Top 5 Gateway Anime to Introduce to Beginners

Good Job you! You did it. You finally got yourself a girlfriend (i.e. change to boyfriend if you are a girl or gay). You never thought this day would come. But now that it’s finally here you want to be as honest with her as possible. But here’s the thing, you have a deep dark secret that you do not dare share with her on the fear of being called a weeb or a tentacle-porn loving otaku, your love for Anime.

Now Anime gets a real bad reputation among the general public largely in part to the above mentioned animated tentacle porn, but what people don’t realize is that anime is a form of artistic medium, like books or movies. And judging the whole of anime by just its erotic branch is like saying that every book ever written is a pile of stinking raccoon feces because twilight is also a book.

So here are 5 amazing works of anime that will help you introduce this method of storytelling to your peers or significant others without them immediately making a mental note to never talk to you again.

Your Name

Let’s start with something short and sweet, an animated movie rather than an anime series. While any number of the studio Ghibli movies would have fit here, I think they are too universally well regarded as exceptional to hold them as a case study for anime. Instead watch ‘your name’ the 2016 romantic drama offering from Makoto Shinaki. Your name is a great gateway into anime because of its simple self-contained story and elegantly cheerful animation style. But it’s so much more than that.

The movie revolves around a body switching ‘Freaky Friday’ scenario between a city boy and a country girl. On top of these two being a couple of the most likable characters in any romantic story (looking at you Romeo and Juliet, you suicidal nit-wit) the movie also acts as a window into a small part of the amazing Japanese culture. This coupled with genuinely funny writing, outstanding visuals and an intriguing third act twist makes this heartwarming romance a must see for any movie lover.        

Inuyasha

While there are a number of action Anime (Shonen) that are great for beginners such as ‘Naruto’ or ‘My Hero Academia’, there is a reason I decided to suggest the much older Inuyasha instead. Inuyasha is an action adventure anime in which a high-school girl from modern japan gets transported to a version of ancient japan in which demons, magical jewels and guys with dog ears are real.  One of the very few anime I have seen that is enjoyed equally by both men and women. Guys like the epic fights, astonishing demon designs and the ridiculous sounding weapon and attack names (Wind-Scar!) and girls will like the bad boy with a heart of gold protagonist paired with the shy but intelligent girl-next-door romance. While the animation feels a bit dated today, Inuyasha is one of those stories with a bit of something for everyone

The opposite of the cat-girl troupe: A dog-boy