Animeversary

[SirSkyRider]

Hm. I have anime merchandise (well, no daimakuras and such... got quite a few CDs, especially OSTs from Kanno, Kajiura and Satou, two figurines (not gonna buy any more... too expensive) and some extras from DVDs or books), but honestly, I do not especially welcome them, except for the OSTs. I also do not refer to myself as an otaku, since both anime/manga and games are just pastimes... And if they were more, I certainly would not dub myself an otaku, knowing of the extreme negative connotation this word has in Japan.

On the other hand, it really makes me wonder why the Japanese are having such a hard time accepting manga, anime and games as a part of their pop culture. America has accepted comics, Germany has accepted the Hamburg School of post-modern rock music. So why is Japan still struggling, even though they know they can export it successfully?

[Pentium100]

I don't have any anime merchandise, I though about buying a figure until I saw the price (and currently I don't really have a place to put it). While I watch anime (and live action TV shows/movies) I would probably label myself as computer/old technology/audio geek seeing as I have 6 reel to reel tape recorders, 6 computers etc (and a Walkman, not an MP3 player, and a tape deck in my car), more than a few tapes and records (which of course results in me having no place for an anime figure).

[tomoya-kun]

last year in march, watching Clannad. 

[mgz]

So around this time of November last year, a little brown man discovered the world of anime. It changed his little brown life. He has since pierced through the heavens, kicked his life to the curb, and delved into the world of the otaku.

This brown man is I. (WHAT A TWIST!)
Yes, it's been around one year now since I started watching anime...and I'm glad I made that decision.
I'm nowhere near stopping now :3
I know 1 year is VERY new compared to most of the people on this site.
However, In this one year, I have amassed 64 series/movies (Excluding OVAs and specials), and my to-watch list is ever-growing.
This past Summer season was the first time I've ever watched/followed airing anime.

So when did you all start watching anime, and when were your anime 'checkpoints'?
When did you realize your otaku-ness?
When is your animeversary?

racist

[rostheferret]

I would probably label myself as computer/old technology/audio geek seeing as I have 6 reel to reel tape recorders, 6 computers etc (and a Walkman, not an MP3 player, and a tape deck in my car), more than a few tapes and records (which of course results in me having no place for an anime figure).

Tapes suck. Vinyl is where its at. A REAL audio nerd would know this

Hmm I guess my definition of otaku may be a tad different from that of everyone else. I always thought 'otaku' meant nerd (which I very much am).

I always gave it much stronger connotations than simply being a "nerd." As in, not just having an interest but having pictures of Yui adorning your wall, spending more on figures than rent and forgetting christmas in lieu of that cosplay convention coming to town, level of obsession.

Then when I commented about how it all seemed cheesy and childish, my sisters friend retorted with "someone's clearly never seen Elfen Lied."

Elfen Lied was THE anime back then. It really drove way for a lot of other series. Made anime gain a lot of credibility.

for some reason I was never really found of Elfen Lied. I even like Saikano better the Elfen Lied and I do not like Saikano

It combined adorability with decapitation. Compared to the crap I'd been exposed to, to say it broke down a couple of my expectations would be a grave understatement. In that regards, it makes for an excellent introduction and one I've used when others have said the same sort of thing to me.

[Pentium100]

Tapes suck. Vinyl is where its at. A REAL audio nerd would know this

Tell that to tapeheads.net
Anyway, you can't record to vinyl without equipment that a few orders of magnitude more expensive than a good tape deck. And sometimes I can borrow records (and copy them) but can't find where to buy them. Also, a portable record player would be way less convenient than a tape walkman.

Also, being able to play more formats is always better.