The granddaddy of 'em all:
Way back in high school, in the kids-who-don't-do-their-homework class, a couple of guys and I found ourselves with one of the school TV/VCR sets while the rest of the school was away at a pep rally; we were far too cool to be bothered with such things, so it was just a matter of finding something to do with the TV. There was a recordable VHS tape sitting with it that just had "Akira" handwritten on the spine, so it was "I guess we're watching this.." It starts up, and it turns out to be a cartoon - all we have to watch is a cartoon?! And then came the scene where the protester gets shot in the street, and it was stunned silence and awe for the next two hours..
your story reminds me of the first time i saw a maturely theme animated movie. i grew up on bugs bunny, tom and jerry, and later on teenage mutant ninja turtles.
(fast forward to the 90s)
i was in high school, and it was the last few days before summer vacation. so there was a lot of free time for the students.
my friend happened to have a VHS copy of "Ninja Scroll" in his bag, and popped it into the VCR. needless to say, i was blown away! the production, action, adult themes, plot made for a great movie.
that was the start of me watching more anime. most didnt impress me, but there are some really good ones, and it does get kind of hard to find with so many series out there.
avatar the last airbender, although targeted more towards older children was a very enjoyable series to watch, i sat down to watch an episode with my niece and was hooked LoL. one of the best animated series ive seen in a long time.
the last airbender movie blew chunks though, it was just flat out horrible, over dramatic, and boring.
akira is a classic! a friend and i watched it after renting it from a video store. i remember the movie being long, but it grabs your attention and doesnt let go.