Inner dialogue sometime during this weekend at 2:55 in the morning.
——-
Complete and total rubbish, that is!
What is it you’re talking about, you nutter?
Well, my short story that’s what!
Oh, you wrote–you wrote a story, a short one, you say, and it wasn’t any good? I could have told you that you stupid git! I read some of the rubbish you post in this blog. You should be ashamed of yourself.
I am, I am….
So what are ya going to do about it, eh? Write more crap or are ya going to crack a dictionary for once and use it as God intended?
———
And so it went.
So where did this wave of self doubt and recrimination originated?
From a “beta” my good friend Iz did for me recently.
Did I mention it was a HUGE favor? I mean titanic in its scope. He dragged his eyes (mid-vacation mind you) across the garbage strewn landscape that I dared called a story and after much sorting he managed to pull out the salvageable bits.
Now I need to recycle those very bits into a story worth reading.
I can do this.
I can overcome my dreadful grammar, horrible pacing and give some emotions to my characters.
YES I CAN!
And I will too.
Just you see.
Or Issac will see, if he has the stomach for a second round.
Did I mention that this favor was of astronomical proportions? Super Nova pale in comparison to what he did for me.
El opening de hoy kinnikuman, bueno un poco de historia de este anime:
La historia nos narra, en clave de humor, las aventuras de Musculman/Kinnikuman, cuyo verdadero nombre es Suguru. Se trata de un estrafalario superhéroe, un príncipe venido del planeta Músculo (Kinniku), al que su padre arrojó desde allí en un bolsa de basura confundiéndolo con un cerdo. Es quizá el luchador más poderoso pero, continuamente, sus disparatadas ideas le hacen pasar un mal rato. Practica la lucha libre y adora el Estofado de Carne…
(Bueno ustedes Saben la historia…)
Datos Curisos:
-sabias que él es el padre de Kid-musculo y no fue tan buena esa serie?
Creo que si lo sabias
-Kinikuman se enfrento a unos Luchadores en Forma de Celular, Baño, muralla?
-super dupper imaginativos…
-Sabias que la última temporada no fue emitida aca en America Latina, España y los EE.UU?
Funk-ings Nipones
-Sabias que el opening está cantado por Douglas, un Cantante Chileno?
No tenía idea eso y si que nada mal.
-Sabias que: Los héroes y villanos de Kinnikuman son conocidos en su versión original como Choujins, que se traduce literalmente como Superhéroes. Muchos personajes que aparecen en la serie fueron bocetos enviados por fans (Robin Mask), mientras que otros son parodias de superhéroes populares japoneses, luchadores profesionales o monstruos basados en cosas tan absurdas como una cabina de teléfono o un urinario.
Bueno ahí un pequeñísimo post la idea principal era de mostrar el Openings y escribir unos ¿Sabias qué? de esa Serie.
Bueno que opinan de esa serie? Pues a mí me gusto mucho y no estaría mal en sus respuestas explicar un poco mas de kinnikuman (yeah un post interactivo)
From the character designer Noriyasu Yamauchi and Studio Fantasia, here comes AIKA-ZERO.
type: OVA [Original Video Anime]
release date: july 5 2009
produced by: Studio Fantasia
genre: ecchi
elements of: action, adventure, mystery, comedy
download: Aika Zero-Animetake
watch online: Aika Zero-Zomganime
Aika Zero-Poster
Aika Sumeragi, a 19 years old agent is hired to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a number of high-school girls. She dresses like a high-school student and followed by her senpai-Karen, she infiltrates a hidden society, led by the White Knights. These girls were kidnapping other female students and from this first episode we don’t understand why. Aika will get in trouble when she will find herself in the situation of a possible kidnap. But another great character, Risako-sensei will save her.
Funny moments, same attitudes, lots of pantyshots and fights. this is what this first episode from Aika Zero is offering us.
