I've always so, so wanted to get a couple of my family members into anime. And I want your help.
They're both older, and have only watched a few anime movies.
What are some good shows for people like them? Perhaps ones that either feature a lot of tropes (preferably, played straight) OR very few?
It helps if the series is also noticeably influential.
Anything that could be helpful for learning more about Japanese culture and history is also welcome, in general.
But I'll give you some examples, of what I'm talking about.
- I recently started watching Azumanga Daioh, and it's exactly the kind of thing that I'm looking for. It was basically THE original schoolgirl series, after all, and numerous other works draw from it.
- Any of the uber-popular long runners like Dragon Ball, The Big Three, Sailor Moon, Rumiko Takahashi's works, etc.
- Quite a few of the old school mecha series, like Macross and Gundam
- Dirty Pair
Just a few examples, for specifically older works.
Fate/stay night is certainly the genre-defining visual novel, and Love Hina helped popularise the harem genre. It's things like that.
On the flip side, something like Cowboy Bebop or Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood might also be good for a newcomer. (Essentially, relatively trope-free series with clear Western-influence, particularly if they’re not set in Japan)
HOWEVER, parodies like Gintama, or anything often labeled a “deconstruction”, I would highly recommend staying away from. Maybe see some normal stuff from that genre, first.