Are we alone? The question was finally answered in 1999 when an alien spacecraft crashes on South Atalia Island. Ten years later, mankind acquired new technology for space travel, reconstructed the crashed ship and christened it as, SDF-1 Macross. On her maiden voyage, however, an alien race of giants called the Zentradi, make their appearance and the war for mankind’s survival began. The 80s was arguably the golden age of modern mecha anime with Gundam and Macross leading the pack. Macross offered a unique feeling compared to their rival. The Gundam series relied heavily on military drama, fighting their fellow man and watching the struggle of a young boy that got dragged into war. The Macross series is more on fighting alien invaders, the music and romance. In fact, the love triangle and music is the defining feature of Macross, even the recent Macross Frontier had great music and a love triangle. I highly recommend you watch the movie Macross: Do You Remember Love? It’s deviated a bit from the original, but the movie is worth seeing.

We follow the story of Lina Inverse and her partner Gourry Gabriev as they travel the land for fame, fortune, food and kicking monster butt. But it’s not your typical fantasy journey because Lina is one hot-tempered, yet, lovable young woman with, uh, height issues. The Slayers is an instant favorite among fans for its lovable cast of characters, their interactions, the adventure, and the laughs. Lina Inverse is a short-tempered, and funnily enough, also a short-for-her-age sorceress with highly destructive capabilities, and loves money and food. She has no qualms in blowing things up and she does this often that bad guys and monsters (mostly) fear her, and she’s often seen as evil by the townsfolk. Obviously she’s not evil, but for the love of everything that is sacred, don’t ever tell her she has small breasts. Oh and Lina the Slayer from DOTA 2 or the original DotA, was heavily inspired by Lina Inverse. Heck, they even used her spell names. I’ll tell you, this anime is a riot to watch. If you’ve been tired of watching fantasy shows that take itself so seriously, Slayers is a breath of fresh air with genuine slapstick humor that sometimes pokes fun at the fantasy genre. Each episode is usually about Lina and her companion-love-interest, Gourry Gabriev, and the crew while they do some odd activities or fight powerful enemies. Things get intense, very serious now and then, but the anime drops in a gag to lighten things up. Most of the time you’ll end the episode laughing your butt off at how absurd the story was. Watching the anime solely for these band of misfits is very worth it.

If you’re familiar with Pokemon as a kid, then you definitely grew up in the 90s. “Gotta catch ‘em all!” is probably one of the most recognizable phrase in anime, as Pokemon was a big hit series in the 90s, all thanks to the smash hit Pokemon games for Nintendo’s Gameboy. Sato... I mean, Ash Ketchum is a young man on a journey to become the Pokemon Master with his first Pokemon, Pickachu. On his journey he meets fellow trainers, Brock and Misty, and the team travels to many regions to catch rare pokemon, battle against other trainers and defeat the infamous Team Rocket. Yeah, I know I’m not using the real names of the characters, but hey, Ash, Brock and Misty were the names we’ve grown familiar with. The story in the anime is, well, unfortunately, wasn’t spectacular. Each episode is the trio going to a town, doing some Pokemon things, Team Rocket swoops in and tries to cause mayhem, that’s it. But the kids didn’t mind the repetition because, well, we were all happy we got to see our favorite pokemon in animated form, it was fun memorizing each pokemon and nagging to our parents to buy another pack of cards or buy the next Pokemon game. In fact, the trading cards were so popular, schools banned them due to their trading/gambling tendencies among kids. And also theft, because one kid has that one rare card another kid wa…. these jelly donuts are delicious!

