Hellsing TV is pretty much a giant pile of shit after the first four or five episodes. The OVA series, Hellsing Ultimate, is a whole lot better across the board. It also finished recently, I think, so go check that out first. Then hit the TV anime if you feel like torturing yourself for a few hours.

 

Another question, is it legal to download anime for free? If so, is there a particular place that has good collections?

 

Not really, but that doesn't stop people.

 

I disagree. I liked the more decompressed nature of the TV series, which gave some depth to things that the manga and Ultimate just sort of glossed over in favor of more blood, guns and tits. Not to say I don't enjoy Ultimate in spite of that, but even at its worst I'd say the anime's mediocre, hardly a "giant pile of shit."

 

oops. ignore this.

 

WOW, thanks for this rec. I just finished with the first two eps and I'm already hooked!

What days do the eps come out? I'm already hanging for #3. Weekends?

 

New episodes come out on Sundays.

 

I've read Hellsing, but I have yet to watch it, and started Baccano, but got sidetracked and never finished.

Eden of the East was good (don't forget the two movies which finished off the series).

Tiger & Bunny was cool. The basic concept is a pretty cool twist on the superhero genre. Props for having a gay character who isn't a complete stereotype. He's a bit of a flamboyant flirt, but he is one of the heroes, and the only one with his own company. The heroes may be closer to the Western variety than we usually see in anime, but the heavy emphasis on the bromance was definitely Japanese.

If you need a break from action or violence, there's always Toradora (or, as it is also known: The greatest love story ever told).

And, Spice and Wolf, which is also good. I have a friend who doesn't really 'have time' to watch anime, and if he does he prefers violent, action-oriented stuff, like the Ninja Scroll movie, but even he liked Spice and Wolf. However, not everyone can sit through a show that's about pseudo-medieval economics and the subtleties of the relationship between a merchant with his traveling companion. You will probably never see correct subtitles for its end theme song... though I confess to not having seen Funimation's version yet.

Cowboy Bebop (and its movie) is still as strong today as it ever was... which is pretty fucking strong. I think it's just about the only show that's never been off of Adult Swim on Cartoon Network. Futurama would probably be the other one, if Comedy Central hadn't swiped it.

Spoiler

With the only thing in Bebop that is truly 'dated' being the unfortunate episode showing the space shuttle Columbia existing in the future... an episode that was, obviously, made before the shuttle exploded. I find that, rather than detracting from the episode, it makes it all the more poignant; or, as they are wont to say on the internet: 'It hits you right in the feels.'

FLCL is six sweet episodes of distilled insanity and awesomeness. Every time you see it, you catch something new. Kind of like sleeping with your cheating ex, only without the subsequent doctor bills. :awesome

Bakemonogatari was good, the end theme is great, and the direction is definitely interesting. Plus, it spawned this hilarious music video... which you probably shouldn't play unless you're A: NOT at work, and B: Alone, or at least with people who have a healthy sense of humor.

A Certain Scientific Railgun and its companion show, A Certain Magical Index are both decent, with fairly high production values. Railgun is actually the spinoff of Index, but it ended up being animated first.

I second the statement that Durarara started out good, but kind of failed to live up to its promise. Celty and Anri are both interesting characters.

Neon Genesis Evangelion is really good, and I'd recommend watching the series and End of Evangelion before the new movies, if you have the time.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica is an interesting deconstruction of the magical girl genre... and shouldn't be watched unless you're really aching to get rid of that persistent good mood you've been in.

Mitsudomoe is an immature, highly inappropriate, sometimes raunchy, and often very funny comedy (which draws heavily from the comic), about triplet sisters, who are each horrible in their own way. At first glance, though, the animation style and cast of schoolkids might lead people to suspect you're watching something... else. But, hey, it's on Crunchyroll, if that's a benchmark of 'appropriateness' that resonates with you. The first episode probably isn't the best indicator of the overall tone of the show. Incidentally, out of 900 votes on Crunchyroll, 746 people gave it 5 stars, and 131 gave it 4.

I'm no subtitle-elitist, but I'm not sure a dub of this could ever work, for a number of reasons. I will admit, though, that the main reason is I find the sounds Mitsuba makes when she's in pain (which happens pretty regularly) are one of the funniest things I've ever heard, and I'm not sure another voice actress could replace them. Maybe I'm just sadistic that way.



