Recommendations?

[Tron Bonne]

Oh, yeah the movie is pretty great stuff. It's like one big, self-contained episode that's about an hour and a half, but doesn't feel stretched or anything.

 

[Lucien]

I was eyeing up the series boxset and the movie in a shop earlier. I usually have to import any anime but Cowboy Bebop has been released in region 2 I know i've got a bit of money coming for Christmas so I think i'll be picking them both up soon.

 

[Ryo Jin]

Cowboy Bebop is indeed one of my very favorites. I introduced it to a fellow anime fan and was surprised as hell when it wasn't their cup of tea!

 

[Soapy]

Weird. I've found Bebop to universally enjoyable to anime fans and non anime fans alike.

 

[Ryo Jin]

Weird. I've found Bebop to universally enjoyable to anime fans and non anime fans alike.

Me too, which was why I was surprised. But the loser wouldn't even give the show a chance, saying the animation was shoddy and calling it quits after only 3 episodes

Great show Matt, should check it out as well, but not exactly the "Japanese-y" kind of show. It's actually a very Americanized kind of Anime.

 

[Matt Mortem]

I've seen a bit of Bebop and liked what I saw, I'll more than likely pick up a bunch of the DVD's.

 

[Ryo Jin]

To add some more regarding "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya," try to stay away from the recent "Season 2," because it was actually more like "belated season 1 filler" that won't really add much to the original 14 episodes' greatness.

The ONLY episode from "season 2" essential to the story for future story purposes, is "Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody." It will have a big impact in a later storyline coming out in Spring, and it has a nice notable reference in the episode where Haruhi first meets Kyon.

 

[Soapy]

So what is this show about?

 

[Ryo Jin]

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Hugely popular and can be seen everywhere here in Japan, virtually unknown to the west as seen by above posters who've probably never heard of it, as most of those mentionings are all anime that have been on either Adult Swim or American TV.

Tired of explaining its greatness and "spoiling it" when it all falls on deaf ears anyway, so read the somewhat spoiler ridden synopsis below after the brief one if you care to. If you care to know more, just ask, and I will say this: If you do decide to give it a shot [which I highly EFFING recommend], watch it in the TV broadcast order, which was out of order, for a better experience.

The story revolves around Haruhi Suzumiya, a high school girl obsessed with finding all forms of the extraordinary and supernatural, and Kyon, a cynical classmate who proclaims his non-belief in such matters and narrates the series. After being displeased with the mundane happenings at school and the lack of interesting after-school clubs, she forms her own, the SOS Brigade, to investigate any mysterious happenings, with Kyon forcibly drafted as its second member.

Spoiler

As the series progress, Haruhi recruits three additional members into her club: the silent bibliophile Yuki Nagato, the shy and timid Mikuru Asahina, and the friendly "mysterious exchange student" Itsuki Koizumi. These members are, in time, revealed to be the extraordinary characters she is seeking (Yuki, an artificial human created by the extraterrestrial Integrated Data Entity; Mikuru, a time traveler; and Itsuki, an esper), sent by their various organizations to observe Haruhi. All see Haruhi as possessing a superhuman control over the universe, capable even of recreating the entire universe in a state of dissatisfaction and attempt to prevent this by keeping her entertained, holding her powers in check, and maintaining the illusion of a normal life.

If you want a show that's quite "Japanese" with a mix of comedy and sci-fi that anyone could relate to, then this is one of them [says me who actually lives in Japan]. Put this anime in your top priority of things to watch!

Here you go Pandamar, this is from the first page.

 

[Soapy]

Oh, sorry. I guess I skimmed over that post.

 

[Ryo Jin]

Tired of explaining its greatness and "spoiling it" when it all falls on deaf ears anyway

Case in point!

 

[Lucien]

This seems the best place to post this. I've finally finished Cowboy Bebop. As a whole I absolutely fell in love with this series, the characters, the music, the animation, the episode format, it all came together perfectly and was completely different from anime i'd seen before. The only thing that let it down for me was the ending. It was very fitting for the style of the show, but I was left unfulfilled. The only character that was done any justice was Faye. Ed was understandable for her character I suppose, Jet had no resolution, he was kind of left out from the Red Dragon plot and was barely seen again. And Spike. Well I didn't feel the need for what happened with him. The whole Red Dragon side to his story really wasn't shown enough throughout the series for me to believe what they did was the right way to resolve his character. Julia's part was lessened too because of this, she really wasn't made important enough for me to care what happened with her. But maybe that was intentional, I don't know.

 

[Tron Bonne]

This seems the best place to post this. I've finally finished Cowboy Bebop. As a whole I absolutely fell in love with this series, the characters, the music, the animation, the episode format, it all came together perfectly and was completely different from anime i'd seen before. The only thing that let it down for me was the ending. It was very fitting for the style of the show, but I was left unfulfilled. The only character that was done any justice was Faye. Ed was understandable for her character I suppose, Jet had no resolution, he was kind of left out from the Red Dragon plot and was barely seen again. And Spike. Well I didn't feel the need for what happened with him. The whole Red Dragon side to his story really wasn't shown enough throughout the series for me to believe what they did was the right way to resolve his character. Julia's part was lessened too because of this, she really wasn't made important enough for me to care what happened with her. But maybe that was intentional, I don't know.

