cj_iwakura
Member
http://www.crunchyroll.com/durarara
Both Seasons 1 and 2 are on Crunchyroll if you're so inclined.
A new season is airing right now!
It's also dubbed and subbed, and though they did a solid job on the dub, I slightly prefer the sub, since the dub is pretty much every usual suspect in the book (Patrick Seitz, Steve Blum, etc.).
If you're at all familiar with the similarly excellent Baccano, this was done by the same writer & animation team(and even includes cameos!), so rest assured, these guys can handle massive casts and chaotic, entwining plots.
The Players
Technically the main character, though that's a technicality with an ensemble cast like this.
An unassuming student caught up in the strange events of Ikebukuro all because a friend invited him to attend classes there.
Mikado's best friend. Whimsical and flirtatious to a fault, but what does he know about the mysterious Yellow Scarves gang?
Attends classes with Mikado and Masaomi. Very shy and withdrawn, though there's a whole other side to her in certain circles of Ikebukuro...
A wandering psychopath who seems to know everyone and everything of note in Ikebukuro. Also the constant target of...
A bartender/peacekeeper who possesses superhuman strength and durability. He always tries to kill Izaya on sight(and always fails).
A member of the same group as Shizuo. Tries to keep him in check, rarely succeeds.
Shizuo's older brother, a famous actor, just so happens to be in a relationship with...
A reclusive idol, but there's much more to her than just a falling star.
Sushi! Russian Sushi!
A pharmaceutical exec who works with Izaya. Or at least lets him crash at her place.
Namie's brother, and his significant other; a girl so enamored with Seiji that she changed her face for him.
A roaming Dullahan in search of her head, who now takes the form of a headless motorcyclist. Although she can't talk, she can certainly text... at 120 WPM.
More of a mercenary than a cop, he's dead set on claiming Celty's head.
All members of the Dollars. Will help anyone in need, in between eating sushi and reading manga.
A street doctor who took in Celty. They seem to be a perfect match, but is it love... or just science?
Shinra's crazy father, very paranoid about the atmosphere.
Izaya's kid sisters; arguably crazier than him.
A Russian assassin who came to Ikebukuro for a ransom job, and wound up messing with the wrong family...
The 'most dangerous man in Ikebukuro', at least among the Yakuza.
That's maybe a quarter of the cast of the show, but it does a good job of giving everyone equal time and development.
(I'll expand to the Season /X2 cast if preferable, but I tried to focus on S1 for newcomers' sake.)
Open to suggestions for content, but here's some fantastic music from Season 1's second half.
ROOKiEZ is Punk'd - Complication
Butterfly by On/Off
Sadly nothing in X2 is as good as those two tracks, but the OPs are fun as ever.
I suggest tagging spoilers for anything in X2, but again, open to suggestion.
I'm not sure why, myself.