Good anime? [Archive] - Polykarbon Art Forum

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 11:19 AM

Looking to buy some anime (am still fairly new to what's good and what's not). Any suggestions? Stuff I already have and like are: Spirited away, princess mononoke (chek spelling!) and Ghost in the shell (film one). Any more reccomendations? I was thinking of getting Perfect Blue and 'Serial Experiments Lain'. Are these any good?

Fishlike Samurai

03-06-2005, 11:22 AM

I have no idea of what animes are good or bad or anything at all but I liked Ninja Scroll.

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 11:25 AM

I think bad anime are things like Yu-Gi-Oh and pokemon. They seem to have been done on such a low budget and most of the programmes are just pointless talking explaining what they're doing!

Snowfox

03-06-2005, 11:31 AM

I like Yu-Gi-Oh... :huh:

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 11:33 AM

That was just my opinion. You're allowed to like what you want.

(not meant to sound like I was giving you permission!)

Fishlike Samurai

03-06-2005, 11:35 AM

Why do you like Yu-Gi-Oh? (Not offensively, just curious)

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 11:37 AM

Well I don't know about snowfox but I do like some of the creature things, The rest of it I can't stand.

Snowfox

03-06-2005, 11:38 AM

I find it entertaining. I like wanting to know what's going to happen next.

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 11:41 AM

Fair enough.

mofo09

03-06-2005, 11:53 AM

yea but its basically the same thing every eps

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 12:02 PM

*groan* I've started a Yu-Gi-Oh war... Does anyone recommend any anime?! Best things I'd like are films, preferably not linked to a TV series but it's OK if it is.

Steasaurus

03-06-2005, 12:04 PM

FMA is soon to be released here in europe not sure about the rest of the world... thats a good one.
Trigun also a good one, and Cowboy Bepop is pretty popular (there is also a movie)
I'm currently working on Excel Saga having gotten all of the Chobits (damn it they just started to release the ones with the dubs on) and Excel Saga is absolutely crazy I lurves it!
Full Metal Panic is another good series.

Movies wise I'd recommend anything by Miyazaki (such as Princess Mononoke, which you already have)

Perfect Blue is good, but kinda strange... its a complex psychological thriller with a bit of strong nudity and violence if thats your thing... I've never heard of the other one you mentioned so I'm off to look into it.

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 12:08 PM

Well I like a good storyline (the weirder the better!) not too bothered about nudity and violence, as long as the story is good. By the way what does FMA stand for? And I've read all the Chobits manga (I didn't know that it has been made into anime too! *doh*!)

SlashArtist

03-06-2005, 12:08 PM

you've seriously never heard of GITS? :huh:

Anyways, I recommend Akira. Classic.

FMA = Full Metal Alchemist

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 12:11 PM

OK. What's GITS? Yes i'm new to this sort of thing, but I can't get enough of it now!

SlashArtist

03-06-2005, 12:16 PM

GITS is Ghost in the Shell, I was initially responding to 5te but then you posted before me. You've already seen it so no worries.

aisuru

03-06-2005, 12:21 PM

i got Excel Saga vol1 on DVD the other day, it's great. really weird, but it's so funny. it's a kind of piss-take of other anime, so if you're not too familiar with much you may got get many references.

GITS = Ghost in the Shell ;)

i can also reccomend Cowboy Bebop, Initial D, Blood: the Last Vampire, Bubblgum Crisis: Tokyo 2040, Gunsmith Cats

SlashArtist

03-06-2005, 12:26 PM

Responding to your first post, Hotaru, Serial Experiments Lain is an awesome series. It's not for everyone, though. However, considering you liked GITS, you may like Lain. Another (mini) series by yoshitoshi ABe (the guy behind lain) is Haibane Renmei. It's a hell of a lot more lighthearted than Lain, and the art is amazing.

K_x_uksami

03-06-2005, 12:27 PM

Neon Genesis Evangelion and Trigun are my favorites. I'd recommend them.

Hotaru

03-06-2005, 12:29 PM

Ok I might have a look at that. I chose 'Serial Experiments Lain' becuase it looked dark and weird and it sounded quite good. (yes i'm in a really chatty mood tonight!)

Steasaurus

03-07-2005, 02:14 AM

GITS is Ghost in the Shell, I was initially responding to 5te but then you posted before me. You've already seen it so no worries.

of course I've heard of ghost in the shell lol who hasn't?
I was refering to 'Serial Experiments Lain'... I've not heard of it...

