When I was maybe 10 and REALLY into Invader Zim (yeah, I was that kinda kid), my older sister stopped my episode, that I was pirating on the family Windows XP computer, to show me this cool show her friend introduced her to. The best part? It was all free on Youtube! The episodes were just uploaded into 3 parts each, but I was hooked after the first part. Since then, Death Note has held a special place in my heart.
I think the thing that REALLY kept me going and interested in anime, though, was when my sister introduced me to my second anime. Bit of backstory. Growing up, I had a super toxic, masculine mindset. I always thought I couldn't cry or be feminine in any way. I had to be strong!! I couldn't be compared to my sister, who loved pink and cute things, which happened a lot when I was younger.
Back on track, my sister pulls me aside when I'm maybe half way through Death Note (which I stopped around episode 27-30. Didn't finish it until 6 years later lmao). She takes me into her room and says she wants to show me this anime that was streaming on Netflix, which we just got. She skips the opening and tells me that I'm not allowed to walk away until I finish the first episode, because she knows I'll like it.
Her iPod Touch's screen is filled with roses and pretty boys dressed in lavender suits, and at this point I'm not sure why she thought I'd like this girly show? I keep watching, because what other choice do I have, and man oh man, was my entire world view challenged. Haruhi Fujioka single-handedly helped me accept my more feminine side, helped me realize that gender was stupid, and, while not Haruhi herself, Ouran as a whole helped me form my desired gender expression of "Mid-2000s Bishie Who Also Wore Dresses And Could Get Away With It". Ouran's one of those shows that was the perfect thing for me at the time, and it's still one of my favorite shows.
After watching that, I sunk DEEEEP into anime for a solid three years. Fell out of it for a couple years (got really into video game youtubers and video games in general), watched a couple shows weekly (Erased, One Punch Man, Tokyo Ghoul, Dangan Ronpa), and eventually fell back into it in like late 2015 when ramalam99 started showing me shows that were big (NGNL and Fate/Zero are the ones that come to mind). Now, I'm out here like "OH NO!! this is my life". |