The Anime corner

[Dustin]

Any Anime fans out there? Here's where I get to geek out

I've started re-purchasing several of my favorites that used to have on VHS from years ago (mostly OVA's and movies) some of the classics such as Fist of the North Star, 8 Man After, The Professional, Wicked City, and in my opinion, the be all end all of all anime… Robotech.


Also just started digging into some of the TV Series and other OVA's that are more recent, such as Hellsing, Fafner, and Raxephon. There are several I have but haven't had time to dive into yet, such as Gungrave and Blue Gender.

Personally, I tend to steer clear of the "Kiddie" animie (ala Poke'mon, Yu-Gi-oh! and to a certain extent - Dragon Ball Z and Inuyasha), which in my opinion, gives this genre of animation a really, really bad name.

Anyone out there got other recommendations? personal faves? I'm always looking to check out new stuff.

[OrbWeaver]

The only anime I ever enjoyed was Vampire Hunter D (both movies) and Cowboy Bebop. Berserk looks interesting, but doesn't seem to be available in the states.

[EricT]

I'm a fansub whore, personally, as I can't stand dubs, and the subtitles put out by most US distro's are poor. Despite this, I have an anime VHS and DVD collection that fills a large chunk of this small space I live in.

Anyway a few recent ones I've enjoyed: Ergo Proxy, Darker Than Black... Both excellent series. The first season of the newest Gundam series (Gundam 00) is also pretty ace, granted I'm biased due to my childish obsession with giant fucking robots.

I'm about to dive into the first half of Tokyo Underground tonight, since its one of the few anime series that I missed the circle jerk entirely on.

Also started watching the new Macross series that airing in Japan recently, and... its interesting. Not sure if I like it or not. Gotta give it a few more episodes before I decide.

[Dustin]

Originally Posted by OrbWeaver

The only anime I ever enjoyed was Vampire Hunter D (both movies) and Cowboy Bebop. Berserk looks interesting, but doesn't seem to be available in the states.

I completely forgot about Vampire Hunter D!
I had that on VHS for the longest time. I finally bought the double DVD with both movies a few years back... the 2nd movie was a leap forward in animation and storyline. I wish they would do more full-length movies of Vampire Hunter D.

I have only seen a few episodes of Cowboy Bebop... it didn't really catch my attention right away, but I still would like to watch the whole series - less the commercials and edits from catching it on Adult Swim.

I agree, Berserk looks good... I have seen it at FYE, but only as separate episodes in the used bins. I believe it was released by Geneon, and if that is true, that would explain why it is hard to find, especially the complete artbox with all the episodes. Geneon pulled out its US distribution late last year, making all their stuff impossible to find or very expensive - case and point - Samurai Champloo. You can't find the Geneon 7 DVD artbox (non-bootleg) version of it for under $200!!! It used to be $89.99 not too long ago, but be it Amazon or eBay, it is always outrageously prices ever since Geneon pulled out of our shores. However, the 3-disc Chinese bootlegs go for $30 on eBay.

[Dustin]

Originally Posted by EricT

I'm a fansub whore, personally, as I can't stand dubs, and the subtitles put out by most US distro's are poor. Despite this, I have an anime VHS and DVD collection that fills a large chunk of this small space I live in.

There are only a few that I have watched subs on, only due to the fact that I have a very short attention span and am usually multitasking when watching what animie I have. However, there are a few I have watched where the actor dubs were so horrible (childish and goofy), that I watched it in subtitles... much, much better. Sometimes I wonder where they get some of the voiceover actors to do the dubs, as they seem to pick some really terrible ones. And it ALWAYS seems to be in the female roles!

Anyway a few recent ones I've enjoyed: Ergo Proxy, Darker Than Black... Both excellent series. The first season of the newest Gundam series (Gundam 00) is also pretty ace, granted I'm biased due to my childish obsession with giant fucking robots.

I can totally relate - If it's anime and has giant robots, I'll buy it. I was going to check out some of the other Gundam series', but Gundam Wing left such a horrible taste in my mouth, that I backed off from the series all together for a while. I've been told by several Gundam fans that I was probably a bad place for me to start. I think I might have to try Gundam 00 and see if it's any better.

Also started watching the new Macross series that airing in Japan recently, and... its interesting. Not sure if I like it or not. Gotta give it a few more episodes before I decide.

Being that your checking those out, I guess I should ask - is it Mech/Action oriented like Macross/Robotech from the early eighties? or less-mech-action-and-more-drama oriented like the late 90's OVA's... or worse yet, like the last Patlabor movie?

I really wish they hadn't lost funding and scrapped Robotech:the Sentinels after one episode, before it could even get off the ground.

[OrbWeaver]

I have VHD on video, and Bloodlust on DVD. Overall, I like Bloodlust more. However, neither movie is much like the books. The books are MUCH darker, and have alot more sex. But worth reading.

I have Cowboy Bebop on DVD. I've watched almost all of them by now. And they are MUCH better than the chopped-up adult swim episodes.

[EricT]

Originally Posted by Dustin

There are only a few that I have watched subs on, only due to the fact that I have a very short attention span and am usually multitasking when watching what animie I have. However, there are a few I have watched where the actor dubs were so horrible (childish and goofy), that I watched it in subtitles... much, much better. Sometimes I wonder where they get some of the voiceover actors to do the dubs, as they seem to pick some really terrible ones. And it ALWAYS seems to be in the female roles!

I've been introduced to many more bad dubs than good... Granted there are still a few out there that I can enjoy (Namely Hellsing and Cowboy Bebop... very well done and the voices actually felt like they were meant to be with the characters).

Being that your checking those out, I guess I should ask - is it Mech/Action oriented like Macross/Robotech from the early eighties? or less-mech-action-and-more-drama oriented like the late 90's OVA's... or worse yet, like the last Patlabor movie?

Its a bit of a mix of both atm... but I think its starting to steer in the direction of mecha action. I just hope it doesn't have an ending like Macross 2...

I really wish they hadn't lost funding and scrapped Robotech:the Sentinels after one episode, before it could even get off the ground.

[/quote]

Yeah... I've got a pretty big hard-on for Robotech, so shit like that kills my vibes pretty bad.