Heh, no one really likes what happened to Spike. He was stuck in the past, and the past kept coming back to him. I think that was actually one of the reasons for making that side of the story so small in the show. No matter how far Spike got away from it, and how many times he almost died, those instances of the past kept surfacing. It was something he and Vincent had to eventually finish and they were too perfect matched not to kill one another.

And I'm not sure about Jet. I thought that he had all the closure he really needed throughout the rest of the series. I didn't feel there was anything left dangling personally.

 

[Lucien]

Maybe if they had made Spike's past more integral to the plot i'd agree, but only using it in 4 episodes and one scene in another really didn't convince me that it was such a big deal. When he decided to confront Viscious I didn't feel that it was something he HAD to do because we weren't emotionally tied to that sub-plot.

As for Jet, it wasn't really that he had unresolved loose ends or anything, it was more that he was ignored because Spike's story took centre stage and they never went back to him. His final scene was just something off-hand which didn't feel right for the second main character.

I think i'm going to leave it a short while and watch the series again, see if I get more out of the ending second time round.

 

[Tron Bonne]

Maybe if they had made Spike's past more integral to the plot i'd agree, but only using it in 4 episodes and one scene in another really didn't convince me that it was such a big deal. When he decided to confront Viscious I didn't feel that it was something he HAD to do because we weren't emotionally tied to that sub-plot.

Well, I think that's part of it, too. You didn't think so, but the character did. There were several things that were dropped earlier in the series about Spike's past (like the first episode with the witch doctor) and his last argument with Faye about one eye in the past showed that, for whatever reason, he can't let it go. And, whether through predestination or coincidence, it finds him no matter what.

I'll agree that it's bitter sweet, but I think the whole series has that feeling to it. And I think it shows a lot about how well the series and characters are crafted that you're involved enough not to want, or like, his actions.

As for Jet, it wasn't really that he had unresolved loose ends or anything, it was more that he was ignored because Spike's story took centre stage and they never went back to him. His final scene was just something off-hand which didn't feel right for the second main character.

I can see what you're saying, but I don't know, I felt all the other characters had their pasts centered on and dealt before him. Whenever the other three characters had their moment usually the others kind of got minimized.

I think i'm going to leave it a short while and watch the series again, see if I get more out of the ending second time round.

Yeah, give it a shot, though you probably still won't like it all that much t:

 

[Lucien]

I guess it just wasn't the typical ending to a series that you normally see, which I can respect. Anyway, even if it doesn't grow me, 25 freakin' amazing episodes out of 26 is a bloody fine thing lol. It's still become my second favourite anime after FMA, I enjoyed it that much.

 

[BH/HHH]

My favourite anime ever its in two parts its brilliant

 

[Victarion]

The Legend of Overfiend is a good anime. Nice blend of horror and character development with sprinklings of moral writing that doesn't at all feel like preaching.

 

[Avangarde]

The Legend of Overfiend is a good anime. Nice blend of horror and character development with sprinklings of moral writing that doesn't at all feel like preaching.

And then there's the Monster Sex

 

[childeroland]

Not the most original list, but...

Death Note
The Twelve Kingdoms
.hack/Sign and /Roots and /Liminality
Black Lagoon
Noir
Gunslinger Girl (first series, avoid the second)
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya --A MUST SEE
Maria Watches Over Us
Emma: A Victorian Romance
Ghibli films, particularly involving Miyazaki and/or Takahata
The work of Satoshi Kon, particularly Paranoia Agent and Paprika
Ghost in the Shell, especially the TV series
Real Drive

 

[Ryo Jin]

Not the most original list, but...

Death Note
The Twelve Kingdoms
.hack/Sign and /Roots and /Liminality
Black Lagoon
Noir
Gunslinger Girl (first series, avoid the second)
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya --A MUST SEE
Maria Watches Over Us
Emma: A Victorian Romance
Ghibli films, particularly involving Miyazaki and/or Takahata
The work of Satoshi Kon, particularly Paranoia Agent and Paprika
Ghost in the Shell, especially the TV series
Real Drive

Those I can vouch are good and worth watching/reading. I still need to check out Black Lagoon myself.

 

[childeroland]

Everyone I know seems to like Noir and Gunslinger Girl, though the .hack series is very YMMV. Maria and Emma are basically dramas, but then Gunslinger Girl is very character-driven also. Twelve Kingdoms is quite remarkable once it gets going--it's kind of involved and takes awhile to find its footing. I'm not sure why Real Drive hasn't gotten more hype, especially given its creators, but it's very good also.