OTAKU RANT II

[OtakuForLife]

I know it's been a while since the last one ... gomen I was busy

PLOT:
1)Ok, there have been alot of rehashs latly. For Example Trinity Blood
"hi I'm vampire that kills other vampire" the guy looks like a cross
between the count form vampire hunter d: bloodlust and vash the
stamped. Then theres Tsubasa Chronicals "I must get stronger to protect
my precious one" if the reused lines and sliders refrences don't get you
the constant filler music will (madlax music rip-off). Now this is not
to say, I don't still watch these shows but can't they do somthing a little
more orignal. My nickname for Tsubase Chronicals this week is clamp
blender. In other notes see Creast of the Stars you have an actual storyline there and semi-historical fake backgrounds. There's enough
there to run a roleplaying game for the next two months.

THE DUB
2) The saikano viz dub "OMG shot me now" please I'd rather a fandub
then what they did to that audio. The subtitles are just carbon copies
of there bad translations. However, I like the way they did the manga
I wish they used that group to make the subs. Gunslinger good dub
a couple of hicups but I thought good job. Got to meet the cast
at Anime Boston good group of people.


THIS IS Going to get me in Trouble:
Ok, how many people of african decent do you see in anime?
Samuari Champloo , Mesiopedia , Root Search , Patlabor WXIII, Bleach
and cowboy bebop. But, really thats a pretty low number.. Maybe
it's not that're obvertatly rasist but they don't know how to draw them.
Becuase they don't get alot of exposer to the african american populace
whatever the reason theres less of them. I figured this would bring
up a good discussion.


AMV RADIO:
All I have to say the music on AMV radio is going down hill since
they made it that copyrighted music can't be played on it. What the
heck, all the footage of every amv (with the exception of a few is
copyrighted) I don't see the difference. There not making money off
the radio sation the same rules should apply.


Good now, I'll shut up for a while.... I feel Better

[angelx03]

Here's a little insight of the Saikano dub. It's dubbed by the people of Voice One which is in fact a school of voice actors. So it's technically an "amateur" dub; I have no idea why Viz turned to them instead to the usual guys in the Ocean Group.

[OtakuMan22]

Regarding people of African decent portrayed in anime, they usually don't get much screen time at all because there are few, if any, African people living in Japan. Japan does not celebrate Black History month or anything like that because there aren't enough people with that kind of heritage living there. People from Africa rarely go to Japan, and so there is no significant history in Japan that was created by people of African decent. The lack of importance of African people in Japanese history (if any at all), and sheer small population of people of African decent in Japan causes the sheer lack of screen time that they get in anime. They may appear from time to time, but they are always "foreigners".

As far as racism goes, keep in mind that in the olden days, Japan was racist towards EVERYBODY! As seen in a recent Samurai Champloo (and if anyone ever learned this in History class), Japan was completely closed off to outsiders except for the occasional trade agreement made with Holland and the Netherlands. Even thouse these people were permitted on Japanese soil, they were very restricted in what they could do and where they could go. Anyone from outside Japan (even Korean or Chinese) were considered "outsiders", the gaijin.

It was only after Admiral Perry came to Japan with a Japanese fisherman that had been shipwrecked, that Japan got their first look at modern technology and culture. The metal steamboats of the time wowed and impressed them, and it was at that time that Japan eventually decided to open its borders and allow people from other lands to come to Japan. This was thanks to Admiral Perry's prompting and negotiation for trade.

Despite the introduction of new technology and culture, many Japanese were resentful of the changing ways, and wanted Japan to stay pure and unpolluted like before. This is what leads to the civil war and the beginning of the Meiji era. It is shortly after this time period that Rurouni Kenshin is set in.

Although the borders were open, Japan still had an air of superiority around it, and that's what led it to join the Axis in WWII. Granted, if anyone here read or saw Barefoot Gen, then you know that not all Japanese were in on the whole Facist philosophy.

After the surrender, Gen. Douglas MacArthur took over Japan briefly and with the current Japanese government, established the system that exists today with the Japanese Diet and the Japanese Emperor and Empress acting more like England's Royal Family than as an actual political power. In this time, after the war, was the first notable time when people of African decent, the African-American soldiers, actually landed and mingled with Japanese people. Because there were still some resentment towards the Americans about losing the war, some manga-ka and animators probably used the old "Blonde-blue eyes" stereotype for white people and the "Black-Face" stereotype for the African-Americans.

