What are some Overrated Anime Series?

A question I see a lot on social media is what anime series are overrated? It is a tough question, and after some serious soul searching, I’ve arrived at a definitive answer.

The most overrated anime of all time is your favorite anime!

The topic of overrated anime is, frankly, pretty overrated. It’s a highly subjective field, and instead of throwing my useless opinion into the battlefield, I’d rather look at this popular trend.

Does mainstream success make a show overrated?

Look around the community, and most of the series that get hit with the overrated label tend to be current shows with mainstream success.

Sword Art Online, Attack on Titan, One Piece, and Naruto are the usual suspects. Now, popularity does not mean a show is a high quality or a life changing experience. It just means that, for some reason, a lot of people are entertained with the series. Trying to figure out what leads to mainstream success is a maddening effort, and there is no set formula.

Perhaps people are tired of all the attention that one show is getting. I know I’ve groaned when I keep seeing certain shows and characters pop up on my feed.

It is odd seeing how the goal of creating anything is to gain mainstream success, and yet that is used as a negative for many people when criticizing a show.

This is not a protection from criticism, lord knows Attack on Titan and Sword Art Online has a lot of writing issues. However, criticizing a show just because it is popular is like criticizing water for being wet.

Is it hype factor?

“Oh my gosh! This show is the greatest most perfect series in the whole entire world! You have to see it!”

We’ve heard that line before. Maybe age has got to me but never fall for the hype. The moment you let the hype get to you is the moment a series will fail in your eyes. It’s okay to be excited, but don’t stake your very being on the quality of a show.

But who do we have to blame for the hype factor? For all we know, this show could be the best that the person has ever seen. Can’t fault them for that, even if we disagree.

Does classics get hit with the overrated label?

You have two camps when it comes to classic anime (circa 1965 to yesterday). There are a group of people who feel the classics are perfect and pure in every way, and no modern show will touch their greatness. Then you have the group that thinks classic anime are overrated shows that snobs watch.

There is no middle group that accepts the classics for what they are. That would imply we live in a peaceful world.

So, why do people think classic anime is overrated? Usually, it’s because they are not watching the show through the eyes of that era.

For example, Macross was a pretty big deal in 1982. It blended mecha action with a convincing love story that is borderline tragic, and threw in some nice pop songs. Guess what, that formula has been copied for the past 33 years.

Ironically, Macross looks generic to modern fans because the tropes it popularized has been used by countless other series. Some people can’t or aren’t willing to try to transport themselves to 1982, so they do a simple hand wave and call Macross generic.

Is it Special Snowflake Syndrome?

Everyone has the perception that they are a unique individual. I’m not going to get all abstract, but people want to be special and unique. They don’t want to follow the crowd. We want to be one of the few to open the eyes of our circle of friends by introducing them to a series they have never seen before.

This only applies to people who purposely call things overrated because they weren’t the first to discover it.

Maybe a dash of bitterness?

“Why do people watch Attack on Titan when they could be watching Nichijou? These people have shit taste, that’s why!”

Sometimes, we want our favorite show to be a success because that means more seasons. You can’t have that if people aren’t watching and buying the show. We need something to blame, so it’s easy to point fingers at the most popular show and their fans.

Once again, I’m not saying you are wrong. Success is a tricky and fickle thing. If everyone was like me, we’d have Gintama and Legend of the Galactic Heroes on every TV and computer screen 24/7.

Maybe you just don’t like the show as much as everyone else.

Maybe you like the show, but not on the same level as everyone else. That’s fine. We’re not all going to like the same show on the same level.

Unfortunately, it’s a lazy way to say a show is shit.

Back in the day, overrated was a simple word that you’d use to describe a show that didn’t meet your expectations, but was still enjoyable. Today, it’s a buzzword for popular shit.

Live and let live.

Personally, I don’t care about the label because it is way too subjective to be used in a serious argument. If you want to call a show overrated, cool, just don’t use it as a Trojan horse to attack a fanbase. That just shows a lack of maturity and has no place in the anime community.

I open the floor to you all. What do you think makes an anime series overrated?