Recommended Anime/Manga?

[Raytrace]

watched the SD Gundam Olympics one yesterday - loved it

[Raytrace]

I think I shall watch Iczer-1 tonight. On a side note I made what I'm pretty sure is my favourite ever animGIF tonight:



started Iczer 1 - Oberstein voicing a female alien? great stuff haha

[Raytrace]

ok im going to have to abort watching Iczer-1 I didn't realise it was horror - well those jumpy bits, I'm a bit of a wimp when it comes to them or general trippy/freakiness hahahaha

[drauch]

Iczer-1 certainly has some horror elements to it, but it's really not scary at all. It's sorta a weird cross between exploitation, mechs and sci-fi. Tentacles, lesbians and the like. AKA perfect

[xbl0x180]

ok im going to have to abort watching Iczer-1 I didn't realise it was horror - well those jumpy bits, I'm a bit of a wimp when it comes to them or general trippy/freakiness hahahaha

Iczer is not Horror. It's most definitely Sci-Fi - alien invaders and one girl who has to take them on. If you don't like Horror, then you should avoid Vampire Miyu. At least, you should avoid the second episode, "A Banquet Of Marionettes," which was the strangest:

Girlfriend (accusatory tone): "Are you in love with that woman?"
Kei (wistful and despondent): "I'm not even sure if she is human."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-HCMxsSFWs


It is one of my all-time favourites with one of the most memorable music scores I have heard

[Raytrace]

Iczer is not Horror. It's most definitely Sci-Fi - alien invaders and one girl who has to take them on. If you don't like Horror, then you should avoid Vampire Miyu. At least, you should avoid the second episode, "A Banquet Of Marionettes," which was the strangest:

Girlfriend (accusatory tone): "Are you in love with that woman?"
Kei (wistful and despondent): "I'm not even sure if she is human."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-HCMxsSFWs


It is one of my all-time favourites with one of the most memorable music scores I have heard

yeah I know it isn't strictly horror, what I meant is it's full of those 'sudden jump' scenes, and tbh I'm completely freaked out by them especially when they involve faces and or masks, masks freak the shit out of me - any sudden face change type thing makes me jump - total wimp hahah - even Sixth Sense had me jumping all over the place, and I wasn't expecting it in Iczer-1 - I thought it was just going to be gore/sci-fi or something but not 'freaky' (ifuknowwotimean)...

[Raytrace]

Iczer-1 certainly has some horror elements to it, but it's really not scary at all. It's sorta a weird cross between exploitation, mechs and sci-fi. Tentacles, lesbians and the like. AKA perfect

haha yeah the first minute had head melting gore and lesbian aliens, which well I've no problems with haha, but then those freak alien face things with the eyes in their chins - *shudder*

[BIL]

a weird cross between exploitation, mechs and sci-fi. Tentacles, lesbians and the like. AKA perfect

Haha, had to check this out after your post. What drauch said. Naked schoolgirl-powered robot face smashing action!







Also, Kaneto Shiozawa! Great scene with him opposite the alien boss who sounded like a boiling kettle (seriously looked over my shoulder to see if I'd left mine on in that bit).

[KAI]

I would like to watch something with military realism, like Gasaraki but without all that oni/fantasy crap. Recommendations?

[Ghegs]

I would like to watch something with military realism, like Gasaraki but without all that oni/fantasy crap. Recommendations?

Legend of Galactic Heroes. Immediately.

For mech stuff some of the Gundam stuff is more grounded in reality (08th MS Team, for example). And Armored Trooper Votoms, of course...for the most part.

[KAI]

Looks really interesting!. Thanks Ghegs, I'll give it a try.

and I'm sure it's better than this.

[BIL]

LOGH is a true epic. Total quality.

[Raytrace]

Looks really interesting!. Thanks Ghegs, I'll give it a try.

and I'm sure it's better than this.

LOTGH is absolute perfection in my eyes...

[Raytrace]

watching Dirty Pair 7 - the hamburger song they sing with each other is hilarious

[xbl0x180]

I think Iczer 1 was supposed to be another episode of Cream Lemon, just as Project A-Ko was also supposed to be one them, but I'm not sure. Hirano Toshihiro directed another OAV episode for the Cream Lemon series - Mako: Sexy Symphony. Even though it's erotic, it definitely maintained a strange, eerie, maybe lurid feel to it...

[BIL]

Just finished Iczer-1, quite liked it. Neat and coherent mix of super robot, martial arts and cosmic horror material. Love the idea of an alien race known as "the Cthulhus," hahaha! Would've liked more of that brief sequence in Act 3 of the ruined city. The shot of the wrecked tank with a mass of writhing tendrils pouring from its hatch is memorable... ending kind of deflated things, but oh well. Not a bad way to kill a couple hours at all.

