A lot of people who I generally have a lot of time for say Pandora Hearts is a good anime. But it just did nothing for me. This is one I’ll just chalk up to personal taste and move on. But I’m under no pretenses that Valkyria Chronicles is a good anime, I’m just enjoying it for what it is… a bit of fun with a tsundere romance thrown in on the side.

Phantom has risen to the top of my list, even above Eden. And Pandora Hearts is in the second rank: above above average, lol.

I’m also vowing to change ways and enjoy shows more, complain less. it’ll be more fun that way too XD

Good question. I think one would be hard pressed or find it next to impossible to find enjoyment if they were unable to enjoy anime while not following it simply because of the fact that better quality exists. Not to mention, there would be a lot of entertaiment to be taken for granted in the process. It would probably be that much more difficult to even think about bothering with lesser fares of entertainment, if at all. It can be difficult enough with the weight of quality as a reasoning. So, I think I would be able to enjoy anime even if I were not following shows for the particular reason you articulated.

Depending on what anime I am watching, it can very well be an “above average” show for me. On the other hand, it is true that a good amount of what I considered at that level is usually action-packed involving high levels of testerone due to the nature of gunfests and fights.

Yes, I think people should watch what they enjoy, even if they are for superficial (or guilty?) reasons, and not because one should be better informed. One can have a balanced diet of good and bad, but if you aren’t enjoying it, I think it’s a terrible waste of time.

These are sort of my thoughts on the matter. And while I don’t have any proof, I feel like it’s watching in that manner that a person can watch anime for a long time running.

@kadian1364
Sometimes I’ve noticed that the fans who are deliberately selective with their anime diets so that they only watch titles that are highly acclaimed are often the ones who get jaded the quickest. Maybe it’s inherent in the more picky taste, but maybe there’s something to the idea that one should occasionally wallow in more shallow titles for the sake of keeping the hobby fun. Sometimes if only for the timely reminder that it’s misguided to expect everything to be a masterpiece.

@Flash Sword Irene
I’d guess that those types of action-packed gunfests are your “Above Average” series. Maybe the relevant question from all of this is: would you find anime just as enjoyable to watch if you didn’t follow those types of anime simply because you knew there was better stuff out there?

Still, preferences can play a role in this, as an anime season can be oversaturated full of shows one would immediately detest. (Stuff like K-On and Haruhi are shows like that for me, since there is no way in hell I will ever watch them.) Even then, I still share the same sentiments with gaguri over Souten Kouro when I have my brain turned off. Otherwise, its a mind-numbing ROTK adaptation and not the best out there. Another anime in that “above average” category is the Dogs/Bullets and Carnage OVA which is a loud, action packed, gunfest in the shadow of Black Lagoon. But, that OVA is quite fun to watch while passing some time and never mind how shallow it is.

I guess in a practical sense it is a good thing the majority of anime isn’t epic. I can only imagine an entire community in a perpetual state of ‘Mind => Blown’. Probably a fandom with really, really low expectations. “Woah! A finale in color!”

And it’s not like I maintain some kind of elitist mentality, “8 or it doesn’t matter.” I’ve got my fair share of ‘average’ entertainment. I ask two questions:
1) What is this show trying to do/accomplish/be?
2) Is it good at it?
Series that can answer the second query affirmatively are usually good enough, but woe be those that can’t even answer the first.

Anyways, I don’t think that it’s necessarily “above average” titles that interest us as it is our niche. Recently, I’ve noticed that I’ve actually been enjoying more shounen action oriented titles like Dragonball Kai and Sengoku Basara more than the more high brow titles. Much like AC, I wonder if my willingness to explore the anime medium as shrunk as I’ve grown to have strong, sometime debilitating expectations of titles, which has kept me away from the vast majority of shows since I arbitrarily project that I’ll dislike a series and the only exceptions are the things I’ve always enjoyed like older tiles DBK and high intensity action like Basara.