How Should I Feel? (vol. 2) - Hotarubi no Mori e

Many think the romance genre has grown a bit stale over time, even with the idea of forbidden love. Hotarubi no Mori e is definitely quite a refreshing look at the genre right now. It is about a girl who falls in a sort forbidden love situation with a pseudo-spirit who she cannot touch and what happens. Visually and musically it is good but really the story and the relationship between the main characters is the main focus and stand out part of the movie. Anyway again it presents conflicting emotions about how we should feel. 

Movie Poster

First I suppose I should give a bit of a plot summary. So a young girl, Hotaru, meets an older teenage boy wearing a mask, Gin, when she is lost in a forest during her summer vacation at her uncle's house. 

The boy is in fact a spirit dwelling in the forest and mustn't be touched by a human, for it would result in him disappearing for all eternity. They spend the summer days with each other playing and relaxing, as well as showing curiousity about each other. When the girl must return home, she promises to visit him again next summer. The spirit waits for her she keeps her promise. This continues for the next few years, during which time she grows up and her age slowly gets closer to the age of the boy (who because he is a spirit doesn't age or ages very slowly). As these summers go on they grow closer together to the point where they think about each other constantly throughout the remaining seasons. And then, one summer, Gin invites Hotaru to a spirit festival as a date. As they are leaving and they grow closer still, Gin catches a child from tripping and thus touches a human. Then, in the few seconds that it takes Gin to vanish, Hotaru is able to finally embrace the one she loves. Then he is gone, leaving only his mask, and she is left to return home and to a normal life.

Gin disappearing after touching the boy. http://www.deviantart.com/art/firefly-319894218

So on the face of it this would seem like a very sad film. The two main characters share a very real and very close bond. Furthermore it is not a bond based on the physical aspects of love, it is a truly platonic bond between two souls that love each other more and more over time. To lose such a love surely makes a sad film. Yet there is more than this because the want thing they both want, to touch each other, to feel that the other truly exists, they cannot possibly do. This is made clear throughout the film with Horatu trying to hug Gin and then quizzically yet cautiously taking off his mask. However as this realisation of their predicament sets in (after numerous reminders from Gin and other spirits) Hotaru makes Gin promise her, in tears, (after she has fallen from a tree) not to touch her. Their closeness is emphasised by how throughout most of the film they are the only ones around each other in the forest. Physically, they are so close to each other yet are restricted. The only time they do touch is for a brief second. When Gin is gones Hotaru says how her chest hurts afterwards, mourning her lover. It is a very bittersweet moment. On one hand she did get to embrace Gin after years of thinking about him but on the other she can never do the same again. More than that she cannot talk to him again. Also Hotaru was sort of forced into hugging Gin as he would disappear anyway, it was not really her choice to do so. Lastly, I suppose there could never really be a happy ending without some Deus Ex Machima (that would have broken the story for me) due to the way the aging issue was working and their inability to touch. Because of this I suppose ultimately it is a tragic love tale.

A true love that grew over years was lost. Surely a tragedy? http://okashira2.deviantart.com/art/Hotarubi-209758362

However, I never truly got the impression that this film was intended to make the audience feel sad about the end result of the film. It felt like an appropriate conclusion to their love. The hug, which was them living in the moment, resolved everything. Also there is much humour made, for example during their date. The happiness they share is focussed on, not the sadness that they cannot touch. In fact much hunour is centred on the fact they cannot touch as Hotaru often forgets. Comedy is not hugely present in tragedies. Furthermore, at the end of the film, neither Gin nor Hotaru were really sad in what was happening. The spirits who were Gin's friends and family thanked Horatu for doing what she had done, giving Gin what he had wanted. The characters were not sad and I had the feeling neither should the audience. They love was never truly going to be able to happen, even if Hotaru moved to her uncle's town and found a job there. She would always be living a sort of double life. Both Gin and Hotaru knew it would never work so the hug was a fitting and climatic end to their Benjamin Button-like relationship. 

Everyone was at peace with what happened almost immediately. http://rells.deviantart.com/art/Hotarubi-No-Mori-He-288519708

Ultimately, I see it in the light that Hotaru gave Gin what he wanted and everyone was happy. In the end she took him out of what was essentially a cursed existence. He was a human that could not truly love, but she gave him true love. Also we do not get a sense of the sadness that might befall Hotaru, we get the feeling she is at peace with what happened. But again it is up to personal interpretation. So what did you feel?

The embrace was definitely the climax of the film. Was it worthwhile? http://wall.alphacoders.com/big.php?i=310825

Links for the anime:

http://myanimelist.net/anime/10408/Hotarubi_no_Mori_e/pic&pid=38229

http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?show=anime&aid=8289

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=12543

It's not so Black and White - Tekkon Kinkreet (2006)

Tekkon Kinkreet is definitely an interesting movie. It is both visually unusual in the character designs and visually beautiful with the backgrounds and dream/hallucination sequences. It has a decent plot, not too twisty, centred around two orphans (Black and White) and their struggle in fighting the Yakuza that have moved in on "their town", Treasure Town. It also follows one of the Yakuza but his story is somewhat subsidiary to that of Black and White. It is the relationship that these two orphans have and how it is tested that is the true conflict of the film, even after quite a lead up to it being a show down between them and the assassins the Yakuza named Snake has sent after them.

