Take A Pick:New Year's Edition: Love Live! School Idol Project

           Take A Pick: New Year's Edition: Love Live! School Idol Project

 

Some people have problems with the idol genre for various reasons, what they are I can’t say I haven’t paid much attention to the reasons. Though I will say one thing, there needs to be a respect for every subgenre in anime to understand that different stories come from them and if you know that, then you can prepare yourself for enjoyment. After all imagination grows from many things and of the most potent ways is through enjoyment. That said I don’t have a problem with the genre though I haven’t seen nearly as much as others. Love Live was a choice the way I choose many shows, it looked good and called to me. It’s a rewarding experience that allows you to root for a group of girls that are bound by friendship and their differences only strengthen what they find to become a singular goal.  Music made together.

 

       The beginnings of what it will become is from a humble and hopeful effort to save a school they love. Due to low attending students for the last consecutive years it seems that Otonokiza High school will be endanger of closing soon. Honoka Kosaka and her friends Minami Kotari and Sonada Umi or broken by the news even so Honoka is determined to keep it from being shut down and together they may find the answer in an unexpected place. What Honoka finds is schools with their own pop idols and she realizes something like that to represent the school might bring it enough attention to get more  middle school students to sign up to go there next semester thus saving the school.

 

      However the path to being a pop idol is not easy, though with her mind set and her friends enlisted she uses their skill sets to start composing songs, creating costumes and start the first of the momentum wave with their own school. They begin to practice their hearts out and what  helps it along is Honoka’s excitement and optimism, even with certain obstacles like Elle the school president who seems against the idol group at first. Eventually they choose the name U’s which is pronounced Muse like the nine sirens of Greek myth and yes this is important to the future storyline and the future members that will join. No matter how many members join however, no one can seem to convince Honoka to wear pants or any of them for that matter when in the second season it’s winter. Even when they are fighting a blizzard to get to the concert to perform, I’m wondering why don’t they wear pants over that, isn’t it hard enough to fight a blizzard as it is. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

 

 

      With all the effort they put on their first concert which they perform in an auditorium, something really unexpected happens and you start to see that things won’t be so simple for these good hearted girls, what it does though is trigger notice to other girls who would end up joining u’s all contributing something special to the group. Some were assisting from afar, others were against it, while it revitalizes a dream for some, it weaves an interesting story and the bond that this group has had on their lives as individuals which is something they begin to touch in as they join and dive deeper in the second season. This foreshadows the obstacles of what should really be simplistic but isn’t truly and that isn’t performing.  

 

 

One of the other interesting turns is that the goal to save the school is accomplished halfway through the first season as a group, so the love of what they’re doing and Love Live which is the competition of pop idols throughout the schools becomes the main focus and adds more weight to what they’re trying to accomplish ironically. Even if some of them like Minami Kotari has juice but doesn’t use it, I mean her mom is the princpal of the school but that doesn’t seem to make a difference in their challenges regardless. Like I said they don’t make this music business easy. This means that the seemingly innocent show has some hard knocks in store for them because what they want will be the most challenging thing they’ve ever faced in their life.

       What this leads to are two large storylines, one is what they struggling for and the other a an issues that’s building in the background and among it they understand the leadership in the group, the focus on why they do it, the trust and friendship and the wisdom they can offer each other sometimes. They learn these things the hard way, it at times causes them to question why continue at all and by the end of the first seasons you’re saying, you’re kidding me as well as cheering them on. Especially when you realize the essence of the show, it’s something they have to learn too whether composing the songs are being comfortable in what makes them stand out as individuals, even if that means trading personalities  for a bit or understanding what makes them so special to their fans.

 

 Everyone gets an arc in the story or an episode but that’s not enough as it’s revisited and enforced, why are they here, what does it mean to them and the question no one wants to ask but might be the most obvious? How long can this last? Is being an idol a time stamped thing or is it something deeper. Some had to deal with confidence issues, the fear of failure, memories of being alone or the way people perceived them, they were in many ways separate from each other before U's.  Everything from their personal futures and their grade differences play a factor as they look toward Love Live, A-Rise and the other idols and understand the real meaning in being an idol and what about it makes them happy.

 

      Then there are the concerts which an extra helping of 3-D you see them utilized all their practice and sometimes (dieting) in order to put on these shows. It’s funny even from the beginning of the series they could be nervous before they get on and then they’re performing perfectly. Even if sometimes they push themselves too hard. They click as a group certainly and at least in the show, they seem like naturals. I mean A-rise performed their thing but even the first time I saw it I thought, man U’s has got this thing won. There’s always seemed a little more creative, perhaps that’s me being bias though.

 

    You can call it a lot of things but it’s a story of friendship and passion toward something which you can’t knock, these girls are determined and it’s hard not to root for them at some point. They face the problems of being a teenager in school but not in the sense of who are you in love with. There is no strong presence at all in male interest, there really aren’t boys at all except maybe background shots when they’re out in the city. Even Honoko’s father is a cut off face that doesn’t speak though it’s hilarious to catch him in certain scenes.  It helps that they have in their school dedicated friends  that push them along, you see this quite often and it shows how many people and how much hope goes into these things, it isn’t pushing aside future aspirations for something temporary on the contrary it much more than that.

      The anime has done something right. U’s were on the list for 8th highest selling act in Japan this year, even albums with single characters. The movie having been released not all that long ago and one member has claimed the coming concerts aren’t the end of u’s just the end of them touring alone, which means there is no stopping the pop idol act. It’s impressive that with the voice actors being the idol group in real life, it manages to penetrate on all fronts, a massive undertaking for several companies to work on this joint production. I’m sure it’s easy to see it all as one big promotion campaign but it’s also easy to see it simply as a show. Going into it I knew what Love Live! was and had been to Japan seeing it everywhere but hadn’t realized how much was going on with the show, that wasn’t what sold me, it was them, the underdog story which to some might be an old story but at times it’s one of the only sort of stories that endure, we’re always fighting odds for the things that mean the most in our lives. Not a bad message at all

 

 As said before  this genre is another way of telling stories, the idea of the idol has long been implanted in shows even some of an entire other genre such as Macross and spread out in various anime and various genders. This is nothing new, so whether you’re a fan of the sort are want to take a chance, School Idol Project Love Live is the way to go, here’s hoping you get something out of it,  I know that I did.

