Anime recommendations

[Jay911]

Here's some of my favorites of the past few seasons. Some of these will be repeats of what people here have already said.

Birdy the Mighty was a four-episode OVA (direct to video) release in the 1990s but got revived as a two-season TV series (so far) in 2008 and 2009. Birdy Cephon Altera is, for all intents and purposes, a "space cop" going after various criminals. In her pursuit of them to Earth, she accidentally kills a high school boy. In order to save his life while her people's technology rebuilds his body, she agrees (or more correctly is ordered by her bosses) to host his consciousness within her body. The story continues with the two of them sharing one body, able to take either his or her form depending on what the situation needs, and trying to balance his school and personal life with her Federation duties (and eventually her personal life as well). Besides the humor of the whole situation, the storyline of the pursuit of the criminals is well-thought-out and captivating - especially in season 2.

Black Lagoon is, as mentioned above by someone else, a fun, bad-ass anime. A meek, 20-ish Japanese salaryman, feeling like he's at a dead-end in his career path, is sent by his boss to southeast Asia with a disc full of company secrets. A group of American mercenary pirates based in Thailand, consisting of a Vietnam vet deserter, a Kevin Mitnick-type hacker on the run from the FBI and the mob, and a gunslinger fleeing a life of abuse in NYC, abduct him and steal the disc. His company decides the disc is so important that none of them can live, and send a mercenary army out to take them all down. They of course survive, and the salaryman, fed up with his life, throws in with the pirates, starting the series' storyline. There have been 2 seasons so far and a third OVA release due to come out in 2010.

Full Metal Panic I will mention simply because if you have only seen the first season (and not Fumoffu? or The Second Raid), you're really missing out. Fumoffu? is there for the funny side of things taking place mostly at Jindai High, while TSR picks up the main storyline back with the mercenary army. Fans are hoping that the series will eventually continue - there is a ton of story left in the original novels that takes you on a wild ride and makes some abrupt, hard, turns here and there to shake up the cast you know and love.

Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a movie-length OVA which is pretty much summarized in the title - it's about a girl who learns how to travel very short distances (hours, maximum) back and forth through time. In Japan, OVA releases tend to be higher quality, especially one-offs like this one, and this show very tidily encapsulates the entire story it's telling. It's one of the best fully-contained-in-itself stories you can watch.

K-ON! is a good fun "slice of life" show for those who might get their fill of action/adventure/mecha anime. It's about four (eventually five) girls who form a band in high school. There's not much else to say.. the "slice of life" genre has been compared to Seinfeld in the past, as in, it's a lot of stories about nothing in general.

Kyouran Kazoku Nikki is a show about a paranormal investigator who is given the task of finding a creature who every 1000 years is destined to destroy all life on Earth. Investigations has pinned it down to as close as one of 4 or 5 creatures that may or may not have the demon dormant within them. The solution is "Operation Cozy Family" where they all band together and act as a family unit, with a mother coming from a parallel dimension where she's a demi-god princess, a son which is a king of lions (literally), a jellyfish-like younger daughter, an ordinary human older daughter, and some others thrown in for good measure.

Macross Frontier is decent if you have been following various other Macross shows. Similar formula as other series - fighter pilot fighting against aliens determined to extinguish the human race exploring the galaxy, love triangle, etc. Good music and good blend of CGI and regular animation in this one.

Gotta stop here to head to work. Will add more later - only about halfway through my favorites list.

[mycroftxxx]

if you really liked neon genesis and wanted to experience it again RahXephon has the same 'tone' I believe the same animators are with it however I don't see the studio gainax attached to it.

Bartender: is a real nice change of pace
http://www.animeshippuuden.com/bartender-1/
it takes a whiskey or a spirit and forms a storyline around it, exploring its history/development and its implementation in the current day. All the while weaving a story around a bar and its genius bartender. like a fine whiskey this may be an acquired taste.

Nodame Cantabile: it follows a gifted and eccentric pianist as she progresses through a fine arts school. all about classical music and concerts, its kind of a girly show but the characters are so full of life and the music really sucks you in. It was also translated into live action format as well, in some ways I prefer the live action to the anime which is very rare.