White and Black... Fanart. Yeah. http://tribblenuu.deviantart.com/art/tekkonkinkreet-children-of-the-skies-294945949

 

The two orphans are set up as polar opposites of each other. To start with their names are Black and White. Black is the older, serious, unsympathetic, and bascially the darker one of the two. White on the other hand is playful, nice, empathetic, and the more likeable of the two. The two are definitely shown as opposite with the contrast in the visuals of their dream sequences even before the main conflict, with White's being bright and colourful, whereas Black's are dark with deep bellowing sounds. White and Black are even told how the are different by the old man they hang around, their street "Grandfather", who talks to Black as if he is an adult but White as if he is a toddler. Despite being opposites they obviously compliment and need each other. Obviously they fight together and seemingly work together with White distracting people, or rather fitting in, whilst Black pickpockets them. However, throughout the beginning it seems White is more dependent on Black. Black is the one that comes up with the fight plans. Black is the one that goes out at night for money. Black is seemingly protecting White from the harsh reality of the world outside his dreamland. 

Black's darkness is manifest in the Minotaur. http://elliotalfredius.tumblr.com/post/21450702918/its-fan-art-friday-this-week-is-tekkon

The two are bascially shown as Yin and Yang, opposites that depend on each other. The symbol is placed on the back of Black's sweater (at the end) to constantly remind the view of this type of relationship. This Chinese symbol is used in numerous animes and pieces of media generally but I feel as though its use in Tekkon Kinkreet was really nice to see as it was used as the main plot twist it seems. I mean the fact that they are not twins (or even biological brothers) and how this allows for the abandonment of White by Black in the film is even an interesting plot development. But what is of real interest is how it is not until Black is with his inner conflict do we truly realise how White was really protecting Black. We get ideas of it in the film but we at the beginning we are made to believe Black is looking after White, protecting him from the reality outside his dream like world. White is described as remarkable by the old man because he is uncorrupted by Treasure Town and then Black says how he will continue to protect him. However, later on the old man tells Black how White is stronger than he assumes and he is weaker than he thinks. The old man even says that White is the one looking after Black. White also shows he is aware of his role in this when he says to Sawada how he has all the screws Black's heart needs. White also prays for Black. He is Black's spiritual guardian. 

Black and White and yin-yang. http://ehri.deviantart.com/art/Tekkon-Kinkreet-Yin-and-Yang-277357685

Furthermore, Black only calms from his frenzy of killing when he dresses up a doll and fools himself into thinking it is White. When this doll is killed and White is "killed" for a second time Black truly loses it again becoming the Minotaur (I dont think the Minotaur is seperate from Black but an inner personality as it is set up this way by the other kids and by the fact they weld the same weapon). Ths relationship  true when the inner conflict within Black is really a struggle between White and the Minotaur. In fact when Black initially abandons White after the hospital it could be seen as because (not that Black thinks White is necessarily dead) but that during White's sleep the Minotaur within Black was released. This is apparent when Black and the old man are talking about White and although Black cries about White's condition and weakness, he (the Minotaur part of him) also smiles knowing it now has the strength to be set free. It is thus shown and revealed how truly yin-yang this relationship is. 

Again yin-yang fanart. http://lupo-negro.deviantart.com/art/Shiro-Kuro-304610947

Imagery (with things like two cats and the numerous crows vs a lone white dove) are strong in this movie. So this conflict within Black is all the more interesting when thought about inconjuction with the symbolism of flames that is present in the move. The first conversation of the movie presents the idea that people are like flames on a matchstick. Beautiful and caring from a distance but after too long they will show you their true colours and hurt or even kill you. This is of course played out (and then rejected) with the inner conflict of Black, who starts off quite nice to some degree, mainly towards White, but then takes a shift for the worse destroying all in his path. White, in killing the first assassin, also seems to body this idea. When pouring gasoline all over the first assassin he seemingly shows no concern for Black's safety. It is interesting that a flame is again shown to depict how cruel someone (White in this case) can be under their kind exterior. 

Shiro with a flame. This is the black spot in his usually white half of the yin-yang thing. http://jakewyatt.deviantart.com/art/tekkonkinkreet-fanart-198254087

Anyway, I felt the end of the film was the truly rewarding bit as it really showed the twist in the yin-yang relationship and let it sink in fully. At the end of the film White and Black are at peace, on the beach (where they dreamed of being). White makes one last message from Earth to whoever (the audience I am guessing this time) However, now this childlike rambling about keeping the earth at peace, along with his other ones retroactively, are cleverly transformed. They are shown not only to portray the naiveity and innocent playfulness of White himself but also show his awareness of how he is keeping the monster, the minotaur I guess, locked up within Black. It is this change, not necessarily in the relationship itself between the two orphans, but how we view the relationship that is truly great to realise.  love subtle endings like this. Like with Shutter Island where Leonardo Dicaprio's character knows he will get a lobotomy and is happy to do so. These subtle hints are great and although not necessary mind blowing, are very rewarding. It really makes you wonder how uncorrupted White really is. Or how out of tune with the world is he really. 

