Best Anime With Bad Animation

Recently, members of a feedback forum have been engaged in a passionate debate about the best poorly animated anime they can remember. In this lively exchange of opinions, the participants shared their experiences and reflections on series that, despite their poor animation quality, have left a lasting impression on their memory.

The debate has highlighted the ability of certain series to transcend their technical limitations and captivate viewers through other elements, such as a compelling story, a striking soundtrack or outstanding voice acting.

Forum participants have highlighted how even when animation may not reach the highest standards, a captivating plot can make up for this deficit and keep the audience engaged. From action series to emotional dramas, examples abound in the anime community, where the depth and richness of storytelling is valued over purely visual quality.

In addition, it has been pointed out how a memorable soundtrack or exceptional voice acting can elevate the anime experience and overshadow its shortcomings in the animation department. These discussions reflect the diversity of opinions and experiences within the anime community, as well as the medium's unique ability to move and excite viewers through a wide range of artistic and narrative elements.

"The first two seasons of Kingdom."
"Inferno Cop".
"So I'm a Spider, So What?"
"Kemono Friends".
"The first season of Initial D. The CGI is awful, all the trees are the same model, the cars look like shit. But what a good anime it is."
"Villainess Level 99. CGI sucks, but it's a lot of fun. Bad CGI is just one more element to laugh at."
"Overlord has shitty CGI in season three."
"Cromartie High School."
"Fire Hunter".
"Fate/Stay Night 2006, the soundtrack is a masterpiece."
"There's very little incentive to watch something with bad animation when you can read the manga instead. Helck is a good example of that."
"Berserk."
"Genshiken, oh my god, Genshiken. The first season was made by Palm Studio, which only worked on 7 productions in total. The second season (which is MUCH better animated) was run by Arms, best known for Elfen Lied, Queen's Blade, and Night Shift Nurses."
"The Way of the Househusband, animation so bad but I still love it."
"Trapped in a Dating Sim: The World of Otome games is Tough for Mobs. The animation sucks, but the novels were good enough to keep my attention."
"KamiKatsu: Working for God in a Godless World really shows off what bad animation is, but it's one of my favorite anime for that reason. By comparison, Kimetsu no Yaiba has incredible animation, but I don't think the story is that spectacular."
"Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest, enemy CGI sucks, but damn, I can't stop looking at it."
"One Piece, I didn't see it, I read it, and it's an amazing story, but shit, every episode feels like a PowerPoint slideshow."
"NHK ni Youkoso was a PowerPoint presentation, but the story is great."
"Classroom of the Elite. It's not a story that calls for good animation, it's mostly people talking, in front of smooth, reusable backgrounds, but oh my God, even just for that, the animation is done so cheaply that it hurts. Yes, I know that wideshots of the body or static background during dialogue are a long-established trick to save animation budget, but you shouldn't make an entire scene this way. And I know sometimes you have to make one or two episodes cheaper to save money for one fight in the next one, but S3 felt like they were saving up for the whole season to deliver a 2-second fight in the last episode."
"Cop Craft. It was all the more tragic because in the same season there was an overproduced rubbish that had nothing but sympathetic animation."
"Back Street Girls: Gokudolls".
"Tomodachi Game".
"Kemurikusa".
"World Trigger, nothing competes with it. Bad art but good animation."
"Golden Kamuy. It has a great story and soundtrack, too bad it was brought down by the mediocre animation and bad CGI of the first season."
"Qualidea Code".
"D starter, those first 2 seasons are ugly, especially the first one."
"One Piece was very badly animated for a long time. Even though it looks pretty now, the amount of padding and how much they drag out the story is the ass as well."
"The Angel Next Door Spoils me Rotten".
"Definitely Black Clover."
"I really liked Nanatsu no Taizai, despite its poor animation."