I've head of but never seen Madoka, but Cowboy Bebop is considered one of the greats (I admit I'm not a huge fan myself, I think it's wonderfully done and amazing SF but the characters never really engaged me) and Princess Tutu is one of my favorite anime of all time (and a lot more complex than it initially appears, though it's more a magical girl+extras than a deconstruction like Madoka.) So yeah, would recommend!
If you're looking for anime to try on your own, I could make some recs! (of which my first would be Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood if you're up for something longer; that series is set on an AU Earth in an AU Europe/Germany(?) and other than some of the comedy is not especially "Japanese"-flavored. It works on a lot of genre staples but in a way that's accessible and much of it is very original to anime or to Western fantasy. Also the characters are all 150% badasses and amazing and...er, sorry, I just read the manga and fell in love with the series all over again, so~~~)
--Though, as a general note, if you find anime doesn't reach you the same way - it's not just because you're culturally biased, or at least the Japanese culture part may not be the issue. Most anime tends to be very demographically targeted (and the vast majority targeted to under-20-year-olds) so the 'not for you feeling' isn't just because you don't speak Japanese. (There's a reason why the majority of American anime fans are teens!) Series like Madoka are more an exception than the rule...
no subject
If you're looking for anime to try on your own, I could make some recs! (of which my first would be Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood if you're up for something longer; that series is set on an AU Earth in an AU Europe/Germany(?) and other than some of the comedy is not especially "Japanese"-flavored. It works on a lot of genre staples but in a way that's accessible and much of it is very original to anime or to Western fantasy. Also the characters are all 150% badasses and amazing and...er, sorry, I just read the manga and fell in love with the series all over again, so~~~)
--Though, as a general note, if you find anime doesn't reach you the same way - it's not just because you're culturally biased, or at least the Japanese culture part may not be the issue. Most anime tends to be very demographically targeted (and the vast majority targeted to under-20-year-olds) so the 'not for you feeling' isn't just because you don't speak Japanese. (There's a reason why the majority of American anime fans are teens!) Series like Madoka are more an exception than the rule...