My introduction to Anime

I have always loved reading stories. In childhood, spending hours in library. Every genre appealed to my novice heart, be it fairy tales, Sci-fi, adventures, to detective tales. So, I already had the predisposition, to fall for Anime as a medium of entertainment. I mostly consider them as cartoons, just like mowgli, Scooby-Doo, and Tom & Jerry. Thinking back, my first Anime was Heidi. It really grabbed my attention, showing a life, in Swiss alps. Earlier, most of my exposure to European countryside lifestyle charm came from Enid Blyton stories. So, it was one of story based cartoon that I adored. 

I was again exposed to Anime as Pokémon and DragonBall, which I loved very much. Having Pokémon cards and sticker, my school days were fun. But till then, I considered them only cartoons. Yet, I had to reluctantly stopped watching it for my board exams. I lost touch of these ' cartoons' till my life settled as MBBS student. In 3rd year, I explored various Novels and TV series. There, I encountered the series Death Note. It impressed me a lot, but soon I was invested in my studies. 

After I completed my MBBS course, and preparing for PG entrance exams, I needed something to watch, and recover from mental fatigue for monotonous routines. It was then, my sister introduced me into the world of Anime. (Or reintroduce, if we consider my previous history). The first Shonen Anime Bleach, that I watched during my spare time, blew me away. The actions, music and storytelling was all so different. I started it as English dub, but later shifted to English sub. At first, it was difficult to understand, but the feelings seems sincere. And I was hooked up to that subbed mode forever. As the series finished, I felt an emptiness, that I felt when I completed a great novel. I needed new series to watch and started online streaming Naruto. It was another gem, widening my worldview, where each character, had full of emotions, with deeper messages. It impacted me a lot, about how I perceive things. Again, my hunger grew and I completed most Shonen action and adventure stories. As I wanted some variety, I took recommendation from my sister's friends. And I found a complete different genre, slice of life,  that have become my favourite overall now. The first one was Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, and the second one was Clannad. Both were masterpiece, from my perspective.  For, one brought me joy, even in my boring routine lifestyle. While other totally shook me, bringing emotions and tears that I never thought I had. There are many more Comfy stories, or Iyashikei ones like Aria, Natsume Yuujinchou, that relaxed and brought peace to my heart. I have watched hundreds of such beautiful shows, even now keep a hour, to watch a few. Still, I don't exprience that magical feeling I had, when I first encountered these shows. 

Yet, I could say, it was one of the best thing happened in my life.