Top 30 Sci Fi Anime - No Mecha! Must See Under Rated Titles! 

Akira is probably the most technically ambitious animated film ever done. I've watched a frame by frame analysis done by an expert in producing hand drawn cell animation and he was shocked by all the little details that would have been overlooked or intentionally left out of any other high budget feature film. He was in awe of how the film refused to compromise production value or take shortcuts at any point, even when certain scenes received no benefit by not cutting some corners, or where the scene was drawn from the worst possible camera perspective for animators to work from when depicting what the scene calls for because it might be easy to pose a character in the scene from that perspective, but animating the character from that perspective just wasn't done because it's impossible to get body limbs to be foreshortened correctly across the entire range of motion. Like, animators learned long ago to not attempt to frame a scene from certain angles because the subjects might look correctly proportioned and foreshortened in each cell as the subjects are moved through the scene and the inbetweening process happens, but once the scene is filmed and viewed at full speed it doesn't look right. So rather than draw, film, check, redraw, film, check, redraw, film, check, etc to make it look right, it just became a rule of thumb to not draw scenes from these difficult angles. Akira took on the most technically challenging and work intensive techniques head on, so if you haven't seen it you really should, at least to say you've seen the film that set the record for 'maximum effort' .

I'm a huge sci-fi nerd. I need more sci-fi anime!

Your short little explanations on each show is really appreciated. I always get fed up with long drawn out descriptions. You do good at letting the anime give us its own explanation and it works with your small input. Thank you for a great list of recommendations :)

If you can get past the first 5 episodes of Ergo Proxy you'll be in for a treat. Ergo is a hidden gem for sure.

Solid list and great execution. Music in some of the anime helped draw my attention even more. Will be checking out quite a few on this list, thanks for the recommendations.

Great list and I think the way your presented the animes, not spoiling the plot, yet making me interested. I`d also like to add a few title that I enjoyed very much: Memories 1995, patlabor 1989, Jin Roh 1999, Valley Of Nausica 1984. I`m sure there`s other I can`t remember.

Psycho pass is a must! I literally finished the first season in two days.

SO GLAD you mentioned speed grapher! Out of all of the Studio Gonzo productions Speed grapher was my favorite. It was dark, classy, serious, had a great villan, and the themes about money and what it means to be free were great! The character designs were also done by Kozaki Yusuke, who does AMAZIG character designs with a bit of a dark touch.

I really would have like to see the original Bubblegum Crisis on this list. BGC was THE anime that got me hooked back in the early 1990s.

The editing here is KILLER. Insane. The list is great, as well.

You are great Bob. You deserve so many more views. Thanks for this video and for your work.

Great video bud!! I've been looking for some new anime to watch and I love the dark sci-fi and cyberpunk style

I saw #1 coming. I'm currently at 98 out of 110 episodes and it definitely lives up to its hype. I can't look at other stories the same way again.

Thank you sooo much, this exactly the kinda list i was looking for!

Good stuff, sci-fi and mecha are my favorite genres.

My favorite sci-fi anime in this list is Psycho Pass but looks like there are more to discover. So many good series here

Toward Terra... is quite underrated. Loved that you mentioned it.

I had a hunch LotGH (my fav anime of all time) would be here somewhere and I was afraid when I didn't see it anywhere, then it pops up on number 1! great list, probably gonna check Ergo Proxy and Kaiba out first, btw how are you liking Joe for now?

This is the perfect list for me, my favourite genre without my least favourite sub genre. Seen most of them but there are definitely a few more here that I’ll have to watch.

Thank you for this amazing list! I love it and look forward to watching many of these titles!

Another two great scifi anime are Iria: Zeiram the Animation and Armitage III. Both of these anime are what got me into anime in the 90's. Both are worth watching.

The chapters for this video were retroactively generated without my consent and are incorrect. I would change them, but that would reset the algorithm and I don't want to risk angering the gods of youtube because this video has been doing well lol. Also, my friend edited the video, check his AMV channel out: ru-vid.com

OMG YES!! SCI FI!! one of my favorite genres

Dude Ergo Proxy was such a good anime

Great list! I’ll have to try some of these. I really enjoyed Space Dandy.

Editing is under appreciated. It is EVERYTHING in video. Well done. Yuuko dekkimashita!

Dude! Solid list I haven't seen a fair chunk of these and am definitely going to watch a few of them!

Oh wow, number 1. Idk it was a remake, but ive been watching the remake and the strategy and action scenes are so well made. Complex story and perspectives makes it hard for you to choose who to go for. Need to continue to watch it tbh.

Very good collection, thanks so much Bob!

tnx for the upload.. realy nice line up here, alot of underrated and underappriciated anime on the list as well as some hidden gems..

nice video and list, Bob, thanks! I also like Shinsekai Yori, Wonderful Days, Space Dandy and They Were 11.

I also recommend Royal Space Force highly. Not quite on the same technical level as GitS and Akira, but still very impressive and complete all around.