Do you want to know what’s the first thing that comes to mind when I think of Fushigi Yuugi? The god awful English voice of Chichiri. I beg of you, don’t watch the anime in English dub. *ahem* You follow the story of two best friends Yuuki Miaka and Hongo Yui are transported from Japan’s National Library into the world of a mysterious book set in ancient China, "The Universe of The Four Gods." There Miaka was destined to become the priestess of Suzaku, and must find all of her celestial warriors to help her summon Suzaku for three wishes. Yui was teleported to rival nation Seiryuu and unfortunately, Yui was treated as kindly as Miyaka was. Yui was manipulated by the people of Seiryuu to become priestess of Seiryuu. With both girls in nations striving for power, the former best friends will battle each other not only for the wishes, but also for love. There were only a handful of romance-centric anime and Fushigi Yuugi was the most popular one out there. Fushigi Yuugi has an interesting, yet sometimes convoluted story with lots of beautifully drawn characters. The tone of the anime is on the serious side, but Miaka always drops in a joke to lighten things up. The girls in my class wouldn’t stop yelping at how handsome Tamahome and/or Hotohori is and sometimes they argue who among the celestial warriors is best of Miaka. If you ask me, Tasuki is the best guy for Miaka. Don’t argue with me, you know I’m right.

It is the year After Colony 195, and war of the Space Colonies and Earth has begun. In order to have an edge on the war, the colonies have sent 5 highly trained soldiers to Earth with their new type of mobile suits called Gundams. With their arrival the tide of the war changes, but things aren’t always what they seem. Trust, betrayal and honor, war can end in any way. The Gundam series was very hard to follow, especially for fans who were into the anime during the 90s because the original Gundam has a long line of TV series, OVAs and movies since the 70s. Japan did create 3 Gundam shows with alternate timelines, namely G Gundam, Gundam Wing and Gundam X, to start a new continuity for new fans to easily follow. Out of the 3, the most popular was Gundam Wing, mainly because the main story closely resembled the original, and told a more serious story. Or maybe it was popular because the show is filled with tons of hunky boys the girls drooled over. Looking at the main cast Heero Yuy, Trowa Barton, Maxwell Duo, Wufei Chang, and Quatre Raberba Winner... Yeah, it’s the hunky boys. Gundam Wing didn’t fare well in Japan, but it was a big success for the rest of the world. Gundam Wing, aside from the aforementioned hunky boys, was, at a time, told a modern war epic involving Earth and the space colonies. It also brought Gundam designs to the modern age with a more streamlined look and with greater acrobatics compared to the original’s grounded mechs. A lot of kids never knew of Gundam, so after Gundam Wing got popular, fans sought more and a lot of them eventually went back and watched the original that started it all. When you think of mechs, Gundam is the first thing that will come to your mind, right?

At the age of 14, Urameshi Yusuke is a delinquent in every sense of the word. He skips school, gets into trouble with everyone, gets into fights...the list goes on. However, people around him didn’t know that he’s a righteous person at heart. One day, Yusuke did the unexpected: He sacrificed himself to save a child from a traffic accident. However, Yusuke’s spirit still roamed the Earth and eventually he meets Koenma, and Yusuke’s life changed forever. Yuu Yuu Hakusho is a fighting anime that tells the story of Urameshi Yusuke, as he protects humanity from evil ghosts that dare to cross over to the land of the living. Unlike most fighting anime, YYH’s theme is the occult and paranormal, and this unique setting makes the anime stand out among the rest. You watch Yusuke grow from a hot-blooded youth to be one of humankind’s defender as he battles powerful beings with strong backstories and goals that doesn’t involve destroying the Earth because they’re just evil. The battles are well-thought out as well: Fights often involve outsmarting your opponent by exploiting weaknesses and using tactics — Something Dragon Ball Z seriously lacked.

Saotome Ranma and his father Genma went on a training journey in mainland China to sharpen their skills in martial arts. Things went horribly wrong when they both fell into the cursed springs — they then take the physical forms of whatever or whoever drowned there. Ranma fell into a spring where a girl once perished, so when he comes into contact with cold water, he turns into a girl. Genma, his father, was less fortunate — he turns into a panda. Ranma and Genma went back to Japan and take residence with Genma’s training partner and head of the Tendo school of anything-goes martial arts, Tendo Soun. Due to a lot of happenings since their arrival, Ranma is now engaged with Tendo’s youngest daughter Tendo Akane. Ranma ½ is mostly a love comedy anime involving a ton of lovable characters ranging from the tsundere Akane to the duck-nerd-glasses-guy Mousse. There are a good amount of fight scenes involving Ranma fending off suitors and rivals. It has a good balance of romance, comedy and action that the show can be picked up by anyone with varying interests. If you ask me, this is one of the show’s strengths and a reason why it was so popular and loved. Ranma ½ was one of the very first manga to be adapted to English, so naturally it’s the first manga anime fans in the US first read. And aside from other anime that aired in the 90s, Ranma ½ is one of the first anime who got an English dub adaptation and aired on selected TV stations.

