Somebody once asked me to reccommend some animes to them...so I decided to make this page! ^_^ Here, you'll find all the animes I've seen that I like and why I like them. Some of them are on this page, some of them might come soon. Some of them are G-rated, some are more geared towards older audiences. So, I put the content up of each anime, in the "forms" (dub, uncut, or manga) I've seen it in. Cool? Cool! I hope you find something you'll like. ^_^
Note: The age guidelines are the ones I would personally reccommend, and indicate at least one form of that anime is appropriate for the age group. (An uncut version of the anime may exist, and uncut anime is generally not reccommended for people under 13.) What you choose to watch is up to you - and your parents if you're under 18.
All Ages
Hamtaro
Classification: Children
The Story: When Laura's away, Hamtaro the hamster runs off to the Clubhouse to meet with his other Ham Ham buddies. (Yes, I said Ham Ham) When he does, something cute always happens.
Why I like it: It's just too cute. You can't hate it. ^_^ I love all the different words and sounds the Ham Hams use, like "Krum Krum" or "Badda Badda" or "Koosh Koosh".
Try it if you like: Pokemon, cuteness
Themes: Friendship and cuteness. ^_^
Content:
Dub - This one was specifically made for children. There's NOTHING in it you need to worry about. Rated TV-Y
Pokemon
Classification: Children/Adventure
The Story: Ash Ketchum leaves his hometown of Pallet Town with Pikachu in order to catch all 150 pokemon and become a Pokemon master. Team Rocket, however, is determined to make trouble for him.
Why I like it: TEAM ROCKET!!!!! In my humble opinion, they're the best characters in the show! Plus, their motto is just so cool...(Prepare for Trouble! Make it double!)
Try it if you like: Hamtaro
Themes: Friendship, Travel, Dreams, Ambition
Content:
Dub - Mild fighting between characters, but nothing to worry about. Rated TV-Y
Manga: - Mild fighting between characters, rare mild language
7 and Older
Sailor Moon
Classification: Superhero/Magical Girl/Shoujo
The story: Serena appears to be an average student, but possesses the power of the Silver Imperium Crystal to "right wrongs and triumph over all evil". Serena is joined in the fight by the rest of the Sailor Scouts and by Tuxedo Mask.
Why I like it: Not only do you get the classic superhero storyline, but you can really bond to the characters. Being Sailor Scouts is a growing process for many of them, and they face issues in their personal lives in addition to the challenges they face as Sailor Scouts. (Lonliness, school, bouts of low self-esteem, boyfriend issues, ect.)
Try it if you like: Magic Knight Rayearth, Ronin Warriors
Themes: Friendship, Heroism, Love
Content:
Dub: Fantasy Violence (superhero-style magical powers battles) Rated TV-Y7
Uncut: Fantasy Violence (superhero-style magical powers battles), Rare mild swearing, lesbian relationship
Manga: Fantasy Violence (superhero-style magical powers battles), Rare mild swearing, lesbian relationship
Gundam Wing
Classification: Action/Science Fiction
The Story: The Earthsphere Alliance and OZ are fighting over control of the space colonies. To counter threats, the Colonies have sent 5 gundams down to Earth, piloted by 5 young men. (Boys, really...they're only 15) From there, the plot goes a million different directions.
Why I like it: The storyline is very true to a real war - it's up to you who's the good guy and who's the bad guy. Is Heero heartless or confused? Is Treize a stuck-up aristocrat or an inspiring idealist? Who's right? Who's wrong? Those kinds of questions are up to you to answer.
Try it if you like: Outlaw Star
Themes: War, Justice, Loyalty, Duty, Family to a lesser extent
Content:
Dub: Sci-fi style violence (Space dogfights, shooting) Rated TV-Y7
Uncut: Slightly more violence, swearing, blood
Outlaw Star
Classification: Action/Science Fiction/Adventure
The Story: Gene Starwind and his partner Jim Hawking get more than they bargained for out of their business, Starwind and Hawking Enterprises. One assignment sends them into space, where they travel the galaxy in search of the legendary Galactic Layline. Along the way, they are joined by Aisha and Sazuka and Melfina and are annoyed by the Kai Pirates and the McDougal Brothers. In the meantime, Melfina in particular struggles with issues of identity.
Why I like it: Great plot, cool characters, awesome story, and I think Gene and Melfina would make a cute couple. ^^
Try it if you like: Gundam Wing
Themes: Action, Adventure, Destiny, Identity, Ambition
Content:
Dub - Some Violence (Fistfights, space dogfights, shooting) Rated TV-Y7
Uncut - I personally have not seen it, but I have heard there is adult humor, swearing, blood, and other more mature content. (Enough to have the "13-Up" sticker at the video store)
Ronin Warriors
Classification: Superhero/Shonen
The Story: Talpa and the Warlords are trying to take over our world, but they won't be able to if the Ronin Warrios have anything to say about it! Think Sailor Moon, except with 5 boys in magic armor instead of 5 girls in short skirts.
