I love animé - I grew up on bad dubs of things like Transformers Masterforce and Doraemon and what have you so it has been instilled in me since childhood. I just haven't been very vocal about it in my net dealings. Just haven't had a great need to do so rather rather than anything else. Just for the record: I like robots, fantasy, comedy and combinations thereof. Don't like overly serious stuff (like EVA). However I have been trying other genres that I would normally never try to associate with (like Kanon, Clannad and Air), and finding myself thoroughly enjoying them. Also, to peg me into what type of western Anime category I am: I listen to the original audio and use subtitles (to assist - my ears and brain do the bulk of the interpreting). Nothing against dubs if done well, but I am a purist at heart and don't like any of the material changed if at all possible. Even cultural/pop culture references. It's a bit elitist, but while I was quite happy with what they did in, say, Last Exile (which was very good, by the way in either language), you'd have to try listening to the English dub for Dragon Ball (the original first series) and compare it to the story that is told by the original Japanese audio and its subtitles. The difference was at such an extreme level that they were completely different stories. I practically stopped watching my anime through both languages after that. Mind you, I shouldn't have been surprised by that as Westernizing anime and completely changing the stories has been an age old tradition. Look at Robotech, the various Voltrons and Saber Rider and the Star Sherrifs. They share little in common with their source material. Anyway, enough aimless rambling about my personal preferences (it's boring).
Thought I'd list a few quick shows I've watched or rewatched recently (mix of new and old) and my thoughts on them.
el Cazador de la Bruja - Bounty hunters, genetically engineered witches, secret organizations, shifting loyalties, a good dose of fun and drama, likeable and imperfect protagonists and loopy bad guys that are more messed up in the head than bad to the bone. Great stuff. Highly enjoyed it. Not the greatest show ever, but great viewing all the same if you'd like a good yarn.
Mobile Fighter G Gundam - Imagine a cross between a world martial arts tournament style stories (like the original Dragonball) and toss Gundams in. Mix well. Definitely not 'Gundam' as far as Gundams go (even the creator says so in the notes), but still extremely enjoyable. Along with shows like War in the Pocket and 08th MS Team, it's fun viewing. Do note that they did change a few Gundam names to soften the blow a little for Western aesthetics.
Shattered Angles - Fans of UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie and Steel Angel Kurumi might get a kick out of this for some of its references. The image of Val for example shows up as a Steel Angel. Mixed feelings about it, but I wouldn't say it's bad. Will need to watch it a few more times to truly get a fix on it.
Princess Tutu - Slow start, but this was quite a good series once it started to pick up. Has the typical magical girl type theme, but not so much in the combat sense as many shows in this genre go. The main protagonist mainly solves problems by dancing. Has bittersweet conclusions and plots twists just like some of the ballets and other stories that are used throughout the series. But I guess it's as herr Drosselmeyer says that perfect heroines (referring to the main protagonist) are boring. I really dislike the way some subtitles are handled, particularly with changing what is said by the characters (like names). You watch enough anime in its original language and you do tend to learn a few words, so things like this irk me to no end. However this story is one case where keeping the subtitles as close to the original source material would have caused some puns to not work. The main character for example is called Ahiru, which is Duck in Japanese. As it also happens, she is also a duck. So it would make sense for Duck to be a duck in the English subtitles and dub. Beyond a few name changes, it's fine. Oh, did I say I adore the main character's voice? Don't know why but the squeaky voice and awkwardness of the character is quite an appealing combination. Note, minor nudity but nothing to froth at the mouth about. That's not the point of the show.
Baldr Force EXE - exploding heads. Didn't like it. The whole premise of having a virtual entity is that it's virtual. Yet here we have the virtual body being erased and your real life body bursting like an overripe watermelon. Matrix with virtual mecha. OVA format, and way too short and thus felt as though they rushed through everything. Only got it since it was on special, so no skin off my back. What next? Who knows, I have a small library of shows to rewatch over the rest of the year - on top of the new ones. Mainly looking forward to starting on Slayers Revolution as soon as Slayers Revolution R is out. In the meantime, may try to rewatch Kaleido Star and Rune Soldier Louie.
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