If you don't know, you can watch English dubs of anime series that were imported by Funimation on youtube. Be careful, they change their episodes every Monday, so don't wait around. I wasn't interested at first, because their initials offerings included shows I don't care about, and Slayers. Yeah, you know how I feel about that.
EDIT: Actually, you can access all their older episodes. Just go to "view all videos" in their profile. Works for me. Anyways, back to the original text . . .
But just yesterday, they uploaded the first four episodes of Mushi-shi. Watch it if you haven't.
Contrary to popular opinion, I actually don't find most anime series and movies to be, attractive. Miyazaki's earlier movies, (pre-Princess Mononoke if you're curious) to be honest, do not impress me, aesthetically speaking. Also, I really couldn't overlook how jerky the animation of the anime shows I saw as a teenager were. Good job, Pokemon! Yu-Gi-Oh! What can I say? I grew up on Disney movies. And my favorite cartoon series of all time, Futurama, is pretty impressive looking.
However, there are some exceptions to that belief of mine. There are a few anime series I have seen that are very impressive looking. And, I will say right now, the best-looking animated series is indeed a Japanese series. For the last year or so, I always thought the most beautiful animated tv series was Trinity Blood. And indeed, it, as well as Ghost in the Shell, Haruhi, Eureka 7, and Motherfucking Death Note were those exceptions that outdid American animated series, animation-wise.
Then I saw Mushi-Shi in high quality.
Whoa man. Now Mushi-Shi has the honor of being the most beautiful animated tv series I've ever seen. I'm dead serious; a tv series that can match the animation quality of a theatrical animation. You will stand in awe of the world of Mushi.
And the show itself is very engaging. Emotions run high, yet it has a rather low-key approach. There are no villains, there is only one recurring character, there is no humor, no fanservice, and no anime cliches. If anything, the show is an expose of the human condition, and how that condition reacts to the supernatural phenomenon that is the Mushi. The show doesn't seem to be in a serial format. You can jump in any episode, and enjoy it. Mushi-shi is a relaxing experience, and indeed, after watching so many anime series that were either absurd, cutesy, violent, edgy, or obfuscating, it's nice to see a series like Mushi-shi. The relaxed nature, combined with an opening theme song that sounds like a mellow Beatles song in acoustic, makes me wonder if this is a product of a stereotypical hippie like the Hippy Dippy Weatherman. (If you don't know who that is, pay more attention to George Carlin's material.)
Nonetheless, Mushi-shi is a good series. It's a good way to unwind, and perhaps open your eyes to something different. I look forward to the next four episodes.