[xbl0x180]

I'm glad to see there is appreciation for classic series and OAVs With that said, don't get Iczelion or the other Iczer sequels made in the 90s.

[Raytrace]

watched second ep of Space Battleship Yamato - for some reason I prefer it so far to Harlock (though I've only watched 15 episodes of Harlock in fairness...).
I like that ultra stoic captain/leader type character in anything and the guy in Yamato is cool as fuck.

The WW II stuff was pretty interesting, I never realised (though I probably should have) that the Yamato was a classic 'suicide run' ending. I dunno whether the bit with the captain tying himself to the ship with a rope was true or urban legend, either way it was epics/tragic.

[MX7]

Just popping in to say thanks for all the reccomendations in this thread. Some serious gold here.

I particularly enjoyed Armitage III, which I feel had pretty much perfect music, setting and character design. As anyone who knows me knows, I dig anything with a tragic female cyborg in it. I'm also a big fan of wholesale reappropriation: Armitage III takes pretty much everything that was awesome about Blade Runner and chucks in a whole lot of new and interesting themes. Is Dual Matrix worth checking out?

Started to watch Serial Experiements Laine. A bit early to call judgement after one episode, especially given the deliberately challenging nature of the series, but I can see things getting properly marmite later on.

Watched an episode of Space Battleship Yamato. Not sure I can convince my housemates to watch the whole thing, but I like the stoic, Star Trek like 'high seas adventure but it's in space' vibe.

Is there much love for Gundam Wing round here? I watched almost the whole series on Cartoon Network, but it was never really repeated post 9/11 for reasons that become apparent very quickly. Fucking incredible music, washed out colour pallette and lots of twists and turns and philosophising about the nature of humanity. Can't wait to rewatch it.

Iczer looks like a corker. Definitely got that one on the back boiler.

Making my way slowly through the Urotsukidoji OVAs. Probably the closest to an actual nightmare ever committed to film. Cause, continuity and rationality are continually thrown out the window in phantasmagoric blasts of blood and sperm. The only serious analogue I can think of, aside from other OVAs like Violence Jack would be the latter unfinished passages of the Marquis du Sade's 120 days of sodom or Burrough's Naked Lunch. As long as it's read as an exercise in transgression, I honestly think these films are of significant importance.

Keep those reccomendations coming: I'm happy to say that I really know next to nothing about Japanese animation, and it's a real pleasure to keep discovering such fascinating films and series.

[drauch]

Yamato is really great stuff. I've only seen the original season myself; still haven't had a chance to check out the other two and the films. Regardless, it's still one of my faves. Analyzer's love for Yuki is unequaled.

[Raytrace]

Just popping in to say thanks for all the reccomendations in this thread. Some serious gold here.

I particularly enjoyed Armitage III, which I feel had pretty much perfect music, setting and character design. As anyone who knows me knows, I dig anything with a tragic female cyborg in it. I'm also a big fan of wholesale reappropriation: Armitage III takes pretty much everything that was awesome about Blade Runner and chucks in a whole lot of new and interesting themes. Is Dual Matrix worth checking out?

Started to watch Serial Experiements Laine. A bit early to call judgement after one episode, especially given the deliberately challenging nature of the series, but I can see things getting properly marmite later on.

Watched an episode of Space Battleship Yamato. Not sure I can convince my housemates to watch the whole thing, but I like the stoic, Star Trek like 'high seas adventure but it's in space' vibe.

Is there much love for Gundam Wing round here? I watched almost the whole series on Cartoon Network, but it was never really repeated post 9/11 for reasons that become apparent very quickly. Fucking incredible music, washed out colour pallette and lots of twists and turns and philosophising about the nature of humanity. Can't wait to rewatch it.

Iczer looks like a corker. Definitely got that one on the back boiler.

Making my way slowly through the Urotsukidoji OVAs. Probably the closest to an actual nightmare ever committed to film. Cause, continuity and rationality are continually thrown out the window in phantasmagoric blasts of blood and sperm. The only serious analogue I can think of, aside from other OVAs like Violence Jack would be the latter unfinished passages of the Marquis du Sade's 120 days of sodom or Burrough's Naked Lunch. As long as it's read as an exercise in transgression, I honestly think these films are of significant importance.

Keep those reccomendations coming: I'm happy to say that I really know next to nothing about Japanese animation, and it's a real pleasure to keep discovering such fascinating films and series.

yep if you look at myanimelist, it's pretty much all recommendations from here haha, and I've pretty much loved em all

yeah I mean to watch Armitage III myself but aint got round to it

I don't know about Wing - I, for one am fairly pure Universal Century, I've tried 00 recently and I don't know it just didn't feel right, I've glanced at parts of Seed etc. and my eyeballs felt like puking, maybe I should try Wing someday though, as it is older so less likely to offend my eyes

[Obiwanshinobi]

Probably the closest to an actual nightmare ever committed to film.

