Over the time I’ve spent as the Anime editor at BellaOnline, I have written about a number of anime properties. Some are relatively easy to track down, while others are not. If you want to sample an anime for yourself, or if you’re a parent wanting to see an anime property that your child has been talking about, how can you go about sampling some of the property without going to a retail outlet and paying for an entire series box set? It would be an incredible waste of money if you were to plunk down $90 for the first season box set and discover that you didn’t like what you saw. While you can take what I say in my reviews into account, in the end, the only person who can decide whether something is right for yourself or your child is you.

There are several avenues for discovering and sampling anime properties. Some of these avenues are free, while others may cost a little bit of money. One of the easiest ways to watch some anime is to go to your local video store and see what they have available to rent. However, depending on what video store you go to, you may or may not have much of an anime selection to choose from. You can also go to your local library and see if they have any anime available to check out. I live in the Seattle area, and the King County Library System has an inter-library loan program, which gives patrons access to materials from all the branches of the King County Library. The King County Library System has an incredible amount of anime available, and that selection seems to be growing. You may want to see if you have a library system that allows inter-library loans, in order to increase the potential amount of anime available for you to check out.

Many anime clubs hold anime screenings in their communities; some are free, while others only charge a minimal price for admission. Some anime clubs also have lending libraries, where you can borrow anime to watch at your own convenience. There are also some anime magazines that you can find in the newsstands that come with a sampler DVD. Usually, the sampler DVD includes anywhere from two to four full-length episodes that are from a variety of anime titles. Different magazines will have a slightly different emphasis on the kind of anime included on their sampler DVDs. For the cost of the magazine (which can run from $10-$15), you can sample several titles. From my own experience, I discovered Fruits Basket and Noein: To Your Other Self through a anime magazine DVD sampler, and seeing them on the sampler encouraged me to purchase their respective DVD box sets.

On cable, there is the Anime Network, which is available in three “on demand” packages. The first is “Free on Demand,” which includes up to ten hours of content that is edited an ad supported; this option is available to subscribers of Comcast, Time Warner, Bright House Networks, and Buckeye CableSystem. “Events on Demand” includes full episodes of unedited anime for $3.99, and as of this writing, is only available to Comcast subscribers. “Subscription on Demand” includes up to 15-25 unedited, non-ad supported anime episodes per week, as well as exclusive content not available to “Free on Demand” customers; this option is carried on six of the nation’s top ten cable providers, as well as on various smaller cable companies. Anime Network also provides select episodes on their main website.

The FUNimation Channel is also available, although it does not air in many areas. Of the five stations it airs on, only one shows the programming 24 hours a day. The FUNimation Channel can be seen in: Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto, California; Columbus, Ohio; Dayton, Ohio; New York, New York; and Wausau, Wisconsin. FUNimation also has a branded channel on the YouTube website. This YouTube channel includes trailers, promotional videos, and full episodes of some of FUNimation’s titles.

Some American anime distributors are starting to make episodes of their licensed anime available for purchase through iTunes. Through this avenue, you can purchase and download an episode of an anime for a reasonable price to determine if the anime is a property you would want to continue watching. There is also a website called Crunchyroll, which has had a reputation for being an anime download site, especially for fansubs. However, the company is trying to rebrand itself as a legitimate website, and has struck content deals with Media Blasters, ADV Films, and Gonzo (a Japanese distributor). It does cost a fee to use Crunchyroll, and even though there is legitimate content there, you could also run into illegal copies of anime and various fansubs. Hulu.com has also launched a channel for free, legal streaming of anime; the service requires no fees for its streams, and supports itself with commercial breaks within the streams. You can also stream some anime episodes for free through the Toonami Jetstream website. The Joost online video service is also providing some free, legal streaming anime episodes.

No matter which of these routes you choose to follow, you should be able to sample a wide variety of anime titles. And perhaps you will find a new anime that you enjoy, or be able to determine for yourself whether or not your 10-year-old could handle a show like Death Note.