Batman: The Animated Series (1992)
Taking its inspiration from Tim Burton’s 1989 “Batman” movie, Batman: The Animated Series is one of the best animated televisions ever produced. Whereas previous iterations of animated Batman were campy and/or largely kiddie fare, this 1992 series showcased well-written stories set in an art deco, crime-ridden Gotham City. It spawned a new era of superhero animated shows from Warner Brothers and other studios.

Robotech (The Macross Saga, The Masters, The New Generation) (1985)
While its animation originated with three separate and unrelated anime series (Super Dimension Fortress Macross, Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross, and Genesis Climber Mospeada), the story of Robotech is an 85-episode adaptation. Spanning three generations, Robotech told the story of crashed alien spaceship, its secrets and the successive alien invasions that mankind must confront. Robotech is a space opera complete with transformable fighter craft, advanced technology, planet conquering aliens, human drama, interspecies relations, and a rare (at least in western animation) ongoing storyline.

The Real Ghostbusters (1986)
Spinning off from the 1984 Ghostbusters movie, the Real Ghostbusters chronicled the further adventures of Peter Venkman, Ray Stanz, Ego Spengler, and Winston Zeddemore in their battle against various supernatural threats. Though some comedic elements had to be toned down for Saturday morning television, the series did an excellent job of capturing essence of the feature film and its characters. The first couple of seasons were particularly good. The series did dip in quality and storytelling as it continued. This was especially true when the Ghostbuster’s pet ghost, Slimer, became more and more a focus for the show. But all-and-all, a pretty good show.

Justice League and Justice League Unlimited (2001)
DC Comic’s mightiest heroes join together to battle super villains, alien invasions, mystical creatures, and all sorts of evil doers. Created  by the producers of the ‘90s Batman and Superman animated series, this series was infinitely better than the classic Superfriends shows of the ‘70s and ‘80s. Villain of the week episodes were mixed in with longer story arcs. Themes like power and purpose of superheroes were explored. The interactions between these classic characters like Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl and Jon were well written. Justice League Unlimited chronicled the expansion of the Justice League to include many of DC’s other superheroes. A must watch for superhero fans.

Chicken Run (2000)
A British stop-motion animated film, Chicken Run tells the story of a group of chickens who want to escape from their coops before the farmer’s wife can turn them all into chicken pies. Critically acclaimed and well received by children and adults when it debuted in 2000, the film contains many references another “prisoner” escape film, the 1963 movie The Great Escape.

Transformers: Beast Wars (1996)
Children of the ‘80s grew up hearing the phrase “robots in disguise”.  The popular toy brand featured robots that mimicked Earth vehicles, tools and even animals.  After crashing on Earth millions of years ago, the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons awakened to continue their war in the modern era.  After the original series ended, the Transformers would live on in comics and several Japanese incarnations.  In 1996 Beast Wars brought  the Transformers back to American  television.  Created by the Canadian-based Mainframe Entertainment, the computer generated 3D series heralded back to elements of the original series.  The heroic Maximals and the evil Predacons crashed on a primitive world and continued their longstanding conflict.  While the CG is dated and the environments are sparse, the core themes were present.  The writing, especially in the second and third seasons, and story content is some of the best the Transformers have to offer.  It was later revealed that the Maximals and Predacons are the descendants of the Autobots and the Decepticons.  And, the world on which they crashed was in fact prehistoric Earth.  The linkage between Beast Wars and the original series (often called Generation One) pleased many  die-hard Transformer fans.  The spin-off series, Beast Machines, featured the survivors of the Beast Wars returning to Cybertron.  The focus of this series becomes the battle between organic and inorganic life.

Mobile Suit Gundam (1979)
The Gundam franchise began in the late ‘70s and has produced many television shows, direct-to-video series, and movies.  It could easily be dismissed by some as another toy/model driven commercial vehicle. (And there are a couple of Gundam series which fit nicely in that description.)  However, the core themes of the Gundam universe bring substance to this classic mecha series. The cost of war, the depletion of Earth’s resources, political intrigue, the colonization of space and the evolution of mankind are but a few of the themes spanning the Gundam universe.  Several titles occur in the same timeline while others are side-stories or unfold in alternate universes.  The original series centered on Amuro Ray, a teenager who becomes swept up in a war between the Earth and the space colony known as Zeon.  Piloting large, bipedal, “mobile suits”, Amuro and his Zeon rival Char Aznable’s personal conflict is perhaps the best known of the Gundam series.  Latter series, like Gundam Seed and Gundam Wing (popular in the U.S.) drew inspiration from the original.  And with latest incarnation, Gundam 00,  seemingly doing well, there is no sign of this venerable series ending anytime soon.

Ghost in the Shell (1995)
Ghost in the Shell is the story of a futuristic, covert police organization whose members investigate and deal with cyber-crimes.  Motoko Kusanagi is the film’s main character and the field leader of Section 9.  Her cyborg body and past military training provides Major Kusanagi with access to superhuman skills while in pursuit of the movie’s antagonist, The Puppet Master.  The movie is part hunt for the cyber-terrorist and part Kusanagi’s reflections on her own humanity.  This movie was released in the mid-‘90s and combined computer effects with stunning visuals.  Based on the manga by Masamune Shirow, the success of director Mamoru Oshii’s vision lead to a sequel (Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence) and the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex television series.  The tv series provides much more character development for the supporting characters of Section 9.  The near future technologies of cyberbrains, cyberbrain illnesses, artifical intelligence, and combat exoskeletons are featured in the series.  Highly recommended if the movie intrigues you.

Death Note (2006)
One of my more recent favorites, Death Note is the story of high school student Light Yagami who acquires mystical notebook that gives him the power to kill anyone whose name he writes in the book.  Possessing a twisted sense of justice, Light, using the alias Kira, begins to eliminate criminals all over the world.  He hopes to create a utopia where Kira ends all suffering by punishing evil.  The Japanese police and international organizations begin to search for Kira in order to stop his brand of justice.  Enter the famed detective known only as L and thus begins the  cat-and-mouse game between Light and L.  One of the best anime thrillers I’ve seen, the story is compelling.  What are the rules of the Death Note?  How far will Light go in his quest to rid the world of evil?  Will he be caught?  I’m hard pressed to think of anything else like this excellent  television series.

Ranma 1/2 (1989)
Ranma 1/2 was one of the first anime comedies I watched back in the early ’90s.  Created by manga artist Rumiko Takahashi, Ranma 1/2 is the story of Ranma Saotome, a young martial arts who, while training in China with his father, falls into the cursed springs at Jusenkyo.  When he resurfaces, Ranma has changed from a boy into a girl.  He is able to change back into a boy when splashed with hot water.  His “condition” is further complicated when he discovers that his father has arranged a marriage between Ranma and one of the Tendo family daughters.  Thus begins the “relationship” between Ranma and Akane Tendo. Ranma 1/2 was one of the first “harem” anime shows to be shown widely within American anime fandom.  These comedies usual consist of one lead male character who becomes the center of attention for a group of female characters.  Though Akane has her group of male admires as well.  Later anime like Tenchi Muyo, Love Hina and Fruits Baskets are also examples of harem anime.  Some series rely more on romance and drama to move the story forward; while others tend to be more action focused.  Ranma 1/2 relied on a mix of gender/species changing comedic moments, martial arts confrontations; and high school angst to tell its story.