Shinryaku! Ika Musume - I'm not necessarily recommending it, I'm just mentioning it so that I can say "It's a series about a girl and tentacles," then see who admits to checking it out, and whether they were disappointed or not.

 

Heh 'Locke, I refuse to watch without subtitles as well.

Can you give me a little more info on toradora? Is it one of those series that thrives on awkward moments and embarrassment?

I could see myself enjoying a good romance. If it lacks the two qualities I mentioned above.

 

^Again, with Toradora, I think the final few episodes taint the experience somewhat. It's hilarious initially, but the end has a bit too much melodrama for my liking. It's still worth a watch though, because there are some hilarious scenes in it.

Stein's;Gate is also has a fair bit of romance, which is mostly well done. The focus is the sci-fi aspect though.

 

True, and it remains the reason why Cowboy Bebop is great. Though, if looking for the best of the best, that last 10% of newer anime is where it's at. Honestly, if you got rid of all nostalgic feelings, and pretend you are watching Cowboy Bebop episode 1 for the very first time, it just doesn't quite make the cut of top recs today. Some may disagree, but that's my viewpoint on it.

 

Cheers. I'm already into season 2 of Code Geass, so Steins can be next.

Also, are there any good Fantasy anime? I note that none of the ones recommended seem to be such.

I've always thought that it would be the perfect medium for it, as you don't really need a special effects budget.

 

You could try Claymore or Berserker.

 

Soul Eater
Full metal Alchemist
Fairy Tail
Fate/Zero
Madoka Magica

My favourite out of those is either Soul Eater or Madoka Magica.

 

So procrastinating doing university work, so instead I went through my list of 382 anime titles I've seen and picked the ones I felt stood out to me. Both critically speaking and from an enjoyment perspective and split it into genres:

Action - scifi, mecha, urban fantasy, guns

Fate Zero - 25 episodes - without a doubt my favorite anime at the moment. Dark, modern day setting in a world of magic. It was executed flawlessly - the characters are epic (as they should be - being heroes), it's unpredictable and unlike FSN doesn't follow an arc-like structure.
Code Geass - 25 episodes x 2 - season 1 is top notch, season 2 tried too hard to copy season 1 (though had a few parts that were absolute gold). Had the potential to be a lot better, but still one of my favorite. Typical high school protagonist, leading a revolution (less common idea) - and the fact he's an almost egoistical sociopath makes it interesting.
Neon Genesis Evangelion + End of Evangelion + Rebuild of Eva - 24 episodes, 2 episodes, 4 movies - Watch in that order. The original series had a unique feel for a mecha and all that mindfuckery and symbolism its famous for. Even if you're not in it for that, the action and story is still pretty fun (with a terrible ending to the series). End of Evangelion redid the ending in a spectacularly disturbing and messed up way. And now of course, the Rebuild series is coming out.
Kara no Kyoukai - 7 movies - same universe as Fate Zero. First movie is pretty boring, but from then on it picks up. Dark thrillers with some great action and an interesting female antihero protagonist.
Baccano - 13 episodes + 3 OVA - unique in its storytelling format and wide range of awesome characters. Lighthearted feel despite covering dark events.
Death Note - 37 episodes - First 24 episodes were great (with a lull in the middle), last episode was brilliant. Everything in between was terrible. Most people should know what made this interesting - a protagonist who is the bad guy, the battle of wits, etc.
Full Metal Panic - 25, 13 episodes and spin off 15 eps - it's old but I still love it. The only thing I find dated is the fact that tsundere characters have been done so many times since then, it's annoying. Pretty cool school kid being in military/mecha anime with some great animation and natural mecha fighting despite being 12 years old. The comedy (particularly in the Fumoffu spin off) is still funny.
Black Lagoon - 12 episodes x 2 + 5 episode OVA - the series is a fun, no bullshit gun anime. The OVA takes it to another level and is one of my top.
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann - 25 episodes - doesn't try to take itself seriously and yet manages to pull off epic. Very uplifting badassery. Nice build up from the first half to the second half.
Macross Zero - 5 episode OVA - among the best implementations I've seen of mecha fighting. Feels almost more like a war movie than a typical anime. Some spectacular air and navy fighting.
RideBack - 13 episodes - mentioned this a while back and most people think I overrate it too much. But I do think having a quiet, introspective female protagonist in an action anime makes this very unique. It has a nice build up from a slice of life/sports anime feel to action.
Akira - Movie - despite being so old, this still remains unique and awesome. And the animation was so well initially that its not too painful to look at either.
Gundam Wing - 49 episodes, 4 episode OVA/movie - need a Gundam on this list. This anime would be a lot higher if it wasn't for the outdated and utterly lazy animation (they reuse scenes a lot). But it cuts a lot of the bullshit - you have a bunch of protagonists who aren't doing this part time, they don't go to school and there's no over the top drama or angst (SEED lol). The focus here is on war and politics. It takes an almost positive look on soldiers and war itself. The antagonists are also very interesting.

