Official Anime/Manga Thread

[Agent York]

Watching Princess TuTu because I heard it gets dark and fucked up (I love shows that turn all dark and fucked up), so I'm giving it a shot... 10 minutes in, I learn a giant cat teaches little girls ballet lessons... WTF, I think we have a winner.

However... I'm really not digging the ballet shit... *so uncultured*

[Silencer226]

Princess Tutu is a good series though a bit slow at times. Despite the name, it does get pretty fark.Though in a dark fairytale kind of way, not like bloody hellish.

[Snatcher2047]

I found Princess Tutu to be very delightful all around. The ending is a little weird, but what anime series' ending isn't? If you got the DVDs, there's a TON of great extras to watch that are worth the buying of the boxset alone.

Edited May 12, 2011 by Snatcher2047

[Nepenthe]

Hello all. Complete newcomer to the anime thread. I probably should've come here earlier when I was in the total midst of my anime-watching months, but that's what shyness does to you. However, the newest anime I actually finished is Giant Killing, partly because the guy in my avatar voiced the main protagonist and mostly because it turned into surprisingly addictive drama regardless.

Giant Killing is about a failing soccer team that instates a past prodigal player as their new coach. He remains controversial because he abandoned the team to go to Britain years earlier, and because he makes the team play hosts parties instead of do any real training. It's a sports anime, thus relatively predictable in that regard, but the development of the individual players and how it's weaved into the game and strategy of soccer, the intent to capture the fanaticism and spirit of the sport, and even the decision to have the voice actors speak in English, French, and Portuguese as international teams and coaches try to communicate with one another makes Giant Killing feel alive. It also made me understand how in the world people can go gaga over some guys kicking a ball down a field; the matches are intense, and also very well animated.

But right now, I'm in a bit of a dry spell. I'm not sure what I want to watch or where to start. I know I'm in the mood for something as down to earth and realistic, per se, as Giant Killing, so maybe I'll try to finish up Nodame Cantabile. But any other suggestions regardless?

[Sean]

There's Hajime no Ippo, a famous boxing manga recognized for its strong character development and very intense matches. It's a long runner, starting from 1990 with well over 900 chapters published. Well worth your time though, it's incredibly great.

[Nepenthe]

Ah yes, Hajime no Ippo. I actually happened upon the 2009 series also due to the guy in my avatar (sad) and also found it awesome. Need to put the manga on my reading list, as well as watch the preceding seasons. After finishing the last show, for a week I surmised that boxing was just the greatest thing evar.

[PSI Wind]

................Excuse me while my nutbladder recovers from todays episode of Denpa.

[Silencer226]

................Excuse me while my nutbladder recovers from todays episode of Denpa.

There is no way in hell the Erio's mother is 40, I refuse to fucking believe that!

Princess Tutu, WTF! This shit is trippy.

Edited May 14, 2011 by Silencer226

[Velotix von Skruviktorrius]

I've been meaning to do this for a long time: this will be a semi-rambly post where I gather my thoughts and reminisce about the past year, bear with me. Ultimately the two points of this post are to finally work out exactly what I actually have watched already and put it in writing, because I always seem to forget half the list at any one time, and to get some useful future recommendations from people who know this stuff much better than me.

Before last October, I'd been pretty much on my own when it came to navigating the anime ocean. Without the experience I quickly got lost and I only came across things if either I got lucky or they got a firestorm of Internet attention. However, in October I finally joined my uni's Anime Society, and everything changed. It turns out that I really like this shit, man. Most of the contents of these lists about to follow have only been added since October; roughly seven months, and I only just got all four volumes of Elfen Lied last Monday as I write this. It's been a wild ride.

So, my current plan is to go through the gigantic backlog of animu from 1990 onwards (yes, really), filter out the stuff I'm not especially interested in seeing, and get caught up to 2011 and beyond. The big snag is that, as far as possible, I intend to do everything legit. Torrents are a last resort, and for me to torrent at all it has to be spectacular and unmissable. So where do I currently stand in my quest?

These lists are all chronological in some manner because I'm OCD like that. Where I've only watched specific seasons of a show instead of the entire run, the seasons are marked in Roman Numerals. Shows still being watched also are marked with a rough estimate of where I currently am.