Another great fanart about the yin-yang relationship. http://pandora-inthesky.deviantart.com/art/TEKKON-KINKREET-35K-Kiriban-90687041

Interestingly, in an interview (see link below), the director said he kept the name Tekkon Kinkreet for western audiences because the name Black and White (by which the manga is known) seemed to imply only contrast and this wasn't what the movie was about. The name however seemed to imply a mess, an intermingling perhaps. In other the relationship between the orphans isn't as black and white as it first appears, it is much more complex, truly a yin-yang relationship. It is this relationship that drives this film, makes the main conflict, and truly makes it an interesting watch because we don't realise how complex their relationship is until the very end.

Links:

http://myanimelist.net/anime/2154/Tekkon_Kinkreet 

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=6531  

http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?show=anime&aid=4054

 

Interview: http://www.superherohype.com/features/94253-excl-tekkonkinkreet-director-michael-arias

A Tale of Two Orphans - Comparing Oseam and Grave of the Fireflies

Recently I have been trying to find Korean animation and in my search I stumbled upon Oseam. It is a movie about two orphans and their struggles. It is very close to one of my favourite animes of all time, Grave of the Fireflies, another movie about the struggle of two orphans. The two share many similiarities but I feel despite this the two give off a much different feeling and due to this different messages for their respective audiences. So if you haven't wacthed either I suggest you do. Don't be put off by Oseam's relative crude animation when compared to Grave of the Fireflies, it is well worth a watch for the story alone, it is definitely a tearjerker as they say. 

Oseam poster with Gilson and his friend. 

Anyway it is probably necessary to say talk about broad the similiarities before we go into the differences. First obviously the two main characters are a pair or orphans, one older, one younger. The older one feels a duty to emotionally protect the younger. In this each pair of orphans tries to seek nothing more than survival and happiness. Also both films end in death, particularly death due to starvation/malnutrion. In other words the skeletons of plot and characterisation are the same or at least very similiar. Also both films use the same sort of techniques to get you to pity the children. We are made to compare them to other children, happier children. The reason of course they are happier is due to the love and protection their parents, mainly their mothers give them. Basically there is more than enough that is similiar to justify a comparison between these two rather emotional animated movies. However, let's get onto the differences for these are far more interesting.

The first difference is the mood presented at the end of the film. Although both end with the death of the younger sibling as well as the discovery and mourning by the older sibling, each has a different feeling. The emotions created in Grave of the Fireflies is one of sadness. This is because throughout the film the siblings lose more and more. At the start they have everything but continue to lose more and more (house, mother and then their already absent father) as the film goes on. On the other hand the siblings of Oseam are already at their lowest points. They have already lost their parents (even if we do discover their mother is actually dead half way through the film to evoke sympathy), their home and Gami has already lost her sight. As the film goes on they gain things, friends/family in the monks and a home in the temple. They have gained some stability and the ability to survive even if they do struggle for happiness at times. However, Gami does usually seem happy with her new home (when not being bullied), even is Gilson is bored and dissatisfied. Seita and Setsuko on the other hand go from their own home, to the abode of their nasty aunty (even though she takes them in she gives them the short straw especially in relation to food), and finally to living on their own. Seita is even pushed so far as to lose his morals and steal. Seita constantly asks for help but is all too often refused. When Gilson asks for help he will receive it, such as with the boiled potatoes (even if he is then bullied he did receive help in the first place). They are not really scolded no matter how much trouble Gilson causes. In other words we feel sad for both sets of siblings but as the film goes on more goes right for Oseam's orphans but it is nothing but downhill for the orphans of Grave of the Fireflies.  

Gilson with his new parental figure. 

This difference of mood is furthered by how the led up to the death is presented. Setsuko's death is a long drawn out process. She is straved, malnutrished and ill for quite some time. She physically changes: the colour goes from her cheeks and from her eyes. She is obviously in pain. She saddingly tries eating rocks and marbles due to ther hunger. She does not even get to enjoy a last meal. In constrast, Gilson's stravation is not long and drawn out. There is only one brief show that he will soon be out of rice to eat. Also the cold winter he is stranded in does not really seem to affect him. In other words the pain in which he would have died in is not emphasised. In fact when he dies he seems to be at peace and realise he is happy with his place in life and his new family (as we can see with the snowman family he has made). Likewise his interactions with the picture of the Goddess of Mercy could imply his pain but the ending turns this into his inner tranquility. It also results in Gami's sight returning, as if Gilson's death is a sort of sacrefice so that his sister can be happy. So again Oseam's mood is generally sad but has definitely more to be happy for than there is in Grave of the Fireflies. As a side note there is little to no humour in Grave of the Fireflies, whereas there is some in Oseam, especially in relation to Gilson and his pet dog.