Tsukino Usagi is a 14 year-old blonde girl who is the typical ditzy, crybaby type who isn’t particularly smart… Talk about the dumb blonde stereotype… Anyways… Usagi’s life turned upside down one fateful evening when she encountered a talking cat named Luna. The cat granted Usagi the power to transform into Sailor Moon, a warrior who is to save the world from doom. Sailor Moon was popular with good reason too, because Sailor Moon was aired around the world with the manga and anime adapted into various languages. Its beautiful art, characters and story captured the hearts of many girls and it’s arguably the most prolific and popular anime in the world… and of all time. Man, Sailor Moon was everywhere. There are Sailor Moon ads on the billboards, girls buying trinkets and I even saw them spend their lunch break talking about the anime and reading the manga. Personally I wasn’t into Sailor Moon because I found it too girly for my taste. Eventually, I gave it a go (forever ashamed knowing my parents saw me watching an anime aimed at girls), and it was definitely a fun monster-of-the-week type of experience. But… sometimes I wonder why monsters had to stand around and wait for the Sailor Soldiers to finish transforming… Maybe they’re watching the transformation sequences with partial nudity. Huh, that must be the reason.

In the far future of 2015 (not anymore), the world is on the brink of destruction upon the arrival of these unknown beings called Angels. To counter this threat and humanity’s last line of defense, the United Nations founded Nerv, a special agency tasked to defeat the Angels with their giant robots called Evangelions. Being drafted to Nerv, Shinji Ikari is one of the very few selected people capable in piloting these massive mechs. Together with Asuka Langley Souryuu and Rei Ayanami, the three must battle these Angels who grow stronger at every incarnation. NGE was highly controversial at the time with its graphic violence, nudity, sexual themes, and a convoluted plot involving Angels. Regardless, NGE was very bold in pushing storytelling and character development to new heights and standards. Majority kids I knew watched NGE as a stepping stone from anime with simple stories to anime with darker and mature tones. It’s sorta like kids grew up with Nintendo and moved on to Sony’s Playstation, because so-called mature games like Metal Gear Solid and Final Fantasy VII were there.

The story begins with Bulma in search of the legendary Dragon Balls. Legend has it if one were able to collect all seven dragon balls, they can grant the current bearer any wish. On her quest to search for these elusive artifact, she met a young martial artist named Son Goku, a child that is cut off to the rest of the world. The two eventually teamed up going on a memorable journey to find the rest of the dragon balls, and at the same time an opportunity for Goku to become stronger and stronger. What makes Dragon Ball number 1 on the list is we grew up together with Goku. Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z alone, spanned a decade, and we saw Goku, a young martial artist grow up to become one of the most recognizable and memorable characters of all time. We watched him grow, training hard, facing adversaries, and overcoming overwhelming odds. Not only is he a skilled fighter, he’s also likeable and approachable. He’s ever humble, kind, friendly to everybody, and a role model. To a lot of kids in the 90s, Dragon Ball was their first gateway to anime. Dragon Ball was one of the very few shows that made anime into a global phenomenon. You could argue Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, or even Akira, were the first to popularize anime in the West, but they were restricted to cinema and home video. Dragon Ball, Sailor Moon and Ranma ½, just to name a few, aired on local TV around the world and it captured many hearts. More fans than Akira could.

