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Looking for good anime recommendations (details in post)
TheHopelessGamer
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I recently came into some Amazon money (Christmas time!), and am debating on buying maybe an anime or two. I'm really only interested in buying blu-ray, so that's the first requirement. My tastes are pretty standard, but here's some stuff that I like:
Evangelion
Cowboy Bebop
DBZ when I was a kid
Gundam (Universal Century stuff is preferred) again, when I was a kid
Um...
Ok, so I don't really know what I like. It's probably easier to say stuff that I don't like. I don't like cutesy stuff. I can't handle stuff that's so overtly Japanese with perverted stereotypes and lots of translating needed (I don't want to know why that guy has a drop of blood or a snot bubble coming out of his nose when he sees the pretty ladies or whatever). I'd prefer something with a dubbed option. I like sci-fi and fantasy (Western fantasy if the distinction needs to be made). It doesn't have to be new stuff, but I'm interested if there's anything out there that's new that would be worth my time like the ones above.
I have tried the original Full Metal Alchemist, and where I liked the premise, I got a little bored. I understand that Brotherhood is a remake of the whole series, does it move the story along a little quicker? Is DBZ Kai any good/worth my time? I actually like Naruto a little bit, but again, it moved too slowly in anime form (which is funny since I enjoy the manga). Would I enjoy the Shippuden series, skipping over the basic Naruto series and not be lost?
This was kind of rambling, but anything would be appreciated. Thanks!
Evangelion
Cowboy Bebop
DBZ when I was a kid
Gundam (Universal Century stuff is preferred) again, when I was a kid
Um...
Ok, so I don't really know what I like. It's probably easier to say stuff that I don't like. I don't like cutesy stuff. I can't handle stuff that's so overtly Japanese with perverted stereotypes and lots of translating needed (I don't want to know why that guy has a drop of blood or a snot bubble coming out of his nose when he sees the pretty ladies or whatever). I'd prefer something with a dubbed option. I like sci-fi and fantasy (Western fantasy if the distinction needs to be made). It doesn't have to be new stuff, but I'm interested if there's anything out there that's new that would be worth my time like the ones above.
I have tried the original Full Metal Alchemist, and where I liked the premise, I got a little bored. I understand that Brotherhood is a remake of the whole series, does it move the story along a little quicker? Is DBZ Kai any good/worth my time? I actually like Naruto a little bit, but again, it moved too slowly in anime form (which is funny since I enjoy the manga). Would I enjoy the Shippuden series, skipping over the basic Naruto series and not be lost?
This was kind of rambling, but anything would be appreciated. Thanks!
TheHopelessGamer on
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Brotherhood is considerably better, in my opinion. It follows the actual manga plotline instead of veering off like the original anime did. It does have slow moments.
DBZ Kai is just DBZ with a lot of filler cut out. That's great and all, but if you've seen DBZ it's not like there's anything new.
Shippuden is a direct continuation of the original Naruto series. Some things would definitely be lost. In my opinion Naruto peaks with the chuunin exams, anyway.
If you like Naruto/DBZ type stuff then Bleach is pretty good up to a point. The anime suffers the same problem the Naruto anime does, which is way too much filler. It's pretty awesome up to the end of the Soul Society arc, then stuff gets a bit convoluted.
Death Note is amazing up to about episode 25. YMMV on the rest.
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is done by Gainax, the company that did Eva and FLCL. It's purposefully over the top in a good way.
Code Geass has a great first season and a pretty WTF second. Whether it's a good or bad wtf depends on the person. (I didn't like it. Nor was it what the writer had intended. He had to rewrite the whole thing because the timeslot changed therefore meaning a whole new demographic that may not have seen the first season.)
Haven't really watched a whole lot of anime recently that I've really liked otherwise.
Hellsing Ultimate is good, but the story might move a bit too fast if you're not familiar with it at all.
Also Gurren Lagann, how did i forget that?
But if you have to watch them all, it's not worth it.
Most people really like TTGL. If you like giant robots and all that stuff, you probably would, too.
Anyone want to beta read a paranormal mystery novella? Here's your chance.
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Akira
Ghost in the Shell (Also the Ghost in the Shell tv series, which is probably better than the movies- but a quick check on Amazon tells me it doesn't come on Blu-Ray.)
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I wish I could have done this. Any ending I would have made up in my head would have been better than what was presented.
Ironically the live action films, while leaving out a lot of awesome moments, kind of do end it at around the 25 mark with a considerably better ending. Still wouldn't recommend them over the series, though.
