Originally posted by: Nebor
I predict this threaad will be overrun by people saying that anime sucks.
But let me be the first to say, anime sucks.
That's really too bad. You probably just haven't seen any particular anime that you happened to like yet. But a blanket statement like that, is like saying "all movies suck", or "all television sucks". (Well, ok, the last one
is true.)
There is an incredibly diverse selection of choices, you simply need to explore more. Not all of it is stereotypical "cutesy" or "robots" or "samurai/ninja" anime. Some of it is rather original and has scenarios that make you stop and think a while. (IOW, some have rather very intellectual themes and sub-contexts to the storyline.)
I recommend:
The Boy Who Could See The Wind (a story of innocence and heart, and special powers, mostly non-cliche, non-specific WWI-like sub-themes)
Galaxy Express 999 (related to the Capt. Harlock series)
Capt. Harlock: Outside Legend (like star trek, only much better, and the scientific terms are actually more accurate, one ep. has stuff in it that is PhD-level physics, and seems actually accurate.)
Metropolis (marvelous production quality, disney level or better. You will find the themes explored here show up recurringly in other anime)
Giant Robo (ok, somewhat cliche, but oh so very well done)
Big 'O' (this is a "robot" anime, but only superficially. The underlying storyline gets going during the second season.)
Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040 (has some similar themes to Metropolis and Big O, a story about nanotech gone wrong)
Perfect Blue (psych. thriller)
Boogiepop Phantom (psych. thriller)
Great Teacher Onizuka (great series, explores the world of teaching and student-teacher relationships, kind of like the tv shows 'Welcome Back Kotter', and 'Head of the Class'. A few subtly-suggestive Hentai-like parts too, no doubt because the Japanese have a slightly different view on this than Americans do.)
Key the Metal Idol
Space Battleship Yamato (aka 'Star Blazers' in the US. One of the all-time great "space exploration" anime series)
Texhnolyze (I found the storyline a bit hard to follow at times, but ... what trip.)
Yu Yu Hakusho (teenage development, combined with a heavy dose of spirituality and oriental legend)
Ah! My Goddess (kind of a fun/funny look at religion, combined with technology)
Ghost in the Shell (another look at technology, and human spirituality)
After watching some of these, you'll see where some of the themes expressed in The Matrix came from as well, and why some consider it to be a "live-action anime movie".