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The Legend of the Twelve Good Animes

Bongo

excused from moderation duty
(he/him)
Staff member
Long ago, when the earth was young, all peoples were united in peace and justice. And harmoniously they all came together to watch and praise twelve immaculate animes which were known throughout the world. Seeing their devotion, the gods grew jealous, and in their wrath they scattered all the people across the world and confused their language.

And they were cast into an age of darkness and strife and death, brother against brother, sister against sister, fathers and mothers against sons and daughters, every nation at war over subtitles or dubs. For the knowledge of the Twelve Animes was lost, and no one agreed what was good or bad.

Ah, what a marvel the Twelve Holy Animes were! Encompassing every genre, they were immaculate in their beauty and the strength of their emotion. Presented in an appropriate context, they can engross even a normie. It is said that if anyone should watche all twelve, their soul shall be purified, and they will escape the cycle of Saṃsāra and attain to realms of infinite bliss.

But there are many animes in the world, and it is not known which of them are the Twelve Holy Animes. Longing for respite from this fallen world of woe, various sects have arisen in search of the Twelve. Many claim to have identified one or even several, but they often disagree with one another. Some fools simply try to watch every anime, not realizing that to fail to acknowledge a holy anime deprives the viewer of its spiritual benefit. The sages tell us that when the gods sundered the world, it is possible they scattered the people and their animes not only across the face of the land, but also throughout time, and so some of the Twelve may even not have been released yet.

But we must keep the faith.

Have you found any?
 

q 3

here to eat fish and erase the universe
(they/them)
Twelve Kingdoms, duh
But Moribito and A Place Further than the Universe are objectively the two most perfect anime of all time
 

clarice

bebadosamba
Some legends say that each anime is in fact three anime, so there are 36 Good Anime.

My soul suspects Giant Robo, Touch and FLCL. And Sky Crawlers, Tokyo Godfathers, Wolf Children and Princess Kaguya.

And that A Place Further than the Universe, Moribito and Twelve Kingdoms is one and three at the same time.
 

Zef

Find Your Reason
(He/Him)
Twinkle Nora Rock Me
Chargeman Ken
BIRTH
Garzey's Wing
Adventure of Kotetsu
Shin Megami Tensei Tokyo Revelation
Dracula, Sovereign of the Damned
Shinkyoku Soukai Polyphonica
Final Fantasy Legend of the Crystals
Sword Art Online
The original English dub of Devilman
Puni Puni Poemi
 

Erilex

hourglass figure
There are lots of animes I like. But A Place Further than The Universe is the only one I could point to and, voice brimming with unshakable confidence, say: THIS IS A GOOD ANIME.

EDIT: of course, there are other animes I would dare to call good, but there might be a hint of doubt in my words as I utter them.
 

JBear

Internet's foremost Bertolli cosplayer
(He/Him)
  • Initial D First Stage
  • Initial D Second Stage
  • Initial D Extra Stage
  • Initial D Third Stage
  • Initial D Battle Stage
  • Initial D Fourth Stage
  • Initial D Fifth Stage
  • Initial D Final Stage
  • Hajime no Ippo
  • Hajime no Ippo: Champion Road
  • Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger
  • Hajime no Ippo: Rising
 

Paul le Fou

24/7 lofi hip hop man to study/relax to
(He)
This legend is inaccurate because Satoshi Kon only made 4 movies and a TV series
 

Kirin

Summon for hire
(he/him)
Revolutionary Girl Utena may be debatable for the twelve, but it's definitely in the 108.

Its ancestor Rose of Versailles also.

Dennou Coil. Giant Robo. Patlabor. Planetes. Read or Die. Victorian Romance Emma.

Maybe Last Exile, Gankutsuou, Mushishi, Kuragehime, Princess Tutu, Psycho Pass.

(And, like, Ghibli's whole catalogue wrapped up in one kinda goes without saying.)
 

ASandoval

Old Man Gamer
(he/him)
Aside from a few that have already been mentioned:
Serial Experiments Lain
Haibane Renmei
Azumanga Daioh
A Silent Voice
 

Paul le Fou

24/7 lofi hip hop man to study/relax to
(He)
Cowboy Bebop obviously, not up for debate
Laputa: Castle in the Sky
Millennium Actress
absolutely, Paranoia Agent, possibly Perfect Blue, Tokyo Godfathers, maybe even Paprika
FLCL

maybe Last Exile and/or Haibane Renmei
Gurren Lagann
?!
 
(And, like, Ghibli's whole catalogue wrapped up in one kinda goes without saying.)
Read or Die still looks gorgeous but it's also a prestige 90s OVA so it's full of problematic garbage/hasn't aged well. It's also a show like Bungo Stray Dogs that lives or dies on your knowledge and appreciation of Japanese literature. I probably wouldn't put it in my 108. I think my YMMV equivalent I would put into my 12 would be 3x3 Eyes.

Also, bringing up Mizayaki/Takahata's output basically invalidates the premise of this thread. Nearly every Ghibli film of theirs is aces, and that's before you begin considering things like Castle of Cagliostro, Future Boy Conan, Chie the Brat, Anne of the Green Gables, Heidi, Girl of the Alps, etc.

Keep Your Hands Off The Eizouken!
Fantastic show; very worthy. Not sure it would trump Tatami Galaxy or Ride Your Wave for me though.

Legend of the Galactic Heroes.
Another finger on the Monkey's Paw curls, and you get The Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These Kaikō (2018)
 

Octopus Prime

Mysterious Contraption
(He/Him)
I frequently confuse Legend of the Galactic Heroes with Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers, a totally unrelated cartoon from the 1980s that is held in a similar regard by those who remember it.

I saw one episode, and deemed it "Hard to watch with the sound output through my phones speaker"
 

Syless

<internal screaming>
(she/her)
Revolutionary Girl Utena may be debatable for the twelve, but it's definitely in the 108.

Its ancestor Rose of Versailles also.

Dennou Coil. Giant Robo. Patlabor. Planetes. Read or Die. Victorian Romance Emma.

Maybe Last Exile, Gankutsuou, Mushishi, Kuragehime, Princess Tutu, Psycho Pass.

(And, like, Ghibli's whole catalogue wrapped up in one kinda goes without saying.)

I was so worried that Utena wouldn't get a mention, and I need my Jungian disaster bisexuals (plus one disaster lesbian and one token disaster straight) to be on the list. But it's definitely at the top of my personal 12.
 

Octopus Prime

Mysterious Contraption
(He/Him)
I would like to slightly amend my earlier answer;

There are five seasons of Slayers with distinct titles, so each of those twice, and then Trigun and Cowboy Bebop

Other anime is fine, but superfluous
 
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