didn’t like Uzumaki

We can’t be friends.

You should read it all, imo, but maybe focus on anthologies? Don’t bother with No Longer Human, I don’t think you’ll like that one.

always glad to see new Ghost in the Shell. I enjoyed 2045 even though lots of people didn’t. It wasn’t as smart or sophisticated as SAC, but I was able to enjoy it on a base level. Hopefully this is a return to form

Do you mean heroine, a female lead character; or heroin, a highly addictive opioid?

It’s about growing up and realizing that none of the adults around you know what they’re doing, and accepting that it’s ok.

Frieren. If you insist it should be an original screenplay, then Odd Taxi. Or Shirobako. The Heike Story. Sonny Boy. The majority of anything is always shit, you just remember the gems from before. There’s always excellent anime being made.

.hack//sign isn’t as good as I remember it being as a kid, but the sense of strangeness and mystery is something missing from modern mmo anime. To their detriment, imo. When I eventually played an mmo for the first time, I was disappointed it wasn’t “weird like .hack//sign”.

It does still have top notch music, character design, art, and world building. It’s just that characters get annoying and the plot is too slow-paced and repetitive. If you like other weird anime like Serial Experiments Lain or Ergo Proxy (which is also too slow-paced) then I’d say you should give it a shot.

Edit: As to your question, Ghost in the Shell SAC_2045 wasn’t as good as original Stand Alone Complex (though I did finish it, so it wasn’t bad, but it had a great second op. The ED for that season was also extra good.

Don’t know if they’re the best, but when I think of eyecatches I think of Cowboy Bebop. I also like the ones in Patlabor. Shout out to FMA Brotherhood with the guy saying “FULL METAL ALCHEMIST” really weirdly.