Bokuto is so goofy it's hard not to find him immediately loveable. Though he's Fukurodani's ace and captain he can have such a silly and childlike demeanor at times it's disarming despite his immense talent. Bokuto is known for his mood-swings depending on how things go on the court, and can become a little depressed if things aren't going his way. This makes him seem even more like a fluffy puppy you need to cheer up (Akashi's job, basically), but his energetic and boasting demeanor usually boosts the spirits of his team. He's a powerful spiker, among the top 5 in the whole nation and is a raw force on the court, much to Bokuto and his team's delight.

Daichi is the rock-steady captain of Karasuno, and although he initially looks rather standard as a player, Daichi is an absolutely integral part of the team. Defensively he's second only to Nishinoya, and his ability to receive the attacks of opponent's are an anchor to his team, often setting up Hinata and Kageyama's quick, or an attack from Ryuunoske Tanaka or Asahi. But beyond his defensive acumen, his leadership abilities as a captain are his primary weapon. Daichi's character design itself oozes leadership. His everyman look and his sure eyes and face are easy to put your confidence in. Daichi is friendly and always has a smile on his face but step out of line and he can get really scary. This carrot and stick approach help make him such a great leader. Definitely a guy you can take home to your parents!

I kind of have a crush on Asahi, so this may be a little biased, but I feel Asahi is one of the most underrated characters in the entire series. Asahi was devastated with Karasuno's lost to Date Tech, and felt that he failed the teammates who put their trust in him. He's big and strong, but he also is very deep-feeling and sensitive. Asahi is a gentle-giant type, so when he felt he wasn't able to contribute it hurt him very much. However, his teammates wanted him to come back, because Asahi is still a skilled, dangerous player. He has tremendous strength and is still an effective wing-spiker, and carries the mantle of Karasuno's ace well. Asahi is one of the offensive threats, along with Tanaka and Hinata, that make Karasuno so dangerous. He's also such a great looking character, his long hair and multiple hair styles give off the vibe of a guy who's not afraid to be a little different who's also pretty mature. I think that if people look deeply they can all find a little bit more to love about Asahi.***

Kenma really appeals to me as kind of an outcast and loner type character who had trouble fitting in, but thankfully has found a home and friends in Volleyball. Since Kenma is uneasy around other people but wants people to like him, he became very aware of their tics and mannerisms which leads to his skills as a setter. Kenma may not be physically exceptional, but he has an ability to read and react to the play that's second to no other, and can notice the opponent's strengths and weaknesses exceptionally well. Kenma is a cutie that's easy to root for, and we're glad that Tetsuro Kuro was always around to get him to play volleyball. Plus, I love his budding friendship with Hinata.

Sugawara got sort of waylaid by Kageyama, whose natural and explosive abilities as a setter trumped Sugawara's experience. But his personality and poise kept him in the fight for Karasuno and this is part of what makes him so great. He may not have absurd talent but he is smart and experienced, and has the faith and loyalty of his teammates, always giving them a boost in morale. His ability to recognize strategies and think of counter attacks also always proves him useful to the team. Sugawara is a beautiful guy with a beautiful personality and his veteran presence is a great asset to Karasuno.

Oikawa, the seems like he always has a legion of girls screaming his name and it's easy to see why. He seems like a love interest out of a Shoujo manga at times. First off his Volleyball acumen is incredible and he is likely the strongest setter we've seen so far in the animen (although Kageyama might eclipse him in the future, the age gap as present makes Oikawa the real king of the court), making him the beating heart of Seijoh. He's supreme at reading the abilities of both his teammates and his opponents, as well as making tactical adjustments based on the situations at hand. Finally, he has a dominant sere that can take control of games. Oikawa also has a personality that's hard not to love, he can be charming, flirtatious and even smug but he backs it up with an intelligence and understanding that give him maturity beyond his years. He's prime boyfriend material for any of the girls at Seijoh.

