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What's the deepest/smartest anime you've seen?

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Apex_old
Deep, smart.
adam2046

2deep2furious
Oinari-sama
Legend of the Galactic Heroes. Though the concept is quite hard to swallow for the majority and on top of that, the animation team didn't do the novel/manga justice. Poor quality of subs/translation available to the market has also contributed to its relatively small fan base in the English speaking world, sadly.

Evangelion takes time and effort to appreciate, it's actually quite well made. Take the concept of the AT Field for example, one can only savour the deep meaning behind it after spending time pondering about it...
blissfulyoshi
Senki Zesshou Symphogear: What other series can tie together something as frivolous as idols with swan songs, the Tower of Babel, and the moon?
Alucard
Definately agree with Ghost in the Shell.
jaye19
For depth, I gotta agree with Mushishi. As well for Death Note and Steins;Gate for intelligence. But aside from those three I haven't really watched any deep or smart animes such as those. Except for School Days. 2deep4me
Lust
RahXephon, in so deep man in so deep
Kyonko Hizara
Steins;Gate wins it with intelligence
Cropzy
boku no pico
HoneyCakeZ
Intelligence - Steins Gate, Death Note, Bakemonogatari
Deep - Sakurasou, Suzumiya Haruhi No Shoushitsu, Angel Beats
Akimari_old
Intelligent - Yuru Yuri
Deep - Lucky Star
ToodleNoodles

Alucard wrote:

Definately agree with Ghost in the Shell.
Mogsy
Cerebral anime are not taken very seriously, it seems. :v

The deepest show I've seen is probably Revolutionary Girl Utena, due to its mastery of deliberate action. Everything in the show is deliberate and has meaning behind it, but analyzing one element of the show can lead you off on tangents that can have you miss a different topic altogether in the same scene. It is up to the viewer, however, to see whether the deliberate set-ups in place are either actual pieces of the overall puzzle or if you're chasing a red herring. It goes on to deconstruct shoujo, fairy tale, and magical girl tropes in quite the adult fashion. Mawaru Penguindrum is in the same boat as it, tackling similar topics while taking a different stance on them, with the multiple layers of message interpretation and thematic red herrings that make each rewatch all the more rewarding.

Several other very smart shows I've seen include some of the more cold and cryptic offerings of anime, such as Ghost Hound, Serial Experiments Lain, and Wolf's Rain. Each one requires the viewer to piece together what is going on, especially in the case of Wolf's Rain. More accessible yet still cerebral shows include the purgatory story Haibane Renmei, the interestingly documentary-esque Flag, the dramatic and reflective commentary Millennium Actress, and the dark yet thematically rich Puella Magi Madoka Magica.

There are plenty of others out there, but here are a few that I feel like people might not bring up.
ampzz
You're all wrong.

Hametsu no Mars wins by a collosal margin.
-Seren-
for deep - Now and Then, Here and There

for intelligence - people have mentioned them already
Szymek
Death Note huehuehue
Green Platinum
Kantai Collection people say I can't appreciate it because I haven't played the game
EneT

Green Platinum wrote:

Kantai Collection people say I can't appreciate it because I haven't played the game
Kantai collection is so deep, like that one episode where whats-their-faces had that cooking competition and gained the drive to win vs those other complete retards; Man, and all the other episodes where whats-her-name kept saying 'Poi', it felt like there was a deeper meaning to it. SO deep.
Green Platinum

EneT wrote:

Green Platinum wrote:

Kantai Collection people say I can't appreciate it because I haven't played the game
Kantai collection is so deep, like that one episode where whats-their-faces had that cooking competition and gained the drive to win vs those other complete retards; Man, and all the other episodes where whats-her-name kept saying 'Poi', it felt like there was a deeper meaning to it. SO deep.
The only way the series could be any deeper is if it was about submarines.
EneT
Now that would be in a whole other level of deep.
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