Anymore ARIA-like anime?

[Genstone]

I thought I would list out the genres of anime that I'm looking for, but then I think it's easier if I ask for recommendations based on actual examples I give.

Can someone recommend something similar to ARIA? As similar as possible? (Except YKK.)
I'm looking for anime that talks about life and contains something that we can learn. ARIA is exactly that, where nothing really happens, so I like it a lot. Any other?
(Genre: Slice-of-life)

While my main target is slice-of-life anime, I'm also looking for something that talks about the more serious but inevitable things in life, like life-and-death stuff, money, and so on. One example I can think of is Black Jack. Any other like this?
(Genre: Drama - similar to Black Jack)

Another kind of anime I'm looking for is something like Ichigo Mashimaro for being moe (or even loli), and Moetan for being ecchi. Anything like those will be in my list. Any suggestions?
(Genres: Moe, Ecchi)

I've tried searching for recommendations in various places, but haven't yet in Animesuki forum. So I thought I'd make a thread.
Any suggestions are appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[roriconfan]

Search no more

Welcome to the NHK
Magical Pokan
Potemayo
Nana
Ultimate Survival Kaiji

[Ichihara Asako]

Binchou-tan is the closest you'll get to Aria, I think. Bartender, at a stretch.

Real life modern day drama (not all scifi/action etc): Rescue Wings. Amazing piece of storytelling and character development, certainly learning about life and death in the process.

Plenty of stuff up Ichigo Mashimaro's alley: Lucky Star, Azumanga Daioh, Manabi Straight, Hidamari Sketch etc. Magipoka for slight fantasy slice of life with some pantsu.

[Deus ex Digital Boy]

I'm seconding Bartender, because while it's not exactly like Aria, it fits your other suggestions. Plus, everyone should see this great yet monumentally understated series. Though it's unfortunately only 11 episodes long.

And ya know, Aria director Junichi Sato actually has an anime on the air right now - Umi Monogatari. It's like Aria combined with a magical girl show - worth checking out.

[Echoes]

Originally Posted by roriconfan

Ultimate Survival Kaiji

For the second part of your request, I cannot help but second this.

Kaiji is about gambling with enormous debts, and indeed your very existence, on the line. It's fantastically written, has a heavy impact and a unique artstyle that works wonders. It depicts someone who's basically hit rock bottom, though, so if you're looking for more of an everyday situation kind of show; you should ignore this suggestion.

I'll also weigh in on Umi Monogatari and say that even though it's very different from Aria in many respects, it has some of the same charm, and as an enormous Aria fan; I'm loving every minute of it.

[Shadow Kira01]

Looking for ARIA-like anime?

Have you check out all these user recommendations on MAL yet?

[deathreape98]

I'm sure Jigoku Shoujo would float your boat... I mean, there is a boat in almost every episode... hehe....

Although they lack the serious appeal that you want, Lucky Star is the ultimate slice-of-life anime, with G.A. Geijutsuka Art Design Class being an anime very similar to it.

As for a moe slice-of-life (The previous two are somewhat moe, I suppose), The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi has a large emphasis on moe... put there by the main girl herself.

[Proto]

Lucky Star is the ultimate slice-of-life anime

Such an statement makes me want to cut my wrists...

For some true slice of life shows, I'd like to recommend Someday Dreamers (or the first season of Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsuna koto), the second season can enter here as well. Another would be Piano, which tells the story of a middle high school amateur pianist, how her piano affects her life, and how her life affects her piano playing. Quite the cute stories, and the first true slice of life series I saw.

[Genstone]

Originally Posted by roriconfan

Search no more

Welcome to the NHK
Magical Pokan
Potemayo
Nana
Ultimate Survival Kaiji

Thanks for your suggestions but all five of them either do not fit my criteria, or fit some of my criteria but have certain elements which are not my cup of tea at the same time. So all five do not pass, in my case.

Originally Posted by Ichihara Asako

Binchou-tan is the closest you'll get to Aria, I think. Bartender, at a stretch.

Real life modern day drama (not all scifi/action etc): Rescue Wings. Amazing piece of storytelling and character development, certainly learning about life and death in the process.

