I have recently watched several Japanese animated productions and my curiosity has been picked regarding what other Japanese animated gems are there to enjoy?
This sudden curiosity about Japenese productions arose just after I started to watch a mystery/horror animated series called Another. So far I have only watched 3 episodes but I am loving it. I tried to remember if I have watched a horror animated series in the past and I can't remember anything like this series so it is a totally new experience for me. The most similar one would be Castlevania from Netflix but it is more about dark action than horror/mystery. Another Japanese animated series I am currently watching is the well-known Attack on Titan.
Regarding films and shorts, Your Name and Into the Forest of Firefly Lights were very intense and touching stories. Perfect Blue was an excellent thriller, and I also have to mention Ghost in the Shell which is pretty great.
I wonder what other animated Japanese productions for adults that are well worth the watch would you recommend? Preferred genres would be horror/mystery/thriller but drama could also be ok. So, what are your favorite Japanese animated/anime movies/series of all time?
As someone who loves Your Name so much, I'm glad you enjoyed it as well. Otherwise, I'm mentioning it in this comment to recommend it to you.
If you want a heavy and serious plot: Steins;Gate. It's tagged sci-fi and thriller, and is about time-travel. You might get sleepy at the first few episodes, which slowly build the setting, but it didn't get an almost perfect score of 9.13 on MyAnimeList for nothing, imo.
The Promised Neverland is also my personal must-watch. It has the three tags you're looking for. Without spoiling too much: the main characters are little orphan kids who try to escape their orphanage once they find out the truth about the adults and the orphanage itself. Season 2 is coming in October this year.
Death Parade is also a good one, imo. It's about a bar which is a 'temporary stop' for those who pass away. The arbiter judges them in the said bar in various ways to figure out if they were good or bad people in life (because apparently he doesn't know for certain lol) to determine whether they deserve heaven or hell.
For the movie, I think Weathering With You is the must-see lately. I haven't seen it myself, though. And it's not a horror/mystery/thriller, but is a drama.
Thanks for including the plot summary!
Monster
Berserk
Kaiji
mirai nikki
death note
the promised neverland
i bet you will like all of the above
I got started with a true gem: Cowboy Bebop. And it's my favorite series of all time, and with good reason! The characters are well fleshed out, you learn more about them through the course of the series, and the soundtrack is amazing! Oh god, I love it!
Heidi. Never watched anime (frequently) except this one. 😇