Recommend Your Favorite Anime

Cafe Society
21

Yeah, if you’re looking for strong, capable female characters, stay far away from Death Note.

My recommendations:

Monster, a psychological thriller. It’s got fantastic writing, a complex storyline, and lots of great character development. In a very rough nutshell, it’s about a surgeon who’s chasing after a serial killer. That doesn’t nearly do it justice, but it would take too long to explain the entire synopsis. Very dark story, and very creepy, with one of the most terrifying villains I’ve seen in fiction, let alone anime. It’s about 74 episodes long, so it’s a bit of a commitment, but not a single one is wasted.

One Piece. A cute, funny, and awesome action shounen about pirates. This one’s even longer–more than 400 episodes, and with no sign of slowing down–but it’s actually one of the rare shounen that gets BETTER the more episodes it has. Though it’s a kid’s show, it has a great story, very smart writing, and kickass scenes. It runs the gamut of emotions: there have been scenes where I’ve laughed my ass off, scenes where I’ve cried buckets, and scenes that made me want to stand up and cheer. It’s zany and wacky and fun and amazing. One caveat, though: DO NOT WATCH THE 4KIDS ENGLISH DUB. It’s getting harder to find anyway, so you may not even encounter it, but if you do watch an English dub, make sure it’s the one done by Funimation. People think the fans exaggerate when they talk about how horrendous the 4Kids dub is, but they really, really don’t. It really is that bad.

Paranoia Agent. Continuing with the Satoshi Kon theme–it’s a very surreal show about a mysterious attacker called “Li’l Slugger.” It’s definitely weird and creepy at times, and since it’s supposed to be a commentary on Japanese society, there are times when I was fairly sure there were cultural references I was missing, but it’s very good nonetheless.

Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei. A comedy about a high school teacher in Japan and his various students. Quite funny, but also very pretty, with better-than-average animation and art. This, IME, is actually fairly unusual for a comedy–I’ve found that comedies tend to skimp a bit in the animation department, while the dramas are usually prettier. Again, it’s a commentary on Japan, so again, the culture differences might be a bit confusing, but still great stuff.

Baccano! A sci-fi-ish series that takes place in the late 20’s-early 30’s and features a group of people who are immortal. Cool, stylish story with great characters and awesome action.

All right, that’s enough for now.

22

Based on this recommendation, I started watching Fullmetal Alchemist on Netflix. I just watched the episode with the little girl, and the dog.

Jesus. Mother. Fucking. Christ!

23

Oh, man, the dog? I can’t watch that series, the dog just depressed me.

I’ve read some of the **Saiyuki **manga. It’s definitely the bishounen (pretty-boy) take on the concept, & gets pretty creepy in places too.

Anime? Man, I’ve seen R.O.D. the TV [Read or Die], it’s OK if really strange. Tokyo Godfathers is in fact really good; I can seriously second that one.

I have a soft spot from years ago for the triptastic Windaria. But that’s like a Dali painting of a movie; it may just strike you as simultaneously depressing and inexplicable. I don’t know if there’s an English version other than Carl Macek’s re-edit.

And if you don’t know about Macek, well, you maybe should check out Robotech &/or the “Super Dimensional” series that birthed it. Anime fans complain about “Macekre” but Robotech’s source material is pretty strong, & the English version still works. Or at least that’s what my twelve-year-old self thought, long ago in acid-rain days.

But the one I always end up mentioning is Noir. Two young women in a world of assassins perhaps inspired by Luc Besson. It starts weird, gets dark, then sort of rolls along for a while, then gets weirder and darker. Great music though.

Oh, I forgot Twilight of the Cockroaches! 1980’s anime mixed with live-action. I love this movie, but it is about cockroaches, ymmv.

24

For me, from childhood:

Kimba: the white lion

Speed Racer

Heidi

And today:

Planetes. You must watch it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfd3NujZq0k

25

Code Geass; Lelouch of the Rebellion.
A truly amazing series, I’d recommend watching the first 4 episodes, because it takes that long for the extent of the story to become clear.

