IGN's Top 100 Animated Series

[BreakABone]

http://tv.ign.com/top-100-animated-tv-series/100.html

Nothing brings less discussion than long lists.
If I find a word copy.. shall paste.. for now I read.

[Dyne]

Seems like a ploy for them to get 100 website hits. I hate clicking through each one. I only checked out the 10s and 20s and I mostly agree.

[BreakABone]

Here's a potential list:

100- Josie and the Pussycats
99- MASK
98- Clerks
97- The Smurfs
96- Star Trek: The Animated Series
95- Fullmetal Alchemist
94- The Boondocks
93- Darkwing Duck
92- Rugrats
91- Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law
90- Afro Samurai
89- Star Wars: The Clone Wars
88- The Woody Woodpecker Show
87- Frisky Dingo
86- Astro Boy
85- Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends
84- Spider-Man (1994)
83- Teen Titans
82- Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids
81- TaleSpin
80- Alvin and the Chipmunks
79- Sealab 2021
78- Dragon Ball Z
77- Jonny Quest
76- Voltron: Defender of the Universe
75- Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist
74- Underdog
73- Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
72- Dexter's Laboratory
71- Johnny Bravo
70- Pokemon
69- Mighty Mouse
68- Popeye
67- The Pink Panther Show
66- Tom and Jerry
65- Todd McFarlane's Spawn
64- Dungeons & Dragons
63- The Huckleberry Hound Show
62- Danger Mouse
61- Count Duckula
60- Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers
59- Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends
58- He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983)
57- Invader ZIM
56- The Venture Bros.
55- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1987)
54- Inspector Gadget
53- Freakazoid
52- Galaxy High
51- Death Note
50- SuperFriends
49- ThunderCats
48- Duckman
47- Pinky and the Brain
46- The Jetsons
45- Gargoyles
44- Battle of the Planets
43- Samurai Jack
42- The Powerpuff Girls
41- Tiny Toon Adventures
40. Batman Beyond
39. Aqua Teen Hunger Force
38. Naruto
37. Space Ghost Coast to Coast
36. Superman: The Animated Series
35. Avatar: The Last Airbender
34. Robotech
33. Schoolhouse Rock
32. Liquid Television
31. Muppet Babies
30. Spectacular Spider-Man
29. Speed Racer
28. Home Movies
27. King of the Hill
26. The Critic
25. Robot Chicken
24. Scooby-Doo Where are You
23. Transformers
22. Real Ghostbusters -
21. Star Wars: Clone Wars(2003) -
20. Justice League/Unlimited
19. G.I Joe
18. Ducktales
17. Animaniacs
16. The MAXX
15. SpongeBob SquarePants
14. Cowboy Bebop
13. X-Men
12. The Ren and Stimpy Show
11. The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show
10. Neon something something
9. Flinstones
8. Futurama
7. Family Guy
6. The Tick
5. Beavis and Butthead
4. South Park
3. Looney Tunes
2. Batman: The Animated Series
1. The Simpsons


They are up to 10, but not gonna type it.

[Dyne]

Batman Beyond at 40? Damn. I hope TAS is in the top 5.

[GameMaster]

Muppet Babies? There's a reason they only showed that on Nickelodeon on Sundays in the middle of the day. It was boring as hell. Even as a youngster I loathed that stupid, stupid show.

Now Samurai Jack, there's a solid mixture of art and entertainment.

[Angrist]

I hope Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex is in the top 10. Oh and I guess the Simpsons is a given.

Edit: I guess they don't include mangas. At least not Japanese-only ones.

[TheGame]

Top 100 lists are always stupid. :P

[BreakABone]

The complete list is up... not surprised at number 1... doubt anyone in their right mind would be.

[The Germanator]

I'm glad "The Critic" has a good showing. That show is very funny and well written.

[GameMaster]

Sorry but Looney Tunes at #3?

That's an example of show that hasn't aged well at all.

That show put me to sleep as a child on Saturday mornings when it aired after all the cool shows were finished.

