Anime & Manga

[Raven]

I'll name what I've watched/read, along with my personal rating beside it.

Myself:

Watched:

Groove Adventure Rave

* * * *

Awesome anime, but it wasn't finished, sadly. But the manga was.

Love Hina

* * * * *

Good humour, funny to watch. They should create more episodes of this.

Death Note

* * * *

Great anime, but drags on a bit too much, I think.

Digimon Savers (Digimon Series 5)

* * * *

More mature than the other series of Digimon, worth watching if you're into Digimon.

Lucky Star

* * * * *

Absolutely hilarious and funny, and cute. A little too short for my liking, but that's ok because it's complete, and funny.

Yu Yu Hakusho

* * * * *

Over 100 episodes, great battles, good storyline too. Watch this.

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

* * * * *

Ace anime. Very funny and not so down to earth, which is great. Watch this too. I believe more episodes will be made.

Last watched:

Kanon - Episode 5

* * * *

I've got the basic plot of this, I think. But I need to watch more to really know what's going on, and to enjoy it even more. Going good so far though.

Read:

Got no Manga, unfortunately.

What anime/manga has everyone else seen/read? You don't have to do what I did of course, just list the names, unless you want to give your opinion otherwise.

[uguu]

This post never happened bro

Edited October 3, 2009 by The mightiest of all boats

[Wist]

Anime:

- Air (13 episodes) - Air (sometimes referred to as Air TV), based off of a game of the same name (there is also a movie adaptation), centers on a young puppeteer (I would venture a guess that he is in his late teens or early twenties), Yukito, searching for "the girl in the sky," a task passed down his family for generations. Upon arriving in the town in which the story takes place, he comes in contact multiple potential candidates who might fit the aforementioned status; all of these girls have bizarre personality quirks, the origins of which are revealed when their respective character's history is uncovered. Air involves magic as an important (but not overtly present) theme and spends a fair amount of time dealing with emotionally heart-wrenching maternal relationships. If this fact is of any help, the Air visual novel was developed by the same team which produced Kanon; I must, however, admit that I have neither watched nor read Kanon so I cannot provide an accurate representation of any similarities between the two stories. If you enjoy emotional stories then I would recommend you look into this.

- Cowboy Bebop (26 episodes) - Cowboy Bebop details the story of a small group of bounty hunters late in the twenty-first century. The anime is a work of science fiction but it incorporates elements of mid-twentieth jazz movements (most episodes, if not every episode, is named after a jazz song or album and many fighting scenes are timed to jazz and rock music). In regard to the story, humanity has spread out into multiple colonies, primarily on planets and moons, due to a particular incident which left much of the Earth uninhabitable. The plot of the series itself is lacking in that each episode tends to follow a particular character's life or history; the focus is on the characters themselves, and their personal interactions with others, more than an overarching plot line. If a concrete story is incredibly important to you, despite excellent characterization, then you may wish to pass on Cowboy Bebop.

- Elfen Lied (13 episodes + 1 OVA) - Elfen Lied is gruesome, violent, and oft includes nudity (the first episode is by far the worst culprit of the aforementioned elements). The anime (and the manga from which the anime's story was derived) involves a woman, Lucy, who escaped a special research facility off of the Japanese coast. This woman is a diclonius, a being who appears to be a potential next stage of human evolution. Diclonius appear to have telekinetic abilities (invisible 'arms' which protrude from their backs can be used to interact with their immediate vicinity, they are immensely strong and are sometimes used for severing the limbs of others)... and can be distinguished by small horns on their heads; diclonius also see humans as a lesser race. Upon her escape, Lucy suffered a head injury and was washed up on shore with apparently severe brain damage. She is discovered, and housed, by two university students. Henceforth she suffers from a horrifically acute sense of bipolarity, different triggers result in her switching between her intelligent ultra-violent persona and her innocent clueless persona. As I mentioned before, Elfen Lied is violent and gruesome. Some people find it ingenious and justified by the story while others find it to be rubbish worth skipping, I do not know how to predict who would fall into which camp (excepting those who find blood discomforting, there is a lot of blood in Elfen Lied).

- FLCL (6 episodes) - FLCL is a coming of age story about a twelve year old boy who comes in contact with a Vespa riding alien with a guitar. FLCL is intended to be humorous and it was very much an experimental work (it was also produced by Gainax, the studio famous for introducing Neon Genesis Evangelion). If you wish for further information I would recommend you read the Wikipedia article; I cannot form an effective explanation which does the show any justice. FLCL is funny but a bit inane and immature.