I just recently finished watching One piece from the beginning (took me a couple months 400+ episodes) its a good show not high in action but loaded in heart. but comparing one piece to other long running shows like naruto and bleach I would advise for naruto. its got a deeper wider spanning storyline and well worth the watch when its not doing filler episodes.

edit: +1 for the girl who leapt through time. a real nice watch. +1 for any studio ghibli film especially tonari no tottoro. +1 for anything from the macross franchise, plus, zero or frontier.

[Jay911]

Back..

The updated Evangelion movies rock. People who aren't Eva purists might consider them a waste of time, but those of us who are Eva fans will probably enjoy it immensely. It starts out as shot-for-shot remake with fresher animation, but near the end of the first movie, the story takes a dramatic left turn compared to the original series.

Lucky Star is another slice-of-life series involving four high school girls: Twins, one of whom is timid and the other who's a tsundere, a "normal" girl, and an otaku who spends most of her time seeing life thru her anime, manga, and MMORPGs. Added fun includes a brief show-within-a-show involving two of the side characters in a kind of newsmagazine/chat format.

RideBack is one of the best things to have come to anime in the past couple years - the only complaint I hear is that the show is too short, at 12 episodes. The storyline sounds odd at first, when you learn that the main character is a legendary ballet star who quit after an injury. At the first day at university, she takes shelter from a thunderstorm inside the garage of a club that uses devices called RideBacks. The RideBack looks like a motorcycle/sport-bike manufacturer took seriously the concept of making a mecha - it's a bike with robotic arms, and the two wheels can either operate in the normal motorcycle type appearance or riding parallel beside one another, in "Standing Form", where the bike rides about 12 feet tall. I won't spoil any more of the series except that the art, animation, and detail are top-notch. Again, too short, but very enjoyable for the amount that exists.

Spice and Wolf is a show about.. the economy? ... no wait, don't run away yet. It's actually about a merchant trader (set in an Olde English type world) who travels and sells goods from town to town. In one place, he meets a young girl with animal ears and a large, bushy, furry tail, who is supposed to be the embodiment of the wolf god Horo, who watches over the wheat harvest for a certain area of the countryside. The farmers have given up on her after centuries of faith, though, saying that new technologies don't require them to rely on the wolf god any more. So she asks the merchant to let her travel with him, as she wants to go back to her homeland in the far north. (I talk about economy because there are entire chunks of episodes where they do nothing but talk about how different coins are minted and exchanged through various kingdoms.) Despite all this, it's a tremendously fun show.

To Aru Majutsu no Index (A Certain Magical Index) is about a high school student in "Academy City", a new metropolis just outside Tokyo. It is about 30 years technologically advanced beyond the present, and is home to 2.3 million people - 80% of which are students studying the ability to practice "esper" talents like teleporting, pyrokinesis, etc., which has been developed through science. One day, this high school student goes to hang out his laundry on the railing of his dorm room, to find something else already draped over the bannister - a young girl who claims to be a nun from the English Purist Church. She is Index Liborum Prohibitorum, and has been bestowed with the knowledge of 103,000 forbidden tomes being stored within her mind. There are magicians who want to recover her for the benefit of the church. Oh, I also forgot to mention, this high school kid does not have an esper ability of his own, except that his right hand can dispell any supernatural force, so he is known as "Imagine Breaker". This show has 24 episodes and goes through a lot of "enemy of the week" stuff due to how much they're trying to cram into the series. It is good, though. I personally watched it for the side stories involving:

To Aru Kagaku no Railgun (A Certain Scientific Railgun) - a secondary character in Index popular enough to get her own series. Misaka Mikoto is one of seven "Level 5" esper users in Academy City - the absolute best of the best. Her power involves the ability to harness and release electricity at will, and she is not afraid to do so - in the opening scenes of the series, she is shown getting her kicks by hanging out in a public place until a gang of guys start trying to hit on/harass her, at which point she blasts the holy bejeezus out of them, infuriating the local law enforcement by taking matters into her own hands (so to speak). Her favorite manipulation of her power, and what gives her her nickname "Railgun", involves taking a metal game token/coin and flicking it at someone or something with her thumb - but accelerating it with her electrical/magnetic charge so that it travels well over Mach 3, destroying everything in its path.