Plenty of stuff up Ichigo Mashimaro's alley: Lucky Star, Azumanga Daioh, Manabi Straight, Hidamari Sketch etc. Magipoka for slight fantasy slice of life with some pantsu.

Yes, Binchou-tan is already in my pending list even before I made this thread. Bartender is also in my list, though I put it under "Drama" instead of "Slice-of-life".

I had considered Rescue Wings before some years ago but it was quickly dropped because I didn't want to watch anything that had even the slightest air to do with military. Somehow.

Lucky Star, Azumanga Daioh, and Hidamari Sketch are all already in my list, except Manabi Straight since I'm still trying to decide if I want to watch it. Manabi Straight has to do with school more than 95% of the time, apparently. Though the art is loli-like, too much "school stuff" could potentially turn me off. (Because I'm more into "life" right now, not just "school".)
Magipoka doesn't work. No vampires or werewolf (or anything like that). Lolz. Yes it's ecchi, but the central theme is too unreal for me to enjoy.

But thanks for your recommendations.

Originally Posted by Deus ex Digital Boy

I'm seconding Bartender, because while it's not exactly like Aria, it fits your other suggestions. Plus, everyone should see this great yet monumentally understated series. Though it's unfortunately only 11 episodes long.

And ya know, Aria director Junichi Sato actually has an anime on the air right now - Umi Monogatari. It's like Aria combined with a magical girl show - worth checking out.

Bartender is already in, pending. But as for Umi Monogatari, nope, doesn't work. It may have the environment and atmosphere similar to that of ARIA, but the nature of the theme, of the story, isn't my cup of tea. Still, thanks for your suggestions.

Originally Posted by Echoes

For the second part of your request, I cannot help but second this.

Kaiji is about gambling with enormous debts, and indeed your very existence, on the line. It's fantastically written, has a heavy impact and a unique artstyle that works wonders. It depicts someone who's basically hit rock bottom, though, so if you're looking for more of an everyday situation kind of show; you should ignore this suggestion.

I'll also weigh in on Umi Monogatari and say that even though it's very different from Aria in many respects, it has some of the same charm, and as an enormous Aria fan; I'm loving every minute of it.

Thank you for your suggestions but I don't think I can take Kaiji. It's somewhat too hardcore for me to watch, with my current mood. I may be seeking drama anime, but more lighthearted or easy-going ones will do better.

I've already commented on Umi Monogatari above. So yeah.

Originally Posted by Shadow Kira01

Looking for ARIA-like anime?

Have you check out all these user recommendations on MAL yet?

Yes I have, before coming here. I've even went through the list of recommendations of other anime from the list of recommendations of all 3 ARIA seasons. Lol. And it did pay off. I thought I would try to gather even more choices, so I came here.

Originally Posted by deathreape98

I'm sure Jigoku Shoujo would float your boat... I mean, there is a boat in almost every episode... hehe....

Although they lack the serious appeal that you want, Lucky Star is the ultimate slice-of-life anime, with G.A. Geijutsuka Art Design Class being an anime very similar to it.

As for a moe slice-of-life (The previous two are somewhat moe, I suppose), The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi has a large emphasis on moe... put there by the main girl herself.

Jigoku Shoujo... I have to reject. The story isn't exactly what I'm looking for. Lucky Star is already in my pending list. But as for GA: Geijutsuka Art Design Class...... Hmm... There is insufficient information about it currently, and the lack of reviews makes it harder for me to decide. I'll take it first I guess.

I've watched Suzumiya Haruhi before. So it's out of my list. But thanks for your suggestions.

Originally Posted by Proto

Such an statement makes me want to cut my wrists...

For some true slice of life shows, I'd like to recommend Someday Dreamers (or the first season of Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsuna koto), the second season can enter here as well. Another would be Piano, which tells the story of a middle high school amateur pianist, how her piano affects her life, and how her life affects her piano playing. Quite the cute stories, and the first true slice of life series I saw.

Lol at your first sentence.
For me, the ultimate slice-of-life anime is none other than ARIA. Simply unmatched.

Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsuna koto is already within my choices. Found it in MAL and thought it would be okay so decided to give it a try.
Piano is okay I guess. Apparently it's as real as real-life can get so some people may not find the value of entertainment in watching it. (It's an anime after all, and anime is meant to entertain.) But I, for one, have different tastes than most people, so I may like it in the end. Is it only subbed by LunarAnime? If it's too hard to get I may have to skip it.

