One of the great things about anime is that it’s already somewhat niche and already attracts nerds, so why not lean into it? Make that historically-accurate horse-racing series! Recreate real plays from top sports games! Geek out about your special interest; there’s bound to be an audience of other otaku who are also into that! Unfortunately a lot of the especially niche subjects don’t make it to an official English translation, but that’s where scanlations come to the rescue to fill in the gaps.

I’ve never seen Umamusume, but from what I’ve heard it’s shockingly high effort; the historical accuracy doesn’t surprise me in the least. I’d be interested in a breakdown from someone who specializes in Chinese history of the accuracy of Apothecary Diaries (on the surface it seems at least somewhat accurate, but it also feels a bit romanticized… I want to believe!). Vinland Saga didn’t seem quite my taste so I’ve never seen it. Tanya the Evil is awesome, but I think it’s much more on the “inspired by” side of historical (makes for a great aesthetic, though).