After being gifted by friends with a whole load of anime from the past year, I would like to update them (and you, the reader) upon what I have watched in the past year, and how I liked them.

• Gurren Lagaan
  
  This was a great story and I thoroughly loved the music. Even though I am not a mecha person, I recommend this to everyone for a good watch. Synopsis: people find a mecha while digging and the series is about how this mecha changes their world and how the protagonists save the world with this mecha.
• Ah! My Goddess!
  
  This was a fun series which had mostly laughs and lots of “awwwww” moments. Synopsis: guy accidentally calls a phone number for the goddesses who protect the world and unfortunate souls. Guy wishes for lovely goddess to stay with him and the rest of the time follows their adventures. I highly recommend it for the laughs and good feelings you’ll have after watching it.
• Black Blood Brothers
  
  I was a little let down by this series, as the story wasn’t so great, but the premise was pretty good. The music and acting in this were only average. Synopsis: vampire gets called in to protect a city from another vampire in his past. Again, decent premise, but the execution wasn’t there. I originally saw this at AnimeNext and was pretty happy to watch it, but I guess the hype didn’t last by the time I got to watch it.
• Full Metal Panic!
  
  This was a very enjoyable series that was highly recommended from one of my good friends in my undergrad, and I recommend it to you as well. If you have seen the series Chuck, this anime has the same premise, except the genders of the characters are flipped. Synopsis: girl holds an item the bad guys want, and a male is sent from the army to protect her through good times, funny times, and serious times. Well worth the time to watch it.
• Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
  
  I went back to this classic after missing out on its many referneces in other parts of anime and otaku culture. And also it was highly recommended, which I found out for a good reason. I think HCI should watch this, as I think this is where computing is going to go. Quick Synopsis: Section 9 is called in to solve the mystery of the laughing man incident, but they find out this is a much larger puzzle than just an assassination.

I’ll also post more about the series which I watch when I complete them. Right now, I am watching Trinity Blood, and you should see my thoughts about it in a week or so. Keep it tuned.