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   I remember when I saw my first anime. It was on the sci-fi channel in East Orange, NJ. On Saturday mornings, the show was called Casshern - Robot Hunter. At first I didn’t know what it was, but I liked it. The story line centered on how super advanced robots took over the planet because mankind destroyed the earth’s ecosystem and the protagonist, Casshern had to battle these super robots, restore the family name and take on his father who somehow became the uber mega robot general. In a way it was almost similar to Mega Man, except for one part, while Mega Man was all robot, Casshern was once a human being that became a robot.

   That lasting impression anime left on me was amazing. I was hooked. The character design, the speed of the fights between the characters; this genre altered my view of cartoons and almost seemed more advanced in design, color and motion then American cartoons. This lasting impression  Japanimation aka anime left on me in regard to cartoons took the concept of those playful characters (like Smurfs, Tom and Jerry, etc.) and created a more adult-like and human element that seemed to normally appear in grown-up movies. It was phenomenal. I felt anime created this new lane in which children as well as adults were able to watch cartoons, not be ashamed for watching them, and relate to the characters despite age differences.