Action - fantasy/historical/samurai

Rurouni Kenshin OVA: Reminiscence - 4 episodes - don't need to watch the series to understand this. Brilliant, beautiful samurai OVA. Executed perfectly. Still makes me want to cry towards the end.
Samurai Champloo - 26 episodes - I can keep watching this. I almost found I enjoyed it more in rewatch value than the original time through. Basically a lighthearted, comical samurai anime. The unique fight animation makes them very lively and fun to watch and the characters are just hilarious. Throw in a few serious arcs and it's very entertaining.
Berserk + movie remakes - 26 episodes, 3 movies - dark, no holds barred fantasy. And can you believe as messed up as the anime is, its got nothing on the events that come after it in the manga. Despite being dated, the storyline is still great. And of course, now they're remaking it with a higher level of animation (although obviously rushed).
Twelve Kingdoms - 45 episodes - very rare to see a real high fantasy piece of fiction in anime, but this one is pretty good. It follows arcs that are based off separate novels and some are very awesome.
Sword of the Stranger - movie - the peak of what I've seen in terms of samurai fight animation. The story is pretty straight forward, but its the execution that makes it a good recommendation.
Shinsekai Yori - 24 episodes - dunno if I'm just overestimating this cause I just saw it, but it's definitely one of a kind. Starts off with exploration of this strange world, and then towards the end everything you have learned previously comes together perfectly. Deals with some very dark and adult themes and would be the perfect thing to write a text response essay on.

Action - thriller/horror

Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni + Kai - 25 episodes x 2 - first season was amazing. Eerie, creepy, terrifying and yet, oh so intriguing. The second season fails at maintaining that feel and moe-ifies it a tad, so not nearly as good. It also has some OVAs and side stories that I wouldn't really bother recommending.
Monster - 75 episodes - a great thriller that seems almost like a Western novel in the pacing and style. It's not the kind of thing you can smash down in one go. You watch episodes and take some time to mull over them. I think one of the more unique things is that most of the locations are set in the former Eastern European bloc just after the USSR fell.

Action - Shounen

Fullmetal Alchemist and Brotherhood - 51,64 episodes, movie - both series had their good points and bad. Brotherhood was certainly more epic, had higher production value and better direction but at the same time I like the way the original was a story about Ed and Al - Brotherhood focused on events and characters all over the place. I also thought the power levels in Brotherhood were inconsistent.
One Piece - 600+ episodes so far - if you can be bothered, this is actually worth it. You gotta get used to the fact that they achieve in 50 episodes what most anime achieve in 2. It starts average (as most shounen do) but unlike most, it seems to consistently just get more and more awesome with its 'main' arcs. Despite meeting more and more powerful people, the power levels never feel forced or cheesy.
Naruto - watch first 135 eps - After that you get hit with 100 episodes of filler, then Shippuden, which basically tried to make the anime 'epic' but just made it dull and lost the main selling point - seeing the underdog win.
History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi - 50 episodes - just a fun, lighthearted martial arts/street fighting anime. Initially you'll think its absolute until you realize you're already 30 eps through.
Bleach - only watch first 60 eps - The soul society arc is fun, energetic and awesome. After that you can drop it. Not really worth continuing.