Steasaurus

03-07-2005, 02:18 AM

i got Excel Saga vol1 on DVD the other day, it's great. really weird, but it's so funny. it's a kind of piss-take of other anime, so if you're not too familiar with much you may got get many references.

lol it's not just anime Excel Saga takes the piss out of its pretty much everything... in vol.2 there is an obvious Alien moment involving a Puchuu queen and also a matrix bullet time moment at a bowling alley ^^

if you like weird Neon Genesis Evangelion is pretty odd at times... I missed one episode before and I was soo fsking confused my head hurt.

mofo09

03-07-2005, 05:26 AM

i suggest samurai champloo. its a series, im pretty sure its on dvd now and i tihnk its going to cartoon network
and if you like weird i recommend paranoia agent. its a series i just finished watching, i tihnk its by the same people that did perfect blue.

aisuru

03-07-2005, 05:46 AM

damn you 5te! you almost spoiled it for me! :mad: grrr!

j/k :)

Steasaurus

03-07-2005, 07:11 AM

lol sry dude... I didn't think that it was much of a spoiler :P

Aires

03-07-2005, 07:52 AM

My list of must haves Hotaro

Haibane Reinmei
Full Metal Panic
Full Metal Alchemist
Techno Man
Last Exile

For the thinking
Perfect Blue
.Dot Hack// Sign
Blue Sub #6

Jeanox

03-07-2005, 09:05 AM

i suggest samurai champloo. its a series, im pretty sure its on dvd now and i tihnk its going to cartoon network

Oh please, no. Everything that that network touches turns into a smouldering pile of crap, in my opinion. Plus, you know how much theyre going to have to edit out just to show an ep? I shudder to think of it...

Anyways, lol...

Scrapped Princess (subtitled)
Cowboy Bebop (subtitled)
Trigun (subtitled)
Champloo (see it now before they butcher it with poor dubbing and cut scenes)

Those are my favorites at the moment. :D

Xion Valkyrie

03-07-2005, 09:49 AM

Nuuu!! Stop recommending all these mainstream animes! lol jk =P Nothing wrong with mainstream anime, but uh, if you want to see a modern masterpiece, buy PLANETES, I think it should either be out or be out really soon.

Read or Die OVA and Read or Die TV are fairly good, on the level of FMA.

RahXephon is good too, its like Eva, or rather what Eva should have been.

I don't know if this is available for release here, but if it is, you should get Interlude OVA. However, be warned as it is incredibly difficult to understand what the heck is going on in one watch, and even after multiple watches there's still more to be dug up =D

If you're into drama/romance with a bit of fantasy I'd suggeset Air, although you'd probably have to dl this as no company has licensed it yet.

Aires

03-07-2005, 10:09 AM

I can't believe i forgot about R.o.d

(Goes commit hari Kari)

Love Hina is always a must have as well. Just don't watch it in Canada

Snowfox

03-07-2005, 11:50 AM

Heh, everyone I know who's watched Rah Xephon says the same thing- It's what Eva should have been. :D

Although it's still a confusing, very ambiguous plot.

I don't know if anyone has recommended it yet, but Slayers is still my all-time favorite series. Anyone who's into comedy/serious hybrids will love it. And following closely behind is Record of Lodoss War. Then the sci-fi's I love are Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Outlaw Star, Harlock Saga (along with all the parallel animes based in that universe, and any of the Gundams. All A-Class animes.

Hotaru

03-07-2005, 01:05 PM

Thanks everyone! That should be enough to keep me going for a while.

Steasaurus

03-07-2005, 02:02 PM

rah xephon is cool as is read or die

Hotaru

03-08-2005, 06:42 AM

Is 'grave of fireflies' any good? I nearly bought it today.

Snowfox

03-08-2005, 07:29 AM

It's ... depressing.

Cruiser18

03-08-2005, 08:19 AM

I could recommend Escaflowne. Good music, really well though out plot and very animation-rich action scenes.

Same goes for Fullmetal Alchemist, but it's unfortunately not out on video yet.

Agent Cryrid

03-08-2005, 08:43 AM

*Holds up Escaflowne boxset*
Definately.

FigureFour

03-08-2005, 10:21 AM

Did you say wierder the better?

FLCL.

Just see it.

Hotaru

03-08-2005, 10:22 AM

Quick description of escaflowne?

Steasaurus

03-08-2005, 11:10 AM

really really terrible dub so aviod the dub... its about some girl transported to another world which is like a fantasy style world but with mechs... I've only seen the first few episodes so I don't really know if it stays like that or just how good it gets.

