Dark + Sad + Action + awesomeness?

[miroku2192]

So, i'm looking for something that has a dark/deep/mature plot with some sadness + action involved...things i've liked so far are like Ga-Rei zero (man i wish i could find something like that).

Other anime's i've seen that i wouldn't mind suggestions similar in epicness to are:
code geass R1 and R2, Maria + Holic, Gundam 00, Bleach, Naruto, Bounen no Xamdou, Higurashi (all seasons), elfen lied...


manga is fine too, i really just want to read something that's really popular/good

for a sense of sad stuff, i really liked:

kanon 2006 and Air (though im not sure if i saw the complete thing...it was weird, the 14th episode was the 13th episode? w/e something got mixed up haha)...Ga-Rei zero got me really moved as well...



p.s. - in terms of anime, i'd prefer something with good animation quality

pps - is ergo proxy good?


edit:
i see people recommending stuff like one piece - the drawing kinda turns me off, but you think it's really good? And if i were to pick it up, anime or manga is better?

[wOoOzZy]

Full Metal Alchemist, Last Exile, and Scrapped Princess come to mind if you haven't seen them already.

[miroku2192]

Originally Posted by wOoOzZy

Full Metal Alchemist, Last Exile, and Scrapped Princess come to mind if you haven't seen them already.

started FMA a while back, but couldn't find the rest of the series so stopped watching, i might pick it back up...u think it's better to watch japanese version?

Haven't seen the other two either. Thanks for the suggestion

[AceD]

Originally Posted by miroku2192

started FMA a while back, but couldn't find the rest of the series so stopped watching, i might pick it back up...u think it's better to watch japanese version?

Haven't seen the other two either. Thanks for the suggestion

all three of them are good and well worth watching, and i think the Jap version of FMA is alot better yea, ive got the dual audio release but the voices in english are pretty aweful

[Rab]

Now....

Chaos Head comes into mind for some odd reason.

[miroku2192]

Originally Posted by Rab

Now....

Chaos Head comes into mind for some odd reason.

oh...i can't say i really liked that :X. No offense, but i felt the suspense wasn't really there, and the main character was a bit TOO annoying imo, and the ending was just wayy too weird for me lol

[Rab]

Originally Posted by miroku2192

oh...i can't say i really liked that :X. No offense, but i felt the suspense wasn't really there, and the main character was a bit TOO annoying imo, and the ending was just wayy too weird for me lol

Okay then. l'll recommend Claymore and Souten no Ken

[Jan-Poo]

pps - is ergo proxy good?

Personally i liked it, but i wouldn't recommend it to anyone. There's more talks than actions in Ergo Proxy and a certain degree of philosophic knowledge is needed to fully understand it. Then the ending imho wasn't that great i hoped for a completely different development.

[Slick_rick]

The first thing that comes to my mind is Noir. One of my all-time favorites.

A few others I'd recommend are:
Vampire Princess Miyu
Avenger
Gunslinger Girl
Devilman Lady

[wOoOzZy]

In my opinion, it's always better to watch the subbed version of any anime. Cowboy Bebop is the only one where I can stand the dub.

[Smithsky]

Try Darker than Black.

[Nochgo]

Most of the animes already mentioned will probably float your boat. I want to second Gunslinger Girl, Darker than Black, Noir, and Claymore, but from your avatar, I'm guessing you already watched Claymore.

Ones I'd also like to recommend are:

Mnemosyne
Haibane Renmei (though this isn't action)
Blood+
.Hack/Sign
Mai-Hime (especially the latter half... kinda)

Oh, and if you liked Kanon 2006 and Air, you definitely must see Clannad. Personally, I think Clannad is the best of the three, but of course, that's an opinion.

[denice25]

Full Metal Alchemist....

[Silverwyrm]

Originally Posted by Quancio

Try Darker than Black.

I second that one heavily, contains pretty much everything you said you wanted.

Also yes, give Ergo Proxy a try

[Skyfall]

I would second Darker than Black - that one might just be up your alley.

As for other titles with dark/serious mood ...

Ghost in the Shell - Stand Alone Complex (both seasons) might suffice as well. It has a rather gritty and "realistic" (if futuristic) mood, although the story is largely episodic during the first season.

Fantastic Children is a sadly "under the radar" show that should get mentioned more often. The mood is likely what you are looking for, and the story is quite interesting and well executed. (And yes, i know the title is not the most alluring one, but ignore that ) - among my favorite anime.

In case you haven't watched them, Kara no Kyoukai movies, definitely. Superb mood and cinematography, along with some stunning visuals and music.

RahXephon, if you don't mind wrapping your head around the existential and overall weird concepts of the show. It is a well rewarding experience, however. (Seeing you liked Bounen no Xamdou, you should like this as well).

Witch Hunter Robin should do the trick as well, provided you don't mind the episodic nature of the show.

Basilisk would likely fit as well. A pretty dark story about a battle to death between two ninja clans, and the two people who love each other, but on different sides of the conflict. A Romeo & Juliet in ancient Japan, so to say

Speaking of which, you can give Romeo x Juliet a try as well. The story has nothing to do with the original play, save for borrowing the characters and basic circumstances. (And a link to the Opening, because i happen to like the mood of it quite a bit ).

Since you don't seem to mind mecha - Soukyuu no Fafner: Dead Aggressor ; one of my favorite mecha shows. You want dark and depressing ? This show won't fail to deliver that. The sense of impending doom and hopelessness of the situation was quite well established. For once, there is no feeling of a "plot shield" for the named characters.

Noein - Matrix meets Twilight Zone in your back yard. The animation style is a bit atypical though, and might not be for everyone.

