LenMiyata

Grumble Grumble Grumble

With the end of the year rapidly approaching, and the start of the Christmas shopping season almost upon us, now is the time to ask this question. What were the outstanding DVD releases for the year 2005??? (If anything, this thread can provide hints for christmas shopping presents for the dedicated Anime otaku...) Of all the Anime DVDs that have come out, (and I have seen many a release...) these are the ones that I have found outstanding...

'Elfin Lied', Despite the blood and gore and gratuitous violence, the horror romance series is one of the few of it's genre that can be described as 'Brilliant' with a powerful emotional story of love, hate and innocence, with complex emotional relationships among it's characters.

'Gunslinger Girls' a series about a group of small innocent little girls (who are cybernetic enhanced trained assassin controled by a secret Southern European security organization) goes beyond the normally expected 'Little Girls with Guns' series, but instead is a sad story about the girls relationship with their handlers, and how they emotionally cope with their situation. One of the more outstanding DVD releases for this year...

'PLANETES' This hard-cored Sci-Fi series is one of the sleepers of the year. Put out by NHK networks (Japanese Public Broadcasting) This series is not about the hard core Sci-fi subject of orbital debris collection. Instead, this is only the backdrop for the crazy character interactions of half section (half manned, half brained, half witted, etc. etc) with a growing love interest among the two main characters. This anime series was originally formatted for High Definition TV broadcast and is a great show piece for wide screen displays.

'Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind' This was Hayao Miyazaki's break out film, the success of which led to the creation of Studio Ghibli and all of the Miyazaki films that followed. Based on the Manga series that Miyazaki himself penned, the Anime film from the early 1980s, despite it's dated animation techniques, can easily hold it's own against more recent works based solely on the emotional power of it's story. A true Anime Classic, and a must see for any dedicated Anime fan.

Now what other Anime DVD releases that came out this year would you consider among the best of the best??? Simple List postings ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE. If you can't describe why a 2005 DVD belongs among the best of the best, then it doesn't deserve to be considered to be among the best...

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Red X

Oooh! AOD always does this lol, but mostly it's monthly.

Alright um.

Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 1 w/Art Box - Well actually it's a tin box but yeah. It was the first anime DVD I bought for starters and it also came with the soundtrack. However, I didn't really like the tin box that much because the stickers were extremely hard to take off, and if you were one of the few who TRIED to take them off, then you'll have some mistakes and blah blah. >_> My favorite anime thus far if not THE BEST.

Genshiken Vol. 1 w/art box - It was a really interesting anime at first. I liked the special features and all that included with the dvd. Especially the OVA series of Kujibiki Unbalance. It was some good stuff. So yeah, the anime is one of my favorites.

Gankutsuou Vol. 1 w/art box - Pretty unbelievable. At first I thought that it was just going to be a regular anime with great art but, the storyline is also quite interesting. A show I'll be looking forward to.

(Sadly Azumanga Daioh did NOT release this year but the Class Album did. However, I did not purchase it due to the fact that I already have the whole dvd collection on my shelf so yeah).

kedar

I cannot think of a lot of them right now...........but I can list some. Anyways, I love all of the Miyazaki's movies, he is an amazing director. I very much love the one that you mentioned, LenMiyata-garu.

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind-----------reason being, the storyline is absolutely spectacular and the graphics are spellbinding.

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Eriadd

My recommendations would be Gunslinger Girl (see LenMiyata's description) and Genshiken. Genshiken is a great series that revolves around an anime club in college. Not just any anime club, but the most insane club ever imaginable. The crazy thing is, if you have any anime otaku friends, chances are that one of the characters in Genshiken will remind you of 'em.

ffgirl23

I'd definetly put my for in for Elfen Lied for a couple of reasons.
1-It's only 4 dvds, which puts it at half of your usual series. This means a couple of things; less money you have to spend (always a plus) but more importantly, a much more focused story due to the lack of episodes. This results in every episode being absolutely essential, full of action, without any fluff or unnecessary content. Not that this is a bad thing, but if you know someone who just wants the essentials, then EL is perfect.
2-Like Len said, despite the amount of violence, there is a surprising amount of thought-provoking material in this series. Every episode leaves you to question what the status of everyone's relationship is going to be, as well as how those relationships came to be in the first place. You constantly get the feeling that someone is going to lose out big time, but because the story is so well plotted, you just can't figure out who it might be.
3-The music. Especially the intro song, sung in Latin (I can't think of the title right off the top of my head). This song really sets the mood for the series, in that it gives off hints of sadness, romance, despair, and to a certain extent, hope. A more perfect into song I have yet to hear. The ending theme is your typical Jpop type fare, but even it evokes more than just a feeling of love. And the music in the epsodes is equially outstanding.
So those are my reasons for voting EL as the best of 2005, but be warned; this series is for mature audiences only. Not just because of the blood and nudity, but because of the heavy themes involved. But I'd definetly recommed it to those who can handle it.

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And I remember now, at the top of my lungs in my arms, she dies, she dies.

Controlling you through a chip in your butt since 2004