Anime

[Drong]

Berserk, ok it's definitely getting old now but it's just such a good story and dark as anything.

also wolfs rain, samurai 7, hellsing, gungrave, trigun, ghost in the shell (and the second series and all the films), full metal panic, full metal alchemist, naruto, bleach, last exile, blue gender, pretty much all the gundam?s, evangelion, texhnolyze, Samurai deeper kyo, ninja scroll, rurouni kenshin, witch hunter robin, monster, black jack, i got a load more but that's all i can think of off the top of my head, i don't watch it as much now s i used too which is a shame but my ex was really into it too so i always used to be able to sit down and watch it with her whereas most girls i see don't really appreciate that sorta thing

 

[GrimmjowPantera]

I LOVE Bleach, I just LOVE it. And I like anime movies, I've seen a lot of Studio Ghibli and I like Akira and Ghost in the Shell.

AND I NEED TO PLAY SOME BLEACH GAMES!

 

[qbert4ever]

Say what you want about Naruto, but I like it.

Any of the Gundam series, I loved One Piece untill the voice changes ruined it for me(I'm in america, dont know if they changed anywhere else). Rurouni Kenshin (untill they left the main village, I missed a couple episodes after that and all was lost).

Also, anyone remember Outlaw Star? Awsome series, too bad it got dumped after 20-somthing episodes.

 

[Melty Blood]

Naruto is okay, if only to see the cool ass ninja powers, and to watch that idiot Sasuke get what's comin'.

Oh and don't forget about stuff like .hack//sign. I'm watching the series via subs, and it's okay, if not irritatingly deprived of good action sequences.

Wait Excel Saga! Gotta love Excel saga....

ILPALAZZO IS WATCHING YOU!

 

[WW]

Movies that are a MUST-SEE
Castle in the Sky
Pom-Poki
My Neighbor Totoro
Princess Mononoke
Spirited Away
Armitage the Third
Kite
Patlabor 2
MD Geist
Ghost in the Shell
Appleseed (1980's Original)
Metropolis
Akira

Series that are a MUST-SEE
Azu Manga Daioh
Maze: The Mega Burst Space
Slayers, Slayers Next, Slayers Try
Wolf's Rain
Martian Successor Nadesico
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
Those Who Hunt Elves

Everything was alright untile "Martian Successor Nadesico", seriously - didn't you see anything better from the "Space Opera" genre?

"Those Who Hunt Elves" - Did you see the second season?

"Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex" - You mean SAC I, SAC II or Solid State?

Also, anyone remember Outlaw Star? Awsome series, too bad it got dumped after 20-somthing episodes.

That's pretty strange because I watched the whole series=26ep. and by my standards it's "Acceptable".

 

[SpiderLotus]

I don't really have a favorite genre. I chiefly am into character design. I saw a little of Trigun and Hellsing and liked them both. I also so all of Excel Saga and a few episodes of Bobo bo and liked those too. At the moment, I'm considering FLCL.

Also I heard about Jump Ultimate Stars! That looks completely awesome.

 

[ABeck]

First off... manga > anime 90% of the time =)
My top 5 favorite animes:

10. Samurai Champloo
9. Bleach
8. FLCL
7. Berserk
6. Trigun
5. Welcome to the NHK
4. Tengen Toppa Gurren Laggan
3. Minami-ke
2. Black Lagoon
1. School Rumble

I've had mixtures of likes and dislikes. I'm not a big fan of the fighters, but Budokai and the Naruto games aren't half bad. Ghost in the Shell, Cowboy Bebop, Inuyasha, One Piece, Rozen Maiden (GOD! Worst Game I've ever played) and Samurai Champloo were all pretty bad .Full Metal Alchemist was OKAY... nothing special nothing horribly wrong. Berserk was fun on the PS2 (though it needed an American adaptation and I wish they'd still make Trigun... I was kinda hoping that would turn out awesome.

Also... I'm gonna admit something: The first Digimon game that was released on the original Playstation was so much fun. LOL, it may sound lame but it had so many enjoyable traits to it. Addictive RPG elements mostly.

 

[General Ma Chao]

I'm not nearly as much into anime and manga as I used to be at the old age of 25. Bleach is light on story but heavy on the fighting, and that's fine. Naruto is the same. I lost interest in Berserk because late into the story, I was beginning to wonder if the story was really going anywhere. One Piece is just light hearted fun. Shinchan is just genius. I know it's dubbed and the script has been changed, I don't care. Full Metal Alchemist can get a little too idealistic at times, but it's still great to follow.

 

[stompy]

I'll have to recommend Ergo Proxy, but I have to admit, it gets pretty confusing, well, atleast for me.

 

[Anarchemitis]

Ghost in the Shell Exemt and to a lesser extent Full Metal Alchemist, I detest anime beyond a passion.
I
HATE
ANIME.

 

[yonsito]

Oruchuban Ebichu
Slightly inappropriate but incredibly funny.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJw1I9TBlKQ

 

[Don Alejandro]

I think most of Japanese animation is derivative and unimaginative trash in general. But there is some good stuff out there. Studio Ghibli is practically Japan's Disney. Akira was memorable, and Golgo 13 was a gritty assassination thriller. Most of the rest is 'fanservice' crap, and to be honest, anyone can pull down a couple buckets of red paint, draw some nubile little girls and then yell, "Deep" at the top of their lungs.

 

[ReepNeep]

In general, I agree with you Don Alejandro. There are a few that I do like however.

Cowboy Bebop is easily the best I've ever seen. EASILY.