FLCL is a personal favorite of mine. The anime of Battle Angel is pretty short, but its enjoyable. You might also like the clean version of Mezzo Forte (also extrememly short)
Everybody loves Hellsing ultimate, but the old anime is pretty fun even it has nothing to do with the manga. It might also have a better chance of being available for purchase, but I could be wrong
I haven't watched Big O since middle school, but I recall it was pretty solid. Apparently its Batman but with giant robots (quote MelancholyMark)
Blood the Last Vampire was a short but well made movie, Blood+ might be worth looking into
Oh! Samurai Champloo, if you like Cowboy Bebop, is a jem. Even the english version is awesome, its actually how I preferred to watch it
You mentioned Gundam, check out Gundam 00 (and its movie). 08th MS Team is also good, and it takes a "realistic" spin on the franchise, showing them to be very vulnerable machines that need a full ground crew for maintenance and upkeep, but are still amazing war machines in the hands of the right pilot.
Planetes is a great sci-fi anime set in the future, when man has established space colonies. Its story focuses on a group of what are essentially space debris janitors; even the smallest screw left alone in orbit can reach speeds of over 300 mph and can cripple a space vessel. Their job is to clean it up. It's shown in a very realistic manner, and that only serves to benefit it.
Strangely...this Youtube is pretty much what sold me on the series, well that and the manga helped.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKwaPSkjXp0
Premise is simple: highly trained boy-soldier commando gets placed in a high school to protect a girl who is far more socially aware than he is. Hilarity ensues. Also includes giant robots.
I certainly enjoyed it, and I'm with you on the hating the whole KAWAIII DESUUUU O.O''! realm of anime.
Our first game is now available for free on Google Play: Frontier: Isle of the Seven Gods
Don't be thrown by the tone of the first few episodes, it's presented as a lighthearted comedy romp for the first half of the series, and then quickly shifts tone to grimdark once you meet the series bad guys.
These are both excellent. Don't hesitate to check either out. Samurai 7 was a fun time as well.
As for Samurai Champloo: where Cowboy Bebop is a mashup of sci-fi and noire tropes, Samurai Champloo does the same for, well, samurai and R&B. If you like those two things even a little, you'll probably dig it.
Black Lagoon
Samurai Champloo
Jin-Roh
Anything by Satoshi Kon
Samurai Champloo
Outlaw Star
Code Geass (Season 1)
FLCL
Hellsing (The ultimate, or the original versions)
Trigun
Gurren Lagan is decent but has never really sunk it's claws into me. Worth a look though.
Bleach is good, but like mentioned there's a lot of filler.
Additional Recommendation:
Afro Samurai (and the movie) - Very very good animation, good story. 6(?) episode arc for the main series, then a sequel movie. Voiced by Sam Jackson is another reason I loved it though.
Vampire Hunter D is a little old nowadays buy it was still pretty good. Especially the second movie, Bloodlust. Might be harder to come by though.
Anybody recommended Samurai X yet?
Where do you guys watch your anime these days? Netflix?
Paprika
http://www.amazon.com/Paprika-Blu-ray-Megumi-Hayashibara/dp/B000VWYJ5Y/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1295552893&sr=8-3
Sword of the Stranger
http://www.amazon.com/Sword-Stranger-Blu-ray-Yki-Chinen/dp/B001W79MB8/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1295552963&sr=8-2
With that said, have you picked up the Evangelion blu rays yet?
That was one of the greater tragedies anime's seen lately. Series-wise, Paranoia Agent is excellent and only 13 episodes, and Paprika is probably his most accessible and visually-striking film.
Also - honestly, I enjoyed all of Death Note. I think it does more with 39 episodes than most series do with 200.
If you want a really, really strange experience, I'd absolutely recommend Kaiba. The visuals belie a deep and really quite affecting story, whilst being quite a trip in themselves.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sH3b9VGootM
Trigun is fantastic.
And if you liked Cowboy Bebop, and haven't gotten Samuri Champloo, do it! It was done by the same creator, and is a great story.
Eeveelution's post is also my post.
Seconding FMA:B, but the first one was great too, if you ever make it through. The two series end up being about different things, but are each great in their own way.
I am a big fan of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (and Kai). They are incredibly violent and pretty scary and you will spend a lot of time wondering what the hell is going on and why you're watching the same story over and over, but for me the payoff was totally worth it.
Haibane Renmei is definitely amazing, but as was pointed out, good luck finding the whole thing for less than $toomuch. I can only imagine what it would cost on blu-ray.