Tsukki can feel like kind of a jerk at first, and throughout the series he does get a kick out of getting on Kageyama or Hinata's nerves. But when you think of Karasuno's exceptional first years, you should also think of Tsukki and not just Hinata and Kageyama. His height isn't his only asset, as he is a key part of Karasuno's blocking unit and develops into an exceptional blocker over the course of the series. As time goes on you begin to see why Tsukki has the personality he has. His coldness, distance and apparent disinterest is a result of him getting burned in the past. However, Tsukki finds out for himself that Volleyball is important to him, and it's also somewhere he can be with his childhood friend Tadashi Yamaguchi. Tsukki is sort of the guy version of an Ice-queen, who it'd be fun to see melt by someone he was interested in!

Hinata is the driving force behind the storyline of Haikyuu. He was enamored by the little who, despite his slight stature was dominating the volleyball courts and leading Karasuno to national level competition. Hinata is gifted with a natural athleticism that he hones with constant hard work and practice. He's able to make up for his short size with his jumps, and his quickness makes him an incredible spiker. Hinata is, as a first year, competing with guys much older than him, who are the best of the best among third years, and Hinata is standing his ground. He has the ability to become, along with Kageyama, truly transcendent talents in volleyball. He's also completely adorable, he's fiery and cheerful and lives for the sport. He's also just a nice guy and easily befriends Kenma as well as the regularly quiet zone from Date Tech. Hinata is the adorable, enviable center of Haikyuu that keeps us coming back and back again to the series!

Kageyama at times feels like he has a one track mind. He lives, eats and breathes volleyball. He was such a prodigy that the extent of his abilities at a setter basically made him unable to work with in Junior High school, where his teammates simply couldn't connect with ridiculously quick and accurate set's. His ability, matched with Hinata's has a destiny to be a dominant force in Japanese volleyball to come and could restore Karasuno to glory. Kageyama has come a long way from his original personality, and has learned to be more respectful and match his abilities to the strength of his team. He still is quick to anger and temperamental when it comes to Hinata, he is kind of a Tsundere around Shoyo to be quite honest. But no doubt Hinata's skill and talent are a big part of what makes Tobio such a good fit for Karasuno.

The Guardian Deity of Karasuno, the rolling thunder phenom himself Nishinoya Yuu! Loud, brash, bold and a little ridiculous sometimes Nishinoya is the rock of Karasuno high school. As a Libero his defensive abilities and superb receiving abilities are fundamental to the team's success. He boasts insane reactions speeds and his superb athleticism and agility make it a difficult task to score against him. His acrobatic receives give such a boost to his team's morale and can often change the complexion and momentum of a game. Nishinoya is a huge part of the Karasuno spirit and I adore his relationship with Asahi.

Talk about selfish. Satsuki is a free spirit, and that’s alright. After all, she does have a pretty good career and she even looks good for her age. There’s just one thing, though. She has a daughter, and well, she doesn’t really live the life of someone with a child. In fact, when her boyfriend got his and her finances really messed up, she decided to run away. But yep, you guessed it. She ran away without her daughter. Her decision to run away ultimately turns her daughter’s life upside down, forcing her daughter to move in with a grandmother she did not really know, and one who treated her not as family but as a simple employee. If it wasn’t for Ohana’s resilience, she might have messed up her child really badly.

Sometimes, parents end up feeling disappointed about their children and whenever they do, they react in a menagerie of negative ways. For Nagisa Shiota, this turned out to be his life under the care of his mother, Hiromi. Hiromi initially wanted a daughter, so when she had a son, she decided to force him to be the daughter she wanted anyway. Not only that, she was also pretty antagonistic towards him, shouting at him and berating him over mundane things. Her temper is not just towards her son, either, as she even has a tendency to fly into a rage when talking with other people too. Being the mother that she is, one thing is sure: No one is safe from Hiromi Shiota.

Ok, out of all the moms in this list, Asuka’s mom is the one who could probably get a free pass. She is, after all, clinically insane. That does not excuse her for making young Asuka’s life a living hell, though. Through the course of the series, Asuka’s memories of her mother failing to recognize her as a child haunted the young Eva pilot. Of course, the fact that she eventually opted to commit suicide didn’t help, especially since Asuka, who was then but a small child, discovered her hanging corpse alone. Yes, among Evangelion’s characters, Asuka is one of the most messed up. Considering the mother she had, it is not much of a surprise.