Oh and thanks for recommending.

[Ichihara Asako]

Kamichu for another slice of (an unusual) life, not too heavily school based. Very cute. Main character is rather young, most would call her a loli, I guess. I enjoyed it a great deal, though it seems underrated in general.

And what's wrong with military themes? Not that Rescue Wings even plays up the military side much, you can easily think of them as any stand alone rescue squadron (fire rescue or whatever else) if you so wished. Bit of a strange reason to shun one of the best 'real life' series around.

[Proto]

Well, since you seem to have already heard of the most common slice of life series out there, I will begin stretching the definition a little.

Seraphim Call: This series is a mixed bag in terms of the genres it falls in, since it kind of changes from episode to episode. Every episode is a different story told from the POV of a particular girl of how she spends her daily life in Neo-Acropolis. So there are some very slice of life-ish episodde, while there are very heavy introspection episodes here and there, and even a mecha parody. It is quite the hidden gem, so you may want to look into it

Figure 17: One of my personal favorites, this ones is an odd mixutre of slice of life with monter of the week sci-fi. They are 11-12 40 minutes long episodes, with 75% of each episode dedicated to the daily life of the twin, very cute protagonist, and the remaining 1/4 dedicated to an ongoing battle against some invading aliens. Even though it'd seem that it is out o the blue and that the story would be better off without the alien parts, they are very interesting in the sense that they are told from the frightened POV of a 10-year older who is trying to put up with the circumstances. So it becomes heart wrenching at times. Really recommended, seriously

Shingu: Secret of the Stellar Wars. This one is more character oriented than the previous one, but still shares the same slice of life'ish-sci fi combination and the previous one. From the same person who wrote Nadeshico and Stellvia of the universe, this one is set on Earth.

[TCman]

Originally Posted by Genstone

I thought I would list out the genres of anime that I'm looking for, but then I think it's easier if I ask for recommendations based on actual examples I give.

Can someone recommend something similar to ARIA? As similar as possible? (Except YKK.)

I'm looking for anime that talks about life and contains something that we can learn. ARIA is exactly that, where nothing really happens, so I like it a lot. Any other?
(Genre: Slice-of-life)

How about: Sketchbook ~full Color'S~, Binbou Shimai Monogatari, Hyakko, Mushishi, Natsume Yuujinchou (+ Season 2)

Originally Posted by Genstone

While my main target is slice-of-life anime, I'm also looking for something that talks about the more serious but inevitable things in life, like life-and-death stuff, money, and so on. One example I can think of is Black Jack. Any other like this?
(Genre: Drama - similar to Black Jack)

Try out these ones: Monster, Clannad (including After Story), Kanon (2002+2006),

Originally Posted by Genstone

Another kind of anime I'm looking for is something like Ichigo Mashimaro for being moe (or even loli), and Moetan for being ecchi. Anything like those will be in my list. Any suggestions?
(Genres: Moe, Ecchi)

Maybe: Minami-ke, Mahoromatic


Have fun!

[Ichihara Asako]

^ Hyakko is totally school based. Binbou Shimai Monogatari was a very nice watch. Mushishi is one of my all time favourites, and Natsume Yuujinchou is quite similar, though I think Ginko is a better protagonist than Natsume.

Monster I enjoyed the first few episodes I watched when it aired, but I've yet to get around to watching it. Been backlogged for a while. I do hear nothing for praise for it in the drama/mystery department. Clannad and Kanon are both fairly school based, which the OP seems to dislike. Also Clannad AS was a dismal piece of storywriting, and Toei's 2002 Kanon isn't worth the time if you're going to watch KyoAni's 2006 version.

Also, I completely forgot to mention Minami-ke. ;.; One of the best of the random daily slice-of-life series.

So yeah, seconding most of the above.

[Da~Mike]

I'm rather surprised that no one has mentioned Haibane Renmei so far.
It came out before Aria, and is similar to it in the slice of life sense.
Otherwise, I found Haibane Renmei to have a more compelling storyline, gorgeous earthy visuals, a beautiful soundtrack, and great voice acting.

