Serious Anime?

[Vorph]

I'm not much of an anime fan, but recently I've liked Ergo Proxy, Darker than Black, and Blood+. Before that, I checked out pretty much anything at all well-known but about the only ones I really enjoyed were Bebop and Escaflowne. If it's from 2005 on, I probably haven't seen it.

I don't like funny, silly, romantic, or retarded kiddie shit like DBZ, etc. The more serious and violent, the better imo. I'm also not really interested in anything extremely long, as Blood+ is already straining my interest at 50 episodes, and sci-fi or at least modern would be of more interest to me than fantasy.

Any suggestions?

[Vinen]

Originally Posted by Vorph

I'm not much of an anime fan, but recently I've liked Ergo Proxy, Darker than Black, and Blood+. Before that, I checked out pretty much anything at all well-known but about the only ones I really enjoyed were Bebop and Escaflowne. If it's from 2005 on, I probably haven't seen it.

I don't like funny, silly, romantic, or retarded kiddie shit like DBZ, etc. The more serious and violent, the better imo. I'm also not really interested in anything extremely long, as Blood+ is already straining my interest at 50 episodes, and sci-fi or at least modern would be of more interest to me than fantasy.

Any suggestions?

You might want to try Speed Grapher.

[Sidhe]

I also really liked Ergo Proxy. I'd say give Witch Hunter Robin a go.

[NargorothRiP]

Deathnote as has been discussed before on these boards, elfen lied or something like that.

[Guts]

there aint much serious anime that would be good. only ones left would be Berserk, Monster and Death note(only read the manga). If you havent seen Golden Boy already i'd recommend it.

[Sean]

Speed Grapher is definitely one you want to check out.

Code Geass is a decent choice as well if Darker than Black is serious enough for you.

Romeo X Juliet falls into romance side a bit, but I'd definitely lump it into the action/quality of the ones you listed.

And on the RxJ note - Gankutsuou, the same company's Count of Monte Cristo remake.

And for something completely different:

Major. It's a baseball anime. Yes, I'm dead serious in recommending this. It's currently in its third season and follows a guy from his childhood in Japan to playing in the US (right now it's in the highschool arc). There's not much in the way of romance in it and all and there's some rather fucked up shit the guy goes through throughout his life.

And on another different note:

Nodame Cantabile. It's a series about a guy working towards being a conductor and it is a pretty amazing change of pace from every other type of series. It also has some incredible compositions played in it.

[Malakriss]

Some DVD Suggestions:
Basilisk, Gantz, Ghost in the Shell, Kaze no Yojimbo, Last Exile, My-Hime, Noein, Samurai 7, Samurai Champloo, Zipang

Other suggestions:
Bleach (up to episode 63)
Code Geass (last two episodes of season 1 just released)
Dennou Coil
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

[PerritoBites]

Beck - Music band. You won't see any flying robots or anime nonsense :P
Samurai Champloo
Juuni Kokuki - (Twelve Kindoms)
Ghost in the Shell - Sci-fi, if you liked the original matrix, you will probably like this one. Both series and the movies are great.
Serial Experiments Lain - fucked up anime... it can be slow sometimes.
Noein - Time travel, quantum mechanics
Princess Mononoke (movie) - Classic, everybody should see this one!
Monster - Detective anime with a lot of OMG moments :P

[Guts]

did any of you actually read the OP?

[NargorothRiP]

Heh most people read "Anime suggestions?" and just throw forth whatever they have watched in some sort of passive competition of who is the most obscure or experienced like a music thread.

[Kaosu]

Juuni Kokki is a blessed anime. It has violence in it and its anything detached of funny. Get it now.

Its fantasy and the main character is a girl. That may turn some people off; it did me.

Its also 45 episodes, so it may be a little too long for you, however the main story cuts off at 40.

But, the anime isn't based off a manga, rather its based off a novel. The animation, the story, the setting, is so godlike, that its beyond most animes out there at the moment. Juuni Kokki is easily on my top 5 list, not including movies. If you like anything regarding story, then this is it. Its like romance of the three kingdoms, except, well, entirely more badass.

Just stick through the first couple of episodes, its definitely one of those animes/stories where you hate the character at first, but then start respecting and loving the main character as you see them progress through the story.

[Malakriss]

I most certainly did read the OP and look through my collection for action/violence based series, preferably in a sci-fi or modern setting.

[Lyenae]

I spent ~$1k building an anime collection the last month (nerd alert NYaRRR!) so I'll let you know how I went about it. I was actually going to start an Anime Collection thread here, but I guess I'll work on this one.

1) I'd take a look at these sites and their reviews.

THEM Anime Reviews 4.0 - Review List

The Anime Review

AAW: 5-star Reviews

Google anime reviews for more sites.

2) Start with the 5 stars, and work your way down. Cross reference reviews (anime geeks have different tastes, a 5 star at one site might be a 2 at the other.) Visit TV Links to view an episode or two (click the Anime button.) Most are on there, but there might be some dead links. I tend to pick episodes in the middle, as some anime series start strong and shit the bed halfway through, and the ideal anime series echoes it's awesomeness in every episode.

3) Don't automatically rule out an Anime because the theme may not be what you originally are looking for. Anime like Azumanga Daioh, which is about high school girl drama, will be more entertaining then most anime gorefests.

3) If the reviews are good, and you like what's going on in the episode or two you watched, you can try Blockbuster first. Blockbuster Total Access is well worth the $18/month. Most tame anime can be rented through the website, SOME can also be found in stores. You can rent them disc at a time.

4) If you can't rent it, for whatever reason, go to Amazon or BN. Get the whole series if possible. Episode volumes aren't the way to go. They aren't the most cost effective option if you will one day intend to own the entire collection. Ideally you want to get a boxed collection. You'll pay anywhere from $30 to $70 for most 26 episode collections that aren't recent releases. Stellar hits like Cowboy Bebop, or very recent hits like Texnolyze can command well over $150 for the entire set.

Avoid 3rd party sellers that seem to sell for half of what Amazon charges. They are selling imported editions. Most will say they are selling imports (others won't). While they may be authentic imports, you risk shitty quality video and a loss of just about all the extras (including special features, art box, etc.)

These are hit/miss. I ordered Berserk as my first collection and though I was getting a deal. I got a cheap import that had horrid mpeg artifacts and came in a shitty case. I watched the first 5 discs via blockbuster, I really just wanted to see the last disc (Blockbuster won't carry it because it has an 18+ ending.)

On the other hand, I bought the Transformers Collector's box import edition and I have absolutely no problem with it. I got all the extras, the only thing is the DVD menu's are in chinese.

Honestly, I'd rather pay an extra $10-$15 than have my 600 minute experience ruined by an import.

In addition, if you order via Amazon, you'll get a 30 day post order guarantee, which means if you see the collection cheaper, they'll refund it for you provided you email them I've already gotten $25 back from price changes, as Anime goes on sale alot.

[Sean]

Yep, certainly read it.

Speed Grapher, Code Geass, Romeo X Juliet, and Ganktusou are definitely something I'd recommend to a person who enjoyed Darker than Black, Ergo Proxy, and Cowboy Bebop.

[Duppin]

If you want something super serious, Claymore is not a bad choice.

Whatever you do, avoid Lucky Star. Based on your original post, you might die of insulin shock.