EDIT: This list has been revised, see later posts.

You'll be pleased to know I've omitted every series that I only watched patches or previews of. And for the record, I thought Bakemonogatari was a sack of ass, if that helps.

I'd appreciate it if you all could help me extend my future viewing plans with stuff I overlooked, and I'm sure there's a ton of it. Thanks a lot, guys!

Edited May 24, 2011 by Velotix Lexovetikan

[Tornado]

Just as an FYI in case you didn't know, but owning 2nd Gig basically makes Individual Eleven irrelevant (unless you want to watch it for the weird-ass dub).

[Velotix von Skruviktorrius]

The redundant multiple continuity horseshit around GitS is what made me take so long to buy it in the first place. X_x

[Sean]

If it's significant anime you're looking to represent the past two decades, then anything by Satoshi Kon warrants such a label. Perfect Blue was what put him on the map, and Paranoia Agent was the only TV anime he directed, but I haven't seen either of these.

The trio of films he did complete between Perfect Blue and his death - Millennium Actress, Tokyo Godfathers, and Paprika - are all amazing.

[Tornado]

Well, the first two S.A.C. movies are basically the (respective) seasons chopped up and made into OVAs. They changed a few things around for Individual Eleven, but nothing of particular importance. And they both chop out a lot of good material from the seasons, especially the first OVA, so I honestly don't think either of them are really good.

Only Solid State Society is actually a separate entity from the first two seasons, though it has some pacing problems.

Edited May 16, 2011 by Tornado

[Silencer226]

You'll be pleased to know I've omitted every series that I only watched patches or previews of. And for the record, I thought Bakemonogatari was a sack of ass, if that helps.

I'd appreciate it if you all could help me extend my future viewing plans with stuff I overlooked, and I'm sure there's a ton of it. Thanks a lot, guys!

I liked Bakemonogatari, especially the visuals. I hope they make another season of it, what didn't you like about it?

Anyway here's my small collection, you might find something you like out of it, be aware some of it is crap and stuff I think is crap but like anyway (marked those for you)

Air TV Series

Black Cat (bwahahahaha, garbage avoid)

Canaan (liked it, but it has flaws)

Chrome Shelled Regious (honestly... kind of boring, and incomplete because the creator died before he could finish the story)

Clannad (eh... I liked it but not enough to see it again, maybe one day)

Corpse Princess Aka (action, action, boobs, fuck the story watch the dead girl kill dead things with uzi's and shit without wearing panties)

Corpse Princess Kuro (action, action, boobs, fuck the story watch the dead girl kill dead things with uzi's and shit without wearing panties... yeah, this show is... not that good)

The Count of Monte Cristo (...All I can say is try it out, I got a bit bored but then again, It was stupid to marathon this show in one sitting... overall good show imo)

Durarara (I only have part 1, started good, saw the rest on Crunchyroll... I hate it)

Eden of the East (liked it)

Eden of the East King of Eden Movie (liked it)

Ergo Proxy (watch it)

Evangelion 1.11 (I will kill you if you do not watch this)

Evangelion 2.22 (I will most definitely kill you if you do not watch this)

Full Metal Panic Fumoffu (ha ha funny)

Full Metal Panic TSR (Serious Business/Insane Villain)

The Familiar of Zero (Ya know what... fuck this show)

Ga-Rei Zero (Good)

Ghose Hunt (Good)

Hell Girl (repetitive, little creepy (it has a possessed doll episode, they creep me out even if they're animated), ends up with a decent ending, has a second season that's a lot better imo)

Hellsing OVA 1-3 (Blood, blood blood, Jesus if you just want to see an overpowered vampire kick some undead ass this is for you)

Kanon (one of those Key animation shows, god, I guess, couldn't watch it a second time)

Kiddy Grade (only show I can honestly say I own that starts off as shit and ends up with a decent ending)

Madoka Magica BD 1(love)

Needless (look, I know this is crap, but my God I love it to death, trust me you'll probably hate it though)

Pani Poni Dash (one of the first shows I watched to get back into anime a while ago, funny as hell and random, first introduction to Shaft)

