What first introduced you to Anime, and why do you like it?

kaki

I'm a 90's kid, so like more than a few on here I was probably first exposed to anime like Pokemon, Digimon, Yu-Gi-Oh, Cardcaptors. I guess I enjoyed them, but my mind didn't notice any real difference between these and the other cartoons that were running (except for their weird eyes and noses).

Then one day I was in Vibes and Scribes (book/music/video shop in Cork city), as I used to go there on Saturdays to fritter away my pocket money, found a second-hand copy of Spirited Away on VHS. The jacket blurb captivated me, I brought it home, and I guess that's when I really started to watch and appreciate anime. After that I sought out and bought anything by Miyazaki that I could get my hands on, remember seeing Howl's Moving Castle in the cinema in my Junior Cert year.

Also, I met a friend at an international science contest-thing when I was 17 who liked anime too, but was dismayed when I told him that I liked the work of Miyazaki, and not much else. For Christmas he sent me a pack of anime DVD's he'd burnt himself - Full Metal Alchemist, The Twelve Kingdoms (quite long and difficult to get into, but very lovely) Kimi ga Nozomu Eien (the genre was a bit too soppy for my taste, but was still compelling to watch), Paprika (very adult, the first more "philosophical" anime I saw), as well as Noein, which was part-philosophy, part-scifi, and amazed me because it expanded anime for me, intellectually, even further than Miyazaki's films had or could, and did so in such a surreal animated environment.

Have been watching everything Ghost in the Shell for the last month - just finished SAC:2nd Gig, and tomorrow Solid State Society will round it off. This series was touched me emotionally and philosphically more than anything I've seen or read or experienced (that I can remember now...I'm still in the afterglow) - that's probably half of what I enjoy about anime; fables like Miyazaki's works remind me of books I used to read when I was younger, those like Ghost in the Shell correllate to the sci-fi/cyberpunk/philosophical books/ideas that I consume. Aside from that, I'm in training to be a graphic artist - although there might be a few boring, non-innovative series, much Japanese animation is visually stunning, from the detail of the execution to the shots, angles...I just love it!!

gearoidof

Guilty_Sky wrote: »

Then during August of 2000 Fox Kids aired Escaflowne. And because the series wasn't all shown in full it compelled me to go seek out the rest of the series myself.

original intro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMRfaMdh4xo
Fox kids intro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5ZXbrqPjKM

I lol every time I watch the 2nd one, completely wrong theme for the show :P

Randomfriend

It all began with dragon ball then gundam wing followed by pokemon and digemon I love them all, (well card captors was a bit blah) then i fell off the horse I only seen ghost in the shell and cowboy bebop last year and got back into drawing them again, as a 10 year old i was pretty awesome at drawing dragon ball z carachters, my ambition for the summer is to get back into drawing them

god I love anime!! :pac: pacman is cool too thou

Lemegeton

similar story to everyone here. watched shows like robotech and voltron as a kid and never realised they were anime. cannot remember the first film i saw that i recognised as Anime (though at the time i thought the films were called Mangas. a common mistake in the pre internet world. To this day my brothers still call it manga whenever i mention anime, it drives me up the wall). the first film was probably Akira as it was on bbc or channel 4. me and my brothers thought they were awesome and at the time it was purely cos there was violence and tits in a cartoon, it was not until later i could appreciate them on an intellectual level. we rented anything that came into xtra vision with the word manga on it. still remember watching ninja scroll and street fighter 2 for the first time. and as everyone knows anime died out on terrestial tv and i could not afford digital so it was not until i got broadband that i got back into it. downloaded loads of shows like cowboy bepop (awesome) and ninja scroll (not so much).
i love anime because there are so many unique and interesting stories in the genre and some of it just would not be possible or would be lame as live action, plus i am a big action sci-fi nut and there is much good stuff in that area in anime.

Lemegeton

Rigardo wrote: »

The first Manga I saw was Oedo 808. I was up late watching tv when it came on. I think it was on Channel 4. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It opened up a whole new world for me. In a time when films had budgets I was seeing things that no movie producer could come close afford.