However, despite this, time went on and Japanese technology advanced and people's disgust towards foreigners all but vanished. Despite this, however, no one actually told the current manga-ka and animators that "Black-Face" is considered a large insult to people of African decent in many parts of the world. Not all manga-ka and animators do this, but those that do aren't being racist, they just don't know any better. Their lack of exposure to African people causes them to go on what they know, and if all they know are the drawings from previous manga-ka, then that's what they work with. Inaccurate they may be, they are not trying to be hurtful.

One strong example of this that I've seen is in Joco from Shaman King. An African American (I'm pretty sure), he is drawn with a goofy looking face and has the lighter colored large lips common with "Black-Face". HOWEVER, his character is not like that of the stereotypes that we in America know. He is strong-willed, has a future goal of peace through comedy, and often has some very badass looks when he fuses with his Jaguar spirit. His jokes may be lame, and people may not like him for his jokes, but they do not dislike him because of his color. THIS is very important!

So that sums up my view of why they portray people of African decent in anime with very little screen time, and if so, with very little resemblance to what they actually look like.

Basically, if someone were to write to Japan, and go "Ummm, that kind of drawing is considered an insult to African people", I'm sure the Japanese manga-ka and animators would apologize and see about making sure future African-descended characters do not look like that. That's my thinking anyway.

I'll wait till later to post my thoughts on CONSTANT REPEATING themes in anime and manga after some others have given some comments and feedback. I don't want to double-post after all!

~Otaku-Man

[OtakuForLife]

Awsome response man, thats pretty much what I belived.
That the manga artists just don't know any better there not trying
to be offensive. Also, good background in history was that off
the top of your head?

As for repeated themes in anime that could go on for a long time
example of this.

(comparsions)
Madlax - Noir [Two girls, mission, vauge lesbian themes]
COTS - AYA
Tsbusa Cronicles /w alot of shows [ I need to get stonger]
Hellsing/Vamp D/Trinty Blood [I'm a vampire that feeds on vampires]

[OtakuMan22]

Actually, yes it was off the top of my head. I wrote that up during lunch here at work.

Course, it comes easy for me given the fact that I've been into anime for... what... 10 years... more maybe?

And I'll probably put my rant on multiple/similar anime genres up in a bit. Still got work to do today!

~Otaku-Man

[Otohiko]

Well African people are just not a big issue and they're not cause for much concern or overt interest in Japan, simple as that. Exactly like OtakuMan here said - you don't see many Africans running around in Japan.

A suitable comparison would be something like trying to accuse America of being a tad 'insensitive' or racist for not showing many people descended from the Caucasus region - because problems and discrimination associated with them are a BIG issue in Russia.

[bobbarker31]

I thought that Cowboy Bebop's Mushroom Samba episode was more of a send up to the Shaft movies than anything else. In fact, the name of the guy pulling his brother's casket was Shaft .... Sometimes I feel bad that Japanese get their impressions on what we are like here in America from our popular entertainment.

[OtakuMan22]

BLAST IT! My post got deleted when it timed out! GRRRRR!

Okay, let's see if I can sum it up for yah real quick here.

:takes deep breath:


In Japan, there are the good anime and the bad anime, but if you're an Otaku, all anime is good! Some more so than others, but still, if it's anime, you're getting it!

Recently, I read a review of Genshinkan on the Anime News Network review page, and the next day, I picked it up and the grand opening of HAMMERGIRL ANIME!

:plug plug: http://www.hammergirlanime.com :plug plug:

These guys are hardcore Otaku that know their anime quotes, have their favorite games, know how to shop, and do the stuff Otaku do. They even eventually get a gi... oops, that's saying too much!

Anyway, the point is that if you're an Otaku in the U.S., you can sympathize with these guys in one way or another. Whether it's Kanji's nervousness about expressing his interest in front of others, Madarame's beliefe that Otaku must stand up and show their power amongst others, or Tanaka's enjoyment of cos-play despite the comments of his fellow Otaku. "Cos-Play? BAH! There are more important things at stake here!"


However, Otaku in U.S. have for the longest time had one thing going against them. They lacked the wide variety and quantity of anime and anime goods in this part of the world. Anime fans with connections got folks in Japan to hook them up with the top-quality good stuff (Kimagure Orange Road, Urusei Yatsura, Ranma 1/2, Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water, Akira, and well, lots of good stuff from the late 80's and early 90's).

