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Andrew
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Last Active 04-18-16 6:49 am
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 Lists
09.03.14 Privacy04.15.14 Anime You Should (must) Watch
03.24.14 Clannad And Clannad: After Story03.13.14 Albums That Age Well
02.27.14 11 Great Albums You (probably) Haven't ♦02.25.14 Lyrics
02.23.14 Toby Driver Full Lengths02.19.14 Great Closing/final Tracks
02.17.14 Pick What I Review Next02.16.14 Great First Tracks
02.13.14 Favourite Albums From Artists01.20.14 I Want To Review One Of These. Pick One
01.18.14 Studio Ghibli Movies01.06.14 Mystery Fiction
04.13.12 Post-metal This Year03.12.12 Mediafire Ain't Like It Used To Be

Anime You Should (must) Watch

I'm Andrew and I like anime (I'm always down for recommendations too). There are plenty of misconceptions that it's just porn, or that it's nothing but mindless violence, or more commonly some sort of vile combination of the two. That's not the case, and I'm sure a good handful of you guys know that too. So for those of you who may think that, or for those of you just getting into it, here are five series that I think you need to see before you dismiss anime as "just sex and/or violence" or can maybe maintain your interest in the medium. They are ranked regarding how essential I believe they are for viewing, and take into account my own personal enjoyment as well as my objective belief concerning their value as expositional series.
6UneXpecT
In a Flesh Aquarium

Cowboy Bebop: Easy to get into and easy to get out of. This episodic series is one
of the most popular western anime series to ever hit the screen for a really good
reason. It has a stunning cast, some outstanding writing, startling coherence in
spite of its episodic nature, and a habit of sticking its nose into just about anything
a viewer could imagine. Be it classic noir, goofy western, touching romance, thrilling
action, or basically anything else, Cowboy Bebop takes a piece of everything and
shoves it all into one series in a way that is positively guaranteed to resonate with
its audience somewhere. Whether it's the haunting reality of the past, the
mysteriousness of the future, the value of ambition or basically ANYTHING ELSE,
Cowboy Bebop is apt to address it and of course be wildly entertaining in the
process. Timeless art, unique plots, eccentric cast, and thematic diversity, Cowboy
Bebop is something that is more likely than any other series to flip your opinion of
what anime is by the time it's over. Link to Cowboy Bebop:
http://myanimelist.net/anime/1/Cowboy_Bebop
5The Mars Volta
The Bedlam In Goliath

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann: What do you get when you combine huge mechs,
pubescent teenage boys, big chested women and the fate of all life in the
universe? You get drills. Lots of drills. So many drills. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
(TTGL) is a show that ramps everything from sex appeal to mech-driven action up
to a 10 in the first few episodes and just keeps cranking the knob from there.
There's probably not enough space in the known universe to contain the amount of
sheer insanity in this show, but it's done so in a way that is never too childish to
enjoy and keeps you cheering on your screen. While it may seem goofy and fueled
by testosterone (it is), it still finds the time to have effective emotional climaxes
and touch on themes of growing up and believing in yourself. What TTGL lacks in
thematic depth or psychological whatchamacallit is made up for by its charming
spirit and delightfully refreshing sense of style and "HELL YEAH!" factor. If there is a
"popcorn anime" it is undoubtedly this one. So strap yourself in sooner than later
and get ready for a story faster than light, larger than life, and happier to be alive
than that dog that just got a hold of your newest pair of shoes, because this is one
story you won't soon forget. Link to Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann:
http://myanimelist.net/anime/2001/Tengen_Toppa_Gurren_Lagann
4Spiral Architect
A Sceptic's Universe

Steins;Gate: Trends come and go, and a trend these days is time travel. But there
is a huge difference between a story that HAS time travel, and a story that is
ABOUT time travel. Using time travel as a means to lay the foundation for setting,
conflict, and characters is one thing. Somebody gets sent backwards or forwards in
a timeline, deals with whatever problems arise given the context, return to the
original time, and then the story is over. A fourth grader could probably write a
story like this without too many inconsistencies. However, a story ABOUT time
travel is much different. What happens when instead of just going there and back,
there is traveling forwards, and backwards, and back again, and then back again,
each time changing a little bit and sometimes changing nothing? Writing a story like
that without any inconsistencies is nigh impossible, and Steins;Gate is no
exception... but it comes close. Using time travel as a central point to its
masterfully woven plot, Steins;Gate features an unstoppably strong cast of
characters that find ways to toy with time and space while still furthering the
strength of an already magnificent story along the way. Success and failure, fate,
power, and simply life are all key themes to the series and it handles each of these
with such ease in its engaging narrative that it's almost unbelievable. Science-
fiction fans will feel right at home with this one, and likely impressed too. Even non-
fans will likely find something in the series to love. I must say that spoilers for this
show are positively devastating, as they more than likely affect more than one
piece of the story due to the nature of its nnarrative. It has a common criticism
that the first half or so of the series is unbearably slow, but personally I felt that
each episode from 1-24 flew by; though I did also watch all of them in one sitting.
Too good to miss, you would be doing yourself a disservice to not give this series a
chance and immerse yourself in the universe that it so effortlessly constructs. A
show about smart people, for smart people, and even those who think they are
smart people, this is something that you will either really love or really like, and at
the very least enjoy. Link to Steins;Gate:
http://myanimelist.net/anime/9253/Steins;Gate
3Primordial
To The Nameless Dead