An early copy of the October issue of Kodansha’s Nakayoshi magazine has revealed that the new Shugo Chara Party! television program will have anime and live-action segments. (The October issue will officially ship on September 3.) The main segment of the new program will be the Shugo Chara!!! Dokki Doki anime, which the magazine describes as a power-up of the ongoing Shugo Chara!! Doki— anime adaptation of Peach-Pit’s Shugo Chara! manga. A new character named Rikka will appear.
The new program will also include Shugo Chara Pucchi Puchi! anime shorts. Super-deformed versions of the characters Ran, Miki, and Su will star in these shorts. Shugo Chara!! Doki— director Kenji Yasuda will continue to oversee both Shugo Chara!!! Dokki Doki and Shugo Chara Pucchi Puchi! at the Satelight anime studio.
In addition to the anime, Shugo Chara Party! will have regular appearances by the Shugo Chara Egg! female idol group as program hosts. However, the group will have a new lineup: Mizuki Fukumura as Amulet Heart, Akari Saho as Amulet Spade, and Irori Maeda as Amulet Clover. An open audition will be held for the fourth member, Amulet Diamond. The winner of the audition, which is open to unsigned girls in elementary and junior high schools, will perform as part of the group and appear on the Shugo Chara Party! program. The group will sing the theme song of Shugo Chara!!! Dokki Doki as well.
Source: 2ch
weeeeeeee..more shugo chara.!! ahaha..The manga has already finished yet they will be showing new Shugo Chara. I want to see this one, too.. ^__^
Btw, I like Buono! more than the Shugo Chara Egg!..
Próximos episódios: *As datas aqui expostas são do dia de exibição no Japão e não lançamento do Fansub* 125: Desaparecimento! [03/09] 126: Sombra da Escuridão! [10/09] Manga da Semana:
Lançado o Capítulo da Semana de Naruto: 461, lançamento da “”Akatsuki Editions!”. Título: —–! Baixar: 4Shared| Ler Online:
Há tempos que eu planejava um post pra falar sobre Bleach, o meu mangá/anime preferido de todos ever, mas eu nunca sabia como nem por onde começar e como eu tô muito sem tempo pra pesquisar outras coisas pra trazer pra cá, vamos falar sobre isso então! Pra quem não sabe, a história gira em torno de um colegial de 15 anos chamado Kurosaki Ichigo que vê espíritos e depois de um encontro bem mal sucedido com a Shinigami Kuchiki Rukia, onde ele “rouba” todos os poderes dela, acaba se tornando um “Deus da Morte” (Shinigami pra os japinhas). Depois do acontecido, Rukia não pode mais voltar para o seu mundo e obriga Ichigo a fazer o seu trabalho, já que agora ela não tem mais poderes pra combater contra os Hollows (são espíritos do lado negro da força) e nem purificar os Espiritos Plus (espíritos que ficam vagando aqui na terra), então fica presa aqui na terra e acaba indo morar no guarda-roupa do Ichigo.
Perceberam que eu só falei na Rukia né? É minha personagem preferida do anime, deu pra notar que eu adoro ela? Não? Pois eu ADORO a Rukia! Ela é braba, engraçada e linda, por isso ganhou o troféu de personagem preferida para todo o sempre em meu coraçãozinho!
Eu tenho um verdadeiro caso de amor e ódio com Bleach. Comecei assistindo o Anime pra depois ler o Mangá, e o que eu posso dizer sobre isso? Só pra variar um pouco, é claro que o Mangá é milhões de vezes melhor que o Anime. Mas porque o amor e ódio? Bem, deixa eu tentar explicar… A história pra mim é mais que fenomenal, os personagens são apaixonantes e interessantíssimos, os lugares são muito legais, mas como em todo anime/mangá, tem uma história de amor mal resolvida. No caso de Bleach, o nosso personagem principal, o Moranguinho (Um dos significados de Ichigo é morango, por isso o primeiro volume de Bleach é chamado de “A morte e o morango“) ahaza com coração de duas meninas: A Rukia (a shinigami que ele “roubou” os poderes) e a Orihime (uma de suas colegas de classe), só que fica num chove não molha durante todos os mais de 300 números de mangá e 200 e lá vai fumaça do anime… E isso cansa a minha beleza… E também, eu acho o anime muito cansativo porque tem MUITO filer (episódios que não vão nem vem pro desenrolar da história, só pra enxer linguiça mesmo, e geralmente eles são lançados quando o anime tá encostando no mangá).
