Denkyu: Anime Webzine

by Otakuden

In every generation of anime fandom there is one anime in particular that either redefines or creates a new genre, sometimes both. From this anime is birthed a new generation of fans who embark on their journey of otakudom. No matter how many years pass or how much anime is watched, they will always trace their induction with nostalgic fondness back to that one anime which has since been the standard of all its successors to date and to come. There can be only one original.

Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon.

Based on the original manga by Naoko Takeuchi, the manga itself ran for a total of 18 tankoubans from February 1992 to March 1997. An epic romantic drama, Sailor Moon redefined and created a whole new genre of the mahout shoujo medium (magical girl) that to this day is still emulated. Following the manga storyline as accurately as possible and with consultation by Naoko Takeuchi, there were five seasons of anime which ran from March 1992 to February 1997 for a total of 200 episodes. In addition, three subsequent movies and an OVA special collection were also created along with a multitude of live Sailor Moon musicals. Up-and-coming producers, directors, seiyuu, and musical composers may very well not be who or where they are today if it was not for their work on Sailor Moon.

On a personal level, Sailor Moon was discovered by yours truly during my high school years which brought the wide world of anime back into my life, and this time for good. Weekday mornings were spent waking up earlier than usual to ensure I could catch the newest episode. If not, I would make sure the VCR was set to record. It didn’t take long before I was recording every episode no matter what. From my burgeoning passion I turned to the internet, looking at various sites and searches for more information on Sailor Moon. The deeper I delved, my blossoming otaku horizons were broadened and my eyes opened to three things that forever changed my life.

1) Sailor Moon as I was watching it on TV was edited and cut for US broadcast.
2) Sailor Moon was this phenomena called anime which was an infinitely vast creative medium which I had been totally ignorant of.
3) Fansubs aside, anime on VHS could be found in my local brick-and-mortar video store along with online.

Sailor Moon initially follows the bumbling misadventures of your cute and clumsy average 14 year old Japanese school girl. As the story slowly unravels, it becomes readily apparent that the true beginning of the story of Sailor Moon and her fellow Senshi began thousands of years ago in the Silver Millennium in the Moon Kingdom. Alas, a dark and violent tragedy struck at the happy citizens of the Moon Kingdom and the wheels of fate were set in motion. As her family, friends, and subjects fell dead before the invading enemy forces which consisted of Queen Beryl and her Generals from Earth, Queen Serenity of the Moon Kingdom used the last of her strength to seal the dark forces and send her people to the future. There they would be reborn and hopefully be able to live out their lives once more, this time in peace.

From there Tsukino Usagi and cast take center stage, weaving a dramatic tragedy replete with daily monsters and sometimes controversial subject matter. In both the manga and the anime, Sailor Moon broached some rather sensitive issues: homosexuality, transexualism, same-sex families, family division and rife, teen marriage, life and death, fate, true friendship, and hope. For a bishoujo anime geared towards the average teenage girl, Sailor Moon doesn’t pull any punches. Homosexuality in particular was embraced and expressed in a very natural though sometimes tragic fashion. But then, isn’t that just the way of life? Being gay was OK and it was natural; nothing to be punished or feared. The brutally cruel twists of fate that can lead to death and heartache weren’t lessened in any extent to spare viewers. Live can be all things and such denial is a corrosive poison which is harmful to everyone.

In the face of bitter life and death battles is the light of life and hope which will prevail, but sometimes at a price. All things precious and wroth living for must at times be fought for. As Usagi, the Senshi, and Mamoru fight, bleed, and die for us, our everyday normal happy carefree lives continue. Even when youma (demons) attack and the Senshi appear to save the day, there is no personal recognition, no Thank You. Instead, it is their own individual sense of duty, honor, destiny, and love for Earth and Humanity that is the Senshi’s reward. Even the most selfish, cruel, and dismal person is worth saving.

All life is precious.

For all of its seriousness, Sailor Moon has an overabundance of humor and silliness. Part of what sets Sailor Moon aside above all the rest and why it truly is a genre unto itself is the balance between a complex theme and a light-hearted tale of girls growing up while trying to find a peaceful balance between finding love and friendship and protecting the Earth.

