What do u like in your anime???

[pudding-chan]

Hey Everyone! Pudding-chan, the newcomer here. I
was just wondering what everyone likes in their anime, and
what makes an anime great and enjoyable?

is it bright happy colors and pretty girls with big eyes?

is it a deep story plot with deep characters?

is it good actions scenes, and all of the above?

Or...does it not matter? As long as its not boring.

or is it something else? i just really wanna know!

well, for me...i like bright happy animation with girls with
pretty colored hair and eyes. I also have to have a lot of
comedy and action! If it has eye catching colors, great action
comedy, and likeable characters, its gonna' be a fav. of mine

i don't really care about deep plots and stuff, i just base my
reviews and such on enjoyment.
what about you? i'd like to hear!

[puzzleguy]

Thats a tough one to answer- i love Anime for many reasons- mainly because Im really a kid at heart and I'm to old to watch Rugrats, Most Anime is not intended for kids ( even thou at heart I hope I never grow up ) some are bizare like FLCL ( how could they ever make a movie like this thats not an anime- it would cost a fortune ) They can be cute like Sugar the snow fairy and as Wild as Berserk. Of course you may like for reasons of your own- maybe for the panty shots , Some of us like the Robots with wild weapons or the Sci-Fi flare or even the Vampires- I know I'm only touching on the subject and this is a pandoras box, that Im sure has many answers .!

Puzzleguy

[pudding-chan]

sweet! I love all anime as well! I was just wondering
those questions caus on all anime review websites
they go into all deep characters and stuff.

thanx for ur anser!

[evilomar]

I love anime with puddin!!!

[Tripp]

Puddin is good!! I love me my puddin!!

[DARK OSAMU]

Well since about 90% of all anime is crap, I look for the other 10.
What I mean is, just like here in America, only about 10-15% of all tv shows are actually worth watching. I don't watch much tv or anything unless it REALLY is good, OR it's something that catches my eye. Just like anime, I don't like a show just because it's anime... I watch a show because it's good. It's well written and actually worth wasting my timw on like Berserk or even Trigun and stuff. I watch a few "stupid shows" like Gokudo but because it's a well made "stupid show" that caught my eye.

So please don't make a Martyr of me.

[Zagatto]

Dark Osamu,

I'm going to be one of your strongest supporters.
I've seen lots of good anime but legions more of bad anime. I'm sure there are people who like the stuff that I think is bad but I'll still diss it at my liesure.
What do I like to find in my shows? I guess that depends on what sort of mood I'm in when I sit down.
Grave of the Fireflies is one of the best anime productions ever made but I have a really hard time watching it because it's such a downer of a movie.
My Neighbor Totoro (which opened with GOTF on a double bill) is another of my all time favourite movies and I can't even begin to count how many times I've watched it. I love the fact that it's filled with magic but the core of the movie is well developed characters dealing with each other in what I feel is an ideal manner.
I love Speed Racer even though I think it hasn't aged well. I love it because I have strong child hood memories of watching it right after we got our first colour TV.
Robotech and Starblazers stand out in my memory because when GI Joe was big, those shows killed main characters and had consequences for firing guns. They both had epic stories with a variety of challenge.

I guess what I like in a show boils down to originality. Shows like FLCL, Lain, and Berserk that push the boundaries of animation in general really draw me in. I also love solid characters with realistic motivations like in Initial D, Trigun, and Berserk again. Those three shows are all about the main character trying to figure out what it is that he really wants rather than searching for a specific goal.

I've tried watching some of the mainstream shows like Pokemon, DBZ, and Sailor Moon but I find they are focused on a younger market and I have a hard time enjoying them. Then there are the legions of shows that nobody ever talks about like Angel Cop, Art of Fighting, and The Ping Pong Club that have very little merit to them. It's hard even getting worked up enough about them to write bad things. They just don't register on the scale.

[DARK OSAMU]