Uma coisa que eu amo no anime são as batalhas, porque venhamos e convenhamos que arranca-rabo no papel não tem lá muita graça né? Outra coisa fantástica no Anime são as aberturas e os encerramentos, cada nova temporada parece que fica ainda melhor, tanto a animação quanto a trilha sonora. Ah, a trilha sonora! Eu tenho todas as músicas porque o tal de J-POP é muito bom e todas as músicas que tocam em Bleach são PERFEITAS!
Mas a história não é só isso não: O anime já vai pela 9º temporada e o mangá já está proximo dos 400 números, além de existirem já 3 filmes, 2 OVA’s, diversos jogos pra PlayStation, Nintendo Wii, PSP… Ufa, deu pra perceber que o negocio faz sucesso né?
Pra quem quer assitir e tem ANIMAX, o anime está na 3º temporada e passa aos domingos em três horários (2h, 7h e 15h), pra quem não tem, vamos recorrer a nossa venha interneta né? No site oficial brazuca de Bleach tem tudo, todos os números do mangá, todos os episódios dos animes, filmes, OVA’s e OST’s!
Depois do pulo eu falo e mostro mais um pouco dos personagens pra vocês!
Kurosaki Ichigo - Personagem principal, que com o passar das temporadas, vamos descobrindo que ele é muito mais do que um simples Shinigami, na verdade nós vamos descobrindo que ele é muito mais que um aborrecente de cabelo laranja…
Kuchiki Rukia – Shinigami membro da 13º divisão da Soul Society que tomava conta da cidade de Karakura, até que encontra Ichigo e durante um acidente passa todos os seus poderes pra ele e acabou ficando presa na terra, onde se viciou por ler livros de romance.
Inoue Orihime – Colega de classe de Ichigo e é completamente apaixonada por ele. Lá pelo meio da primeira temporada, acabamos descobrindo que Ichigo tem muita Reiatsu (poder espiritural) e acaba passando um pouco dela pra os que convivem com ele, e Orihime acaba ficando com poderes e ajuda Ichigo a combater contra os Hollows.
Ishida Uryu – O último de uma raça conhecida como Quincy, que são arqueiros que destroem os Hollows. Ishida também é colega de classe de Ichigo, no início eles não se suportam, pois Ishida guarda um grande ódio dos shinigamis, porque o seu avô e mestre foi morto por negligência deles, mas depois que ele consegue superar esse trauma, acaba se tornando grande amigo de Ichigo.
Sado “Chad” Yasudora - Outro colega de classe de Ichigo que acaba descobrindo que também tem poderes quando salva a irmã de Ichigo de um ataque dos Hollows, e começa a ajudar o amigo contra as forças do mal. Quando criança ele era muito violento, mas o seu avô ensinou que ele tinha que usar a sua força para o bem, e é isso que ele faz desde que seu avô morreu.
Abarai Renji – Vice-capitão da 6º divisão de Shinigamis e melhor amigo de Rukia. Ele é o shinigami encarregado a trazer Rukia de volta pra que seja punida quando descobrem que ela violou uma das leis da Soul Society. E eu particularmente acho que ele é apaixonado por ela!
Full title: Episode of Chopper Plus: Bloom in Winter, Miracle Sakura
Japanese title: ＯＮＥ ＰＩＥＣＥ（ワンピース） エピソードオブチョッパー＋冬に咲く、奇跡の桜
Some info:
1) One Piece Wiki
2) ANN
3) Official Site (Japanese)
Oh, this is another retelling of one of the arcs in One Piece, but with a twist. The timeline’s sort of messed up since there are newer crew members than chopper present in the movie, as well as their new ship and of course, Luffy’s Gear abilities.
