Are there any fans of Japanese anime here?

Lol that works too. I personally enjoy that order because you get the best possible introduction to almost all the main characters, the story (first main story episode), some of the best music in the series, and it leaves enough intrigue for you to go back and say “okay, how did these guys get together?” Imo, the first four episodes don’t really give you any backstory, so you just have these characters you know nothing about flying around doing cool stuff. And while some people like that, and may prefer the flow of not getting any real character development until episode 5, I think it starts you off on the best note possible. But whether you watch it in order or not, give it episode 5 and at least one more episode, preferably 6 (why I watch 6 before going back to 1) as that is the first episode that truly displays one of the things Cowboy Bebop does best, sufficiently developing arcs for side characters within a single episode. This is all just my opinion of course.

 

Very interesting movie that leaves you thinking. It didn't hit me strongly when I first watched it, but now that you've mentioned it I need to put it on my To-Watch List.

 

Yea but I don't know a lot about it. I have a couple of VCR tapes that are amazing.

 

It's definitely one of the best examples of alternate history/science fiction that I've seen.

 

Introduced my wife to Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon which is a 13-episode silly funny series about a dragon saved by a woman and then decides to take human form to live with her. Funny stuff ensues.

There are funny cutaways and the whole thing is just ridiculous. We have a handful of hearty laughs per episode.

Recommended if you like silly funny humor.

 

and for God's sake, don't touch the last 4 or so episodes until last.
The movie is best saved until after viewing the series.

 

I think it's best to watch it before seeing The Real Folk Blues.

 

I'm most interested in the early entries, like ASTRO BOY.

 

Okay, fair enough. I haven’t seen it in sequence with the series, so I was just taking a guess as to where it would fall chronologically.

 

You have to watch it a bit earlier than that actually.

 

Does One Punch Man count? I find that hilarious.

I'm from the Gigantor, Astro Boy, 8th Man generation, which I enjoyed because I was about 6 at the time. Apart from the Studio Ghibli movies there's not much that interests me in current anime, but I will admit I haven't taken the time to investigate much; I'd rather read the comics.

John K.

 

I just went ahead and ordered my first manga today. I bought Uzumaki, Gyo and Tomie deluxe editions by Junji Ito. As a huge fan of the horror genre I've heard nothing but great things about the twisted works of Junji Ito so hopefully they live up to the hype.

 

my granddaughter is really into anime

 

I think a lot of people have this misconception that anime is simply Japanese cartoons aimed at children like Tom & Jerry or Spongebob but in reality its simply another medium used by filmmakers to create great stories that people of all ages can enjoy. There are tons of anime with adult themes and intricate stories that not just your granddaughter but you yourself can enjoy. I highly recommend anime films from Studio Ghibli (which is like the Japanese counterpart to Pixar) like Spirited Away, Grave of the Fireflies, Princess Mononoke, Castle in the Sky, My Neighbor Totoro, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind etc. Also highly recommend Akira which is a sci-fi masterpiece with cyberpunk/dystopian themes.

 

Totally she lives in Hawaii. She regularly mails drawing of anime. She drew. Got them all over the fridge.

 

This reminds me of another anime that I enjoy: Dragon Half. Short story: A knight is sent by the King to kill a dragon but falls in love with her and marries her instead (the dragon can take human form). They have a child who is a dragon half (she said she was born of very strange circumstances). Her rival is a slime half (daughter of a King who married a slime who transformed into a human so that she could marry the king who looked a bit like a slime himself). Very funny video that has little problem with breaking the Fourth Wall (at one point in Episode Two, the dragon half pulls out a video tape of the first episode and watches to find out when she met her opponent [she hadn't]).

 

Some of my favorites include:

Full Metal Alchemist (orig. series)
Samurai Champloo
Beck
Elfen Lied
Sym-bionic Titan
Attack on Titan

to name a few.