Moreover, as far as I can tell, it doesn't possess any of the "moe moe kyun" that has utterly saturated the anime and manga market of today (something I find rather regrettable).

But since you listed Moe and Ecchi as part of what you'd like to check out, a sure fire winner of that lot would be virtually anything animated by Kyoto Animation. K-On is amongst the most recent otaku craze spawned by them (the other being 3 years ago -> The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi)

Also, I mentioned this in a previous thread but do check out:
www.anidb.net
Basically the best anime database catalogue available as far as I'm aware. I explained a bit more in another post: http://forums.animesuki.com/showthre...86#post2574386
Or you can check them out straight away instead (they've got plenty of FAQs up there).
You may find that anidb may have flagged up several user submitted tags or categories that will help you identify what aspects of an anime you like, and the aspects that deter you.

Hope that helps.

[Proto]

But since you listed Moe and Ecchi as part of what you'd like to check out, a sure fire winner of that lot would be virtually anything animated by Kyoto Animation.

KyoAni? eechi?
KyoAni all moe? Full Metal Panic TSR? o_o

In any case even though Haibane Renmei was my very favorite series for a long while (in fact, it was my favorite till ARIA aired) I don't really see it as slice of life, as much as a character introspection series. A lighter version of Serial Experments Lain, if you will. No wonder they are by the same author.

Which reminds me I'm eaherly waiting for Despera.

[Genstone]

Originally Posted by Ichihara Asako

Kamichu for another slice of (an unusual) life, not too heavily school based. Very cute. Main character is rather young, most would call her a loli, I guess. I enjoyed it a great deal, though it seems underrated in general.

And what's wrong with military themes? Not that Rescue Wings even plays up the military side much, you can easily think of them as any stand alone rescue squadron (fire rescue or whatever else) if you so wished. Bit of a strange reason to shun one of the best 'real life' series around.

I've taken Kamichu already. Has been some time waiting in my list. Lol.

Nothing is wrong with military themes. It's just that I tend to find them dry. Well I won't SHUN it... I'd still keep it in my list but just as a lower priority. Currently I already have a lot of options to choose from, more than enough. So the selection process gets tighter and tighter.

Originally Posted by Proto

Well, since you seem to have already heard of the most common slice of life series out there, I will begin stretching the definition a little.

Seraphim Call: This series is a mixed bag in terms of the genres it falls in, since it kind of changes from episode to episode. Every episode is a different story told from the POV of a particular girl of how she spends her daily life in Neo-Acropolis. So there are some very slice of life-ish episodde, while there are very heavy introspection episodes here and there, and even a mecha parody. It is quite the hidden gem, so you may want to look into it

Figure 17: One of my personal favorites, this ones is an odd mixutre of slice of life with monter of the week sci-fi. They are 11-12 40 minutes long episodes, with 75% of each episode dedicated to the daily life of the twin, very cute protagonist, and the remaining 1/4 dedicated to an ongoing battle against some invading aliens. Even though it'd seem that it is out o the blue and that the story would be better off without the alien parts, they are very interesting in the sense that they are told from the frightened POV of a 10-year older who is trying to put up with the circumstances. So it becomes heart wrenching at times. Really recommended, seriously

Shingu: Secret of the Stellar Wars. This one is more character oriented than the previous one, but still shares the same slice of life'ish-sci fi combination and the previous one. From the same person who wrote Nadeshico and Stellvia of the universe, this one is set on Earth.

Seraphim Call is pretty much a slice-of-life one, but I don't think I'll take it since I already have more than 10 slice-of-life anime that I want to watch. (I don't know how long I'll need to get all of them. )

Figure 17 sounds somewhat messed up to me (thanks to all the aliens) but since it also shows us a slice of the main character's life, perhaps I'll watch it, though, it won't be among the first ones I watch.

Shingu is... uh...... not my type. Lolz. I don't feel like watching anime with relatively much fictional elements this time. (Fictional as in very different or very "far away" from real-life.) So I'll skip this one, but thanks for suggesting.

