Category: Editorials
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The state of Noitamina and Thermae Romae
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Read More →: The state of Noitamina and Thermae RomaeIt’s fair to say that, critically, 2011 was a poor year for Noitamina and (with Guilty Crown in tow) is currently at its lowest ebb. It’s now suffering from an identity crisis, no longer the bastion of josei anime it once was. Chihayafuru is a good example of what’s meant by that; a series that…
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But I'll be Peter Pan forever: To Aru Majutsu no Index and I
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Read More →: But I'll be Peter Pan forever: To Aru Majutsu no Index and IIt’s a common story. A Saturday night, no plans. What do I do? Seek out a new anime to watch, of course.
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Madlax aka What's wrong with the anime industry
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Read More →: Madlax aka What's wrong with the anime industryYoung women with gun skills? Check. Mysterious organization that runs the world? Check. Quasi-religious mysticism? Check. Noir only lasted one season, but if you started watching Madlax and thought it was Noir Season 2 I wouldn’t blame you. Madlax isn’t a complete copy of Noir, it does tread new ground after about 20 episodes or so. And…
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Don't forget the side characters
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Read More →: Don't forget the side charactersIn alot of ways, what keeps a longer manga engaging isn’t its main characters, but the side characters. Though our initial emotional investments as readers are in the main characters, the supporting cast and their links with those main characters are what keeps the story fresh.
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Because you need a little violence in your life: Dr. Mohiro Kitoh's fabulous depression
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Read More →: Because you need a little violence in your life: Dr. Mohiro Kitoh's fabulous depressionOne thing we may deduce about author Mohiro Kitoh from Bokurano and Narutaru is that he probably had a few bad experiences growing up. It’s otherwise very difficult to understand why his stories about children are quite so fucked-up. Case in post, Narutaru, of which I just finished watching the anime adaptation.
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Anime Trends 2011: At least no one (of note) went bankrupt
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Read More →: Anime Trends 2011: At least no one (of note) went bankruptAll told, 2011 was a stable year in the anime business. No anime company of any worth (so 4Kids doesn’t count) went bankrupt, although over in the manga world TokyoPop bit the bullet. The tsunami and resulting nuclear incident will unfortunately overshadow anything else that happened with anime this year. While there were no dramatic…
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Darker than Black is the new black
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Read More →: Darker than Black is the new blackDarker than Black is an enigma. The more I watch it, the less I understand how I feel about it. I wanted to write an article extolling its virtues, for example its deep characters and beautiful art. Then I went back and re-watched season 1 and did a double take, was this the same show…
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Dear anime industry, think before you tweet
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Read More →: Dear anime industry, think before you tweetMy name is Dengar and I have a problem. My problem has a name, Twitter. Ever since I joined, I’ve been addicted to getting rapid news updates. It’s particularly convenient as a way to track anime news from companies like Funimation, Aniplex and Viz. Most of the tweets from the companies are acceptable, if not…
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An anatomy of a gaze
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Read More →: An anatomy of a gazeThough I suppose anatomy of a pose might be a better title for this post. I’m in love with by this image of Himari. Rather, boushi-san, or hat-san, as Shouma calls Himari’s possessed form. This image, seen in Mawaru Penguindrum’s second opening, Shounen yo, Ware ni Kaere, has been captivating me for some weeks now.
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Sorry women, distributors don't like you
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Read More →: Sorry women, distributors don't like youI love when the mainstream media tackles anime. Tomorrow’s New York Times’ features a story about the business opportunities in streaming anime. In its discussion of what shows work, the articles drops this great quote: “The small but avid audience is made up of mostly male viewers aged 18 to 34. Distributors said comedies, sports…