Manga and anime newcomers (and old stagers) Q&A

Rich-Allen1976 · Post by **Rich-Allen1976** » 15 Jan 2023, 17:57

One of the first Japanese anime movies I saw (probably THE first) was Akira, shown on BBC 2 one Saturday night way back in the late 80s) and then I saw the original version of the Street Fighter 2 movie (that Chun Li in the shower scene...)

And then Howl's Moving Castle, a bit strange that one, great story but a bit scary in some ways.

Jade Dragosani · Post by **Jade Dragosani** » 04 Apr 2023, 21:16

Hello. I never got into manga much, because of the expense mainly. And the library where I lived as a teen didn't really invest heavily into it.
Although, my local library now has a pretty good selection of stuff in the teen area. (Not sure if that's a reflection on the area or just that manga has also become a lot more mainstream since 2005 when I was a teenager)
My bigger problem is I just never know what's worth picking up and getting into.
I was much more into anime. And by into, I mean I watched a fair amount as a teen. Although, mostly what drew me was the fanfiction. As I've fallen away from Fanfic reading, I've fallen away from anime. Also, all the ones I find seem to be super serious and deep and complex and I just don't have the time for that in my life (says the boy who reads a book a day, I know, priorities are not my strong suit). There's also the trouble of knowing what's good or where to find it or, is it available in dub because as a teen I could sit and read subtitles all damn day. Now I'm an adult, with kids, and things to do. So I NEED the dubs because I'm usually watching as I cook dinner or clean or fiddling on my phone/laptop. Which is to say, I'm constantly multitasking. Thank you untreated ADHD.

So, if you were going to rec me ONE amazing anime or ONE amazing manga rec, what would it be?

Beex · Post by **Beex** » 04 Apr 2023, 21:52

Jade Dragosani wrote: ↑
04 Apr 2023, 21:16
Hello. I never got into manga much, because of the expense mainly. And the library where I lived as a teen didn't really invest heavily into it.
Although, my local library now has a pretty good selection of stuff in the teen area. (Not sure if that's a reflection on the area or just that manga has also become a lot more mainstream since 2005 when I was a teenager)
My bigger problem is I just never know what's worth picking up and getting into.
I was much more into anime. And by into, I mean I watched a fair amount as a teen. Although, mostly what drew me was the fanfiction. As I've fallen away from Fanfic reading, I've fallen away from anime. Also, all the ones I find seem to be super serious and deep and complex and I just don't have the time for that in my life (says the boy who reads a book a day, I know, priorities are not my strong suit). There's also the trouble of knowing what's good or where to find it or, is it available in dub because as a teen I could sit and read subtitles all damn day. Now I'm an adult, with kids, and things to do. So I NEED the dubs because I'm usually watching as I cook dinner or clean or fiddling on my phone/laptop. Which is to say, I'm constantly multitasking. Thank you untreated ADHD.

So, if you were going to rec me ONE amazing anime or ONE amazing manga rec, what would it be?

What have you seen that you really enjoyed???

Post by **Ojisama** » 04 Apr 2023, 22:08

Newly returned, and @Jade Dragosani asks THE BIG QUESTION! We could probably make a topic about this on it's own. (*makes note to PM Expendable later*)

I'm pretty old-school, and any recs that I make will be biased towards what I watched/read many years ago, and I can't claim to have watched examples from all genres. I tend to be a slice-of-life/rom-com/fantasy kind of guy, so my favourite anime tend towards things like...

Ai Yori Aoshi
Mahou Sensei Negima
Fruits Basket
Escaflowne
Full Metal Alchemist
Strike Witches
and even Strawberry Panic

If I was to pick just 1 outstanding anime, it would have to be Clannad. Triumph. Tragedy. Romance. Comedy. Supernatural. A proper ending, and variations of the story in a series of OVAs.
It is still available to stream from Funimation, but since I let my subscription lapse I can't guarantee that it is dubbed (Being on Funimation it probably is, since that seemed to be one of their reasons for being.) I just bought a complete series 1 set of DVDs just so I can watch it anywhere I go.

I agree that buying paper manga can be expensive and frustrating. Subscription to a site such as J-Novel Club might be cheaper, and you can read online and then buy physical copies if you want.

My Manga rec would be Mahou Sensei Negima. I'll expend on this later, as I am running out of time.

Jade Dragosani · Post by **Jade Dragosani** » 04 Apr 2023, 22:16

Snowballs, When I was a teen I was way into Dragon Ball z, but I've tried to go back and it's not the same. LoL.
I liked Sailor Moon a lot.
FMA/Brotherhood, but those were intense to the extreme.
Fruits Basket
InuYasha
Yuri on Ice
Seven Deadly Sins
Most studio Ghibli movies, especially Kiki's Delivery Service and Howl's Moving Castle.
I can't think of any others. I even asked my kids. LoL.

Beex · Post by **Beex** » 05 Apr 2023, 00:14

Jade Dragosani,

Well I think you'd like Death Note but it's intense.

Try School Rumble or Azumanga Daioh!

Oh and yes. Read Negima! It's got wizards, girls, martial arts, an ermine......lol