#which I get the anxiety about but truly I’d rather have a cliffhanger that fans can constantly generate new ideas for

[boysnberriespie]

I guess my thing with calling Izzy’s arc a redemption arc is mostly that I don’t think you get redeemed through punishment and abuse, and I don’t even think the narrative is trying to act like that’s what happened. For all the faults in the writing, I think Izzy’s arc made a lot of sense in that he simply was changed by the abuse. It’s not that he was made “better” by punishment, it simply comes across as being that “calm” period after you escape a living hell where you ask yourself “what am I gonna do now” and for Izzy evidently it was training Stede which makes sense, and I guess you could read THAT as a redemption arc, but imo we’re a little bit beyond needing or caring about an Izzy redemption by this point.

#and I can’t believe I’m saying this #but I’m upset that they put so much nuance and care into Izzy’s arc (only to kill him at the end in an incredibly unsatisfying way) #at the detriment to literally every other characters arc #like I fucking live Izzy I’m snorting Izzy cocaine #but Izzy was EveryWhere 😭 #even moments I love because again I love Izzy #could’ve been an opportunity to focus on other crew members #and maybe then it wouldn’t feel like he has to die #because he has the screen time of a man speedrunning his multi season background arc #again this season would’ve been better if they weren’t so concerned about having a cliffhanger and never getting a third season #which I get the anxiety about but truly I’d rather have a cliffhanger that fans can constantly generate new ideas for #such as they did with season 1 #than an ending tied up in a disintegrating bow

[2-jarz]

Best Anime Available on Netflix 2019

8. Kill La Kill (2013)

1 season, 25 episodes | IMDb: 8/10

If I had to sum up Kill la Kill in two words, they’d be “fashion battle.” Broadly speaking, its story is pretty much beat for beat what you’d expect from a series about a magical teen — developing powers, last-minute turns of the tide — but the specifics are just bonkers enough to keep that from being a weakness Which are some of the best anime on Netflix. At Honnouji Academy, clothes bestow supernatural abilities on their wearer, turning the usual high school hierarchies into a battleground. At the center of it all is transfer student Ryuko Matoi, who’s come to Honnouji in search of her father’s killer. Her sidekick, a sentient sailor outfit, puts her on the level of the school’s student council, allowing her to tussle with them in her quest for the truth. More modest viewers be warned: the series’ focus on clothing also lends itself to a significant amount of fanservice. As the series progresses, the outfits get skimpier and skimpier until there’s barely anything there at all.

Add To Netflix Queue

UFOTABLE

7. Fate/Zero (2011)

2 seasons, 28 episodes | IMDb: 8.3/10

For those looking for darker fare, Fate/Zero should hit the spot. As may be obvious from the fact that the driving event behind the whole series is called “the Fourth Holy Grail War,” it’s heavy stuff. The war is a contest between a select group of mages and their attendant spirits. (The spirits, in one of the series’ strangest gambits, range from Alexander the Great to King Arthur.) They compete for the power of the Grail, which will grant a wish to each of the winning pair. The resulting assortment of competitors doubles as a mix of ideals and morals, and the shifting balance is one of the best aspects of the show. Though there’s a fair amount of comedy mixed in, it’s quite a bleak series, with a death count to rival Game of Thrones and eldritch horrors to contend with, to boot.

Add To Netflix Queue

NETFLIX

6. Castlevania (2017)

1 season, 5 episodes | IMDb: 8/10

Even those unfamiliar with anime are likely to have heard of Castlevania, as the franchise is one of the jewels in Konami’s crown. The anime series is produced by Netflix, and boasts a voice cast including Graham McTavish as Count Dracula, who vows revenge against Wallachia after the death of his wife, and Richard Armitage as Trevor Belmont, the last of a clan of monster hunters, who leads the fight against him. (Matt Frewer also features in the cast, which should be a treat for any fellow Max Headroom enthusiasts.) There’s blood a-plenty, and a nice balance between monster and man as per most gothic horror stories — as well as a somewhat romantic aspect, as Dracula is portrayed as a sympathetic villain. The series is also just gorgeously animated, and with a first season of only four episodes, well worth your time.

Add To Netflix Queue

ANIPLEX OF AMERICA

5. Fullmetal Alchemist (2003)

1 season, 51 episodes | IMDb: 8.6/10

Fullmetal fans and newbies alike are somewhat spoiled for choice when it comes to Netflix’s offerings: Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood are both available on the streaming service, alongside the recent live-action film. But we’re here for anime, so we’ll just discuss the first two. For the purposes of this list, we’re counting both series as one entity, as Fullmetal Alchemist is a seminal property, but not to fear, I’m not about to leave you in the dark. Both Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood are adaptations of the original manga, which tells the story of two brothers, Edward and Alphonse Elric, as they search for the Philosopher’s Stone. In an attempt to bring their mother back to life through alchemy, they’ve been transformed. Edward has lost his leg, and sacrifices his arm as well in order to save Alphonse’s soul, binding it to a suit of armor. The Stone is their ticket to restoration. The more recent Brotherhood hews much more closely to the manga, whereas Fullmetal Alchemist essentially turns into an original series about halfway through. In the end, they complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses, but if you have to pick just one, I’d go for Brotherhood as the “canon” experience.