 

Setsuko and Seita were basically forced to live alone. http://skyfurrow.deviantart.com/art/Fireflies-423638228

So why, why is there such a difference of mood? Well Grave of the Fireflies is set quite obviously during the end of the Second World War. The father is part of the Japanese navy. Seita's and Setsuko's house is lost due to an American bombing. They are forced into stealing because of the regulised ration in place due to the war. Their aunty often scolds them (unjustifiably) for being lazy and worthless in such a time of need. The war is firmly in the background of the film and this is why the film is so negative and sad. It aims to show that war is bad and has many. It doesnot focus on the horrors seen in the trenches but the voiceless victims. The civilian children who do not truly understand what is happening and who have no choice in their circumstances. These are the ones who are really hurt in war and although Grave of the Fireflies is to the extreme, it still shows the victims of war beyond the casualities on the frontline. The fact nothing goes right for Seita and Setsuko shows how selfish and ingenerous people are in war. Now there is some controversy that this comes from a country that realistically lost a war after trying to invade another neutral country (the US) but I don't really want to get into the historical hypocises that could be brought up as the film maker (TERERFE) was not the one deciding to go to war, he is his own man. And so he sharing his antiwar sentiments through this masterpiece of a film.  

The true victims of war are supposedly the children who only have themselves to depend upon. http://orinknight.deviantart.com/art/Grave-of-the-Fireflies-146550966

Oseam, as a movie, on the other hand has no real message for the audience I think, and thus the ending can be happy. In fact I would say it cannot be sad because the story behind Oseam seems to be a fairly traditional one about the transformation and restoration of a Buddhist temple. Interestingly there is a1990 film, live action this time, on the same story. So the story Oseam is based on would promote Buddhism and spirituality. I don't think the director really wants more people to become seriously religious after seeing his movie but the story it is based on would want this. Anyway the traditional tale of Oseam (and so the movie too) definitely shows the value of inner tranquility in a way that makes Gilson's death somewhat acceptable in the scheme of things. Because it is a story of why a temple was made being rebuilt, of course it will have this sort of peaceful, serene and miraclous ending. Why would they build or reconstruct a temple on a cursed ground? Surely if a boy died there and it was not some sort of miraclous and peaceful passing it would not be justifiable to place such a holy and spiritual building in this place. Thus the feeling at the end of the film is what Buddhism is about and so the origin story of a Buddhist temple would have these values.  

At the Buddhist temple.

So there we have it. I hope that it sort of made sense. Again I would urge you to watch both these post haste. Links below:

Grave of the Fireflies:

http://myanimelist.net/anime/578/Hotaru_no_Haka

http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?show=anime&aid=332

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=152

Oseam:

http://myanimelist.net/anime/2141/Oseam

http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?show=anime&aid=1053

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=4495

Weapon Guns - RWBY Season 1

I watch a lot of Roosterteeth's stuff. Roosterteeth if you don't know make videos and podcasts for the internet and are famous for Red vs. Blue (machinima series). I was super jazzed when they announced they would be doing what is basically an anime which was to be done by the guy (Monty Oum) who was hired to but action animations in Red vs Blue. It was obviously going to be pretty funny (Roosterteeth specialise in comedy) with a focus on action. Overall the first series turned out to be fairly well written, there were plot twists, characters became more and more developed, the music and visuals were pretty good. There was nothing of any real stand-out quality except the weapons of the main characters. Anime is known for outrageous fight scenes (where characters yell out techniques and junk) but when I come to think of it there is no real focus on diverse and hugely inventive weapons (just the way in which they are used is wicked, for example Zoro from One Piece uses quite ordinary katanas in a really unique way). So I thought it would be cool to do a post about the cooler weapons within RWBY. 

Official poster: http://montyoum.deviantart.com/art/RWBY-336841243

What makes the weapons shown in RWBY so hype is that they are transformable. They do some wierd Transformer folding changing thing where they can change between numerous forms. Usually the weapons have three forms: one small form where it is easy to carry them; one where is it is better to use as a ranged weapons or rather as a gun of some form; and one form where they are best to use a melee weapons for close quarters fighting. It is sort of unclear how these weapons work on a technical level other than to say they could be powered by either or both of the character's Aura (their inner power thing) and Dust (this sort of magical power well dust that is found and valued throughout the world). Now before i go over the cooler weapons I should preface this by saying that I don't want to either understate the character's fighting skills or diminish the chereographers' innovation in writing this post but I think the weapons are really why this series is cool. I also think in an interview floating around on the internet that the creator Monty Oum even said that one fight (the one in the yellow or 4th trailer) felt it had something missing before turning the antagonist's baseball bat into a bazooka. In fact one of the older professors of Beacon (Peter Port his name is) seems to have his own combination weapon, further entrenching the importance of these weapons in this universe. 

Cool fanart: http://i3ushidokuroi.deviantart.com/art/RWBY-408158646

So yeah the weapons, for the most part anyway, drive the coolness of the combat sequences (there is only one exceptiong with Lei Ren when Pyrrha is explaining Aura). This is mainly because the weapons are transformable and a hybrid of both a melee weapon and a gun of some sort. A lot of the fight scenes have the characters quickly moving about and dodging using the force from firing their weapons to push them towards or away from their enemy. This force is also used to improve the strength with which the character can hit in a melee attack. Ruby is definitely the main example of this philosophy. Also these weapons seem to be the way in which the characters use magic through Dust. In other words characters could have potentially been allowed to use Dust outside of their weapons but the weapons seem to have such importance in the series that they have to be explained in some way. This is mainly seen with Weiss' and maybe Penny's fights. In fact when the characters fight as a team their roles and combinations are decided based on what they can do with their weapons. So when JNPR fights the big scorpion thing only Nora can finish it due to the nature of her weapon.