I remember that show. that was a good time when channel 4 used to show anime really late on a Saturday night. Oedo 808 and the Legend of the 4 kings are the 2 shows i really remember from that run.

johanz

Elfen Lied got me into anime.
Then after 2 years I grew out of anime and don't watch it anymore.

Randomfriend

johanz wrote: »

Elfen Lied got me into anime.
Then after 2 years I grew out of anime and don't watch it anymore.

you monster!
thats imposible :eek:

johanz

Randomfriend wrote: »

you monster!
thats imposible :eek:

Well it was for me.
As much as I try to watch anime, I now stop after one or two episodes.
It doesn't appeal to me anymore sadly.

And weeaboos (people who are obsessed with anime) should be punched in the face. I don't want hearing you scream poorly pronounced japanese phrases.

cocoshovel

I have always been sort of into it, as a kid I watched pokemon of course and a bit of cromartie highschool on Cartoon Network but nothing much.

Early last summer I was bored and remembered seeing an episode of Ghost in the Shell on tv once a few years back so I decided I would check it out. I gave up after 5 episodes in.

Then a few months later in August 2010 I was bored once again and wanted to watch a comedy of some sort. So I asked my friend who watched anime what I should watch? He recommended me Azumanga Daioh. So I downloaded it and began watching away and immediately loved it. It was hilarious, cute and I greatly enjoyed it. Back then I used to watch like 1 episode a day so it took me a while to get through it, and during the process my friend gave me many more recommendations.

At the end of August 2010 my friend was leaving to go back to Poland for college, so we had a little party at his house the day before he went. We watched episode 1 of baccano but mostly drank and chatted with other friends. Anyway, it was about 2am and we were pretty drunk so I was heading home and he walked with me. When I got outside my house we talked and said how we would see each other again at Xmas time etc. We hugged and drunkingly sang the Azumanga Daioh OP song while walking away from each other

That was the last time I ever saw him or spoke to him. He died a week later when he got hit by a car. So Azumanga remains very special to me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huWKSYUX5Fs

IQDENIED

hmmm im not a hardcore anime person but have seen a couple over the years, surprising no-one has mentioned...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6NBAZrdjQw

This counts as anime right?

Episode 1 PART 1/3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KUiKMwpyFc

PART 2/3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mchTv9VNSk8

PART 3/3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMISgpGjGB4

K.O.Kiki

Germany: superior.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hXCRoFFluI

Half of the following shows were probably animated in Japan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtuTJ2kStLs

Vojera

Since I was little (and by little I mean 4 or 5) I've had a mysterious love of Japan and its culture. So when I got old enough to know what anime was, I checked it out purely on its Japanese roots and that was that.

The first one I ever saw (apart from Pokémon, DBZ, Sailor Moon) was Tokyo Revelation on Sci-Fi one night when I was babysitting. Looking back it's really not great but at the time it was interesting enough to make me want to see more and so I started watching the films that Sci-Fi showed late on a Thursday night (which was fine for a while until they stopped bothering with films and moved to hentai [nothing against hentai but as a 15 year old girl it wasn't that appealing]).

The I started watching Saiko Exciting on Sci-Fi on Saturday mornings (remember Seera?!) and that introduced me to Evangelion and Nadesico.

Then I went to college, joined a soc that had a weekly anime night and thus my love of anime was cemented.

These days I don't get to watch as much as I would like due to limited free time and money (doing a PhD, the cause of both those problems), but I dream of a time when I'll have submitted and can have a few anime marathons before I have to get a job


I think one of the reasons I like it is the same reason I like Japanese live-action as well. It just has a different aesthetic to Western cinema. It's not better, it's just different. I think that sometimes there's less of an emphasis on dialogue to get a story across.

I like the visual composition and I like the way it can deal with adult themes in a way that a live action couldn't. In the same way, I love that it can do slapstick in a way that live action can't. It's just a different way of telling a story and one I enjoy.

Fergus_

I can't really remember how I got into anime in the first place.

