Some fans can't wait to watch their favorite anime as it airs week to week. Others are more patient and wait until the entire season is available to binge all at once. Both approaches have their merits, but, more often than not, the best approach depends on the kind of story being told.
Anime stories with a large cast of characters or plots that make even the tiniest of details relevant as tools for foreshadowing future events are the types of shows that can only be appreciated when binging them all at once.
10 Attack On Titan Is A Masterclass In Foreshadowing
Attack on Titan seemed like just another new shonen series with a twist when it first came onto the scene. In the years and seasons since that initial run, the story has turned into something deeper and viewers who kept up with it on a weekly basis may have felt confused or frustrated by the gradual change. It's an anime where foreshadowing and paying attention to details are key, making it perfect to binge and keep the details fresh in mind instead of letting things drag out.
9 Every Emotion Matters In My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU
Teenage romance and drama are often paired together, but it's rare for anime to make them feel as nuanced as they do in My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU. The ongoing dilemmas of the service club and a love triangle bubbling under the surface do more than enough to add the meaningful depth that made this anime famous. A lot of it comes down to subtle character beats and growth over time, but it's easy to forget these if a viewer has to wait a week between each episode.
8 Steins;Gate Has A Better Pace When Binged
Steins;Gate is a much-appreciated classic in the anime landscape, creating expectations for newcomers going in. Fans expecting a bombastic story from the onset may be surprised to find out that the first half of the series is a relatively slow affair.
Its building up of characters and important motivations aren't paid off until the more exciting second half kicks in, meaning that it would be far easier for new fans to stay invested if they consume it all at once.
7 Binging Haikyuu!! Reduces The Cliffhangers
Some of the hardest stories to watch in an episodic format are sports anime. Shows like Haikyuu!! often get into intense matches that span multiple episodes or even an entire season. It's a genre that thrives when the audience is on the edge of their seats for every big play or character moment, making them eager to get to the next episode. Anticipation needs to be kept high to maintain hype, and that can only be done by watching Haikyuu!! as quickly as possible.
6 Fruits Basket Makes The Zodiac Animals Worth Remembering
Characters are everything when it comes to the emotional journey that Fruits Basket takes its viewers on. The Soma family is vast and full of distinct characters with deep personalities and fascinating backstories. Twelve shape-shifting members of the Zodiac and their immediate associates are all vital pieces to appreciating the full picture in Fruits Basket, and it could be a challenge to keep them all memorized as the plot progresses in a weekly format.
5 Kyousogiga Has A Deep Family Tree
Kyousogiga is an unusual tale that is happy to confuse its viewers before explaining the grander plot as time goes on. The personal stories of its cast are expanded upon through revelations that shed light on earlier episodes, and it's hard to appreciate that without a good memory for detail.
To get a clear picture of Koto and her supernatural family, the story needs to be experienced in quick succession, and the non-standard structure sets it up perfectly to be rewatched and appreciated even more.
4 One Piece Never Forgets Its Plot Points
One Piece is a monster of an anime and there's no way around that. It's fast approaching the 1000 episode mark, and, with a run time that high, the average anime watcher would have no chance at being able to remember every single plot thread and character. One Piece fans often say "Oda never forgets," and that's because the legendary mangaka, Ericho Oda, has designed One Piece to make every character and plot point have relevance and meaning throughout the story.
3 Code Geass Is Full Of Twists To Keep Track Of
Twist after twist is perhaps the best way to describe Code Geass. Character allegiances shift over time, and Lelouch Lamperouge's master plans unfold and collapse in ways that the viewer does not see coming. Mentally juggling all of the various factions, their shifting priorities, and battles happening on multiple planes of action at once isn't simple, and watching Code Geass weekly makes this far harder than it needs to be.
2 The Melancholy Of Haruhi Suzumiya Becomes An Easier Pill To Swallow
Fantastic examples of slice-of-life anime stand out for their memorable characters and emotionally resonant narratives, but The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is no ordinary slice-of-life anime.
Haruhi and friends are also infamous for taking fans on a time loop arc that lasted an entire eight episodes. In many ways, it's a bold and inspired storytelling decision, but if a first-time viewer were to watch this arc week to week, they probably wouldn't have the motivation to continue the anime.
1 The Monogatari Series Needs Every Word To Be Savored
Even under normal circumstances, it's an especially difficult task to keep up with the consistent and heavy dialogue of the Monogatari series. Personalities, easter eggs, and radical shifts in the story can all take place during lengthy conversations that are part exposition, part character study, and always masterfully written for maximum viewer engagement. Every word spoken is essential to understanding the overarching narrative, and with a story that is often told out of chronological order, seven days is too long to wait between episodes.