Totally Zagatto, I totally agree. Shows are so "cartoony" and based on cliche these days that if you've seen one you've seen 'em all. Originality and story are all that matter to me. Not "is it cool?" or "how fast does it move?" kinda stuff. I like DBZ -BUT- I hate the fact that in Z ( Not DB but Z itself ) everything falls in the characters hands. Goku has a Dragon Ball and since everyone wants a wish he, to the audiences already known knowledge, is expected to have a million fights to save the ball from evil. HO HUM!!! NOW- In Berserk...The characters make everything happen to themselves because nothing is planned. They don't already know what they are up against. Many times they are against themselves on the inside. They have self inflicted wounds, they didn't know they were going to take the corners so hard, or that a Gigantic thing is after them or anything like that. So since they are to make themselves get in danger...they take a left in the fork in the road rather than the right, not because left is easier but because they had to make a quick decision. DBZ they already knew to prepare for the Sayajins, they knew to keep a spirt bomb for just in case. They knew what to do every step of the way but not quite how to do it. And that's it.
Nothing in DBZ is "what's gonna happen next?" it's all "when's it gonna happen?". And that is predictability. TOO MANY SHOWS ANIME OR NOT-ARE WAY TOO PREDICTABLE!!!! Not just Berserk is great (although it really REALLY is my favorite Anime, and not just DBZ is predictable. I just used these 2 in particular, since they are PERFECT examples of what I'm trying to say.

[Zagatto]

Dark Osamu,

Let's keep patting each other on the back for a while. I'm going to list some of my favourite series that I couldn't stop watching until I reached the end here... lets see if we can find any sort of pattern.
Love Hina - It's the interaction between the characters. You get the sense he's going to eventually realize he's in love with her but there are enough questions hanging in the air that you have to see how it ends.

Fushigi Yuugi - You know she's going to be the Suzaku but all the other craziness that happens just keeps you off balance.

Vision of Escaflowne (the TV show... not the movie) - Talk about whiz bang animation with a solid story. With the number of cool characters that die in this, you're always guessing what's going to happen next.

Trigun - I loved the way this started out as a comedy and became darker and darker until the very end. What a great quest for self understanding.

Initial D - Here's another quest for self understanding. Sure you can guess that he'll win the races but the bigger questions are in the subplots with his relationship and whether or not he's going to start racing because he enjoys it.

Berserk - The whole time you see everything going well but there's that nagging question about that stupid necklace. Not to mention the way the relationships develop between all the characters.

Irrisponsible Captain Tylor (not the OVAs) - "Is he really that dense?" is the question you'll be asking throughout the whole series. The big question for every episode is how will he get out of the next pickle and will he actually manage to end the war?

Photon: The Idiot Adventures - OK... I just like this one because of the blank expressions on the kids face and all the nonsense that he has to endure through the whole story.

Cowboy Bebop - I'd like to say something about the developing characters or the rich storyline but I really like this series because of the slick animation and Yokko Kanno's amazing soundtrack.

Ninja Scroll - Every time I watch this I seem to find more depth in the relationship between the villains. The action is some of the most original I've seen in any historical piece and it's some of the best animated action I've seen anywhere.

There are a list of others that I love as well, Rurouni Kenshin, Lupin III, Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, Giant Robo, FLCL, Serial Experiments: Lain, Adventure Kid, Sohryuden, and a few others. What they all have in common is either their originality or the fact that they stand out in their genres as a prime example.

[Tripp]

I usually base a anime series on the introductory episode. I base a movie on the first 20 or so minutes. A good series should grab your attention and fixate you on the story before it even truly begins. I've seen a lot of anime that didn't start to get good until the end..but I have the habit of generally making assumptions based on first impressions, and I can lose interest easily if it doesn't make a good one. I don't know if anyone else feels this way. Most of the anime I love made good first impressions, and depending on who you are will effect what kind of anime gives you that impression. I think an important aspect for anime is for the first or few opening episodes to focus on attracting the audience, after that you have to keep up to par which a lot of anime have a hard time doing. As for any particular theme, I don't really give much favor to any in particular. I watch just about any anime. Whether or not it's one I'd pop into the ole DVD player more then once is a different story.

[sanosuke]

i dont usually go for certain types of anime like comedy, action or hentai. it just depends, sometimes i hear good things about one and decide to check it out, others ive read the manga and i enjoyed it etc. i seem to prefer the comedy anime which also has a decent story a lá nadesico and GTO, and there is always FLCL but that doesnt really have much of a serious story. however i also loved bebop and eva and they are much more serious than others. the answer i suppose is i enjoy "good anime" and good in this case is my opinion.

[sanosuke]

oh i forgot, good animes must also have strong characters. they dont have to be characters that i like or even love, just original or interesting will do!

[may]

Originally posted by sanosuke
oh i forgot, good animes must also have strong characters. they dont have to be characters that i like or even love, just original or interesting will do!

Very good point! I totally agree with you, sanosuke An anime without good characterization leaves you feeling empty; but it's not just anime.. any movie with weak characterization isn't as effective.

Anime like Vision of Escafowne, Ayashi no Ceres, and Fruits Basket really moved me; the characterization ran deep, and empathy was all over the place ^o^ Yay~