Seirei No Moribito is also really good. It actually has characters with genuine depth, which is extremely rare in anime, as well as a wonderfully involving and emotional story.

For anyone considering Bleach: stop at the end of the first story arc (episode 60ish). After that the writing and production values take a nose dive, and character development (outside of the 'NEED MORE POWER' variety) stops entirely. (I watched Bleach 159 yesterday, mostly out of habit at this point. I know what I'm talking about.)

Noir is pretty good too but only if you can stomach the boring first 2/3 of the series. The last eight episodes are VERY good however, and its quite worth waiting for them.

A Vision of Escaflowne is super high quality as well. It has it's warts (mostly revolving around a few very common cliques) but makes up for it in my mind with solid characters and enough subtext and symbolism to be called literature (a rarity in the extreme).

Lastly, Ghost in the Shell. The original movie and it's sequel Innocence are the best pieces , but the two TV series and their follow-up movie are quite good as well. Very much for the person who values that 'makes you think' quality in their fiction(which endears them to me all the more). Plus cyberpunk always rocks

These are rare exceptions for me. I generally think that the vast majority of anime is total crap. But that is true for any form of media, I suppose.

PS
Sammy, Pokemon is only 'awesome' if you are under ten years old.

 

[mshcherbatskaya]

Off the top of my head (and a lot of these are dupes of other people's picks - y'all got good taste, folks!)

Samurai Champloo

Cowboy Bebop

Flag

Evangelion (though I have a problem with the very end, which I did not find "deep" and gave me a severe case of WTF)

FLCL (my anti-drug, since you don't need drugs if Gainax is going to perform weird trips for you)

Gankutsuou (jaw-dropping, eye-popping, superflat style animation)

Peacemaker Kurogane

Wolf's Rain (if you have someone who thinks anime is all mecha and and big-eyed girls in maid outfits, this is a good anime for grown-ups to show them. Same with Flag.)
Paranoia Agent (another trippy-ass anime, and also definitely not for kids)

Eureka 7

Naruto up through, what, episode 85? And then it is nothing but filler of the most soul-withering sort through the end of the series. Naruto Shippuuden, the restarted series, is better than the filler, but then a Windows 95 screensaver is better entertainment than Naruto filler. I watched a large portion of the filler out of morbid fascination with just how bad it could get. Hours of my life heedlessly squandered.

Samurai 7

Bleach up through episode 65 or so, and then it pulls a Naruto, though not as bad as Naruto

Ouran High School Host Club - I less-than-three this show so much, but if shonen-ai makes you uncomfortable, a lot of the jokes in this show may make you squirm.

Gantz is pretty good, but pretty violent, and kind of mean-spirited.

Chevalier D'Eon - The people have regular-sized eyes! and also plot, dialogue, and pretty good animation!

Basilisk - this is the real ninja show. This show kicks Naruto's ass, takes his lunch money, then duct-tapes him to the flagpole in front of the junior high school, and posts video of the whole thing to YouTube.

Deathnote - the anime is good, the manga is better.

Fullmetal Alchemist

Full Metal Panic (not to be confuses with Alchemist - totally unrelated)

Ninja Scrolls is an anime classic, which I recommend more on reputation than personal enjoyment. I have a personal history with Ninja Scrolls, which I watched after unwittingly eating something that had been dosed rather heavily with something else, resulting in a very unpleasant 36 hours for me. Now I just can't watch it.

My-HiME

Welcome to the N.H.K.

Afro Samurai

 

[LordOmnit]

My new favorite thing in the world is the Utawarerumono anime if that says anything (which I'm about to say that it doesn't beyond that I like it a lot (although I wish that some of the post-series stuff was expanded on a little)).
Let me take a quick look at a few very popular series over the years to people who are saying anime is all the same:
Astro Boy- robots beating the hell out of each other and comedic in betweens with philisophical allusions sprinkled throughout
School Rumble- hilarious with a story as connective as real life without all the boring transitions
Naruto (pre second *thing*)- slightly above average ninja wank
Naruto (second *thing*)- slightly below average ninja wank
Bleach- like anything else something that changes from doing one job over and over again to a fighting series about humans who claim they aren't humans anymore and promote racism between themselves who beat each other up or induce circumstances to at almost every chance
Utawarerumono- you have just been given something amazing by someone/thing almighty and your life will be filled with light from now on (I don't care what belifs you do or don't hold)
... okay, quick plot synopsis- semi-fantasty (Edo) period drama in the first major chunk followed by semi-sci-fi-with-the-earlier-mentioned stuff still going on and in the end you get a rather bad slap in the face that was still worth it
Haruhi Suzumiya- girl is God and doesn't know it. Keep girl entertained or not exist. Thumbs up x 10
Spirited Away- Alice in Wonderland eastern-style without the incoherentness and with a better plot
Dragon Ball (anime serieseseses)- over-the-top fighting with aliens and alien wannabe's. Can I fellate a gun now?
Princess Mononoke- what western fantasy films and novels aspire to be
(insert random girly show for good measure)- hey, it's a random girly show (for good measure)
I could go on, but I think that the point I have been attempting to reach is pretty obvious at this point; anime is as varied as anything else could be, regardless of how much *can* fit into any one category or stereotype it touches on every category and creates it own new ones (and is still lumped under the same name regardless).

 

[LordOmnit]

Having had a moment to think over my previous statements:
My close proximity to having seen the Utawarerumono series probably influenced my statements some.
Naruto isn't ninja-anything in anything but name only. It's action wank.