The Anime Thread

[Ataru]

Just so we (read: I) can stop talking about anime in all the other threads and just have one to come back to with any new information. My 'Now There's An Anime of Everything' thread kinda went kudzu and went off on tangents which was good, but now at least we have a thread that's about everything anime.

Now then. All anime fans should be fans of CLAMP... at least one of their works should strike a nerve since they do just about every genre. They've written one of the most classic magical girl shows of all time (Cardcaptor Sakura), one of the most classic modern love stories of all time (Chobits... and if you think this is a shallow fanservice manga you haven't read it to the end. It's much more amazing than you think), one of the most classic fantasy manga of all time (Magic Knight Rayearth), and a few other instant classics. So, your goal is to be able to watch the following two videos and recognize 100% of the characters that appear in them:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zek88zpzGf8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEp1qc1i-jI

(This is what happens when companies make AMVs of their own stuff...)

[Macready84464]

I don't think i'm going to stop suggesting Spice and wolf any time soon. Beautiful season one opening theme here in glorious HD.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MN_WgwEmRaw&hd=1

The adorable ending theme in glorious HD as well. No credits or translation. You can probably tell that this is the source of my sig.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e25TmBFXpcM&hd=1

[Ataru]

AH! Holy cow I can't believe I forgot about this anime for so long. I used to watch it back when I was first getting into anime (yes instead of the mainstream anime I'd get into obscure random stuff). Anyway the series is called 'Legend of the Condor Hero' and it's based off of one of the most famous Chinese fantasy novel series ever. The series is a must-see for Avatar fans because it contains:

1. A young boy who masters martial arts to save a war-torn world
2. A beautiful mistress who teaches said boy the martial arts and later comes to love him
3. Real Asian culture as opposed to most anime. Also real martial arts... for the most part... sort of

The whole series just has a flavor that reminds me of Avatar (except for slightly older audiences) It has martial arts action (but nothing over-the-top or over-powered), it has non-fanservic-y serious relationships, it has interesting and loveable characters (though really the only two you're going to remember are the main two), and it has just that whole authentic oriental legend flavor that you must be craving. Since Veoh is a site that respects copyright laws I assume it's not bad to post links to it here, so here's a link to the first episodes:

http://www.veoh.com/browse/videos/categ ... 77bddjdFWA

For you to get a taste. Normally I'd post a youtube link to the opening or ending theme but this show is so obscure no one on Youtube has posted those kinds of things. Go figure. The subbing group, Live-Evil that did this show is a very good group and they even provide explanatory notes at the end of most episodes. Watch and enjoy!

EDIT: I actually re-watched the first episode myself after making this post for the first time in 4 years, and now I'm starting to realize exactly how much Avatar fans will feel drawn to this series. For crying out loud there's characters that practically scream Azula and Iroh, and the fights will bring back all kinds of nostalgia. Srsly guys, you gotta watch this show.

[Macready84464]

Got a gif bug and had to act on it.

[CancerianFireLordess]

I recently, out of my own will (which is wierd, because that never happens), saw an episode of Lucky Star, and I surprisingly enjoyed it. I've been watching more episodes on youtube, and I keep lol'ing all over the place. n_____n

[Ataru]

Lucky Star is the greatest. It has to be one of the most well-written anime around, if only for the fact that it consists entirely of 4 high-school girls talking to each other and yet it manages to be memorably hilarious and interesting. Also Mac and I are addicted to the opening theme. And you can't beat the fact that they sing 'Sore ga Ai Deshou?', the opening theme from Full Metal Panic! Fumoffu!? as the ending in one of the episodes.

[CancerianFireLordess]

Yeah, it's hilarious. I actually find myself lol'ing a lot more than I thought I would.

....And I learned the dance from the beginning theme....

[Mai Kunrong]

My boyfriend has been getting me into Macross Frontier. I'm only up to the fifth or sixth episode but I'm already pretty hooked on the story and digging the gorgeous fluid animation.

[Macready84464]

Yeah, it's hilarious. I actually find myself lol'ing a lot more than I thought I would.

....And I learned the dance from the beginning theme....

The very last episode has a sweet fully choreographed dance scene that's as long as the opening. love it.

[Ataru]

I watched quite a bit of Frontier... The main character is very... original... Not often that you see a sci-fi show starring a kabuki actor who cross-dresses for business (although 3x3 Eyes also stars a cross-dresser). I do think Frontier is the best of the Macross series, though. The old ones were rather dull and Minmei was a... scarlet woman... Ah! And I'm forgetting my rule: whenever you talk about an anime always post a youtube clip of the opening or something so people know what you're talking about. Otherwise it's just a bunch of random names. So:

Lucky Star: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViEH57xQu1c
Macross Frontier: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qWnDqeXMhA

I'm actually really glad there's now a new Macross series so people can stop talking about the old Robotech's like they're some kind of 'golden era' of anime. There is no golden era of anime. There's always gonna be a better one. Dwelling on the past and insisting on creating 'classics' will just make you blind to current leaps forward. It's the same beef I have with Evangelion. Watch it, enjoy it, then watch something else.