Want more reasons to boogey, well there aren't as many singing and dancing numbers but there is plenty of chatting about all things Geekdom and Otaku like, as well as movies, videogames and the likes. It's the Rats On A Plague Ship Podcast on Soundcloud. Come aboard for some fun and laughs.
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Yoshitaka Amano:The Man and The Artist

Yoshitaka Amano: Things to Know

 

One of the first  announcements which came  sooner than expected was that Yoshitaka Amano would be one of the guests at next year’s Anime Expo If you don’t know Anime Expo is the largest anime convention in North America. In the recent years it’s grown to exponential levels while being based in Downtown Los Angles. It’s current location has been the best thing for the convention as attendance has sky rocketed, often getting a piece on the news, Anime Expo holds concerts with guest from Japan even sometimes performing with a few surprises.

      A couple of years ago Hatsune Miku performed, last year it was Kiss and Momoiro Clover Z. It’s been visited by politicians and now has even earned a holiday in Los Angeles, people come from all over the world to attend including Japan and has become a four day massive meeting place for old fans and new fans alike. Even so the announcement of Yoshitaka Amano is huge and while many know who the legendary artist is, you might be surprised at some of the things you didn’t know.  Everything you know and some things you might not, for example novelist and actor along with so many other titles, these are but a few you may like to know.

 

Things You Probably Know

 

Final Fantasy: It’s not surprising as the mythical art, a distinctive Japanese style or should I say a distinctive Amano style has become synonymous with the series, always capturing the essence of the characters and the feel of the story that lies underneath. There theme runs through because beyond the title design, Amano has also had his hand in the character design, crushing the usual spiky hair association that the series is often given, with his smooth flowing art format.

 

     So when people complain about some of the designs in the games they’re overlooking some of the promotional art that they use for the series, art that comes from Amano. For everyone else it seems destined that he could capture the large scope of the series adding a heavier fantasy tone while also giving them appearances that in some strange way I feel makes them appear alive. Also his style is always fresh and eye popping, unique, versatile, all things that each Final Fantasy is. One thing Final Fantasy isn’t is repetitive as each number game is its own world and feel, making Square Enix storytellers above all else and seemed destined to have Amano San’s art bonded with the franchise.

 

Vampire Hunter D – The story of a vamphir hunter that kills vampires and all matters of demons in a post-apocalyptic world, once in pieces, than held by vampires and now at a sort of stage of rebirth that flirts at times with ancient, future technology, a story that maintains the story of a stranger coming to a village, modern day myths, and a level of grit told quite beautifully driving down real honest human stories and the capacity of ambition and the nature of human hearts that still exist even at this stage of the world is a sort of epic scope all on its own.

      The anime films and the fantastic novels that inspired them are iconic and of course Amano’s art is an integral part to (      )’s novel series. It was perfect for Amano-San who would do so much in the illustration business for fantasy novels and is one of the first things that Amano is associated with in certain parts of the world.  If you’ve never read the novels that inspired the classic anime films or that will be inspiring the new anime in the works than this is the best time to do so.

 

Things You Might Not

 

Neil Gaiman’s Sandman- One of the greatest comic series of all time which has been praised for its contributions to the comic book and storytelling community has a connection to Amano. If you know nothing of Sandman it incorporates characters called the endless that are truly something that intersects with the very human stories told, even to those that do not seem human, philosophical, captivating and deserving of all its praise. Following Dream or Morpheus, it’s unlike anything you’ve read but has done so much for the stories that you will.  Sandman is the comic that opens all your senses to the greatest things you’ll ever read and when you move on, it will leave a thin unseen layer of dust upon it, only to be wiped off and read again.

    So who better to contribute to this than someone who seems to be weaved from the mind of Morpheus, who paints his thoughts or all the thoughts of the fantastic and the dream like, no one I say is better suited to that than Yoshitaka Amano.  In a volume entitled the Dream Hunters, his art goes along a story that is focused more so in the myths of Japan while still having the series main character Morpheus but doing what the series did best, tell stories and by telling stories tell something real, yes in all of it, because you keep it with you and carry with you afterwards.

  American Comics- This wouldn’t be the only contribution Mr. Amano would have to American comics, he would also team up with Greg Rucka on Elektra & Wolverine: The Redeemer which once again his unique Japanese art that flirts with the woodblock techniques hones to its own vivid style works well with two characters that are far more than familiar with Japanese culture (read their comics and see).  It isn’t strange to have seen him doing art for American comics as they had an earlier influence in him along with American artist.

 

       He would continue to later work on various projects working with names or people incorporated in the work, everyone from David Bowie to Quentin Tarantino.  This wouldn’t be very surprising as his involvement with art galleries alongside other people would prove him to be time and time again a renowned international artist.

 

 

Animation: What shouldn’t be surprising is one of the earliest acts in Amano’s career and that is in animation.  Anyone who digs credits can find how some directors of anime get their start or artist of any sort and like any other genre of film, it’s in the many of the key positions in Anime. In Yoshitaka Amano’s case it was on a now classic anime, one that like the ones before it would show North America the first light of animation in Japan. For Speed Racer his first gig, it would be foreshadowing into a series of classic anime, everything from Gatchman to Time Bokon, where his contributions would first be felt greatly.

Often his role was character designer which of course would be essential considering some of the projects he’s been attached to. Even when he began to focus his powers on being a fantasy illustrator, it would be something he would return to. Which now credits him with a long list of projects which of course would lead into his own productions Studio Devoloka.

 

Art : Above it all Yoshitaka Amano is an artist and has released countless art books, full with mind blowing drawing with color that leaps off of every page. It’s hard to turn the page because you’re still staring at the previous one and as solely an artist Amano is well respected. Galleries and exhibitions are no stranger to Amano who travels to several countries to present his work.  So if you are an art enthusiast but have never dabbled in anime, games, comics, Japanese novels than you may still find something that can make you excited with his North American experience next year.  With his wide range of talents and the influence of the works he’s done, it promises to continue the growth of the Anime Expo and has people eagerly anticipating next year’s convention.

A Podcast Companion

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*Need more otaku time, well for more ideas why not hop on to the newly minted podcast Rats On A Plague Ship. A podcast that speaks on all matters of geekdom with yours truly and my fellow co-host Sal Almaraz. The true cure to when the hours feel like they drag!