With that means there will be quite a fair amount of original content since well, there are things present that are only “existent” in the future. Yeah, that means new scenes and reworking of animation and artwork to present this movie. Lol, there might be quite a number of differences but at least the crux of Chopper’s story is pretty much unaffected (I think).
For me, I guess it’s more of a recap of Chopper’s story and probably seeing some new actions and fights that wouldn’t have been possible back in the original storyline. Haha, other than that I guess this movie doesn’t really stand out in that sense. I’m not sure how die-hard One Piece fans responded to this movie though. Haha.
Well, I guess no harm having a little more One Piece fun, though the main story was already good enough in my opinion. =D
Duas semanas atrás, eu havia postado uma breve resenha sobre o animê Sengoku Basara, repletos de fantásticas cenas de lutas, então por impulso acabei recordando deste animê, o Tenjho Tenge. E assim como em Sengoku, Tenjho Tenge é formado por disputas de territórios, porém os protagonistas deste animê são grupos de colegiais em busca de poder e o controle de sua escola.
Tenjou Tenge ou Tenjho Tenge é uma série de mangá, lançado pela revista Ultra Jump da Shueisha de autoria do mangaká Oh! great (autor de Air Gear), a coleção é publicada pela JBC no Brasil. A série de mangá também recebeu uma adaptação de anime pelo estúdio Madhouse, contendo 24 episódios, exibidos de 1 de Abril de 2004 a 16 de Setembro de 2004 na TV Asahi. Também foram lançados mais 2 OVAs intitulados Tenjou Tenge ULTIMATE FIGHT, enumerados como episódios 25 e 26.
O enredo do animê é protagonizado por Souichirou Nagi e seu comapanheiro de briga, Bob Makihara, ambos são dois delinqüentes colegiais que buscam desafiar todos os membros de cada escola através de muita violência. Após fecharem 99 escolas, eles escolhem a Todou Gakkuen, um colégio conhecido por carregar muitas gerações de artistas marciais. Contudo, e para a infelicidade deles, seus planos são frustrados por uma bela garota, Maya Natsume, capitã do último grupo que se opõe ao Conselho Disciplinário, o Clube Juuken. A cada ano, grupos disputam pelo controle da escola, e o Conselho Disciplinário é encarregado de “destruir” seus opositores. Mais tarde, o grupo de rivais de Maya Natsume, ataca Souchiro e Bob acreditando que são membros e subordinados da jovem garota, sem outra escolha os valentões tornam-se aliados de Maya.
Então, caso você esteja procurando um animê com muita Adrenalina e pancadaria sem misericórdia nenhuma, você acaba de encontrar !
Kobato is a young girl that for unknown reasons, needs to fill a mysterious bottle with the feelings of people with a heart in pain, for that she needs to "Cure" other people’s hearts and make them happy, but this could become even more difficult than she thought.Her companion for this task is a grumpy plush dog she calls Ioryogi-san.
To be honest, CLAMP is the reason why I put this on my fall to-watch list. Lets hope it lives up to my expectations or rather, CLAMP fans’ expectations…and I’m pretty sure it will.
Fairy Tail
Based on a manga series of the same name by Mashima Hiro.
From Baka-Updates:
Celestial wizard Lucy wants to join the Fairy Tail, a club for the most powerful wizards. But instead, her ambitions land her in the clutches of a gang of unsavory pirates led by a devious magician. Her only hope is Natsu, a strange boy she happens to meet on her travels. Natsu’s not your typical hero – but he just might be Lucy’s best hope.
I’ve been putting off reading this manga for ages mostly because it’s already in its 149th chapter by the time I’m reading this and I’m kinda lazy to start reading from the first chapter. Will give the anime a shot to see if the manga is worth my reading time.
Kimi ni Todoke
Based on a manga by Shiina Karuho.
From Baka-Updates:
Sawako Kuronuma, called Sadako by her classmates for her resemblance to the character ‘Sadako’, from The Ring, has always been feared and misunderstood because of her appearance. There are rumors that Sawako can see ghosts and curse people. But when her idol, popular boy Kazehaya, begins talking with her, everything changes. She finds herself in a new world.