Originally Posted by TCman

How about: Sketchbook ~full Color'S~, Binbou Shimai Monogatari, Hyakko, Mushishi, Natsume Yuujinchou (+ Season 2)

Try out these ones: Monster, Clannad (including After Story), Kanon (2002+2006),

Maybe: Minami-ke, Mahoromatic

Have fun!

Thanks. Some of what you suggested are already in, like Sketchbook, Minami-ke, Binbou Shimai Monogatari, etc. I found them on MAL though. As for others I'll have to see first. Too many choices already.

Originally Posted by Ichihara Asako

^ Hyakko is totally school based. Binbou Shimai Monogatari was a very nice watch. Mushishi is one of my all time favourites, and Natsume Yuujinchou is quite similar, though I think Ginko is a better protagonist than Natsume.

Monster I enjoyed the first few episodes I watched when it aired, but I've yet to get around to watching it. Been backlogged for a while. I do hear nothing for praise for it in the drama/mystery department. Clannad and Kanon are both fairly school based, which the OP seems to dislike. Also Clannad AS was a dismal piece of storywriting, and Toei's 2002 Kanon isn't worth the time if you're going to watch KyoAni's 2006 version.

Also, I completely forgot to mention Minami-ke. ;.; One of the best of the random daily slice-of-life series.

So yeah, seconding most of the above.

Hyakko is about school life, and I already have a few options like that. Binbou Shimai Monogatari should be very nice. And Mushishi has been on my list for quite some time. But something in Natsume Yuujinchou doesn't do. Monster should be pretty interesting, even though it's not exactly what I'm looking for. I think I'll give Monster a try, but I'll have to try to get all 74 episodes first (that's a lot!). I've considered Clannad before, but not Kanon. Kanon is okay, but not what I want as of now. And I'm already hunting around for the torrent of Minami-ke (and I've found quite a few).

Originally Posted by Da~Mike

I'm rather surprised that no one has mentioned Haibane Renmei so far.
It came out before Aria, and is similar to it in the slice of life sense.
Otherwise, I found Haibane Renmei to have a more compelling storyline, gorgeous earthy visuals, a beautiful soundtrack, and great voice acting.

Moreover, as far as I can tell, it doesn't possess any of the "moe moe kyun" that has utterly saturated the anime and manga market of today (something I find rather regrettable).

But since you listed Moe and Ecchi as part of what you'd like to check out, a sure fire winner of that lot would be virtually anything animated by Kyoto Animation. K-On is amongst the most recent otaku craze spawned by them (the other being 3 years ago -> The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi)

Also, I mentioned this in a previous thread but do check out:
www.anidb.net
Basically the best anime database catalogue available as far as I'm aware. I explained a bit more in another post: http://forums.animesuki.com/showthre...86#post2574386
Or you can check them out straight away instead (they've got plenty of FAQs up there).
You may find that anidb may have flagged up several user submitted tags or categories that will help you identify what aspects of an anime you like, and the aspects that deter you.

Hope that helps.

I've checked out Haibane Renmei before on MAL, and after some consideration I didn't pick it. Not because it's bad, but it just doesn't appeal to me much, currently. As for ecchi and moe stuff, I'm still thinking whether to take K-On. I've finished Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi a year or two ago. I feel like watching moe anime that is similar to Ichigo Mashimaro. Simple, innocent, funny, cute, and lighthearted. Nothing heavy. I wonder if there are other anime like that. I did mention Moetan in my first post, but that's good only for all of its fanservice (lots of pantsu).

Yea AniDB is good. Its large database is why I like it (and I have an old account there). I did think of browsing through AniDB as well, but after seeking everywhere I now already have a lot of options (more than 20) and I would like to watch most of them too. So for now I guess I already have (more than) enough. Thank you.

Originally Posted by Proto

KyoAni? eechi?
KyoAni all moe? Full Metal Panic TSR? o_o

In any case even though Haibane Renmei was my very favorite series for a long while (in fact, it was my favorite till ARIA aired) I don't really see it as slice of life, as much as a character introspection series. A lighter version of Serial Experments Lain, if you will. No wonder they are by the same author.

Which reminds me I'm eaherly waiting for Despera.

