Katsuhiro Otomo is most regarded for being the creator of Akira, pretty much the first anime feature to get major exposure in the West. Were you a fan of the film at the time? I certainly remember it being a huge deal when it came out.
DL: Maybe around 1995, so well after its release. My friend's brother worked at a video store and would always have tapes lying around the house, so we got to absorb a lot that way. My memory of seeing Akira for the first time is vague. I do think that the music was compelling on some basic level, like I had never heard anything like that before. The first anime I watched was actually a hentai called Alien From The Darkness at a girl's house in my neighbourhood who would throw parties all the time because she had absent parents.
What other anime, if any, did you watch? Fist Of The North Star, Ninja Scroll, etc?
DL: Vampire Hunter D, Fist Of The North Star, Ghost In The Shell, NGE, Wicked City, Memories, Genocyber, Perfect Blue. I like the darker stuff usually and it doesn't have to be masterful although some of those are. I tried getting into Miyazaki's films but it didn't interest me as much, which probably means I'm dead inside. But I did well up during Grave Of The Fireflies, so maybe God will forgive me.
Do you still watch anime now?
DL: Yeah, from time to time. I'm behind on the new stuff. A couple years ago I got obsessed with NGE. I'm going to give Texhnolyze a chance soon.