Let's get this group started, everyone! What's the first anime you ever watched, and how does it compare to everything else you've seen since?

For me it was Ghost in the Shell: Stand-Alone Complex. One of my friends who does philosophy at Uni linked me the first episode of the English Dub via Youtube. I thought was rather strange at first and didn't watch another episode for a while after that, but I slowly got hooked as I watched more episodes and found them ever more fascinating. It's still one of the most complicated-but-interesting shows I've seen, and still one of my favourite anime.

Now, what about you?

2876180
Mine was Serial Experiments Lain. Pretty terrible first experience, but I was a teenager full of angst. it served me right.

2876449
Damn. Lain is great and all, but no way would it be the first thing I'd recommend to someone. It's way too strange for someone just getting into anime.

2876180

My first anime was "technically" Digimon...but I started watching it when I was just a kid and just considered it a cartoon at the time (which I suppose you could argue anime and cartoons are one in the same...but that's a different post for a different time). So technically I didn't get THAT into anime until my friend lent me a Shounen Jump magazine in middle school. I was pretty impressed with Shaman King. After that it get's blurry since I watched so much anime that I can't quiet remember which was first. I DO remember that my very first manga series (other than the Shounen Jump magazine) was Chobits.

2876180 Dragon ball Z

2876180 outside of Digimon, Pokemon, and Yu-Gi-Oh, I'd say the first serious anime I watched was Inuyasha. Inuyasha has left quite an imprint on me, mostly it has given me a love of the supernatural, feudal Japanese history, and medieval history in general.

2876180 Attack on Titan. I think it's ok, but I ditched it a while make to make way for better animes like Sword Art Online and stuff.

2876180

DBZ. It's DBZ and Sailor Moon for everyone I know IRL.

3498905

You only started watching anime a year or so ago? That's crazy.

3499018 yup. I KNOW I SHOULD HAVE GOT INTO IT EARLIER BUT I THOUGHT THEY WERE JUST JAPANSE ANIMATIONS THAT HAD THEIR OWN NAME FOR SOME REASON.