 

My favorites:
Outlaw Star
Dragonball Z
Record of the Lodoss War
Cowboy Bebop
Yu-Gi-Oh
Pokemon
Porco Rosso
Laputa Castle in the Sky
Princess Mononoke
Lily C.A.T.
They Were Eleven

 

Absolutely. Sailor Moon was one of my gateway shows, along with Cowboy Bebop and Maicchingu Machiko-Sensei. Here's some anime that I'm either watching right now or already finished:

Ranma 1/2 - Probably my absolute favorite anime.
Maicchingu Machiko-Sensei - Very underrated. I tend to go and forth between this and Ranma being my favorite anime. This is where my avatar comes from BTW.
Lupin III - Part 1 is the best installment of the series IMO. Part 2 and 3 are great too, as are the first 2 movies.
Cowboy Bebop
Cutie Honey
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure - I'm only 7 episodes in, but each and every one was very enjoyable. Looking forward to seeing more.
Sailor Moon
Urusei Yatsura
Project A-ko
Full Metal Panic
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Agent Aika
Wedding Peach - It basically takes all the best and worst aspects of Sailor Moon and cranks them up to 11. Worth a watch.
Dirty Pair
Mobile Suit Gundam
Dragon Ball
Galaxy Express - I'm not too fond of it as I had no clue of how depressing it is. I'm just putting it here since I gave it the old college try.

 

Hi all,

I'm a little late here, but I got into anime back in 1978 without really knowing it. Battle of the Planets was an early, and continuing, favorite. So much so that I started a separate career because of it in the late 90s! It led to my enjoyment of other US translations, and their original counterparts for decades. Finding out that Battle was based on Gatchaman, and then a few years later the original versions of what became Robotech, got me to learn Japanese so I could enjoy the shows in their original context. Battle of the Planets was simply more compelling than most of the Hanna-Barbera and Filmation offerings from the same era. If anyone's curious, I maintain a site about Battle here: www.battleoftheplanets.info

Like many others, I'm sure, that early exposure got me into things like Speed Racer, Captain Harlock, Yamato, Magazone 23, Orguss, Xabungle, Area 88, Arion, Lensman, Nausicaa, Project A-Ko, Akira, Sailor Moon and the ever-popular "many, many more!" A lot of things up to about Cowboy BeBop. The industry and popular styles/character designs changed around that point and I lost interest. I didn't pay attention to many new shows for a while. I've been sampling a few recent things though, and there is a lot to discover.

It's cool to see a lot of old, familiar series and films mentioned here, as well as the memories connected to them. I lived in an area that got to see Battle, and Star Blazers every day. My friends and I were addicted to those shows and were always at one another's houses watching so we could go out and play "G-Force" or whatever afterward.

Thanks for the fun thread!

 

That's really cool, thanks for sharing! I've never seen Battle of the Planets or Gatchaman but just checked out a few clips on youtube and immediately focused on the big bang jazz/jazz-funk music since its really good. Some of my favourite space themed anime are Planetes, Cowboy Bebop, Mobile Suit Gundam and Terra Formars. Do you read manga too or are you mainly into anime?

 

Hi,

Yes, The music from Gatchaman (and Battle's additions by Hoyt Curtin) are highlights of many fans. Fun, energetic stuff that was definitely of its time. The Japanese composer (Bob Sakuma) was heavily influenced by Chicago.

I recently finished watching the US Blu-ray releases of the original Mobile Suit Gundam and I think it still holds up as a good start for that franchise. I haven't seen Planetes. What stands out about it for you?

I do read manga from time to time. A few memorable ones have been Death Note, Zipang, What's Michael?, Kimi no Iru Machi, Beck, Appleseed, Terra Formars coincidentally, although I haven't finished the last volume I have yet, and sure to be a popular choice for the forum Boku wa Beatles. I hope you enjoy your recent purchases! I haven't really read a lot of horror titles, I wish I could recommend some to you.

 

I guess manga discussion can be posted in here as well? I'm a bit disappointed hearing that Junji Ito Collection seems to be a mediocre adaptation of his work. Adapting his work seems to be impossible to get right. Also, this episode of Urasawa Naoki no Manben with him is great

 

Nice, apart from horror manga like Junji Ito's stuff Im also very interested in Seinen manga (manga for adult men) like Vagabond, Vinland Saga, Berserk, Parasyte, 20th Century Boys, Monster, Lone Wolf & Cub and Blade of the Immortal. Currently reading the Goodnight Punpun series, a very dark/depressing slice of life manga. Vagabond is probably my favourite series ever. It has the best art I've ever seen in a manga and the story is brilliant. Its a shame that its creator Takehiko Inoue has been on hiatus for a few years now.

What I love about Planetes is that its such an unconventional story for a sci-fi series revolving around a team that removes dangerous junk from space. I won't go into more detail because I highly recommend you watch the anime or read the manga.

 

Sure, feel free to post stuff about manga here. Yeah I heard that the Junji Ito Collection wasn't scary at all and actually had quite a bit of humour in it. Thanks for the youtube link.