Anime isn't just about flashy battles or high school romances; it can also be a cerebral experience that challenges your views and makes you ponder the bigger questions in life.
Here's a list of anime that will stimulate your gray matter and maybe even give you an existential crisis or two.
Monster
Monster is about a neurosurgeon who unwittingly saved the life of a monster: a man that became a serial killer. Since then, he has been trying to make amends. The anime is all about choices and their consequences, and it is worth a watch and some thinking.
Mushishi
A slowly-paced, contemplative anime like Mushishi is a perfect choice for thoughts about life. It is an anthology-like story, in which one main character goes around helping people who have problems with mushi – tiny and primitive creatures that are not dangerous but can cause trouble. The main character calls himself the master of mushi – Mushishi – and he is the only constant in this story, which is just about lives and people. Both are worth thinking about.
Death Parade
Death Parade is about purgatory. Real purgatory, where the dead come to. The purgatory looks like a bar and is tended by bartenders who decide fates. The dead have to play different games, revealing more about themselves, and in the end, they are either sent to be reincarnated or banished forever into a void. It is a good reason to think about the meaning of life and the way we live our lives.
Death Note
Death Note is a story about a young man who finds a notebook with instructions on how to use it to kill people. He uses it extensively to kill criminals (or people presumed to be criminals), which amuses the shinigami who is the actual owner of the notebook. The story offers a lot of opportunity for thought about what a human life is worth, and in the meantime, you get to watch the young man with the notebook and talented investigators playing cat and mouse.
Serial Experiments Lain
Serial Experiments Lain is complicated. In essence, it is a take on what could happen if people could live forever in a computer network. In effect, it is a strong commentary on people, communications, and how computers are changing our world.
Anime can become a good reason to contemplate either your own life or just the plot points of a mystery. Both of those exercises are good and fun, which is why we hope that you have found an anime to ponder over in this list.