 

Holiday Binge Watching Lists Part 2

Holiday Binge Watching Lists Part 2

For this one we're going to recommend shows not only to binge but also because they have holiday episodes in them, of course someone who isn't an anime watcher may not think it but there are quite the amount of shows with episodes you can incorporate in your holiday couch watching. Some of these are New Year holidays as well!





Chrono Crusade - This one is adorable really as everyone experiences there first holiday in some form and some way but how many miss there entire childhood before experiencing one. Well one of the characters in the series Azamaria had, until she was taken in by the order and taught what the holiday means. Which means we get to see her experience Christmas shopping, the exchange, and the time shared with the new family she gained. It's also a chance to see Chrono and Rosette exchange presents, reflecting on the good and the bad just before things take a drastic turn. If that's not enough for you this series has a limited edition cover to it's box set which is Christmas theme. How much more holiday can you get then that?




Toradora- Another pivotal anime for Christmas is Toradora. The show is fantastic and normally will rip your heart out, throw it in a blender and set it to devastate (that's from a cartoon) but this is a bug turning point in the series. The show is about two unlikely outsiders who are in love with each others friends, both feared in school, one through temper, the other by appearance, they become friends and since they are neighbors Ryuji Takasu the male, who almost seems to have OCD, cleans Taiga Aisaka's home, invites her for dinners while they both try to get hooked up with the one they like. However they hold a strong bond and whose connected to who becomes clearer in these set of episodes.

        It starts simple enough with Ryuji trying to invite Taiga's best friend Minori Kushieda to the Christmas party in school, though she seems reluctant and Taiga herself distancing herself from him so he can get this chance. When he realizes this means she'll be all alone he comes to her house dressed as a giant Santa teddy bear. It warms the heart, that's when she urges him to go back to the party after feeling better and everything takes it's big twist, all things are clear and the heart is somehow pulsing on the floor. Just the right show to binge watch and just the right show to watch around this time of year.



Spiral- Some might be scratching their heads with this one, some might not even know what this series is, so first I'll explain the synopsis of the anime. Spiral
follows Ayumu Narumi a prodigy who finds himself wrapped up in the mystery of the Blade Children, mysterious individuals that are claimed to be cursed, it’s also the same mysery that his brother said he was seeking to investigate and had disappeared since. Being framed for attempted murder at school, he solves it as the spiral of destiny begins to unfold, his partner in this mystery is the energetic Hiyono Iwasaki, reporter for the school newspaper who has some surprising talents that could aid the solemn Ayumu.

 

       The teen detective lives with his sister in law who is a detective on the police force who begins to suspect that he’s involved in the same mystery that had swallowed up his brother. When the Blade Children begin to appear his life is soon in danger and somehow he’ll have to fight through the shadow of his brother, someone who was gifted at everything from the piano to mysteries and praised for it in order to understand what exactly these Blade Children are involved in. The holiday comes in when it starts humorous enough, Hiyono is interested in getting a present and drags Ayumu along with her,  he tries to help her get a stuffed animal in a claw game and nearly has it a dozen times but super hyper behavior shows through as she smacks the machine and keeps causing the animal to drop.


       Later it takes a serious but well done turn as Ayumu exchanges gifts with Madoka who is intoxicated, his gift is a CD of classical music done by one of the Blade Children, awkward yes. He leaves to get something at the grocery store and briefly has a stare down with that very same person and returns to hear Madoka in tears from the loneliness and grief of her missing husband/his brothers. The song playing was one of his brother Kiyotaka’s favorite songs. The show is very good and explores above everything hope that lies in the darkness of destiny and fate, it’s important to understand that more so than the Blade Children which incorporate this theme as well. Of course the underated manga gives all these answers and all going well beyond the show but check out the anime first, a perfect moody choice for the holiday.


School Idol Project Love Live - This one kind of wraps in New Years more than anything. Soon to be one of our focuses on Take A Pick Tuesday it's an idol show about a group of students that form a school idol group to at first save their school and then to compete in the Love Live competition while deepening their bonds as friends and becoming understood, some for the first time. For this holiday episode which is towards the end of the second season, they all gather after some sad realized twists preparing their selves for their upcoming performance. Making their wishes at the temple all nine meet in separate groups of each other, seemingly fated to be together no matter what which is an important underling factor.

      While making their wishes though you come to find that many of the people that went to the temple had wished for their success at Love Live, it adds to what they're supposed to mean as a group and as friends. All these moments and more make Love Live something you can keep watching even beyond Christmas into the New Year.



My Love Story- In a lot of ways this anime details the important occasions that would come for a couple in a relationship, though of course it's really what it could mean for two people to date. The anime distances itself from others by it's main protagonist being a big muscular man who most woman would seem afraid of and his small caring girlfriend. Takao has a very caring nature however and is also very honorable so the two have difficulties in taking any sort of steps that may be in a relationship without outside help.

      In the Christmas episode the focus steers away from them for a while and focuses on another possible couple they're hoping to match make. It's also the first time the series shows that not every two individuals are meant to be together and not every relationship works out the same as another. The two being their friends. Especially with his friends' thoughtless remarks and actions making her friend uncertain and even angry, in the midst of karaoke with the rest of their friends. What it culminates to I'll leave to your imagination but of course there's the rest of the aspects of Christmas that may make the series just as important. Especially when it climaxes to Takao's friend trying to reach the top of the Christmas Tree. That's all I'm gonna say, go watch it!


Fruits Basket - The major shojo giant Fruits Basket is a familiar title for many who watch anime. It also has a fantastic New Years holiday tribute which of course in the show would allow character introductions in the future and repercussions for the main characters in the series. Fruit Basket follows Tohru Honda who is found by the Prince of the school Yuki Sohma, apparently unknown to her closest friends she'd been living in the forest. This is following the death of her mother and seeing the ordeals she's been going through she's invite to stay with him and his Uncle Shigure.

