AV2 - ART MANGA

"Anime"... All that and more...

Anime...Anime....Anime...

This is the trend.  This is what "they" are always and usually talk about.  For some "common" fans of anime, what they do is just the natural thing that a fanatic would do.  But to those who are already crazy about?  Oh well, they would only see to it that they dont get lost and missed out of what is happening in the world of anime.  They would even dress their pets with anime stuffs!  Buy loads of anime apparels, and most of all...Toys!  Miniature models of thier favorite anime characters.  From collectible cards, stickers... up to those colorful and glamourous pillows and bedsheets, t-shirts and the like.  The most common stuff with anime are the posters.  Many would even sacrifice their meals just to buy the latest and the coolest posters, wallpapers and even ringtones for their cellphones!  Just imagine what a craze this anime thing brings to the world.  And for your information, age doesnt matter...

Just what is it about that "anime" thing that most or all of the youngsters are all craving and talking about?  Why are so many of them gets head-over-heels to Naruto, Rurouni Kenshin, Hanamichi Sakuragi, Gokou and many more.  Even some adults cant just get a hold of it.  Many mothers even other concerned citizens are so worried of the downturns of this stuff.  But let me say that "anime" is all that and more...

So then, let me first discuss with you what "Anime" actually is all about...
To understand the history of anime, one must first know about manga, or Japanese comics.  one of the most difficult things for western audiences to understand is that anime and manga are not designed strictly for children in Japan.  In the western world, comics have only been around for a comparatively short period of time, and have been almost exclusively marketed toward young people.  In Japan, however, artists have been telling stories through the use of drawings for several centuries, so its appeal is much more widespread as the average Japanese person views comics and animation as just another way to tell a story without a age stigma attached to it.

While available throughout the beginning of the 20th century, manga was not a very popular medium until after World War II.  Beginning in the 50's, manga, followed by anime, became very popular ways for artists and writers to deal with the devastation of the war in a new way.  From this point on, manga and anime became an important part of Japanese society.  Manga is generally read by adult commuters on their way to and from work.  It is a cheap and relaxing entertainment for most people who read it.  Most of the manga is published weekly as large collections, usually in black and white.  The high volume of published manga generally means that the artists have to work exceptionally hard to produce enough material each week, sometimes as much as sixteen or more pages each day.

Manga and anime is read and enjoyed by men, women, boys, and girls across Japan.  There are a wide variety of storylines to appeal to a huge variety of readers.  Everything from complex social issues, the future, humanity, and fun topics are found in the pages of manga and on the screens with anime.

Now that I've come to introduce you the basics of what anime is, maybe you have come to realize why is it making such a big bang in the world of so many fanatics.  It is because animation itself is the living of what truly is inside our hearts.  It is giving life to our fantasies and "impossible dreams".  The perfection of the physical appearances of the characters and the strong nature that they always portray are those that's motivating us to do exactly what we ought to do.  Believe it or not, but anime do  inspires.  The childish nature in each of us is what's keeping all these stuff kicking alive.  wheteher you like it or not, you have to feed that childish appetite of yours be it with anime or just plain cartoons and the like. 

I, myself is one of those anime fanatics.  Obviously as it may seem, though.  Anime has done so many good things in my life for you to know.  You may never seem to care about it but once you've come to indulge yourself with the same thing that keeps the blood in our veins run so drastically that you end up feeling high.  Of course, just like any habits or so, ANime has its own downfalls.  After-effects that could somehow ruin what was once such a natural and common way of living.  I'll be discussing all that and more...  

Do you Know that...

Some fancy trivia...

The following are some of the most important information as to the history of anime and other details concerning it. I know you would want to be aware of where this Anime thing originated...

1.The Japanese artist Hokusai (1760-1849) was the first person to use the term "manga" in 1815, when he referred to some of his comic sketches as "careless" (man) "drawings" (ga).

2.The history of anime begins at the start of the 20th century, when Japanese filmmakers experimented with the animation techniques that were being explored in the West.

