Anime That You Love Thread

[Canadamus Prime]

Maybe so, but I don't have the patience for that. Nor do I feel any particular need to watch the subbed version when the un-cut dubbed is available and much easier to follow.

*shiver*
For you, perhaps.
Personally, I can't bear it.

*shrug* Whatever. To each their own I guess.

 

[Flamezdudes]

I've only seen two people mention it, but, Nichijou is probably my favorite anime ever. It was the one that really sucked me into anime because it is absolutely hilarious, and the animation is just amazing. The one thing that really irks me about most other shows is that the characters in the background are usually a static image or maybe 2 or three frames. The attention to detail is astounding.

I mean, look at this!

Spoiler

Nichijou was one hilarious thrill ride. I finished it about two months ago and I loved it.

It's so lovably random!

 

[The Great Fa]

Oh, this thread could not have come at a better time!

I've noticed a few people mentioning Madoka Magica and Princess Tutu as magical girl deconstructions. Both are excellent shows, but I'm afraid neither holds a candle to the madness that is Revolutionary Girl Utena.

This show has it all. Sword fighting - sexy cars - an upside down castle - uhh.....incest! Yeah!
And while it's bombarding you with said things, it's also picking apart tropes from magical girl anime, shoujo anime, fairy tales......
In Utena, the charming prince is the bad guy and the witch needs to be rescued.

And then there's the movie. See a rose ejaculate a ring. See a girl's hair grow after kissing another girl. See said girl later turn into a car. Fun stuff!

Revolutionary Girl Utena: possibly the best anime to ever make you say "WTF did I just watch?"

 

[Evil Smurf]

Pokemon, I know classic

 

[Tanis]

Crest/Banner of the Stars

Also, this one. I personally prefer Crest, if only because of episode 5. That was...well, one of the best anime episodes ever in my book.[/quote]
That's...kind of weird.
I mean, Banner (book wise) was made BEFORE Crest.
Crest was more or less made because the anime makes wanted to let the story flow better - and to less flashbacks.

 

[Chromatic Aberration]

Legend of the Galactic Heroes (Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu) - best anime ever, so much depth, so many voice actors( holds a record i think), and so much classical music.

I second this. Hard.

A series that has 110 Episodes plus some movies plus gaiden shows and still manages to stay interesting all the fucking time, has so much depth[footnote] The basic story revolves not only around the nature and purpose of war but also explores issues such as value of democracy, morality of the soldier and generally the impact of politics on individuals.[/footnote] and such an incredibly epic feel to it that it is the very definition of brilliant. Also features an extremely large cast of mostly unstereotypical characters, trope deconstructions and exciting space battle scenes on top of it. That is why this Anime is by far the best space opera I have ever seen and not only ranks first on my personal list of favourite animes but also on my list of science fiction series in general. The only thing I could possibly hold against it is its sometimes glacial pace and the visuals which, especially during the earlier scenes, are just not on par with the stuff one is used to by now.

Now to some other brilliant series that come to mind:


[ul][li]Monster: A japanese born doctor working in Germany saves a child in 1986. The child essentially becomes the devil and the doctor decides to correct his "error" and sets out to kill the "Monster". Psychologically ridden thriller that lives from shedding light on the monster's past, exploring the question of the nature of evil and what makes a man become a monster in the first place. Thoroughly eerie and creepy atmosphere and nothing but an highly interesting Aesop to boot. Has quite a few filler episodes so its pace is kind of slow, but it still is awfully interesting and cerebral. [/li][/ul]

[ul][li]Samurai X - Trust & Betrayal: Beautifully crafted Shakesperean tragedy about an assassin in the Meiji Era. Generally tackles the issues of redemption and responsibility. Haunting and highly symbolic visuals make it one of the most cathartic tragedies I have seen in an Anime. Maybe a bit short, maybe a bit too pretentious at times but after all: just brilliant. [/li][/ul]

[ul][li]Code Geass: The perfect mix between simultaneously having depth and just being an exciting action flick like Death Note. In contrast to the latter, however, this series manages to weave in some really interesting things into it's narrative ranging from the ideological difference between Lelouch and Suzaku (the former wanting to bring about change through a revolution, the latter through quietly changing the whole through it's institutions) and, of course, the whole character development of both during the course of the series, making for some really interesting character interactions and points to be seen in the series. Granted, it sometimes devolves into plain melodrama and some of the plot twists/ Mecha action sequences are just silly - still: exciting while deep and never fails to captivate me.
[/li][/ul]

