Forum - View topicYet another suggestion thread
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morsmaestro
 Posts: 172 Location: Sacramento |
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I never thought I would need some suggestions for a new anime to watch but I'm kind of stuck.
Basically, what I like in anime: Above all, I like drama. Crying is good. I liked FMA because it tells a good, dramatic story, with a few complex characters, dealt with many aspects of life and society (government, religion, oppression, ethics, personal vs the greater good, family), and it had deeper meanings in it, something more to be seen below the surface, the messages that affect you. I liked the character development and growth throughout the story. I liked the darker aspects, like the secret research within the military for the inhumane. There's always some secret to be revealed, more things to be found. I liked Last Exile because of the drama; I cried a few times. I liked how it showed the soul of the simple people, and how inventive it was in creating the setting, its social and economic conditions, its technology. I liked the grandeur of the series, and the art style. Really great artwork. I loved the characters in Samurai Champloo. Each of the characters is multi-faceted and the viewer learns more about them throughout the story, not just get to their core the first few episodes and play that out the rest of the time. I like how they all had a past to be discovered, and that they all had trouble dealing with their pasts. I also liked how it showed the history and culture in the setting--interesting stuff. I like the drama and the messages in Trigun, how it showed so many things about human nature and life, how the characters of Vash and Wolfwood are developed. I have liked all of the studio Ghibli movies I have watched. I loved the straight drama of Grave of the Fireflies, the one anime I cried the most over. I loved the message in Whisper of the Heart, and how it just feels good to watch it. I liked His and Her Circumstances because of the messages, its touching on many subjects, the great story, the character development, But I didn't like the constant recaps, the irrelevant details put in. I liked the many different styles of art put in, sketch art, threshold art (for all who know what that means--sorry for jargon), still life, B&W, the list goes on. The closest anime to what I'm looking for would be Haibane Renmei. Besides my main point (which I'll get to), I liked that Haibane Renmei was really dramatic, had beautiful artwork, told a great story, I liked the religious and psychological aspects of it, and the way it made you think. But mainly--not because of the psychological aspects of it that is so emphasized--but because of the deep character development and drama it creates. What really got to me in this series is the depth in the characters, especially Reki. The characters are more 'real' than any other anime I have seen. It really affected me in showing the depth of the human soul, elaborate internal conflict, the drama created within the suffering of extreme emotional distress. The characters could be seen from all angles, and the viewer could sometimes see more into a character than the other characters did. They didn't always think straight, or have the best of morals, and they didn't know themselves--they couldn't see into their own soul even if they touched the others' around them, and thats what makes it true to human nature. So I'm looking for a dramatic anime, with good character development, emotional impact, deeper meaning and messages, and that tells a good story. Will take any genre, but... I'm not too interested in Mechas, mainly because its not realistic. Not too interested in fantasy either. I like romance. I don't care about the distinction between shounen/shoujo. The genres of Action and comedy are good if it has the drama I'm looking for. I'm looking for substance. While I'm at it, it's about time I make my lists public... animenewsnetwork.com/MyAnime/index.php?user=morsmaestro I'm definitely getting Now and Then, Here and There, so don't bother with that, and I've been looking into Rurouni Kenshin (TV & OVA) and Kimagure Orange Road a bit. I have a list of anime I might possibly find interesting; based on the above, do you think I'd like: Wolf's Rain, Samurai 7, Mushishi, Serial Experiments Lain, Scrapped Princess, Elfen Lied, Akira. Opinions on those would be great I haven't seen many subs, so I'm looking mainly for dubs at the moment, but that's not too important. I have looked through the favorites thread, but getting solid information there is a little difficult. So... |
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opaquescum
Posts: 235 |
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Your tastes seem to be inline with my own so I will give you a link to one of my request for recommendation threads. Like you I really enjoyed Haibane Remnei. In this thread I got a few really good recommendations as to what was similar. I followed many of these recommendations, and can say I was not disappointed.
animenewsnetwork.com/bbs/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=21847&highlight=gantz Hope that can help you out. |
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LydiaDianne
 Posts: 5634 Location: Southern California |
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Ahhh. I'm not sure if what I'm about to suggest will float your boat, but I'll give it a try.
Fushigi Yugi - This is about Mika Yuki and her friend Yui Hongo who go to the National Library, wind up in the rare book room reading a book  and somehow both are sucked into the book. Yui makes it out of the book and for about 1/3 of the story is in a way the Narrator (the other 2/3s is Mika's brother, Keisuke). Mika stays behind and becomes the Priestess of Suzaku, who must make 3 wishes, hopefully using them to save the country against the evil clutches of another country. Part of the first half is Mika looking for and finding the Warriors to help her make the three wishes. The second half is much darker. Yui re-enters the book, becomes the Priestess for the enemy, becomes Mika's enemy, etc...Mika and her crew have to go against Yui and her group to get magical objects to help them summon the Gods because of problems in the first half of the story. It's very good, there is humor throughout, but there is also murder, rape and betrayals. Tissue recommended.