Add To Netflix Queue

ANIPLEX OF AMERICA

4. Rurouni Kenshin (1996)

3 seasons, 95 episodes | IMDb: 8.5/10

Like most other entries on this list, Rurouni Kenshin was adapted from a manga series (which appeared in the legendary Shōnen Jump magazine). The title refers to its protagonist, Himura Kenshin, a former killing machine who is now committed to helping others to try to atone for his sins. Of course, his love of peace is challenged when it becomes apparent that someone else has assumed his former mantle as an assassin and plans to throw the Meiji Government into chaos. The characters are all well-defined and well-developed, with the biggest hook being the contrast between Kenshin’s apparent happy-go-lucky attitude and vow never to kill again, and what we know him to be capable of due to his reputation. He’s also a walking example of the way the series focuses on period to tell a story rather than using it simply as set dressing: the show takes place during a transition period in Japanese history, and Kenshin is just as much in flux.

Add To Netflix Queue

VIZ MEDIA

3. Inuyasha (2000)

2 seasons, 167 episodes | IMDb: 7.9/10

Inuyasha is the rare franchise that manages to strike a balance between cute and horrifying. To liken it to a current pop culture phenomenon, it’s similar to Outlander, in that its basic plot sounds like something out of a romance novel: a young woman, Kagome, is sent back in time, and must then contend with forces beyond her reckoning, all while getting to know a rambunctious man (well, in this case, half dog-demon), Inuyasha, to whom she seems to be mysteriously bound. There’s plenty of time-travel fluff to go around, but in Inuyasha’s case, it’s augmented by nightmare fuel in the form of a host of demons searching for the magic jewel in Kagome’s possession. The centipede monster in the first episode sets the bar for how unsettling these monsters look, as well as the show’s overall structure as a sort of monster-of-the-week affair. To that end, the show can get a little repetitive, but the cast is uniformly great (including Inuyasha’s antihero brother Sesshomaru, who I think I can confidently say is “the hot one”), and the balance between fun and horror is a rare find.

Add To Netflix Queue

FUNIMATION

2. Attack on Titan (2013)

1 season, 51 episodes | IMDb: 8.8/10

Since the manga began in 2009, Attack on Titan has become something of a cultural sensation. At present, only the first season of the anime, which was produced in 2013, is available on Netflix, but it works on its own. (It’s also notably a series that benefits from being available to binge rather than view doled out in segments, as seeing it all in one fell swoop — or a few swoops — makes its repeated cliffhangers less obvious and thereby more tolerable.) Broadly speaking, it’s almost a mecha series, as the driving force of the plot involves fighting giant creatures (the Titans of the title), an enterprise that only starts to become truly tenable when it transpires that one of the human characters, Eren, is a Titan, himself. The difference is aesthetic: the Titans are awful to look at, as they are basically giant humans with their skin stripped away, and their muscles contorted to look as terrifying as possible. As for why it all works, it ultimately comes down to the focus on the coming-of-age stories and how each character’s arc dials into the anxieties that are part and parcel of growing up and dealing with loss. The series is also fairly brutal when it comes to reflecting the realities of living in what is effectively a war zone, as every character is fair game when it comes to Titan fodder. Equal parts steampunk romp and war story, Attack on Titan is one of the best anime series in the game.

Add To Netflix Queue

VIZ MEDIA

1. Bleach (2004)

3 seasons, 366 episodes | IMDb: 8.2/10 Bleach has it all. It’s stylish as hell, it’s incredibly well-acted, it’s genre-fluid, and on top of that, it’s well-written. Though it starts out fairly simply, it builds and builds, transforming into an epic that more than earns its place in the pantheon of great anime. The story begins when Ichigo Kurasaki, a high schooler capable of seeing ghosts, takes on the duties of a Soul Reaper in order to protect his family.  It’s a transition that the show handles beautifully, and does again and again as it progresses. The world of Bleach (and the mythology involved) just keeps getting bigger, without ever falling short, or falling flat. The series is also impossible to peg as one genre or another, as there are elements of almost everything baked in. It’s an epic, and unmissable as such. Creator Tite Kubo’s style is just the cherry on top of the cake.