The first four seasons and three movies of Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon were previously released in collections and single DVDs by both ADV and Geneon, respectfully. Unfortunately, the DVDs are long out of print. The last season, Sailor Moon Star, and the OVA specials collections have never been licensed. While the releases were for the most part uncut and unedited and for the first time available in Japanese with English subtitles, Sailor Moon didn’t receive the best loving treatment possible. An entire episode was left out of the second season and the original video masters along with the English subtitles were at times rather shoddy. That being said, I consider myself lucky to be a part of this timeless classic. I dream of it being relicensed and rereleased with the love and care that Sailor Moon and tachi deserve, but in the meantime, no matter how many years pass amidst a continuous plethora of anime I watch, Sailor Moon will always hold a very dear place in my heart as the progenitor of my otakudom.

To check out all of Otakuden’s reviews, check out her blog at http://otakudenreviews.livejournal.com/

by Otakuden

Long detective TV series can be done one of two ways: refreshingly successful or boringly unending. I have partaken of both over the years, so I always find it exciting to make a new and refreshingly successful discovery of a long detective anime series.

Detective Academy Q is my most recent success story. Originally animated and broadcast in April of 2003 and through March of 2004 for a total run of 45 episodes, Detective Academy Q features a star-studded cast of who-is-who in the sieyuu industry, both then and now. I recognized seiyuu that I have enjoyed continuously over the 13 plus years of my otaku induction. Their enduring and widely recognized talent raises Detective Academy Q to the next level. Megumi Ogata, Aya Hisakawa, Houko Kuwashima, Koichi Tochika, Tomoko Kawakami, Hideo Ishikawa, Hideyuki Tanaka, Ken Narita… to name just a few. Add a veteran directorial and production staff, and you have a recipe for almost guaranteed success.

Based on the original manga Detective Academy Q by mangaka Seimaru Amagi and Fumiya Sato, the anime stands just as well on its own. Having not read any of the manga myself, I was able to follow the storylines and character development with no difficulty at all. The overall flow was smooth with very little noticeable hitches. Might I have benefited more having read the manga first; possibly, but that was not a personal deterrent from enjoying the anime.

Our main characters are Ryuu, Kyuu, Megu, Kazuma, and Kintaro. Talented on their own, these young aspiring detectives truly shine as they hone their skills through teamwork and mutual support. It is very refreshing to see not just one character blossom and outshine the rest, but instead to see the entire Dan Detective School (DDS) members of Class Q each blossom into fine detectives while overcoming multiple hardships and obstacles along the way. One could argue that Kyuu is the overall main character, but I disagree. Detective Academy Q ends with a successor to the DDS chosen but not revealed. I believe that the producers wanted to leave it open and up to the fans to decide who or whom would succeed Dan Morihiko as the leader of the DDS.

Detective Academy Q has a main antagonist in the form of the evil organization Pluto which seeks to solve your problems by orchestrating the perfect crime for you from the shadows. It was Dan Morihiko’s lifelong mission and achievement in destroying the past Pluto organization before he retired and formed the DDS in search of the next generation of great detectives. As a seasoned detective and man of intelligence, he knew it would be only a matter of time before Pluto resurrected themselves and brought evil once more into the world. Enter our young stars of Class Q (for qualified), the next generation of whom the DDS and the world may very well be placing their hopes and future on. It is possible that Pluto played a minor role in the early cases of Class Q, but more likely than not, Pluto didn’t become active until later in the series as Class Q became ever more skilled and refined and their future potential as detectives would be a danger to Pluto. To ensure their revival, Pluto awoke from its long slumber and once again started dabbling in the lives of the lost, confused, and scorned, all the while issuing a challenge to Class Q to stay out of their way or suffer the consequences.

The anime follows a standard case-of-the-day episodic formula, yet quite frequently that formula is broken into multiple episodes. Allowing a reasonable length of time to complete each case lends a heightened sense of reality to Detective Academy Q that other detective anime fail to grasp. Not everyone case, every puzzle, every mystery can be wrapped up in a neat little package in just one 24 minute episode. A crime may be cut and dry, but finding the road to successfully solving the crime may not be. Sometimes multiple episodes are required to fully flush out the characters, the story, the crime, and the reasons why.

