Gensoumaden Saiyuki

One of my favorites. Why? Sanzou for one. However, when you look at what it's basically about, it doesn't sound too interesting. Four guys traveling west in a jeep, fighting youkai (demons) along the way. Their main adversaries, are hardly villianous or evil. They're more like friends than people out to kill Sanzou and the others. So where does this anime qualify as something entertaining? Well, like I said, there's the main four guys as a group. Frankly, one of the best "groups" I've seen in an anime. First, there's Genjou Sanzou. The priest. Highest-ranking priest there is in there world. Because of his status, he was given the mission to travel west and stop the efforts of someone who is trying to revive this youkai who once terrorize their world. Sounds like a good thing, right? Not for Sanzou. Though his title may be holy, he's probably one of the least holiest men in their world. He drinks, smokes, curses, and shoots people on a whim. This is the leader of the "heroes" in the anime and he's not above threatening anyone (even his "friends") with his Smith and Wesson. So my favorite character of all time is teamed up with his companions, Son Gokuu (Yep, he and DBZ Gokuu come from the same Chinese tale that Saiyuki is based on), Sa Gojou, and Cho Hakkai. Gokuu, with his bottomless pit of a stomach, is the "boy" of the group, being the only of them who's not in his twenties. Consquently, his naive boyishness and endless energy gets on the nerves of his twenty-something companions who act more like they're middle-aged. Gojou, the playboy of the group, is the only playboy (or at least one of the few) that I actually like. I usually hate the playboy of the group, but without Gojou, who else is Sanzou gonna curse out? ^_^ Finally, you tie the whole group together with Hakkai, the positive, peace-keeper. Without him, Sanzou would have shot Gokuu and Gojou millions of times. Because of these guys' great chemistry together, the comedy in nearly endless. Of course, there are moments when we have to deal with their mental anguish from their pasts, but it's in great balance. So why watch? Crazy and interesting characters, heroes who are fighting for "good" in a half-assed manner, and a lot of suggestively "yaoi" moments. Find a Saiyuki doujinshi (fan book) that's not yaoi. Very few. ^_^

Jungle wa Itsumo Hale Nochi Guu

Okay, I watched this anime because it had my third favorite seiyuu in it (Hoshi Souichirou) in it. Talk about a Tenshi ni Narumon flashback. The silliness factor is off the roof! A young boy named Hale raised by his single mother has his life turned upside by this "thing" (she looks like a little girl, but she's f-ing weird!) called Guu. Guu is taken into the household of this quiet jungle household and turns the whole jungle into a place of madness really. Guu's whole point seems to make Hale go out of his mind while he tries to bring things back into normalcy. Hale fails most of the time. Whenever this anime tries to deal with a serious matter it quickly dissolves back into silliness and comedy. I guess in animes like these I strive to find a endearing serious moment or when the person who's being tormented (usually a guy) finally wins at the end. Does Hale ever win? It's more of a matter of your opinion than a fact. The animation's not superior, but it's not like Digimon or something. So, if you want a break from people with dark pasts, constant killing as characters go on journeys, or relationship problems that are stretched out for countless episodes, this is the anime for you. Will you learn a lesson or some higher truth by watching it? No, but you'll probably sit back and laugh.

Naruto

Hell, yeah! The fighting barely takes a rest in Naruto. The laughs barely take a rest either, thankfully. Centered around a world where the most powerful countries have their own ninja force, the story begins with students in a ninja academy trying to pass a test so that they can be offically ninjas and complete missions. Mainly, we deal with the country of Konoha where our focus, Naruto lives. A young ninja who aspires to become the Hokage, or the strongest (and leader) of their country. The viewers get to watch as Naruto strives for this goal as he acquires strength, skill, and friends. The characters in here are endlessly wonderful. You have to find at least one you love. I have several. It's definitely neither character-lacking nor lacking enough characters. Naruto is joined by his two teamates, sakura and Sasuke, as well as his sensei, Kakashi, who is an advanced ninja responsible for training/instructing/supervising these newbie ninjas. If I had to sum what it was about at its core, I couldn't well describe it. It's not so into fighting that you're annoyed that there's no depth. You get into much of the character's heads and see what they wish to accomplish in life and etc. I suppose one of the questions Naruto tries to answer is, "will Naruto realize his dream?" I really enjoy this anime and I think it would be stupid if it were ever dubbed (it'll happen--all my favorites do). Any anime that allows you to be attached enough to the characters that you feel bad for one that fails or gets beaten when they're giving it their all, is the main ingredient of a good anime. There are no clear "villains" in this anime since I think that they are too explained for their wrongdoings (unlike those in DBZ or something), but there is one currently (still running in Japan as of July 2004) who fairly qualifies for a villain. However, he's not really what makes Naruto great. In a nutshell. The characters. There's nothing better than having bunch of favorite characters--that way, you have more opportunities to have some screen time with your favorite girl/guy. ^_^

Yami no Matsuei

Holy Crap. I was horrified y the animation--if you've seen the manga first, it's hard to adapt. Regardless, I recommend Yami no Matsuei. It takes a look into the world of the shinigami, the deceased souls that can travel both in world of the dead and the living. Our main guy here, Tsuzuki, is a shinigami who is probably simultaneously the greatest shinigami and the bigget failure. He, like the other shinigami, are sort of like dectectives upon matters that involve irregularities in people that are dying or who have died. So, there's always an element of mystery and along with that some fighting with inhumane powers. If that's not enough for one to enjoy this anime, there's the high yaoi element. Yep, it's yaoi. While there's no straight out men dating or kissing each other, it gets close. Whether you find that funny or sexy, Yami no Matsueientertains both views. The funniest element in that capacity occurs because of the central problem-starter in this anime, Katazuka Muraki. The psycho who's obsessed with making Tsuzuki suffer, kills whenever it's convinent to acheive a sick goal, and is also consquently a respected doctor. Frankly, he's the kind of evil element I can only pray for in an anime. Episodes without him are not as half as good as those with him. Luckily, though this anime is only 13 episodes, he occupies most of them. Refreshingly, he's the kind of villain that doesn't just go out and kill people, but he seeks to destroy one's mental composure. While Muraki radiates evil, he is always gets away to kill another day. He's not even a shinigami and he causes so much trouble for them. Absolutely great. Once again, I applaud Yami no Matsuei. Really hardly bad episode--despite there only being 13. They out to finish out the manga stories.