I reccomend staying away from weiss kreiss (sp?) it sucks IMO though I do know that some people like it. It's very bishi and again terrible dubbing but a lot of older anime has bad dubs... newer ones are sorta ok... not spot on but ok.

Agent Cryrid

03-08-2005, 12:56 PM

I'm still amazed they could tell the story in 26 episodes.
To sum the first two episodes (so a few minor spoilers):
Basically a girl (Hitomi Kanzaki) bumps into a kid in armor (Van) who mysteriously appears in front of her during a private race. He quickly warns her and her friends that a dragon is soon coming. Sure enough it does. Around this point you come to realize that Hitomi keep having visions of the distant future, and ends up saving Van. As he is being transported back to his world, Hitomi gets caught and ends up being transported with him to a mystical world called Gaea, where the Earth and the moon hang in the sky. Turns out Van was actually doing a traditional dragon hunt to prove he was now ready to become King of Fanelia. However, Fanelia is attacked by invisible forces. Van heads to the shrine where he calls Escaflowne, a special guymelif (which are like giant, steam powered suits of armor). Hitomi can sense the invisible guymelifs, so Van holds his own. However Fanelia falls and they get mysteriously teleported elsewhere to Gaea.
Things grow greatly from there as other characters such as Allen are introduced, and the story / relationships develop. The story isn't weird-weird compared to animes like FLCL, but it is serious and very well thought out (and there are some really interesting twists / ideas). Pretty hard to explain without giving bigger things away, but if you were looking for a good story with action and romance, Escaflowne should fit nicely.

The dubbing does suck, but thankfully the DVDs come with both audio tracks.

Hotaru

03-08-2005, 01:29 PM

Film or series?

Agent Cryrid

03-08-2005, 02:21 PM

Both.
The film is pretty different from the series though. It just takes certain elements from the series and tells a whole new tale (kind of like the Legend of Zelda does).
Its different enough for me to think of it separately from the series, but if you are familiar with the show you'll be able to see certain similarities between events (ie: a famous falling scene).

the shining

03-08-2005, 02:46 PM

Weither your going to buy something or not, You MUST check out

Blue Sub #6 . It's Unbeleivably Cool.
And as for shows, Fullmetal Alchemist. Last Exile, And Avatar: the Last Airbender.

Hotaru

03-09-2005, 10:31 AM

I'd love to watch all of these but I can only find them for NTSC... Anyone know a good DVD online shop in the uk that sell PAL DVDs?

Steasaurus

03-09-2005, 10:36 AM

www.play.com is prety good it also warns you of teh dvd region aswell and its free delivery...
they have a selection of anime titles but I'm guessing that they don't have everything ;)

Hotaru

03-09-2005, 10:40 AM

Thanks!

Steasaurus

03-09-2005, 10:49 AM

You're welcome and I hope they have whatever you've decided on...

Hotaru

03-09-2005, 10:55 AM

I was looknig for blue sub and escaflowne. I'll probably not get them right away (need some cash first!) I wanted to see what was out there and how much it was. I'd also like to get Serial experiments. That's just for now though!

VTS_v2.0

03-09-2005, 12:36 PM

Samurai Champloo is a good anime...It's a series. Not quite sure if you can get it in english...but you should definately look into it...

Cruiser18

03-09-2005, 01:52 PM

I can't really recommend Blue sub #6. It's just too....hard to say. It was one of Gonzo's very first projects so the CGI is pretty obvious and not very integrated and somehow the story just lacks something.

Aires

03-09-2005, 02:21 PM

C' mon cruiser its a great for any collection.

The world is submerged, Humanity is fighting for its survival. The cause, a man that believe man could go no farther in its present state. Zorndike which could be seen more as a misguided philanthropist than a villan.

The hero isn't your typical anti hero either, he's a porn loving heroin addict that chooses to go where he wants to go and act how he wants to act despite circumstance and how the world wants him to act.

The cast was good, the animation was good, the cg could have been better by todays standards. The story is for the viewer to think about. So just take a good view at it and think about what the author is trying to convey

Hotaru

03-10-2005, 12:54 PM

It's also the one I can't seem to get for PAL! I guess i'm just gonna have to keep looking...

Hiltz

03-10-2005, 01:03 PM

Blue Sub # 6 - It felt kind of short but the CGI effects and blend of animation were pretty good but I do agree a bit with Cruiser.

If you like submarines,freaky mutant sea creatures, not your typical protagonist, all in a post-apocalytpic setting, (a wannabe Water World) then try this anime movie out.

