I'm new to anime and manga. What should I do?

[Julum]

The only anime I've watched was the English dub of Pokemon which is awful. I didn't like the Japanese version with subtitles, either. I'm also interested in reading manga, and again the only manga I've read was Pokemon (and some Zelda) manga. (I actually like the Pokemon and Zelda manga, though.) What anime/manga is generally considered good, and what should I avoid because it's bad? Is any of the anime on Netflix good? I'm also only 13 with an overprotective mother, so don't recommend anything too inappropriate. I do like dark and serious shows, though.

EDIT: I guess ignoring me is fine, too. Nothing I can do about it. -_-

 

[FANG-TAN]

How inappropriate would be too inappropriate? I'd recommend Samurai Champloo as it's a fantastic series (and I know it's available both dubbed and subbed on Netflix), but note that it's 16+, so stay clear if that kind of age-rating gets your mother in a tangle. Yuu Yuu Hakusho, Fullmetal Alchemist (2009), and Soul Eater are aimed at an audience around your age, are all-around good shounen titles, and seem to be pretty good entry points for new anime fans. For the record, Fullmetal Alchemist is the most "serious" out of the three (with this in mind: FMA > YYH > Soul Eater).

Check out some Studio Ghibli anime films as well. Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro are pretty entry-level in terms of those, and are family films.

Avoid Sword Art Online and Guilty Crown. Likewise, I wouldn't recommend Naruto or Bleach, but kids your age seem to really like those (and Sword Art Online).

And...

The only anime I've watched was the English dub of Pokemon which is awful. I didn't like the Japanese version with subtitles, either.

I'm assuming this relates to the current series. You should give the earlier Kanto episodes and first/second/third (italics: priority) movies a try, if you ever manage to find those in Japanese and subtitled.

 

[Almonds]

Try Bakuman

It's appropriate for all ages (even airing on educational channels in Japan). The story is about how two students become mangakas (comic book authors), and it includes a lot of information regarding how a manga is published and how an anime is created. So its a good start if you want to know the basis of manga and anime before watching others.

 

[FANG-TAN]

Try Bakuman

How could I forget this? I'm on the second batch of episodes right now and the characters are great. Julum should definitely check it out.

Another recommendation would be Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water. It's an Age 12+ anime and is a classic.

 

[Almonds]

@Julum; Also, since you mentioned you like dark and serious, Death Note is also a good anime/manga to watch. I've seen the English dub of Death Note, and the voice actors were very good. The manga only has 12 volumes (13 if you count a special edition), so it won't take too long to read. Since it's a psychological thriller, the series itself might be a bit difficult to understand. But Death Note is seriously one of the best anime/manga out there.

 

[Elysion]

Like Fang-tan said a lot of people your age seem to be fond of the big shounen series(Naruto, One Piece, Bleach). They tend to be good entry series' to anime but I'd instead suggest Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Yu Yu Hakusho and Code Geass if you want to try something shounen.

Ergo Proxy contains some dark elements if you want to give that a try.

 

[Fio]

Neon Genesis Evangelion
Death Note
YuYu Hakusho
Hunter X Hunter

All must-watch.

 

[Fatima Shadow Frost Witch]

You could also give The Slayers Series a try

 

[Julum]

I think my mother lightened up a little bit, because she let me watch an R movie called We're the Miller's, which was pretty perverted. She's fine with cursing and not over-the-top violence, but if there's sex or other things like that, I should not be watching it. Not that I want to, anyway. And what I meant about serious is that I'm fine with some humour, but nothing extremely kiddie, like the Pokemon anime. Oh, and @FANG-TAN; I tried watching the older Pokemon episodes and movies, but I still couldn't stand it.
And some non-anime shows I watch to help you guys are:
Friends
How I Met Your Mother
Doctor Who
Start Trek
Ground Floor
Modern Family
Some of these shows sometimes talk about sex, but the most you ever see is two characters making out, or lying in bed together.

 

[zero_bloodrose]

I think my mother lightened up a little bit, because she let me watch an R movie called We're the Miller's, which was pretty perverted. She's fine with cursing and not over-the-top violence, but if there's sex or other things like that, I should not be watching it. Not that I want to, anyway. And what I meant about serious is that I'm fine with some humour, but nothing extremely kiddie, like the Pokemon anime. Oh, and @FANG-TAN; I tried watching the older Pokemon episodes and movies, but I still couldn't stand it.
And some non-anime shows I watch to help you guys are:
Friends
How I Met Your Mother
Doctor Who
Start Trek
Ground Floor
Modern Family
Some of these shows sometimes talk about sex, but the most you ever see is two characters making out, or lying in bed together.

