AnimeSuki Forums

I think it's sometimes interesting for us veteran anime fans to explore where we came from. Which shows were gateway anime shows for us, which shows were big parts of our growth as an anime fan, which shows stay clear in our memories many years after we first watched them?

With this in mind, I'd like everybody reading this to pick 1 to 3 sentimental stand-alones. This sentimental stand-alone should be at least 5 years old, and ideally pre-Madoka Magica.

What I mean by "sentimental stand-alones" is that it's a show that's not part of a brand franchise (i.e. Gundam, Macross, etc...). Let's be honest - These shows have a certain edge in our memories since they're attached to a particular brand that's continuing forward. However, it's fine if this stand-alone has multiple seasons, as long as the most recent one isn't that recent.

Let me pick one sentimental stand-alone for myself: True Tears


True Tears was perhaps my first experience with a more serious romantic drama show, at least outside of the KyoAni studio. Me watching True Tears was a big part of my anime-watching becoming more like 0utf0xZer0's and Pocari_Sweat's and Archon_Wing's. In my memory, True Tears represents a significant growth in my life as an anime fan. True Tears is also one of a precious few anime shows where I was well and truly a shipper. Prior to True Tears, I didn't quite get the intensity that some people could feel for shipping... after True Tears, I completely understand.

Finally, the audiovisuals of True Tears hold up remarkably well. Heck, a case can be made that PAW was actually at its height for appealing character designs with True Tears itself! True Tears's OP and OP song is also one of the most memorable I've ever listened to.


So, what is a True Tears for you, Knights of the RRRound Table?

An interesting quirk about the mid 2000s until the end of the decade was an influx of yuri anime. Not romantic friendships forged out of time travel or suggestive looks crafted from a beam to the face, but unequivocally confirmed pairings without a hint of denial

There was Sasameki Koto. There was Aoi Hana. There was Strawberry Panic! and Simoun. There was Kannazuki no Miko. But they were only a few waves in a sea awash with romantic friendships, from Maria Watches Over Us to the lesser known Umi Monogatari. But for a yuri fan like myself, that was as good as the anime scene got while the manga industry always obliged my fancy. But the more it went on, the more I encountered this callousness in subverting what a show can you lead you to think

Let's be intellectually honest here: random chest grabs does not a misleading direction make. It takes a concerted effort episode by episode to do this. And even as I'm not misled, there's a heft of baggage with the canon: an outrageous competition bereft of balance, a love triangle with a sociopath, constant worry over what society may think. Weighed down by obtuseness on one end and besieged by deception on the other, my yuri fandom was put through a stress test that forced me to abide by manga, but not before I discovered a little known anime called Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl

Kashimashi is the antidote to yuri with baggage, the counterpart of the average guy without co-opting the shoujo demographic, and one of the best love triangles I've still seen to this day. It was a yuri anime that was blind to the notion of homosexuality, the feelings of this triangle locked before and after Hazumu is turned into a female, persisting throughout the entire show without a second thought. Hazumu's former life as a guy provides a rare voice in anime period, that of the milquetoast female to feel what she feels down to her laughter and heartache. All of this built on a love triangle that genuinely pulls one in either direction

Igniting a single of these fuses would be a feat in and of itself, but to detonate all of this at once into a beautiful fireworks display proved to be something special for me at the time, and honestly, even now; especially now. I previously thought Kashimashi was ahead of its time, but the more time passes the more it seems like a window peering into what anime can do with this genre. Or rather, the simplicity it should embrace

When I got into anime in university around 2006 or so I was initially primarily interested in really crazy stuff -the original All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku OVA was a big favorite of mine. But I quickly began to appreciate somewhat more serious stuff as well. Full Metal Panic, School Rumble, and Starship Operators quickly became my big three anime TV series (nowadays only Full Metal Panic is still a serious contender for my top three). School Rumble is of course a crazy comedy, but Starship Operators is actually pretty serious despite its premise (of course its worth noting that I was into sci fi long before I was into anime). Full Metal Panic is of course a mix of comedic and serious, but its interesting that I was initially interested primarily in its purely comedic "Fumoffu" spinoff but ended up liking the much more serious first season more after I gave it a chance.

Up until I began my recent group watch of Full Metal Panic, I hadn't watched any of those three series in a long time. I've been thinking I should give School Rumble a rewatch, but I'm currently in the midst of a Amagami SS rewatch prompted by its lacklustre currently airing pseudo-sequel Seiren.

(Vaguely Related Sidenote: Trips, if you join in my FMP group watch like you've talked about doing, please don't let the fact that its an old favorite of mine affect your take on it too much. If you do check it out try to treat it more or less like you would any other show when you give your thoughts.)

Last Exile - What compelled me to explore anime in earnest. Still nothing like it.

Code Geass - Was feeling somewhat burnt out with anime in 2007. This got me back in. Never felt anticipation or energy of that magnitude since when watching/waiting for the next episode.

Garden of Sinners - The only title that has ever felt romantic for me. Feel fortunate that I saw the 2nd movie first while those that saw the 1st movie first always seem bitter in comparison.

Sigh... RRR says Macross doesn't count and then proceeds to steal True Tears from me

Poor Pocari_Sweat. But worry not, Last Sinner also stole Last Exile from me and Darthtabby most of the rest with FMP/School Rumble so you're not alone

Well, let's try to get some other entries going then.

