In reverse alphabetical order, or no order in particular. Zoids Genesis While largely aimed at a young audience, and based on the Toy line that is Zoids (similar in the way that GI Joe or Transformers were tied into toys), it ultimately has a very dark and mature story. The plot-lines are very well thought out with most of the characters, including many villains and side-characters, being well fleshed out and having character growth throughout the series. It also earns points for being very subtle with how it handled certain character interactions, rather than making it blatent or feeling the need to spell out the reasons for them. Trigun Because this world is about LOVE AND PEACE! It's also well animated for the most part, and has great characters, albeit with a few exceptions it doesn't have character "growth" per se. Vash is generally just hilarious, and the topics covered are fairly interesting. The Big O This series was heavily inspired by the Batman, the Animated Series. The creators, though Japanese, even incorporated a lot of Tim Gunn's art-style into their character design. Of course, being Japanese, it's still about giant robots, and it follows much more surreal plot-line than that of any Batman stories you may have watched. However, it is very well done, has cool giant robots mixed with Noir Detective story-telling. It's very interesting, and the only real problem with it is that a lot of people will find the ending unsatisfactory. Spice and Wolf Fast Paced Economic Action, where you can enjoy watching the thrill of a merchant trying to sell stuff at a profit, and not get held up too long by bureaucracy along the way. I'm not joking. It's very good, and as long as you don't get lost/bored by the talk of currencies, trades, proceedures, you'll most likely have a good time. Interestingly, the author of this has gotten involved in a Visual Novel project that I believe has come out on Steam called "World End Economica." I've never played it, but if you have and enjoyed it you'll probably like this series. Samurai Champloo Two disparate swordsmen who hate each other get stuck helping a girl find another swordsmen. Hijinx ensues. Most of you will have probably already heard of or even watched this by now. The animation is great, the characters amusing, and the world they travel through very interesting, at least so long as you find an alternate Feudal Japan to be interesting. Also generally good music. Robotics;Notes High School Project: Build a Giant Robot. A very interesting slice-of-life/mystery hybrid. It does an excellent job of slowly building up tension throughout the series until it all bursts out in the climax at the end. Though it can seem slow to some at first, it is very much worth going through. It is based on a Visual Novel of the same name, and created by the same company that did Steins;Gate, a series/VN I never watched/played but have heard is also good. The company, which I assume is something like: "We love semi-colons." (it's actually "5pb." for those interested) Unfortunately has not localized the game to any english-speaking nation. Paranoia Agent This show's opening pretty much covers it: Strange, disturbing, and depressing... it's also incredibly interesting and very well put together. And then...! Now and Then, Here and There Makes Paranoia Agent look incredibly light-hearted and fluffy. It's also very well put together, and a classic in it's own right. Unlike Paranoia Agent's surrealism, this takes a hard look at some very clear-cut but disturbing subjects. While you might not enjoy it, or parts of it, due to the nature of the story, it is probably still worth watching. Mushi-shi There bugs everywhere man, get 'em off me! Just kidding. No, this isn't about insects, in spite of the title. Rather, it's about little spirit-ish things called Mushi, and Ginko, a person who travels around trying to help those having problems with the Mushi. It's very interesting, and also very gorgeous. It is probably a little on the slow side for those looking for action, but I found it very enjoyable indeed. Medabots Yes I'm serious. While the most childish of the anime I'm listing that are aimed at children with a toy-line, it's still very enjoyable, though it's relatively odd artstyle might bother some. Though it's been a while since I've watched it so there might be some nostalgia factor here, I was always left with a much better impression of this than other contemporary series of it's kind. It IS still aimed at kids and/or the selling of a line of toys though, so if that general genre just doesn't appeal to you at this time, feel free to skip, but like I said it's pretty well done and easily, in my view, the best out of that general milieu. Kill la Kill Gratuity. Beautiful Gratuity. All kinds of Beautiful Gratuity. The plot is nonsense. Most characters are nonsense. The talking schoolgirl uniform which tranforms into a battle bikini is probably the most sensable character. Yes, you read that correctly. You should probably watch it. Well, not