Kimi ni Todoke happens to be my favourite manga series at the moment. Will definitely watch this one.
Darker Than Black: Ryuusei no Gemini
The long-awaited sequel of Darker Than Black is finally coming. All fans of Darker Than Black, rejoice! And more Hei goodness for me
***
Note: Full list of Fall 2009 anime lineup is available HERE.
If my trip to Otakon has taught me anything, it’s that English localizations don’t always suck!
Being the totally awesome self-righteous fanboys/fangirls/weeaboos that we are, many of us tend to disregard English dubs entirely; more often than not, though, this is only rightfully so. Some argue that the English language cannot fully capture some of the nuances and connotations that come packed with the Japanese language, thereby misinterpreting some of the dialogue. The Japanese language, after all, is pretty vague, and certain words and phrases can’t be directly translated into English without sounding a little awkward (ie: “It can’t be helped.” Who the hell says that?).
So in the same vein of whether fansubbers should include honorifics in their subtitles (-chan, -san), here’s a list of some Anime that is comparably good, if not better, than their subbed counterparts.
1) Black Lagoon (pictured above)
A general rule of thumb can be made that any given show featuring Western characters with Western qualities is likely to succeed in dub format. Maybe it’s the smoother inflections in speech or the show’s characterization. Whatever it is, it just works. Case in point, the following video from Black Lagoon: (Skip ahead to about 2 minutes and 45 seconds)
The dub for Black Lagoon is exemplary. There’s just so much more emotion charged into these scenes that it makes the acrimony a lot more palpable. Not that the original voice acting wasn’t great on its own, but these new voices help the characters shed a little bit of their meekness. Go ahead and pull up the subbed version of this scene, and I’m sure you’ll see that it’s no contest. The show is also known for its swearing, which hits the right tone and isn’t childishly played to in excess.
2) Golden Boy
We all know the premise of the original 6-part OVA:
“Kintaro Oe, age 25. After studying law at Tokyo University, he left the school before graduation. Curiously enough, however, he had already finished all the courses required for his degree. Since that time, he has roamed the land, changing jobs frequently as he studies the world around him. Riding his favorite bike, the Mikazuki 5, he keeps moving forward, always on the lookout for new knowledge and adventure. And who knows? Perhaps some day, he may even save the world.”
-Narrator / Episode 1
Golden Boy is likened to being the ‘American Pie’ of Japanese Anime, except it’s actually funny. It follows the trials of the lewd freeter Kintaro as he takes on a number of part-time jobs while traveling all across Japan in his endless pursuit of knowledge (”Life is study”). While a little on the clumsy side, Kintaro is kind-hearted and considerate, and always leaves his workplace in a better condition than when he started.
The main reason why the show works better in dub format is because the original voice acting is just boring. Kintaro is supposed to come off as a highly quixotic character, something that the original voice actor comes short of. The English voice actor is able to convey someone who’s simultaneously perverted, manly, slovenly and dorky, working with the exaggerated expressions that we love so much. The writing is so off-the-wall and outrageous that it’s bound to squeeze a few guilty chuckles here and there.
3) Baccano!
An Anime with intersecting plots about immortality and gangsters during the Prohibition. As I said before with Black Lagoon, having them speak in English is more suitable because everything just clicks, especially since they even took the liberty of fitting them with New York accents. I personally can’t stand the English voice actors for the robber duo Isaac and Miria, who happen to be two of my favorite characters in any Anime. But other than them, it’s a solid release.
4) The Big O
A cursory glance of the above screenshot and the first thing I thought of was how Roger is the spitting image of Bruce Wayne from those old Batman cartoons.
I think it’s the face structure, or the burly build, or the slicked-back haircut. In any case, The Big O works better in dub because it just doesn’t feel like an Anime series. It incorporates a lot of the grittiness of film noir in a futuristic sci-fi realm, employing the same mechanics of late 90s comic books without all of the stilted delays that come with translations.