The Hellsing series is also a good one. Although it only has 13 episodes the series has one of the strangest and coolest vampire anti-heroes. The coloring seems to favor red and black a bit too much but its still a pretty good series.

j0n

03-11-2005, 06:59 AM

Love Hina and Cowboy Bebop for anime, but if you like mangas too (like me) then Dragonball (not dragonball Z) and Battle Royale, (ps if youve seen the film but not read the mangas, they dont even compare! The film sucks!)

Krieock

03-11-2005, 02:14 PM

Personal breakdown:

Greatest Anime Ever Created:
Cowboy Bebop Series
+
Cowboy Bebop Movie

Really Good Anime Titles:
(No particular order)

Trigun series
Outlaw Star series
Escaflowne series
Neon Genisis Evangelion series
Ninja Scroll series + movie
X movie
Rouruni Kenshin series (watch it on television pretty often, good series)
Demon Eye's Kyo series (Pretty nice, has some comical chibi in it, enjoyable series)
Ghost in the Shell movie (one)
Ghost in the Shell: Stand alone complex (season one, 26 episodes)
GITS: 2nd GiG (season two, 26* episodes. Japanese only, I downloaded the Fansub versions of the first 18 episodes)
Serial Experiment: Lain (fairly good)
Miyazaki's Spirited Away (Awesome, a bit like a Japanese version of an american kid's Disney movie, but still very good)
Animatrix (This is a very interesting conglomeration of different anime artists and stories about the Matrix... If you're a Matrix fan, you should get this for the extra information it gives you; the story about that annoying kid that follows Neo around saying, "You saved me, blah blah blah")
Read or Die OVA (original movie, simply superb animation)
Read or Die TV (series, story/animation is phenominal)
Akira (Meah... People really love this, because it was one of the first popular anime movies released in the US, I could live without it.)

In my opinion, those are the best anime titles I own ('cept Akira, prolly not gunna buy that one)
Don't miss out on Cowboy Bebop, that's the best.

Hiltz

03-11-2005, 02:19 PM

Can't disagree with that list. :)

Cruiser18

03-11-2005, 04:46 PM

Yeah that list might as well be mine :)

Only I'd add the Gundam franchise to it as well as Fullmetal Alchemist.

Krieock

03-11-2005, 04:57 PM

The only reason I didn't add Gundam to the list:
1. I don't own it
2. I have GREAT respect for the Endless Waltz movie, phenominal.. But I'm not a huge mecha fan.

FMA is a great representation of American and Japanese talents collaborating... So I guess it deserves to be up there :)

Hiltz

03-11-2005, 05:38 PM

Hotaru

03-12-2005, 02:04 AM

I've never seen Gundam wing, but I kinda lost all interest in watching it when I heard it was just created to sell toy robots...

Aires

03-12-2005, 06:31 AM

Well gundam has some hitz.

Gundam Wing

Endless Waltz

Gundam 008 team

Gundam Seed

Gundam Seed Estray

Hiltz

03-12-2005, 11:03 AM

Gundam Wing is actually one of the most popular Gundam series although it's animation isn't as top notch looking when compared to something like Gundam Seed or Gundam Seed Destiny.

Other mecha (non-Gundam) series include:

Gasaraki
Neon Genisis Evangelion
(one of the more famous mecha series so I've heard)

tzuge

03-12-2005, 11:54 AM

Gundam 08th MS team is, in my opinion, the best Gundam series. Gundam SEED is alright but way too filled with angst for my taste and Gundam Wing gets plain irritating. There's something about little arrogant brats piloting ridiculously overpowered mech that simply doesn't appeal to me.

As for the list, I would take Samurai Deeper Kyo off. It starts off with great potential and than falters badly. You know they've started smoking some bad stuff in the studio when the characters in nurse unifoms show up. I would also recommend the Kenshin origins 4 part OVA... can't remember what it's called. Kino no tabi is another really interesting series if you're patient and enjoyed Haibane Renmei and Lain.

Cruiser18

03-12-2005, 03:37 PM

Too bad for both gundam wing and Gundam seed is that in the first 10-15 episodes or so the action animations is really sparse and somewhat cheap until the animator really find their "groove". In the end of both Gundam wing and Gundam seed, your gonna see fighting animations almost on par with movie quality animation.

Gundam 08'th MS team has the nice twist that it's set in a Vietnam like envoirment, and you really get under the skin of the gundams since they are displayed much more like mechanical objects. Things like the chars have to clean out dust of the joints, rewire broken limbs and their general "slow" pace that encompasses their mass and weight really convey the feel that it's like overgrown tanks on feet.