How Did You Get Into Anime/Manga?

it was when I was scanning channels on TV but I can't find anything good , so I just chose to watch an anime show (Bleach) from a local TV channel in the Phil in which I am definitely not into (before) .. but as the show goes on , I got interested with it , I was so curious on what will happen next , so that was the time I started watching online .. and plus , my cousin too got me into it , who was a Bleach and Naruto fan ..

Beyblade was my life when I was like, what? 4, 5? When did it come out in America?

..... Wow, I've been watching anime since I was 2...

My story is pretty much the same as 7's. I grew up watching a ton of cartoons. The first anime I'm able to recall watching is this anime called "Samurai Pizza Cats." Second would be Sailor Moon, and the others: DBZ, Pokemon, Digimon, Medabots, Yu-Gi-Oh! etc. Naturally, as a kid I had no idea that these cartoons originated in Japan. I wasn't really aware of that until the age of 9. I was kind of saddened that such awesome shows weren't created in America since these were the cartoons that I prefered the most because of the art style. I still loved American cartoons, but the ones that were created for a more mature audience.

Even though I liked anime as a young child, I didn't love it until I started watching anime on [adult swim]. It wasn't Inu Yasha that pulled me in, it was the other stuff that they started airing in the summer of 2005. Those shows were Samurai Champloo, Paranoia Agent, and a re-airing of FLCL. Didn't really care for S-Cry-Ed that was airing along with them at the time, but I did collectively enjoy that whole block. It was what made my Saturday nights. After watching something like Paranoia Agent, I longed for more serious anime. Later that same year, Starz's channel "WAM" (probably doesnt' even exist anymore) aired Gokusen. The first anime I watched that had swears in it, and it was the first anime I watched centered around comedy rather than action. WAM also aired the first Ecchi I watched called "Eiken." They aired it about three times. First time I watched it by myself and I thought it was hilarious. Second time I watched it with my sister and she was confused and asked if something like that was even legal. Watched it one more time by myself and thought it was the worst thing I've ever saw. FUSE was airing two anime a couple of years later, Ergo Proxy and Tenjou Tenge. It was my first time seeing more mature anime. Unlike Eiken, Tenjou Tenge was the first Ecchi I watched that wasn't over-the-top with it's fanservice, and was actually more Martial Arts focused, so I enjoyed it more. Ergo Proxy was beyond my comprehension at that time, and I wouldn't finish it until 6 years later, but I liked the art style and direction.

By 2009, I was binge watching anime. I discovered different genres and it expanded my general understanding of anime and what it really is. Before, I thought anime was what the average non-anime fan thought it was, "Action-centric shows featuring people with supernatural powers, bright colors, and monsters," but after watching all the shows I mentioned above, I realized that they were no different from any other cartoon. Anime is just another medium to tell a story, just like cartoons. I didn't think they were any different than cartoons, considering I've watched stuff like Aeon Flux (it aired on MTV during the 90s), which looks a lot like anime, but is actually made in America, and it's definitely not for kids.

My interest in Manga stemmed from my love of Tenjou Tenge. I wanted to know what happened after the series, and I wanted to buy the manga, but back when I wanted it, the only version available was the heavily censored CMX version, and I didn't even think it was worth the $20 they were charging for it. So, I finally decided to check out Mangafox, and read it there. The thing I loved about Tenjou Tenge was seeing how the artist's artwork got progressively better over the years. It went from being sort of sloppy, to very tight and highly detailed. Second manga I read was K-On! Was reading that in between chapters of Tenjou Tenge. When the former was getting too dark, I'd switch to K-On! for some comedy relief. K-On! is great in manga format, too bad the second season of the anime failed for me, because I was expecting more music, but instead, they strayed away from the manga and just added a ton of fillers. I still haven't even finished the second season, and I doubt I ever will. I pretty much read K-On! for the Yuri undertones, and by god, there were more than I thought there would be. Then I just started reading Yuri manga, and... *cough* *cough* yep! *clears throat* That's pretty much it!