Perfect Blue is another psychological thriller that was pretty good.
How much expression of Japanese culture is too much?
Trigun is a must watch for sci-fi/western lovers.
Outlaw Star is also grand.
FMA: Brotherhood. I personally did not enjoy the original at all, but loved the hell out of Brotherhood. Few slow bits that I skipped, but overall great story/action/characters.
My own suggestions:
I highly, highly recommend Last Exile. It's more steampunk than anything, but it was a great watch.
And for something completely different, why not try Blood: The Last Vampire. It is the anime film that spawned the anime series Blood+. Haven't had a chance to watch the series, but the movie was excellent.
Bother me on steam: kabbypan
Seirei no Moribito (Sacred Guardian of the Spirit) is pretty good as well. It's very Japanese in that it takes place in a fantasy country that is very japanese culturally, but it's done straight, without silly meme's like bleeding noses or sweat drops. It has some very well animated fight scenes. Though it can drag a little bit at places.
I have only had time to watch the first of the three short movies it's made up from, Magnetic Rose, but holy crap is it impressive. Hard scifi and psychological thriller mixed at its best. I love scifi anime. Magnetic rose features realistic space garbagemen just like Planetes, which I can recommend as well up until the ending (ugh). I wonder if the former inspired the latter or that they have some other common inspiration.
Summer Wars comes out in February on Blu-ray. It's more of a family film, but it has cracking suspense and advanced technology. In the same vein, Dennou Coil has some really cool applications of possibly future technology.
I'd say Big O but I'm pretty sure it's not on blu ray
You guys also did a great job of reminding me of stuff I saw as a kid, have since forgotten about, and can't wait to watch again. I loved Trigun, Akira, and more recently have just been watching Miyazaki films since. I'm definitely going to queue up FMA: Brotherhood on Netflix to give it a shot before buying up any of the series.
To answer the question of how much Japanese culture I can handle - I really like Valkyria Chronicles (the game) and because the concepts and story are good enough (and obviously the game play), I don't mind that there's a random pig character or the ham-fisted messages. Generally I like stuff that doesn't rely on the bizzare Japanese tropes to get anime fans to watch. To that end, I'm definitely going to check out Samurai Champloo as well.
Oh, also I have the Evangelion 1.11 movie and am eagerly awaiting the 2.22 release which looks to be coming out in April according to Amazon.
Hopeless Gamer
EDIT: Seconding this.
BLOGGU~
Netflix has a very decent selection of anime, and here are my recommendations.
Movies
Origin - Spirits of the Past
A Miyazaki-esque tale about a boy living in a dystopian future overrun by nature. He finds a cryogenically frozen girl from the past, and a struggle of science vs nature ensues as they are chased after by mysterious forces.
Castle of Cagliostro
A Miyazaki-esque tale about a thief with a heart of gold... well it's Miyazaki-esque because it is Miyazaki's take on the famous Lupin the 3rd franchise. A very excellent comedic thriller.
Series
Le Chevalier D'Eon
Set right before the French revolution, this story follows D'Eon, a member of the French secret police who is investigating the death of his sister. A dark occult conspiracy that leads right up to the French revolution threatens his life, and he can only rely on a page, a musketeer, and his sister's ghost to save France.
Soul Eater
Reapers train at Death's academy, wielding people who are transforming weapons as their partner(s). They hunt corrupted wayward souls and witches, training their skills as a witch's plot unfolds.
Witchblade
Japan's take on the comic book story, which is surprisingly good. A mother is possessed by the Witchblade which unlocks a startling personality.
Moribito
A fantasy tale about a female warrior and those she protects. Somewhat low on action but great on drama.
Claymore
Berserk with a female lead but not as good.
Clannad
DRAMA
Mushi-Shi
MUSHY
Fruits Basket
FRUITY
Darker Than Black
Heroes. The anime.
Queen's Blade
This is only here to specifically mention that you should not watch it.
Clannad is based on a visual novel and something I would definitely not recommend to the OP.
Closer to The 4400, the anime, but no one ever watched that soooo
Still, this deserves a seconding, a thirding, a fourthing, and whatever else. It's one of my standard recommendations these days for people who haven't seen too much.
Other excellent dubs since you expressed an interest:
Romeo X Juliet
Big O
Ordinarily I would recommend Ouran High School Host Club, but I get the feeling it won't be up your alley.
My third standard recommendation, the movie Sword of the Stranger, definitely seems like something you could appreciate. In Blu-Ray.