Crescent Rose. This is the scythe come sniper rifle of the main character, Ruby. She often uses the projectile power of her weapon to enhance her speed and the power of her melee attacks. Fanart: http://xuoust2o.deviantart.com/art/RWBY-Ruby-392577564

Myrtenaster. This is the sword thing of Weiss. Although this weapon doesn't transform it shows how the weapons are used to perform magic like summoning fire or ice, through Dust, rather than through the fighter themselves. Fanart: http://isaiahjordan.deviantart.com/art/RWBY-Weiss-Schnee-377170691

Gambol Shroud. Blake's weapon of some form or another. These take many forms including pistols, a katana and a kunai and chain (or rather ribbon). The lack of firepower seems to restrict its use to push Blake around in a fight but is definitely one of the more versatile weapons in the series. Fanart: http://baka-kiiro.deviantart.com/art/RWBY-Blake-393580853

Ember Celica. The shotgun gauntlets that Yang uses. Definitely very cool and again demonstrative of how the projectile nature of the weapons are used in close quarters combat. They don't transform hugely but can do so in order to block enemy attacks. Fanart: http://kelsealou.deviantart.com/art/Yang-RWBY-400506873

StormFlower. The SMGs with blades on them that are wielded by Lie Ren. These seem to be really the least exciting weapons, mainly because of its seemingly lack of transformablity and use to push him around for improved melee attacks. Fanart: http://dantherrien101.deviantart.com/art/Lie-Ren-of-RWBY-416188432

Milo. The sword/spear rifle thing that can also be used as a javelin by Pyrrha. This is my favourite weapons probably. I don't know if that's just because I like Pyrrha the best because she and her weapon has such a Greek theme to them, but whatever. It also seems to have a bit more versatility than other weapons to me. Fanart: http://fishnspice.deviantart.com/art/Pyrrha-s-Weapon-Animation-GIF-394666074

Magnhild. The sledge hammer that is combined with a gernade-launcher, all used by Nora. I know many people love Nora and her weapon. Again she uses her weapon mainly as a melee weapon and in its hammer form can pull the trigger to both push her around and to strengthen her melee hits. Fanart: http://grumpythesheep.deviantart.com/art/Rwby-Ep-8-Oh-Nora-415169084

Gunchaku (fan name). This is one of the more versatile weapon that can be change from a pair of nunchaks that are really pistols. It can also be combined into one of those long poles (like Donatello from TMNT uses). It is used by Sun Wukong in one really awesome fight sequence. Fanart: http://nightmarezenuki.deviantart.com/art/RWBY-Vale-Arena-Sun-Wukong-sprite-416014085

Puppeteer (fan name). The very confusing weapon used by Penny. At first this weapon could be seen to be control by extra powers beyond the weapon itself, but then it is revealed that all the "levitating" swords are really connected to a backpack thing by wires (extremely strong wires) than explicably control the swords. Again these create the magic, not the character alone. Fanart: http://linda916.deviantart.com/art/RWBY-Penny-412677704

So yeah I suggest you go to watch the series on: http://roosterteeth.com/archive/?sid=rwby&v=more/

The best episodes (in terms of fighting) is definitely the four trailers (red, white, black and yellow) and episodes 1, 7, 8 and 16. 

An Attack on the Trend - Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin)

So late last year the western anime world has been abuzz watching the new anime series Attack On Titan. I myself finished rewatching it a few days ago and thought why it is so good and I like it so much. It is because it bucks the trend from normal or at least popular long running trends of Shounen nowadays (animes like One Piece, Bleach, Naruto, Fairy Tale, etc). Admittedly shows like Berserk have many of these characteristics but right now it feels so fresh. Yes the weaponry is wicked but there are better things to like. Anyway here we go (remember just based on the anime not manga). 

Even just from the posters I saw of the anime I was intrigued.

First unlike many shounen nowadays Attack on Titan is much darker. It has many more horror and terrifying elements in it. There is a lot more death generally (and quite brutal death at that), than just having an enemy knocked out. I can't imagine how it feels to be eaten alive. Some may just say it is more gorey but there are definitely elements within the anime that make it seem darker. For a start the animation and visuals themselves are done with a darker or less bright colour palet than most other animes.  Characters are more often scared to the point of being frozen and singular bravity is not rewarded as often. Also there is very little comedy in the series generally, maybe a little here and there such as in the training camp. 

This fanart really typifies the horror of the anime: http://chalii.deviantart.com/art/Attack-On-Titan-371314013

Further than this there was no comedically ignorant or useless character at which the other characters get angry at. There are no real pervy characters either. This was one of the more refreshing thing, because I feel I am more annoyed about them than the other characters. Although in saying this there are still are variety of characters that would find their way into other shounen: the brave to the point of being brash protagonist (Eren); the smarter strategist who is a bit cowardly (Armin); and, among other archetypes, the mysterious somewhat inhuman total badass (Levi). However one piece of the core group of characters seems somewhat out of place in other shounen. This is Misaka. Her strength and skills is not comical like elsewhere. In fact Attack on Titan even seems to slam the archetypes. As said before singular bravity and determination is not all that is important and we get the feeling if Eren, with his "shoot first ask questions later" mentality (a mentality a lot of shounen lead protagonists have) was to truly lead a group into battle he would get them killed quite quickly. 

