Anime suggestions

I have watched virtually no anime. I have no particular bias. I love several Miyazaki films. Unfortunately, the world of anime has seemed, generally, too huge to broach, and equally unfortunately, some of the anime my girlfriend suggested I try was idiotic beyond belief. Anyway, I'm now looking into some stuff. Based on my taste and recommendations, here's what I'm thinking of checking out:

Cowboy Bebop
Ghost in the Shell (which seems to be huge. Assuming I like the movie, where do I go? The sequel? SAC?)
Berserk
Planetes
Death Note

Any other suggestions?

 

ABSOLUTELY CHECK OUT:

Cowboy Bebep

Ghost in the Shell (and note...if you don't like the first film...SAC is very different...SAC/2nd Gig/Solid State Society are all win...2 films are good, but much more about style [not my cup of tea]).

Ranma 1/2 - It's the best investment you can make in anime.

Trigun

Gundam Seed (also Gundam Wing if you like such things)

Full Metal Panic

Castle of Cagliostro (Lupin III) - Anime at it's absolute finest.

Others that are fantastic, but may/may not be in genre's you will like:

Fushigi Yuugi - A great winding tale of romance and historical fiction

Love Hina - The crown jewel of "harem" animes.

Black Lagoon - If you enjoy Cowboy Bebop and want to see a darker version - see this.

Evangelion - It's just huge.

Those Who Hunt Elves - Hysterical

Lupin III TV series

Blood: The Last Vampire

Vampire Hunter D

Bubblegum Crisis 2040

Irresponsible Captain Tylor (hillarious)

Onegai Teacher

Appleseed (if you like anything about Ghost in the Shell - see this)

Newer things that look and sound like they have promise:

Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann

Gundam 00

Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

Innocent Venus

_______________________

This is just the beginning...you want more detail on any of this, or want to get into further branches off this stuff, just pm me.

It's funny...I'm not the anime freak amongst my friends...and yet I have developed quite a passion for it because of them. I wish my Star Wars fanaticism wore off on them as well as anime has on me.

EDIT: Almost forgot the champion of modern anime - Record of Lodoss War - there are older animes...but this is what ignited the rabid phenomenon around the world.

 

For your list I suggest scrapping Beserk, you'll be watching an incomplete story instead I recommend picking up the manga even though its still on going after 20 years or so.

GitS - Its not that huge, basically there are two different adaptations so approach them as two separate universes.
First adaptations are the two movies Ghost in the Shell and Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
Second adaptations are the two series and a movie: Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig and the movie Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex Solid State Society.
Ultimately watch all of them as long as its in order. Considering you've already seen GitS watch GitS2:I afterwards check out the series.

Planetes definitely watch this one, best hard SF since... 2001 I believe (bold statements ftw)

besides that your list looks fine.

As for my recommendations:
Gunslinger Girl
Twelve Kingdoms
Mushishi
Kino's Travel
Mononoke (not related to the Miyazaki movie)
Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi
Seirei no Moribito
Evangelion
Rahxephon
Legend of the Galactic Heroes
Eureka 7
Noein
Heroic Age
FLAG
Macross
Gankutsuou
Bubblegum Crisis (original not the remake)

The Girl Who Leapt through Time
Makoto Shinkai works such as 'Beyond The Clouds, The Promised Place'
Satoshi Kon's works such as 'Millenium Actress'

As for Gundam, heh if you think GitS is huge you'll be overwhelmed by Gundam. It has over 9 different series, OVA (direct to video series), original and compilation movies, sequels, side stories, multiple universes (some of them spanning their are own sequels) which can overwhelm any newcomer.
Personally I suggest staying away from it until you're comfortable with anime. But if you want to try out personally I find Mobile Suit Gundam movie trilogy an excellent entry point and if you don't like the dated animation then watch Gundam SEED.

 

Thanks for the recs. I've also heard good things about Monster -- any idea when that's coming to DVD?

 

an important thing to keep in mind is genre within genre in my opinion. anime is no different than any form of art, it runs the gambit from crap-superb. if you are into sword and sorcery however, and giant mech batlles turns your stomach, it won't matter how amazing Gundam is, to you its going to suck. theres lots of music out there where i recognize and respect the artists talent, but dont want to listen to it =) for me Lupin is an example, i recognize how good it is, just not my cup of tea.

Jedimarine gave you a really good list...

