Top 10 Anime Must-Haves

How big is your anime collection? Are you just starting out or been collecting for over a decade?
It’s wonderful to have all your favorite characters and stories available when you need that pick-me-up. The never ending joy of watching it for the umpteenth time.

Curating your collection can be difficult because there’s a lot of anime to choose from.

That’s where Right Stuf comes in. They’ve been serving the anime community as the store for all your anime, manga and more. All of these are available at RightStufAnime.com.

Dragon Ball Z

What Sailor Moon was to girls is what Dragon Ball Z was to boys for children of the 80s and 90s. The anime adaptation of Akira Toriyama’s latter half of his manga series Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z follows Goku and his friends as they defend the earth in epic clashes of martial arts and energy blasts. The series paved the way for shows like Naruto and One Piece to find similar success.

Astro Boy

The anime that started it all. Adapted from Osamu Tezuka’s manga of the same name, the original 1963 Astro Boy ushered the beginning of the animation industry in Japan and helped define the trademark anime style. Astro Boy’s success paved the way for Tezuka to become an anime legend with other hits like Speed Racer, Kimba the White Lion, Black Jack, Gigantor, and Princess Knight.

Mobile Suit Gundam

Starting with the original Mobile Suit Gundam, which spawned the mecha genre, the Gundam series is a phenomenon in its own right. Every mecha show owes something to Gundam in one way or another. The epic space operas of the Gundam universe captivate some of anime’s most passionate fans. With tons of sequels and spinoffs, the franchise is still going on to this day.

Akira

Debuting in 1988, Akira was a film project on a scale that the anime industry had never seen before. Under the support of a record budget at the time, Akira delivered with a high quality visual experience that even by today’s standards is difficult to match. It’s striking animation and dark twisted plot helped kick off an anime resurgence in the West in the early 90s.

My Neighbor Totoro

This list could have been completely filled with titles from Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, but My Neighbor Totoro stands out as the quintessential title from the legendary director’s works. A classic story of what it means to be a child and eventually to grow up and mature. Of course with the help and guidance that only an enchanting creature called Totoro can provide. Totoro is not only the mascot of Studio Ghibli, but it has become an icon of Japanese pop culture.

Sailor Moon

The series that defines the magical girl genre for many, Sailor Moon has had a large sphere of influence on anime fans across the world. Airing in Japan and the US in the mid-90s, Sailor Moon’s fight to protect Earth against evil created a new generation of female fans.

Ghost in the Shell

Adapted from the Masamune Shirow’s manga, the original 1995 Ghost in the Shell movie strikes a chord with anime fans across the world for being a powerful example of a cyberpunk world. The film was noteworthy for its exploration of what it means to be human and for having a strong female lead, which added a unique perspective to the story of a special police unit taking down a notorious hacker cyber-criminal.

Detective Conan

With 800 episodes and counting, Detective Conan (Case Closed in the US) is one of the longest and most popular anime series. A teenage genius detective is transformed into a small child where he solves crimes and mysteries. Its enduring longevity lands it on this list.

Neon Genesis Evangelion

If Mobile Suit Gundam defined the mecha genre, Neon Genesis Evangelion turned the genre on its head and dissected it in a way that has yet to be replicated by any other series to date. More than a simple story of three young teens in giant robots fighting monsters, Evangelion takes viewers on a psychological journey that has polarized fans and become a media super power in Japan.

Paprika

From Satoshi Kon, Paprika was the late director’s masterpiece which beautifully illustrated themes Kon was known for—including the line between dreams and reality. He brilliantly brings the surreal and the imaginative to the forefront in this mind-bending science fiction story.

Have these in your collection? Haven’t started your collection? Find all of these and so much more at RightStufAnime.com, a company made up of passionate anime collectors helping you expand your anime horizon.