Might be crazy to believe but, this is my second time watching this my first time was 1 year ago and looking back on this, I think I might rewatch some of these animes, but my favorite mecha anime is Iron Blooded Orphans

Just discovered your channel, this list is incredible. Thank you! Looking forward to more content from you!

I just found your page today and subscribed. Thank You for this list. I have seen and have some of these shows you mentioned in my collection, but will check out the others in time.

Awesome list. When I first started watching this video I was like "hmmm... yep LOGH is gonna be number 1"

Thanks for this video, friend. As someone relatively new to anime (I go into anime in 2021), and who also likes sci-fi, this is gonna make for fun watching😊😊 Plus, I really REALLY like those retro old-style anime from the 80s to early 2000s. The unique art styles really hook me.

It's about time you gave Casshern Sins some love.

Fantastic list, almost everything I remember liking and a couple Ill have to look up later. 😁

These are wicked,thanks man.👊

Oh and absolutely great intro there. ^^

I'm surprised that Tri-gun didn't make the list. Some other personal favourites include: Gatchaman Crowds, Assassination Classroom (though perhaps the sci-fi is a bit lean here), Megalobox (both seasons), Bodacious Space Pirates and though they feel more fantasy than Sci-fi I'll mention Asterisk War and A Certain Scientific Railgun.

That was a really good list bro

Nice to see Speed Grapher on this list. Think you can do an review of it in the near future to see your thoughts on it?

Great choice of anime just a quick question what is the name of the music when you started to talk about steamboy

I've watched quite a few of the anime on this list and will give two more recommendations from my personal favs: 'Dimension W' which is a thrill ride from start to finish where the characters themselves will hook you in and not let go. Second is Kanata no Astra/Astra Lost in Space about a group of kids who go to space camp only to get sucked into a wormhole into deep space where they find a derelict spaceship and must embark on a perilous journey back home. Personal warning on Astra, the plot may seem straightforward but stick with it for hidden depths 😜.

Thanks for the recommendations dude, i'm watching Spriggan right now.

It’s great to see in the comments all the people who got into anime in the 90’s. I grew up watching Star Blazers on its initial run on TV and never new it was an “anime”. Silent Mobius(still one of my favorite anime and a great sci-fi) got me hooked on anime in the early 90’s and to see all the other mentioned like BGC, etc…..brings back memories. Need to rewatch some of those.

Great list! After watching the Saikano anime, I tracked down the manga to fill in the blanks - worth the read. I've added Kaiba and LOGH to my "need to watch" list. :-)

Already watch Akira, really liked it. Ghost in a shell, cowboy bebop, redline, parasite. After watching this, Gantz 0 did it for me, didn't know about it and it is a must watch if you into sci fi, supernatural horror like atmosphere. Thanks for sharing these best animes for movie night.

All right, man, I thought the list was good, but I was a little divided upon some of the placings. I'd rate Akira and Ghost in the Shell higher due to their sheer influence. And I have a pet peeve for Psycho Pass and I'd easily put it into my top 10 if not top 5. I was a bit wondering what you'd put at number 1, but I was not disappointed! Legend of the Galactic Heroes is probably one of the greatest anime of all time! So happy you put it at number 1!

GO SCI-FI!!! And the word 'underrated' tells me that this list is gonna be good LOGH when is the movie ever coming out?! I waited so long for it

great list, been wanting this for a while now

Hi BobSamurai, impressive that you watched over 700 anime! You recommended Legend of the Galactic Heroes as no.1 i think i must give it a try. Question, just fragment of memory here, in a 1994-1996-ish anime, a rebel group trying to stop a mega-corporation, and one of the scene was the corporation terra-forming earth and completely changed perhaps Mount Everest, that's all i know, would you know from this very bad description what animation is that? take care, stay safe.

If this was just a compilation I think it would've still been cool

Ergo Proxy, & Texhnolyze,Crusher Joe (Movie and OVA's)Space Cobra,(all of it,TV,movie and the ova's), Cyber City Oedo 808,Bubblegum Crisis and Bubblegum Crash TV, and why no mention of Wings of Honnêamise ? and Mars Daybreak are my faves, and all the others you listed. Great video Bob.

Was glad to see Planetes get some attention, it really is underrated, along with Time of Eve. Ergo Proxy is another I was glad to see, it's good, but you have to be in the mood to watch or it will get really slow in some parts. Parasyte, Psycho Pass, and Redline are a given for me, along with all GitS stuff (except two things). Same for Cowboy Bebop. Akira for me can only be viewed through nostalgia glasses as well. Glad to see Space Battleship Yamato on here as well, I remember running home from school in the early 80's to watch Star Blazers, but haven't watched the new stuff, except the live action movie which I think I only bought when it released because of nostalgia (same with the Harlock cgi movie). Some that I think should've shown up or gotten an honorable mention: Mardock Scrambled, Paprika, Railgun/Index/Accelerator (particularly the first), Chrome Shelled Regios (but it suffers from the creator dying before he finished it so doesn't get to explain/wrap everything up), The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Harlock (although I will FULLY admit I am looking through this with nostalgia glasses), Stein's;Gate, Vivy, Trinity Blood (which is another that suffered from creator dying except the studio played with the end to try and wrap it up). There are others but I think they would either lean too far into supernatural or mecha and likely be out of the running. Two that would fit but some might dislike because they push the "man's inhumanity" or "man using those that are different as tools" would be Black Bullet" and "What do you do at the end of the world? Are you busy? Will you save us?" Black Bullet tries to make it less grim with comedy and Will you save us has a little comedy and has a cutesy anime style I guess, but is still pretty sad. /end wall o' text

Man, nice list Bob. Lots of diversity and there's a lot of anime on here that I still haven't seen. Also gotta give some love to your editor. He did a great job.