[ul][li]Spice & Wolf: The story of a growing romance between Lawrence, a traveling merchant, and Horo, an immortal deity who became obsolete during the centuries and who just wants to get back to her homeland. During their travels they increasingly fall in love with each other while they deal with adventures mostly focused on Lawrence economic activities. This series lives from the chemistry between the two characters, from their ongoing teasings, sarcasms and sillyness up until the point where Horo, in tears screams at Lawrence, asking "What am I to you?" in Season 2, brutally exposing the underlying tragedy of their impossible affection. And yet, despite what needs to happen at some point, the series emanates a feeling of almost remarkable optimism and joyful playfulness that always leaves me with a fuzzy feeling inside.[/li][/ul]

[ul][li]Fullmetal Alchemist (Original + Brotherhood) : What could I possibly say that others didn't have already? Where Code Geass takes the rollercoasterlike Death Note and beautifully fuses it with depth, FMA does that with a whole variety of other things. It does not only make for highly interesting points like the nature of science and the hybris of men, but also has exciting action sequences, dark plot twists, humor, character depth and a captivating story arc. It's remarkably idealistic despite it's very dark topics and it succeeds in providing a thoroughly satisfying narrative. This is also the reason why I personally like Brotherhood a shred better than the Original series, the storyline is much more developed and much more to the point than the original was.[/li][/ul]

Other animes that I could have included here: Higurashi - When They Cry , Cowboy Bebop, Princess Tutu (not finished yet), Paranoia Agent, The 12 Kingdoms and Hellsing Ultimate

 

[Breywood]

I feel so out of touch.

My favourite anime and possibly favorite movie of all time:

Patlabor [www.imdb.com/title/tt0100339/]. Never mind spending 90% of the movie showcasing mech battles, big explosions and the emotional problems of the characters. Turn it instead into a movie where the characters are spending that 90% trying to figure out what the hell is going on and then throw in the mecha battle.

A close second for favorite anime:
Slayers [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112166/]. Being a D&D player, this was a hilarious manga because it was full of inside jokes.

And rounding in a definitive third:
Record of the Lodoss War [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100044/]. Where the Slayers were completely off the wall, this one was toned down and had a more serious storyline. Except for the shorts at the end of each episode where they went chibi.

 

[StormShaun]

Well my absolute favorite as you see.(My avatar)

Is Clannad and Clannad: After Story! It makes men cry, turns children into men and can change someone. It is my favorite anime and it always will. ^_^

I do have more though. xD

Baccano. (100% awesome and funny)
Spice and Wolf. (Got both seasons! But where the hell is the next one coming out!!!)
Eden of the East. (It was very interesting)
High School of the Dead. (Awesome anime zombie killing!)
Samurai Champloo. (Is that how you spell it. xD)
Full Metal Alchemist. (Loved the first one still need to see Brotherhood)
Elfen Lied. (Gotta love that horror)
Rosario+Vampire. (I watch it for the romance...I swear)

 

[xplosive59]

Any Tentacle Porn

In all seriousness, we're three pages in and only ONE person has mentioned Darker Than Black!?!

This needs to be redressed!

Ok, so I'm not a huge anime person, in fact, if it wasn't for one of my friends practically forcing me to watch it (though his tastes differ substantially from mine) I probably wouldn't have any. But Darker Than Black I would say is one of the higher quality series I've seen. The animation is absolutely perfect in it, and while the premise might not be entirely original, it carries it off far better than something like Heroes.

Also, the end of the second series I just find absolutely heartbreaking.

I'm gonna check that out actually it looks pretty good, I've been looking for an anime after I finished Neon Genesis Evangelion to get into and this seems to appeal to me, I am not a fan of comedy though in anime so is it kept to a minimum in this?

OT: Neon Genesis Evangelion, Digimon Adventure and Cowboy Bebop.

 

[CrimsonBlaze]

Let's see...

Samurai Pizza Cats (Eng Dub)
Pokemon (Eng Dub) [Up to the Hoenn]
Digimon (Eng Dub) [Up to Frontrier series]
Dragon Ball Z (Eng, Jap, & Spa Dub)
Medabots (Eng Dub)
Bleach (Jap Dub)
Yu-Gi-Oh!, GX, & 5Ds (All Eng Dub)
Gurren Lagann (Eng & Jap Dub)
Eureka seveN (Eng & Jap Dub)
Soul Eater (Jap Dub) [Season 1 only]

 

[nobodysomebody]

Of the series I've watched, I think I've loved Darker than Black and Eureka Seven the most.

Darker than Black has awesome action sequences, and a really interesting plot, with lots of twists and surprises. The soundtrack and animation are really great too. There is also lots of great characters, from the main character Hei, who is called by many "Chinese Electric Batman," because of his stealth and ability to electrocute anything he touches, to an anime loving high-schooler who works for a detective agency.