5) Romeo X Juliet
So the Anime wasn’t a faithful adaptation of the classical romantic Shakespearean tragedy, what with their flying steeds, technological anachronisms, and Juliet’s role as the masked vigilante. But hey, the writing for the English script is solid, incorporating all of the flowery and ornate prose that comes with something appended to a centuries-old love story.
I’m running out of fuel here.
So can you think of any other shows with a praiseworthy dub?
The year was 1973, and a young anime studio named Madhouse began work on its first big series, an adaptation of a popular tennis manga called Ace o Nerae! or Aim for the Ace! as it translates in English. Running 26 episodes, it was directed by Dezaki Osamu and had character designs by Sugino Akio, a duo that continues to work together even to this day, including Rose of Versailles, the 90s Black Jack OVAs, and Space Adventure Cobra. They also worked together on every other anime adaptation of Aim for the Ace!
With that in mind, I thought it’d be interesting to just put the openings of each of the Ace series next to each other, if only to see how time, money, and experience have affected the same series over the course of two decades.
1973’s Ace o Nerae!
1978s Shin Ace o Nerae!
1988’s Ace o Nerae 2!
It might be a little unfair to compare openings, but I feel that doing so is a good indicator for seeing how an anime series wishes to be first seen. When you look at the 1973 opening vs the 1978 opening though, you can already see a world of difference. Character designs in Shin Ace are cleaner and more consistent, perhaps at the expense of some of the wild and untamed artwork that characterizes the original. Everything is also much-better animated, with fewer visible shortcuts being taken. Fast forward to 1988 and of course you can see a huge change, brought on by overall progress in anime, an OVA-level budget and changing visual trends in anime (and in real-world fashion). Keep in mind though that unlike, say, Cutie Honey, where each incarnation is done by a different studio and different people at the helm, Ace 2 has the same core team as the first Ace, and what you’re seeing here is direct evidence of how they changed over the course of 15 years.
I think the biggest difference between the original and the later series is that by the time of Shin Ace, the anime is actively trying to portray human figures in a three-dimensional space, and Ace 2 even moreso. If you look at the original TV series, even in the opening it never wants to tell you exactly where the characters are in any given moment. It feels closer to a manga brought to life, for better or worse. In that regard, I feel that the original has a certain charm that the others lack, the kind of appeal that comes from seeing just how much people could do with so little.
Really though, I just think they should have kept the hair from the first TV series throughout each incarnation. That includes the live-action series from a few years ago.
Has pretty much made it into my favorite anime series of all time.
Gurren Lagann pretty much reinvigorated the anime fan for me. I liked anime before, a lot, but this…this just blew me. It was great, everything about it. The soundtrack, the flashy animation, the characters…everything about it was so over-the-top and completely awesome that I feel in love with it.
I have no idea where I first heard about Gurren Lagann. I had watched a lot of GAINAX series before (Diebuster, FLCL) but I wasn’t an avid reader of ANN or an informative site about new anime series (I was pretty in the dark) so I didn’t read about it anywhere. I didn’t here it from one of my friends, I was the one to tell them about it. I remember my cousin was into it, but we only talked about it after I had watched some of the series. I have my suspicions I found it on accident, though I have no idea how. I rented the entire thing from Netflix, and they have hundreds of anime series, so maybe it was fate? Or something, that would be pretty cool, wouldn’t it? Fate deciding which anime you would really like and helping you pick it out.
Nevertheless, I found Gurren Lagann through some means and watched it immediately. I only got the sub version of the series (and whether or not Sci-fi was running it at the time I don’t know) so I never heard the dub until a loooong time later (and it didn’t sound that bad, honestly). Apparently no one else was watching it because I got the discs easily. Anyway, so I loved the series and ordered the second disc. And then Gurren Lagann broke my heart.
Yes, you remember him. I loved Kamina, although he was my secondary favorite next to Simon. And when he died? Well, I was devastated. It was the first time (after Kanon 2006) that I had felt sad about an anime character dieing (I didn’t cry, though, which I knew some people did). I didn’t want to watch the last episode on the disc because I didn’t want to see a Gurren Lagann without Kamina. Of course, after watching the entire series I realize putting an episode after episode 8 onto the second disc was a good idea. I would probably be even sadder than I was if I had to send the disc back and wait 3-5 business days for the next one to come out. I might’ve not even finished the series.