Fate/Zero: Broken up into two seasons, Fate/Zero manages to combine an
awesome plot with a stellar ensemble cast of characters. Lots of characters. Like
ten main characters. In a War that transcends the barriers of time itself, some of
the greatest warriors in history gather to do battle for the Holy Grail and the ability
to have any wish granted, alongside their master. Though the first episode is a
horribly long expositional episode that essentially outlines the complex structure and
mythology surrounding such an event, things pick up afterwards and rarely find a
chance to slow down. Action is aplenty in this series and combat scenes are
beautifully animated, but what really makes the show shine is the strength of its
cast. Each character is blessed with his or her own philosophy, and these
conflicting world views can create battles through banter as intriguing as any
physical one. Power, loyalty, and religion are all explored in this series and serve as
themes that not only the series deals with, but its characters deal with as well. By
the end of the series, nobody really turns out to be more or less wrong than the
others. There is a brilliant equilibrium present amongst the characters' ideologies
even though the viewer may fixate on one or be completely averse to another,
making this an easy show to discuss on all levels and an enjoyable one too. If a
battle amongst history's greatest warriors along with a battle of wits and
philosophies buddied with magic, swordsmanship, and magical swordsmanship
doesn't interest you, then I guess you'll be skipping this one. Link to Fate/Zero S1:
http://myanimelist.net/anime/10087/Fate/Zero
2Thrice
Major/Minor

Clannad: Clannad and Clannad: After Story are - combined - one of the most if not
the most emotional stories I've experienced so far. It tells a fairly ordinary story
with hints of the supernatural, but overall is a relatively simple narrative. Easy to
start and heart-wrenching to finish, this series tries its best to take you on an
emotional roller coaster as it delves into the meaning of family and what it means to
love and to forgive. Though the character design may be a bit much for some at
first, it's a widely accepted notion that viewers will likely grow accustomed to it
after a few episodes. Talking about this series is rather difficult, as its best
moments are spoilers that could positively ruin the experience of the series. But
what can be said about it without spoiling anything is that though it may start off a
bit slow for some people's liking, it establishes one of the most well-developed
protagonists the medium has seen in a believable, organic fashion absent from many
other stories, anime or not. Accompanied with great visual work and a beautiful
soundtrack, this series does an outstanding job at conveying genuinely emotional
scenes and leaving its mark visually and audibly. Truly an outstanding
accomplishment in storytelling, Clannad and Clannad: After Story manage to take
what would ordinarily be an unexciting story and tell it in a way such that viewers
care about everything that happens on screen. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and for
people new or beginning to watch anime, this is the one you simply cannot miss out
on. Link to Clannad (warning: the MyAnimeList page for Clannad: After Story
contains minor spoilers itself): http://myanimelist.net/anime/2167/Clannad
1maudlin of the Well
bath

Monogatari: This is my recommendation for people experienced with anime (I would say
that the checklist to get the most out of this franchise is a dedicated romance series,
action series, comedy series, and then any arc-based series; this is only a
recommendation though, you can watch this whenever you feel like it I suppose).
Beginning with Bakemonogatari, the Monogatari franchise has another OVA (original video
animation) series on its way for May 31st with its most recent series ending at the end of
December 2013. It is a series is full of self-aware characters and explores a variety of
themes such as what it means to save somebody and coming to terms with reality
through unique characters, multifaceted dialogue, shot composition, and arc-based
storytelling. For those of you well-versed in Japanese history and/or the language, you
will find lots of intriguing complexities in the dialogue as the series plays with kanji and
words in a way to create comedy, meaning, and plenty more. Or you're like me and you
just read about those kinds of things from people that have that ability. While many would
call it "slow" due to its lack of a lot of actual on-screen action, those that revel in rich
dialogue and enjoy disjointed narratives will feel more or less at home with this. My
personal favourite series, this is something that I believe every anime fan must watch and
is a crowning example of what the medium is capable of in terms of characterization,
storytelling, and thematic expression. Link to Bakemonogatari:
http://myanimelist.net/anime/5081/Bakemonogatari
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