Episode 1 of Evangelion, in my opinion, is a great way to start a series. Right away, it begins with an Angel attacking. It introduces the main charecter, and most of the important charecters right away, and shows how they interact with the series. Shinji, the main charecter, is taken almost right from his home, and forced to fight. By the end of the first episode, he's already in a real battle. This definately is the right way to introduce a good series.