But I felt bad about not watching the last episode on the disc, so I drew myself together and put in the disc again, not really knowing if I would still feel the same about the series now that Kamina was gone. After all, the next episode title was in pink, flowery print. The next episode was depressing, as it should be, but with the introduction of my third favorite character, the most adorable girl on the show.
Niaaaaaa
Of course, I was still pretty depressed when she showed up, but my Nia love grew over the next few episodes. Anyway, so episode 9 didn’t make me feel any better, because of course they were all in mourning, but the introduction of Nia made me want to continue the series. So I ordered disc 3, and Gurren Lagann blew me away once again.
Episode 10 was when Adiane showed up. I had pretty much recovered from my devestation over Kamina’s death and now felt bad for Simon, who seemed pretty alone because the others (besides Yoko, who got points from me) seemed to be ridiculing him for still mourning Kamina. I didn’t understand this, because I believed that Yoko and Simon, who had the closest relationship with Kamina would be saddened longer than the others, and recover from it slower. Apparently no one understood that.
And then…and then episode 11. I was a little angry at Gurren Lagann because Simon didn’t seem very progressive in character development, like he was always dependant on Kamina and never shone himself. Episode 11 was when Simon finally broke out of Kamina’s shadow and became his own, independant character. Just pulled one of the best moves in the series, and made me determined to finish it.
Now, the taking over of Teppelin didn’t stand out to me as episodes, mostly because I was more interested in Lord Genome and what he meant at the end. When Simon and the others went to war with him I just didn’t think anything could be as awesome as episode 11. So, it was kind’ve like expecting something from these episodes to be as good or better than episode 11, which wouldn’t happen until the last few eps.
I liked the characters after the time skip, because I hadn’t seen a lot of anime where we see what happens when the characters complete their mission and grow older. Rossiu finally went through puberty, Simon got hot, and Nia became beautiful. I should have expected that Nia, the sweetest character, would turn out to be the one who announces the beginning of the annihilation of the human race. Still, though, I was a little surprised. Not to mention angry at Rossiu for putting Simon in jail and trying to control this thing himself.
I knew why he did it, of course, and his motives seemed reasonable. I guess it was the city’s reaction that surprised me the most. Here was a leader they had trusted for years, and they can turn their backs on him in one day? Seemed a little unrealistic. I liked Viral’s older appearance as well (and not just because they fought in bath towels. I’m not that shallow). But I was happy when Simon came back and knocked some sense into Rossiu.
I was happy when they saved the earth from being destroyed by the “moon” but that was short-lived when Nia was captured at the end of it. Simon had to go after her and had to defeat the Anti-Spirals, so I knew I was waiting for something so completely awesome that it overshadowed the entire rest of the series. And I wasn’t disappointed, the incredible force of those last few episodes has stayed with me till today. I can’t say any other anime has made me root for the main character as much as this one has. I even shouted things out loud when I was watching it. I wanted Simon to win, no matter what the cost of it may be. And the appearance of Kamina at the end? I was really shocked at how much Simon had turned into Kamina, not as a complete copy but he was definitely a major influence. It just made me happy, when I thought of how much Simon had grown from the beginning of the series to the end.
I was, of course, saddened when the series ended. I’m like that, when I finish something I like. I can’t help but wonder, though, why did Gurren Lagann affect me so much? It had never happened before (the closest I had come was Kanon 2006) so I was really surprised at this. Even being an anime fan, I never thought I would feel more than shallow emotions for that show. Just what about the characters appealed to me?
I would have to blame Kamina. He was so different from any anime character I had seen before. He had a never-die attitude and no matter what nothing was impossible. And then Simon, who looked up to Kamina and stood in his shadow was a character who I wanted to see get his own spotlight. He just had a lot of potential. Yoko was very different from most anime heroines, she was strong willed and knew how to defend herself. Not once did she call for help from Kamina or Simon and stand uselessly on the sidelines. Nia won me over because, one, she was really cute, and, two, she dug Simon out of depression and into the badass character we knew he was. I love her for that.