Eureka Seven also has an amazing cast of characters, soundtrack, and great animation. I actually got into it a bit late, and finished it only a few months ago, but its definitely worth a watch.

 

[The_Waspman]

I'm gonna check that out actually it looks pretty good, I've been looking for an anime after I finished Neon Genesis Evangelion to get into and this seems to appeal to me, I am not a fan of comedy though in anime so is it kept to a minimum in this?

OT: Neon Genesis Evangelion, Digimon Adventure and Cowboy Bebop.

Comedy? In Darker than Black!? Far from it.

Ok, so two of the characters are comedic, built out of a lot of standard anime tropes, but they're only in, uh, five episodes I think, across the two seasons, and they actually kinda work. Everything else though... No, don't expect a lot of comedy. Its a very serious show and is actually filled with a lot of tragedy, which is one of the reasons I kinda like it.

 

[xplosive59]

I'm gonna check that out actually it looks pretty good, I've been looking for an anime after I finished Neon Genesis Evangelion to get into and this seems to appeal to me, I am not a fan of comedy though in anime so is it kept to a minimum in this?

OT: Neon Genesis Evangelion, Digimon Adventure and Cowboy Bebop.

Comedy? In Darker than Black!? Far from it.

Ok, so two of the characters are comedic, built out of a lot of standard anime tropes, but they're only in, uh, five episodes I think, across the two seasons, and they actually kinda work. Everything else though... No, don't expect a lot of comedy. Its a very serious show and is actually filled with a lot of tragedy, which is one of the reasons I kinda like it.

Okay yeah I watched the first episode earlier, love it! It is exactly what I need after Evangelion, its like an 80's Cop Show meets Infamous, thanks for the recommendation!

 

[DJ_DEnM]

Not neccesarily my favorite, but definitly a good one that I just finished watching, Tsuritama. It's about fishing, aliens, and fishing aliens. Very good~!

 

[The_Waspman]

Okay yeah I watched the first episode earlier, love it! It is exactly what I need after Evangelion, its like an 80's Cop Show meets Infamous, thanks for the recommendation!

No worries man. Its a fantastic series, and obviously extremely well animated. The level of detail, and I know this is gonna sound really weird, but some of the line work in it, considering its an episodic show I just find off the chart.

 

[bakan]

Lots of good animes were mentioned already, but from the current season I didn't see anyone mention Haiyore! Nyaruko-san.
Every episode is just pure randomness filled with so much references to pop-culture and Cthulhu gods, that I almost couldn't stop laughing in some episodes.

Another good comedy show is Level-E, it's just pure greatness.

Well, and all the other shows mentioned like Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Gurren Lagann, etc.

 

[Sirron Kcuch]

My overall favourite would have to be Neon Genesis Evangelion, including the film End of Evangelion. I know it can be angsty and for some other people Shinji may get on their nerves, but I feel like I can sympathise with Shinji and the things discussed in the show's philosophy and psychology, which I think are interesting and meaningful, even if others think its pretentious. The overall message would have to be that people are worth knowing even if they hurt you sometimes and life is worth living even if its difficult sonetimes, which I think is a good optimistic message.

Apart from those reasons, it has awesome battles, music, imagery, interesting characters and much more. So it's my favourite.

Also, I rewatched the entire 26 episodes of Evangelion recently, including the directors cuts and it definitely isn't as angsty as people make it out to be. I just think people can't be bothered to try and get to the heart of what the show is talking about.

This, and the fact that the show ends up being a mind screw. I love those

 

[RoyBlackFox]

Lots of good animes were mentioned already, but from the current season I didn't see anyone mention Haiyore! Nyaruko-san.
Every episode is just pure randomness filled with so much references to pop-culture and Cthulhu gods, that I almost couldn't stop laughing in some episodes.

Another good comedy show is Level-E, it's just pure greatness.

Well, and all the other shows mentioned like Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Gurren Lagann, etc.

7 minutes into episode one and I'm already enjoying Nyaruko-san, thanks a lot for putting that out there ^.^ I'll check out Level-E too

 

[Xian_Frost]

-Yu Yu Hakusho
-Monster
-Full Metal Alchemist (both animes)
-The first two series of Digimon
-Outlaw Staw
-Hamtaro
-Rurouni Kenshin
-FLCL
-Gundam SEED
-Cowboy Bebop
-Cyborg 009
-Deltora Quest
-Card Captor Sakura

Would Samurai Jack count?

I could name a heck of a lot more but I think I'll just stop before I get caught up in nostalgia for most of the old shows.

 

[Souleks]

-snip-

That show...That show made me shed man tears.
This one does me in everytime...

And now not to dampen the mood that much have some Akio(I am sure everyone who watches that show wants to be a little bit more like Akio.)