Hello! Welcome to the Otaku World!
I'm still new to the forums but I'm Still a Veteran Otaku! here are a couple I would check out:

Blazblue: After Memory(moderate blood and violence)
Blue Exorcist (If your very Religious don't watch)(moderate blood and violence)
K Project(little blood and moderate violence)
Guilty Crown(moderate blood and violence)
Btooom(moderate blood and violence)
Attack on Titan(Has excessive Blood,Violence,and Swearing)
IS:Infinite Stratos(moderate sexual themes and violence)
Black Rock Shooter(moderate blood and violence)
Binbougami ga!(moderate sexual themes and humor)
Fullmetal Alchemist(moderate blood and violence)
Black Butler(moderate blood and violence)(If your very Religious don't watch)
Neon Genesis Evangelion(moderate blood and violence)

Thats a list off the top of my head. I can list more if you want. 0~0

 

[FANG-TAN]

Oh, and @FANG-TAN; I tried watching the older Pokemon episodes and movies, but I still couldn't stand it.

Subbed or dubbed though? The first and third movies have fairly serious/"dark" themes and actually have plots (which are hidden by the fact that the earlier Pocket Monsters movies had terribad dubs). I also don't recall the early episode being too "kiddy" in retrospective to a 90s family anime.

It's fine if you don't check them out though especially since I'm not sure a boy your age is allowed to torrent stuff and they certainly aren't streamed. My other recommendations shall suffice, since they don't seem to clash with your tastes in movies, notably Fullmetal Alchemist (either version of the anime, but I recommend the manga/2009 anime). It's aimed at young boys, yet has a surprising mature approach to its plot.

Is your mom okay with implied sex/sexual themes? If so, then totally watch Samurai Champloo (it contains some minor sexual themes in the setting like brothels, but never has actual sex scenes) and Neon Genesis Evangelion (....hard to explain without spoiling).

Clannad, Kanon, and Air are worth a try as while if you like emotional stories. The visual novels they're based on are obviously better, but they're still pretty good as anime and are pretty much some of the only anime based on that medium that I personally accept as good.

 

[Julum]

Oh, and @FANG-TAN; I tried watching the older Pokemon episodes and movies, but I still couldn't stand it.

Subbed or dubbed though? The first and third movies have fairly serious/"dark" themes and actually have plots (which are hidden by the fact that the earlier Pocket Monsters movies had terribad dubs). I also don't recall the early episode being too "kiddy" in retrospective to a 90s family anime.

It's fine if you don't check them out though especially since I'm not sure a boy your age is allowed to torrent stuff and they certainly aren't streamed. My other recommendations shall suffice, since they don't seem to clash with your tastes in movies, notably Fullmetal Alchemist (either version of the anime, but I recommend the manga/2009 anime). It's aimed at young boys, yet has a surprising mature approach to its plot.

Is your mom okay with implied sex/sexual themes? If so, then totally watch Samurai Champloo (it contains some minor sexual themes in the setting like brothels, but never has actual sex scenes) and Neon Genesis Evangelion (....hard to explain without spoiling).

Clannad, Kanon, and Air are worth a try as while if you like emotional stories. The visual novels they're based on are obviously better, but they're still pretty good as anime and are pretty much some of the only anime based on that medium that I personally accept as good.

I know how to torrent things, if that's what you're asking. And as for the Pokemon anime, I watched a little bit subbed and a little bit dubbed. And the only old movie I saw was the dubbed version of Mewtwo Returns. My mother is fine with implied sexual themes. And I don't have a taste for perverted movies, she just insisted that I watch it. Oh, I also decided I prefer subs over dubs. Compared Spirited Away's sub and dub and Death Note's sub and dub, and I hated the English voices.

 

[Almonds]

I know how to torrent things, if that's what you're asking. And as for the Pokemon anime, I watched a little bit subbed and a little bit dubbed. And the only old movie I saw was the dubbed version of Mewtwo Returns. My mother is fine with implied sexual themes. And I don't have a taste for perverted movies, she just insisted that I watch it. Oh, I also decided I prefer subs over dubs. Compared Spirited Away's sub and dub and Death Note's sub and dub, and I hated the English voices.