[Fyacin]

Woah, Woah. Why is Fullmetal alchemist at 96? Below Naruto? Pokemon? Avatar?!

[Teuthida]

Dissing Muppet Babies and Looney Tunes? You do know this means war.

Truth be told there are much better anime than what's on that list though I do agree with Cowboy Bebop and Neon Genesis Evangelion. The latter gave me my very first mindfuck. I've been a slut ever since.

Family Guy is too damn close to the beginning for my liking.

[Jonbo298]

No Rocko?! :mad:

[Krypton]

what?!
rugrats, number 92?

and i second Jonbo's comment.

[Professor S]

1) Manga blows. Get it off my TV, and more importantly, OUT OF MY DAMN COMIC BOOK STORES!!! Nothing pisses me off more than going to Barnes and Noble, walking to the Graphic Novels section and seeing racks and racks of shitty little manga books, pumped out of publishing houses like chicken mcnuggets. Its embarrassing to try and defend sequential art and storytelling to non-believers when the shelves are filled with such utter hackneyed crap. There is nothing more mind numbingly formulaic and self-important than Manga. Gaia can suck my ****.

Except for AKIRA, and the first version, not the dumbed down re-write where they changed voice actors and added unecessary exposition. There are a few other eceptions as well, but on the whole, Manga blows.

2) Muppet Babies was on the networks on Saturday mornings. You caught the reruns. I still remember the Indiana Jones episode fondly.

3) Afro Samurai is way too new to be on any list, and personally I found it average at best, even for a Manga.

4) The Smurfs are way too low on that list, if only as a cultural icon. They dominated Saturday mornings for years. Overall the entire list mises the boat on many classic saturday morning shows

As lists go, though, I thought while there were some glaring omissions and misplacements, they did a good job.

[Teuthida]

I don't want to one to defend manga given the sorry state of the American comics industry, but here I go. (And turns into a rant on the industry.)

First off manga is comics and anime is the cartoons, most of which are based off manga. Most of the manga found in stores like Barnes & Noble is mainstream crap. There's actually a semi-decent manga that started running in Japan I've been reading that explains the industry over there and why so much of it is the same. That particular series follows a lot of the same conventions every other one follows though, so it's hard to tell if it's being tongue in cheek or just doing them to stay in print.

In Japan 40% of printed media is manga. There are comics aimed at every single age demographic and counter-culture. What comes to America is mostly aimed at young boys and girls.

I hate manga fans more than the medium itself because they'll blindly only read manga and never even glance at American comics...or European which are also quite good. The American comics industry is on a downward spiral. Some of the best comics are coming out these days and very few people are reading them. The price for single issue is too high (and rising) for joe schmoe to consider picking up one read on a whim. To even buy a single issue you'll have to venture into a comics shop. Trades are going to be the only thing to keep the industry alive. The average comics reader is in their 20s to 40s. Manga has completely captured the youth market in this country.

I reluctantly went to an interview for Tokyo Pop last year through one of my professors. It was an odd experience telling me my stuff needed to be more vague and hard to follow. Tokyo Pop translates manga and publishes American comics that resemble manga...which they call OEL (original English language) manga...I don't even want to get started on that.

And now to get onto cartoons. I can see why there's more anime these days. A hellua lot cheaper to just dub something. I recently watched the making of Mike Mignola's animated short of his comic The Amazing Screw-On Head. The amount of work to go into a 30 min cartoon is insane. So much work to do before it's even animated...and the actual animation process isn't even done here. It's shipped over to Korea...as was Batman TAS and most superhero toons I believe. I admit I watch a LOT of anime. Mostly stuff currently airing in Japan that folks are kind enough to subtitle. I wish there were more decent U.S. made cartoons but there just aren't. And kids need their cartoon fix.

I think I had a point...but I lost it. So there's my poorly written rant and a lot of time wasted.

[Seth]

teuthida, what are some anime's that you're currently into. I don't have time to try and get into a series that's only so-so.
The only manga that I seriously followed was Blade of the Immortal. Not much for availability here.

[Angrist]

Strangler, did you try Ghost in the Shell? I really like the anime series.
But I don't know how it compares to other animes.

