Becoming otaku (Part 1)
“I’m turning Japanese, I think I’m turning Japanese, I really think so…” – apologies to The Vapors…
Recently, myself and John, a friend and colleague at work, were talking about anime and when we’d each first started actively watching anime. By this, he meant watching anime with the knowledge of what it was. For me, that discounts a good chunk of my childhood as although I’d grown up watching Robotech, it wasn’t until much later that I was able to link my favourite shows to the fact that it was not just another cartoon series.
I think the first active foray into anime and manga for me came while I was at college, working for the campus computer services department, one of the few departments to have access to the Internet in 1997. A classmate of mine that was also working there pointed me in the direction of the SUNET FTP server where I found an anime repository, with pictures, sound bytes and low-res video clips from shows such as 3×3 Eyes, Ah! My Goddess, Bubblegum Crisis, etc.
I downloaded many of those pictures in the time I was there and sometime that year I remember buying my first manga magazine from a store that used to sell old overseas publications by weight. That magazine had an article about mecha and referred to Robotech and Macross. It also mentioned shows like Akira and Plastic Little, and little by little I was drawn into the anime world. For some time, my main focus was on Robotech, recalling with fondness the childhood memories of running home from school to watch it on TV before settling down to chores and homework. Sometime that year, my friend Bruno brought over his VHS tapes of Macross Plus which we watched during breaks in our LAN games one weekend. I think, then, that I fell in love with anime (again).
Later, with access to the Internet, I put more and more pieces of the puzzle together to discover that other childhood favourites had also been anime. Shows like Galaxy Rangers, Saber Rider and Star Sheriffs and way way back in the distant past, I recall watching Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind while visiting somewhere.
However, my first real discovery of anime since the Robotech and Macross craze came with the discovery of the Ghost in the Shell movie in 1998. After that, a colleague of mine, Michelle, let me watch Ninja Scroll and unfortunately, Urotsukid?ji – Legend of the Overfiend, my first experience with the world of ecchi and hentai. I recall being rather shocked at what I’d seen and telling her as much when I returned the VHS cassettes to her the next day. She just smiled and shrugged, telling me that that sort of thing was normal in some anime. Thankfully I learnt that this was not the case and that there were indeed separate categories… though some series tended to border on crossing the lines between them.
I recall finding evidence of a planned TV series and spin-off game called Mission to Avalon, done by Human Code Japan, presenting a space colony cel-shaded anime adventure. I was obsessed with the project, downloading trailers, listening to the music, browsing through screen-shots… I even mailed one of the project artists, Sergio Rosas, sometime ago, when I suddenly saw the site go offline. Sadly, he informed me about the project’s demise and the fact that no further work would be done on it. Truly a pity as it looked as though it could have been quite good.
After that, I recall watching Akira, AD Police, and ultimately, I began collecting the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex series and now after a few years I have every DVD except the OVA, the original mangas, the console games and the collectible merchandise, except for one figurine of Motoko Kusanagi, based on her look from the original manga.
In the meantime, friends have introduced me to series such as Trigun, Macross Zero and many more (thanks John, you’re officially my dealer of anime fixes!). I’ve also moved to Johannesburg and gained access to shops like Outer Limits and Animeworx.
Recently, through exposure to the Animax TV channel, I’ve come to see a lot more anime, though admittedly, I’m disappointed with the service the channel provides, considering how disjointed the sequence of the series shown are, let alone the constant repetition.
That said, it’s helped a little with my anime education and has pointed me in the direction of new shows for me to explore, such as Basilisk, Black Lagoon, Eureka Seven, Speedgrapher, Wolf’s Rain, etc.
These in turn have led people like John to take it upon themselves to properly educate me by letting me watch some of their fansubs and boxset collections… such as Burst Angel, Code Geass, Elfen Lied, Gun X Sword, Gundam 00, Hellsing, Kekkaishi, Mai Hime and Mai Otome, Mushishi, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, etc… in the hope that they can get me out of the habit of watching, in their words, badly dubbed versions of good shows, preferring the more purist route of watching the shows in the original Japanese with subtitles.
I hope to do proper reviews of each of them in time, something I’d promised a fellow otaku some time back.
So what is it about anime that makes it so appealing?
Honestly, I think it’s because, as a visual medium, it is truly entertaining and it appeals to a wide and varied audience. And, according respect where respect is due, the Japanese truly are masters of animation, blending stunning matte scenes, action sequences that defy the laws of physics, awesome 3d animation and modelling, and fantastic storylines with some of the most memorable characters I’ve ever seen.
The only thing that doesn’t always grab me is the soundtracks, though composers like Yoko Kanno have gone a long way to change my opinion with their solo work (Macross Plus and Macross Frontier, etc) and their collaborative work (Ghost in the Shell SAC, 2nd Gig and Solid State Society) with the likes of Origa, Ilaria Graziano, Gabriela Robin (though some may argue that Kanno and Robin are one and the same) and Tim Jensen.
Another brilliant composer that has come to my attention is Yuki Kajiura thanks to her work on the Mai Hime and Mai Otome soundtracks. And I’m sure there are many more out there like them.
Let me end on that note for now… More to come later when I have some more time and inspiration.
Update (20/7/2008) : I’ve added some Wikipedia linkage for those interested in looking for more information about the shows and artists mentioned here.
Gift #1 – From Matthew, Marti and many many others who I still need to thank.
When JJ and Vanessa gave me this long, wrapped box, I wasn’t too sure what was in it, but I certainly wasn’t expecting to open it up to find a beautifully crafted sword. Especially not a recreation of the sword from “Last Samurai”.
