[Talbain]

One I recently watched that's definitely girly, is probably Paradise Kiss or Nana. Paradise Kiss is kind of a weird fashion show with story segments in-between, and Nana is a typical melodrama. It's typical, but it's pretty good for what it is. It's not quite so pretentious about the fact that it is a melodrama though, and the music's pretty good.

As for more serious stuff that's less fluffy, try When They Cry. Really cool, good stuff. I can't say more than that because I haven't seen the whole series, but for the first five episodes, it's a fucking awesome roller coaster ride.
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[Talbain]

Apparently When They Cry is the American name of the anime for the Japanese h-game Higurashi no naku koro ni.

So, yeah, I'm downloading Higurashi now. I hope the rest of the episodes are as good as the first five.

Also, in a similar line, watch Murder Princess.
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[Talbain]

Well, I watched more of When They Cry... and I found myself bored. Re-telling a story from multiple "perspectives" if you will, is something best left to the professionals, i.e. Rashomon.

As for Gungrave, watch it. It's certainly one of my favorite animes, even though I watched it a long time ago. I only remember some of the angelic references, but they hearken back to Cowboy Bebop and create a sense of awe-inspiring hatred, in a manner similar to the death of Julia (they are not the same in many ways, but the feeling is similar).

Edit: I also watched more of Murder Princess. It's cute. Campy, but cute. While When They Cry may have a more technically compelling storyline, I found myself bored to tears with it, to the point that I couldn't continue watching it.

When They Cry reminds me a lot of Le Chevalier D'eon in terms of pacing, the difference being that D'eon has a story that actually progresses, and good action sequences. When They Cry has neither, just LOTS of brooding characters. Ah. Now I know what it reminds me of, and why I hate it so much. It reminds me of Ju-On (The Grudge). If you like the Grudge, you'll probably like When They Cry. If not, you should really skip it. It's a basically a much longer remake.
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