Bebop is better than most you will see when all elements are considered, and is one of the few where you won't be missing out by watching it in english. only problem is alot of other anime seems crappy afterwards due to Bebops greatness. check out Samurai Champloo or Wolfs Reign, same creator same vibe encased in very different worlds, both decent but still lesser

R.O.D. (the movie or the series) are both top shelf in my mind, i saw the movie first and it really knocked my socks off, can find it dirt cheap too. Villains on par with Ninja Scroll (see below)Yomiko Readman has the coolest power you could possibly have but have never even considered having =)

FLCL is wierd as ell, but the music rox hard, and its smart

Trigun is on par with any of the best, another series with superb villains, the Gung-ho Guns are as wicked as they are diverse. it will take you a few of the early episodes to realize how REDICULOUSLY HARDCORE Vash the Stampede is. stick with it...meow

Ninja Scroll is a movie, so i suppose it can't be compared to a series, but nothing is better. the sequals are laughable in the sense that they aren't really sequals and thus suck. can't say enough about the bad guys

other stuff i wouldnt call great but enjoyable is out there, and i am sure i am blanking on some other great ones. Full Metal Alchy is enjoyable, Getbackers, Yu Yu Hakusho isnt bad on a juvenile DBZ level, Witchunter Robin also.

tastes surely vary, you are talking to someone who can't sit through 15 mins of Akira, overrated drek if you ask me =)

 

I know. Fortunately, I have wide taste and enjoy just about any genre. It's quality I'm looking for -- character, story, style, whatever. That's why I'm looking here. There's a huge amount of anime out there, and I hear that some of it's really good, but thus far I've generally avoided it because I'm unfamiliar with it. But if there are good stories in the form, I'd like to give 'em a go.

Hmm. . .I prefer subtitles generally to dubbing. . .

 

Quality stories abound in anime...even in series that are obvious fan service vehicles (of varying forms) there tends to be a core story behind it...you don't get too generic or shallow until you get to more ecchi/hentai stuff.

In truth, a good well to tell if there is a solid story...check for a manga for the title...especially in circumstances where the manga predates the anime, you've likely found a winner. There are exceptions, always...but it's a safe consideration for beginners.

May I ask...do you like episodic shows with a loose overall premise, or do prefer a sweeping episode to episode serialized series?

Anime can do both splendidly...but depending on how invested you are can determine what you will sit down with and for how long.

Examples:

Episodic Anime -

Cowboy Bebop
Ghost in the Shell SAC
Trigun

More linear Serialized Anime -
Fushigi Yuugi
Anything Gundam
Record of Lodoss War
Evangelion

Most series will become more serialized toward the final episodes...this is standard...but by then you are in or you are out.

OH!

Forgot a good one if you like your brain being jerked into altered states...

Serial Experiments Lain

By the end, you will be going "WTF" and "THIS IS AWESOME", all at the same time!

 

Not much of an anime person myself, but from what I have watched:

Blackjack
s-CRY-ed
Record of Lodoss War
Last Exile
Evangelion

I recommend those

 

2ndQuest some of the people who worked on The Big O also worked on Batman TAS hence the Batman feel in both the story and characters. Regarding 08th MS Team it isn't more mature then any other Gundam (except first half of ZZ, entire G and SD) however I think your referring to the militaristic feel which the other Gundams don't really have or not as much.

Monster is definitely a must watch I would have listed it if it were a SF or a Fantasy though. However its not licensed for the North American market, so you have to resort to fansub downloading or you have to import from France, get yourself a R2 DVD player and hope that the French DVDs have English subtitles and with the current Dollar/Euro exchange rate that doesn't seem like a good idea.

 

Not terrible...just underdeveloped I'd say...looks like a healthier portion of your viewing is of the tv broadcast variety in the states, no?

Ouch...have you seen Cowboy Bebop? I strongly encourage you to do so if you like OS...most people I know who liked OS and go on to see Bebop find a whole new world open before them.

08th MS was ok...short, but ok...it was older in feel just because of the characters...but I'd say both Seed and the new "00" are particularly militaristic..."00" from what I've seen, is even moreso then 08th MS.

Again...if you like Big O, you'll probably like Bebop...

*My poor head>>>desk>>>violently*

Sorry.

At least you didn't say Kenshin...that's the unforgivable sin.

Bleach is the emo generation's Dragon Ball Z...It's for the older brothers who think Naruto is too juvenile. But the truth is, most of the time they watch both. Shonen Jump is the devil.

Mononoke is the best of the Miyazaki stuff...Ghost in the Shell the movie is about style more then story...SAC and it's offshoots are more story based, rather then a platform for "wows".

Akira blows.

Evangelion isn't one show...I've never seen it all the way through...and I don't think I could keep up...I just lean on the expert updates from the "true believers" to set me up wherever I've jumped in. In truth, I just think it looks cool.

 

Sorry, but you're wrong. Mononoke is very pretty, but is blown away by Spirited Away. Howl's Moving Castle, Laputa -- both better than Mononoke. Looking elsewhere in Ghibli, Grave of the Fireflies is also better.

 

I can add to the recommendations for Cowboy Bebop. It was shown on Toonami here in the UK and I loved it. They showed the English version.

Outlaw Star was pretty good as well. The same station showed it here.

I also liked Spirited Away and Metropolis. Sky Movies showed them.


Older anime I have liked:

Galaxy Express 999 and the Harlock and Esmeraldas spinoffs. (I actually have a GE999 poster on a wall here. The TV station in New Jersey that showed the series gave them away. The ad was all in Japanese with just the station address in English. I sent away for it without knowing what I was getting! You can see a pic of the poster here )

Escaflowne (English version)

 

Another good point.

Dubbing is bad 88% of the time.

Subbing is much better.

And trust me...coming from the person who swore he'd never watch anime to read when I had a star wars book on the shelf...you have to watch most anime subtitled.

