wNov 16, 2008


Epic Post of Anime Recs for Beginners

I know some of you don't like YouTube clips, but I really think it's the best way to showcase animation style, music, and quality, which I feel are essential with any series I spend my time with.

It's happened at least twice in the past few months, so I figure it's worthy of its own post. People are interested in anime, but don't really know where to start. "I've seen Spirited Away/Princess Mononoke/all of the Ghibli movies, but I don't know what else to watch." So, here's a list of what I consider to be good places to start. For the most part, these are movies and series that have been around for a while, and are loved by just about everyone who's seen them. For the sake of ease, I chose only things that are available on DVD in the US.

While most of the items listed do a pretty good job with humor, but overall this is a list of dramas. I did this because a fair amount of anime humor is based on tropes commonly found in anime storytelling, or is "weird" in that one has to be a bit more comfortable with the medium to fully "get it." Evangelion and Utena probably have some of the more stereotypical humor found in anime out of everything on this list, but I think it's manageable to a newcomer.

The possible exception to this is Revolutionary Girl Utena. Its use of recycled animation and rampant presence of implied incest will come off as a bit WTF, especially to newcomers. But since most readers of my blog/LiveJournal are feminists, I think it'll be very easy to find other things to appreciate. Additionally, you guys are probably more willing to deconstruct and ask, "Why is this happening in the story?" as opposed to just freaking out. Utena could be analyzed endlessly, so if you start it and are dubious, I promise that the pay-offs make everything worth it. Of course, I might just be pre-preemptively apologetic and pushy because it's my favorite, :D


All of the Studio Ghibli movies
Lots of people have seen Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke, but Studio Ghibli has a treasure chest full of achingly beautiful and poignant films. I've seen all but one, and adored all but two (Laputa and Pom Poko). Watch them all! I know that Netflix has all of these except Only Yesterday, and most video stores let you rent "kids' movies" for free.

Laputa: Castle in the Sky
Grave of the Fireflies
My Neighbor Totoro
Kiki's Delivery Service
Only Yesterday [I LOVED this. Does anyone know how to obtain a copy?]
Porco Rosso
Pom Poko
Whisper of the Heart [This is my absolute favorite Ghibli movie]
Princess Mononoke
Spirited Away
The Cat Returns [I actually haven't seen this one, :( ]
Howl's Moving Castle


Cowboy Bebop

This clip shows the opening sequence as well as a bit of episode footage beforehand. The episode footage is all silent, and does a lot to show you the style points that Bebop is known for. The simple music is clearly nostalgic, as is the black and white noir-style flashbacks. And of course, then there is the opening, with big band jazz music, action, and stylish use of animation. I have yet to meet a person who watched Cowboy Bebop and didn't love it (except for my boyfriend, who is an anomaly I conveniently choose to ignore for the purposes of this post!).



The music used in the clip is representative of the fantastic soundtrack used throughout the series; 26 episodes and movie counterpart.


Revolutionary Girl Utena
Revolutionary Girl Utena is the story about a girl who was saved by a prince when she was still a child. In the present, she resolves to become a prince herself. She finds a mission to follow when she discovers classmate Anthy Himemiya is ensnared in a creepy Student Council tradition of being a "Rose Bride," a partnership earned through sword fights that makes her subject to the whims of whoever happens to win her. Utena finds this custom "stupid" and weird, and resolves to simply win Anthy for herself, and allow her to do whatever she'd like. The series begins seemingly simplistic, with clear-cut villains and friends, but as it progresses, it's clear that everything the viewer and Utena believe to be true is in fact a lie. Fairy tale tropes are rampant, down to two girls who use shadow puppetry to act as a Greek chorus for the storyline of each episode.

The rotating roses are iconic symbols for the series. You can also see Utena's adoption of the boys' school uniform and the classic animation style. The opening sequence makes it seem as though Utena and Anthy's relationship is a lesbian one, but I find that debatable in the series as a whole (although definitely not in the movie!). There is a definite subtext, though, and there are other characters who are clearly homosexual. This is one of the few anime series that represents people of color and gay relationships with serious thought.

This is my favorite anime series, if you can't tell, :)




Samurai Champloo
This series was made by the creator of Cowboy Bebop. They are similar in that they blend a music style with a seemingly incompatible plot genre (Bebop blends jazz with space opera noir; Champloo blends hip-hop with samurai action of the Japanese Edo period). Samurais Mugen and Jin are polar opposites: one has standing-on-end hair who seems to breakdance as he fights, while the other is a reserved dojo-trained master of specific moves. They join forces with 15-year-old Fuu, an outspoken girl searching for a samurai who smells like sunflowers. The anime is a story about the people they meet and fight with along the way.

