i was born in 89' son! with akira i probably watched it at an age i shouldnt have.. it may have been a technical masterpiece with the 50 or so shades of grey they used to colour cells but the story just wasnt there. a friend tried to explain it one day and told me something nutty about tetsuo finally being at peace with himself, 'i am tetsuo'..lolwut?

as for studio ghibli, those films are special,  miyazaki is a master story teller. miyazaki creates a spectacle with his films, and if not anything else they are interesting to watch. 

thought neon genesis evangelion was ok, so im not completely allergic to these dark and disturbing anime, lets just say akira not to my taste. also tolerated blue gender, though it did make me feel a bit sick at times.

ps i will try beserk mrpink, you were right about dark souls.