Here’s something that occurred to me the other day when I was stumbling as usual through the fiction-writing process: speculative slice of life anime and manga, even those with some emphasis on festivals, rarely include an event analogous to Christmas as manifest in the United States. This is not to say that gifts aren’t given and received in fantastical and science-fictional slice of life franchises — they are, and pretty commonly — but few such franchises seem to present a holiday whose focus or impetus is the giving and receiving of gifts.
Seasons of giving in slice of life
Posted 22 January 2010Zeta Gundam in the history of violence
Posted 18 January 2010I’m twelve episodes into Zeta Gundam (which is in turn the fifth series in my project to acquaint myself, finally, with UC Gundam), and I suppose it’s about time that I started collecting my thoughts. I’d probably misplace them otherwise, and that wouldn’t do.
What strikes me (lolpun) about Zeta is the willingness of its characters to slap the hell out of each other. As in 0079, much of the non-mecha physical violence we see in Zeta occurs between people on the same side — and, as in 0079, it serves as a reminder that people on the same side don’t always or even typically get along, that “sides” are deceptively arbitrary. But Zeta takes it to the limit. Here, physical violence between allies is an institution.
Mapping the interstice (Durarara!! continues)
Posted 16 January 2010I have no intention whatsoever of episodic-blogging Durarara!! (I won’t have time, probably). But as long as it keeps impressing me — by which I mean, necessarily selfishly, working for and with me — I’ll no doubt continue to devote a bit of time every once in a while to figuring the thing out via bloggery.
I mentioned before that I’m particularly interested in Durarara!! because it deals with something I’ve been calling, reluctantly and for lack of a better term, “interstitial urban mythology” — that is, the magic that lurks in the places between the everyday, and takes forms consistent with the world we live in. The first episode introduced us to the Durarara!! mythos; the second, in providing another angle on certain events of the first, allows us a more intimate look at those interstices in which physics and logic become malleable.
Why so military, Sora no Woto?
Posted 13 January 2010So I’m checking out Sora no Woto (Sora no Oto? So・Ra・No・Wo・To? Sora no Whateverthehell, anyway) this season, because I like the humanity-in-decline slice of life with a touch of music angle, but there’s one thing I don’t get. Why the military motif? It seems unusual here; the last thing I’d imagine these characters carrying around is guns — and yet one was fired, even, in the second episode.
“Anything and everything can happen in this town”
Posted 11 January 2010I’ll go ahead and call it now: Durarara!! will be my favorite show this season, mostly because it’s all about something I really enjoy, something that’s prevalent enough in anime that it’s part of the reason I’m an anime fan in the first place. Let’s call it…interstitial urban mythology? That’s sort of awkward, but I guess it’ll have to do.
Moment(s) the [nth]: Honorable mentions, part 1
Posted 28 December 2009Here I stand some three days after the conclusion of Project Twelve Moments 2009, my fingers bent and bloodied, my mind weeping ichorous tears after twelve days of wracking. And yet my work is unfinished. A mere twelve posts aren’t enough to cover every specimen of drawn and/or animated media I consumed in 2009 that hit me where it counts. I’d like to mention, briefly, a few other examples of note, and though even this list will surely leave things out, I’ll at least feel a little better for recommending a few extra things that seem to deserve it.
Moment the Second: Like hidden characters in games
Posted 24 December 2009[Read the previous moment here or start at the beginning]
Today’s post isn’t as…revelatory as 2008’s Moment the Second, I’m afraid. It is, rather, a humble post about a humble character from the humble show that changed everything (for me, anyway).
That’s right — Aria. You knew it’d show up somewhere among my chosen twelve of 2009. Last year, Aria the Animation occupied no less than three spots, specifically eleven, eight, and one. This post is related to last year’s eleventh, actually, though I didn’t plan it that way.
Moment the Fourth: Nonoriri
Posted 22 December 2009[Read the previous moment here or start at the beginning]
A while ago, OGT recommended Gunbuster and its sequel to me as gateway shows into the super robot genre. I still have yet to really delve into the genre, but the Top wo Nerae! OVAs are now among my favorite science fiction anime, generally speaking.
Moment the Sixth: You oughta treasure yer life
Posted 20 December 2009[Read the previous moment here or start at the beginning]
Yotsuba&!: does it need any introduction? Or, would any paltry introduction I wrote for it be enough?
Moment the Eighth: Today’s target is…
Posted 18 December 2009[Read the previous moment here or start at the beginning]
If the previous moment was an emotional high point, this one’s a definite low.
The manga in question here is Onani Master Kurosawa, that indie production that did more for me than many (perhaps most) of the professional works I consumed this year. That it takes a dark turn isn’t so surprising; it’s easy to guess that the guy who ejaculates on people’s belongings for great justice and the girl who blackmails him into doing so don’t have wholly bright futures in store. But it’s hard to imagine just how dark said dark turn will be until it happens. And, sure enough, it’s dark.
