5 Masterpiece Anime Miniseries You Can Binge This Weekend

Watching anime is fun; however, finding the time to watch anime can often feel like a nightmare. Due to the hectic nature of modern life, many anime fans believe they don’t have time to watch an anime series, especially because many big-name series (like One Piece) run for hundreds of episodes, making them feel like a massive, long-term commitment.

Thankfully, time-strapped anime fans don’t need to worry, as anime history is full of stunning miniseries that tell a complete and satisfying story in only a handful of episodes, meaning you can start them on Saturday morning and finish them by Sunday evening, allowing you to enjoy an anime series and do some other stuff this weekend. Even better, these shows span the entire spectrum of genres, meaning there is a perfect miniseries for you, no matter your tastes.

Le Portrait de Petit Cossette Is A Twisting Gothic Horror

Released in 2004 and animated by Daume, Le Portrait de Petit Cossette (sometimes written as Le Portrait de Petite Cosette) is a gothic horror masterpiece. The story follows Eiri Kurahashi, a young man who works at an antique store. However, this quiet job is turned upside down when he starts to see the spirit of Cossette, a murdered girl from the 18th century, in an old glass.

What follows is a twisting psychological roller coaster as Cossette uses Eiri’s infatuation against him, trying to talk him into accepting a Faustian bargain where he can free her in exchange for taking the punishment her killer deserved. However, as Eiri ponders the idea, he begins to wonder if Cossette is telling him the complete truth, leading to numerous harrowing moments that are sure to send a shiver up the spines of viewers, as they try to work out what is real and what is part of Cossette’s machinations.

One reason for Le Portrait de Petit Cossette’s memorability is its animation. As the series continues, the show becomes increasingly surreal, dropping Eiri into all manner of strange and non-Euclidean spaces that are as beautiful as they are terrifying. Despite only running for three episodes, Le Portrait de Petit Cossette will stay with viewers long after the credits roll.

Time of Eve Is An Excellent Sci-Fi Drama

Produced by Studio Rikka and arriving on screens in 2008, Time of Eve is a six-episode ONA. The story is set in a future where androids have become a common household appliance, with most households having at least one to perform the boring and mundane tasks the human occupants don’t want to do. However, when Rikuo Sakisaka notices a strange message in his android’s activity log, he ends up discovering the Time of Eve: a café where humans and androids interact on equal footing, without revealing their true nature.

What makes Time of Eve so mesmerizing is its structure. Most of the episodes follow Rikuo as he hangs out at the Time of Eve and interacts with the café’s regular patrons, discussing their lives, dreams, and opinions on the nature of the world. However, Time of Eve goes out of its way to show that everyone, whether human or android, is unique and sees and experiences things differently.

This is especially notable in its discussions of Isaac Asimov’s Three Rules of Robotics. Unlike other sci-fi stories that treat them as a perfect monolith, the robots in Time of Eve approach them differently, showing that there is no such thing as a truly flawless rule, and the nature of free thought means that regulations are observed by their spirit, not their letter. Because of this, Time of Eve is more relevant now than it was in 2008, as it explores how flexible our idea of “humanity” can be and how the ever-moving advance of technology will force us to deeply consider what it means to be truly alive, lest we end up hurting beings that, despite the situation of their creation, are just as aware as we are.

FLCL Is A Modern Classic

FLCL (pronounced as Fooly Cooly) was created and directed by Kazuya Tsurumaki, and was a co-production between Gainax, Production I.G., and King Records. This six-episode OVA follows Naota Nandaba, a 12-year-old boy whose quiet life in a sleepy town is flipped upside down by the arrival of Haruko Haruhara: a Vespa-loving musician whose first chaotic interaction with Naota accidentally causes giant robots to start appearing in the town.

What makes FLCL so memorable is its uniqueness. The show’s storyline is weird in all the best ways, combining action, comedy, and sci-fi into a delightfully surreal package. However, despite its surface silliness, the show isn’t afraid to dive into bigger topics, meaning fans who love symbolism will have a fun time unpicking and considering the show’s numerous deeper themes. Plus, this is all wrapped up in a unique visual aesthetic that is both distinctly early-2000s and surprisingly timeless. Combine this with the show’s legendary soundtrack, and you’re left with a show that’s a treat for all the senses. The ultimate testament to FLCL’s brilliance is the fact that even the show’s sequels (despite their best efforts) have been unable to capture the intangible x-factor that makes the original series so mesmerizing.

The Tatami Time Machine Blues Is A Clever Time Travel Story

Released in 2020, The Tatami Time Machine Blues is technically a sequel to the 2004 cult-classic movie The Tatami Galaxy (though it can be enjoyed with no prior knowledge of the film). Like the movie, this series is based on a novel by Tomihiko Morimi. However, this story also features elements from Makoto Ueda’s stage play and film Summer Time Machine Blues.

Set during a blisteringly hot summer in Kyoto, the story follows a group of friends whose hope of cooling off is ruined when one of them spills soda on the air conditioner’s remote, rendering it useless. When one of them discovers a time machine in their storage closet, the gang decides to go back in time and prevent the remote’s destruction. However, unbeknownst to them, this decision will trigger a wide-reaching butterfly effect that forces everyone involved to reconsider their place in the world.

What makes The Tatami Time Machine Blues so fascinating is that it uses its time-travel premise to capture the struggle to find your path in life in a deeply relatable way. Combine this with a fun cast, and you’re left with a heart-warming movie that is sure to leave an impact on anyone who watches it. Additionally, the show retains the movie’s unique visual style, meaning The Tatami Time Machine Blues is a treat for the eyes and a must-watch anime series for fans of creative animation.

Gunbuster Flips The Script On Mechs

Gunbuster (called Aim for the Top in Japan) launched in 1988. The series was produced by Gainax and directed by the legendary Hideaki Anno, the man behind Evangelion. The series is set in a world where humanity has expanded into the stars, only to discover they’re not alone and end up in a never-ending war with aliens. Noriko Takaya, the daughter of a downed expedition fleet Admiral, joins the Okinawa Girls’ Space Pilot High School in the hopes of learning to become a Machine Weapon pilot.

What makes Gunbuster so fascinating is how the show takes all of the mech genres’ hallmarks and approaches them from a different angle. As hinted at by the show’s Japanese title, Gunbuster draws considerable inspiration from the manga and anime tennis series Aim for the Ace, and this is evident in its handling of the story’s core relationships.

So, while the mechs play a massive role in the show, Gunbuster’s core focus is on Noriko adapting to her new environment, the various friends and rivals she makes along the way, and how these relationships shape her growth as both a pilot and a person. Because of this, Gunbuster is a direct precursor to Anno’s work on Evangelion, meaning it is both a fascinating slice of anime history and a fun show in its own right.