Specific toryline anime's (and manga's) [transformations, suffering etc.]

[-KarumA-]

okay, im back again this time with a new request
im looking for anime's that have like a main hero that unwillingly or willingly gains something he cant controll, whether its a power of some sort, i dont mind, whether its a transformation bla, i dont mind either

i do have some kind of restrictions for the kind im looking for
starters, id like the person gaining it to be male
secondly, i just love things to be darkish, like Rahxephon's bathroom drug situation with mental struggles etc.
thirdly, i dont want anything harem likish or with girls with huge boobs.. so serious stuff and hardly any fanservice
i dont mind if its mecha, future setting, past setting or anything else

also i dont mind if it just has a few episodes where a thing like this happens

examples:
- just read a summary from the id thread about Kiss Dum: Engage Planet, just love the ide aof a guy getting seriously injured and then being revived or something else, some weird stuff is bound to happen to him, mentally and possibly physicly
- Black Cat's episode of Train getting shot by the strange bullet that courses a transformation inside him to turn into a kind, though i didnt like the kid choice but the transformation was awsome, i just find that the chills run down my spine, hence the reason im asking for weird stuff
- as i said Rahxephon, a guy with blue blood that oesnt even know what he is, gets mind rapped and transformed into a huge winged thingy, awsome! (im sure people would suggest me Evangelion then, because of the end of evangelion and Rei's transformation, but i already saw it, own it and think that was too quiet.. Rei's not the main character.. thats why, still i love evangelion)
- Soultaker, i loved the beginning of Soultaker, guy changes into a strange being bla bla bla, awsome, loved the art style
- Code Geass, Lelouch gains a power and it evolves, nothing i can say about it because it just started with the evolve parts, still many people should know what i mean
- Bio hunter, loved the idea, though didnt lik the movie
- Akira, okay Tetsuo suffering and then losing controll over everything, swelling up and BOOM! wicked!

and thats about it

im basicly looking for anime's in this section, not the overly populair stuff, like Death Note, Bleach etc. but stuff that isnt like over fandished, i dont really mind the age where it comes from, as long as it isnt TOO old, if you know what i mean

further on if anyone has some good manga suggestions in this cathegory (again not overly fandished) that would be great, but only manga that hasnt been animated

[Skyfall]

Uh ... a pretty difficult request

If you liked RahXephon you should check out Soukyuu no Fafner: Dead Aggressor. (Currently stands as my no1 mecha show). I am sure you will notice the similarities with RahXephon pretty quickly. Definitely rather dark and emotional. What i liked about the show was the feeling of impending doom it created - i was never sure what characters are going to make it out alive. After the series watch the 1ep OVA as well.

Blood+ - this doesn't have the male lead you are after (but don't worry - there is a cool guy always following the girl), but i think it fits the criteria otherwise rather well. Action/adventure.


Oh, and i would advice to stay clear of Kiss Dum: Engage Planet -> that show is crap. I would never recommend it to anyone.

[Anh_Minh]

Busou Renkin would fit the bill, I think. (Except the main character isn't a mecha pilot.) Guy meets girl, gets some kind of superpower.

Gigantic formula is a mecha show. Also about a guy who meets a girl and gets dragged into some dark secret story covered up by some giant mecha fighting.

Tokyo Majin Gakuen Kenpuchou This one isn't about a guy meeting a girl, but about three boys and two girls (unfortunately, no sentai outfits) gaining superpowers and using them to fight zombies.

[jedinat]

Anime:
Devilman Lady - has a female protagonist, but it's pretty good. the girl has trouble controling her inner beast.
Shingetsutan Tsukihime - Shiki gets homicidal urges and sucks at controling his shinigami eyes power. I've played the game too many times since I saw the anime, so I can't say certainly how much this matches your request

Manga:
Kiseijuu - gains an alien in place of his right hand that is mostly autonomous and can morph itself into any shape, has great strength, and is hard like steel
Kurozakuro - possessed by something that gives him super strength, the ability to transform, and the desire to eat people
Variante - has a female protagonist, but is very good. about a girl who gains a grotesque shape-changing arm that she is not in complete control of

[G. Zeus]

Geez. I could think of several examples but all of them involve female characters. I'll throw them in anyway.

First of all, there's Claymore but that might fall under the "overly fandished" category for you.

Saikano's about this highschool girl who's turn into "the ultimate weapon" for what appears to be the 3rd World War. Far more drama than action though so I'm not sure if you'd like that.

If you're into fighting games, you could try out the story mode in Guilty Gear XX. Dizzy tends to lose control on a regular basis since she is a half-Gear (a biological weapon with enhanced physical and magical attributes). Being a commander type gear with the potential to control almost every other gear currently alive (the prototype being the only exception), she has the power to screw humanity several times over. Unfortunately, the story mode was taken out of XX Slash and is only available in XX and XX #Reload.

P.S. Thumbs up to jedinat for mentioning Variante. I've been trying to recall the title of the manga for the past 2 hours.

[THX]

Have you seen Gungrave? While not exactly what you are looking for, it is down its alley and it is definitely a very good series.

[miaka]

Reideen - mecha anime...
toward terra
Kiba perhaps

[Navel]

Ergo Proxy: the main character is not the girl from the first episode
Texhnolyze: maybe yes, maybe no; he does get "paid" in several ways in the first episode
Sentou Yousei Yukikaze: has some moments like the ones you are looking for
The Big O: if you have the patience to reach for the second part of the series