Railgun is currently still being aired in Japan. It and Spice & Wolf are my current favorites, along with Black Lagoon.

[gqmw]

+1 deathnote

I usually don't really like anime but thought deathnote was good.

[HyperZell]

I'll consolidate a lot of what has already been said into my personal recommendations:

Hajime no Ippo - one of the best of all time - pacing, characters, action, etc.

Shaman King - typical shonen stuff, but actually really damn funny and entertaining.

Hellsing - stylish and short, very cool premise.

Beck - do you like music? Do you like characterization and style? Do you like quality? If so, Beck.

Macross Frontier - again, music, but this time, with unreal space action, and best of all it's available in high def.

Death Note - probably the smartest anime I've ever seen. Gripping and intelligent, a must-watch.

Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R1 and R2 - like Death Note, but with more strategy and oh yeah, giant robots.

And my personal favorite:
Hunter X Hunter - something about the characters and the themes really feels special. The action is slick, the pacing is good and the show is quite smart. On top of that, the great music and ambiance make this my #1.

[ArjayAquino]

+1 To Death Note and Code Geass, they will blow your mind haha

Wangan Night is also good. Same guys that made Initial D.

I also recommend:
Soul Eater - comedy, heroism
Gungrave - heroism, brotherhood, heart

[Vagabond142]

Macross Frontier was good up until the last 2 episodes, where it pulls a typical Macross and makes you scratch your head trying to figure out just wtf is going on XD

Otherwise, it's a great series for those that like Macross d(^^ d)


Also, I know that I said it before, but I just watched the latest Hellsing Ultimate OVA and WOW.... just make sure you get this one. It's nowhere NEAR the original Hellsing anime, it's about 17 times better.

Also, if you like mystical stuff, check out an older anime in Witch Hunter Robin. Very gothicy animation, lots of dark colors, very somber, but awesome story and when bright colors are used, they are used to EXCELLENT effect.

[Transp0rt3r]

Whoever suggested "RideBack" - mad props One of the best anime I've seen. Too bad it's only 12 episodes

[Shunsui]

The only animes I'm following right now are FMA : Brotherhood and Dragonball Kai. Both are remakes of the originals, with updated animation and without any fillers (sidestories or characters that were absent from the manga).

[Jay911]

Funimation now has Spice and Wolf episodes on its website, prior to the DVD release on 12/22. The first two are available dubbed, and it's actually a half-decent dub job. I describe it earlier in the thread, above.

http://www.funimation.com/spiceandwolf/ will get you a trailer and a link at the bottom titled "Click to Watch Free Episodes".

[UndrgroundRider]

I don't enjoy the light goofy anime series as much, and prefer a more serious darker tone. If you like the same you will find these series extremely enjoyable:

• Hunter X Hunter
• Death Note
• Cowboy Bebop
• Akira
• Hikaru no Go
• Berserk
• Claymore
• Full Metal Alchemist
• Hellsing
• Kenshin OVA (Trust & Betrayal & Seiso Hen)
• Shura no Toki
• Trigun
• .Hack//Sign
• Witch Hunter Robin

Honorary mentions:

• Great Teacher Onizuka
• Crest of the Stars/Banner of the Stars
• Bartender
• Onegai Teacher
• Serial Experiments Lain
• Vandread
• Evangellion
• RahXephon
• Gundam Seed
• Gundam Wing

I'm sure there are some other stellar ones that I can't remember off the top of my head. Seen so many over the years it's difficult to remember everything.

[RaptorGJC]

Darker than Black - In Tokyo, an impenetrable field known as "Hell's Gate" appeared ten years ago. At the same time, psychics who wield paranormal powers at the cost of their conscience also emerged. Hei is one of the most powerful of these psychic agents, and along with his blind associate, Yin, works for one of the many rival agencies vying to unlock the mysteries of Hell's Gate.

I found this to be a good series to watch, people with powers duking it out. A couple filler and background episodes near the beginning but the main story gets going about 1/3 of the series in.

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagaan - In their closed-off underground village, Kamina and Simon chafe at the limits imposed by the village elder. Yet all this will change, when Simon stumbles across a fantastic device - just as the village's peace is broken by a violent intrusion.