Drama/romance/slice of life/love-comedy/anything but fucking KEY

Kokoro Connect - 17 episodes - what makes this interesting is the character interactions and the very unique ways they help each other with their problems. The interactions and characters feel real (despite being strange characters). The voice acting is top notch too.
Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai (AnoHana) - 11 episodes - One of the best dramas I've seen in anime. It avoids cliche, stereotyped characters. It has a good mix of seriousness and fun. Just beautiful.
Eve no Jikan - movie/OVA - a really good take on the "are androids human?" theme in a lighthearted, slice of life way. Honestly the description doesn't do this justice - just watch it.
Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo - movie - another amazing movie with a lighthearted, almost slice of lifey feel and some good drama. Not much else I can say apart from it was done perfectly.
Spirited Away - movie - and another movie. This one gives you a complete surreal feel as you watch a young girl explore a bizarre and strange world.
Nodame Cantabile - 23 + 11 + 12 episodes - a fun romance about two classical musicians. Their interactions are hilarious, the romance is interesting, the music is great and there's strong plot the whole way through.
Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun - 12 episodes - what makes this stand out is that the guy and the girl are very unique for what you'd get in a romance like this. Being a shoujo, the romance development is a lot more of a focus, but unlike most shoujo, the characters are interesting. The guy is random, idiotic and occassionally extremely violent (borderlining psychopathic). The girl is cold, logical and calm.
Toradora - 25 episodes - this has been heavily copied, so the result is it may feel a bit cliche with stereotypical characters and interactions, but nonetheless it is still a step above the rest that have this same formula. If you haven't seen any anime like this before in particular, you will love this. Though like most, expect a focus on comedy with the odd blush here and there and very slow relationship development.

Sports/Competition

Hikaru no Go - 75 episodes - probably the best in the genre. 75 episodes of people playing Go. Yes, that's right Go. And there's not a single point where you ever feel bored. I finished this whole thing in 2 days without even realizing I was going so fast.
Yakitate Japan - 69 episodes - a parody of the genre, but still ends up being addictive. Basically turns 'baking bread' into a competitive and serious activity. Starts great and then kinda becomes repetitive by around episode 40.
Over Drive - 25 episodes - cycling anime. First of half is some slice of life, main character getting into the sport, etc. Second half is this awesome real time bike race that spans like 10 episodes. It sounds like it'd be tedious but it really isn't.
Giant Killing - 24 episodes - unlike most others in this genre, this doesn't follow the usual shounen standards. It's about a manager taking control of a professional soccer team. The kinds of analysis it makes are quite mature and real (and contradict most of the things you usually see in standard shounen). Can get a bit dull at times though.
Kuroko's Basketball - 25 episodes - good take on what a typical shounen sport is about. Overly dramatic, over the top characters and specialisation/attacks without pushing the bounds of reality *too* much. Very fun.


Comedy

Great Teacher Onizuka - 50 episodes - this thing is ancient, but its still brilliant. Comedy but with some great drama and character development. It manages to avoid feeling like a complete crack anime despite some really ridiculous stuff. The arcs from the manga after the end of the anime are ridiculously epic too.
Seitokai no Ichizon - 13 episodes - fun characters, some great references to other anime and some romance.
Detroit Metal City - 12 episodes - absolute crack and complete crap. And yet I have never laughed so hard.

 

I just watched Toradora! and enjoyed it alot, then watched Ano Natsu which was also fine but not up to Toradora! level despite being from the same director. I'm on a slice of life/comedy/romance kick right now, any more recc's are appreciated. I've seen Clannad, Bakemonogatari, Fruits Basket (very underrated), and have Angel Beats, AnoHana, Spice and Wolf queued up.

 

Also, as an FYI, it's from the same people who worked on Code Geass, Madoka Magica, Xam'd, Eureka Seven, and Fate/Zero, among other titles. I'm trying very hard not to have high expectations, but it's a little hard not to with that kind of resume.

I really can't wait to see where it goes.

 

For another anime of this season, check out Hataraku Maou-Sama . Basic foundation is demon lord that ends up in Modern Tokyo. It focuses on comedy, and it's pretty good so far in my opinion. It will only run for 12 episodes, but I think with this type of anime, that's for the best as well.

 

You might like Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo, it has a lot of realistic drama and the comedy and romance in it are pretty decent as well. I would say the characters in it just feel very realistic, most of characters act how you would expect real teenagers to act in their situation.

All three shows you have queued up are all very good so you can't really go wrong there.

 

Well, I finished Code Geass just then. I thought the first season was excellent, dislike the first half of season 2, but then it picked right back up.

It was an interesting one, because I kinda wanted Brittania to win, half the time. Lelouche was a bit of an asshole.

The ending was definitely bittersweet. Definitely worth the watch.

Steins:Gate next I think.