Anime Goodness

[claudermilk]

I'll agree. Spirited Away is one of the best anime I've seen.

 

[JohnA]

Help me understand... because Ghost in the Shell was a major let-down for me (and not the first Anime let-down, either) and I always feel like the anime stuff I've watched has almost NO character development. Am I watching the wrong movies or am I just not getting it?

I WANT to like Anime - but so far I cannot seem to catch a 'good' one. And my wife has been let down by my poor choices as well - I think I may have one more shot before my wife writes it off.

I want: action, characters I can care about, cool visuals, neat plot elements and creative characters and devices/tools/vehicles

I can do without: 10 minute scenes that state the obvious (as if I'm a moron who has to be told why the police force suddenly has to go somewhere to follow up a lead), naked women/girls, overly stupid sidekicks, movies that suddenly end just when there seems to be a point (i.e. Ghost in the Shell)

You can't go wrong with the following:

Cowboy Bebop
Trigun
The Vision of Escaflowne (you must see the mini series version, not the US movie)

Others that I liked:

Vampire Hunter D
Spirited Away
Akira
Princess Mononoke
Perfect Blue
Lupin III

Good Luck Clint!

 

[Audioholics]

OK, I am renting Spirited Away (in theory - there is a "Short Wait" at BlockBuster)

I'll follow up in this thread in a few weeks.

 

[revjb]

Gunslinger Girl

I just wanted to say a piece about this very underrated series. I don't know whether or not this series has been picked up by a US distributor but I think that people who are into anime should give it a chance. The plot is definitely more adult-oriented in terms of how relationships are portrayed in anime. The series doesn't pander to the usual stereotypes / cookie cutter (angry buff girl, cute "kawaii" girl, etc.) but tries to stretch the genre into a murkier realm consisting of shades of grey. The series is about an experimental military organization that uses little girls as test subjects for bionic implants and military training to be used as assassins. yeah it sounds hokey I admit but each episode really focuses in on each girl and her plight as part of this very odd arrangement between her, her handler, and their completion of their mission. There isn't a beginning or an ending to the series per se but I think it's worth a hard look for people who want to see something other than the standard fare.