Though Hayate the Combat Butler is a rather lighthearted anime with lots of gags and jokes, it does nonetheless feature one of the worst moms in all of anime. With a severe gambling addiction, Hayate’s mom, together with his dad, ultimately forces the young boy to work in order to pay for their debts. If that’s not enough, she even sold him (literally) and his organs to the Yakuza in order to make up for money that she and her husband owes. If that is not the worst parenting style ever, we don’t know what is. What’s particularly bad, of course, is the fact that she feels absolutely no remorse for what she did to her son.

What’s particularly bad about Marianne is the fact that she is just plain out two-faced. From the outside, she acts as if she loves her children, Lelouch and Nunnally. Such love is superficial, however, as she literally considers her children simply as pawns in her and her husband’s grand plan. Her husband was already abusive to begin with, ultimately turning her son Lelouch into a Machiavellian who is just a few steps away from being a full-on sociopath. What’s worse is that she actually condoned her husband’s abuse of her children, sincerely believing that it is all to make her children stronger. That’s just messed up.

With a name like Medusa Gorgon, it is not really much of a surprise that she would portray a horrible mother. Surprisingly, though, not even her name could prepare fans of Soul Eater to the way she treats her son, Crona. Cold and calculating, she is portrayed to be a woman who is capable of caring very little for others, even her son, whom she treats as a mere pawn. In fact, being a scientist, she views other people as simple lab rats. Her child, Crona, was unfortunate enough to become one of her experiments, and when he allegedly “failed,” she wasted no time in discarding him. Crona is mentally unstable, and considering his upbringing under Medusa, such psychopathic tendencies are not surprising at all.

Speaking of messed up, Mayu’s mother from Elfen Lied is really one mother who does not deserve to have any children. Already distant to her child to begin with, you could almost think that she couldn’t get any worse. She would surprise you, though, since apparently, being emotionally distant isn’t the worst that she could be. When she married another man, her husband started raping her daughter, Mayu, who was but a small child then. When Mayu finally told her about the abuse, she did not believe her daughter. To add insult to injury, she even slapped Mayu, jealously accusing the child for allegedly stealing her man. Seriously, this anime mom is up there with the worst.

From this intense, new thriller comes one of the worst mothers in recent anime history. Meet Akemi Hinazuki, the perfect example of a mother that must be avoided like a plague. After misfortune struck her, she decided to take out her frustrations on the person closest to her - her daughter Kayo. Throughout poor Kayo’s life, Akemi abused her in a menagerie of ways. Kayo was but a small kid, but she already experienced numerous injuries from her own mother including a lot of bruises, instances of near suffocation, and other notable tortures. If this happened in real life, Akemi would either be in prison or sitting on death row.

Through the course of Mirai Nikki, viewers get both impressed and aghast at what Yuno is capable of doing. What viewers realize when watching the show if of course how messed up her parents are. Her mom is a complete control freak, who literally locks Yuno in a cage in order to keep her straight. She has one idea - to have the perfect daughter, and she will stop at nothing to get what she wants, even if it involves treating her daughter like an animal. Eventually, karma catches up with her, as Yuno eventually kills her by placing her inside the very cage where she kept her daughter. Indeed, her upbringing is proof that ultimately, nurture beats out nature. If anyone is wondering how in the world did Yuno get so messed up, look no further than her mother.

Considering that this list is dedicated to anime’s worst moms, is it any surprise that Ragyo is here? Quite possibly the worst mom ever created in fiction, Ragyo does all sorts of abuses to her own children, treating them as mere tools, inflicting intense physical abuse to them, and even sexually harassing one of her children repeatedly, ever since her daughter was just about 5 years old. Sick? that’s not all. She also quite literally threw her newborn child down into a garbage chute simply because her alleged experiments on the infant failed. When she does come face to face with the daughter she discarded, she does something completely within her character - she literally rips off her daughter’s heart. Why? to check if she has the right person, of course. Quite literally insane to the point of being nightmare fuel, good old Ragyo tops our list today.