Favorite: Spirited Away

Spirited Away is one of the most visually beautiful films you will ever see. Director Hayao Miyazaki is known for his great visuals, and this film is no exception.

The story is about a little girl who is moving to a new town and a new home with her parents. On the way, they kind of get lost on a side road and stumble upon what appears to be an abandoned theme park. But this turns out to be a doorway into a very Alice in Wonderland type spirit world. Soon she is separated from her parents and is forced to survive in a very strange and beautiful world.

The spirits and creatures in this world are just amazing. It is unlike anything you would see in a Grim's Fairy Tales rip off. :) There is a scene with a train traveling over a lake that is simply breathe taking. This is definitely a classic and a great place to start if you are new to anime.

The story is good and is not real predictable. In Japan, I would guess this movie was targeted at small children. But, I would say it is kind of on the Snow White/Sleeping Beauty level of scariness. So probably not good for very small kids.

Rating: *****

Avatar: The Last Airbender Book 1

The first title I'm gonna recommend has been around a while, but I didn't discover it until recently. Avatar: The Last Airbender is a series created and produced for Nickelodeon. So technically, its not anime since its not Japanese. But, pish posh on that, it is a great example of Anime.

The story takes place in world that is divided into 4 nations. Each nation can manipulate an element through use of martial arts: water, earth, fire and air. This ability is refered to as "bending" in the series.

Every generation a person is born who can manipulate all 4 elements, called the Avatar. The Avatar's job is to maintain balance between the 4 nations and keep everything in harmony.

One hundred years before the series begins, the fire nation decides to get all militaristic and invades the other nations. An Avatar has been born into the air nation, but just when he is needed, the Avatar mysteriously disappears.

Fast forward 100 years. Two kids from the water nation discover the Avatar frozen in ice near the south pole. He turns out to be a 12 yr old air bender named Ang. The story follows Ang and his friends as they try to save the world from the evil fire nation.

The series is well written with good characters and excellent plot lines. The first season (linked below) follows Ang and his friends as they travel to the north pole to get training.