>>190267Forgot to mention:
You'll also need to watch at least a couple classics. This means anime from the 70s/80s/early 90s. FIlms are the best way to get a grip of the style.
>Akira>Perfect Blue>PaprikaHave you ever watched the Studio Ghibli films? These are usually what gets people into japanese culture and anime.
>Spirited Away>Princess Mononoke >Grave of the FirefliesUsual good starters for older audiences. Kiki's Delivery Service, Totoro and Ponyo are good starters for children but are very popular. It's good to be familiar but might be too boring for someone older.
Finally, unless you're very opposed to it, you'll need to watch something girly, romance or a slice of life. By girly I mean, the intended audience is girls. Probably a magical girl genre since that is the most popular one but it's best for you to wait. Sailor Moon, Sakura Card Captor, Utena (Advanced), Madoka Magica fall under the must watch ones for this category.
Slice of life is a very popular genre but it can be difficult to get into unless you understand japanese culture and can be boring if you're older since most have protagonists that are still in school.
>Tora DoraSchool slice of life / romance. The plot is very normal for this genre and you get your typical tsundere character. This kind of anime is not usually considered as great as the ones mentioned in the previous post, but it is good to be exposed to them. ToraDora is the easiest cliche romance/school slice of life to enjoy as a beginner.
>Welcome to the NHKA slice of life about a jobless adult. Easier to relate to than high school ones if you're older. Easy to watch.
You are also gonna need to watch something painful that will make you cry.