Only one small thing of note: please refrain from using the expression "otaku" to refer to fans of anime/manga/Japanese culture. It's a VERY offensive term, especially if you have ever been given examples of exactly what a REAL otaku is like. *shudders*
I for one am more of a reader than a watcher. I download a lot but don't always have time to watch stuff. My earliest anime ever was the Robotech version of Macross (when I was 5) and this really bizarre anime version of the Bible (back when Betamax was still a video format).
The Rurouni Kenshin anime is awesome (all but the arcs after Kyoto, when they switched producers and the crap really hit the fan... by the end they were fighting guys who almost literally cast spells using tablets. That shit ain't Kenshin), and the manga is even better. The Jinchuu arc is one of the most depressing yet most awesome things I have EVER got my hands on. (And I haven't watched it, but I utterly disconsider the OVA in which Kenshin dies...)
Hellsing: anime = good, manga = better, OVA = Awesome. Can't wait to see them actually catch up.
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Black Lagoon yet.
Also guilty of following on Masami Kurumada's work. The guy is just... a nutcase. Anyone who has watched Saint Seiya knows what I'm talking about (I'm currently catching up on Lost Canvas and Episode G, which is drawn by Megumu Okada. Speaking of which: if you have the chance, watch Shadow Skill. It's a really great anime in spite of being kinda old by now).
Takehiko Inoue, by the way, sets the bar to determine levels of awesome. Anyone who had the chance to read Vagabond knows what I'm talking about (RELEASE THE NEXT VOLUME ALREADY! GAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!). Slam Dunk is good for giggles, although it REALLY abuses flashbacks (it goes like this: the guy MUST score a point. As he's about to shoot, he starts remembering his life story and why-oh-why he HAS to score. This goes on for a couple of volumes until the story ends, then the ball dramatically flies towards the basket... spins around a bit... THEN, on the next volume, it falls out. When he misses, some other guy starts having a flashback about how a friend of his missed a ball just like that, and then his friend starts having a flashback about how he wound up playing basketball... it's trippy).
Speaking of trippy anime, watch Excel Saga. Love it. Pass the love on.
Monster, the manga, is beyond awesome. I haven't seen the anime yet (don't wanna spoil the end, as I'm following the manga as it is released). Slayers is fun as hell (but I prefer the anime to the manga). Hunter X Hunter is something I'm only getting hooked on now, but I hear it gets even better.
By the by: anyone who thinks Tenjou Tenge is over the top MUST read Hokuto No Ken. It's Bruce Lee meets Mad Max. And Bruce Lee WINS.
Been reading Bleach more than watching it. And since it's getting released around here I'm avoiding reading it online. (By the way, I HATE Naruto with every fiber of my being. Don't ask me to explain why. I just feel that a ninja dressed like a FRIGGIN' TRAFIC CONE should be beaten up, raped by a syphilitic clown, then dragged out on the street and shot.)
One Piece is hilarious AND great without either taking itself too seriously or forgetting its comic roots. The up and down in seriousness makes me feel great about it. (Speaking of which, I find it hilarious how both Eichiro Oda and Hiroyuki Takei were assistants to Nobuhiro Watsuki, creator of Kenshin, many years before going off to make their own comics... And Takeshi Obata, the guy behind Death Note's art, is just plain great).
Berserk: I seriously can't believe how good the manga is. Shame the anime's way too short. A similar thing occurs with BASTARD!!, except the problem with the latter is that there's too much work involved in its production (which reminds me, the author must be REALLY high when he comes up with some of the stuff he does. Anyone think Dragon Ball's power creep is bad? Read BASTARD!! and weep).
Soukyuu no Fafner is one of the very few so-called Evangelion clones I paid any attention to, and it's really good. Lots of heartache and character development, but no real ending, sadly.
Speaking of Eva, Gainax has been releasing Evangelion OVAs as of late. They're essentially re-telling the anime in two-hour episodes. It looks pretty cool so far. Also, of note: Gendou Ikari is far more awesome than Chuck Norris. For example: when Chuck Norris decided to sell his pee in a can, Red Bull was born. When Gendou Ikari did the same, the results were Hiroshima and Nagasaki (one drop each).
I don't know much about Serial Experiments Lain, but I have heard it's... unusual.
Lain's producer actually managed to steal Gainax's title of "creator of the most mind-fucking anime EVER". It's trippy to say the least, LSD-level.
Claymore, Gantz and Trigun all get their own honorable mentions. Also by Nightow (creator of Trigun), DO check out Gungrave (both the games and the anime, though the games are better). Eat your heart out, John Woo!
I loved Cowboy Bebop, but Samurai Champloo sucked awfully for me due to its hip-hopshiness.
Oh yeah. I hear there's an anime of it out, but look around for Blade of the Immortal. Hiroaki Samura is a freaking twisted fellow.
...And that's STILL not all the anime/manga I like. Wow. I thought I wasn't obsessed until I wrote this post...