Then I guess you should stick to watching subs if you thought even Death Note's English voice acting was horrible (which, imo, was much better than other English dubs)

Anyways, my two top recommendations are Death Note and Bakuman; they're must-sees. They're both created by the same authors, and they both have a solid, interesting storyline. Death Note was even popular enough to get a live-action movie, so you should definitely give it a try.

 

[Elysion]

Then I guess you should stick to watching subs if you thought even Death Note's English voice acting was horrible (which, imo, was much better than other English dubs)

You can't go wrong with Mamoru Miyano. Seriously his Light was...omg. <3

And yeah, Death Note is definitely worth the watch. Especially since I love stuff with mind games and manipulation.

 

[FANG-TAN]

And the only old movie I saw was the dubbed version of Mewtwo Returns.

Yeah, that's a problem. Dubbed version of that TV special was bad (not just "voices are bad" either, it's a 90s "throw it into the blender" dub), and even then it could be pretty dull if you didn't see what happened before it, since it's supposed to provide conclusion and therefore requires you to care about the Mewtwo character beforehand (the first movie). That being said...

I know how to torrent things, if that's what you're asking.

If you ever have trouble finding any anime subbed (the ones which aren't available for legal purchase and are hard-to-find without knowing where to look [such as the above], anyway), feel free to PM me for such links then.

And I don't have a taste for perverted movies, she just insisted that I watch it.

As I guessed. Just mentioning the level of "sexual content" to give you an idea of how appropriate it might be to your mother. With that said, yeah, totally watch Samurai Champloo and Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Some more recommendations: Cowboy Bebop and Paranoia Agent, and I second the previous mentions of Ergo Proxy and Hunter X Hunter. For anime films, I suggest you check out The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Summer Wars.

 

[Fatima Shadow Frost Witch]

Angel Beats is also a good choice

 

[Julum]

If you ever have trouble finding any anime subbed (the ones which aren't available for legal purchase and are hard-to-find without knowing where to look [such as the above], anyway), feel free to PM me for such links then.

A problem I have with torrenting things is that it usually takes forever unless it's a really small file. Am I using crappy torrent software, (I use BitTorrent to download torrents) or am I just downloading from a crappy link?

 

[FANG-TAN]

A problem I have with torrenting things is that it usually takes forever unless it's a really small file. Am I using crappy torrent software, (I use BitTorrent to download torrents) or am I just downloading from a crappy link?

If it's an old file that has little to no seeds (other users sharing the bits of the file they have), then it takes a really long time to finish (and sometimes won't even finish if there's absolutely no one with the entire file seeding the torrent). A torrent needs a bunch of users leeching/seeding the file in order for it to be quicker than direct downloading in most cases.

For example, a lot of recent "trendy" anime airing on Japanese TV that are recorded/encoded/subbed and imported onto torrent files tend to be quicker to download (like Kill la Kill right now). It also depends on how good your internet is and how much bandwidth your internet is allocating to torrenting the file.

Angel Beats is also a good choice

I'd recommend Angel Beats! too since I did like it, but to be honest, after thinking about it for a bit - it was objectively a mess, such as the budget being cut halfway through and retracting the episode count, and thus never exploring the rest of the cast with their own arcs. Jun Maeda regretted that, and is reworking it into a visual novel with Key, so hopefully the original intent is there (although the medium change means it won't be 100% the way he planned the anime to be unless it's linear).

But since the OP is asking for anime and manga, not visual novels, I'll have to personally put my two cents in and say "avoid the Angel Beats! anime" as an entry title, or put it as low priority. It's certainly a watchable series, but the other titles mentioned in the thread are arguably better structured in terms of plot.

 

[Almonds]

If you're interested in mysteries, you can also try Detective Conan (Case Closed in North America). It's been airing for nearly 20 years, and it still has a huge popularity. Many of the people I know who started watching Detective Conan as kids still watch it to this day. I know 700+ episodes can be overwhelming, but since most of them are fillers, you can look up lists of episodes that you can skip (personally, I'd say 300 out of 700 can be ignored without hurting the main storyline). The manga has 80 volumes or so, but there's more text than pictures that it'll take a longer time to read than watch.

The show itself is like an anime'd Sherlock Holmes, so if you're a fan of mystery novels/shows, you'll probably enjoy Detective Conan as well.

 

[Enzap]

I also highly recommend Death Note. Other gems you might be interested in are Mira Nikki/Future Diary if you want something darker, Naruto, Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, and Fairy Tail if you want something fun and action-oriented, and Neon Genesis Evangelion.