Five anime shows that will get you hooked
Tokyo Ghoul – Kaneki lives in a world where ghouls can hide as humans. The art in the manga is extremely well made and the characters have a lot of depth, each with their own goals and in-depth backstories which are unveiled very well. The plot structure is very well thought out. The story is close to a masterpiece. The anime has all of that but less in it. However, it does its best to make up for it with a stellar soundtrack. This is a great original soundtrack (OST) with one of the greatest anime openings that I can think of.
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (FMA: B) – The story is essentially the learning of scientific magic to go on a MacGuffin quest after an epic tragedy that then turns into a mystery. The anime has elite music with a nice atmosphere and some great visuals, especially the openings and endings. Now mix that with a very tightly plotted mystery and throw on some amazing animation, characters that are really good and fleshed out plus settings that are just filled to the brim with personality. With a couple of war and political secrecy metaphors snuck in there, it’s a general masterpiece.
Death Note – Light is a modern genius who is bored with life and knows he can change the world. One day, he finds an abandoned notebook, so he takes it home and opens it up to the first page. It reads, “The human whose name is written in this note shall die.” From then on, his life would never be the same. The anime has a nice visual style with music that perfectly compliments it. The story has a cast of weird characters that have produced many hilarious memes. This narrative has a really good “cat and mouse” plot with the characters constantly chasing each other, going back and forth and you don’t know who to root for.
Naruto – Naruto was shunned all his life so he makes his motto, “I won’t run away anymore… I won’t go back on my word… that is my ninja way!” This is some of the best beginner storytelling that battle anime has to offer, but not up there with “Tokyo Ghoul” or “Fullmetal Alchemist.” It has a blooming cast of characters with varying levels of character development. The setting is original and gives some good stories. From the battle system to backstories, this is a good way to get into the genre. It has a great main character who develops well and amazing story arcs. The music has a really good feeling. Be warned: there is some lackluster stuff in here. It gets slow at points so you’ll need to identify what is important and what is not. It is also long, so you better be able to commit because the best stuff comes later.
Bleach – Ichigo Kurosaki has always been able to see ghosts and has lived accordingly. So, one day when a soul reaper broke into his bedroom, Ichigo and his family were threatened by a giant monster which the soul reaper came to capture. After the soul reaper becomes injured, Ichigo steps up to become a hero and saves her, altering his life forever. This anime has many of the same drawbacks and strengths as “Naruto” does, but there are some things that it does better. The protagonist in “Bleach” is way more likable and the development of Ichigo is also better. The idea isn’t completely original, but it distinguishes itself enough. I honestly think this is better than “Naruto” and it has the same quality of writing. If you can only watch one anime, watch this one.