This is a shonen type anime, but I found it to be a great blend of action, comedy, heroism. Lots of memorable quotes and scenes in this series.

[Jonel]

Trinity Blood - The Catholic Church has been locked in battle with their enemies, the Methuselah, aka, vampires for centuries. Their on again/off again war is fueled by hate and distrust on both sides. The humans believe that the vampires intend to wipe them off the planet and set themselves up as supreme lords of the world. The vampires believe that the humans, under the guise of religion, intend to decimate them in order to cleanse the world of the humans’ perceived sin of the vampires’ existence.

FLCL - Naota's life is confined to going to school and living with his father and grandfather. The usually boring life in Mabase is rudely interrupted by the arrival of Haruko Haruhara, who bursts on the scene by running Naota over with her Vespa scooter, then giving him CPR and hitting him on the head with a blue vintage Rickenbacker 4001 right-handed reverse strung electric bass guitar.

GetBackers - The series tells the story of Ginji Amano and Ban Mido, a pair of superpowered individuals known as the GetBackers. The duo operates a freelance repossession service out of one of the seedier areas of Shinjuku, Tokyo. For a fee, they will recover any lost or stolen item for a client with "a 100% success rate". Their targets range from lost video games to misplaced components of an atomic bomb.

Devil May Cry - In the show, Dante runs his devil-hunting business, Devil May Cry, while struggling under constant financial debt. There are also two new regular characters—Dante's agent Morrison who visits frequently, and Patty Rowell (Royale in Japanese), a young orphan girl he saved in the first episode, who also visits frequently and shares a Sisterly relationship with Dante.

[UndrgroundRider]

I went and watched Black Lagoon, Code Geass, RideBack, and Gantz. All excellent.

Any other recommendations along the lines of Gantz or Black Lagoon?

[DENZILDON]

Originally posted by syritis


i have a LOT of AMV's and i love them all... weird.

+1 for BECK

Nothing really special except for the fact that the guitar chords, and scaling seems pretty true to what you see on the series and real life. Catchy and cool songs too. This series got me to collect guitars and others instruments again.

[KKY]

Originally posted by syritis
thanks all, I'll start looking for a couple of those.
I found an AMV (anime music video) on elfen lied, seriese looks interesting but haven't heard anything about it, anyone seen it?

elfen lied is good if you don't mind the typical "1 dumb guy surrounded by multiple girls" theme. Overall worth a watch.

If you like blood & gore, check out Shiguri. This is one of those ones you either love or hate. Lots of graphic violence, very weird story.

For something a bit lighter and humorous, take a look at Genshiken. It's an anime about the anime/manga/gaming culture in Japan.

[m4rk]

bible black.... and bible black rival

[Jay911]

I just watched Summer Wars. It is a 1h54m movie done by the same folks who did The Girl Who Leapt Through Time which is pretty much a masterpiece. In Summer Wars, a 17-year-old math genius gets invited to a holiday with the 18-year-old girl he secretly admires. While hanging out with all her family at her grandmother's birthday celebrations, he receives a text message on his mobile phone with a math problem. Solving it and sending it back in, he finds out that the online world "OZ", which everyone on Earth uses in day to day operations, has been laid to ruin by someone using his account.

Great movie. I urge everyone to watch it.

[syritis]

Bump cause i don't wanna loose this.

since the last post i've watched all of The Last air bender. Samurai champaloo, and s-Cry-ed. I'm having a hard time finding the hellsing OVA. but it's slowly coming together.
and i watched red vs. blue just for fun.

[2000_SI]

Chrono Crusade is set in the height of the Roaring Twenties, where jazz is king, bootleg liquor flows freely, and the mob rules the streets. It is a time of prosperity, luxury and decadence, and the division between rich and poor grows even wider in the wake of the First World War. It is at such times of great change and upheaval that the dark things that lurk below the world of man can come to the surface. In the world of Chrono Crusade, a fictional organization known as the Order of Magdalene (or more specifically, the characters of Sister Rosette Christopher and her soul-bound demon partner, Chrono) exists to fight the demonic threats that appear with increasing regularity across America. Both Rosette and Chrono are revealed during the course of the story to be driven by a shadowy past, centered around a search for Rosette's lost brother, Joshua.

from me!