if you're at work, but you should watch it. Ghost Hunt Highschool Romantic Comedy Horror. If you learn anything from watching this, it's that you probably shouldn't go around breaking cameras. In any event, it's rather well done, there are still plenty of funny moments/characters to help ease tension, etc. It is somewhat episodic, with seperated stories, albeit the same main cast. Many also have interesting mysteries involved, which can be fun to try and figure out. Though I mentioned it as a "romantic comedy" there's not really much romance, unless you count the male lead's love affair with himself. Digimon Tamers (Digimon Season 3) Easily the darkest of the Digimon series. Also probably the best one. Not because of the darkness mind, but because it has serious character growth, is largely well animated, and has a mostly very well thought out plot and mythology, with both a fleshed out Ditigal World and "real" world. Though some of the dialogue can be a bit iffy, the dubbing is actually fairly good, with the odd added joke actually being fairly funny (for some reason, with Digimon especially, the Dubbing team added/changed a lot of extra dialogue as part of the localization process, mostly the added dialogue were jokes by off-screen characters [thus avoiding lip sync issues]). Cowboy Bebop A great series of sci-fi action bounty-hunter fun, with an important message about not leaving things in the fridge for too long. It has excellent music, an interesting, if slowly revealed, overarching plot, and a good cast of characters. It has a compelling art-style and presentation, and most of you probably already know this because you've watched it long before I'd gotten the chance to recommend it. But hey, why let that stop you? Watch it again, you'll probably still enjoy it. Another Highschool Romantic Horror. On the other end of things, here have some mystery horror. Note that I did not include "comedy" in this one's liner. There is a reason for that. While there are a few humorous moments here and there, they are few and far between. Basically, if you wanted to look at it from "light hearted" to "dark" it would go from Dusk Maiden (part of the "honorable mentions"), to Ghost Hunt, to Another. All of them are very well done. Dusk Maiden and Ghost Hunt both go with a more episodical approach, having seperate stories, with the central cast connected to them. Another takes another approach, having the entire series centered around the one major story involved. In this way, it's someone similar to Robotics;Notes, but the pacing and of course tone is handled much differently along with the different subject matter. Honorable Mentions: Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! Record of Lodoss War Tasogare Otome x Amnesia (Dusk Maiden of Amnesia) Valerian and Laureline Hyouka Log Horizon Dennou Coil Planetes Welcome to the NHK Anything else I haven't watched in full, forgot about while writing this up, or didn't think worth mentioning (that doesn't mean I think they would be bad mind, but merely that they aren't especially worth the mention). This list is, of course, entirely my own subjective opinion. Not all series would be suitable for all viewers. Where applicable, please consult your legal guardians and/or friends, and obey any legal strictrions in your region. If you have any suggestions as to what should be on the list, please do mention them; to make it fun also with which of the three reasons you believe is the reason they weren't already listed. Once again, that would be: "Forgotten, Unwatched, Unworthy of Mention in the Eyes of that Pompous Fool Ohmin whom does not Understand its True Greatness." Well, if nothing else, I hope some folks find something interesting to see as a result of this thread. Also, a fourth reason, I tried to limit myself to things that have English translations, I may have accidentally included some that might not. Apologies in advance if you're unable to follow up on a recommendation as a result.
Only one I have ever watched is Mushi. It is so relaxing to watch despite it's eeriness. Something about it makes you feel like you're inside on a rainy day and there is a fireplace in the corner and you are all wrapped up cosy.
your consummately american tastes bore me, although i will agree that S&W and chuunibiyou are good shows.
I have even worse taste than you as I like almost exclusively ecchi shows. If there's no panty shots, I generally won't watch it. Some rare exceptions to that rule include madoka magica and ano hana but only cuz theyre moe enough
Is it bad that I've marathon'd & completed many animes and loved them, only to completely forget them after the fact?
Nothing has come close to Samurai Champloo for me cept maybe Afro Samurai in the "Less serious story line but great characters and music" category. I like great sword - play mixed with good feels. Rurouni Kenshin is my top sonfar. Been 10 years since I watched it. Got any good picks from this type? Lastly, anything that even compares to Ghost in the Shell?
