I have less than a passive lack of interest in idols, but WOW did Oshi No Ko blow me away with its first episode.

One of my favorite genres is one I call "surreal goofball comedy." It's gag humor in which not even the limits of reality are respected. Nichijou is the most well known example, but Pani Poni Dash is probably my favorite. Other examples include Excel Saga, Asobi Asobase, Galaxy Angel, Ueno-san wa Bukiyou, Kill Me Baby, and most recently, CITY The Animation.

I love riichi mahjong, and I've been on a quest to watch/read every mahjong anime/manga. You'd be surprised how much media exists for a board game.

Akagi is peak, my favorite anime/manga of all time, and everything else by Nobuyuki Fukumoto is fantastic too. Saki has very entertaining moments during the games... but is kind of insufferable between games. Legend of Koizumi is hilariously silly, though the manga ran way too long after the joke had run its course. Tohai starts off very strong, becomes ridiculously edgy, and then kept going until I just ironically enjoyed how stupid it was. Legendary Gambler Tetsuya feels like it was made to piss me off as a mahjong player.

But the most underappreciated manga-only hidden gem has gotta be Tetsunaki no Kirinji. This one really feels like it was written for serious mahjong players, the moment it started lampooning the differences in playstyle between online and IRL play I knew I was reading something special. Praying it someday gets an anime adaptation.

Pani Poni Dash is underrated, good to see it mentioned. Have you seen Poputepipikku?

Poputepipikku

It's on my "I have no doubt it's good so I'm in no hurry to watch it" list. I should probably get on that...

Does non-battle battle anime count? In Yakitate!! Japan the characters participate in tournaments to see who can make the best bread. It feels very much like a battle shounen at times. In Kaguya-sama: Love is War two tsundere who've fallen for each other try to use dumb tactics to force the other person to be the first to admit it (though the show is a lot more than just that).

That's probably because Oshi no Ko is less of a idol anime and more of a drama that centers around the idol industry.

It's not quite a genre per se, but I often enjoy it when there's an educational aspect to something. Cells at Work and Ruri Rocks would be obvious examples, but I would also include, say, Golden Kamuy or (manga) A Bride's Story. Hobby and cooking anime tend to have elements of this too, Yuru Camp, How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift?, Sweetness and Lightning etc.

So not really "edutainment" in the sense of trying to trick children into learning by wrapping it in something that looks like entertainment, and more something where you can imagine the creators pointing at their work and saying "Look! This part of the world exists too! Isn't that neat?" with stars in their eyes, if that makes sense.

If you like Yakitate!! Japan, there's a whole genre of competitive cooking manga and anime that includes Chuuka Ichiban!/Cooking Master Boy and Shokugeki no Souma/Food Wars.

I've heard of Food Wars, but never Chuuka Ichiban!. I'll have to look it up sometime. Thanks!

Great! I already had Ultimate Survivor (from another niche list) by Fukumoto on the list so I will definitely be checking out Akagi! Thanks

Medicine Man/Woman anime. Shows like Mushishi, Mononoke, Natsume Yuujinchou...

They're typically episodic stories about a traveler who can see supernatural forces that no one else can (typically Yokai, but the Mushi in Mushishi are basically alien lifeforms) and uses their powers to help ordinary people in their struggles to live alongside or communicate with them.

I love these shows because they shine purely on their ability to create compelling drama without relying on ongoing plot lines or recurring characters. They're just microcosms of humanity in its purest form. Mushishi is particularly impressive. Every episode feels like a short film, not a tv show.

more something where you can imagine the creators pointing at their work and saying “Look! This part of the world exists too! Isn’t that neat?” with stars in their eyes

I absolutely feel this whenever we start learning random Ainu facts in Golden Kamuy.

So not really “edutainment” in the sense of trying to trick children into learning by wrapping it in something that looks like entertainment, and more something where you can imagine the creators pointing at their work and saying “Look! This part of the world exists too! Isn’t that neat?” with stars in their eyes, if that makes sense.

WTH, so that's why I'm put off by kids-oriented media even while I was a kid. I couldn't verbalize it then, but I felt they're either fake (in the "plastic" sense) or condescending