A very cool painting of Misaka. http://jxbp.deviantart.com/art/Mikasa-Ackerman-Attack-On-Titan-396926767

The main reason Attack on Titan is darker, grittier or more of a horror than other popular shounen is due to the enemy. Now this enemy and the aim of the heroes seem hugely different to other anime. Yes they are fighting their enemy to somewhat save the world (a common trope) but the enemy is not some evil human or rival, but then again it is not something that is totally novel or alien. The titans are not a new creation but something influenced quite obviously by our own images. The creator has said the titans were inspired by drunk mindless people. These mindless, aimless, base giant human that just destroy and eat humans for the sake of eating humans are not only terrorifying due to their aims and power but also the way they are presented. Some of them are just like enlarged humans but the slightly disfigured ones with bare muscles showing an ever persistant grin are just plain creepy. 

Definitely the creppiest titan, the infamous Smiling Titan.

As I said the aims of the heroes is to, yes, ultimately save the world unlike other shounen, which just have saving the world as an excuse to have an awesome fight sequence, Attack on Titan really gives you the sense these people are fighting for survival. And this again comes down to the power and motivation of the enemy. They are not fighting some evil genius or some rival they are fighting the titans as a species. It is war, not just a brawl. This draws into another difference that makes Attack on Titan great and this is the anime's lack of emphasis on the individual, especially in relation to combat. We see in the many fights and even just from the training Eren and crew go through that (unless you are Levi or Misaka and truly exceptional) that taking down a titan is not easy task and individual battle is discouraged. No character is given a special set of clothing. They are all in relatively similar uniforms, unlike many other animes which connect characters with the smallest of physical similarities.

The main cast of characters the 104th Trainee Squad. Some of these die quite brutality but you can just see how uniform they are compred to other shounen. 

The type of battle than is used in Attack on Titan creates a sense of tension not really found in other animes which give you a feeling of how will they succeed not if they will succeed. As said there is more death, second chances are not really a thing here. Many characters are given some screen time and personality and then killed. There is no extended combat where one combatant is knocked down then gets up and so on and so on. This idea that no one is safe is great and keeps tension high all the time. Also the victories in Attack on Titan never truly feel like victories. The characters never truly seem to be overpowered compared to their enemies because when the humans' aim is often just to save as many people as possible. This too creates that tension in combat. Of course this is all after the protagonist was left as dead for three episodes. Ultimately he did return but just the way he was left as dead for such an extended period really helped to give everyone a sense of mortality that brings tension to the series. 

Death keeps the anime tense.

Another difference for me at least was the storytelling in this series, which I assume will break into a few more seasons. This first season or first arc or whatever, with the Female Titan didn't really feel like an arc. It actually felt like a piece of a larger puzzle. A lot of questions were left unanswered. What is in Eren's basement? What happened to the Colossal Titan and the Armored Titan? Why exactly was a human working with the Titans? Nothing has been answered because although the Female Titan was stopped she presumably can not be questioned inside her crystal shield thing. So yes although in one way it feels like an end to a specfic mission it does not feel like the reset button has been hit. With a lot of shounen animes arcs could be put in any order because after an enemy is defeated it is like things return to normal until the next enemy arises. The story goes on and if you missed an arc the overall story and the characters would not be diminished. With Attack on Titan (and maybe this is just because it is its first season) it feels like there is deeper underlying plot that is still unravelling which I don't get with other animes like One Piece or Fairy Tail. Maybe this is also because there is such intrigue into the world which is just revealed little by little, such as when they go outside the city walls, that other animes don't have the luxury of doing. 

What happened to the other special titans? Are they also Titan-Shifters? http://goruditai.deviantart.com/art/Attack-on-Titan-384008116

All this being said Attack on Titan trips over some of the same hurdles, namely what many would call "filler", inner or outer monlogues that delayed fights. All this does stop some of the tension it creates but really this is fine. Likewise it tried for a huge twist in revealing who the Female Titan was but this could have been easily guessed long before it was revealed. In the end I am happy such an anime is as popular as it is. I want more darker shounen, like this, like Rainbow, like Death Note. The repetitiveness of popular shounen like One Piece and crew are just not compelling for the 600+ episodes these series can go on for. So I hope Attack on Titan does continue but what I don't want it to become is some sort of mecha anime where Eren must just fight different Titan Shifters and the overall plot is not advanced. I hope it does have a definitive end after say three or four more seasons and also that other darker anime get made and become popular. 

Thanks for reading, links for the anime:

http://anidb.net/a9541

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=14950

http://www.anime-planet.com/anime/attack-on-titan

Daft Punk On The Music Industry - Interstella5555: The 5tory of The 5ecret 5tar 5ystem

I am a pretty big Daft Punk fan so I was watching when, last Sunday, Daft Punk picked up numerous Grammys for their song Get Lucky and album Random Access Memories. This album was supposed to invigorate and bring life back to the dance genre, which had become stale according to them. Due to the modern emphasis put on the mechanics of how a sound is made with a computer rather than the soul that is put into a track, they decided to use live instrumentation with session performers. Anyway before this album (which even has a first track named Give Life Back to Music) had talked about the music industry. I mean their decision to use helmets when they perform shows how people make music for the fame alone, something they choose to reject. However, their anime movie Interstella 5555 is also seemingly a comment on the music industry and quite interesting now. For example, we can see how the band (in the film) become tired and worn out by the fame of their music when they have to sign endless merchandise. 

