There’s a lot of great anime out there, some more popular than others. If you’ve seen enough anime, you probably have at least one or two shows you love that fly under the radar… often being overshadowed by… these shows. Here are eight of the most overrated anime – and why.
1. "Dragon Ball Z"
The obsession with this show (and the rest of the series) is OVER 9000! – same as the number of times I’ve heard that line. Less action and more heated dialogue, and it takes characters ten episodes to power up. Even for a show that made many childhoods, the hype is too much.
2. "Naruto"
Just when you thought the series was ending, another movie is announced. While Naruto himself is a decent character with enough development, he’s still surrounded by bland stereotypes, such as the dark and edgy Sasuke or the girly but useless Sakura. Also, too much filler – the flashbacks probably don’t help.
3. "One Piece"
Another overly popular show that has a problem with too much filler. 700 episodes – really? The amount of filler in this show is so bad that some fans will even tell potential viewers to just skip the filler episodes and only watch the ones that actually move the plot along.
4. "Sword Art Online"
This series had a great premise, but the potential was completely wasted, resulting in a pile of Gary-Stu weeb trash. We’ve already established that Kirito is the worst anime character ever (see this article), but the side characters hardly add much themselves. Definitely not worth the hype – needs more substance.
5. "Attack on Titan"
Oh, excuse me – Shingeki no Kyojin (some people actually get pissed over this). The amount of hype this series has gotten really baffles me – the show is way too gory and depressing, and the main character is a whiny b**** to boot. And does everyone have to cosplay from this series?!
6. "Death Note"
Another series with a great concept that went south due to lackluster writing. Once L was killed (spoilers), I was mentally checked out of the show because Light’s next nemesis wasn’t nearly as worthy of an opponent. Plus, it was rather predictable and a bit dark and edgy in some areas.
7. "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya"
I’m not saying it was aliens… but it was aliens. And some reality warpers. With almost every episode being the same, without the supernatural stuff the series is just another generic high school comedy anime, and even then their main source of comedy is the constant abuse of soft-spoken Mikuru.
8. "Pokémon"
Don’t get me wrong, I love this series (well, the first few seasons) – it made my childhood. But it’s been going on for too long without adding anything new (besides the Pokémon). Why is Ash still ten years old? How come he’s not any closer to being a Pokémon master?
While all of these shows are popular for a reason, they don’t define the genre. Don’t limit yourself to these mainstream series – there are plenty of other great shows floating under the radar (and on Hulu), so go find some. You might stumble upon the best thing never heard of.
What do you think are some of the most overrated series? Tell us in the comments!
