Anime - My personal picks

I love tv series, movies and anime. It's a great way to just sit back and relax! Sometimes, something stupid like the big bang theory that you can just watch and have a completely blank head after a long day, or something much more complex like Mr Robot that you need to pay close attention to or you'll lose track of what's going on.

While anime has a pretty bad rep with many internet users, and anime consumers/fans can be some of the weirdest people out there, not all of it is bad. Just like TV and movies and sports, there're bad apples in the bunch.

I'm a big fan of anime and manga and enjoy watching and reading it. I'm not one of the pillow "waifu" humping "people".

Anyway, Here's my top 10 animes to watch for those who haven't. And those who have, I'd love to hear your comments about my top 10!

10 - Another

In 1972, a popular student in Yomiyama North Middle School's class 3-3 named Misaki passed away during the school year. Since then, the town of Yomiyama has been shrouded by a fearful atmosphere, from the dark secrets hidden deep within.
Twenty-six years later, 15-year-old Kouichi Sakakibara transfers into class 3-3 of Yomiyama North and soon after discovers that a strange, gloomy mood seems to hang over all the students. He also finds himself drawn to the mysterious, eyepatch-wearing student Mei Misaki; however, the rest of the class and the teachers seem to treat her like she doesn't exist. Paying no heed to warnings from everyone including Mei herself, Kouichi begins to get closer not only to her, but also to the truth behind the gruesome phenomenon plaguing class 3-3 of Yomiyama North.
Another follows Kouichi, Mei, and their classmates as they are pulled into the enigma surrounding a series of inevitable, tragic events—but unraveling the horror of Yomiyama may just cost them the ultimate price.
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I like gory animes, and another is a pretty damned gory one! With girls impaling themselves on umbrellas, teachers brutally committing suicide in front of their students and kids actively trying to kill each other, it's not for the light hearted. The plot of the anime is really well laid out and progresses at a nice pace, and it keeps you trying to figure out exactly what's going on, and just when you think you've got it, plot twist! It's definitely worth a watch, but not for the squirmish!

9 - The future Diary

Lonely high school student, Yukiteru Amano, spends his days writing a diary on his cellphone, while conversing with his two seemingly imaginary friends Deus Ex Machina, who is the god of time and space, and Murmur, the god's servant. Revealing himself to be an actual entity, Deus grants Yukiteru a "Random Diary," which shows highly descriptive entries based on the future and forces him into a bloody battle royale with 11 other holders of similarly powerful future diaries.
With the last person standing designated as the new god of time and space, Yukiteru must find and kill the other 11 in order to survive. He reluctantly teams up with his obsessive stalker Yuno Gasai (who also possesses such a diary), and she takes it upon herself to ensure his safety. But there's more to the girl than meets the eye, as she might have other plans for her unrequited love...
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Another gruesome anime series, with a whole lot of commentary regarding child abuse and neglect, cultism, bullying, politics and religion. It's an action packed series with a lot of bloody killings and the power of friendship! It's a quick paced series for the most part, with scenes quickly developing, it will have you sitting on the edge of you seat and freaking out what the hell is wrong with her. Trying not to spoil too much, but you will constantly be surprised at the twists and turns the plot makes to surprise the watcher. Definitely not for the light stomached though.

8 - Tokyo Ghoul

Tokyo has become a cruel and merciless city—a place where vicious creatures called “ghouls” exist alongside humans. The citizens of this once great metropolis live in constant fear of these bloodthirsty savages and their thirst for human flesh. However, the greatest threat these ghouls pose is their dangerous ability to masquerade as humans and blend in with society.
Based on the best-selling supernatural horror manga by Sui Ishida, Tokyo Ghoul follows Ken Kaneki, a shy, bookish college student, who is instantly drawn to Rize Kamishiro, an avid reader like himself. However, Rize is not exactly who she seems, and this unfortunate meeting pushes Kaneki into the dark depths of the ghouls' inhuman world. In a twist of fate, Kaneki is saved by the enigmatic waitress Touka Kirishima, and thus begins his new, secret life as a half-ghoul/half-human who must find a way to integrate into both societies.
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In a world where human like monsters can only eat humans, how can it not be gory? The characters of Tokyo ghoul are complex and grow a lot throughout the two seasons. The first season is a bit whimpy with the characters, as my girlfriend so eloquently puts it, feeling sorry for themselves the whole time. But in the end of the first season, a lot changes and the characters are empowered. The characters, even the ghouls, are totally relatable. The plot follows a good progression speed and keeps you on your tows once things start happening.