As anime grew in popularity and as the number of Otaku grew and grew, companies like Viz, ADV, AnimEigo, Central Park Media (U.S. Manga Corps), Manga Ent., and Pioneer rose to the occasion to bring goodies to the starving Otaku. The companies had to pick carefully about what would work well in the states, and some were big hits, others weren't, and some just had really bad marketing. (Has anyone seen the back of the VHS boxes for Masamune Shirow's Dominion Tank Police when it first came out in the states?)

10 years have gone by since anime really started hitting home. From the major Akira boom of 1989, to the slow rise of companies that reached millions in 1995 when anime first starting hitting the airwaves with Ronin Warriors, Sailor Moon, and Dragon Ball.

Now, we have an anime channel, good stuff on Adult Swim and Toonami, and sections of bookstores devoted to MANGA! (No longer must graphic novels be hunted down by searching through DC and Marvel collections of BatMan and Spider-Man!)


But there's a price with all of this!


While the good stuff will continue to flow, so will the overwhelmingly BAD! If there are more bad anime than good, then it can make people think that anime is all ultra-violent sex and stuff (remember the early 90's? ), to that it's all fluff (Girls Bravo for example). This is not new in Japan. They've had shows like this for years and years and years, and the descerning Japanese Otaku, like in Genshikan, knows how to argue whether an anime is good, bad, and what's worth remembering.

The U.S. has not yet had the opportunity to experience that...

...UNTIL NOW!

There are lots of good shows out there for Otaku to enjoy and have their mind opened up and show them a culture unlike their own (and some that are just for fun, but would not come from the mind of an American):

Big O, The
Case Closed (Detective Conan)
Cowboy Bebop
Dragon Ball Z
Full Metal Alchemist
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
Hikaru No Go
Inu-Yasha
Lupin the 3rd
Naruto (coming soon)
One Piece
Paranoia Agent
Rurouni Kenshin
Samurai Champloo
Shaman King
Trigun
Witch Hunter Robin
Wolf's Rain

and more! These are all great anime (yes, I know they are on TV, but they are on TV because they were good to begin with)! Most, if not all, of these are mandatory watching for anyone to truly be an anime fan. (If I left out Gundam, my bad, but I haven't seen the original yet. Just W)

However, on the other side of the coin are the "Cute" shows. Ones with bubbly eyed jail bait girls that are just begging for someone to make a hentai about them. Hmm, let's see:

Ai Yori Aoshi
Angel Tales
Burn Up Scramble
Cyber Team in Akihabara
Daphne of the Brilliant Blue
Divergence Eve
Eiken
Figure 17
Girls Bravo
Gravion
Hanaukyo Maid Team
Ikki Tousen
Kiddy Grade
Madlax
Nana 7 of 7
Noir
Popotan
Sister Princess
Stellvia
Stratos 4

...you get the idea.

I mean for crying out loud, it used to be LUM that was the fantasy girl, and now there are SO FREAKIN' MANY that it's hard to tell them apart!

YEEEEEESH!

What's going to be important for the Otaku to do is learn to find out what's good and what ain't, and what picks their fancy first, THEN plunk down the money for the anime.

Some are givens and are most definitly MUST haves! Others might be up to the buyer or renter, and that's where it comes into play.

If you're the get everything Otaku, go ahead and get everything. For those on a budget, shop WISELY!

With great anime comes great responsibility!

~Otaku-Man

P.S. Wish people would stop making these lame animes? Too bad! There have been lame animes since the beginning, just not available in the states. Better learn to shop properly, and get ready for...

...THE DIVERGENCE OF THE OTAKU! When Otaku themselves start having their own sub-genres!

[OtakuForLife]

Well I wouldn't say Madlax is a cutesy show
(http://www.animemusicvideos.org/members ... hp?v=51681)
Yeah real cutesy

Memorable Titles not mentioned:
Key the Metal Idol
Kino's Journies
Serial Experments Lain
Robotech 1,3 series
Saikano
Gunslinger Girl
Creast of the Stars
Read or Die

As-for how long I have been an anime fan..
Saw robotech when I was old enough to understand what
a tv was..I'm 22 now, so about 18 years...

I happen to be in that sub-genre mindset

Mine is:

Depressing/Action/13 episodes/Orignal plot

[OtakuMan22]

Okay, yeah Madlax isn't "cutesy", but what I'm saying is that it is VERY easy for that to be made into a hentai doujinshi.

Two girls...
...they shoot people...
...they live together...

...you do the math!

As for my subgenre:

"Black Jack of All Trades" or "The Scholar"

~Otaku-Man