Strait Jacket - only a 3 episode OVA, but quite dark in terms of mood, and they managed to put forth a good amount of characterization and story given the small timefrime this had. A shame it wasn't a full series, but oh well.

Blue Gender for some fairly gritty "Humanity VS Bugs for survival" storyline. Animation 'might' look a bit old for you though, maybe.


If you liked stuff like Air / Kanon, you might want to give Iriya no Sora, UFO no Natsu a look. Not because it is all that similar to the aforementioned, but because it revolves around character interactions and drama ... and is a quite good story to boot, although being only 6 episodes. SciFi/Drama/Romance.


Well ...that should suffice for a while

[miroku2192]

Originally Posted by Rab

Okay then. l'll recommend Claymore and Souten no Ken

Seen claymore, liked it, hated the ending though, so went to read the manga (completely different, but makes sense given the fact that there was only so much material to work with, plus it only comes out once every MONTH!? wtf haha)

Originally Posted by Jan-Poo

Personally i liked it, but i wouldn't recommend it to anyone. There's more talks than actions in Ergo Proxy and a certain degree of philosophic knowledge is needed to fully understand it. Then the ending imho wasn't that great i hoped for a completely different development.

I'll think about it thanks for the insight though.

Originally Posted by Slick_rick

The first thing that comes to my mind is Noir. One of my all-time favorites.

A few others I'd recommend are:
Vampire Princess Miyu
Avenger
Gunslinger Girl
Devilman Lady

I've heard a lot about Noir, so i might take a look into that...gunslinger girl i've seen the first season already. As for the other 3, might be a bit "too old" for my tastes

Originally Posted by Quancio

Try Darker than Black.

seen it, i liked it . Though some of it was a bit weird at first...you see the OVA? i thought that was hilarious.

true there's a second season?

Originally Posted by Nochgo

Most of the animes already mentioned will probably float your boat. I want to second Gunslinger Girl, Darker than Black, Noir, and Claymore, but from your avatar, I'm guessing you already watched Claymore.

Ones I'd also like to recommend are:

Mnemosyne
Haibane Renmei (though this isn't action)
Blood+
.Hack/Sign
Mai-Hime (especially the latter half... kinda)

Oh, and if you liked Kanon 2006 and Air, you definitely must see Clannad. Personally, I think Clannad is the best of the three, but of course, that's an opinion.

Nice catch, yes have watched claymore haha. Smart thinking there . Mnemosyne looked kind of interesting...and i heard Mai-Hime is really good too, i might take a look into that. I remember seeing .hack/sign on TV before i THINK? on adult swim? Looked kinda weird, but that was a while back.

Originally Posted by Skyfall

I would second Darker than Black - that one might just be up your alley.

As for other titles with dark/serious mood ...

Ghost in the Shell - Stand Alone Complex (both seasons) might suffice as well. It has a rather gritty and "realistic" (if futuristic) mood, although the story is largely episodic during the first season.

Fantastic Children is a sadly "under the radar" show that should get mentioned more often. The mood is likely what you are looking for, and the story is quite interesting and well executed. (And yes, i know the title is not the most alluring one, but ignore that ) - among my favorite anime.

In case you haven't watched them, Kara no Kyoukai movies, definitely. Superb mood and cinematography, along with some stunning visuals and music.

RahXephon, if you don't mind wrapping your head around the existential and overall weird concepts of the show. It is a well rewarding experience, however. (Seeing you liked Bounen no Xamdou, you should like this as well).

Witch Hunter Robin should do the trick as well, provided you don't mind the episodic nature of the show.

Basilisk would likely fit as well. A pretty dark story about a battle to death between two ninja clans, and the two people who love each other, but on different sides of the conflict. A Romeo & Juliet in ancient Japan, so to say

Speaking of which, you can give Romeo x Juliet a try as well. The story has nothing to do with the original play, save for borrowing the characters and basic circumstances. (And a link to the Opening, because i happen to like the mood of it quite a bit ).

Since you don't seem to mind mecha - Soukyuu no Fafner: Dead Aggressor ; one of my favorite mecha shows. You want dark and depressing ? This show won't fail to deliver that. The sense of impending doom and hopelessness of the situation was quite well established. For once, there is no feeling of a "plot shield" for the named characters.

Noein - Matrix meets Twilight Zone in your back yard. The animation style is a bit atypical though, and might not be for everyone.

Strait Jacket - only a 3 episode OVA, but quite dark in terms of mood, and they managed to put forth a good amount of characterization and story given the small timefrime this had. A shame it wasn't a full series, but oh well.

Blue Gender for some fairly gritty "Humanity VS Bugs for survival" storyline. Animation 'might' look a bit old for you though, maybe.


If you liked stuff like Air / Kanon, you might want to give Iriya no Sora, UFO no Natsu a look. Not because it is all that similar to the aforementioned, but because it revolves around character interactions and drama ... and is a quite good story to boot, although being only 6 episodes. SciFi/Drama/Romance.


Well ...that should suffice for a while

haha thanks for the great list, have seen basilisk and romeo x juliet, both of which i thought were great. I'll take a look into the others, thanks for the links!

[tbl]

Gantz (Manga, not the anime). You have to wait for the main character to become awesome, but the pay off it totally worth it.

[Pixelation]

I didn't see anyone mention Monster yet, so I'll throw that in here. The story is dark and mature, and excels at building suspense. Watching Monster was like kinda like reading a Stephen King classic. If you haven't seen it I can't recommend it enough... =)

[blewin]

definitely Blood+.

[Coruja]

What, no Death Note recommendation yet??