      It's then that she stumbles upon the the Sohma secret, a curse where when hug by the opposite sex some of the members of the family turn into the 12 animals of the zodiac including the cat. The cat being Kyo, a temper filled boy determined to defeat his rival Yuki, soon he too stays in the house.  Promising to keep their secret, her kindness and understanding begins to change their life, as does their understanding of her pain and the weight she places on her shoulders begins to change hers. For the New Year's episode it is required that all of the Sohma family gather at the estate, a special banquet is held for the zodiac animals, which would mean leaving Tohru alone for the evening. Already reluctant Yuki and Kyo realize that Tohru would be forced to spend the first New Years without her mother alone. Running back to the house they spend it with her on the roof knowing that the only thing they really wanted to do for New Year's Eve was spend it with her.



School Rumble- Another episode where it actually plays into the series is School Rumble. This show takes the wacky Love Triangle and turns it into A Love Octagon. The show has delinquent outsider but truly misunderstood Harima who is in love with air headed energetic Tenma, whose actually in love with Karasuma who seems to only be in loved with curry but who can really tell what's going on in his head. It features a growing cast of who likes who and all the ways they clash though not necessarily in fighting, it's sort of there but really in all manners of hijinks that have honest moments with the characters as well.

     Poor Harima can't seem to catch a break and while I won't give away what led to this episode, I will say that Harima had turned to manga for reasons involving Tenma, in this episode he's struggling to finish the final chapter of his manga manuscript. This involves confliction to show it to Tenma or give it to a publisher, the use of a giant curry dish that was meant to be a present and a whole lot og grief for Harima all while he's dressed as Santa Claus. It's really funny but heartbreaking in a way. The series is fantastic, so why not give it a try.

I know I know what about Sword Art Online and Love Hina which has an entire Christmas special. Yes there are plenty of series with memorable episodes, which would be great to watch just as it is the rest of the shows, many will be incorporated when we cover more New Years episodes so stay tuned.

A Podcast Companion

https://soundcloud.com/rats-on-a-plague-podcast

*Need more otaku time, well for more ideas why not hop on to the newly minted podcast Rats On A Plague Ship. A podcast that speaks on all matters of geekdom with yours truly and my fellow co-host Sal Almaraz. The true cure to when the hours feel like they drag!

Take A Pick Tuesday- Neon Genesis Evangelion

Take A Pick Tuesday: Having Your Hands Full Edition: Neon Genesis Evangelion

 

 

Now that you've edged someone into anime you can perhaps enlighten their mind with one of the most important anime TV series of all time, Neon Genesis Evangelion. In truth though you could easily have this show be the first one to show someone or perhaps to show yourself if you've never seen it. It's easy to see how this show transcends its genre and has become a universally loved series even to those that don't like Mecha, while helping evolve Mecha. Am I saying it's the only show to do it, of course not but certainly I'm saying it is important.

 

     Why it is important has a lot to more to do than the aspects that place it in the genre it’s in, in many ways its people that are uncomfortable in their own skin, forced to save a world in some ways destroyed, in some ways lost, leaving people to try to discover who they are. Perhaps not liking what they see or we the parallel horror we live through or anyone safe from the grips of our own memories. Are we weapons or hope, or we alive or forced to simply live because of someone else’s command. Have we become something else through this adversity or as people are we exactly the same.

       It’s saving humanity while humanity is asking what it is. Of course that is only the beginning of the exploration that ask complex questions with characters riddled with issues that run parallel to each other, maybe more so than they want to admit. It’s a world that mirrors many similarities of ours, asking questions we’re often asking ourselves. While touching on a range of emotions, various tones in episodes and taking the most philosophical and one of the most controversial endings to an anime ever. Again this is saying a lot but Neon Genesis Evangelion did a lot of important things, something people continue to discover and rediscover to this day.

 

       To understand this is to understand the story. It takes place in Tokyo3, a place that was subject to what they call The Second Impact and  the first contact with what they call Angels. Angels are alien beings that descend from the sky, all different and seem to be a great threat to human existence, the proof seems to be in the city that’s gone. Tokyo 3 is a city that can descend below ground level and ascend back to the surface, unfortunately this doesn’t make the city safe and the world hasn’t forgotten about the Angels, knowing they can return at any moment. This gives the show a slight Cold War feel to it, at least for me, this tension. This sense of impending doom that is the curtain behind these fascinating players and stories and things that are happening.

      It does feel affected by post World War II and even modern day concerns that are always afraid of a triggered event. That sense of not knowing, the vulnerability and yet life continuing but how, these are some of the many feelings that show what the world is like in Neon Genesis Evangelion. While it might be different for every viewer and the inspiration could be broader or on the mark, there is a shared knowledge that it all comes from something close to that or something that mirrors it at the least.

 

      Realizing that something/someone has to handle the possible return threat, some sort of defense to a realized fragile world is the organization NERV. We’re introduced to these things when Shinji Ikari comes to Tokyo, a quiet, insecure, troubled youth who has come at the request of his estranged father whom he has a bit of a complex with. Yes his father is indeed daddy of the year. Gendo Ikari, who happens to be the head of NERV and has never shown him anything remotely close to love, so we think. What happens next is that Shinji seems to realize he is a tool, someone they’ve recruited to pilot what they call EVA’s. Large mysterious robots that can only really be controlled by a chosen pilot with a sort of psychic link.

      This is why they find a child and bring them to NERV, needing the chosen pilot by the EVA leaves them little choice, you’ll see what happens when they allow a pilot not meant to be inside. It takes the concept of a child being thrust into seemingly adult situations that in our world would scar them and runs with it, that concept is turned on its head from how it’s normally used, making it as terrifying as it sounds. There’s a special suit the pilots are given, head pieces and enter what feels more organic and less mechanical, maybe the only thing that does feel Mecha is their pod which could also feel like a claustrophobic nightmare. Shinji is given little choice as he’s thrust into the EVA when an Angel descends from the sky leading into a tense violet conflict.

 

     What happens next is a little different from what you might expect hence the concept turned on it’s head. Instead of a kick ass moment what we’re witness to is a terrifying moment when a child is sent into the unknown and loses control with what they’re given, a high tense moment that solidifies the isolation that Shinji already felt especially with the threat of death present. EVA 01 loses control showing something more than just a large robot, something that feels as though they’re keeping from the pilot. An ok the scene is breathtaking, looking amazingly cool but we never lose sight of what this feels like for the pilot or the people watching.

