Orochimaru, the Snake Sannin. This is one of the better images I could find and it was done by the lovely Croaky on Deviant Art. I think there is a lot of room in fanfiction to experiment with Orochimaru as a character - and a good one at that. Not just the pedophilic freak so many people have him pegged as.

So here's a challenge - write a one shot in which Orochimaru does something that makes him seem not like so much of a selfish arsehole. (Much to the surprise of whoever may be around.) Good luck!

Age: Not interested in dating at the moment so why do you need to know?

Sex: If I told you that it'd take all the fun out of it.

Home: Six words - Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!

Good Anime to watch: Among the old school you should at least check out is Sailor Moon, Rurouni Kenshin, Cowboy Behop, Trigun, Ranma 1/2, Inuyasha and Yu Yu Hakusho. Among the new, try Bleach (awesome story line/characters/anime design), Naruto, um? They're all usually pretty good. I recommend Black Cat, Hellsing, definately Saiyuki (this show is the bomb!), Hack/Sign (there are several arcs/series), Pretear, Ouran High School Host Club, Get Backers (hilarious!), Kaleido Star, Peace Maker Kurogane. I've also watched Wolf's Rain, Trinity Blood and Devil May Cry. They were all right but the plot line was the draw back because it wasn't all that interesting.

Hmm, since I'm bored I'll list all the anime I just wrote about and put down a brief description.

Sailor Moon: Magical school girl anime. 200 epsisodes. Funny but serious sometimes. Good morals.

Rurouni Kenshin: Kick-arse samurai anime set in the 1860s, ten years after Japan's Revolution. Intriguing characters, excellent sound track, moving story. Approx 90 epsiodes. Manga written for 3 arcs, anime covers two and has a third, filler arc. Also an extremely good 4 part OVA series and a movie: Samurai X.

Cowboy Behop: Space bounty hunters. 26 episode series I believe (haven't watched it yet myself). 1 movie: awesome sound track, intriging characters and well choreographed moves.

Trigun: Set on another planet post-apocolypse of Earth. Lovable characters, loads of gun fighting action. 26 episodes I think.

Inuyasha: Magical school girl travels back in time through her well to Japan in the 1500s when it was common place to see demons (youkai). Funny with excellent action and an awesome villain. Main characters consist of afore mentioned school girl, a half demon, a young fox demon, a (lecherous) cursed monk,a female demon slayer and demon cat. 130 or so episodes and about 4 movies. Anime incomplete.

Yu Yu Hakusho: Main character killed and in order to return to life, he has to undergo a trial. Teams up with some interesting characters for some awesome battles. Crappy drawing but the show's a lot of fun. About a 100 episodes I think. Not certain if the series is complete.

Ranma 1/2: Martial Arts, modern day setting. Various characters become cursed after falling into hot springs and when splashed with cold water, they turn into another form such as a girl, a cat or a pig. Lots of rivallry and battling between characters. Fun to watch. Don't know if series complete.

Bleach: Shinigami (death gods). Most awesome story out there and by far and away the best character designs in anime. Kite Tubo is a living legend. Main character can see spirits and becomes a Shinigami in order to save his family from a hollow (monster). Lots of laughs and fantastic battles. Currently at about 220 episodes. Manga and anime still in progress with a new chapter and episode released roughly every week or so.

Naruto: Ninja. Taken an old idea and completely re-vamped it. Currently anime and manga still in progress. Over 300 episodes. Story follows a sensei and his team of three students. Their lives change drastically over the years as they fight to find their place in the world and attain their dreams. Very fun but serious anime. Use of elemental techniques combined with martial arts and illusions for fight sequences. Certain magical aspect to anime.

Black Cat: Assassin anime. 26 episodes, complete. Main character gives away his profession as an assassin and begins living a more right and just lifestyle as a sweeper (bounty hunter). Nice animation and very interesting story.

Hellsing: Vampires. 13 epsiodes Arc. 5 OVAs. Manga and anime still in progress. The decendant of the original Van Hellsing has her own organisation and actively hunts and kills vampires. Her trump card is the vampire Alucard (whose name spelt backwards is Dracula although it isn't confirmed if he's actually Dracula). Awesome battles, totally unique soundtrack. Hard core.

Saiyuki: A human priest and three demons trying to stop the mysterious Minus Wave which is driving the demons (youkai) of the land mad. Awesome sound track, wicked opening sequences and great story line. The priest drinks, smokes and swears more than the other three put together. A great bunch of laughs, especially thanks to the large number of arguments the group always seems to get into. What I call a hard core anime. One 50 episode arc and two 26 epsiode arcs. One movie and 4 OVAs. Anime and manga still incomplete.

Hack/Sign: About 3 or 4 different series with some 26 episodes in length and 1 about 50. All set in a computer world when people play online to escape the daily problems of life.

Pretear: 13 episodes. Cute magical school girl anime. Nice story line with some hot characters. A few good laughs in there too.

Ouran High School Host Club: 26 episodes. Follows the story of the only girl in a male host club who makes it their high school mission to woe and dazzle the female high school population. Very funny with some good, in depth moments.

Get Backers: 50 episodes. Complete Arc although anime completion is inconclusive. Wonderful character line up with the funniest chibies I've ever laid eyes on. The two Get Backers will take on any job and have a 100 percent success rate for returning any stolen or missing items. Lots of good fight sequences and great relationships.

Kaleido Star: Dunno how long this is. Follows a girl who joins a famous circus. Cute and funny.

Peace Maker Kurogane: 26 episode Arc. Manga and anime completion inconclusive. Samurai and features ninja/shinobi too. Looks at the Shinsengumi during the Japanese Revolution in the 1850s. Very serious anime but quite a few light hearted moments. Check out episode 15 (I guarentee you'll laugh yourself off you seat).

That's about it and I'm too lazy to write about the ones I watched but wasn't that into. Anything else you want to know, drop me a line.