At Eirtakon 2010, I was just tagging along with friends and I was there for the fighting games aspect really and afterwards, I became slightly interested in anime but I still didn't watch any.

In about April-May, some friends introduced me to Death Note so I gave first episode a go and actually loved it. So I ended up finishing the series. Then I was looking around for more anime and Konata here recommended Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica (which I ended up loving) and I've been watching anime ever since!

Sieghardt

The first one I saw was the same one everyone of a certain age started with, Akira

The one that really got me into it was Slayers, since I was a big fan of RPGs I enjoyed it a lot

Duffy the Vampire Slayer

Tv Tropes as a gateway drug.

Butterscotch

I find it interesting from reading this thread that many people started watching anime at an early age.

I think I was younger then 12 when I first started watching anime which was Starzinger, there was just VHS videos lying around the house, I didn't know it was anime at the time. Then SailorMoon and Pokemon really appealed to me. What really attracted me to anime was the art style, the pretty girls and their pretty clothes. I always wanted to look like them. Anime just seemed so pretty and colourful. When I was 12, I learned that these cartoons came from Japan and became really fascinated with Japan. I remember doing a project on Japan for 6th class. :P

It wasn't until I was 17 was when I really got into anime from watching late night cartoons on SCi-Fi. There were the glory days for me. I always really enjoyed staying up really late watching anime and was hooked on Perfect Blue and Devilman. I even liked the really messed up stuff and some of the hentai, I really appreciated the openness of these cartoons and that it was cool to see cartoons for adults. Perfect Blue was really amazing, the art, the story and violence, it is one of my all time favourite movies.

I was kinda freaked out that I enjoyed these mediuims and thought it was wrong so I stopped watching anime for abit. It wasn't only I descovered eirtaku.ie and started going to the meet ups and met awesome people who told me about fantasy anime like Escaflowne and Hellsing. Then at 21 I got involved with Eirtakon and the DCU Anime/Manga society. I haven't watched much new anime as I am the type of person if it appeals to me I will watch it but I do love anime and manga. I have always been a fan of cartoons and was glad to know there were stuff out there like Batman and Spawn. Anime has been a massive part of my life and I really like it for personal reasons, you really connect to the characters like with novels, love it for artistic reasons and for intellignet stories. Reasons why I love Neon Genesis Evangelion.:) I am really glad to be involved with anime/manga events.

LPHeadstrong

I watched Pokemon on two when it started about 2000! I know. Still, then woke at 7 every weekend to watch Sailor Moon and Cardcaptors on Fox Kids and Nickelodeon respectfully the following year. That was before I knew what anime was!

When the anime channel started on SKY I watched Fullmetal Alchemist and Wolf's Rain! Those are what got me into anime around 2006!
I'm not mad into it now but definitely have an appreciation for it! Just moved on from the kiddy shows!

Lenmeister

I loved drawing but got bored of copying regular everyday stuff, especially western animation. The first time I seen animé I couldn't believe the depth and character and colour and everything else in it. It gave me tons of new material to use xD

jensennhook

I've started watching anime since i was a kid, by that time i loved them simply because they're adorable:D but as i grow up my point of view has changed, now for me it's great passion and profession(not a job) that makes a lot of people happy. Here in anime they show not only the creativity but mostly the fact the in this world we could turn our dreams and fantasies in reality and be able to share to everybody...so to all the animators out there two thumbs up for you guys;)

Tar.Aldarion

sniff, this makes me want to watch dragonball and pokemon again

Lenmeister

I wish I still had the enthusiasm I had when I first started watching it but sadly we all must grow up Even if I now find some of them quite childish or something else, I'm glad I enjoyed them when I was younger and in that frame of mind.

Isard

My ex showed me some anime saying he was very fond of it, but I didn't understand why and didn't really try to I was annoyed by all that hysteria about anime. When I found out that my current boyfriend loves it too, I was so amazed, it was so non-typical of him that I got really interested.