Ceres - Which was originated by the same Manga-ka as FY (Yuu Watase). This is about Aya Mikage. She turns 16 and her life goes to hell. She finds out that she has a seperate being inside of her who can take over her body and morph it. The being, Ceres, has a serious hatred for the Mikage family especially Aya's twin Aki, who has some serious...emotional/physical feelings towards Ceres and Aya. There is also Toya, Aya's love of her life, who also has his own issues towards the Mikage and Aya. Again, very good, humorous (you may like Alex Howell - anime fan boy  ), there is also murder, rape and betrayals of family and trust. Tissue recommended also.
For sheer psychological drama, try Perfect Blue. It's about a singer who leaves her idol group to start acting. She gets a very creepy stalker who knows EVERYTHING about her. The ultimate villain is just...interesting! Look for the end sequence with the windows showing the ultimate villain...amazing sequence IMO. I'm sure others will give you better ideas but these are mine. Hope you find something you like. OH! Before I forget X TV is really good too. You understand the reasons of both sides and find it hard sometimes to see who may actually be right. |
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Randall Miyashiro
 Posts: 2451 Location: A block away from Golden Gate Park |
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From what you have mentioned it sounds like you like very atmospheric shows that are character driven. Out of the series you mentioned I would recommend you steer clear of Samurai 7 (one of my favorites) since it is an action adventure series with hard to believe mecha. Akira is also rather action and plot based and doesn't stir me emotionally.
I would suggest you check out Kino's Journey since this series does have a wonderful atmosphere that reminds me of Renmei, and has many deep philosophical ideas. The setting is a bit fantastic, although no more than Last Exile, FMA or Trigun, but the characters really illustrate the human condition very well. There is a decent chance of you also liking Wolf's Rain, since it is also a very poetic and moody series. The music and setting alone can bring some o tears. |
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Mylene
 Posts: 2792 Location: Indiana |
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You sound like someone I'd like to watch anime with. Character development, deeper meaning, and drama are important to me for an anime too. Although for me, plot is nearly secondary to everything related to characters.
Anyway, I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest Revolutionary Girl Utena. This is a shoujo anime series (that somewhat toes the line of magical girl) that tells a very deep story, and has 3 lead characters that absolutely gripped my heart. It is somewhat difficult to describe the show except in the most basic terms. This is because the show itself is not basic. Symbolism is key throughout the series, and even the comedic filler episodes often hold a hidden meaning. Should you decide to watch the series, and end up enjoying it (even on a shallow level), I'd be more than happy to recommend some various websites with essays that explore the deeper meaning of the show and its characters. However, Utena is probably not for everyone. Most people seem to really like it (it's current Median ranking in the Encyclopedia is "Excellent"), but given my own passion for the show, I'm probably more capable than most to overlook its flaws (reused cels being the most glaring, as well as one or two annoying secondary characters). Truly enjoying Utena usually requires a lot of thought, and doubting what you've actually seen before you. Moreover, careful viewing will allow one to notice small details that might otherwise go unnoticed that shouldn't be so. It's not always deep. There are several comedic episodes, particularly surrounding the character Nanami. However, there is at least one very good essay I can think of that helps to explain what significance these comedic episodes have, even if it isn't blatantly obvious the first time one views such an episode. Note: Just noticed you mentioned dubs. I have no idea how good or bad the Utena dub is, as I've never seen it. Although I did see a few minutes of the movie dub, and err, changed the channel immediately. This might prove to be problematic, but maybe someone else can shed further light on the subject. Also, as an additional note, don't watch the movie before the series. Of the specific anime you've listed in your last paragraph, I personally really enjoyed Scrapped Princess. It has a fairly well-paced plot, engaging characters, and an interesting secret hidden deep in the story. My only complaint is that the secondary characters seemed to be poorly developed and used. Also, though it looks like it's straight fantasy, there's a sudden sci-fi twist after a bit that if you're not prepared for it might turn you off of the series (or at least that's what a lot of the reviws I read before watching it said.) Given that it's a newer series, I would assume that the dub is at least decent, but I can't comment as I've only seen it subtitled. I also was very interested in Lain, but unfortunately, it fell a little short for me. It was a bit too cryptic for the sake of crypticness, in my opinion, and that took away the enjoyment. No matter how much my husband and I discussed it, we still couldn't come to any sort of agreement as to what we just watched. He pretty much hated the show, I think, while I really enjoyed the interactions between Lain and her classmate, Arisu. If it weren't for that character (who isn't even shown all that often), my opinion of the series would be even lower. But she gave humanity to a show that was seriously lacking a graspable character, imo. |
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IchigoK90
 Posts: 1634 Location: Scarborough, Ontario |
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Well if you're looking for drama I'd suggest Honey & Clover. It won't leave you crying but overall its a really good drama series with a lot of comedy too lighten the mood. Great music and a great story something I would watch over and over again.
