The title mentions “experiencing” since anime is something that stimulates your visual and auditory senses which would have made the title a bit too long for my tastes. Yeah, I’m talking about anime even though the featured image is from a manga panel. Fight me.
But yes, this is a top 5 list. This should really go without saying, but the things mentioned in this list are just my opinion.
This particular topic was suggested by the amazing raistlin0903, who recently hit 1000 followers. Of course, that was only to be expected since he’s such a caring man and friend. He’s a great blogger and I highly recommend you strike up a chat with him. He won’t bite! And his warm attitude always cheers me up.
Thank you for the excellent suggestion, raistlin!
Okay, here we go!
I Love Insert Songs!
I love insert songs.
For those of you who don’t know, an insert song is a song with actual lyrics (so the instrumental tracks which play in every episode and in many scenes do not count as insert songs) that are “inserted” during an important scene. Typically the lyrics are somewhat relevant to what’s happening on-screen so the insert song makes the aforementioned scene even more poignant.
Bonus points are given, in my book, when the OP (and possibly the ED, but that’s a lot more rare) are used.
I just really like hearing music. Especially music with lyrics. Instrumental tracks are okay, but lyrics really make a song that much more lovely. Great, now I sound like one of those tools who obsess over the vocalist at the expense of the people who play instruments. Well, I liked Ringo Starr the best out of the four Mop Tops, so there.
I Love Background Events!
You all know what background events are. Hopefully.
Whether elementary school students are talking about wanting to become kiwis or battle-worn assassins from another world are being amazed by the concept of carbonated drinks, events that happen in the, well, background almost always keep me entertained and amused.
Sometimes we need a bit of distraction to spice up some dry conversations or exposition-heavy segments. Or maybe I’m just entitled and easily bored. Either way, it’s greatly appreciated.
I Love Different School Uniforms!
Maybe there are girls who attend different high schools (c’mon, uniforms for high school boys are so boring. It’s a fact) so they are representing their schools by wearing the mandated uniforms.
Or maybe the girls who are all attending the same high school customize their uniforms and back it more personalized. Expect cardigans, substituting ties for ribbons, modified sleeve lengths, etc. I’m not quite sure how these kids are getting away with not adhering to the school guidelines in regards to appearance, but they sure can get creative!
I already sort of said this, but men’s fashion is just way too boring in comparison. T-that’s the only reason why I like women’s fashion more, okay?
I Love Evolving Credits!
Evolving credits, to me, show that the studio is willing to go the extra mile to reward the viewers who actually sit down and watch the OP and/or ED every week. It’s also sometimes subtle so you can feel really smart for having noticed the small changes!
Here’s a post that covers one of my favorite evolving credits!
I Love Snarky Characters!
I appreciate smugness.
Sometimes I’m even a practitioner who drops mounts of sass onto the unworthy. Only if I like you, though, since my emotional maturity is akin to that of a young kid’s. But other times, my wit fails me and I stutter or am generally unable to perform. Typing sass is a lot easier!
Thankfully, I can always turn to these cheeky characters who have perfect deadpan delivery. They (typically) don’t flub their lines and they (usually) are hilarious! Let me vividly live through them so I can at least attempt to act cheeky in real life every once in a while, please.
Soooo that’s a top 5 list. I think I’ll try to publish one at least every week? You all gave me a lot and I’ll try my best to do the ones I can.
Do you think I’m weird for looking forward to these 5 things in anime? Do you agree? Please, leave your questions, comments, and concerns down below.
Thanks for reading!
The Lily Garden 
That was a unique list. I definitely agree with insert songs and snarky characters. The latter has certainly influenced my fiction projects. Hahaha!
Some things I like experiencing in anime could be the storytelling, unique plots or settings, and the fact that most shows have both an opening and ending theme.
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Haha, snark is just great!
Mmm those are also lovely things. Thanks for sharing~
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Quite true. I’m not a snarky person in real life, but I certainly save my snarkiness for certain occasions when necessary. Hee hee hee…
Thanks, Remy.
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Evolving credits and background scenes are my jam as well. I love being surprised by a good one-off ED too (like a certain one-off ED in Houseki no Kuni) or when the ED is different for every episode (like in ReLIFE), although that’s not quite an insert song.
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Ooh, I love evolving credits as well! The subtler the better xD (One of my favorites would have to be Madoka’s different colored rainwater on the window pane for each girl’s arc)
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Yeaaaaah they’re great!
Also, nice catch~
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I also like the background events and also the different school uniforms.