Watch Kanashimi no Belladonna for cool points. As close to Guido Crepax loony porn comic books as we're likely to see animated. The vintage acid rock OST spawns extra cool points, Euro-style.
Now when I think about it, the high concept behind visuals seems more akin to films like Conspirators of Pleasure than usual anime fare. Sorta "mommy, look what I did there", but in a good way.
Which brings me to the broader topic of post-Austro-Hungarian (middle European?) traits to be found in Japanese pop culture. Not something I'm particulary fond of, to be honest (didn't like that Murakami Hard-Boiled... book an awful lot; thankfully animated Haibane Renmei did not inherit the vibe). Actually Haibane Renmei, not unlike Kino no Tabi, reminds me of Tove Jansson and Jaan Kross books more (that's a good thing).

[Raytrace]

sorry if I'm being a bit thick - but is the Yamato in the series actually a 'modified' version of the original ship? Or a tribute spaceship which was built and then shot down by the aliens (and now being resurrected) ?

[xbl0x180]

That's why I never own more hobby stuff than I can carry on my back + both arms.

I just throw it away when it comes down to moving

Okay, NOW it's become painfully obvious what a burden all this crap is to just go about normal life in this tiny place. I stepped in this afternoon and all I could see was all this crap I accumulated. God damn. I never moved to a bigger place, so I just amassed all this shit. I'm starting to pile up the clutter to trash it. I've already tried to push 100 videocassettes into the trash. Damn, there was some stuff in there I totally forgot I had; there were videos that weren't opened! Hahaha.

Once I whittle down the videocassettes, the school books will be next (that's gonna hurt since I really liked some of those books). Fuck it! I need the space for a real bed and trash the old one

[drauch]

You've mentioned this multiple times before. Why don't you just sell it? It's insane how much some people will pay for videotapes nowadays.

[xbl0x180]

Chicks hate this stuff. You bring a girl back to your place, she peruses your video and book shelves, and starts making quips about this junk. Why do chicks hate stuff I like Why do I like chicks who hate the stuff I like

Ironically, I have enough time to post here, but I don't really have the time: I have work, on-call hours... and school is next week and the internship. In a few months, my brain will be turned to tapioca. I won't even have time to take a well-deserved dump let alone have the time to list stuff and mail to people. I was actually supposed to forward some mail to a former neighbour and it's been a few months now - and it's sitting in the front seat of my car! Hahah.

Anyway, the videocassettes were dupes. They weren't official releases. I did take a cue from you kids and put those in a box, and leave it at Goodwill or something. I found a VHS copy of Robot Carnival, the Streamline English dub of Akira, and the original uncut versions of Dangaio from US Renditions. I might do the same for the manga since it's all been sitting inside boxes for, literally, ages (I still have more of those colourised Ranma comics from the early 90s that Viz used to print...)

[drauch]

My last serious girlfriend constantly bitched about my immense DVD collection. She had no problem watching them, but she constantly complained about the movies and the videogames, etc. Last girl I saw took a look at all of my stuff with questionable discernment. It isn't worth it. Gotta get your priorities straight. People are replaceable; hobbies aren't.

Honestly, though, I can understand with the VHS burden. I got rid of a huge chunk of my collection a couple of years ago. Thankfully a buddy still has it, so if I ever need to catch a glimpse of that VHS copy of Raiders of Atlantis I can always stop by his pad and take a stroll through memory lane. I've still got tons stashed under beds, in closets, dressers, etc all throughout my parents house.

If you ever need to get rid of that manga, send it my way

[xbl0x180]

I still have two or three boxes of manga (I used to have a wall section). These are mostly common junk: Jo-Jo's Bizarre Adventure, Bastard!, and one or two Dragon Ball manga. One of the strangest titles I have are those Ozaki Minami Zetsu-Ai and Bronze manga. One small box has the translated stuff - and some of those are Iczer comics! Lotta junk from Eros Comix

... And, yes, every girl I have taken back to my place has always criticised my video, music, and book collections. Once they see the anime and manga, and video games, they get real snarky! What the hell

[Raytrace]

well it didn't help that you put on Iczer-1 the second they walked in the door! :p

[MX7]

@obiwanshinobi: Belladonna no Kanashimi looks... Well just about perfect. Thanks for the reccomendation!

@raytrace: Yes, the vessel in Space Battleship Yamato is a reference to the historical ship of the same name. There's even a lengthy flashback to 1945 in episode 2 just to hammer this home.

Up to episode six of SBY. While it has lots of edge of seat hung ho action, there also seems to be an explicit anti war message throughout. At the very least, conflict is far from glamorised, but instead is a sad necessity. There's still ker-azy characters and situations though. Not sure why travelling at warp speed makes all of Yuki's clothes come off, but I've never been in space myself.