7 - Samurai Champloo

Fuu Kasumi is a young and clumsy waitress who spends her days peacefully working in a small teahouse. That is, until she accidentally spills a drink all over one of her customers! With a group of samurai now incessantly harassing her, Fuu desperately calls upon another samurai in the shop, Mugen, who quickly defeats them with his wild fighting technique, utilizing movements reminiscent to that of breakdancing. Unfortunately, Mugen decides to pick a fight with the unwilling ronin Jin, who wields a more precise and traditional style of swordfighting, and the latter proves to be a formidable opponent. The only problem is, they end up destroying the entire shop as well as accidentally killing the local magistrate's son.
For their crime, the two samurai are captured and set to be executed. However, they are rescued by Fuu, who hires the duo as her bodyguards. Though she no longer has a place to return to, the former waitress wishes to find a certain samurai who smells of sunflowers and enlists the help of the now exonerated pair to do so. Despite initially disapproving of this idea, the two eventually agree to assist the girl in her quest; thus, the trio embark upon an adventure to find this mysterious warrior—that is, if Fuu can keep Mugen and Jin from killing each other.
Set in an alternate Edo Period of Japan, Samurai Champloo follows the journey of these three eccentric individuals in an epic quest full of action, comedy, and dynamic sword fighting, all set to the beat of a unique hip-hop infused soundtrack.
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Samurai champloo is a lot of fun to watch with a lot of eastern history highlighted throughout the series in the most comedic ways. It's extremely satirical about a lot of historically sensitive things as well as more modern issues. It touches on things like sexuality -, class- and race discrimination and more in very funny and enjoyable way, but still makes you think about it. The sound track is quite interesting with various hip hop and rap songs and it perfectly complimenting the scene. The unlikely duo that is Jin and Mogen are great to watch and make the show extremely enjoyable.

6 - Noragami

In times of need, if you look in the right place, you just may see a strange telephone number scrawled in red. If you call this number, you will hear a young man introduce himself as the Yato God.
Yato is a minor deity and a self-proclaimed "Delivery God," who dreams of having millions of worshippers. Without a single shrine dedicated to his name, however, his goals are far from being realized. He spends his days doing odd jobs for five yen apiece, until his weapon partner becomes fed up with her useless master and deserts him.
Just as things seem to be looking grim for the god, his fortune changes when a middle school girl, Hiyori Iki, supposedly saves Yato from a car accident, taking the hit for him. Remarkably, she survives, but the event has caused her soul to become loose and hence able to leave her body. Hiyori demands that Yato return her to normal, but upon learning that he needs a new partner to do so, reluctantly agrees to help him find one. And with Hiyori's help, Yato's luck may finally be turning around.
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Noragami is a fun anime to watch without being too gruesome for most of the show. The father-son like relationship that Yato has with Yukine is very reminiscent of my own relationship with my parents, just not as bad though. The way Yato tries to make an honest living in spite of what he is is very inspiring and motivational. Noragami is a great anime to lift your spirits and make you feel wonderful, just don't stop watching half way through.

5 - Hellsing

Decades ago, the legendary Dr. Abraham Van Helsing and his companions defeated Count Dracula, one of the world's deadliest vampires. After this success his name was used in the founding of the Hellsing Organization, a British task force with the duty of eliminating supernatural threats.
Hellsing follows the exploits of that very organization. Led by Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing, the Hellsing Organization finds its trump card not in the power of man, but in the strength of a monster it has tamed. Alucard, one of the oldest and most powerful vampires in existence, now hunts his fellow monsters at Hellsing's bequest. Alongside new recruit Seras Victoria, Alucard will find that a new threat has arisen, one greater than anything the Hellsing Organization has ever dealt with before.
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One of the classics of anime and of the more well known ones as well. There's not much about Hellsing I can say other than gore, vampires, awesome magic fights scenes and a short but intricate and progressive plot. Amazing anime that is definitely worth watching.

4 - Sword Art Online (S1)

In the year 2022, virtual reality has progressed by leaps and bounds, and a massive online role-playing game called Sword Art Online (SAO) is launched. With the aid of "NerveGear" technology, players can control their avatars within the game using nothing but their own thoughts.
Kazuto Kirigaya, nicknamed "Kirito," is among the lucky few enthusiasts who get their hands on the first shipment of the game. He logs in to find himself, with ten-thousand others, in the scenic and elaborate world of Aincrad, one full of fantastic medieval weapons and gruesome monsters. However, in a cruel turn of events, the players soon realize they cannot log out; the game's creator has trapped them in his new world until they complete all one hundred levels of the game.
In order to escape Aincrad, Kirito will now have to interact and cooperate with his fellow players. Some are allies, while others are foes, like Asuna Yuuki, who commands the leading group attempting to escape from the ruthless game. To make matters worse, Sword Art Online is not all fun and games: if they die in Aincrad, they die in real life. Kirito must adapt to his new reality, fight for his survival, and hopefully break free from his virtual hell.
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Truly a modern classic that made headlines with its release a few years ago. After my brother gave it to me, I binge watched the whole first 18 episodes of the first season, that was what was available at the time, and continued to hate my brother for another 7 weeks because he introduced it to me before it was finished. I could not stand having to wait a whole week for each episode. The series is nail biting intense with an intricate plot. You'll fall in love with the characters and go through an emotional roller coaster half way through the series. Definitely a must watch! The second season is sadly not even close to the first. The first half of the second season is still good compared to most other animes, but the the rest is absolutely boring.

