One of the biggest and simplest reasons some anime fall under the radar is often that they were too short for their own good; if an anime doesn’t run long enough to tell a complete and engaging story, then it’s all but certain to fall into obscurity, especially if it’s an adaptation that ends without fully adapting the original story.
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A short run is almost always guaranteed to kill interest in an anime, and that’s nothing but a shame, as there are plenty of underrated anime that probably could have become hits if they lasted a little longer. A few anime like that especially stand out, and hopefully, some of them will have a chance to finish their stories someday.
10) BNA: Brand New Animal
Studio Trigger’s BNA: Brand New Animal takes place in a world where humans struggle to coexist with humanoid animals called beastmen. To that end, beastmen have established a sanctuary called Anima City, and after turning into a beastman after a blood transfusion, Michiru Kagemori makes Anima City her new home to both avoid persecution and find her missing friend, Nazuna.
While BNA: Brand New Animal’s writing and animation were as fun and chaotic as any Studio Trigger project, thanks to its short runtime, BNA had to rush through its final act and left everything woefully underdeveloped. Even the best Studio Trigger anime often have unsatisfying endings, but with how much potential BNA had, it’s especially bad to see it here.
9) Good Luck Girl!
Sunrise’s Good Luck Girl! stars Ichiko Sakura, a girl with supernatural levels of luck and an arrogant attitude because of it. One day, Ichiko meets a misfortune goddess named Momiji Binbouda who reveals that Ichiko’s abnormal levels of luck are putting the world out of balance, and she’ll do anything to fix it, no matter how much Ichiko resists.
Good Luck Girl! was a solid comedy with great jokes and occasional heartwarming character work, but unfortunately, the anime ended before it could introduce its full cast and major story arcs, something the finale even made a joke about. At this point, it’s unlikely to ever return, and with how great the manga was, that’s nothing but unfortunate.
8) Deadman Wonderland
In Manglobe’s Deadman Wonderland, after being framed for murder, Ganta Igarashi is sent to Deadman Wonderland, a privately owned prison that secretly serves as a gathering place for people who can weaponize their blood in various ways. Ganta is one of those people, and now Ganta must fight for his freedom to learn the truth about what happened to him.
Thanks to its stellar action and wonderfully edgy tone, Deadman Wonderland was a major hit with fans and was one of the biggest anime to mark Toonami’s return. Unfortunately, the series was never that popular in Japan, so there’s little to no chance of it returning and adapting the manga in its entirety, leaving the anime irrevocably unfinished.
7) Dark Gathering
In OLM, Inc.’s Dark Gathering, Keitaro Gentoga wants to live a normal college life, despite his ability to sense the supernatural, but that changes when he meets Yayoi, a girl with similar supernatural abilities who drags him along on her mission to capture and enslave violent spirits to prepare for battle against the spirit that stole her mother’s soul.
While not always having the best art or animation, Dark Gathering always did a great job of selling itself as an action-horror story with its fun action and writing, and creative monster designs. Season 1 only ended two years ago, but it’s no less frustrating to have no updates as it set up its biggest arc to date.
6) No Matter How I Look At It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular
Silver Link’s No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular stars Tomoko Kuroki, an antisocial otaku who believes that she can use her expertise in otome games to become popular. Predictably, Tomoko becomes isolated due to her social awkwardness, thus leading to her becoming a misanthrope constantly on the receiving end of cringe comedy.
While No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular began as a cringe comedy, it only became great after transitioning into a more straightforward slice-of-life series, which was surprisingly organic due to the strong character writing. Unfortunately, the anime ended before the transition, so people will never know how good it could have been.
5) Shy
8bit’s Shy takes place in an era of relative peace after the superheroes of the world prevented World War III. However, a mysterious organization called Amarariku threatens that peace, and the heroes must unite once more to save the world, with the battle surprisingly being led by Teru Momijiyama, the socially awkward hero of Japan better known as Shy.
With its fun action and how well the writing blends superhero and magical girl tropes, Shy is a standout superhero story, and it even works as something of a successor to Bones Film’s My Hero Academia. Unfortunately, the series was never all that popular, so even with so much of the manga left to adapt, it’s unlikely to ever return.
4) No Game No Life
In Madhouse’s No Game No Life, the siblings Sora and Shiro suddenly find themselves transported to Disboard, a world where everything is settled through games. At the bottom of Disboard is Imanity, Disboard’s equivalent to humanity, and so Sora and Shiro decide to use their superior gaming skills to put Imanity on top while searching for a way home.
No Game No Life was an instant hit thanks to its clever writing and unique artwork and animation, and eleven years later, it still holds up incredibly well. The lack of a second season has become a meme at this point, but with how many light novels have been getting sequels lately, there’s still hope for a continuation one day.
3) Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury
Sunrise’s Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury takes place in the year 122 of the Ad Stella timeline, where tensions between Spacians and Earthians are at an all-time high. Nevertheless, Suletta Mercury just wants to go to school and make friends, but that’s complicated by conspiracies, terrorist plots, and her surprise engagement to the resident princess of the academy.
While The Witch from Mercury started as everything someone could want from a new Gundam anime, the second half couldn’t make good use of its runtime, resulting in a disastrously messy narrative and a largely unsatisfying conclusion. Gundam anime typically run for a year at a time, and if anything, The Witch from Mercury proves why that’s important.
2) Magi: The Labyrinth Of Magic
A-1 Pictures’ Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic takes place in a world where people challenge mysterious and deadly dungeons to obtain incredible wealth and power. Among them is the duo of Aladdin and Alibaba, and while they just wanted to go on adventures, they soon find themselves involved in massive conspiracies that could determine the fate of their entire universe.
Thanks to its great action and worldbuilding, and its execution of political storytelling, Magi is a truly underrated classic and one of the best anime to come out of the 2010s, by far. Like No Game No Life, Magi’s lack of content is contentious to the point of being a meme, but hopefully, a revival isn’t off the table.
1) The Melancholy Of Haruhi Suzumiya
In Kyoto Animation’s The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Kyon is forced by Haruhi Suzumiya to join the SOS Brigade, a club dedicated to finding the supernatural. What Haruhi doesn’t know, though, is that the other club members are the supernatural beings she’s looking for, who are observing Haruhi’s godlike powers, all of which Haruhi has to be kept unaware of.
With gorgeous animation and clever and thoughtful writing, Haruhi was once the biggest anime in the world, but thanks to being an incomplete adaptation, it’s slowly faded into obscurity among casual fans. Nevertheless, the success of recent one-off projects proves that Haruhi is still very popular, so there’s no better candidate for an underrated anime that deserved a longer run.
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