- Fullmetal Alchemist (51 episodes) - Fullmetal Alchemist takes place in a world in which alchemy became a dominant science as opposed to physics. Alchemists can manipulate matter and energy to transmute materials and elements at will to fix that which has been broken or create something entirely new; they are confined, however, by the law of conservation of matter (referred to as Equivalent Exchange). It is not until late in the anime (sometime after it branches off from its manga source material) that the apparent lack of adherence to the law of conservation of energy is justified. The story starts with two alchemists, brothers named Edward and Alphonse, who are partially self-taught alchemists of great proficiency. They hope to confront alchemy's biggest taboo, the creation of human life, by attempting to resurrect their deceased mother. The attempt fails and Edward loses and arm and a leg and Al loses his entire body (Edward manages to attach Al's soul to a suit of armor). They thus set forth on a search for the mythical philosopher's stone which is fabled to allow an alchemist to bypass the law of Equivalent Exchange. I thoroughly enjoyed Fullmetal Alchemist when I first watched it but have since become less enamored. The story is definitely worthwhile but it is long.

- Genshiken (13 episodes) - Genshiken is about a group of otaku at a university. The anime is comedic and makes numerous references to the sorts of hobbies that an otaku would likely have interest in. I do not think I would be considered an otaku but I am well informed enough to have picked up many of the references made; someone who is not well familiar with anime and games would probably do well to avoid Genshiken for a while. I have not watched the second season, Genshiken 2.

- Gunslinger Girl (13 episodes) - Gunslinger Girl is about an Italian government agency which rehabilitates select severely injured girls for the sake of making them into assassins; these girls are oft augmented by cybernetic enhancements. Much like Cowboy Bebop, the overarching plot is not as important as the focus on the individual characters. I am personally familiar with the city of Rome so I enjoyed noticing different landmarks and tourist attractions which were mentioned or otherwise made use of in Gunslinger Girl. The concept of child exploitation is a huge concern in this anime. I am under the impression that many people found Gunslinger Girl to be boring, hopefully one should be able to determine if this is the case after watching the first one or two episodes.

- The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi (13 episodes) - This anime is about a girl named Suzumiya Haruhi (or Haruhi Suzumiya, depending on whether you prefer the surname before or after the first name) who, unbeknownst to her, has the power to recreate the universe if she becomes bored. The creates a club called the SOS Brigade which seeks mysterious or suspicious happenings which, again unknown to her, includes an alien, an esper, and a time traveler (as well as a normal high school boy, the protagonist, Kyon) intent on ensuring that Haruhi is never bored lest she destroy the universe. The anime is both puerile and ecchi, but not lascivious in any sense. If you are turned off by immaturity then you may wish to avoid this franchise, for everyone else, it is quite funny (funny due to silliness more than anything else, I think).

- Neon Genesis Evangelion (26 episodes) - Neon Genesis Evangelion starts off with a focus on giant robots fighting against bizarre alien entities called angels and with a continually increasing focus on the psychological stability of many of the show's characters as the series presses forward. Its director relapsed into a depression while working on Evangelion which likely contributed to this change of focus. Evangelion is a very interesting watch; were somebody with a newfound interest in anime to approach me for suggestions, Neon Genesis Evangelion would be my first recommendation.

- Shakugan no Shana (24 episodes) - Shakugan no Shana takes place in a world in which monsters called tomogara secretly consume the life force of people; human beings are never aware of this occurring. Soldiers called flame haze dedicate their lives to fighting tomogara and replacing the lives of those whose life force has been eaten with beings called torches. Torches act as a shock barrier for humans and quickly fade out of existence leaving no trace that the original person ever existed. The main character, Yuji, is one such torch, but he has the ability to move within the realm cast by tomogara and flame haze which leads one particular flame haze he dubs Shana to explain his condition to him. Yuji, however, is special in that his life energy is replenished every night which prevents him from winking out of existence. I found the underlying concept of this story fascinating but I must admit that the focus slowly drifts away from the peculiarities of Yuji's position and towards a weird love polygon which develops between the major characters. I have not watched the second season, Shakugan no Shana II.

Manga:

- Akagi (ongoing) - Akagi is a manga about a young but incredibly proficient Mahjong gambler. It is still being written but I have long since stopped reading it, I dislike very long stories.... I will not pretend that I can make any suggestions as to who would and would not enjoy this manga (If such information is of any relevance, I myself do not gamble).

- Death Note (108 chapters) - Death Note has an extraordinarily intriguing beginning and an excellent initial story arc. I do, however, profess myself disappointed by what appeared to be a continual reduction in the quality and credibility of the story after the first story arc ended (much like was my impression of Shakugan no Shana). I have not watched the anime so I do not know if the aforementioned concern was in any way addressed by it; if you are interested in the anime I would urge you to trust the opinion of someone who has watched it over my impression of the story. One might perhaps do well to read the first story arc and then read a summary of the rest of the manga....

