Animeness

[JKTrix]

Death Note and Suzumiya are both licensed now. They are awesome though. If anything is to be the 'next big thing', it's one of them--though it's probably a bit of stretch. They don't have the mass appeal of DBZ or Naruto. The Fansub Fanboys (self included) are the ones who will really propel Suzumiya.

I wouldn't classify D.Gray-Man as something 'Big and Unknown', though I guess it is unknown right now. If you're gonna suggest DGM might as well check out Busou Renkin. Both are fairly easy to get into.

I suggest looking into the following unlicensed still-on-fansub anime:
Ouran High School Host Club. Unfortunately this will eternally be called 'the show with the other Haruhi', since this came out the same time as Suzumiya. I enjoyed this show immensely, at times just as much as Suzumiya. It's actually made for girls, but anyone can enjoy it. It's a shame this isn't licensed yet! It was one of 2006's best shows.
Code Geass: Mechs, action, cool music. Good looking show, designs by CLAMP (Cardcaptors, X, Tsubasa Chronicle)
Nodame Cantabile: Manga based, touching story about 2 people and music
Manabi Straight: Just started, ultra cute.
Pumpkin Scissors: has been going on for a while, and it's pretty interesting so far.

For stuff you can get on DVD:
Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo. It is awesome. Get it now.
RahXephon. Might start out seeming like an 'Eva Clone', though the comparisons are purely cosmetic. Ultimately surpasses Eva in most areas.
Eureka 7: Not yet finished on DVD, but I watched all 50 episodes through on Fansub in 2005-2006. It is great.
Twelve Kingdoms: Best Fantasy Anime I have ever seen. Utawarerumono does not even compare (a DogGirl is fine too), even the brilliance of Scrapped Princess does not quite match up.

There's lots out there. Check www.fansub.tv to get unlicensed, direct-download stuff. Animesuki is still around as well, but they're torrent-only. If you can spare the time/harddrive space, just try one episode of anything that looks remotely interesting. You might stumble upon something awesome (as was the case with RahXephon and Suzumiya for me).

[Bart's Friend Milhouse]

High school girls FTW