I bought sprigan on laserdisc because of you .always 10\10 recommendations bob

What is the name of that font which is used to display the anime titles in this video? It really looks very familiar, I just can't recall the exact name. Please assist.

Excellent picks. I haven't seen a lot of these.

that intro is amazing!

This was just what I needed. Plus, whenever I want some dope anime that is lesser known, I know who to come to. Thanks for this

Nice list, lots of gems. Dude. Number 1 is the best anime I've ever watched. Took me a while to find it complete, but definitely the most worth time spent watching japanese animation. I watched it like 4 years previous to this video tho.

Great list I would say. Seen a number of enjoyable space operas, but not Legend of the galactic heroes, which is considered the best of them all. I will give it a go one of these days.

Very interesting, thank you

Just finished casshern sins thanks to your review, thanks dude

thanks for the list!

LOGH and Yamato are forever my favourite sci fi anime.

Ergo Proxy is the best of the list. It has one of the most memorable moments in Anime when Vincent exits the city and looks Rei-i in the eyes for the last time. BRILLIANT!

Thank you for the Soundtrack: Ghost in the shell (Torukia Gabriela Robin mp3)

Is there any good sci-fi anime with awesome sci-fi weapons? I am looking for weapons for inspiration for an up coming Animation I am making

When you got in number 2, i was beginning to type "legend of galactic heroes"...

OMG GANTZ I NEVER DREAMED TO SEE MY FAV MANGA HERE

If anybody likes time travel watch Steins;Gate :)

Yesss only #30 and hit one of my favorites

Leaving out the only strong competitor in classic space opera genre presented on anime - Seikai no Monshou/Seikai no Senki is odd. Also significant works forgotten here are (in random order) Dominion Tank Police, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Winds (this one is a sci-fi marvel), Starship Operators (not my piece of cake, but has some hard sci-fi inside), Armitage III, and, while arguably containing mecha, Heroic Age.

Glad to see my Top 7 or so are on the list, though some honorable mentions. Darker Than Black held my attention way back when (haven't watched it in a looong time), and while it's not straight sci-fi, enough qualifies and has a great story arc that Gungrave gets lumped in to my list. I could go unearth my 90s box and pull some really obscure ones, which I may spend the evening doing now that the idea has gotten me interested in rewatching some classics.

Good work! I’ve seen a handful of those anime you named and hadn’t heard of several of them! One thought: it is too bad Last Exile didn’t make the list.

Excellent video. It seems like watchable sci-fi anime is hard to come by, which mystifies me because what better medium could there be for this genre?

Anyone know a good streaming service to watch all these anime?

Big thancc, Got 6 new animes added to my list

OMG AN ANIME LIKE DETROIT AT THE START😂😂😂😂 and thank you😊 nice recommendations!!! I only knew parasite too😅

Speed Grapher, Steamboy... Really underrated. Good list.

That moment you realize you have seen most to all of these anime 😅 Also to add i recommend bob samurai lists for anyone looking for good anime to watch. I have watched most of anime i have seen from these lists. Thanks a million bob.

Where can I find the music used in this video? It was amazing!

The intro is super COOL!

highly recommend the one in the thumbnail: Psycho Pass. The second season especially is so brutal in the gore animation and the dystopian techno trappings their society had gotten itself in in this one particular episode ( you'll know it when it happens )

Damn, that song in the beginning, i know with absolut certainty ive heard it before. Is it Blue Stahli? Celldweller? Aero Chord?

Oh man, "Legend of the Galactic Heroes" is my favorite anime. Number 1! Great list!

OMG!!! What Song did u use at no.22 (5:13)

Thanks for the playlist, so far found one show for myself from it) thanks, tired of looking for good stuff on my own

Is Ghost in the Shell SAC even available to watch? I've never been able to find it anywhere.

Texhnolyze dialogue heavy?? My guy, nobody talks until half way through episode 1!! XD Other sci-fi non mech that I love (hell I'll name 30 more!): Nausicaa Laputa Urusei Yatsura Dirty Pair (Project Eden in particular!) Hakugei Densetsu (

Please make another top list for sci fi including this year!

Found tons of gems I didn't know about. Thank you.

Ghost in the Shell original TV series is a must see. Especially that was idea from almost 20 years ago.

God, Redline is one of the few racing movies that actually "gets" racing.

What was that singing playing durin mg the cowboy bevop spot? Sounds very good!

Dude that opening was brilliant you should try doing an amv at some point :)