Why I like it: I'm just really into heroism stories like these. I haven't seen this one in a while, though, so I can't write more about it. ^^;;;
Try it if you like: Sailor Moon
Themes: Legends, Heroism, Action
Content:
Dub: Fantasy Violence (Superhero-style magical powers battles) Rated TV-Y7
Magic Knight Rayearth
Classification: Adventure/Shoujo/Fantasy
The Story: Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu are summoned from Earth into Cephiro, where they are met by Guru Clef and told of their mission - to rescue the kingdom of Cephiro by finding Princess Emeraude, who has been apparantly kidnapped by Zagato.
Why I like it: The ending really shocks you. Great story for those who love fantasy adventures and RPGs.
Try it if you like: Sailor Moon
Themes: Fantasy, Destiny, Duty, Friendship
Content:
Manga - Swordfights and some blood, but nothing too bad.
Rurouni Kenshin
Classification: Action/Adventure/Shonen
The Story: Kenshin Himura, formerly "Battosai the Manslayer", has taken the life of a wanderer in search of redemption. He would love nothing more than to live the rest of his life peacefully with Kaoru, but somehow or another he is always forced to take up his sword once again.
Why I like it: There's a lot of action (this is about a samurai seeking redemption for his past, after all), and some mild romance, which I think is cute. You can never go wrong with a story about Samurai culture, and Kenshin is rather easy on the eye. *_*
Try it if you like: Revolutionary Girl Utena, Gundam Wing, Japanese history or Samurai culture.
Themes: Forgiveness/Repentance, Duty, Honor, The Past, Samurai
Content:
Dub - Violence (swordfights, fistfights). Rated TV-Y7.
Uncut - Swordfights, Rare mild swearing, Some blood.
14 and Up
Yu Yu Hakusho
Classification: Shonen/Action
The Story: Yusuke Urameshi is killed after being hit by a car, but is brought back to life with the help of Botan and Koenma and his friend Keiko. Now he fights as a Spirit Detective, making sure the Living World is not threatened by anything from the Spirit World.
Why I like it: The story moves along at a pleasing pace. It does have some long fights, but it's not like Drag-on Ball where it takes 3 episodes to throw a punch and three weeks to win a fight. Plus, you see two sides to Yusuke, the lead character: at times he seems like nothing more than a punk, but other times you think he's a really nice guy.
Try it if you like: Inuyasha
Themes: The Supernatural, Mortality, Action
Content:
Uncut - Violence (Fistfights, fantasy battles), some swearing, occasional smoking, occasional
drinking. Rated TV-PG, some episodes are rated TV-14
Inuyasha
Classification: Action/Fantasy
The Story: Kagome falls into a well and finds herself in Feudal Japan, where she has to find the shards of a sacred jewel in order to keep it out of the hands of demons. She is joined in her quest by Inuyasha, a half-demon who wants the jewel for himself.
Why I like it: Again, there are two sides to a character: Inuyasha can either be really sweet or totally obnoxious. I also just like the storyline.
Try it if you like: Yu Yu Hakusho
Themes: Fantasy, Duty, Love and Hate
Content:
Dub - Occasional swearing, Violence (Fantasy battles), Some blood, Demonic themes. Rated
TV-14
Revolutionary Girl Utena
Classification: Shoujo
The Story: When Utena was a little girl, she was rescued from drowning by a mysterious prince. When her prince finally says he will meet her again, she finds out he will be waiting for her at an exclusive prep school. What awaits her there is a world of duels involving a sacred sword, and the prize of these duels is to be engaged to the "rose bride". While guarding the rose bride and fighting these duels, Utena continues to search for her prince.
Why I like it: What can I say, it's fun to read "tomboyish tough girl" stories. Utena's tomboyish enough to wear a male uniform and want to be a prince instead of a princess, but not too "man-ish" if you catch my drift.
Try it if you like: Rurouni Kenshin, Sailor Moon
Themes: Finding the truth, Identity
Content:
Manga - Rare mild swearing, Swordfights, "Player" character, Abusive relationship, Implied lesbian relationship. Viz reccommends readers be teenagers.
17 and Up
***Please Note: The rest of these animes are intended for older, more mature audiences. They may contain adult situations, intense violence, or other material that many people would not find suitable for children. Parental discretion is strongly advised.***
Trigun
Classification: Western/Action/Shonen
The Story: Vash the Stampede has 60 billion double dollars on his head. Marril and Milli, two women representing an insurance society, are sent to find Vash and keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't destroy any more towns. But is Vash really a murderer, or was he simply in the wrong place at the wrong time?
