Category: Anime

The Strange CGI Anime Films Prior To Appleseed

Published November 24, 2022

I’ve spoken before about the slow but steady increase of CGI anime films and I noted that the 2004 Appleseed film was generally viewed as a dramatic improvement with regards to the visual quality of CGI anime. Having watched the film, I was always quite surprised at this statement as the movement was stiff and awkward, the cel shading was too minor for my liking and some character designs suffered in 3D. Therefore, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at some of the strange CGI anime films that were made prior to Appleseed and how their animation compares.

As far as I can tell, the earliest anime film to be produced entirely in 3D CGI animation was the 1998 TV film Visitor. Airing on WOWOW, the film was produced as a collaborative effort between GAGA Communications and Creek and River and directed by Atsushi Tokuda. The story is set in 2099 CE and follows characters who encounter an alien lifeform similar to a black hole. As you can see from below, it’s a pretty crude attempt at producing a CGI anime film with a severe lack of detail, awful lighting and awkward movement and I’m not even sure if it’s ever been released outside of Japan.

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The Interesting History Of How Anime Was Sold On VHS

Published November 10, 2022

A few years back, I remember talking to a friend about some anime series and they mentioned that it was quite expensive to buy anime. I remember being surprised at this but I eventually came to understand what he meant. Compared to other forms of TV and movie content, anime is relatively niche and is often sold at higher prices than other physical media. However, the reason I was surprised by their statement was that I was comparing the price of buying anime on DVDs and Blu-rays to the days of VHS. Therefore, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at the history of how anime was sold back in the VHS era.

I should first explain what a VHS is since there may be people who are unfamiliar with this older format. VHS stands for Video Home System and was one of the earliest forms of home video which allowed people to buy a film or TV series that they could then watch whenever they wanted to on their VCR (Videocassette recorder). In contrast to the optical discs of today, VHS was an analog format where the film or TV series was recorded onto magnetic tape which would then be used to display footage.

An ad for anime VHS tapes released by U.S. Renditions.

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Some 1980s Anime That I Love To Recommend

Published October 27, 2022

The 1980s were an incredible time for the anime industry. One of the most important anime studios ever, Studio Ghibli, was established, Osamu Tezuka began to produce experimental anime shorts again and the OVA market came into being. The amount of fantastic works of anime produced during this time is stunning and I’m always encouraging people to take a look at some of these series, OVAs and films. Therefore, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at some of the 1980s anime that I love to recommend to people.

One of the very first articles that I wrote for this blog was an examination of World War II in anime and no examination of it would be complete without the 1983 anime film classic “Barefoot Gen”. Based on the semiautobiographical manga of the same name, the movie depicts the life of the titular Gen who lives in Hiroshima with his family. We get some time to see how they live before the bomb is dropped and it makes the film even more devastating to watch. However, while it can be a tough watch, the film does end on a hopeful note and the story itself is fascinating enough that I have no hesitation in recommending it.

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Perhaps The Most Controversial Anime Ever – Midori

Published October 17, 2022

I recently wrote about my thoughts on disturbing movies and I brought up the disturbing movie iceberg since it showed me a whole slew of disturbing movies that I’d never even heard of. Something that did quite surprise me though was learning that an entry simply referred to as “Shoujo Tsubaki” was an anime. As you know by now, I’m a big fan of anime and I found it fascinating that I’d never heard of this film, particularly since it shared its tier with other films like Martyrs, Cannibal Holocaust and A Serbian Film. As I began to research the movie, I found the history and production of the film to be interesting enough that I decided that I should write an article covering perhaps the most controversial anime ever, Midori.

Interestingly, the genesis of this anime goes back to the era of kamishibai where a character known as the Camellia Girl (Shoujo Tsubaki in Japanese) developed. This character would be either adolescent or preadolescent who starts out by selling flowers to raise money and eventually is forced to work at a circus. Suehiro Maruo, a mangaka, took inspiration from this character and developed a manga which would later be released in English as “Mr. Arashi’s Amazing Freak Show” around 1984. It was this manga that the anime film would go on to adapt.

The cover for the manga “Mr. Arashi’s Amazing Freak Show”.

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What’s An Anime TV Special?

Published September 29, 2022

I think we’re all familiar with what a TV special is but I’ve noticed that there’s little discussion when it comes to TV specials with regards to anime. I have my own theory on that that I’ll share later but I thought that the topic of TV specials with regards to anime is worth exploring, particularly since I’ve noted that there’s some mild confusion that some people have with these.

