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(This was posted in the comments and amended to add other information.)
I have been a fan and applicant of FDS for the past couple years and appreciate what this forum and podcast has done.
But one of the few things that kind of get me miffed is how automatically bad anime (or Japanese animation) is and how it's a red flag.
I get it. There are some inappropriate sides of anime such as hentai (pornography) that can unfortunately involve the exploitation of women and children. With the eyes on Japan about their pornography, they are currently cracking down in that sector of the industry and making sure women and children are protected.
As an anime watcher of over fifteen years, anime, once a small focused medium in Western countries, has taken a strong foothold around the world. Depending on when a series comes out, the anime can be a product of its time. What was popular back then, might not be what people like today, but it still has a place in people's heart for nostalgia or feel good moments.
Since I have been in the anime scene for quite a long time, it helps me see which people to avoid.
To gauge a man's taste in anime look at the following:
Does he prioritize anime over other stuff?
What type of anime he watches (keep in mind Japan has some biases against women so if the series has misogyny in it and he speaks poorly of female characters, that's a red flag)
Merch: I like collecting anime products, but I make sure that it is tasteful and I don't cover up if my conservative mother comes. If they have a lot of inappropriate figurines, get away. If he spends all of his money on merch and is not saving money, run.
Actions: Does he use inappropriate dialog from series? Run. If he does things that were appropriate for the anime situation that is not appropriate in real life, run.
Hygiene: Similar to other indoor hobbies, if he is unkempt and smells bad, run.
Here are my green flags of anime series:
Women with agency and talents.
Girl/Women led series that are not narrowly focused on being a man's gf or spouse
Genial protagonists: are the main characters understanding and sympathetic to those who are different from them
Proactive characters: characters who learn to grow from bad situations when given the chance.
Flattering fanservice: are the characters comfortable with their partial or total nudity, showing skin for their own reasons (ex. Water scenes, exercising) and the scene don't linger.
Ability to choose their own path
Intelligence or Cleverness
Comedic in a nonharmful manner
There are plenty more options, but I feel that this is a good summary of possible series.
Sometimes I feel anime gets a bad rap compared to other forms of medium. As I get older, I learned to be picky with my anime watch. I expect men to also be picky with what they watch.
If you have series that you're not sure about, you're free to DM me. I am open to feedback on this post.
I've been a big anime and video game fan. So yeah I don't really agree with that too much. But in my experience it depends on the anime and games. If I guy was really into anime that portrayed woman in a negative way I would take that as a red flag.