[Teuthida]

teuthida, what are some anime's that you're currently into. I don't have time to try and get into a series that's only so-so.
The only manga that I seriously followed was Blade of the Immortal. Not much for availability here.

I've only watched the subbed versions of the following. No idea if the dubs are any good.

Paranoia Agent - Believe this aired on Adult Swim. Werid goodness with some really nice animation. Check out the director's movies too.
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LBv42_TOmtA&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LBv42_TOmtA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

Beck - A Japanese band trying to make it. The only thing is a number of characters are American but the English pronunciations are so bad it might take you out of it a bit. Good series though.
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cqlROvI6LmM&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cqlROvI6LmM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

Boogiepop Phantom - Weird and very disturbing.
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2mgptk5BHfg&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2mgptk5BHfg&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

Mushishi - A pretty peaceful series. A guy travels around solving problems caused by spirits called mushi. There's a live action movie by the director of Akira too, though I have yet to watch.
<object width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/NcoZHk3M3io&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/NcoZHk3M3io&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object>

Welcome to the NHK - A recluse who flees college and holes himself up in his apartment. Tries to reenter society.
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qcjLT-EOrPA&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qcjLT-EOrPA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

KIBA - I really can't explain why I like this one. It's like most anime aimed at young boys in Japan and was even based off a card game. Perhaps because it's more serious than every other one. You won't have someone calling another a pervert or much face distortions. A hell of a lot of bloodshed too.
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/pfqKOW-O-kg&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/pfqKOW-O-kg&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

Honey & Clover - Probably my favorite series. Follows a group of art students through college and little beyond. Couldn't find a trailer and the intro doesn't resemble the show at all...but it references Beetle Juice so yeah...
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LBGg9yZKGxE&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LBGg9yZKGxE&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

If none of these strike your fancy I got others.

[Fyacin]

I just finished watching Ghost Wolf and Fullmetal Alchemist and liked them alot. Know of anything good along those lines?

Also, I'm not a big fan of nudity and such (I'm looking at your Ghost in the Shell) ;).

[BlueFire]

Manga/Anime in America is pretty bad. I agree, most of the shit you find in Barnes and Noble is just awful, and I honestly haven't seen/read a good series in a while, but not all of it is crap.

Just to list some that I particularly enjoyed:

Neon Genesis Evangelion- The characters, the story, the themes.. it's all good. Action is really secondary to substance in this series. I think my favorite part of the series is reading/discussion/interpreting various aspects of the show- especially the ending (The End of Eva, haha)

Full Metal Alchemist- Characters are lovable, story is engrossing and mostly tragic in the end-- you definitely develop a connection with the characters in the show and you want to see it through to the end, no matter how grim it may be.

Death Note- this is the most recent series I've seen. I finished it during the summer 2007. This is writing at its finest. The premise is so ridiculous, yet executed perfectly so it keeps you wanting more. I've gotten people who think anime is a social taboo to watch the entire series and actually enjoy it.

Cowboy Bebop- Music + atmosphere + 4 great main characters and that lovable corgi, Ein. I think I read somewhere, possibly in a magazine, saying "Bebop made anime cool"; I think I have to agree.

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex + 2nd GIG- I saw this through adult swim. The story can be hard to follow at times, but the writers went through great lengths to envision our world where cyborgs and humans with mostly cybernetic bodies are common. Animation is great, too. I generally don't like the sci-fi genre (which is where I think Ghost in the Shell falls) but this is a great series.

FLCL- so bizarre, the music is awesome. I loved it.

Paranoia Agent is also awesome. Lil Slugger is creepy. :)

As for manga, I haven't read any since like.. sophomore-junior year of high school, but there are some good ones out there. Azumanga Daioh is pretty funny and simple.. enjoyed it a lot. The Evangelion manga is really good, too.. follows the anime (which came first, I think) but differs at some points. It's definitely a different take on the series (for example, Shinji actually has balls in certain parts of the manga).

My guilty pleasure in manga is Love Hina :-o It was also the first series I ever read.