I also blame it on the OST, which has some of the most memorable tracks ever. They gave feeling to the animation, and really kept me on edge. It was like the Holy Grail of OSTs, that added to the feel of the anime and fit with every scene no matter how much it seemed out of place at first. It kept me suspenseful, sad, or rooting for the main character. I got into OSTs from this anime.
Point is, Gurren Lagann really showed me what an anime could be. I have not watched another show that has elicited as much feeling from it as Gurren Lagann has. I don’t know if I ever will, whether GAINAX makes it or not. It had so many positive elements working for it that it combined into one awesome show. What am I trying to say?
Over the next few posts I will upload a study I undertook on Hayao Miyazaki and his depiction of females.
This opening chapter will explain what is to come in the following posts.
Anime is well established enough to draw scholarly attention. Traditionally Japanese women have been subordinate, therefore, through the use of qualitive and quantitive research, this study investigates Hayao Miyazaki’s depiction of girls and women using four works of animation from Studio Ghibli as case studies, in order to understand whether Miyazaki’s character portrayals are based on real women in Japanese society and whether these portrayals have had any significant impact thus far on Japanese women or girls in contemporary Japanese society because anime in itself has become a gateway into understanding Japanese society.
There was a large-scale commercialisation of Japanese animation beginning in the 1960’s which led to the birth of a new genre; anime (Japanese animation). The fantasy, science fiction and adventure ‘comic-book’ (manga) works are most familiar to the British public and, although no knowledge of Japanese is needed to enjoy anime, it is impossible to watch Japanese animation without wanting to gain some knowledge of Japanese culture and trying to understand the basic moral assumptions that make anime distinctive.
Hayao Miyazaki is a phenomenon in Japan and has a reputation second to none for his commitment to artistic quality. The technical quality of his films is outstanding. His stories are great sweeping epics and his characters sophisticated. Miyazaki and Isao Takahata founded an animation studio called Studio Ghibli and subsequently Disney signed a deal for world distribution rights for a number of Miyazaki’s animated movies, thus his work is no longer just on the periphery of Western cult viewing. With his animated characters taking on a life of their own in the form of merchandise, and his museum in Tokyo devoted to the work of Studio Ghibli, the researcher believes that Miyazaki’s anime may have had an important impact on Japanese society, girls and women in particular, and therefore, it is an opportune time to investigate and record whether Miyazaki’s representations of his female characters has had any impact on Japanese women’s lives, thus far or whether Studio Ghibli’s films reflect contemporary Japanese society.
A consideration of the available scholarly literature highlights how Japanese manga and anime have grown in popularity in the Western world. Studies have spread across different fields such as media studies, film studies, cultural studies and sociology. Hayao Miyazaki, ‘The master of Japanese animation’[i] is finally receiving the credit he deserves, having raised comics and animation to ‘the status of artistic and literacy excellence.’[ii] Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki stand ‘at the pinnacle of artistic achievement’[iii] and the worldwide appeal of his young female characters, and sweeping epic stories, prompts me to ask two questions. Miyazaki is a phenomenon in Japan so do his animated films with their shojo (Japanese girl) heroines represent Japan’s society or is Japanese society affected by Miyazaki’s anime? By asking these questions I seek to understand what impact Miyazaki’s anime has had, or will have, on Japanese society, especially women and girls lives. Testing my assumption that women are at a disadvantage in Japan, the study aims to develop an understanding of, and embrace the role and position of females, in four feature-length films directed by Miyazaki, as case studies from Studio Ghibli: My Neighbour Totoro (1988), Porco Rosso (1992), Princess Mononoke (1997) and Spirited Away (2001).
[i] McCarthy, H. (2002) Hayao Miyazaki: Master of Japanese Animation, Berkley; Stone Bridge Press. Pg 1