Detective Academy Q is unfortunately unlicensed at the moment, but the complete series is available fansubbed. It is my wish that sometime in the future this excellent detective anime TV series will see a US license and DVD release. In the meantime, grab some popcorn, a drink, and join Kyuu, Ryuu, Megu, Kazuma, and Kintaro as they solve refreshingly original cases. I found it nigh impossible to stop watching as the hours and episodes flew by, bringing me to a very satisfying conclusion before I even knew it. I am sure you will, too.

To check out all of Otakuden’s reviews, check out her blog at http://otakudenreviews.livejournal.com/

by Otakuden

You wake up one morning to find the world has change drastically overnight. Amazingly enough, you go about your routine in normalcy and call it a day as you crawl into bed and succumb to a peaceful slumber. The next day you wake up and that which had been so different was now so boringly normal it bore hardly a conscious thought, blending into the scenery, life, and society as naturally as if it had always been there.

The mothership.

After she crash-landed on Earth at some point in Mayuko’s (Mayu) early childhood, the sudden shock to humanity of not being alone and having to coexist with a human-like alien race all but disappeared. Humanity and society created a place for the displaced aliens just as they would have for fellow displaced immigrants. Years later it is simply business as usual. On the flip-side, because of the new alien residents, NieA_7 also deals with a lot of the rather heavy and pertinent issues of discrimination, racism, stereotypes, poverty, social class, small town vs. big city, etc. If life is business as usual, that unfortunately means one must live with and deal with the darker side of humanity also.

Thrust into this new mish-mash of modern society and its ills are our two main characters, Mayu and NieA, an Under 7 alien which means that NieA is of the lowest class of aliens, an outcast whose existence isn’t even recognized by the alien citizenship board. Mayu is a poor, hard-working small town girl who attends cram school in the city during the day and works at a small family-owned restaurant at night to make ends meet. She lives in one of the upper level rooms at a public bath house which her family used to own when she was just a child. It has since passed out of her family’s hands, but fortunately it is currently owned and operated by the enthusiastic if slightly eccentric Kotomi. NieA is her fun-loving, free-wheeling and free-loading room-mate who set up her home in Mayu’s closet one day, much to Mayu’s initial disgruntlement. The two couldn’t be more dissimilar, and yet a deepening friendship and trust gradually develops between Mayu and NieA. Factor in Mayu’s UFO otaku friend and fellow cram school student, Chiaki, and Yoshitoshi Abe and his creative staff has formulated one of the most endearing and wackiest slice-of-life anime yet.

NieA_7 revels in the boorishly normal by being extremely exotic. Lavish accessories, absurd fashionistas, and consumerism take a back seat to the everyday. The daily bathhouse customers, Mayu, NieA, Chiaki, Genzo, Kotomi and others are just your average young adults trying to get by, find their place in the world, and have fun all at the same time.

That doesn’t mean that NieA_7 is without slapstick humor, gags, and a plethora of insanity. It is, and more. The pure zaniness and incredulity is what brings that natural sense of realism to NieA_7. Each time I watch this 13 episode OVA, there is nothing I cannot personally relate to. I can relate to Mayu’s super-strict budget and almost daily struggle to make ends meet all while trying to maintain a positive outlook on life. NieA’s innocently naïve and free spirit reminds me of my carefree youth, and can make anyone who is tied down by the burden of excessive adult responsibilities think twice about what being happy and being free really means. Chiaki’s bold honesty with her UFO otaku obsession makes a fellow anime otaku like myself grin from ear-to-ear each time she has a major geek-out moment, having had quite a few of those myself.

Is there some great cosmic secret or truth to be told? A mystery of life to be revealed? A great revelation of epic proportions?