3.During the 1970s, anime developed further, separating itself from its Western roots, and developing unique genres such as mecha. Notable shows in this period include Lupin III and Mazinger Z. During this period several filmmakers became famous, especially Hayao Miyazaki and Mamoru Oshii.

4.Mecha, also known as meka or mechs, are walking vehicles controlled by a pilot. Mecha are generally, though not necessarily, bipedal. In most science fiction stories in which they appear, mecha are war machines: essentially armored fighting vehicles with legs instead of treads or wheels. Some stories, such as the Japanese manga Patlabor, also encompass mecha used for civilian purposes such as heavy construction work, police functions, or firefighting.

5.The first occurrence of mecha in fiction is thought to be the novel The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells where the Martians use tripod walkers very similar to mecha.

6.The term "mecha" is derived from the Japanese abbreviation meka (%u30E1%u30AB?) for the English word "mechanical". In Japanese, "mecha" encompasses all mechanical objects, including cars, guns, computers, and other devices.

7.In Japan, "robot anime" (known as "mecha anime" outside Japan) is a genre that features the vehicles and their pilots as the central plot points. Here, the average robot mecha are usually twenty feet tall at the smallest, outfitted with a wide variety of weapons, and quite frequently have tie-ins with toy manufacturers. The Gundam franchise is a prominent example: Gundam toys and model kits (produced by the Japanese toymaker Bandai) are ubiquitous in Japan.

8.Perhaps the most well-known example of mecha are the Walkers such as the AT-AT and AT-ST from the Star Wars series of films. The Hollywood movie Aliens featured a cargoloader as a civilian mecha (although this instance blurs the line between being a mecha or an exoskeleton). More famously known for impacting American citizens is the film Robot Jox, featuring two giant mech fight scenes.

9.Rarely, mecha has been used in a fantasy convention, most notably in the anime series Aura Battler Dunbine, The Vision of Escaflowne and Maze. In those cases, the mecha designs are usually based on some alternative or 'lost' science-fiction technology from ancient times.

10.The oldest Japanese animation we know of comes from about 1907. Only three seconds long it shows a young boy in a sailor suit writing out the words in Japanese for "Moving Pictures," turns to the audience, takes off his hat and salutes.

11.Unlike America, where live-action shows and movies have generous budgets, the live-action industry in Japan is a small market and suffered from budgeting and location restrictions.

12.In the 1980s, anime was accepted in the mainstream in Japan, and experienced a boom in production. The start of the Gundam franchise and the beginnings of Rumiko Takahashi's career began in this decade. Akira set records in 1988 for the production costs of an anime.

13.The series Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z became worldwide successes. Other series like Neon Genesis Evangelion and Cowboy Bebop were popular in Japan and attracted attention from the West.
14. Spirited Away shared the first prize at the 2002 Berlin Film Festival and won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2003, and Innocence: Ghost in the Shell was featured at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.

15.Disney had a strong influence on the animators at that time, but due to commercial issues Japanese animations at that time didn't have a high production standard, but were rather pale imitations of Disney productions (repeating scenes and gags, after recording of sound and so on). Disney also used sound film very early but that was too expensive for most Japanese studios until the mid 30s. Nevertheless, Disney's influence can be seen throughout Japanese animation by the 1950's.

16.In 1948, Toei Animation was founded and produced the first color anime feature film in 1958, Hakujaden (The Tale of the White Serpent, 1958).

This film was more Disney in tone than modern anime with musical numbers and animal sidekicks. However, it is widely considered to be the first "anime" ever, in the modern sense. It was released in the US in 1961 as Panda and the Magic Serpent. Throughout the 1960s and into the early 1970s Toei continued to release these Disney-like films and eventually also produced two of the most well known anime series, Dragon Ball in 1986 and Sailor Moon in 1992.

17.One of the most influential anime of all time, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984), was made during this time period (1980's). The film gave extra prestige to anime allowing for many experimental and ambitious projects to be funded shortly after its release.

18.Some Western animation companies have produced works of some anime resemblance. The Animatrix and the Nickelodeon series Avatar: The Last Airbender were influenced by anime. Other animated series such as Teen Titans have at least a few anime characteristics.