"Believe it!" - IchigoK90 |
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Space_cowboy64
 Posts: 337 Location: Great Britain...not all that great |
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if your looking for anime suggestions as what to watch next then you should check out http://www.anime-planet.com/animerec/
its great when after u watched an anime and really liked it you can check out what other people watched after they watched it hope this helps space |
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morsmaestro
Posts: 172 Location: Sacramento |
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Thanks, that was a big help. I was looking into Kino's Journey, but I guess I got turned off when the ANN encyclopedia description said 'talking motorcycle'...wtf? I think I'll get it anyway; the rest looks good. I definitely thought of Honey and Clover, that looks really good, good ratings too. Thank you for saying something about Samurai 7 and Akira, Miyashiro, I was looking into those but I guess I wouldn't get quite what I was looking for. Haven't looked into Gantz yet...
The anime recommendation database, a very good idea, could become a valuable resource if more people got involved. Right now its not too useful, but could become so. I would encourage everyone to register and contribute to that site so it does get better. (note: registration process not streamlined--some minor issues with the 'type what you see' box--but it does work eventually) I never would have thought of Revolutionary Girl Utena, but from what you said, it sounds pretty good. For the people that've seen Rurouni Kenshin (Samurai X) and Kimagure Orange Road, what did you think of it/them? |
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Fui
 Posts: 339 |
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If you're looking for a good love-drama series that can be somewhat depressing but nonetheless an excellent series, I recommend Kimi ga Nozomu Eien. People might cry or at least be moved while watching it. It's based around high school and the characters go through a lot of drama together. It's rather short being only 14 episodes, but the story is well told. Keep in mind it's not going to be your happy love-love series but rather about their experiences in primarily difficult and changing times.
Samurai X - Trust and Betrayal is nothing short of a masterpiece IMO. Excellent story and animation. Watching Reflection should come after watching the Rurouni Kenshin series to actually understand what's going on (plus watching Reflection prior to the TV series will give a million spoilers about Rurouni Kenshin), but in another aspect it will be repeating some scenes. The TV series Rurouni Kenshin is completely different from the two OVAs and you should just check out maybe the first few episodes to see if you like how it's going. Then when you get to the christian part (third season?) just stop watching it because it becomes filler trash IMO. Character designs and the story fails. Another series I loved was Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad. It's a drama about an average guy who, after a series of events, eventually joins a rock band. This is really a tossup with regard to who may or may not like it. Although nearly every response I hear is that it's really good, you may just not like the style or story for whatever personal reasons you might have. I think it's one of the best animes created with fantastic character development and relationships. It isn't licensed, so you'd have to find some alternative way of watching it. Kino's Journey is a good series but I found some parts slightly predictable, despite what most other people might say. The purpose was for it to be really thought-provoking with in-depth social commentary but for some reason I felt that some of the cities were just exaggerations of certain conditions. It still was definitely a good series, though. Don't be fooled by the art box though, because although the animation is good, the style is slightly different. 
I hope this helps, although I can't say my taste for anime is the same as yours exactly. |
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adonais
Posts: 302 |
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Do  Seeing your description above of what you liked (almost identical to my own favorites!), there's no doubt in my mind that you'll love Kino's Journey.
Also, have you tried Mushishi? (fansub, for now) It's rather slow (you could call it the opposite of action-packed), but still sort of entertaining, in a "Haibane" sort of way.
Well that's something orthogonal to what you were asking for in this thread, but definitely something you want to check out later, if you don't have a problem with some more mature type anime (think Elfen Lied, et al). |
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adonais
Posts: 302 |
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[EDIT: Do not just list a bunch of titles. Put some actual reasons or descriptions in with them. Thanks. -TK]
Hey, that's a bit unfair, TK - the reason I listed them was because they, IMHO, jibed with what the thread starter was asking for. What's the point of me writing a synopsis for each when you can just look it up in 5 seconds on this web site...? Though thanks for the advice, I'll be sure to note for the future. [EDIT2: Well even if people can just look up synopses, it means nothing to suggest it if you don't tell people why you're recommending it. While the titles may share characteristics to the person's preferences, it'd be nice to know opinions and comments of whether that title is actually worth the trouble of tracking down, buying, and watching. Otherwise, you're just wasting time and resources that could've been spent on something more productive. -TK] Last edited by adonais on Tue May 09, 2006 1:40 am; edited 2 times in total |
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adonais
Posts: 302 |
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I don't know if it was on purpose or not, but it struck me that Kino's Journey is in many ways exploring the same idea as Le Petit Prince. So from that perspective, the fact that many of the countries and their people are exaggerated stereotypes is just as it should be
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