The Sacred Blacksmith (yes the girl has big boobs, can we move on to something more interesting)

Samurai Champloo (watch it)

School Rumble (funny, loved it)

Shakugan no Shana (I like this little series, besides Toradora, it's the only show I like with one of those loli tsundere types)

Sonic the Movie (...you've probably seen this shit)

Soul Eater (first half, haven't seen second half, waiting on Blu-ray)

Speed Grapher (90% shit 10% wtf, and I still watched it/enjoyed it somehow)

Summer Wars (Zzzz)

Trigun (watched this 10 times)

Uta Kata (pfft... I liked how the girl slowly began to lose faith in humanity and try to kill them (only to stop short of it) but then a Yaoi scene came and I said fuck this shit)

Welcome to the NHK (Honestly... good, but goddamn it's depressing as hell, I can't think of a good time to watch this, definitely not when you feel like shit)

Higurashi (death, violence, mystery, has second season yet it remains in license limbo, download it)

Pandora Hearts (...I'm a sucker for limited edition shit, honestly thought I'd hate this, but I like it a lot)

Toradora (Slow start but gets a helluva lot better, though I find it overrated and didn't it find it really Amazing at all)

I'm dropping Hidan no Aria, this show sucks and makes no sense. I'm pretty content with the rest of this season though, except Deadman Wonderland, it's alright but they fucked with the manga storyline a bit.

Edit: oh he wanted shows that were actually good, ignore my list then

Edited May 16, 2011 by Silencer226

[Velotix von Skruviktorrius]

Thanks for that, keep 'em coming everybody. *fills out suggestion list*

Some stuff that should be obvious to me's still missing but I can't put my finger on it... Nanoha's one but the rest elude me right now.

I liked Bakemonogatari, especially the visuals. I hope they make another season of it, what didn't you like about it?

It was a while back so it's a bit hazy, but off the top of my head: the plot felt pretty flat, gratuitous, neither of the main characters were particularly likeable nor were most of the secondary characters... it just did nothing for me. :/

[Sean]

Cardcaptor Sakura is a heavy-hitter for the magical girl genre. There's also Fullmetal Alchemist, though I've only ever seen the first anime.

Some personal favorites of mine that might not get a mention otherwise:

Mushi-Shi and Kino's Journey are good. Both involve a traveler with a different story per episode, and while I prefer Kino due to tracing back my experiences with it years ago, Mushi-Shi is a bit more refined. AIR is actually my favorite TV anime, but it shows its age today and it suffers from pacing issues and a handful of very confusing plot points. However, it has some great background art, a wonderful soundtrack, and good emotional investment. (Similar anime by the same production and animation companies are Kanon and Clannad, each which are more polished than the last.) Slayers is a love child of the mid-90s and an overall great action/fantasy, spanning several seasons.

And, if you're interested in some manga on the side, here are some decent picks:

My Lovely Ghost Kana is one of those few very worthwhile "plot with porn" stories in the medium. It has a somewhat off-putting premise (a boy and a ghost have sex and then fall in love) that is completely nullified after it quickly reveals how utterly heart-melting it is, and it's a very sweet slice of life. The sex scenes, which are numerous, aren't portrayed in a pornographic light and are primarily there to enhance the depiction of their relationship. If you want a romance that's a little more safe for work, there is Love Roma, a rather obscure piece that sees a high school couple building their relationship on the foundation of honesty. Its art is unconventional for the genre, sporting a look that's closer to Scott Pilgrim than any typical anime. Any suspense manga by Naoki Urasawa is fucking awesome: Monster and 20th Century Boys are two of his major recent works, and last I checked on him, he's been working on Billy Bat these days. Another good suspense that isn't by Urasawa is Old Boy. You might have seen the film, but not many people are as familiar with the original work. I have yet to check out the Korean adaptation, but Old Boy the manga is pretty damn cool.

Edited May 16, 2011 by Sean

[Tornado]

If you ever end up watching Fullmetal, stay the hell away from the fanbase. That fanbase is worse than ours.