I can count on one hand the anime's that had ok dubs:

1. Cowboy Bebop
2. Outlaw Star
3. Lupin III
4. Trigun
5. Ghost in the Shell

and even these...the subbing is superior.

Subtitles are vital...often because the dub quality is either very poor...or they have intentionally corned up the dialog to be "funny"...it need not be.

Subtitles...even if you hate the idea...it won't take long to sway you.

 

Tenchi Muyo (has a kid with a lightsaber!!!!!) (OVA + movies)
Kiki's Delivery Service
Tonari no Totoro (My Neighbor Totoro)
Gundam Wing
Patlabor
Space Battleship Yamato/Starblazers
Bastard!
Magic Knights RayEarth
Record of the Lodos War (OVA)
Vampire Princess Miyu (OVA)
Marvel comics new animated movies (Hey, they're anime styled to the point they might as well be just anime)
Venus Wars
Superdimensional Fortress Macross!!!!! Macross 2!! Macross Plus!!!
Genesis Climber: Mospeada
Superdimensional Cavalry: Southern Cross
Castle in the Sky
The Cat Returns
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust
Ninja Scroll

Yeah, you can probablly tell how dated my list is... and how dated I am.

 

00 is more political. What I meant with militaristic, is that 08th MS has a more lowly grunt soldier feel to it, not every other Gundam captures this especially not SEED, that show doesn't even know what grunts are.
Although 2ndQuest might not have been talking about this.

Honestly its best to keep sub/dub opinion to yourself, dub vs sub debate amongst anime fans can turn nasty and are ultimately pointless.

You should check out the prequel called Galaxy Railways, or at least I think its a prequel.

 

I heard about that some time ago but at the time I don't think it was out yet. I wish the old series would come out on DVD here in the UK. I have quite a few of the episodes but they were taped off TV and the reception wasn't that great. Also this was over 20 years ago so I don't know if the tapes would even play now. I think I first saw the series back in 1979/1980. A Spanish TV station in New Jersey had Japanese-language programming on Sunday evenings and that was one of the shows. I was in Connecticut and had a whacking great set of rabbit-ears to drag the station in. (These things looked like you could bring in space broadcasts on them). This was around the time of cable just coming to my area but the station wasn't on the cable.

The series was broadcast in Japanese, and without subtitles when I started watching. I really liked it even though I couldn't understand much but eventually they added subtitles. However, when you have really bad reception English dubbing would be a good thing!

 

The point of the thread is opinion...I'm not arguing anything.

I've had long and nasty discussions,having been on both sides of this debate. It's nothing I relish doing again...but I do have some experience to impart.

I'd also strongly recommend making anime viewing a social activity...anime in general can become a great social gathering for friends and even family...especially if you are approaching it fresh together.

As opposed to the latest movie or videogames, or even books, where there can be early viewers and first day buyers vs. the more relaxed but not any less passionate amongst us...Anime in it's unique quasi-obscurity can be approached almost on equal ground.

In other words...Anime is more fun in front of a tv with friends around then huddled over your computer monitor.

Also...anime has chick appeal.

 

Akira and Ghost in the Shell are both major landmark staples in the world of anime. Unfortunately, they both have a lot of problems making sense to people getting started.
The main cause of this is story compression. Both are comic books that were put on the screen, but the guts of the story and explanations are stripped out because the movie can only be ~2 hours, and the comic had 24 issues. To give you an idea of the level of compression, one entire issue of GitS was about how the cyborgs are constructed, with detailed descriptions of the science. This was reduced into the opening credit sequence&song. All of the politics and infighting between the various bureaus was removed. Consequently when Bureau 6 shows up to hijack a Bureau 4 project, the government is fighting itself, but none of it has been set up within the movie. (Forgive me, I might have the numbers wrong, but the point remains.) Much the same is true of Akira.

That said, the animation is beautiful. But the first time I saw it, it didn't make much sense.

 

I'm not a big Anime fan, but Cowboy Beebop is worth checking out (the series, not the movie).

 

I'm surprised that no one mentioned "Akira". This is one of the grand-daddies of JApanese Anime. It also seems that recently, Leo Dicaprio has signed onto the Hollywood live-action film. As for recommedations, I say good-luck hunting. Anime is a h-u-g-e spectrum, and then there's hentai. I myself have only seen:

Akira
Wicked City
Ghost in the Shell
Perfect Blue
Vampire Hunter D
Then there's also old school Japanese cartoons, Captain Harlock, and Battle of the Planets, or known as Gatchaman, G-force. If someone out there has Thunderbirds 2018...we gotta talk.

 

True, I mentioned Akira cause it's a good place 2 start. The problem or good thing
per say with anime is that it is too dense or convulluted, it takes several Episodes to get into a certain anime storyline. They're simply not anthologies. They take place over time. ie: Not one-shot deals. I watched Kenchi-Moyo, then realized it was about a samauri fighting constantly with evil...

 

I'd mention "Doomed Megolopolis", but it's too close to Hentai.

But "Guyver" should be added for super-hero fun.