My favorite anime arcs, an opinion
Great anime stories can’t always be confined to a 20-minute episode. That’s why there are arcs in anime. It’s the focus story of one sub-storyline of an entire series. It usually covers many episodes to tell its entire plot.
Here’s my list of the best arcs of must-watch anime.
Warning: few spoilers ahead!
Attack on Titan | Return to Shiganshina
I don’t think this will be the best arc of the entire series of Attack on Titan since the story has yet to end as of this writing. But, for now, the best arc goes to the Return to Shiganshina. It showcases one of the most thrilling battles of strength and wits.
Aside from that, it also gives viewers a shocking revelation that altered where the story is actually going. The main characters go on the most dangerous mission of their lives as the faith of humanity relies on it.
It took two and a half seasons just to get a payoff for where it all started. Aside from that, this arc also begs the biggest what if? of the series. It asks the question of whose life should have been saved.
It also shows how the story plays out if they survived the battle. Everything was well-executed in this arc. So, some of its episodes even made it to IMDB’s highest-rated episodes of all time.
Hunter X Hunter | Chimera Ant
So far, the Chimera Ant remains one of the longest and most suspenseful arcs of Hunter X Hunter. It has everything from interesting new friends and foes to well-designed characters. Every fight scenes remain well-animated. It keeps getting better from hunters dealing with foot soldiers to royal guards to the king of Chimera Ants.
The real cherry on top, on the other hand, revolves around the development of the characters. It’s the first time where we see our main protagonists actually break down and lose their character. Aside from that, the arc also gave compelling villains that we strangely want to root for.
The only possible problem here points to the few dragging scenes where they put jokes that don’t actually land. However, this could bore non-anime watchers. The story may be long. But, it’s all worth it as it slowly builds up to their big epic fight. No wonder this arc has sixty episodes just to give one great story.
Death Note | L
If Death Note ended after the story about L, then this shouldn’t be considered an arc. Despite a poorly-developed story after L, the first part of the series holds one of the best stories ever created. It’s a cat-and-mouse chase between the greatest detective called L versus a genius student, Light, who holds the Death Note.
This, then, grants him the power to kill anyone by writing his victim’s name on that notebook. This arc doesn’t need many action scenes to make it great. It has an intense battle of wits where anyone can argue which of the two of them remains the smartest.