I’ll defiantly 2nd the recommendation for Ghost in the Shell, and also death note (but as others have said death note does not depict women well.)

26

I know, right? We started watching Brotherhood, which includes that same storyline, and it’s even worse when you know what’s coming.

This sounds amazing.

I really appreciate all the suggestions here. For those with similar tastes, we just started watching Seirei no Moribito, which is about a spearmaster who has to protect a young prince from being offed by his father (trailer here). So far it’s excellent - the animation, particularly with the fight sequences, is incredible, and the protagonist (Balsa) is a total hard-ass. From what I understand it’s based on a novel, and you can really feel it - it’s very atmospheric and the pacing is slower, but incredibly rich.

27

Samurai Champloo Is fairly unique and interesting.

Perfect Blue is a beautiful mind trip.

28

I’m not an anime fan but I thought even I should at least see Akira, I’m glad I did.

Ghost in the Shell is pretty good for the Watch Instantly set.

29

Another recommendation for Ghost in the Shell - I’d say it’s more than “pretty good.” The movies are slow-paced but the action sequences are great. The TV shows, due to the length limitation, are usually fast-paced. There’s a nice mix of self-contained stories and season-length story arcs, and The Major (Motoko Kusanagi, the main character) is very definitely a strong female. The English dubs also didn’t go for the usual whispery female voice acting that makes even strong characters seem tentative, which is nice.

Another couple of series I really like are **Noir **and Kiddy Grade. The second one may or may not be to your liking - the main characters are female and pretty strong, but there’s lots of fanservice (panty shots, jiggling boobs). I just ignored that in favor of a story about future science fiction superheroes, but your mileage may vary. Neither is on Instant Play.

30

Has anyone watched La Blue Girl?

I’ll leave off the spoiler. Frankly, there’s too much porn. But porn is it’s raison d’être, so it can’t be avoided. Beyond that however, I like the story.

31

Grave of the Fireflies

Metropolis (No, not the Fritz Lang silent classic. But it’s a 2001 film based on a 1949 manga that did incorporate Lang’s images.)

Besides other of Miyazaki’s work mentioned here, the wife is rather fond of Kiki’s Delivery Service.

32

I was getting ready to pop in to recommend this very one. Kick-ass, all the way around, yet very rich (as you say) and has a cultural depth that you don’t often find. The author, Nahoko Uehashi, studied anthropology before penning the books (of which the firstand secondhave now been translated into English).

33

I still need to finish watching this one, but whoa is it ever full of mindfuckery (in a good way, though). The movie is especially notorious for this, as there’s one point where the main characters turn into lesbian cars.

34

It looks like the director of Moribito, Kenji Kamiyama, is the very same who did Ghost in the Shell. Definitely adding that to my list.

35

You might like the ROD franchise (2 manga series, Read or Die and Read or Dream, an OAV (Read or Die) and a TV series ROD the TV (just ROD, as it combines both Read or Die and Read or Dream). Particularly Read or Dream and the first half of the TV.

All of the core characters are female, though several male characters have significant secondary roles. And while I can’t say they’re not at all stereotyped, they fall into a very broad range of character types, and when a quality is shared by 2 or more of them, at least one other quality will be contradictory among that set.

eg: Michelle and Hisashi are both very much girly, but Michelle is a rambunctius ditz, whereas Hisa is a retiring Yamato Nadeshiko type (and fairly bright).

Maggie and Anita are both boyish, but Maggie is a shy, awkward bookworm, whereas Anita is an energetic loudmouth.

Hisa, Maggie, and Yomiko are all generally quiet and reserved, but Hisa is pretty much always that way, Maggie transforms into a stoic badass when fighting starts, and Yomiko has a tendency to get a bit psycho (when she’s book shopping, and when she’s fighting).

Miss Deep and Anita are both obvious action girls, but Anita’s a tomboy, and Miss Deep verges on the femme fatale.

Most of them are heavy readers (save for Anita and Miss Deep), but…well, see above.