Anyway, those are most of my favorites. I haven't watched a new anime since Death Note and I haven't read manga in ages, but I don't really go out of my way to find them. Animes are just cartoons/animations and mangas are comics.. I don't view them as separate categories, but that's just me.

edit: i think I'm going to watch Gankutsuou now. It's an anime series based on The Count of Monte Cristo but set in the distant future. Seeing as The Count of Monte Cristo is my probably my favorite novel, I'm going to give it a shot.

[Teuthida]

I gotta agree with you on those BL. Although I never finished Full Metal Alchemist and I only read the Death Note manga. Curious to watch the live action series and see how the shimigami are portrayed. And never saw the Ghost in The Shell series. Just the first movie.

Heh, Love Hina was the very first anime I watched (other than those airing on tv as a kid that I wasn't aware were from Japan...there was one with these koalas...) That, Cowboy Bebop, Neon Genesis Evangelion, and Trigun were the series than hooked me.

[TheSlyMoogle]

BlueFire and Teuthida:

Don't know if you guys have heard of these animes but they are definitely worth a watch.

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann - This anime is the first full length (27 episodes, but one of the episodes is a recap) anime by the director for FLCL. I enjoyed it a lot. Follows the struggles of humanity to be free. Personally I enjoyed this anime a lot just because it made me feel like I was a little kid again. Seriously.

Fate: Stay Night - Very good anime about some young mages and a tournament for the holy grail.

Tsukihime(Think I spelled that right) - This is an anime based off a video game that is a playable graphic novel. There is a very popular fighting game in Japan called Melty Blood that is also based on the other video game. The people who made this made Fate.

Shakugan No Shana - Follows the story of a young man who technically doesn't exist. If you can get past the occassional sex bullshit, actually this has a pretty good story, and some cool characters. Two Full Length seasons and I'm hoping for a third eventually.

The Familiar of Zero - Made by the same people who created Shana, follows a girl magician at a magic school and her familiar. Kinda quirky and funny sometimes, but also kinda dark at some points. 3 Seasons so far.

Guyver - They redid the guyver anime from the early 80s, and it's updated and gorgeous. I hate the way it ends a lot, but other than that it is very awesome.

Read or Die - I really enjoyed this anime, though I know a lot of people wont. I found it very fun, and it gets pretty serious too. Follows 3 sisters and their adventures with their protection agency.

Blue Seed - Follows the story of Momiji Fuujimiya and is about Japan basically getting fucked up by demons. Watch it! It's old as shit, and you can find it dubbed online streaming, if you're into shitty american voice acting that is.

Elfen Lied - Kinda Science Fiction based, about an evolved race of people kinda. Don't want to give anything away. A lot of bloodshed.

Gantz - Really fucked up anime, just watching the first 2 episodes should be enough to either keep you hooked or for you to decide that it's fucked up. A lot of bloodshed and action. If you're really interested there is a manga as well.

Gundam Wing - This used to be on Toonami. I don't think Gundam anime is good, I generally don't like Mech Anime. Gundam Wing is very good though. I thoroughly enjoyed it when I was younger, and again recently. Pretty political, and there was even a gay character! Hooray!

This is American made, but does anyone remember Reboot? Amazing show. I cannot believe it wasn't on that list. FUCK IGN!


About Death Note: I think that the anime should have ended at episode 26. Those who have seen it know what I'm talking about. After that it was stupid and it made me lose respect for the show. The first 26 episodes were amazing.


Anime that isn't worth your time:

Dragonball Z or GT, but don't let that stop you from enjoying the shit out of dragonball which is throughly enjoyable.

Naruto in any form.

Sailor Moon.

Bleach.

One Piece.

The list goes on, but generally I would say if it goes past 26 episodes, it's going to suck. There are exceptions, but for the most part shows lose it after that. Generally those anime that go past 26 episodes are created for children anyway.

Full Metal Alchemist isn't that great... Sorry FMA lovers. like 10 episodes of the show were decent, the rest... Not so much. Then they also made a movie that completely killed the sweet ending... Lame!