[Remy]

If you ever end up watching Fullmetal, stay the hell away from the fanbase. That fanbase is worse than ours.

Hahaha, so true unfortunately. For such a good manga/anime too. :/

watch it, but yeah.... urrrrk at the fans

[-Mark-]

So, GinTama episode 208. Large T-shirts can kill. Also, I wish my glasses could do that.

Been watching the new Naruto DVD set, too. It's on rubbish filler now, but at least it's not quite as rubbish as I remembered. Still rubbish, though. Also, I'm probably one of few people who actually noticed that the new set has the 4% PAL conversion speedup. They never had it before. It's not really that bad, but it's really noticeable during the opening and ending songs.

EDIT: Oh, also saw Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D; Bonds Beyond Time at my second-most-local cinema on Saturday. Movie was 'eh', dubbing was so hilariously bad it was good.

Pegasus shouting "It's my worst nightmare-- I'M BEING UPSTAGED!!" right before being crushed to death by a collapsing building = priceless. Awful, but hilariously priceless. I guess at least 4Kids are good for something, even if it's only being so bad that it's good.

DVD is pretty cheap when it launches here in July, and since it has dual audio, I'll definitely pick it up, if only to see it in Japanese.

Edited May 16, 2011 by -Mark-

[Silencer226]

Saw episode 5 of Deadman Wonderland, dear God, I knew what to expect from reading the manga but damn this shit is sick.

[Velotix von Skruviktorrius]

Good thing I remembered that TV Tropes, aside from ruining your life, also necessarily has a complete list of notable to semi-notable to mildly interesting anime.

Combining that with your recommendations and those of others and filtering out the stuff I don't like the look of personally, here's the updated future watch/purchase plan. As per usual for me, it's unnecessarily complicated for anyone who doesn't like to get the fine details straight in their head.

You'll be pleased to know that I've added a couple of new shows to the priority list thanks to your suggestions.

The purchase lists are in alphabetical order for the sake of everyone's sanity.

EDIT: Lists revised; see later posts.

If a suggestion isn't anywhere on those lists, it's been cut. Sorry. XD It's worth noting that FLCL is very likely to be shown at the society in the next few weeks so buying it may prove redundant, especially as it's only six episodes long and still costs about £28.

The two reasons I don't already own Eva are 1) the beyond massive controversy surrounding the last two episodes that singlehandedly invented the Gainax Ending, and 2) the fact that the revamped and rumoured-to-be-superior film quadrilogy is not yet completely out and I can't stand to leave good stories feeling unfinished. That simultaneously makes Eva a compulsory purchase and a really fucking awkward one, and some spoiler-free help getting it straightened out would be nice, as I've tried to keep as in the dark as possible. I've had this purchasing dilemma problem for close to three years now...

FMA is another interesting one - one minute I look at it and each part is over £40 each used, the next they're £10 new but the first volume is unavailable. Getting this one would be desirable yet troublesome. :| EDIT: Been tipped off that FMA: Brotherhood is the definitive version so this issue is resolved.

This list is by no means final! Keep your suggestions coming, and thanks for the help with this, guys. Helping me to untangle the Limbo Zone would be especially helpful.

Edited May 24, 2011 by Velotix Lexovetikan

[Carbo]

I can immediately vouch for Pani Poni Dash.

It is also one of the very few animes that I recommend watching with an English dub over the Japanese one.

[Velotix von Skruviktorrius]

I forgot Fate/Stay Night. I'm a fucking moron. Added to the priority purchase queue.

[Silencer226]

I forgot Fate/Stay Night. I'm a fucking moron. Added to the priority purchase queue.

Good luck finding it, Geneon releases (including Ergo Proxy, Shakugan no Shana, and Hellsing OVA's 1-4) went out of print a month or two ago. Fate/Stay Night is one anime I wish I had actually bought before it completely sold out, a long with Hellsing 4. Now everyone is raising the price just high enough for normal people to barely afford, for example, I paid $41 for Ergo Proxy and $52 for Shakugan no Shana, now both of those shows are coming from other people and are being sold for $150 or more.

[Velotix von Skruviktorrius]

Already spotted it on Amazon before putting it in my buy queue, I'm covered.