No. That is not at the heart of NieA_7. It’s place is to raise awareness of discrimination, racism, poverty, social class, and stereotypes without being preachy by allowing her zany characters just to live their lives and thus illuminate these touchy issues naturally. NieA_7’s greatest treasures are Mayu, NieA, Chiaki, and others, living day to day, laughing, crying, arguing, reminiscing, relaxing, and just trying to be. They are the heart of NieA_7.

A crimson sunrise.
Sundaes with your best friends at a local café.
Late nights helping out at work.
Quiet moments of reflection.
Bitter arguments and teary reconciliations.
Battery operated UFO flights.
Exploding bath-houses.

NieA_7 was originally licensed and released on DVD in the US by Geneon. Its license is currently either lost or in limbo to the best of my knowledge, but new and used copies can be found online and in scattered stores. If you happen to stumble across this fabulously hilarious and poignant slice-of-life anime, take Mayu and the gang home with you. Just be sure to watch out for killer man-eating venus fly traps along the way.

To check out all of Otakuden’s reviews, check out her blog at http://otakudenreviews.livejournal.com/

by Otakuden

Life is a very serious matter, but that doesn’t mean that life is meant to be taken seriously all the time. If it wasn’t for laughter, for outrageous comedic moments, outlandish parodies, and priceless satire, surely humanity would have gone mad eons ago. While the serious moments of our lives give purpose and drive, the laughter and smiles is the glue that holds us all together and makes living possible.

This is nowhere more evident than in the creative genius that is Photon: The Idiot Adventures. Brought to me by Masaki Kajishima, the same creative genius who was behind Tenchi Muyo and Dual, Photon perfectly bridges the gap between the serious tragedies of life and the gut-busting insanity of our day to day reality. What is life but one big cosmic joke in which taking things too seriously is just as detrimental as being too lackadaisical.

Enter our main characters: Photon, Keyne, Aun, Papacha, and Lashara. In the distant past on a remote planet, there was once a spaceship which crash-landed, thus opening our anime, Photon. During its fiery descent, a mysterious object from the ship fell to the ground, landing amidst the primitive people there. Recovered by one of the natives during its descent, this seemingly mystical and sacred object is help aloft for all too see, and in one single instant, the path of evolution and society takes an unexpected turn. Hundreds of years later, the Holy Object has catapulted the original natives to a civilized agricultural state by giving motion and life to various objects and implements: tools, machinery, modern conveniences, and even producing fire.

So, just what is this Holy Object?

A marker.

Yes. None other than a marker, also known as an Aho pen in the civilization it came from. To truly appreciate the double, triple, and sometimes quadruple entendres of this and other linguistic parodies within Photon: The Idiot Adventures, one must first understand what the word Aho means in Japanese.

Translation: moron, stupid, idiot.

In other words, an all around buffoon. The counter-agent to the great power of Aho is Un-Aho, and the center of all Un-Aho is known as the Singularity Point. This would mean that whoever is the Singularity Point is the antithesis to all Aho in the known universe.

Amidst all the silly hijinks unravels a tale of power and corruption, love and heartbreak, promises made and promises kept, and intergalactic conflict. Thrust into this mayhem is our main characters. While there are multiple important secondary characters, the main character in this tale is Photon, our loveable mascot, or man, for whom this particular OVA series is named. Photon, our token idiot with whom we adventure is simple, quiet, and sensibly down-to-earth almost to the point of simpleton. In summary, Photon embodies the basic principles of chivalry which, unfortunately or fortunately, this also makes him an idiot.

I always find it amazing that the Japanese have so perfectly mastered the craft of pairing absolutely outrageous comedy with very real, very taught emotional human drama and circumstance. In one moment Keyne and Aun are having a no-holds-barred showdown to see who can cook a better meal for Photon, thus proving who is more worthy of being his wife. In another, Keyne battles for her life against Papacha and the Galactic Emperor, both of whom wish to utilize her body which is also the Key to unlocking the limitless power of Aho. Through various turns of events, our heroes will have you laughing vigorously in one moment and on the edge of your seat, pillow clenched in hand the next, as they battle to save the universe and each other.