I have watched some other anime but I excluded those which I did not complete or suspect no-one here will recognize. Fullmetal Alchemist is the longest series I have managed to watch in its entirety. As I mentioned in my very brief explanation of Akagi, I normally prefer relatively short stories.

Edit (26.03.2008): I added descriptions for each anime and manga in accordance with The Fourth Fox's request.

Edit (01.04.2008): I described Shakugan no Shana as being comprised of twenty-six episodes. The correct number of episodes is twenty-four, this has been corrected.

[Admiral "Bull" Halsey]

I've mostly watched animes. My top 5 are:

1: The melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

2: Rozen Maiden

3: Gundam Seed/Gundam Seed Destiny

4: Great Teacher Onizuka

5: Samurai Champloo

[Fireman]

I didn't completely finish all of these.

I've read:

Naruto

Bleach

Rurouni Kenshin

I've watched:

Bleach

Blood+

Death Note

Digimon

FLCL

Fullmetal Alchemist

Naruto

Pokemon

Rave Master

Rurouni Kenshin

Samurai Champloo

Trinity Blood

Yu Yu Hakusho

Those are just the ones off the top of my head.

[Blue Wind]

I'm currently watching Gintama and Gundam 00.

I already gave up watching Naruto and Bleach's anime.

[Admiral "Bull" Halsey]

I already gave up watching Naruto and Bleach's anime.

I gave up watching Naruto ever since Sasuke left Konoha. The only reason what got me into Naruto was Sasuke. He was my favorite character, plus he's way cooler than Naruto. But since he left I started to get pretty sore about the series thats how I gave up watching Naruto. As for Bleach...neh its alright its just that I don't have the time to watch it. Plus, I like short animes series more. <_<

[Florete]

Finished watching/reading:

Rurouni Kenshin. 11/10. Best manga ever. That's all

Love Hina. 9/10. Amazingly funny. Crappy ending. Read it, the dub sucks

Buso Renkin. 7/10. Good story, cheesy characters. Ending was too rushed.

Death Note. 10/10. Totally amazing. Great characters, great story.

.Hack Legend of the Twilight. 7.5/10. Not what an MMORPG is actually like.

A.I. Love You. 8/10. Funny, but not enough characters or volumes to make use of the scenes.

Dragonball. 8/10. We all know this one

Yu-gi-oh. 7/10. Choppy. Not much relation to past events/

Currently watching/reading:

Naruto. 9.5/10. Great story no matter what anyone says. Good character development, funny and actiony.

Bleach. 10/10. Once again, thrilling storyline and great characters.

Negima. 9.5/10. Compared to Akamatsu's other works (Love Hina, A.I. Love You), it has a great story backed by hilarious moments.

Black Cat. 8/10. A bit unbelievable at parts, but a good story nonetheless.

One Piece. 8/10. Funny, if slightly cheesy, story. Usopp is a pansy.

Blood +. 7/10. Saya's hair is too short.

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. 9/10. It's freakin' hilarious, but extremely weird.

Kanon. 10/10. Don't know what to say about it. It's just really good. However, I've decided to wait until the DVD's are released in English.

Started, didn't get a chance to finish/continue. I won't rate them. I mean, I didn't even want to finish some, so.....I'll put a star* if it was good.

Dragonball Z

I.D. Entity*

D.N.Angel

Yuyu Hakusho

Shaman King

Elemental Gelade*

Chibi Vampire

Inuyasha

Yu-gi-oh Duelist*

Pokemon. (Way too cheesy)

Full-Metal Alchemist

[鳴美]

Watched:

Kanto and part of Johto for Pokemon.

Lucky Star

Dragon Ball Z, up until the 'Over 9000' thing.

Happiness!(don't ask >.>)

Rozen Maiden

[Celice]

While really dislike any anima or manga, Last Exile is one of the better things I've seen, with a good musical score and story. Magical Shopping Arcade Abenabashi or however it's spelled was also an alright one :/

[Enn]

I've seen so much I've actually kept a list: http://myanimelist.net/animelist/Enn&s...s=2&order=0

Yeah, I'm not proud on that.

You people though, as Fire Emblem fans, owe it to yourself to watch Berserk (in Japanese, yeah?). It's like an animated and very mature version of FE. The manga is even better, considered by many even to be the best.

As Fourth Fox listed: Rurouni Kenshin manga was very good too.