The opening sequence of Samurai Champloo is quite solid, but I decided to post an AMV instead. The use of some Beastie Boys music fits in with the music regularly used on the show. You can watch Samurai Champloo because it's hilarious, because each episode is ridiculously tightly plotted, or because of the way it riffs on historical events. But you can also watch it solely because its action sequences are totally bad-ass, and they alone give you reason enough to watch it.




Neon Genesis Evangelion
Like Cowboy Bebop, this is a classic that most anime fans have seen. Like Utena, it starts out with a seemingly standard premise until it becomes apparent that everyone is lying and a basket case in some form. Shinji Ikari is a teenage boy with no ambition, but he has to go to his father's organization NERV to pilot a giant robot to save the world from attackers. This is a pretty standard premise for anime (mostly from anime that came afterward, but also from series like Macross which came before), but Evangelion subverts tropes and expectations. It's highly recommended, and make sure you check out the movie The End of Evangelion once you make it through the episodes. Some people loathe the ending as seen through the TV series, and the movie certainly does give more closure, even if in a disturbing way (I am a fan of both endings, and they're not mutually exclusive: one is internal, and the other shows you what's going on with everyone else).




Movies by Satoshi Kon
Kon is like Miyazaki in that everything he touches is golden. He is unlike Miyazaki in that the themes he touches upon are much more adult in nature (especially "Perfect Blue". The theatrical trailers are pretty good, so I'm going to be lazy and just go with those.







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scribbled mystickeeper at 11:29 AM
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wJul 9, 2007


The post has no title!

So, I figured out a way for you all to read the 6 years' worth of Archives of this blog - the link is back on the sidebar, for better or for worse. Holy crap, there are so many embarrassing entries. How could I put some of that stuff on the Internet?! I am a terrible person. Oh well. Reading old posts has been making me giggle a lot for the last 45 minutes, remembering old jokes and friends and posts titled "HIMMENA." I was a lot more vocal about my feelings back then. Apparently becoming an adult means that you hide them.

Transformers
So, I haven't seen the Transformers movie, nor do I have any inclination to do so - the franchise wasn't part of my childhood. Still, I've read things online that have made me sad. Faith Hicks (artist behind the Demonology 101 online comic!) wasn't a fan of girl-ogling. Another person (who was at Wiscon!) has written in depth about the racial issues that this movie has. Hollywood! Why must you suck?!

The Fourth of July
Okay, so in my rush to slap a blog post up, I totally forgot to blog about my Fourth of July activities, which is sad because it was so much fun!

Firstly, I didn't have to work, so that was cool. And Antoine didn't have to work, either! He came to my house and we played video games.

Then we joined some of my fellow pages/friends on the lawns of the Capitol for Concerts on the Square: Special Nation's Birthday Edition. They had some fifties-ish music, but also played the 1812 Orchestra AND SHOT CANNONS. I WAS SO EXCITED. One of my co-workers made some amazing sandwiches, and the rest of us brought things like potato salad and chips and brownies and goodness (and yes, we ate the leftovers all day Thursday).

THEN, after Concerts on the Square was done, we went inside the Capitol and, after tidying up, went upstairs and outside to the Observation Deck, which surrounds the entire Capitol. We could see fireworks being set off from about four different towns surrounding Madison, and it was amazing (also, some illegal ones being set off inside the city limits!). The sun had gone down by that point, so the temperature was nice, too - especially on the north side, where you could feel the wind. Also, on the Observation Deck, we're right beneath the giant Greco-Roman statues that are up there, so that was awesome, too.

Right before we left, we went inside and up a little bit more to the Trumpters' Balcony, which goes around the circumference of the Rotunda inside the Capitol. We were much closer to the mural that's up on the very top, and could also see the beautiful marble floor and pillars, tiled mosaics, and portraits of all four floors of the Capitol at once. So awesome. It was a very nice Fourth of July.

Saturday
My family came down to visit me, which included both of my parents, my sister Julie, her husband Kevin, and their 3 children: Olivia, Dylan, and Amelia.

They arrived around 9:30am, and the first thing we did (after showing them my room) was go to the Farmers Market. It was insufferably hot outside yesterday, and my family, parents especially, don't do well in heat. We made it halfway around Capitol Square and then went inside to walk around. My sisters children were very pleased with the incredibly beautiful Capitol, considering it to be an upgrade from my previous job at ShopKo. I love walking around inside the Capitol, but truth be told, it makes me a little sick. I can think of a lot better use for taxes than marble floors and oak paneling.