       Shinji seems as though he’d be destroyed from what he deals with and the traumatic experience is only the beginning of what NERV has in store for him of course he doesn’t want anything to do with the EVA but in a way they give him an alternative, to return to being not needed, forgotten or left alone physically the way he is mentally. So Shinji does the disturbing thing of doing whatever they ask.

 

     He’s basically given to Misato Katsuragi, his sort of sub boss/coach/guardian, overseer of him and the other pilots who clearly has her own problems and she’s a heavy drinker to top it all off. The push she gives him is as true to life not always the solution to his problems. One pilots he meets is Rei Ayanami, a quiet almost to some, emotionless girl who seems to be a rag doll when it comes to the injuries she sustains in the EVA and for NERV but to his surprise she seems to have won the affection and concern of his father. Never a protest comes from her which ironically is something they have in common at times. Rei though is mysterious and when Shinji tries to reach out, it’s to understand her and maybe somehow understand how to be her friend let alone, her team mate. There is though a sense of something she is that he’s not, though it’s far more complicated than that.

 

     Now this also sounds pretty heavy and that’s because it is but there are especially in the early episodes, quite a bit of humor while maintaining the story, the lingering mindset of the characters which will be key throughout the series. Some of the humorous moments are when another pilot comes and lives with them, Askua Langley Soryu, more gung-ho and of course compensating for something, she needs to outshine everyone. So this leads to dueling personalities sometimes on the heavier side, sometimes on the lighter side, the EVA’s trying to be in sync together, the penguin that lives in the apartment and the sexual tension of a boy living with a beautiful girl and a beautiful woman those are all on the lighter side. Though you’d be surprised how that can turn around.

 

         As said before though there is a drawing mystery that the show questions, it isn’t unknown species come to Earth and we have to kill them, it’s why do they come at all, are the things we have truly the right things to have. Are we innocent? Whatever the truth is, will sync when the inner conflicts of all the characters come to a head. In many ways it’s done in a momentous way they you have to wonder how personal this was for the staff to make. The truth is very personal. One well known fact is that legendary director Hideki Anno had been fallen into a deep depression during the production of the series, it didn’t help all the pressure that came with coming to the conclusion of the series, it’s why the breakdown in the last two episodes to some seemed if not a little disturbing than at least not what they expected except it’s also what’s made Neon Genesis Evangelion stand out so much.

 

       Controversial and rubbing some fans the wrong way it accomplished what art does sometimes, embrace the personal and watch it spill in the work they’re making, it often leaves it to be misunderstood but almost always unforgettable. Naturally it brings that reaction but still for the majority the ending made everything become potent, transitioning into a greater level of storytelling.  Displaying the philosophical and metaphorical depths that anime has and can accomplish. Doing this while leaving such an impact on a mainstream audience, a rare and delightful combination.

 

       If there’s any doubts that the show has been an international sensation than observe the countless manga adaptions (including the original manga in which the series had diverted from), the endless stream of figures, the places in Japan that have built statues and hotels dedicated to the series, the clothing lines, the phones, the shoes, and of course the remake.


     That’s right Neon Genesis Evangelion managed to accomplish the same magic twice in the form of a set of movies that retold the story, this time going into uncharted territory and still managing to be critically acclaimed. Anno took what were interesting mysterious symbols in the first series and made them relevant in the new one. Things like the cross are not as common in Japan which is a good portion Buddhist as it is in other countries. Though the show had incorporated symbols from a vast amount of religions and beliefs. Yet he found something new in them that he could explore in this new series.  While you can say it doesn’t leave the same feeling as the series instead it can be said that it carries the tone and that it also invites brand news ones, leaving even more layers to sift through.

       
 At the core of Neon Genesis Evangelion is something unique, perhaps it takes you into some uncomfortable places in the psyche but that’s not always a bad thing, sometimes it’s exactly what an audience needs. Often it brings us to something revolutionary, something only seen in a background of black and a mirror in the other people we see.






Need A Little More Otaku Talk and All Around Pop Culture Talk, Come Aboard The Rats On A Plagueship where co-hose Sal Alamraz and myself sift through all the news, thoughts and recommendations in the many realms of geekdom.
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Having Your Hands Full {The Parent Edition} Part 2

Having Your Hands Full {The Parent's Edition} Part 2

 

Yu Yu Hakusho- This isn’t even a joke, no matter which show I used to introduce someone to anime, Yu Yu Hakusho has always played a pivotal part in their conversion.  My favorite series of all time, Yu Yu Haksuho manages to transcend the usual shonen fair to bring something really potent, poetic, hilarious and edge of your seat, it does this while still finding a way to be wholly relatable and carrying a big heart on it’s sleeves.  

       Yu Yu Hakusho focuses on young outsider Yusuke Urameshi, who can’t seem to go anywhere without people pointing fingers at him, fighting him, so much so he doesn’t see the people that really love him and are trying to understand him. When Yusuke does what seems like the unthinkable to some, rescuing a boy from a speeding car, he dies (first episode everybody), it’s then that he sees all the people who care about him. Not knowing it this would be the first time his moral perception would be opened and altered leaving it open for everything that would come afterwards.

     Yusuke goes through an ordeal to get his life back, as he does it he gets an insight into the lives of those who love him, his rival Kuwabara who is more than a thug but an honorable young man with a code, as well as his true love Keiko. someone who can open her heart to the world around her and see the special things in those that most would ignore. Someone who would help bring him from the brink of death.

       Once he returns the powers of Spirit World ask him to be Earth’s new Spirit Detective, someone who investigates demons and rogue humans that may be endangering all three worlds. So this is where Yusuke’s life would undergo constant transformation, as he connects with his true self and his feelings and how it would affect the countless lives in the world and those closest to him. Defying expectations as he does, always thrown into situations he shouldn't be prepared for and seem destined to rip him apart.

       It’s a hell of a ride, Yusuke being the take no crap sort of person he is, Kuwabara as mentioned the determined honorable human that will make you laugh, Kurama the well-mannered intellectual demon who used to be the legendary bandit of demon world and Hiei the cut throat, fiery tempered demon. Along with the rest of the cast that includes a talking baby who is actually the prince of spirit world, you  realize that nothing is truly strange but it is moving and beautiful, Yu Yu Hakusho does that to you and will to anyone you show it to.