[Phoenix_Kensai]

My anime list...

http://myanimelist.net/animelist/Phoenix_Kensai

Out of everything I've seen, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Twelve Kingdoms are probably my favorite, with .Hack//SIGN being pretty close as well.

I've also read a little of the Fullmetal Alchemist and Rurouni Kenshin mangas, though not enough to really be worth mentioning.

At the moment, I'm also watching Spice and Wolf, though I haven't really felt up to watching any more episodes recently... it does seem like a pretty good anime, though probably not something everyone would enjoy.

[Florete]

I've also read a little of the Fullmetal Alchemist and Rurouni Kenshin mangas, though not enough to really be worth mentioning.

You heathen! Ruro Ken is the best manga in the history of the universe!

[Phoenix_Kensai]

Sorry, I didn't mean it like that. >_>

I did like Rurouni Kenshin a lot, really, it's just that I don't really have the money to buy much manga, and I don't particularly like reading it on the computer.

[CGV]

watched:

DBZ

yu gi oh

one piece

Naruto

Pokemon

I think thats it

havent read anything. i hate reading

[Florete]

Sorry, I didn't mean it like that. >_>

I did like Rurouni Kenshin a lot, really, it's just that I don't really have the money to buy much manga, and I don't particularly like reading it on the computer.

Oh, ok. I understand that, I've been there.

[Enn]

Berserk, people.

[Zephrion]

Notable Animes I've watched are...

Bleach

Naruto (Though I've decided to stop actively watching it until the fillers are done.)

Fullmetal Alchemist

D-Gray Man

.hack//SIGN

.hack//Roots

Yuyu Hakusho (Haven't watched this since Toonami stopped airing it, but I really want to start watching it again...)

Samurai Jack (I consider it an anime, even though it was produced in America. Can't wait until AS starts airing it.)

Samurai Champloo

These are just off the top of my head... There's probably a bunch more.

I don't read much Manga, as I lack the funds to purchase them.

[Florete]

I know Teen Titans wasn't anime, but it was similar and a dman good show. It's a shame it got canceled when it did.

[Raven]

I just finished watching Kanon. It's the first anime to emotionally move me. Scratch that, the first of anything I've watched to emotionally move me. And it takes alot, so watch Kanon.

[Admiral "Bull" Halsey]

When I first watch Yu-Gi-Oh on KidsWB I thought it would be a complete rip-off verison of Cardcaptors at first glanced. Whats ironic was Yu-Gi-Oh seris was first aired after Cardcaptors series ended. It was kinda funny to me lol.

[Phoenix_Kensai]

Berserk, people.

I just finished watching Kanon. It's the first anime to emotionally move me. Scratch that, the first of anything I've watched to emotionally move me. And it takes alot, so watch Kanon.

Well, I'll have to add those to my list... I was planning to finish Spice and Wolf before I start on anything else, though.

[Raven]

Well, I'll have to add those to my list... I was planning to finish Spice and Wolf before I start on anything else, though.

There's two versions of Kanon. There's the 2002 version, then there's the 2006 remake. I watched the 2006 version.

[Wist]

I just finished watching Kanon. It's the first anime to emotionally move me. Scratch that, the first of anything I've watched to emotionally move me. And it takes alot, so watch Kanon.

The anime Air was the first form of visual media to draw forth such an emotional reaction from me. Interestingly, Air and Kanon are both based off of visual novels, of the same names respectively, developed by Key. I will definitely consider buying Kanon when I next have a fair expanse of free time. I own the PSP version of the game but I have yet to be inspired to set aside the time to play it. It is good to learn that you found the story to be meritorious.

[Raven]

The anime Air was the first form of visual media to draw forth such an emotional reaction from me. Interestingly, Air and Kanon are both based off of visual novels, of the same names respectively, developed by Key. I will definitely consider buying Kanon when I next have a fair expanse of free time. I own the PSP version of the game but I have yet to be inspired to set aside the time to play it. It is good to learn that you found the story to be meritorious.

Indeed, I found it...I can't find a word to explain properly. But even now, thinking about the things that had happened in the anime makes me feel sad, upset even. I don't know how, but it finds a way to emotionally attach you to the characters, and despite it being just an anime, it still finds a way to hit a nerve.

I've just started watching an anime called Clannad, which I saw advertised at the end of the last episode of Kanon. Watching episode two now. I'll let people know how it is.

But Kanon, I will advise to anyone to watch. Or play, since it's a game too. I would buy the DVD box set of the 2006 version, but I need a multi-region DVD player since it appears to be only released in America. Also, my bank account wouldn't like it, not yet anyway.