- Rounoni Kenshin Reminiscence OVA. It's great and only lasts for 2 hours. Can't go wrong with it.
- Trigun is also a great choice, funny as hell first half and then becomes more and more serious. Rabu ando piiiiis!!!
- Neon Genesis Evangelion is my favorite anime of all times, but the subject is quite heavy and it gets really really sick in the end. It's a mecha story, but also the biggest mindfuck in history. Every single character in that anime is mad, love it. They're also remaking it into movies, so good choice if you want to see great graphics.
- Last Exile has splendid graphics and design and a simple story. The graphics style is far from the normal ANIKI anime, so its easy to feel different from your fat otaku neighbor
- Full Metal Alchemist, the original series, becomes weird at some point but rallies with a superb part just before the end. A splendid choice.
- Naruto, I'm guessing you've seen it already, but if not, the first 100 episodes of the original series are really really good.
- Ghost In The Shell series 1, better than both movies put together, the finale is an intellectual orgasm
- Full Metal Panic Fumoffu: downright the best parody you'll come across. Don't worry about the plot but be careful not to drink soda while watching it, you'll paint your walls with mucus. Some episodes, like the Bath and the Rugby episodes will leave you with stomach ache from so much laughter.
- Elfen Lied, as stated before, we love it for a reason, but I have to say, no other anime has so much sexual abuse as this one at its core. Boring first 5 episodes, great from then on.
- Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien, possibly the best romance anime you can find, mainly because the protagonists have sex within the first 2 episodes and it's overall more mature than Demi Moore. Watch it with your partner and don't forget the tissues.
- 5 centimeters per second: a short movie, one hour long, hope you still have those tissues.
- Most Studio Ghibli's movies: Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Totoro, Laputa Caste in the Sky, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, but the best choice to start with and impress your parents is Grave of the Fireflies. And bring more tissues, but this time for real, cause you are going to cry, a lot!
- Berserk, the best story ever told. Although... the animation was quite bad, you might want to wait for the new release starting in 2012. Also take a look at the manga, it's the most violent one I've seen yet, superbly drawn.
- Chobits is also great, but you're better off reading the manga, as they cute-messed the ending in the anime. If you think you know where the story is going after the first episode (volume), you're BADLY mistaking
Splendid story, splendid idea.
- Cowboy Beebop: lots of fillers, but possibly the best anime ever made. Superb design, superb main characters, some of the episodes are jaw-smackingly good. The ending was just... pure poetry.
- Monster: 70 or so episodes featuring the best police thriller you can find. It's quite similar to Death Note so you'll feel right at home. Make time to see it cause you will always want to see the next episode
- Jin-Roh, The Wolf Brigade: great movie, you'll instantly fall in love with those minigun wielding red eyes armor suit (wow, long description) policemen.
Guess that's enough for now, happy hunting.