Even I myself find it a bit surprising that I keep Serial Experiments Lain in my list. (Because it's very much not within my scope of search.) It was recommended to me by someone in another forum and I thought it's pretty unique and somewhat technologically philosophical.
On the other hand, I don't feel anything about Haibane Renmei. The entire idea of the Haibane Renmei universe seems... I don't know how to say. I'll make a note and see if I would watch it later, but the probability is slim.

Thank you all of you for your great recommendations. This round of anime hunt has left me with an amount of choices sufficient to last for maybe a year (or two), or sooner, depending on my free time. So see you all next year! Lulz!

[SeijiSensei]

Originally Posted by Genstone

I think I'll give Monster a try, but I'll have to try to get all 74 episodes first (that's a lot!)

I'd do that soon; rumors are floating around that licensed DVDs will be available as early as December.

[synaesthetic]

This has gotten so far from ARIA with the recommendation of Monster so I might as well put out.

Darker than Black is like slice of life if you replace the life with awesome, so it's slice of awesome.

[cerrian]

There's To Heart which is classic slice-of-life.

For something along the lines of Bartender, there's Ristorante Paradiso and Shigofumi. Haven't seen Ristorante Paradiso yet but fans of the slice of life genre have been praising it. Shigofumi was fun, gave off vibes similar to Someday Dreamers.

[Da~Mike]

Originally Posted by Proto

KyoAni? eechi?
KyoAni all moe? Full Metal Panic TSR? o_o

In any case even though Haibane Renmei was my very favorite series for a long while (in fact, it was my favorite till ARIA aired) I don't really see it as slice of life, as much as a character introspection series. A lighter version of Serial Experments Lain, if you will. No wonder they are by the same author.

Which reminds me I'm eaherly waiting for Despera.

When I mentioned "virtually anything animated by KyoAni", I did mean just about everything excluding FMP TSR, has "moe and ecchi" elements as the core (or dvd/blu-ray seller) elements.
Also great business for all those companies fortunate enough to have their items associated with those series. Again, I quote K-On because I've never heard of such... acts of obsessive consumerism just because an item was featured in the series.
Shame that Yamaha drum kit was the one on show.

Anyhow, you're probably right about Haibane Renmei not being slice of life but rather a character introspection series. It's been years since I've watched Haibane Renmei, and I frequently described it to others as a "drama".

I still remember Haibane Renmei more fondly than Aria though. Maybe because the "suteki pawa", "hazukashi something kinshi...", "dekai osewa desu", "ara ara", and all those other "moe" elements that were piled on as the series progressed became irritating to me.

But I do love listening to the Aria soundtracks and have bought them all. Haibane's soundtrack is also excellent.

Originally Posted by Genstone

I've checked out Haibane Renmei before on MAL, and after some consideration I didn't pick it. Not because it's bad, but it just doesn't appeal to me much, currently. As for ecchi and moe stuff, I'm still thinking whether to take K-On. I've finished Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi a year or two ago. I feel like watching moe anime that is similar to Ichigo Mashimaro. Simple, innocent, funny, cute, and lighthearted. Nothing heavy. I wonder if there are other anime like that. I did mention Moetan in my first post, but that's good only for all of its fanservice (lots of pantsu).

Yea AniDB is good. Its large database is why I like it (and I have an old account there). I did think of browsing through AniDB as well, but after seeking everywhere I now already have a lot of options (more than 20) and I would like to watch most of them too. So for now I guess I already have (more than) enough. Thank you.

I first came across Haibane Renmei by pure chance actually. I remember using one of anidb's functions to recommend anime titles based on the shows that I liked and didn't like, and Haibane Renmei and Someday's Dreamers came up. I read the reviews (very positive on Anime News Network) and decided to buy the DVDs for them (they were already licensed).

I even remember one of my friend's introducing to Aria by showing me one episode of the weird, fat, martian cat Aria that looks nothing like a cat...
That actually put me off until I decided to give it a shot and ended up really liking the series, except for certain elements of it.

I'm been rather verbose, sorry.. But essentially what I've been trying to say is that you'll probably like it if you give it a try.

Oh and I forgot a title from a few years ago that I never watched beyond whatever episodes a friend showed me: He is my master.
Jam packed with "moe and ecchi" if I remember correctly, and probably boomed at the height of the "maid fetish" in Japan.

Hope that helps again.