Allright. Let's go back to the videos I saw when I got started that made me decide editing was for me...
*opens AMV drive*
I'm going to pass over all the videos already mentioned plus the ones everyone talks about. Stuff like The Aluminum Studios Senshi vids, or Tim's parodies (love me some Kakumei Card!) because they're not really "bypassed" in the same way I think the videos that inspired me are.
Although ErMaC doesn't agree with me, my favorite video, the one that really stood out to me as to what could be done by an accomplished editor, was ErMaC's first Marmalade Boy video. It's no longer uploaded, and he has destroyed every copy he can get his hands on, but I have it backed up in three different places and would be happy to share.
Title: I Can't Move On
Member: ErMaC
Studio: ErMaC Studios
Premiered: 2001-03-11
Categories: Drama, Romance
Song: Everything But The Girl "Missing"
Anime: Marmalade Boy
Utena videos really inspired me and continue to do so. My first and last videos were Utena, and I have more Utena videos than any other series. There are so many great ones from the early years, and while mine was contemporary to several of them (it premiered in 2001 on the org), I would never, ever put it in the same class. A good example of an amv that inspired me is:
Title: Trippin' On Utena
Member: Jesmaster
Studio: Jesmasters Anime Palace
Premiered: 2000-07-22
Categories: Action, Drama
Song: Stone Temple Pilots "Trippin' on a Hole in a Paper Heart"
Anime: Revolutionary Girl Utena (TV)
Finally, we have a few KOR videos. Obviously, KOR is my favorite series, and as such I pay a lot of attention to every single video that is made. Luckily, most of them, especially the early ones were made with a lot of love and attention and are great examples of chracter driven videos.
Title: One True Love
Member: rys
Studio: RYS
Premiered: 2001-12-02
Category: Romance
Song: SemiSonic "One True Love"
Anime: Kimagure Orange Road (TV)
Title: The Beginning Of The Night
Member: DavePeterson
Studio: Cracked Hoe Productions
Premiered: 2001-09-01
Categories: Character Profile Drama Romance Serious
Song: Boa "Twilight"
Anime: Kimagure Orange Road (TV)
Title: Life in Madoka
Member: Quu
Studio: OtakuVideo
Premiered: 2000-05-13
Categories: Character Profile, Drama
Song: Mono "Life in Mono"
Anime: Kimagure Orange Road (TV)
And finally, making us all feel like n00bz by editing FIFTEEN YEARS AGO:
Title: Orange Road
Member: Vlad G Pohnert
Premiered: 1993-09-01
Categories: Character, Profile, Drama
Song: Samantha Fox "I Only Wanna Be With You"
Anime: Kimagure Orange Road (TV)
I am blessed to be able to say I saw several of the videos I now consider vital at their respective premieres at various cons. I associate a lot of good memories with being in a group of editors and being able to watch "amv history" unfold. Perhaps silly, or trivial, but it is what it is. If you have trouble getting ahold of any of the videos I posted here, I have them all.