Psalms of Planets Eureka Seven (Anime)

My Rating: 95%
Episodes: 50

Eureka Seven (pronounced ay-oo-re-ka not yoo-ree-ka), follows the adventures of young Renton Thurston after he joins Gekkostate, a rebel group renowned for their skillful "lifting" (or "drifting"), a form of air-surfing. Renton forms a special bond with one particular member of Gekkostate, Eureka. Essentially, the series is a coming-of-age story that manages to incorporate some very serious themes.

Pluto (Manga)

My Rating: 100%
Chapters: 65

Another of Naoki Urasawa's masterpieces, Pluto is a much more sinister adaptation of Osamu Tezuka's popular work Astro Boy, following the "pluto arc." An intriguing work, it addresses, masked behind the guise of a robot-detective story, issues with humanity's struggle toward autoevolution and problems encountered in that endeavor.

Death Note (Anime and Manga)

My Rating: 100%
Episodes: 37
Chapters: 103

Tsugumi Ohba's Death Note follows the story of young Yagami Light, a high school student who dreams of a perfect world, and receives... a death note. Primarily a "battle of wits" chronicle, Death Note maintains suspense throughout and delivers an incredible finale. The art is also superb, both in the anime and manga.

Paranoia Agent (Anime)

My Rating: 100%
Episodes: 13

Satoshi Kon's complex anime is difficult to describe. Throughout a very episodic structure, a character known only as "Lil' Slugger" is explored as he attacks various innocent people. The only question is, who is "Lil' Slugger"?

FLCL / Fooly Cooly / Furi Kuri (Anime)

My Rating: 100%
Episodes: 6

This is a great anime, and a lot of fun, if you appreciate weird, quirky, very Japanese humor and psychedelic animation. In addition, it's a very moving coming-of-age story, an incredibly original piece, and it features a great soundtrack.

20th Century Boys (Manga)

My Rating: 100%
Chapters: 258

Certain people would criticize 20th Century Boys, another of Naoki Urasawa's masterpieces, as being too elaborate, too ambiguous, or of lacking resolution. I would say that these people have unfortunately missed the point. 20th Century Boys is, at its heart, an epic depicting the struggle of truth against the power of deception, delusion, and lies. The real mystery of the story is not who "Friend" is, but what "Friend" is, and more importantly, what is necessary for truth to be able to prevail against a lie. Once this is understood, the story makes a lot more sense and delivers an incredible resolution.

Trigun (Anime)

My Rating: 100%
Episodes: 26

Adapted by Madhouse from Yasuhiro Nightow's manga, Trigun is the story of a rather ridiculous, self-absorbed, and clumsy buffoon, "Vash the Stampede," "The Humanoid Typhoon," "The $$60,000,000,000 Man." Although lighthearted, Trigun slowly unfolds to the viewer the complexity of Vash's character and the incredible moral dilemma he suffers from.