I loved Afro Samurai, it was actually one of the first serious animes I ever watched. Curious though if baskitkase mentions good music and Afro Samurai with the Rza's soundtrack in mind. I never imagined baskit would like that kind of stuff. "I'd kill da whole world for da number 1 head band! "
Hunter x Hunter. Best Shounen out there. 150 episodes of greatness. Kyousogiga. Incredibly stylish, wonderful family story. Shirobako. Hilarious and harshly realistic. It's about making anime -- or any art -- as a career. Wolf Children. Simple story about raising kids. Charming. (Film) Samurai Flamenco. An absolute mess. It's about heroes, and it's great. Sound! Euphonium. Amazing craftsmanship. Broad, subtle cast and relationships. Berserk. The strongest arc of a classic manga. Perfect soundtrack, compelling characters. That's what I got.
Not sure if it's bad or not, but it seems pretty normal. I've nothing against ecchi-ness, but I tend to prefer Plot over "Plot" and a lot of "ecchi" anime seem to rather skip on the former and rely too much on the latter (in some cases to the detriment of the quality of art/animation). Still, if you've got favorites, feel free to throw them out unabashedly. Speaking of moe things, you may or may not enjoy the Absolute Defense Leviathan anime. Not at this time, I'd given it thought but nothing not already mentioned came to mind. I don't get much into that sort of anime though in all honesty. I still haven't even watched more than a few episodes of Rorouni Kenshi. Not sure in what way you mean. Content? Subject? Genre? Quality? I dunno how you feel about it, but I rather liked the original more than the remake, though the remake does expand the story. Mostly though, I'm annoyed that the author of the source material keeps abandoning the series for long periods of time. I do like the tangential look at morality however. It's an interesting approach to a protagonist. The rest I haven't watched, though I've read some of the Manga of Berserk. I just never quite got into it, but I didn't give it that much of a shot either (I was also much younger when I read as much as I did).
I haven't seen the original. The 2011 anime is officially over, actually, so no worries about the author maintaining an inconsistent schedule. It's also a big problem with Berserk, actually.
I haven't seen much anime in my time, so I'm not an expert, but the ones I have seen were all done well enough to be noteworthy IMO (and a select few I'd rate far higher than most western T.V shows). I'll just give you links to their respective pages on MyAnimeList; it's easier that way, since the reviews there are much more thorough than any that I could give. http://myanimelist.net/anime/1535/Death_Note A true classic, and the anime which really drew me into the genre. It's quite dark and nihilistic at times, but the story is amazing and well worth it. The back-and-forth "Sherlock Holmes vs. Moriarty" dynamic is very enjoyable if you love a thought-provoking detective story. Do know, however, that the vast majority of people I've talked to hated everything from episode 26 onward, including the ending, so be prepared for that. Otherwise it's definitely one of the best anime I've seen. http://myanimelist.net/anime/1210/NHK_ni_Youkoso! Probably not what you're looking for, but it's good all the same. Has a bit of that "slice of life" stuff mentioned earlier, but is a rather sobering take on modern Japanese youth issues, and ends up having a feel-good vibe that counteracts the depressive drama. I feel like there's a character in this one that everyone can relate to. It's a tad on the odd side, especially at first when you're not fully aware of all the intricacies of the characters, but its oddness is one of the things that makes it appealing IMO (if you're an odd person yourself, like I am). http://myanimelist.net/anime/237/Eureka_Seven Funny enough, this was actually the first anime I ever watched. It's a bit old, first airing in 2005, and at the time it was basically background noise for me as I did work, played games, etc., much like every other T.V show to a kid as active as I was. It's unfortunate really, since all the mature, philosophical aspects which make the show great were entirely lost on me at the time, and the aspects which would have been appealing to a 14-year-old me make the characters seem naive and annoying when I watch it now. But don't be too quick to judge this one; it may not be to everyone's taste, but you can still get something out of watching it. Just remember that while it was originally catered towards a younger audience, it addresses themes more commonly found in anime geared towards older populations. The character development is strong here, and the animation is very clean looking, not what you'd expect from a mecha show. Lastly, I STRONGLY recommend that you watch Steins;Gate. For me, ranks above even Death Note as the best anime ever, and having seen Robotics;Notes, you should be familiar with the style. There really isn't enough space here to talk about how much I loved that show, but one thing I'll say is that I got so into it that I binge-watched the entire thing in one night. It's like one of those books you can never put down; all the characters really get under your skin and make you feel for them. The writing is amazing, the animation is very nice looking, and the plot seems like something straight out of Hollywood, but better. If you were to only watch one anime out of my list, watch Steins:Gate. You definitely won't regret it.
