The Best Anime To Get To Know Polygon

Polygon covers anime pretty consistently all year round, from our running list of the best shows of the year to the minutiae of the year’s best anime openings. The reason is simple: We love the medium, and we earnestly want to share that love with our readers while putting a spotlight on our favorite creators and their work.

With that in mind, we’ve put together a list of the best shows to get to know our respective anime tastes and where to watch. These aren’t necessarily our “favorite” anime per se, but rather the ones that have particularly moved us, inspired us, and exemplify the very best of what we look for in the medium and what it can offer. Feel free to chime in on the comments and share the anime that mean the most to you!

Revolutionary Girl Utena

Genre: Magical girl romance
Episode count: 39
Where to stream: N/A

Long before I ever knew I was queer, the surreal toxic yuri masterpiece Revolutionary Girl Utena just happened to be my favorite anime. I just thought it was neat!

I was introduced to Utena in college, when a show about youth anxieties blown out to operatic proportions would naturally hit hard. But what really seared it into my mind was the series’ use of symbolism instead of direct visuals — its demand that I pay attention and infer rather than simply listen and watch. That, and how it was my first experience being a part of a group of anime fans, scheduling our Utena watch nights around one person’s precious DVD set, shrieking over plot twists together. —Susana Polo

Assassination Classroom

Genre: Sci-fi action
Episode count: 48
Where to watch: Crunchyroll, Hulu

Assassination Classroom was recommended by my friend and colleague Julia Lee, and it is now a piece of media that is very, very dear to me. It is the first anime series I watched from start to finish, it’s the first that I got physical merch for (a Koro-sensei plush figure, naturally), and it hits all the notes I want from ridiculous fiction.

The show follows a superpowered yellow octopus man who destroys most of the moon and threatens to destroy the Earth next. But he makes an offer: Let him teach a class of junior high rejects in the ways of the world (and of murder), and if they can assassinate him before the year is up, the Earth won’t be destroyed after all.

It’s an outrageously silly setup that naturally lends itself to hijinks (I’m a big fan of those, personally), but Assassination Classroom has more layers than you could anticipate, and they all line up with my personal interests. Packed with action? Check. Even more heart? Check. Bizarre humor? Absolutely. Baseball episode? You know it. —Pete Volk

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex

Genre: Cyberpunk procedural
Episode count: 52
Where to watch: Sling TV

When I think about anime that’ve had a profound impact on me, I think of Ghost in the Shell. I’m literally looking up at a framed poster of Mamoru Oshii’s 1995 feature film above my desk while typing this. Both that film and Masamune Shirow’s original manga have had a profound impact on my life, introducing me to the genre of cyberpunk and all the exciting stories it encompasses. But when I think of my personal favorite iteration of Ghost in the Shell, my immediate next thought is of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex without hesitation. 

Set in a continuity separate from either Oshii’s film or Shirow’s manga, Stand Alone Complex was a sci-fi police procedural whose “stand-alone” episodes, more than decade after having first seen them on television, stand out as some of my favorite episodes of anime, full stop. I can’t think of many other shows, much less animated ones, that pay homage to Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless, Kathryn Bigelow’s Strange Days, and Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver, all while exploring a larger mystery inspired by one of the most notorious cold cases in Japanese history. For all these reasons and more, it’s an anime I frequently find myself returning to. —Toussaint Egan

Akira

Genre: Sci-fi
Run time: 2h 4m
Where to watch: Crunchyroll

Akira was my first theatrical anime experience, and the anime movie I’ve written about most often, and the only movie I have a poster for on my walls. But none of those are the real reason it’s the get-to-know-me anime. Akira pretty much defines my taste in cinema: It’s a ridiculously ambitious project, beautifully animated and visually lush, and unquestionably the project of an idiosyncratic creator with a strong vision, trying to do too many things at once. It’s a philosophical treatise about humanity, disguised as a thrillingly grim, dark, grimdark science fiction movie. It’s easy to watch — the action is stellar and exciting — but it invites a lot of discussion, research, and thought if you really want to pin down what it’s saying. Also, it has a killer soundtrack, used perfectly. All of these things are core to what really excites and engages me in film and in animation. It’s essentially the Ultimate Tasha Movie. —Tasha Robinson

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure

Genre: Supernatural adventure
Episode count: 152
Where to watch: Netflix, Crunchyroll

I was hooked on JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure immediately — it’s a tribute to masculine power, high fashion, and being absolutely high on your own bullshit. JoJo’s plot is very difficult to explain, since there’s a whole rotating array of JoJos, each descended from the Joestar family. Each JoJo is faced with impossible odds, and each one is both hugely resilient and capable of great heroism.

It’s easy to imagine a compromised version of JoJo, where Hirohiko Araki trimmed out some of the ridiculous plot elements like vampirism, corrupted stone masks, long monologues explaining each battle sequence, and the nefarious Dio. Instead, every story puts the pedal to the metal, pushing into new ridiculous realms and dizzying stakes. It’s a great reminder to never be timid or restrain yourself when it comes to fiction, and it’s a lesson I try to apply to my own creative projects. —Cass Marshall

Aggretsuko

Genre: Comedy
Episode count: 51
Where to watch: Netflix

Have you ever had a moment at work, or picked up a phone call from a parent, and been overwhelmed by an all-consuming fury that could lead you to self-immolate in animated flames? Well, I have, and that’s why I think Aggretsuko would be the perfect show to get to know me.