 

Hellsing/Hellsing Ultimate- People always complain that the vampire concept is dead to a mainstream audience, no one has told Anime this or Comics or TV shows with vampires in it like The Strain and  even Penny Dreadful. Hellsing is a momentous achievement, one that if you have a parent that is into horror can see how anime knows how to push those boundaries in many ways, sometimes they push in a way that becomes quite iconic. While maintaining enough vampire lore to make fans of Stroker and of countless other stories cheer in glee. Hellsing is a masterpiece painted in blood.

        Hellsing shows an organization with the same name that hunts in the shadows in the name of her majesty the queen and all those that live in England. They hunt vampires, the ghouls they control and organizations who wish for complete anarchy and chaos. Among their trained killers they have a secret weapon, a very old and powerful, seemingly indestructible vampire by the name of Alcuard.  Something one cop Seras Victoria learns first hand, after being attacked by a vampire and bitten by Alcuard in order to save her life.

       Once he has, Seras has become apprentice to one of the greatest vampires in history and a part of an organization that hunts and kills her kind and the strange abominations that have been artificially created to seem like vampires. Alcuard has an interesting relationship with the leader of the Hellsing organization, Integra Wingate Hellsing.  One of master and servant and yet him being chaos against the forces of chaos may lead to some devastating results. The first series was moody and atmospheric and though it doesn’t followed the manga the entire way through it quickly established Hellsing as a favorite among anime titles. The other Hellsing Ultimate is a tribute to the manga, adapting the style and story more closely that will leave you in awe as well as your parent. An Amazon review I once saw called it distasteful in some of the things it said, they believed it was for shock value but they forget these are monsters and you're in their world now. Just warn them to put on their big pants because like many titles on this list the show is very mature.

 

Case Closed/ Detective Conan- If there is one thing anime does well, it’s show love for the genres that we appericate here in the West. It takes you down some fun routes and some surprising places. Detective Conan is a great example, the most successful mystery anime series of all time as well as being one of the longest running series (I believe 8th), it manages to incorporate all the necessary things to turn anyone, including a parent into an Otaku.

 

       Easy accessibility, I say this in how there are many episodes that can be watched without feeling that  your missing something. Yet once you find you really enjoy the series, there is an underlining story filled with twists that reach explosive points you aren't going to expect. It’s not easy to run almost 800 episodes and keep the underlining story interesting but they do so.  Of course the mystery aspect is always captivating, complex and unique, it takes someone as gifted as Conan Edogawa to figure out who did it.

         The characters are built on throughout the series and there is a surprising amount of focus placed on love, which shows that underneath Detective Conan there is a big heart there. Parents may get the references to the large array of detective novels and TV shows that character’s names are rooted from or certain cases as well as locations, which means they get to tell you something that maybe you didn’t know. As I’ve said there’s plenty to sink your teeth in and there does seem to be a slow movement of getting more Conan back here in the US. You have to hold out hope, in the meantime there’s movies and specials, several parts to cases, that will keep you occupied for a long time.

       The series focuses on Shinichi Kudo/ Jimmy Kudo who is considered the modern day Sherlock Holmes, this teenager helps the police with what seem like impossible mysteries, his keen observations skills and intellect are unsurprising when realizing he’s the child of a world famous novelist and a retired actress. He takes his friend and love interest, Ran Mori/ Rachel Moore to a theme park when he witnesses a shady deal taking place. Unfortunately during the deal of a man and two mysterious men in black, he’s caught seeing too much, attacked and given an experimental poison that’s meant to kill him, instead it turns him into a child.

 

       Now a child he seeks the help of his neighbor Professor Agasa, together they make a new identity for him, Conan Edogawa, it allows him to move in with Rachel and her bumbling private detective father Koguro Mori/ Richard Moore. Now as a kid he uses tools to solve crimes and lifting her father’s reputation, knowing that no one will listen to a kid, in the hopes that the cases will be able to present these two men, the organization they are a part of and a way to return his body to normal.

 

Master Keaton- I can’t help it I’m a sucker for both Master Keaton and Monster, so any chance to pitch them to the doubtful or a way to get  someone into anime I do so. Master Keaton is a wonderful series that focuses on Taichi Higura Keaton, a former SAS member who teaches part time and also is an insurance investigator for Lloyd’s of London. These cases lead him around the world, meeting all sorts of people with hopes and dreams, like his and others that run parallel, sometimes (more often than not) these investigations lead him into dangerous situations that along with his training, his knowledge of archeology often helps to save him.

        What are Keaton’s dreams you ask. The truth is that Keaton as an archeologist as well, hopes to focus on that full time and get the chance to do an excavation near the Danube River to prove a theory that the area may have been the truth origins of European Civilization. Quite the mouthful, it’s a detailed show that leaves you open to the world around you, it’s astounding on how you can appreciate all things big and small, if there is a series that your parents may beg you to watch the next episode of, Master Keaton just might be it.

 Monster- Brilliant Neurosurgeon Dr. Kenzo Tenma is a Japanese man in Germany before the fall of the Berlin Wall, he’s on his way to reaching the very top of the ladder, engaged to the  hospital director's daughter.  Something changes though when a Turkish woman blames him for not operating on her husband, when he could have saved his life. Haunted by this he realizes the world around him is ruled by politics and to them life is not equaled.

         When Dr. Tenma is called into an emergency he finds two twins, a boy shot in the head and his sister in catatonic shock. The complex surgery is something he believes only he can do to save the boy’s life before he’s asked to operate on the Mayor instead. Making the decision to operate on the boy crumbles everything he ever worked for.  Cast out and engagement broken, Dr. Tenma holds on to the truth that all life is equal and what it truly means to be a doctor. That’s when an incident occurs finding two doctors and the director of the hospital murdered by poison candy. Tenma gets his a second chance though he already understand what he really wants in life.

    Ten years later while seeing over a lock picker, he finds the man missing from his hospital bed and chases him to a building, starting to realize the man is running from something. What he finds is what his patient had been warning him about, a monster. A beautiful young man who executes his patient and turns out to be the boy he saved all those years ago. Soon Tenma finds out that this boy has been systematically killing middle age couples across Germany. Feeling he’s responsible he goes after the boy by first going after his strange past that leads to dark corners of where the true monster of humanity resides.  