While these animated series are not considered to be anime, they do show some characteristics found in typical anime. In addition, Cartoon Network co-produced anime, such as IGPX with Japanese directors. Even France and Canada have also started to produce anime-inspired shows such as Martin Mystery (Canada/France) Totally Spies! (France) and Team Galaxy (France).

19.Some series from Western Animation have turned to Japanese animation companies for productions. The second season of The Boondocks is produced by Studio Madhouse.

20.Anime has become commercially profitable in western countries as early commercially successful western adaptations of anime, such as Astro Boy, have revealed. The phenomenal success of Nintendo's multi-billion dollar Pokémon franchise was helped greatly by the spin-off anime series that, first broadcast in the late 1990s, is still running worldwide to this day. In doing so, anime has made significant impacts upon Western culture.

Anime's First and Most Notable Creations

*First animation of notable length in Asia/China- Princess Iron Fan

The story was liberally adapted from the popular Chinese folk tale Journey to the West. Princess Iron
Fan is a main character.

Specifically, the film focused on the duel between the Monkey King and a vengeful princess, whose fan is desperately needed to quench the flames that surround a peasant village.

*First animation of notable length in Japan - Momotaro's Divine Sea Warriors

Just like its prequel, the movie features the "Peach Boy" character of Japanese folklore. The film is about the surprise maneuver on Sulawesi island, depicting parachute troops' actions. The whole movie also depicts how Japan "liberates Asia", as proclaimed by the Government at the time.

*First animation in color in Asia/China - Why is the Crow Black-Coated

The story is about an arrogant bird that enjoys life. He sang and dance in the forest in China, showing off his beautiful tail to everyone. Autumn would come and the other animals in the forest are busy preparing food for the winter. The bird continues to live life leisurely.

The winter would come instantly with a heavy snow storm. The bird is now homeless in the cold without preparation. To warm up, he found a random wild fire in the forest. The bird accidentally burned his tail and also lost his singing voice. From there on, the bird is no longer beautiful and is known as the black crow.

*First animation of notable length in color in Japan - The Tale of the White Serpent

The film is essentially an adaptation of the Chinese Song dynasty folktale "Madame White Snake".

Xu-Xian, a young boy, once owned a pet snake in West Lake until his parents forced him to give her up. Years pass and during a violent storm, the snake magically transforms into the beautiful princess Bai-Niang. Bai-Niang finds Xu-Xian, but the lovers are separated by a local monk, Fa-Hai, who believes that Bai-Niang is an evil spirit. Xu-Xian's two Panda pets, Panda and Mimi, try to find Xu-Xian. In the end, Bia-Niang gives up her magical powers and remains in human form to prove that her love for Xu-Xian is genuine.

*First anime broadcasted - Three Tales

The show was an experimental anthology broadcast on the NHK channel. It was divided into 3 parts featuring individual short fairy tales. The first part of the show titled "The Third Plate" is technically the first anime segment ever televised. In total, the show was 30 minutes long.

*First anime series - Otogi Manga Calendar

The show was divided into 2 seasons. In 1961, it was aired in the first season as "Instant History" with 312 episodes, each being just 3 minutes long. The second season "Otogi Manga Calendar" aired 312 episodes, with each being 5 minutes long. While it was the first series ever broadcasted on TV, it should not be mistaken as the first anime ever broadcasted. Three Tales was the first Japanese anime shown on TV, while Tetsuwan Atom was the first 25 minutes anime series.

The show was about historical events through a character who was not aware of "what happened on this day in history". Sometimes photographs and film footages were mixed in with the animations to explain what historical event had taken place. The research archives came from the Mainichi Shinbun newspaper where the director's Fuku-chan manga was printing at the time.

*First OVA (Original Video Animation) - Dallos

In a near future, mankind has moved from a drained Earth to the Moon. Rebel acts of terrorism lead to conflicts with the Earth Federal Government. A mysterious entity called Dallos appears to restore hope.