A pretty cool piece of fanart that puts the Crescendolls in the place of Gorillaz, another band (really one guy) that seems to hide behind persona rather than taking fame from the music. http://angelwingkitty.deviantart.com/art/Interstella-Gorillaz-70997121

If you don't know what Interstellar 5555 is, it is basically an extended music video to Daft Punk's Discovery album. They commissioned the director/animator Leiji Matsumoto (who made all the great animes they loved from their childhood) to animate a movie for their music. The result is a great collobration. Without any actual dialogue it tells a pretty simple yet touching love. Basically an alien band of musicians are kidnapped during a concert and taken back to Earth. Here they are transformed to look like humans, by a machine that changes their memories, and their hit songs are put into Earth's billboards. During their kidnap an astronaut of the blue alien race is notified and he is able to follow the human spaceship to save the band and the bassist who he has a massive crush on (or is maybe in a relationship with). After discovering that the band has become very popular on Earth, the pilot is able to fly into one of their concerts and free all but the bassist of the group, who is swept away quickly. During the getaway however the pilot is injured. After a fashion show where the last controlled member of the band picks up a card that Earl dropped, she is taken to a music award show where the band wins a golden record. The drummer is then able to free and rescue the bassist. She joins the pilot, who then reveals their real identidies and dies as they thank him. They bury him and see off his spirit. On the drive back they see a sign to Darkwood Manor, which was also on the card the bassist picked up, and they go to check it out. They explore the castle and learn about Darkwood's history and plans. Basically with 5555 golden records Darkwood would get some huge power and the Crescendolls had just got him the last one he needed. They then get caught by guards and taken to the place where Darkwood will fulfill his plans. However, after a struggle Darkwood is pushed to his death and the band escapes. The band then sneaks into the record company and steal all their memory disks and stuff. But in his escape, the keyboardist is shocked by a guard and turns blue again. Despite this the truth about eveything is discovered by the humans and the band are helped back to their planet. The band get home after they are attacked by Darkwood's spirit but rescued by the pilot's spirit. 

Nice fanart: http://danielitolikable.deviantart.com/art/Interstella-156776693

So yeah it has a pretty good story focussed somewhat around the love between the female bassist and the astronaut. It has a pretty good animation, seemingly aged but many would say retro as this is Daft Punk's vision of their childhood. The soundtrack is awesome (I love the Discovery album). However, what I found most interesting is how the movie talks about the music industry told through how the band transforms. Obviously the evil kidnapper that has been a music manager for however long is the personfiication of what is wrong with the popular music industry. He takes what seems to be an underground yet beloved band from obscurity and puts them into the limelight. But when he does this he puts them through a machine, seemingly the popular music corporate machine. It transforms their looks to be more mainstream. It is interesting how the guitarist looks like a typical "rocker" and the singer/keyboardist looks like someone from a Jazz or Disco background. The looks seem archetypal rather than individualised. Their music is then distrubuted everywhere and they seemingly become popular because of their management rather than the merits of the music (which admittedly does win the award necessary for the storyline). Often Earl de Darkwood, their manager, will force the band, especially the girl, to do things they would rather not do. 

Close up of the pilot. http://decadia.deviantart.com/art/Interstella-5555-151509688

Also after they go through the machine they are brainwashed and often have glazed looks on their face, especially during their perfromance. I mean this could just be part of storyline but I would say it is more a comment on how popular music is rather stale and unadventurous in both terms of music and lyrics. I mean many people may say it with a musical snobbery but yeah it does seem to be true. Also they never smile. Does the mainstream music industry take the fun out of making music? However, this may also just be part of the storyline itself. They had to be brainwashed so that the evil doer can get his golden record. I suppose the same could be said with their looks and how their music is distributed. Anyway I also wonder about the last part of the film, with the kid and the dolls. Does this talk about the merchanising of the music industry? Does it show how big bands (and their management) are willing to cash in on any popularity they have? Maybe or maybe it is just a random way to end. 

Pretty cool fanart: http://mad-y.deviantart.com/art/Interstella-5555-117693926

So maybe this potential commentary of the popular music industry is just part of the story itself and should not be seen as seperate. However, why is this story placed in the music industry? Daft's songs is really just about love. Why could some other type of love story with key plot points (like the pilot's death because that really fit in which the simple lyrics of Something About Us)? Interestingly one half of Daft Punk has been quoted as saying "The only secret to being in control is to have it in the start... Retaining control is still hard but obtaining control is virtually impossible." In other words Daft Punk has some experiences about how the corporate music machine works. I think that Interstellar 5555 could in fact be their comment on the music industry. Although it could be said this was rather early in their career to do this they had still been making music for almost a decade when the film came out, I think this message is particularly relvelant though. So on reflection maybe the specfics of what I drew out of the film are not so important but the general ideas that the mainstream music industry (as personified by Earl de Darkwood) is potentially abusive and manipulative to musicians. 

