I strongly believe that anime is hugely underrated and should become more mainstream. 

Compared to American cartoons/television shows, anime is something new that explores a world of deeply creative genres and graphics that most people aren’t used to seeing. 

“Not only is anime fun to watch, but it also gives a glimpse into Japanese culture. This one is obvious, and while it might not always be 100% right, it mostly is accurate. Anime is made by the Japanese after all, and gives you insights into their culture. Even if a little,” said animemotivation.com. 

That being said, not only when you watch anime are you expanding your mind to watching something different, but you are also getting a glimpse into Japanese culture. 

Unlike American cartoons, anime is more realistic in comparison. Such as: relationships, Japanese food, the ugly side of human nature, life lessons, team work, and communication.

For instance, the anime Toradora (on Netflix) includes lots of these realistic additives. To give you an idea, the main character Ryūji Takasu makes all sorts of Japanese culture food for the other main character Taiga Aisaka. Foods such as rice balls, orange cake, meat filled Bento, and many more. 

Another great reason to watch anime is all of the really amazing graphics. For example, in an anime on Netflix called Maid Sama there are a lot of really cool fighting scenes that I feel like we really don’t see much in American TV shows besides action movies. The animations in these anime are just something so much more different and unique then things that you would watch in the US. 

A couple of other anime that I would recommend watching that don’t have any subtitles and that are all on Netflix are: Toradora, Kakegurui, InuYasha, K-On, and Haikyu. These are really great animes–especially for people who are just beginning to watch them.

“I think that anime should be more popular because it’s really just like any other animated shows with a bigger variety of age ranges, styles, and for people of all interests. Plus, even if people can’ t get behind reading the subtitles, there’s always the option of watching some shows in English, so anime does just cater to everyone,” said freshman Gabby Williams. 

Every person I have talked to that watches anime has said that before they watched it, they thought it was stupid until they tried one, and the always end up loving it .

I can relate to this. I showed no interest in anime and hated something that I had never even watched. I ended up watching Toradora with my sister, and to my surprise, I absolutely loved it! And I completely take back anything bad that I’ve ever said about anime. 

I urge you to explore more with anime and see whether or not you like it. I’d suggest starting with more of the shorter animes rather than the longer ones (which can sometimes be up to 100 episodes). These shorter ones would include: Maid Sama, Toradora, Kakeguri, and InuYasha. These are all my personal favorites that are what I consider to be shorter and better to understand.