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Yeah, they’re nice to notice!
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Great list! I especially love a good snarky character that plays off of the rest of the cast. Insert songs are always fun. I like to hear the song and just relive the whole scene in my mind.
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Thank you!
Mmmm both snarky characters and insert songs are wonderful.
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I’ve never paid much attention to uniforms (You would be so disappointed in me!), but the other four, definitely. I think what things like evolving credits and background events (and uniform variety, TBH) show more often than not is that the people making the show are really paying attention to the details and trying to give the audience a good all-around viewing experience, not just cranking out a lazy paint-by-numbers show. As I think about it, a lot of my favorite anime do have one or more of these five things; I didn’t start watching any of those shows because they had them, but I do appreciate them when I see them.
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Ehhhhhh (it’s okay, I know I have a strange focus). Glad to hear the other four things I mentioned stand out to you, though (and yessss that’s redemption).
Mmm they won’t make or break a show, but they certainly add to the experience in my opinion.
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I have so much fun watching background characters “do their thang” while the leads may be trying to be serious. I know those slice of life shows do this best, as seen with Love Live and something like Negima. And insert songs—what a MOOD they can put me in. The only con to those is that the lyrics typically appear on-screen too, which I find to be a bit annoying. Either way, these are just some of the incredibly unique things anime does—and does BEST, might I add!
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It’s really entertaining, I agree!
Mmmm I can see why you find the lyrics popping up on the screen to be a bit frustrating. Gotta take the good with the bad, I guess.
YES, anime does it well~
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I didn’t know there was a name for it, but insert songs really so ramp up the action. Moments like “Straight Bet” from Re:Zero’s cliff scene and “DOA” from Attack on Titan’s training session wouldn’t be the same without them.
And I’m glad to hear someone else working on their cheeky deadpan deliveries. I’ve been failing at it for years.
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They really do. “Straight Bet” and “DOA” really add so much those two scenes.
It’s something to strive for. Don’t give up!
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I love evolving credits as well. As someone who happily skips ED’s and only watch’s OP’s every week if I really enjoy them, evolving credits can make a real difference. I loved Inu X Boku where every week a different character had a featured song. It added to what we knew about the characters and was just fun to hear a different song each time.
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Mmm they’re really rewarding.
I also liked how Inu X Boku did that, too. It’s unfortunate that’s not the norm, but it was so fun.
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Thanks so much Remy for the shout out, and the truly kind words in the beginning of this post. That really is so awesome: thank you 😊😊
You made a really fun post out of this too! I really love snarky characters, they are usually the most fun to be sure 😊😊 I always watch an anime episode from start to finish, including opening titles and credits…so I agree, if the credits have something extra in them, that is really rewarding.
Out of the other three…I have to agree with background events being very awesome as well…in fact sometime they can be even more fun than the main plot 😊😊
Wonderful post Remy, and thank you again 😀😀
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You’re so very welcome, raistlin!
Right? Snarky characters are the best.
Mmm it’s really nice to reward the viewers for sticking around like that.
Haha right? It’s very entertaining to see stuff unfold like that.
Well, thank you! And it was my pleasure~
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Boom-de-ah-da,
Boom-de-ah-da,
Boom-de-ah-da,
Boom-de-ah-da!
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I like all of these things too! I particularly like snarky characters, I have a very large soft spot for characters who pull the facial expression you have depicted here, especially when combined with that irresistible “Huuhuuuuuu?” laugh that inevitably accompanies the light-hearted teasing of someone, usually the protagonist. There’s sometimes a bit of crossover with tsundere tendencies with this character trait, which is pretty much two of my favourite things in one convenient package. (Off the top of my head, Michiru from Grisaia is a great example of this combination, though her tsundere act is… well, just that, an act.)
I also love insert songs. I’m a particular fan of, as you might expect, when they’re used in games. One of my favourite things is when an RPG makes use of a different battle theme to usual to highlight an important conflict, particularly if said theme is a unique one — i.e. neither the normal “battle” or “boss” themes — and ESPECIALLY if it has vocals! Xenoblade Chronicles X takes some heat for not being much like the original (or its recent sequel), but man, this theme always got me hyped for a fight I was going to have to work hard at to win: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmdnpbmM4pc
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Snarky characters are just charming, don’t you think? Tsundere snarkers? Please, there has to be a limit to inherent goodness in a character.
Ohhh yeah insert songs in video games are almost always amazing. That’s a spectacular theme right there!
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