Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei.
I actually let a friend, who has never ever watched anime in his whole life, watch one episode of this and he started to watch every episode to kingdom come. And if there's one thing about this show, its the tone. ;)
And I highly recommend that for anyone who feels like watching a show that's away from your typical Meta anime picks nowadays.
ALLL HAILLLL
DEMACIAAAAAAAAAAAAA BRITANNIAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
I actually like Code Geass in a sense since its one of those animes that did not have a Manga adaptation prior to its inception (in other words, The anime came first before the Mecha-less Manga adaptation).
My other recommendations are:
Pokemon the original series - do i dare say it? Other than it being heavily and loosely based on our beloved video game franchise, the original Pokemon series has a pretty sizeable taste in the times were it wasn't about Ash and friends foiling Team Rocket's plans.
Blood the Last Vampire - its a serious one, and its for those who like the blood. Pun intended
Sengoku Basara (both seasons) - ARE YOU READY GAIZE? PUT YO GUNS ON!!!!!! I think this show is perfect for virgin anime viewers. There's just something about this anime adaptation based on Capcom's Twisted adaptation of the Warring States period of Japan.
Project A-Ko - one of the classics that i watched. It had it all. Great animation, action scenes, likeable characters, and of course, the old school 80s anime that in my opinion will never feel outdated for me.
Cooking Master Boy - It will help viewers appreciate cooking in a whole new level, of win.
Lucky Star - Actually no. I'm trolling at this point.