      A meditation on the human soul, it’s capacity for good and evil, Monster is a high achievement in more than being a psychological drama, it’s a poetic expression of life and what it can make of us. It's abilities to transform you and how you may transform the world around you, the existence of a choice and how people see that existence quite differently.  If you have a few shows you know you’d want to sell your parent on, make sure that Monster is one of them.   If you’ve never seen it then the both of you are in for a treat.

 

 

Full Metal Alchemist/ Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood - It's hard to achieve such great things for one series but going back and achieving it again is another thing entirely. We've seen movies that brought great shows, defying the odds, well here's a show that brought another great show. It is something very human, very personal and very possible in being the choice to sit down a parent for. After all Full Metal Alchemist is iconic, the way shows like  so many other anime your shaking your fist at the screen for not being on the list. (Don't worry we're getting there, quite a bit you know and even more we'll have to explore and talk about in other ways.)

       A story of redemption and brotherhood, Full Metal Alchemist shows two young boys raised by their mother diving into Alchemy, the study of transmuting one thing into another. Naturals in the art they quickly feed their appetite to learn more until their mother passes away and there's no way to cope with it, with being alone and what they loved is their only hope in bringing back who they love.  However they do what is forbidden, human transmutation and pay the ultimate price. Edward loses his arm and his leg and his brother Al loses his entire body, only surviving because his brother managed to connect his soul to a suit of armor.
      Surviving they go to search for the philosopher stone in the hopes of returning their body, even if it means one might have to become a state alchemist, to some that means a soldier, a dog of the state, to do it. Their life was changed by consequences and now they'll see a world of consequences and how they may play a pivotal part in more then just their sole journey of redemption.

Not a bad start for shows to give to your parents to watch. Some of you might ask well what about Attack On Titan and all the other no brainers, well of course show these to them, the truth is you never know what show might make someone a diehard anime fan. Perhaps a Gundam series is what would get your parents to understand anime.  Trigun has Western sensibilities, Wolf’s Rain is poignant. Perhaps a movie, like Akira or Grave of The Fireflies or Perfect Blue or even Places Promise In Our Early Days. All find choices and will be on the next list but these are some of many starting points to work with.

 

     A movie list is also definitely in order (Vampire Hunter D) but there are enough anime to write all day about what you can show a parent. So I suppose more lists are in order maybe even to show over the holidays, flashback of previous lists. In the meantime pop in that Lupin The Third, that Patlabor, that Psycho-Pass, and give them series that they won’t be able to forget.

A Podcast Companion

https://soundcloud.com/rats-on-a-plague-podcast

*Need more otaku time, well for more ideas why not hop on to the newly minted podcast Rats On A Plague Ship. A podcast that speaks on all matters of geekdom with yours truly and my fellow co-host Sal Almaraz. The true cure to when the hours feel like they drag!

Having Your Hands Full (Parent's Edition)

 

 

Are you a teenager trying to have your parents understand why you find anime so significant? Maybe you’re an adult whose watched it for years and years and feels it’s time to really sit down with them and show them what’s been more than a life obsession but a part of your life, after all we want our parents  to know our life (sometimes). Perhaps you aren’t interested in showing your parents but  know someone who is, or someone you feel you want to introduce anime to. Anime like any genre has a stereotype, what they assume is anime isn’t always the case and what is has more substance and far more rewarding at times than they think.

Then again maybe you just need a list to sit someone down to watch anime, otaku or not, well this might just be your list

 

Cowboy Bebop- Hailed as a masterpiece that had led to a turning point in anime, in story telling as well as the spread of anime in North America in a new sense.  There's so many thing about the series that that go well beyond  simply the name. Though I’ve found after years of watching anime, that I have gone back to it as a reminder on what had my eyes latched to the TV on those late nights and  how it stayed with me long after I’ve gone to bed. Shows like this, deeply thought out story telling among a wide range of styles and sensations that it leaves you with. Ones that are filled with fun, joy, sorrow, horror or the sense you’re just watching something real cool.

     Many shows try to be cool, Cowboy Bebop is cool and what so many strive to be, creative input from here on would spawn so many classics though a good deal of those arguably have come from the creative minds of this series. Space bounty hunters with checkered pasts always down on their luck and the strange places it takes them would normally seem like a fun but impersonal experience and yet Bebop managed to accomplish a personal experience, a bow tie between East and West, a wholly relatable feeling. If nothing else the name will come up when you’re introducing anime to them whether you like it or not, you might want to give it another viewing.

 

Berserk- If you are showing your folks something, no matter your age you might have reservations  showing them something well adult oriented. If you can move past that though than why not show them a series that captures an unbelievable scope when it comes to the concept of power, the rise of it, the cost, the lives it transforms, the many roads it leads to and all the brutal aspects that come with it regardless. Set upon a medieval backdrop Berserk is a mostly backstory driven show and a perfect organic combination of fantasy (mostly in the end) with all the themes and deep moving storytelling it had shown in throughout the series.

 

      Guts is a mercenary that came from nothing, seemingly born with a talent for killing, he finds some who is his better and becomes a cornerstone to this person’s dream. A man named Griffith who leads a mercenary group called The Band of The Hawk, as the faithful devoted follow him in his climb in power. Becoming a faithful necessity in this dream eventually Guts finds out more about himself than what he feels people have told him for years, seeing the darker things that are in work beyond crosses of swords to obtain this power, the cost to live with it and his own dreams and perhaps his own path.  Yet the series also shows what walking from such a thing could mean, chaos and perhaps a deconstruction of everything you could ever believe in. Riveting it not only shows others a series that has art and storytelling beyond what they may have expected but also the merits of other genres when done with a vision in many ways, one way, being Berserk.

 

 

Ghost In The Shell Stand Alone Complex – Ghost In The Shell was a landmark film that pushed the boundaries of animation and storytelling, influencing science fiction for filmmakers and comic creators alike on both the East and West side of the world. So who could believe that it could be touched again and again and still make it more profound, more thought provoking than ever thought possible, yet it did and part of doing this was with a TV show.

 

       Two seasons of the show that took the cyberpunk classic, unwove it and wrote down all these other ideas that went with what it already contained, they went together like peanut butter and jelly. It would be easy to call it a cop show in that way and yet impossible too. The range of topics and ways the episodes were tackled were numerous and unique proving that revolutionizing is just something Ghost In The Shell does. It did so by unveiling in episodes what we loved, growing closer to the characters like Major Kusanagi, Batou and Chief Aramaki along with the rest of the team, let’s not forget the Tachikomas.