After that, we picked up Antoine and drove out to McDonald's for lunch (when there are lots of people, cheaper is better!). From there, we went to Half-Price Books (OMF, I got a volume of manga for $2; WIN), and then to Trader Joe's. I think that overall, the family was impressed with both stores, although they didn't buy much. I came out of Trader Joe's with food that will get me through most of the week, and also a new plant. I've kept my Lucky Bamboo alive for like, 4 months now, so now I have a new one. I like the idea of plants in rooms, but I also like it more when they're alive.

After Trader Joe's, everyone was tired and hot, so we came back to my house and watched some of a Harry Potter movie that was on TV, while I followed Amelia and Dylan upstairs to my room and tried to persuade them that it wasn't necessary to touch all of my things.

We ate dinner at Ella's Deli on my family's way out of town, and Olivia, Dylan, and Amelia enjoyed two rides on the carousel. Saying goodbye wasn't very sad, because this coming weekend, I am going home. So, friends from high school take note! I will be home the 13-15, and will definitely be up for doing something Friday after dinner.

I did end up going to see "Paprika" with Antoine, Creighton, Carolyn, Kristen, Louise, and other various people from Anime Club at the new Sundance Theatre. It was...amazing. Very trippy, ridiculously well-animated (really, I couldn't even believe some of it), great music, interesting premise, and masterfully executed, as is usual with works done by Satoshi Kon. Highly recommended!

Of course, afterward, everybody came over to our house. I struggled to stay awake, but eventually just came upstairs and crawled into bed.

Harry Potter
Hey, did you guys know that J.K. Rowling has confirmed that the bartender at the Hog's Head is Dumbledore's brother, Aberforth? I hadn't! Yay.

Anyway, everything else contains SPOILERS FOR BOOK 6, THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE. If you are one of those people who only watches the movies and doesn't read the books, then, well, what the hell is the matter with you. The books are 80,000,000 times better. Anyway.

Why Snape is not evil!

Sometime before Book 7 is released, I'll put up a list of all the things I think will happen, or just what I want to happen before the end. I really love being around as this fandom has evolved over time. I never wrote fanfiction or anything, but just reading the news online and discussing the books with both my friends from school and with people all over the world through the Internet has been amazing. I'll be sad when it's over.

Current Music: Shadow of Love - OLIVIA inspi' Reira (Trapnest)

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scribbled mystickeeper at 9:02 AM
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wJul 7, 2007


It's supposed to get up to 91 today. I look forward to my mother's mood.

I'm really sorry that my updating has been so sporadic. I hate it when blogs that I read don't update frequently. It's like reading a book and being forced to wait for more. Really, it's just that I have been so exhausted after work lately, and have hung out with people socially for literally the last...8 days? Possibly more.

Since I know you're all waiting with bated breath to see what I spent my BookMooch points on, I'll tell you!
The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway
Persuasion, Jane Austen (I think this is the only one I don't own by her?)
White Teeth, Zadie Smith

The rest of my points, I'll try to sit on and wait for manga to be offered up. Two volumes of Fruits Basket were put up last night while I slept. Woe is me.

I finally finished reading Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson yesterday. I don't know why it took me so freaking long to finish it. I love the way the man writes; I love his characters; I love his ideas. But for some reason, it just felt like I was walking through a blizzard without being able to see where I was going. I do blame school for some of it - I had started it in January, and got interrupted by my classes. Once summer started, I kept stalling the reading of this book in favor of manga. Anyway, it's done; I'm happy, and I'm already a third of the way through Howl's Moving Castle.

I brought my Howl's Moving Castle DVD to work on Thursday, and my co-workers enjoyed it very much. I'll teach them to judge my geeky pastimes!

I feel bad because I could have hung out with Antoine and friends last night, but instead I came home around 9:00 so that I could clean. And I didn't even finish my room! My parents, sister, brother-in-law, nieces, and nephew are coming down to visit sometime later this morning, so I should probably take a shower and finish tidying up.

There was a nice editorial by the Appleton Post-Crescent yesterday about the state health care plan proposed by Senate Democrats.

Eventually, I will hopefully be able to get over to the Sundance Theatre here in Madison, and see Paprika. It's from the same team (led by Satoshi Kon) who made the movies Perfect Blue, Millennium Actress, Tokyo Godfathers, and the series Paranoia Agent, which has aired on Cartoon Network. It's about a woman who is a psychologist who is able to enter the dreams of her patients as a way to help them. It looks amazing.

Ahh, I am so excited for today. We're going to go to the Farmers Market and I'm going to show my family around inside the Capitol. We're also going to go to Trader Joe's, and eat dinner at Ella's Deli. A lot of what I did last weekend, hehe....although my sister's children tend to make everything a unique experience, :)

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scribbled mystickeeper at 7:54 AM
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