Read or Dream can be read without touching any of the other incarnations of the series, and has, IMO, the best balance of all the elements - the relationship between the Paper Sisters, Anita and Hisa’s relationship, relationships between other groups of characters, explorations of each of the characters, and action stories.

The first half of the TV has more or less the same mix, though a bit more actiony. The Read or Die manga is similar, but balanced a bit further toward the action, and the Read or Die OAV pretty much throws out everything except the kaboom. (But you pretty much need to watch it if you’re going to watch the whole of the TV, as the plot of the latter half assumes knowledge you’d get from it. The Read or Die manga would help, too, but mostly, the OAV covers what you need - the manga would just make a twist seem less…twisty.)

36

Mononoke

Not Princess Mononoke, the spinoff series of Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales. Very interesting artwork and a great protagonist, with plenty of plot twists for all.

FLCL

There are only 6 episodes, so it’s a quick watch, although good luck getting through them on the first try. I absolutely despised FLCL for a long time, but kept trying it out over the years just to try to wrap my mind around the love for it. It’s worth it.

37

One I enjoyed that hasn’t been mentioned is Haunted Junction. It’s a twelve episode light comedy series about three students in a haunted high school.

38

The only favorite of mine that I can think of that might actually fit the OP is Trigun. It’s simultaneously popular and unsung. I will warn you that, while it seems lighthearted at first, it does a pretty big tone switch half way through (and it did it well, in my opinion), getting very deep and somewhat disheartening until the end, but you can always stop early if you don’t think you can take it. Part of the reason it is probably unsung is that describing it is a bit of a spoiler. The best I can do is this: It’s about Vash the Stampede, the worst outlaw in the space west. Or is it all just a rumor? If you must have more info, here’s a review from JesuOtaku. But I warn you, even it is a bit of a spoiler.

My actual current favorite is a show called Midori Days, which is about a girl who becomes a character’s right hand. It’s silly, heartwarming, but also heavily into traditional Japanese gender roles. There is at least one really strong female, though. Oh, and, while you usually find it censored, it does have nudity.

A mind screw that you might like (based on your philosophy) is Serial Experiments Lain. It’s about how the modern world is merging with technology, particularly the Internet. It’s about how to deal with absolute power. And it’s about exploring the self, and gets somewhat spiritual It’s symbolic as all get out.

And, on the lightest note: I love Digimon, especially seasons 1 and three. (You can skip 2 without losing anything, although it doesn’t suck.) The first pure fighting and relationships, but it is a children’s anime. The third is practically a deconstruction. If you like kid’s anime, then this also fits the OP.

39

I’d strongly recommend Eureka 7. It touches on a lot of the same themes you highlighted from FMA (war, religion, loyalty and friendship) and adds mecha, potentially world-ending events and, nearer the end, a certain amount of psychadelic material. The eponymous Eureka is a strong yet vulnerable female character with a backstory that gives the Elric brother a run for the drama.

I’d also recommend Bakemonogatari. It’s kind of an anthology of supernatural stories tied together by the protaganist who feels the need to help people in spiritual trouble. Again there are strong female characters, especially Hitagi Senjougahara, the first person we see helped and a regular throughout the rest of the series. She is…unique.

I assume you know that FMA Briotergood folows the manga more closely than the original anime did so just about everything from the latter half of the first series will be very diffeernt in the second. I personally liked Brotherhood much more than the first series.

40

What? No love for Ergo Proxy?

From the back of the DVD case:

“The domed city of Romdo is an impenetrable would-be utopia where humans and robots coexist, and everything is under complete government control, or so it appears. While working on a mysterious murder case, Re-l Mayer, a female detective from the Intelligence Bureau, receives a foreboding message that something is going to “awaken”. That night, she’s attacked by a deformed super-being… what was this unidentified monster, and who was the figure that came in between them? As Re-l attempts to unlock this spiraling mystery,a metaphysical battle cry leads her to the unknown outside world.”

The ending song is “Paranoid Android” by Radiohead. This is IMHO a great anime that meets the OPs requests. (You’re going to fall in love with little Pino)