I did warn you I was a snob. "Mental capacity of a twelve year old" might be harsh, but I am really sick of the prevalence and dominant popularity of these mass-produced, serialized and overall uninteresting anime, and yes I have watched each one I've claimed to be such.
Anime I would defend? Death Note was clever but unfortunately I found Yagami Light really annoying as a character. Code Geass I liked for its revolutionary politics, though I haven't watched Season 2 yet. Full Metal Alchemist had both heart and darkness, elements which I really appreciated, and that goes double for Brotherhood, I might not watch the first series again due to the epicness of Brotherhood.
Other Anime I would defend and recommend are: Lain, Texhnolyze, Mushi-shi, Withch Hunter Robin, Ergo Proxy, Gankutsuou, Last Exile, anything of Ghost in the Shell, Samurai Champloo, Wolf's Rain, Speed Grapher, Beck, Fooly Cooly, Infinite Ryvius, Crest of the Stars, Haibane Renmei, Patlabor 1 & 2, Sky Crawlers, Jin-Roh, Eureka 7, His and Her Circumstances, Crest of the Stars and Banner of the Stars.
All of these are top notch anime in my opinion (though admittedly in no particular order). Take your pick
Oh, and no, the fact that Naruto starts off at age 12 means nothing to me. There are plenty of narratives both animated and otherwise that are directed at audiences that include 12 year olds that don't suck! (ie: anything by Miyazaki!)