3 - Full Metal Alchemist

The rules of alchemy state that to gain something, one must lose something of equal value. Alchemy is the process of taking apart and reconstructing an object into a different entity, with the rules of alchemy to govern this procedure. However, there exists an object that can bring any alchemist above these rules, the object known as the Philosopher's Stone. The young Edward Elric is a particularly talented alchemist who through an accident years back lost his younger brother Alphonse and one of his legs. Sacrificing one of his arms as well, he used alchemy to bind his brother's soul to a suit of armor.
This lead to the beginning of their journey to restore their bodies, in search for the legendary Philosopher's Stone.
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Another older anime as is evident from the drawing and animation style, but that does not make it any less amazing. The series is scattered with life lessons and tear jerking moments. It's hard to believe one can become so attached to animated characters sometimes. A complex plot that keeps you thinking to figure out whats going on and who's the good or bad guys, or rather, who has the moral high ground... The series is well laid out with highs and lows and comic relief and tension in all the right places. FMA will keep you the edge of your seat in tension in one episode and rolling on the floor laughing 2 episodes later. Also worth mentioning is Full Metal Alchemist, which is more strictly based on the manga. While parts of the story lines coincide, the plot of brotherhood is very different in the later stages of the show and it's definitely worth watching both, though I do recommend not watching both back to back.

2 - Attack On Titan

Centuries ago, mankind was slaughtered to near extinction by monstrous humanoid creatures called titans, forcing humans to hide in fear behind enormous concentric walls. What makes these giants truly terrifying is that their taste for human flesh is not born out of hunger but what appears to be out of pleasure. To ensure their survival, the remnants of humanity began living within defensive barriers, resulting in one hundred years without a single titan encounter. However, that fragile calm is soon shattered when a colossal titan manages to breach the supposedly impregnable outer wall, reigniting the fight for survival against the man-eating abominations.
After witnessing a horrific personal loss at the hands of the invading creatures, Eren Yeager dedicates his life to their eradication by enlisting into the Survey Corps, an elite military unit that combats the merciless humanoids outside the protection of the walls. Based on Hajime Isayama's award-winning manga, Shingeki no Kyojin follows Eren, along with his adopted sister Mikasa Ackerman and his childhood friend Armin Arlert, as they join the brutal war against the titans and race to discover a way of defeating them before the last walls are breached.
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Attack on titan made headlines after it was aired and has almost a cult following. It's spawned many a meme and is extremely popular in internet culture. Understandably so. The genital-less human like titans are creepy and generally just the stuff of nightmares. The show is pretty gory with the titans ripping and biting people in half and limbs and half eaten humans scattering the scenes quite often. The story develops at a fast pace and is relatively easy to follow, but there are aspects of the show that require quite a lot of attention. It's a series worth watching twice or even three times, with the second season coming in (hopefully) April of 2017.

1 - Death Note

A shinigami, as a god of death, can kill any person—provided they see their victim's face and write their victim's name in a notebook called a Death Note. One day, Ryuk, bored by the shinigami lifestyle and interested in seeing how a human would use a Death Note, drops one into the human realm.
High school student and prodigy Light Yagami stumbles upon the Death Note and—since he deplores the state of the world—tests the deadly notebook by writing a criminal's name in it. When the criminal dies immediately following his experiment with the Death Note, Light is greatly surprised and quickly recognizes how devastating the power that has fallen into his hands could be.
With this divine capability, Light decides to extinguish all criminals in order to build a new world where crime does not exist and people worship him as a god. Police, however, quickly discover that a serial killer is targeting criminals and, consequently, try to apprehend the culprit. To do this, the Japanese investigators count on the assistance of the best detective in the world: a young and eccentric man known only by the name of L.
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The anime of animes. One of the most complex plots of any series, anime or TV, I've ever seen. The rivalry between Light and L makes the show. It's just mind game after mind game after mind game with these two, and I love it. The level of forward planning is greater than that of a chess grand master. While it can sometimes be hard to relate to the main characters because of their extreme intelligence and near non-existent emotions, you'll still fall in love with them. The drawing and animation style of Death Note is noteworthy. See what I did there? I'm sorry, I'll stop now... But seriously, it's one of the most beautifully drawn mangas and animes out there. There's so many good points about Death Note that I really struggle to point anything specific out. Everything comes together perfectly to create the best anime there is to watch...

Honorable mentions

These are a few animes I really enjoyed watching and just barely missed this list:
Akame ga Kill!
One Piece (if you have the patience for it!)
Log horizon (falls on its face even more than SAO in the seconds season)
Beck
One punch man (extremely funny!)
No Game No Life (sadly it will probably not get a second season.... otherwise it would most likely have made the list)

There are many more animes that range from extremely serious and addressing pressing social matters, to much more light hearted and comical. It's great big universe of shows to watch, and just because the characters are animated does not mean the matters addressed or lessons learned are any less real.

If you disagree with my list or have something to add, please leave a comment! I'd love to discuss it. There's also many many animes I have not yet seen and if you have any recommendations for me, I'd love to hear them