 

      Covering a wide range of topics such as mortality, immortality, corruption, cybernetics/ robotics, politics, terrorism, border issues, refugees, philosophy, personal lives, love, crime and intrigue. The stories are told with precision and the sort of high production quality that never comes off as cheesy or cliché. In fact a parent may sit down and forget their watching an anime, yet would learn that they are because that’s what anime is all about diversity in storytelling, animation, and imagination.

 

 

Fruits Basket- There are comedies that need to be watched, why? Well because they are such an important element in anime, one that those that are highly critical of anime never expect to be the sort that turns them on to the genre. There are so many classics of the sort such as Ranma1/2, Love Hina, Tenchi Muyo, Urusei Yatsura, the list goes on and on. What is great about comedy in anime is it becomes easy to relate to the characters and when things take a dramatic turn, which they do sometimes, it allows you to respect another subgenre in anime, and that is drama.

 

      Fruits Basket is one such show that masterly blends drama and comedy, it also has a unique premise that instead of being a gimmick allows you to see the perspective of the large amount of characters in the series. These characters continue to feed back and build strong center characters like its heroine Toru Honda who might be one of the nicest people in all existence, just saying.  Toru Honda lost her mother to a car crash a year before and since then has secretly lived in a tent ( not counting the time she stayed with her grandpa for a bit) in the forest, unbeknownst to anyone in order to not trouble anyone. See what I mean about the nice.

       Even though her friends would gladly help Toru, who you find can easily give sage like life changing advice doesn’t know how to take her own.  So she continues to go to work and school and lives this way when she is discovered, by the prince of her school no less Yuki Sohma and invited to live with him and his young perverted Uncle Shigure.

     That’s when she stumbles upon a secret. The Sohma family has a curse that when hugged by the opposite sex they turn into the twelve signs of the zodiac…and the cat. When trusted with this secret Toru must reach out to this family filled with traumatic secrets while trying to maintain their cover and hope that living with them isn’t a temporary thing but one in which she finds a family of her own.

     Things get real crazy when Kyo, the outsider and the cat comes to live there as well, determined to finally defeat his rival Yuki. Of course the true concern is the head of the family that all fear, and  he has his eyes are on Toru.  Romance, friendship and personal struggles make this a captivating show, if you’re looking for something a little different to show your family why not this!

 

Chobits- On the subject of different, I’ve seen firsthand how Chobits can win the heart of non-believers. Young Hideki whose lived on a farm most of his life moves to Tokyo, there he is supposed to go to cram school and hopefully then pass his college entrance exams. The big city has lots of things to offer that he’s never seen before but the most astounding are Persocoms.  Human appearance like robots essentially and in some ways walking, talking, personal computers, these Persocoms are changing the way people live.

       Usually in the appearance of women though sometimes men, Hideki finds a world he hardly understands, one he’ll be thrust into when he finds a discarded Persocom in the trash (which he mistakes for a body at first), the mysterious Chi.

        Not knowing anything about Persocoms is the least of Hideki’s problem, taking care of her as if she was a human is, Hideki is a hyper sensitive virgin which makes everything all the more difficult. When he does try to learn about Chi, even with the help of his neighbor Shinbo things just don’t seem to make sense. Chi lacks a memory disc and can only say her name, though she has the software to learn if you teach her, even so she seems to have the power of a supercomputer. While Hideki works through these strange things in this strange world, he soon finds that Chi’s importance lies in something far more potent, that something is in his own heart. Hopefully he doesn’t have a fatal nose bleed beforehand though.

      As relevant maybe even more so since it has come out. Chobits is a major accomplishment which is saying something considering Clamp’s track record.  At the heart of it this is a story about love, about the desire to be complete and the fear it brings in some people. Questions in the show on how to look at Persocoms is now a question that we are asking with robots, not so much science fiction anymore they are swiftly becoming a pivotal part of society. Maybe a more pleasant resolution to these concerns can be found in Chobits.

 

Rurouni Kenshin/Samurai X- The essential epic of Rurouni Kenshin is a no brainer that must be shared, along with many on the list, this is the first one I share with those I want to give a proper introduction of what anime can be.  A story of redemption and of love is as soul searching as it asks it’s characters to be, how our past has shaped us but how our future can have a more profound effect on us. This may sound silly to say but if ever you needed a show that promoted peace over violence it would be this show.

     Before those that are familiar with the series shake their head, what I mean is truly peace is all the characters in the series want and if you want an optimistic view of humanity, maybe that’s all we as people want. The main protagonist Kenshin Himura is a prime example, having been an assassin in the war that would usher in the Mejii era, Kenshin would forgo a place in politics and live a life as a wanderer in redemption for all the lives he’s taken in his past life.

     In doing this he meets Karou who struggles to keep the swordsmanship her father  had instructed to students alive, the sword style that does not kill. Before he knows it Kenshin begins to call her home his, along with other people affected by the war and the era that has followed, outsiders that can become a family together.  While Kenshin having been a part of the war and taken lives knows there is no such style that exists, he slowly through his past coming into his present finds that like his reverse sword, there is a way to implement such a style. A way to save lives instead of taking them.

 

         The show wins hearts instantly and is also a good way to showcase a certain style of anime, the long running sort that can at times have as much substance as any other sort, arguments against this belief are noted. If you do choose to show them Ruoruni Kenshin then you might want to also go on the hunt for what is considered an OVA but I prefer to look at as a two hour movie. It shows the way Kenshin became an assassin and what would happen to change our favorite X shaped scar  swordsman into a wanderer. The title is Trust and Betrayal. The tone is different than the TV show but rightfully so and is to me still one of the highest achievements in anime. Might as well show them Reflection after the TV show which maintains this feel and concludes the saga all together. Hey you can even show them the live action trilogy based on the manga/anime. You might have just made a true Otaku out of your parent.

 

Podcast Companion

https://soundcloud.com/rats-on-a-plague-podcast

*Need more otaku time, well for more ideas why not hop on to the newly minted podcast Rats On A Plague Ship. A podcast that speaks on all matters of geekdom with yours truly and my fellow co-host Sal Almaraz. The true cure to when the hours feel like they drag!