Why I like it: Vash! He's a moron, yet really has a strong sense of honor. And Wolfwood... he's hilarious. And that black cat that mysteriously appears somehow in each episode - gotta love that cat! =^.^= (My sister calls her "Kuru Neko-Sama")
Try it if you like: Cowboy Bebop, Western stories
Themes: Truth, Doing the right thing, Identity to a lesser extent
Content:
Uncut - Swearing, some adult humor, violence (gunfights, a few fistfights), blood, drinking,
some smoking, one or two implied adult situations. Also, one of the lead characters is a gun-toting, foul-mouthed
priest who
lights a few cigarettes and has a few drinks.
But in his defense, he has a real heart for
children and will do whatever he can to make sure they don't suffer. I personally love the
guy, but some people might think he's blasphemous or an insult to the church.
Chobits
Classification: Science Fiction/Shoujo
The Story: Hideki is pretty down on his luck. He's having trouble in cram school, he's broke, his parents are poor, and to top it off he seems to be the only person in the world without a personocom. When he finds a broken personocom tied up in the trash, he thinks it's his lucky day and takes the personocom home to fix it. However, he may have stumbled upon a secret he was never meant to know.
Why I like it: It's definately something different. It's science fiction without the excessive technology.
Try it if you like: Anything by CLAMP
Themes: Man vs. Machine
Content:
Manga: Swearing, Drinking, Adult humor, Suggestive themes, Hideki's addiction to pornography. TokyoPop reccommends readers be 16 or older.
Fushigi Yuugi
Classification: Fantasy/Romance/Shoujo/Adventure
The Story: Miaka, studying hard for her entrance exam into Jonan High School, comes across a book called The Universe of the Four Gods. When she reads the book, she is transported to ancient China. There, she can summon the god Suzaku to get her wish granted if she finds all seven cellestial warriors. It seems simple enough, but her worry over her best friend Yui, the cellestial warriors of the Priestess of Seiryuu, and her entrance exam into Jonan High School complicate matters.
Why I like it: It's full of sappy romance, which I love. ^^ However, you may need a flowchart to keep up with who falls in love with who. Also, you find a lot of complex relationships and different motives within each character.
Try it if you like: Sailor Moon, Magic Knight Rayearth, Bishonen, Sappy love stories ^^;;; (This is a VERY shoujo story)
Themes: Loyalty, Love, Friendship, Duty
Content:
Manga - Violence (fistfights, swordfights, occasional fantasy battles), Blood, Mild Swearing, Suggestive Themes, Adult situations (including violent ones), Mild yaoi. Viz reccommends readers be older teens.
Cowboy Bebop
Classification: Drama
The Story: Spike Spiegal travels the Solar System with his partner Jet Black in search of bounties, adventure, and the woman he loves.
Why I like it: OK, I admit the first time I watched this I didn't think I'd like it. But then I started watching it more and the thick plot and likable characters drew me in. There's a lot of symbolism in the story, accompanies by an amazing jazz/R&B soundtrack.
Try it if you like: Gundam Wing, Outlaw Star
Themes: Escaping your Past, Action, Loyalty
Content:
Dub - Violence (Bar Brawls, fistfights, gun fights, occasionally it gets intense), Blood,
Some adult humor, 2 or 3 brief implied adult situations, Frequent smoking, Occasional drinking, Swearing. Rated TV-14
Fullmetal Alchemist
Classification: Drama/Adventure
The Story: Ed and Al Elrich are orphaned at a young age. They'd been studying alchemy, so they try to bring back their mother. Unfortunately for them, there exists the law of equivalent exchange in alchemy: You can't get something without giving up something of equal value. Despite having assembled water and other compounds, Al loses his body and Ed loses an arm and a leg (literally). Al's soul is bound to a suit of armor and Ed has auto-mail (think prosthetics) to replace his limbs. The two now search for the Philosopher's Stone to regain their bodies.
Why I like it: It's very complex. There are no simple solutions to anything these boys want.
Try it if you like: Cowboy Bebop
Themes: Family, Loyalty, Right and Wrong, God and man to a lesser extent.
Content:
Dub - Violence (magical battles, fistfights, a few gunfights; it often gets intense), blood, some mild suggestive themes (one of the villains is named Lust), some swearing. Also, there are moments that can be rather disturbing and/or frightening. (Ex. Mrs. Elrich doesn't even look human when the boys try to bring her back, the application of Ed's auto-mail is obviously extremely painful, one of the villains - Gluttony - eats live humans, etc) Rated TV-14.