My Top Favourite Great Anime Series
Monster / Drama/Thriller/Suspense
Extremely well-developed plot spanning 74 episodes; a very complex, deeply humane story. The characters are complex, multi-dimensional and the storytelling VERY comprehensive. The art is refreshingly realistic: no eyes covering 3/4 of the face, no spikey violet hair, oh no the art here is beautifully real! These characters are drawn like real people, the backgrounds are rather detailed and wonderful. All characters meaningfully contribute to the story (there are about 10-15 major characters); hence events take a while to unfold but instead we get to bond with and/or learn a lot about characters. The anime takes care with details, so questions about the minor characters will also get their answers. I have never seen anime THIS ambitious and thought-provoking. Favourite episodes: 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 13, 15,16, 17, 19, 20, 27, 29, 30, 34, 37, 38, 39, 40, 46, 51, 55, 58, 60, 61, 64, 66, 67
Slice of Life/ Brothers/Drama/ Space
Uchuu Kyuoudai An anime story about holding fast to dreams and making them happen. A bildungsroman of an astronaut. A story about people who share passion for space. The story features fleshed out characters and a strong narrative that goes into much detail as it charts the progress of the elder brothers. It’s really involving to follow Mutta in hs route to realise his dreams. Along the way he learns many things and meets people that he befriends and that help him on his way. The people with whom he shares common language.
Some of my other favourite anime series
Sci-fi/Time travel: Steins; Gate Sports: Major (all seasons) Sci-fi/space/slice of life: Planetes. Fantasy / Drama : Zetsuen no Tempest
Romantic Comedy: Lovely Complex, Itazura na Kiss
MOVIES
Grave of the Fireflies, Flanders no Inu, Millennium Actress, The Girl who Leapt Through Time, Nitaboh, Wolf Children, Whisper of the Heart, Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirited Away, Hadashi no Gen, Tokyo Godfathers
Aigoo! Dramas! 