All the main characters of the anime with the Daft Punk characters. http://charactermodel.tumblr.com/post/18002572793/interstella-5555-daft-punk

So I hope you enjoyed this analysis of Interstellar 5555. Links for the anime:

http://myanimelist.net/anime/731/Interstella5555:_The_5tory_of_The_5ecret_5tar_5ystem

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=2391

http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?show=anime&aid=1153

Is A Life Worth Three Hundred Million Double Dollars? - Trigun: Badlands Rumble

So after posting my ideas about Trigun I decided to watch the movie made in 2010, called Badlands Rumble. I had been meaning to watch it for a while but I thought I should rewatch Trigun first to get a feel for everything again. It is set seemingly somewhere in the middle of TV series but I don't know quite where, I have heard it is probably between eps 9 and 11. It is about the revenge of the notorious thief Gasback, who was betrayed by his accomplices and before he was killed by them saved by Vash. Anyway when I was watching I noticed how well the overlying conflict of the series (this being whether or not it is ever right to kill someone) is played over again. Again it is in the forefront and combined with many other topic, revenge, the value of family and even incorporates some new ideas, such as theft. Vash is as he always is, fumbling around and saving everyone's live despite his reputation as the coldest killer around. But one good thing about it is (because the main story with Amelia and Gasback is set up by Vash saving Gasback 20 years ago), that the writers are able to give the idea of redemption and a clean slate more of a thorough look without just speaking about it. We can see whether it worked, but more on this later.

Trigun wasn't an ugly anime by any means but it has dated, like anything. The new look animation was super hype. 

Just as Vash stays the same (he does add some points, like his philosophy is not religious, implying it is more common sense or above religion), Amelia is the new Wolfwood. Wolfwood does appear but he is not hugely relevnat for this talk (although he does say that his killing is nothing personal, just his job - interseting as a reason we are told not to kill is because everyone has a family and has someone to remember them). She will come round to Vash's way of thinking, but this time not after the two have a huge fight, this time is it a moment of clarity, where she realises what she has been doing is wrong and now gets what she should be doing. This happens when she returns to the town after she thinks Vash has died. She overhears a mom crying about how her boy will die without power, due to an illness, and Amelia remembers how she also broke the powerplant lightbulb thing when trying to shoot Gasback. She realises she could have killed the boy and seemingly also realises all killing is wrong. This is eventually shown when she decides not to show Gasback in the final fight scene.

Amelia with a photo of the man she wants to kill, Gasbcak the notorious thief. 

Amelia is also used to show off some of the deeper parts of the philosophy presented in the Trigun series. Firstly she is a representation of revenge. She wants revenge for her mother and wants to kill Gasback. However, the fact she can let this go shows she realises revenge is not a reason to kill someone. Secondly her rather emotional backstory shows how valuable life is and how painful is it for family-members to lose a loved one. She is the family member left behind who must bare with the grief.  And lastly she is the reason to spare people. (Spoiler alert she is Gasback's daughter) So if Vash had not saved Gasback, at the start set twenty years in the past, she would not exist. She symbolises the good things that can come about if life is not snuffed out. 

Another piece of fanart (by the person who did the Rem picture from my last post. http://solidgrafi.deviantart.com/art/Trigun-Badlands-Rumble-Amelia-286516276

Anyway one of the new ideas about killing comes from the character Gasback, the notorious thief. He thinks of everything in terms of personal gain and loss and sees life just as something to be valued along side property and possessions. He thinks everyone is out for themselves and their own gain, so to do this we need to steal and stuff. Basically I help myself by hurting others. He asks why should others get things (to keep their lives) for free. He thinks he will be better off with others dead as he will have comparatively more stuff. Killing seems like just another thing to steal (but yet he never actually kills anyone which is wierd). When he talks to Vash about this concept of life Vash uses this to his (philosophical) advantage by implying stealing is never right, so because killing is a form of stealing, killing is never right either. Also Gasback does bring up the idea of redemption (and its plausibility and possibility) by confronting his enemy and calling him irredeemable. 

Gasback with his signature weapon thing that can do all kinds of crazy shit.

One last point I want to mention is the idea of killing and risk. This was inherent in the Trigun series. It was either kill your enemy (or the person who is going to kill others) and save them for certain, or let them live and risk losing your own life or that of your friends. Wolfwood appropriately (because this is all his ground in the TV series) is the one that mulls this over. Others, such as Wolfwood, do not like risking their lives in the hope that the other person with a gun will kill. But Vash is willing to take this risk again and again. Ultimately he succeeds but there is always a risk. The image and metaphor is used on several occassions with this idea. In a way this all adds onto and sort of clarifies the idea it is kill or be killed. It shows there is no certainty if you let live that there will be other deaths. There is risk, like rolling a dice, for sure but the odds could go in your favour and all you can do is hope. 

Ok so another reason for writing this was to show off more cool fanart. http://srokaml.deviantart.com/art/Trigun-113362277

The Trigun series had one of the most thought out and repeated messages I have seen in a TV series. I thought the movie was just going to be a fun revival of the characters, action movie, like what One Piece movies are, just problem problem problem then fighting and solution (but with shounen characters you love from TV). But it was more than that. The writers were able to continue and expand on the ideas of the mortality of killing in the movie and I was pleased by this.