There’s such perpetual excitement that surrounds the anime industry because it’s an endlessly innovative and versatile medium of entertainment. There are hundreds of anime series that are considered foundational classics, yet each year introduces more subversive and challenging stories for audiences to discover. Some anime are electric from their very first minute, but it’s a lot more common for series to slowly ease into their comfort zone and figure out where their strengths lie.
It’s not easy to distinguish between the anime with slow starts that are worth the investment and those that never fully come together. There is so much anime to discover that it’s only natural for viewers to jump ship when something doesn’t work, but there are some special shows that are just late bloomers.
10 Dragon Ball GT Doesn’t Truly Find Its Footing Until Baby’s Invasion
The harshest critics of Dragon Ball GT, the contentious sequel series, would say that all 64 episodes can be skipped. The quirky anime establishes a distinct voice and it attempts to go back to the original Dragon Ball’s lighter aspects, which was a jarring pivot for those craving Dragon Ball Z’s trademark action. Dragon Ball GT course corrects with its introduction of Baby and a heavier focus on battles, but this isn’t until the 17th episode of the series. There were such concerns that audiences wouldn’t stick around past Dragon Ball GT’s initial episodes that the series’ English dub even skips the first 16 installments and starts right with Baby.
9 Gintama Comes Into Its Own Once The Audience Knows Every Character In Edo
There are few anime series that play by their own rules more than Gintama. The prolific long-running shonen series expertly navigates between emotional melodrama, surreal comedy, and pitch perfect pop culture parodies. Gintama kicks off with an odd approach that’s meant to give the manga readers something to latch onto, but it’s a confusing introduction for anime newcomers. Some people immediately connect with the series’ unique sensibilities, but for others Gintama doesn’t fully shine until its many supporting characters are fleshed out. Gintama’s wild cast of characters are the anime’s beating heart and essential to its success.
8 Black Clover’s Young Hero Is A Lot To Handle At The Series’ Start
Shonen series love to embrace the underdog archetype and begin their adventures with protagonists who have a long way to go on their paths to becoming heroes. Accordingly, a lot of shonen series struggle with protagonists who come on too strong and overdo it with their inexperience.
Black Clover matures into an excellent story, but both the anime and its hero Asta take a few-dozen episodes to find the right rhythm. Black Clover is thrilling once it hits this sweet spot and the action sequences figure out how to have fun with the chaotic magic that’s at the anime’s core.
7 Steins;Gate & Its Trippy Narrative Require Time To Prove Their Points
There are an endless amount of time travel stories that crumble under the weight of their own lofty ideas. It's difficult to explore such territory in a way that's original, but also void of inconsistencies. Steins;Gate is a masterpiece when it comes to serialized storytelling and layered characterizations, but the anime's greatest hurdle is getting past the initial season of 12 episodes. The start of Steins;Gate isn’t bad, but the pacing requires a lot more faith from its audience, yet at the same time it’s essential to the longer story that the series tells. The first season’s patience allows the following episodes to hit harder.
6 JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure’s First Saga Plays Like Somber Set Dressing
Hirohiko Araki’s JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has proven itself as one of the most creative and original series of its kind. JoJo embraces many of the action-heavy tropes that consume the shonen genre, but the series frequently reinvents itself through its shifting generational storytelling. Each major chapter in JoJo focuses on a different member of the Joestar family tree, but this structural convention isn’t apparent when the anime kicks off with Phantom Blood. This introductory saga is absolutely essential to JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, but it’s also the shortest at only 9 episodes and they have a very different look and feel to what follows.
5 Kill La Kill’s Tonal Extremes Are At Their Loosest As The Series Starts
Kill la Kill is a bewildering mix of elements that come together in a beautiful manner, but it takes the action series a few episodes to properly introduce all of its ideas and allow them to mature.
Kill la Kill subverts standard fight sequences, alien invasions, magical girl transformations, and Shakespearean melodrama — all with absolutely stunning visuals courtesy of Studio TRIGGER. There's a lot going on in Kill la Kill that's easy to miss at first glance; it crafts a heightened world that benefits with time.
4 Attack On Titan’s Delicate World-Building Wears Some Viewers Thin
Every few years there are certain anime series that connect on unprecedented levels and completely take over the fandom. Attack on Titan is one of the most rewarding anime from the past decade and it’s set to end on a high note rather than dilute its message. The final seasons of Attack on Titan are especially satisfying with how they connect the dots to so many elements from the anime's first few seasons. These parallels are a testament to Attack on Titan’s impressive foresight. However, the early episodes do get a little lost in the series’ universe and stumble through the introduction of many characters.
3 Higurashi: When They Cry’s Full Picture Requires Patience
It’s never a good idea to judge a book by its cover and there are anime series like Higurashi: When They Cry that intentionally exploit such surface level assumptions. Higurashi looks at an adorable cast of young characters, but soon their slice-of-life frivolity is invaded by serial killings, a mysterious and unconventional virus, and vengeful deities who can manipulate time and space. The lore of the Higurashi franchise has become more complex, but all of these supernatural twists improve the ever-evolving story. There’s so much to deconstruct in Higurashi and so the anime’s earliest episodes are also its simplest.
2 Made In Abyss’s Beginning Episodes Cling Onto Happiness Before Darkness Sets In
It’s always a delight when an anime’s story and themes are so elegantly executed through the tone and pacing of its episodes. Made in Abyss begins as an optimistic adventure where the young Cave Raider Riko befriends a robot boy, Reg, and they head down into unprecedented territory. Each descending level of the titular Abyss is considerably more dangerous and the anime’s attitude reflects this impending doom. Made in Abyss grows into a mature and devastating story, but its initial installments make it seem more akin to a children’s fantasy series.
1 Yu Yu Hakusho Hits Its Stride Once The Dark Tournament Begins
Yu Yu Hakusho is a shonen series that’s endured the test of time. It remains a nostalgic blast of 1990s anime, but it also tells one of the better and more contained shonen narratives that doesn’t overstay its welcome. Tournament arcs are common in action series and Yu Yu Hakusho’s Dark Tournament Saga is when many consider the anime to find its voice and successfully celebrate its powerful characters. The start of Yu Yu Hakusho is admittedly much more in the style of slice-of-life series as Yusuke Urameshi acquaints himself with his new Spirit Detective status.
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