Aggretsuko follows the story of Retsuko, the Sanrio character that looks like an anthropomorphized red panda. She is also a young woman who is learning to navigate her professional and personal life. As a 20- or 30-something, she has to deal with nagging parents, inconsiderate bosses, and ratty love interests. She tries her best to be agreeable and put on a good face and just take each challenge as it comes, but that only goes so far. To release her pent-up anger, she sings screamo metal alone in a personal karaoke room. Retsuko allows herself to fully, completely rage, and, well, I’d like to think that I can, too. —Ana Diaz

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Genre: Apocalyptic action
Episode count: 26
Where to watch: Netflix

For some people, their first anime was Naruto, or Ranma ½, or Dragon Ball, but mine… mine was getting thrown off the deep end into Neon Genesis Evangelion. And no, not Evangelion the TV series — my first experience with watching the 60-minute clip show/series summary Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death on my friend’s PC monitor while he filled in the missing plot points and emotional beats, circa 1998.

The fact that I continued to watch and enjoy both Evangelion and other anime after that baffling afternoon says more about me than any other experience I’ve had with the medium. —SP

The Monogatari series

Genre: Paranormal mystery
Episode count: 100
Where to watch: Crunchyroll, Prime Video

I first watched Bakemonogatari after watching an AMV for it set to Katy Perry’s “E.T.” over 10 years ago (lol). The animation in the video was just so next-level that I knew I had to watch the show. I’ve kept up with the series since, and Shaft (the animation studio) never disappoints.

The fight scenes are gorgeous, the soundtrack is great, and the characters are compelling. While some parts of the series are unsavory to say the least, it still remains my favorite of all time. Each arc is so exciting to watch, and whenever there’s a twist, it takes me by surprise every time. I’ll never forget the feeling of shock and dread that poured over me during the Sodachi Lost arc of Owarimonogatari.

Admittedly, I was worried that listing this anime would get me labeled as a weird gooner, and I just decided that I don’t care. It’s that good! —Julia Lee

Wakakozake

Genre: Slice-of-life food
Episode count: 12
Where to watch: Crunchyroll

I’ve watched and loved a variety of food-centric anime — Food Wars: Shokugeki no Soma, Delicious in Dungeon — but 2015’s Wakakozake is a particularly special one to me. Its bite-sized (ha) two-minute episodes about a 20-something office lady going out in search of good food and a good drink speak to me more and more the older I get.

Wakako often goes out alone after a long day at work and finds joy in the little things: a bite of salted salmon skin, the first sip of a cold beer. She loves when her drink perfectly complements her meal. And most importantly to me, she’s happy, and unafraid, to be by herself.

This isn’t a slice-of-life series with a strong narrative thrust centered on character relationships. It’s about one woman and her relationship to herself and the things she enjoys. There’s a quiet lesson in that, and it’s one I will keep returning to, even 10 years on, until I’ve really learned it. —Kallie Plagge

Delicious in Dungeon

Genre: Fantasy comedy
Episode count: 24
Where to watch: Netflix

Delicious in Dungeon has its fair share of fantasy adventure: fighting beasts, dark magic rituals, and creeping past deadly traps. The heart of the show lies in the moments between battle, when the team bonds over a hearty dish cooked up from whatever creature they last defeated.

There are two wolves inside of me, and both of them can be found in Delicious in Dungeon. Laios, the dutiful older brother, has an impulsive streak and hyperfixation on monsters. Marcille is much more cautious, and fairly squeamish about all of these new dishes she samples. I’m intrigued by the larger meta-mysteries of the setting and the quest to save Falin, but I’m at my happiest watching Laios and Marcille bounce off the other party members. Sometimes, the conversation around a hot meal can be the most relatable part of a show. —CM

Carole & Tuesday

Genre: Sci-fi musical
Episode count: 24
Where to watch: Netflix

I love animation as a medium because it allows for fantastical stories that can’t possibly be done in live action.
But at the same time, it was slice-of-life stories that made me fall in love with anime. I love using animation to elevate what we might take for granted, be it power lines, John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” or rain on a sidewalk. So, it’s Carole & Tuesday that really exemplifies my taste in anime.

From Shinichirō Watanabe, creator of Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo, Carole & Tuesday is about two lonely girls creating music together and forging a deep and powerful friendship. It also takes place on Mars, in a futuristic society rife with capitalist oppression. But there’s still touchpoints like cafes and laundromats, even amid the high-tech mansions and decadent reality TV show performances.

Carole & Tuesday tackles what it means to be an artist and how art can be a powerful tool in the face of oppression. But most importantly, it focuses on the friendship between Carole and Tuesday and the small moments that shape them. —Petrana Radulovic

Dorohedoro

Genre: Dark fantasy
Episode count: 12
Where to watch: Netflix

Before Dorohedoro, a grungy fantasy hangout action comedy with Clive Barker vibes that’s as difficult to describe as it is easy to recommend, it had been years since I’d followed a currently airing anime series. I mean, not since I was catching 4Kids-bowdlerized Yu-Gi-Oh! episodes on Saturday mornings. Years.

What was it about this show where all the characters wear elaborate masks, struggle to make it through their shitty day jobs in a highly stratified society, and navigate a world filled with harmful miasma that hit home when it premiered in 2020? We may never know. But it’s become my number one like-minded-weirdo detector: If I find out you like it, we are instant friends. —SP