Anime that changed your life

[Rocketshipper]

Pokemon!!!! If it wasn't for that show then I'd never have seen CCS or Tenchi Muyo and started looking further into anime. I also got introduced to "shipping" with pokemon; before I never cared much about romance in any shows I watched (except for Tommy/Kimberly in Power Rangers), but after I was introduced to Pokeshipping (Ash/Misty) things just took off and now I love romance ^^.

[Debitt]

Pokemon was the reason that I got into anime, which has since had a hand in a lot of my hobbies. So that's really the only thing I can say "changed my life" noticably.

[chikin_d00d89]

Umm, I'd have to say that TENCHI MUYO! (all) and ZOIDS (Chaotic Century/Guardian Force) got me to attempt to create a treatment for a cross-over anime of sorts for both of them, whilst retaining some originality.

[ShiroiHikari]

As dumb as it might sound, the anime that changed my life is Sailor Moon. It opened my mind to new things and made me a fan of anime and Japanese culture. It stimulated my creativity and I started to write and draw more.

I was also taught an important lesson because of my love for Sailor Moon. After a while, I became obsessed with it, but God told me to back off, thus teaching me to do things in moderation.

Other anime that had a big impact on me were Dragonball Z and Gundam Wing.

[chikin_d00d89]

If it comes to messing with the way I look at things, then I dare not even MENTION what it was that I saw!

...

But when it comes to having a positive outlook on something, I'd have to saw that, after viewing THE VISION OF ESCAFLOWNE, that I fiured out what real relationships/heartbreaks might be like. I'm not thinking that they're always like that, I'm just saying that I have a general idea about what it may be like.

Another that changed the way I think was AKIRA.

[rsnumber2]

Ghost in the Shell was the first anime I watched that really got me hooked. I remember watching robotech, transformers, and voltron as a kid, but GiTs was when I was first able to start regularly consuming it.


On the other hand... DBZ got me noticed by a Japanese girl in my Graphic Design 1 class. I had tried to incorporate Goku into a project (miserably, I might add). She liked what she saw and said she had a brother coming to school in a year and needed some friends. A few short years later I was dining in Kyoto with the rest of their family. As I shared my faith with them, they accepted me as part of their own family. It's actually a much longer story, but too long for this post. I would be glad to share it with anyone, though.

[Jih]

Shows that would effect what I would watch in the future:
1. Dragon Ball Z, I currently hate this show but 8 or so years ago, this was king and was the show that catapulted me into anime
2. AKIRA, at the age of 13 my view of anime completely changed and I began to explore more mature titles.

Shows that have changed my perspective on life:
1. Evangelion, I would later come to realize that this show isn't the end all be all of anime however the first time I watched it was amazing. It changed my outlook and despite the somewhat depressing ending, I understood what it was to understand yourself and to truly be.

2. Gantz, this is the world I live in lol (not that I'm necessarily Kurono). Definitely gave me a more nihilistic/pessimistic view on the human condition and what people are really like.

3. Gundam Wing, I've been re-watching this show as of the last month or so (I'm on DVD 6) and I have to say, its made me rethink pacifistic liberalism.

[Alexander]

Anime in general has really changed my life in a few ways.

Firstly, it opened my interest in forigen countries and learning about different cultures. And second, it helped push my interest in Japan and it's culture which I've studied in general. Oh yes, and it had a hand with my very limited grasp on the Japanese language.

As for individual films that affected me very deeply but didn't necessarily change my view on life include:

"Grave of the Fireflies". I think any Otaku will use this film. It was the first film that really got me deeply fascinated with Anime, it was the first Ghibli film I saw which led me to dedicate myself to seeing all the films made by the company, and it was the first film to give me the feeling of what it really feels like to have someone you deeply love die.

I didn't feel sadness after I finished watching it for the first time. Instead, I felt this incredibly deep pain in my stomach. While my emotions were almost completely blank. I didn't sleep the night I had seen it, nor did I eat for the entire day. And I did the same again for the next day. After that, I cried. I cried the hardest I ever had from any film I've seen yet and possibly ever will see.

While the name Setsuko will never leave my mind.

[Bobtheduck]

1. Sailormoon - For teaching me that there can be really interesting stories in cartoons, and that they don't have to be episodic, even though Ironically, most of Sailormoon is pretty episodic.

2. Akira - FOr completely screwing me up and being the most violent thing I had seen up to that point... The hospital scene (silent splat) and the transformation scene were two moments in cinema history that changed my whole perspective on movies in general.

3. Grave of the Fireflies - I've never been touched as deeply by any work of fiction... Of course, this wasn't fiction (well, some of it was.) It was a (mostly) true story, which makes it even crazier. I'd never seen an animated true story (other than bible cartoons)

4. Kodocha - It wasn't as tragic as Fireflies, but I got more into the characters... I screamed every time the end song came on...

5. End of Eva - It's a DnD, so I'll say this much... I never knew how deeply a movie could disturb me as an adult.

6. Dead Leaves - It taught me never to trust rent anime's rating system... Ok, so that wasn't quite "life changing" though I did feel thoroughly violated by this movie.

7. Serial Experiments Lain - For getting me into the enigmatic genre... Out of my SEL fandom, I moved onto Boogiepop Phantom, Donnie Darko, Jacob's Ladder, Pi, the Machinist, Fight Club, the Jacket... All of which I like except Pi... Pi just didn't do it for me. Lain changed the way I looked at storytelling in general. And the way I looked at popularity, too... I will say to most people up front, chances are you won't like Lain. And that's perfectly fine. I love it. Despite loving enigmatic movies, though, I still have yet to watch a David Lynch movie... I'm not sure I want to... There's enigmatic, then there's weird with no purpose. Oh, and Lain made Metal Gear Solid 2 easy to swallow. After finishing Lain, MGS2 was simplistic.

[the_wolfs_howl]

I suppose anime in general has made me extremely enthusiastic about Japanese culture and language (which I've only been able to learn a few words of, like "Doshite?" and "Dakana"). It's also made me see how lacking American animated movies and cartoons generally are. I mean, compare a movie like Disney's The Wild with Miyazaki's My Neighbor Totoro or something like that, and you'll see what I mean.
Pokemon got me into anime, and I suppose it showed me what a little determination and loyalty can accomplish.
Fullmetal Alchemist has DEFINITELY changed my life, in a lot of ways. Watching the selfless love of the two brothers has really changed the way I look at my own brother. I'm sure that, if the two of us were put in the same situation, my Nii-san would give the same sacrifice for me. FMA has shown me many other things, such as what it means to be an adult/mature, and how to value a family.
Haibane Renmei is an anime that I'm still trying to fit into words, but for now I'll say that it touched me artistically and showed me that a slow, simple story with not too much "happening" can still be one of the best stories ever.
My Neighbor Totoro has helped me appreciate my two younger sisters more, because I have to take care of them like Satsuki took care of Mei.
Spirited Away was like Narnia, or other stories where the characters go to a magical land - the other world allows you to appreciate your own world more than you would otherwise.
And of course, Howl's Moving Castle proved something I've been sure of for a long time: it doesn't matter if you're not pretty or good-looking; what matters is what's inside.
And anime as a whole has led me to write fanfiction, which has helped my writing ability. I hadn't written any original work for a long time, but then I did write something the other day, and I realized how much better I was simply because I'd been writing fanfiction nonstop in that interval.
So yes, I'd say anime has positively affected my life. I wouldn't trade all these experiences for the world. And after all these people saying that anime has changed their life, how cany anyone say that animes are "just cartoons"?