NHK is good stuff. Steins; Gate was pretty good, tho like most sci-fi anime, lots of extreme suspension of disbelief is required. I personally like "boring" Slice of Life stuff like Hidamari Sketch or moe stuff like K-ON and Tamako Market.
Thoughts on Death Note: Eating chips has never looked so good... or sinister. I do wonder how the paper situation works. I mean, that note-book doesn't look terribly thick, and he write in it a LOT. So, do used up pages end up vanishing or folding into the covers when he needs new ones or...? Anyway, it's decent, but I found it largely too predictable (and like most everyone else, hated the "second half" of the story). NHK is good. Will edit it into my Honorable Mentions as it was simply something I'd forgotten.
If you like Rurouni Kenshin, there is an OVA of it, which you might watch if you haven't already. http://myanimelist.net/anime/44/Rurouni_Kenshin:_Meiji_Kenkaku_Romantan_-_Tsuiokuhen The timeframe is during the war, where Kenshin was still a killer. As far as ninja/samurai themed shows/movies go, Ninja Scroll is (imo) still the best. Although be warned, it's very graphical. But it has an awesome dark atmosphere. As for shows similar to GitS, you could try Serial experiments Lain, Kaiba or Technolyze. And battle angel Alita, although there is only a 2 episode OVA of it, so you'd need to read the manga. James Cameron is apparently an Alita fan and wants to do an Avatar style movie of it. As for my favourites: Detroit metal city: The funniest anime I have ever seen. It's about a nice country boy going to Tokyo, where he wants to become a pop singer. But he instead becomes the lead of a metal band with a cult following. Cowboy Bebop: Sci-fi drama, with some really good characters. Kaiji: A story about a college droput in debt who enters a mafia organized tourney, where people risk their lives to get some cash. Jojo's bizarre adventure: Imo neither the 1993 OVA or the new adaptation do the manga justice, but both are still pretty good, and JoJo is my favourite thing to come from Japan. Good characters, good comedy which doesn't feel out of place and battles which don't rely on Power level. Hope we get to see part 4 animated soon. Hunter x Hunter: Very obvious Dbz and JoJo references. Much better then Togashi's YYH, which I honestly think is pretty dumb and bad. There are still some bad Shounen tropes but otherwise it's a good and enjoyable show. Prefer the older one, simply because I think oldschool shows have much better atmosphere and animation. Welcome to the NHK: One of the best drama anime I have seen. It isn't over the top melodramatic like most modern anime seem to be. It has great characters, which are the focus of the show and it's also quite funny. But the comedy never gets in the way or is inapropriate (like in FMA:Brotherhood). Perfect blue: A very good psychological movie, though painful to watch at times and hard to understand. The director Darren Aronofsky bought the rights to it, so he could use a scene in his movie ''A requiem for a dream'', and his movie Black swan is quite similar to it.
I want MOAR! 7 deadly sins, Future diary Hell sing ultimate. Gintama. Oh... And I almost forgot. Gintama Gintama
Has anyone seen Uta Kata? That one is kind of odd since it's got psuedo magical girl stuff but isn't a magical girl anime but I loved it. Surprised no one ever mentions Chrno Crusade in these, it's got demons and nuns with guns!
I could never get into Gintama. Speaking of wanting "moar" however, I would absolutely love an (well made) anime adaptation of Lucifer and Biscuit Hammer (Hoshi no Samidare) Spirit Circle Sengoku Youko... (well, pretty much anything by Satoshi Mizukami... but particularly in that order) Also of Vinland Saga, which coincidentally Baskit would probably welcome based on his requests (pending production value of course). Alas, as far as I know none of them will get such adaptations (at least any time soon), let alone English localizations (for those that require such).