Butterscotch

jensennhook wrote: »

now for me it's great passion and profession(not a job) that makes a lot of people happy. Here in anime they show not only the creativity but mostly the fact the in this world we could turn our dreams and fantasies in reality and be able to share to everybody...so to all the animators out there two thumbs up for you guys;)

Very well said. I couldn't agree more. It's an art in itself.

@Lenmeister: Have to grow up yeah but how you feel about it and grow out of it that is a different story.

Umekichi

I used to watch Cardcaptor Sakura, Sailor Moon and Pokemon when I was a kid but what really got me into Anime was Spirited Away. It was in Chartbusters and I decided to rent it for a night and instantly I was hooked! I kept bugging my mam to keep an eye out for it in HMV and got it as a Christmas pressie that same year

Now I look back at Cardcaptors and Sailor Moon with renewed interest as for me, not only is it memories for me but now I can understand them better and appreciate them more

boygunting

The first thing that introduced me to anime was the television(you must be thinking DUH) but yea I honestly can't remember a time when I wasn't watching anime. It's been there ever since I can remember and I mean early nineties(I'm turning 23 in a few weeks T.T). I never really had a choice in it, I'm asian and I didn't spend my childhood here and back in my country anime is big, everyone watches it; heck it's even shown on prime time! Everyone had "Animania" as they called it when I was just about to start primary school. But yes it started when I was a child, and the earliest show I could remember was an anime you might've heard of called Doraemon in the mornings and on the afternoons after school it was Zenki back to back with Slam dunk. This was me being about 5 or 6. When started going to primary school "Animania" began to spread, even parents watch anime! If you asked your dad who son gouku was or how many forms cell has he'd probably think you're mental but even parents back home watched it. Rorouni Kenshin, Yu Yu Hakusho, GTO, Lupin III, Gundam Wing, Baki, Conan, Shaman King, Ceres,Akira, trigun, saiyuki, fushigi yuugi, evangelion, Cowboy Bebop,Prince of tennis, Voltes V, Mazinger Z,cooking master boy,Chobits, Daimos,Flame of Recca,Sakura wars do I even have to mention DBZ? I can go on and on but it'd take me the whole morning and I have to get to college so lol. Don't watch much anime now tbh. Stopped about 2 years ago, Bleach and Naruto just pissed me off, takes too feckin long for the story to progress(and for sasuke or whatever her name is to grow some balls and stop being emo, that was so 2 years ago) just not into the new stuff anymore. I still follow the mangas though(Hajime no ippo oh yeah) so I still get my fill.

Varik

I seriously don't remember, when i was young i wouldn't know where a cartoon can from so i've no idea.

I think the first Anime i watched that i can remember as different was Shinzo, i think pokemon came after that and with reading synopsis of new japanese episode got more into japan as a whole.

When i got sky eventually there used to be a channel called CNX(not sure) that had Gundam, Dragonball, and a few others but not sure if outlaw star or tenchi was among them or if that came later.

Really got into it after starting college with a few Anime programing blocks and channels popping up, also having a good internet connection helped to finish it off with buying Pocky and a FMA watch which whose location is a mystery.

OakeyDokey

Pokemon, Cardcaptors, Gravitation and a few others.

I fell in love with anime art work at first and as I looked it up and spotted it on SKY. SKY had one channel of just anime but I can't find the channel anymore.

Numina

Varik wrote: »

When i got sky eventually there used to be a channel called CNX(not sure) that had Gundam, Dragonball, and a few others but not sure if outlaw star or tenchi was among them or if that came later.

Yup, CNX. They had DBZ and GT I think. Cowboy Bebop and Outlaw Star (I think CNX is one of the only channels to have aired that banned episode, ep. 24 I think, look it up) Gundam Wing used to be on at around 7 in the morning. I think they had Tenchi on Fox Kids or something.

lizflem

Cowboy Bebop on Cartoon Network got me started about a decade ago. After looking at this thread, I really want to watch Akira again! It's been so long. It's especially great on a big tv with surround sound.

Nody

Akira (the movie); saw it late at night at my parents place on the movie channel.