Aria - There, I call shotgun on this fantastic series. I think its valid since Origination came out in 2008 even if a short 3 episode season came out as a bonus for the BR release last year. Aria is the single show that I went to the effort of importing an overseas release for and its always a bit bittersweet moment when I go back and rewatch an episode. It's such a slow paced and relaxed show about exploring everyday situations and has such an endearing cast of characters that you can't but help fall in love with. It always pains me a bit to remember that the show actually has an ending. The episodes go by so peacefully with virtually nothing happening and then reality hits and the show must end and the characters must move on from that comfortable moment in their lives. It feels very melancholic watching it back again nowadays but back when I first saw it I couldn't even grasp the concept of it ending. It felt so serene and you get so caught up in its slow pace that it works as wonderful relaxing tool. Tamayura is a very good spiritual successor btw, and it manages to recapture much of the same magic.

Clannad - Yes yes, everyone knows this one but I'll have to add it to my list: it's just very special to me. It hit me at exactly the right time on the exact right emotional notes to stick in my memory. The typical Key melodrama and the stereotypical high school coming of age story coupled with the almost flawless KyoAni execution worked wonders for me back then and I still get misty eyed every time I pick it back up. Its also one of the main reasons I initially joined these forums so there's that as well.

Crest/Banner of the Stars - I have yet to find another space opera show that reached the heights this series reached for me. Starship Operators came very very close but I still prefer this one instead. The personal story of Jintho and Lafiel just got me more personally invested in the characters instead of the situations. Its just a shame that we never got more anime-wise and that the novels english language license got lost in the big Tokyopop crash of the early 2000s (along with Full Metal Panic).

There were other shows that came to mind when I was thinking about this (most of them rather obvious even) but I'll leave them for another time if no one brings them up in the meantime.

Well Dextro, I also rate Aria and Crest/Banner of the Stars very highly. But they didn't qualify as sentimental for me.

Aria's concept of a temporary sanctuary/utopia was definitely soothing but just that. It was a temporary measure and not one I could feel sentimental for as it is simply not possible for humans to achieve such a place.

As for Crest/Banner of the Stars, I always took from it the idea of two different approaches/ways of thinking to life and the complimentary nature of Lafiel and Jinto. And I guess since there were other space operas I did get into, this wasn't sentimental for me. But still thought-provoking.

Fun fact: my first encounter with Last Exile actually predates my "conversion" to anime in university. I was channel flipping in a hotel room in Rome back in 2004 and it was one of the shows that was on. Of course it wasn't in English so I didn't understand what was going on. IIRC I saw the bit where the first officer lady is visiting a frightened Alvis in her new quarters aboard the Silvana. I think I also saw Titania being all severe. The overall effect was kind of sinister.

There was also an anime called Cinderella Boy which I don't think I've gotten around to tracking down (despite my heavy focus on shows with LOL crazy premises when I first got into anime). Perhaps I should see if I can find it.

Wow, another person who actually knows what Starship Operators is! Actually you're not the first person I've encountered online who's seen it, but I tend to think of it as at least semi-obscure. (Despite it being rated a top pick by an anime magazine that someone gave me a copy of -I think it might have been Newtype USA but I'm not sure, I lost it long ago.)

I actually rather enjoyed Crest/Banner of the Stars but it's not one that ended up being really special to me the way the shows I listed in my post did. BTW I own a translated copy of the first novel -and only the first novel, because that was the only one the place I bought it from had.

I actually own the first 3 translated novels. I got them only a couple of years back from Rightstuf along with the 3rd FMP novel. It looks like they got a stash of old TokyoPOP stuff and put them up for sale, not sure if they still have any left though. One of the Crest books even has the pages slightly yellowed and I got a nice letter along with it apologizing and explaining that they sent me the best condition one they could find.

I also remember rushing to my nearest book store to grab the last available volumes for the Aria manga when TokyoPOP went bust. Good times

EDIT: it looks like they only have the first crest book now. But they do have all 4 volumes of FMP in case anyone's interested *nudge*nudge*wink*wink*

Heh ... stand alones makes it a little tougher, but:

1. Kemono no Souja Erin. One of my top three anime series ever. It's long and has slow story build up, but it is quite rich, immersive and incredibly engaging for me ... and has remained so on EVERY. SINGLE. REWATCH.

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Possible "franchise" entries?

2. Aria. Not sure if this counts as to my mind it is almost a franchise, but I guess it works. Akari is without a doubt my favorite anime character ever ... and one of my favorite manga characters as well.

3. Clannad. Would this also be a franchise? If not then yes - this is the series that firmly hooked me into the medium (specifically After Story's OP).

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If the above two do not qualify, which makes things a bit tougher since often the things that made a big impression on me either were "part of a franchise" in my mind, or have had recent updates in the past five years - some examples being Tamayura, Kimi ni Todoke, or the magnificent Mushishi.

Kanon (2006) hit me hard. And a fair number of Ghibli movies: Nausicaa, Princess Mononoke and Kiki immediately come to mind (if movies "count").

Sentimental also carries connotations of a series that is somehow "more serious" that is dear to one, but if we leave that shade of things aside and focus moreso on series one just plain enjoyed, then I must include Saki ... although it also has had seasons in the past few years, so may not qualify. That series definitely helped solidify my enjoyment of the medium as a whole.

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Finally, although it may seem strange to some there are some moments or OP or ED or OST tracks that have been quite powerful to pull me into the medium as well, something which may not be surprising considering Clannad After Story's OP was what "sold me".

For some examples of all these: one moment from an anime that totally blew me away were the opening minutes of Dantalian no Shoka ... I thought they were absolutely ... exquisite, mysterious and beautiful. In episode 4.5 of Ikoku Meiro no Croisee when Yune sings the song the guitar player's grandfather composed is another such moment. The lovely ED from Aoi Hana was what made me aware of Ceui's singing in general ... I really like her slower pieces or her "love songs". There is also the OP for "Sketchbook Full Colors" that is quite moving and "simple".

Dantalian no Shoka has a stunning opening especially with the VA for Hugh reciting some poetry halfway through in the full version of the song.