different vices, whether from watching a movie, listening to music, or reading their favorite book. Others, still, get that fuzzy feeling they’re looking for by turning the lights down low and wasting the day away watching that oneanimethey fell inlove with in the past.
While some anime are seemingly made to be watched over and over by shortening the season or episode length, others are just so good that they have to be experienced again. What follows are some ofthe best anime that make fans want to immediately hit replay.
TheHighschool of the Deadanime burst onto the scene a fair bit after the manga, though it didn’t take long for a dub to be released in the West. And it’s easy to see why, as it was released amid themodern zombie renaissancespearheaded by shows like AMC’sThe Walking Dead.
Of course, it’s hard to pinpoint exactly why this anime is so rewatchable nearly 15 years later. Maybe it’s the stellar art by manga artist Shōji Satō, or the ridiculously good animation by Studio Madhouse. Or maybe it’s that the show is graphic in all the right ways. Whatever the reason, fans will be coming back to this show for years to come, even in the story’s unfinished state.
Durarara!!takes a group of disparate characters with wildly different backgrounds and puts their stories on a crash course toward an inevitable climax. Gangsters, a Dullahan, and a Sushi chef, among others, all play their respective roles in thishilariously exciting tale.
The big draw here is this show’s infectious atmosphere, driven heavily by its addicting soundtrack. Every character theme and tone piece draws the viewer in when the perspective shifts to keep them engaged, even when the fists (or stops signs) aren’t flying. In the end, there’s a lot going on at once, which will always facilitate a rewatch.
The best sports anime have the power to change non-athletic types into true believers.Yuri!!! On Icedid just this for the sport of figure skating, while also giving fans a compelling—if not a bit bait-filled—relationship between a mentor and mentee.
What makes this show endlessly rewatchable is its attention to detail during each character’s performance. The series is loaded with fully choreographed routines, showcasing not only Studio Mappa’s animation prowess but also some great drama and characterization as each skater lays everything out on the ice.
If anime fans are looking for a quick romp through the apocalypse, their first choice should beDevilman Crybaby. It’s a depressing look at humanity’s understandably horrendous last days before everything comes crashing down.
The series is a brief 10 episodes and isn’t particularly filled with layers of meaning like some shows these days, but it’s absolutely full of intense, hypnotizing visuals, particularly of the gory variety. These are what will keep viewerscoming back again and again.
The best romance anime tend to be stories involving two seemingly incompatible parties who find love with each other despite their differences.I Can’t Understand What My Husband Is Sayingbegins at the logical next step, though, as the “normal” Kaoru settles into married life with herotaku husband, Hajime.
With the show exploring various aspects of love, including the compromises that marriage requires, this couple is easy to get attached to. Luckily, the series is a speedy rewatch, with each episode sitting at just under 3 minutes.
This one is just as the title suggests as it follows a group of boys living outtheir high school days. Whether it’s playing pretend or dealing with the opposite sex, the show makes fun of, but also sheds light on, some very real situations that boys find themselves in when they’re at that age.
Viewers are with the main characters all the way through their graduation. However,Daily Lives of Highschool Boysstays at a tight length of just 12 episodes, giving little reason not to come back when fans are feeling nostalgic for their younger days.
Attack on Titanis one of the series responsible for anime’s most recent spike in mainstream popularity. This show’s wanton disregard for expectations, as Erin Yaeger and the rest of the Survey Corp zip through the skies to defend their home from the threat of the Titans, is truly captivating.
That said, it’s the suspense and mystery that will keep fans coming back. Well, that, and the series' impressive, if not sometimes overwhelming, interweaving of the most pertinent story beats that were oftenforeshadowed seasons in advance.
WhileNichijouisn’t the first or latest gag-based slice-of-life anime out there, it is one of the best to have done it. Here, viewers will meet a medley of characters as they live out their not-so-mundane lives in a rural Japanese town where weird seems to be the norm.
The episodes are definitely on the meatier side for shows like this, with 26 half-hour episodes full of silly jokes. However, in a world where the 5-minute mini-episode seems to have become commonplace,Nichijoushines through, letting the viewer bask in its absurdity for a while longer.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhoodis the story of two brothers just looking for a normal life again after making the mistake of messing with a power they didn’t fully understand. This redo of the series more closely follows the FMA manga, and is the definitive way to experience one of thegreatest anime stories out there.
There are some incredibly memorable moments here, like the battle between Roy Mustang and Envy, or the infamous Nina Tucker scene. But at the end of the day, it’s the incredibly paced drama that will draw viewers in, bring tears to their eyes, and make them want to do it all over again.
FLCL(aka.Fooly Cooly)is, at its core, a coming-of-age story, but it’s one that takes a number of immediate detours to deal with some formidable, world-destroying threats. There are rare moments of solace, sure, but they play second fiddle to the action.
The show was clearly made with a fun-first mentality, but that’s not to say there aren’t things to give onlookers something to think about, asFLCLdeals with themes of maturity, sexuality, and change. This is by far the shortest entry on this list, running for only 6 episodes (not including the less-popular sequels), making it the quickest and most enticing anime rewatch there is.