To start off with that mild confusion, it seems that some people are unsure of the difference between an anime TV special and an OVA. Basically, an OVA is an anime that was initially released on a home video format such as VHS, DVD or Blu-ray while an anime TV special is produced for television and, while it may be associated with a franchise or TV series, typically tells a standalone story that can be consumed by itself.

The poster for Bye Bye, Lady Liberty, the first Lupin the Third TV special.

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What’s An Eyecatch In Anime?

Published September 12, 2022

You may have been watching an anime series and noticed that, before and after the commercial break, a brief illustration or simple animation will play with the name of the series over it. This is what we call an eyecatch and it’s one of those things that I just gradually accepted about anime without ever thinking about it. However, I think it’s worth having a discussion about these eyecatches in order to understand what they are and their purpose.

As explained above, an eyecatch appears before and after the commercial break as an illustration or a short animation with the show’s name attached. One of the first questions that I had when I learned what an eyecatch is was “Why are they made? Surely it would make more sense to use the time for more advertising.” Unfortunately, I haven’t found any definitive answers as to their purpose but I have found a theory that is worthwhile enough to discuss.

The eyecatches in Slayers Next revolved around potential character ships.

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Manpu: The Visual Language Of Anime And Manga

Published August 29, 2022

As someone who is a fan of both anime and manga, it’s easy to forget that there are numerous aspects to them that can be confusing to people unfamiliar with them. One particularly interesting aspect that is terribly easy to forget is the visual language of anime and manga itself, referred to as “Manpu”. Therefore, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at the topic, a possible reason for its development and a few examples of manpu.

The word manpu is written in Japanese as 漫符 which can be translated as “Manga Symbols”. As for why they developed in the first place, the only definitive reason that I’ve come across was when I was reading “The Osamu Tezuka Story” and, while Osamu Tezuka was developing the first Astro Boy TV series, he incorporated many techniques in an effort to keep costs down. One of these techniques, of which there were many, was to simplify animating character emotions by adding a visual sign rather than trying to animate the face. Of course, manpu may very well predate this but this is the earliest example that I’m aware of.

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What Does Omake Mean In Anime And Manga?

Published August 11, 2022

As you are perusing some manga, watching some anime or perhaps reading some behind the scenes information about the anime/manga industry, you’ll probably come across a term called “Omake”. While it may seem initially confusing, it isn’t as complicated as it first appears.

Written as お負け in Japanese although it’s also often written simply as おまけ, the term itself simply means “extra”. This can refer to things as simple as DVD extras such as behind the scenes, commentaries, deleted scenes etc. Of course, this doesn’t seem much different to the Western meaning of extras but further examination reveals some very interesting examples of omake that differ quite a bit to our usual interpretation.

A shot from Gundam Seed Character Theater, an omake produced for Gundam Seed.

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Don’t Make The Mistake Of Showing Kids 18s Rated Anime

Published July 25, 2022

As I’m sure you’re well aware of, there is a perception that animation is targeted exclusively at children and while this perception, brought on by the Dark Age of Animation, is slowly being eroded, this delusion still remains prevalent. Of course, not all animation is aimed at children and it shouldn’t be a case that an age rating decides whether the work is suitable for adults or not but it’s also indisputable that an 18s rated work isn’t targeted at children. Therefore, I thought it might be interesting to take a look at some 18s rated anime and how to avoid the mistake of showing these to kids.

First off, I should clarify what I mean by 18s rated since it may not be clear from an international perspective. Living in Ireland, I import almost all of my DVDs and Blu-rays from the UK. Within the UK, it’s mandatory that all home video, whether they be VHS, DVD, Blu-ray etc., be given an age rating from the BBFC before it can be legally sold. I’ve expressed my frustration about this situation in the past but I also thought it would be interesting to look at anime that is, at least in the West, definitively not aimed at children.

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Netflix And Their Fascinating Relationship With Anime

Published July 7, 2022

I’ve spoken before about ways that you can watch anime legally through streaming services with Netflix being one of those options. However, I think it’s also worth having a discussion about the impact that Netflix is having on the anime industry as well as some fascinating ways that their relationship has played out.

It has been clear for a long time now that Netflix has a great interest in the anime market. Prior to 2017, Netflix primarily bought the streaming rights for anime series once the shows had been released. However, it was announced then that Netflix was going to heavily invest in anime by funding thirty anime series themselves. It was also noted that these investments were more lucrative for anime studios than the typical production committee model.

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