Photon, Keyne, Aun, Lashara, and Papacha have forever endeared themselves to my heart. Whenever I reminisce about the anime Photon, I can’t help but to smile and snicker. Papacha is one of the most selfish, arrogant, and unbelievably stupid villains I have ever experienced. There is no boundary that cannot be crossed and no parody too crazy. From dancing black dots strategically placed in delicate areas to exploding nose bleeds and sake-swilling hot spring mischief, Photon has something for everyone’s funny bone.

Fortunately, Photon: The Idiot Adventures is available domestically from US Manga Corp. Collected on one DVD; Photon delivers three solid hours of Aho hilarity. No matter how much time passes or how many times I revisit Photon and friends, it is always just as good as the last.

To check out all of Otakuden’s reviews, check out her blog at http://otakudenreviews.livejournal.com/

by Otakuden

From an early age I was instilled with a love of books and the written word. There was an authority, majesty, mystery, and mystique in the artfully composed word. Capable of tearing down walls, crushing dynasties, and creating fantastic new worlds as real as the view outside our windows, the pen was the sword. For all of humanities accomplishments and triumphs, we would be nothing were it naught for the word of wisdom, most often immortalized in the book.

Toshokan Sensou is the latest creative work to praise the irreplaceable power of books, of art, human freewill and expression. In a world as outrageous as a bestselling fiction, our characters live in a society with a hard-line drawn between freedom of expression and the suppression of dangerous thoughts for the safety of her citizens.

The Media Improvement Act.

In the face of thought suppression, the Libraries were left with no option but to unify and arm themselves to protect books and the rights of those who want to read them. The Media Improvement Act and the new Branch of government which regulated it were also armed. After an early confrontation which ended in bloodshed, the various Media Improvement Act committees left the Libraries no choice but to arm themselves. All out war had been declared and battles were being fought on all fronts, whether it is through the power of politics or military tactics.

Thrust into this reality at a young age, our heroine, Iku Kasahara, vows to protect the books she loves and those who have the desire to read them. Not too long after the Media Improvement Act was passed, the final book in her favorite fantasy series which she had waited 10 years for was finally released. Marked as a dangerous item, Iku clung stubbornly onto her copy which she had stopped by the bookstore to purchase. Refusing to let go, Iku stands defiant in the face of armed officers. Just as the situation was to take a turn for the worse, an officer of the Kantou Library Corp stepped into her life, saving both Iku and her book from future despair. Glimpsing only his highlighted outline in the blaze of the setting sun her “Prince Charming” inspired Iku to join the Kantou Library Forces, becoming the first ever female Forces officer.

Tall and naturally athletic, Iku excels at the training, though she does struggle at times with her instructor and the more academic side of her Library Corp training. Overall, she is quickly accepted and gains the respect of her fellow corp-mates and library staff. The first female member of the Kantou Library Forces, Iku has little trouble living up to expectations, though she does keep her acceptance a secret from her parents whom she fears will not approve of her decision and try to force her to return home. Her instructor and troop commander, Atsushi Dojo, can be gruff at times and they clash often, but one can glimpse a deeper growing sense of support, respect, concern, and maybe even more than a professional interest.

Her roommate and best-friend Shibasaki is Iku’s rock of reason and sanity and quite the amazing individual herself. Shibasaki aims to be the first female Library Corp Commander, and with her natural skills and intelligence network, it is a valid possibility.

While each episode deals with the usual character development and sometimes humorous situations, at the heart of Toshokan Sensou is the very serious matter of freedom. Freedom of speech. Freedom of thought. Freedom of expression. Freedom of the written word. In a free society, these are easy to take for granted, but what if they were suddenly taken away from you for the supposed protection and betterment of you and society. Does anyone have the right of absolute authority over you?

It’s not an all-too-uncommon issue when one looks at history and history often repeats itself, albeit it under various guises. Book burning. Censorship. Arrests, violence, social and civil unrest. At what point do society and/or the government cease protecting our freedom and start suppressing it? To regain and protect those rights, what steps should be taken and to what extremes? Iku, Shibasaki, Dojo and all the other characters of Toshokan Sensou embody the very ideals and conflicts we fought for in the past and continue to hold dear. Even now, is the battle truly over?

A short yet well scripted package, Toshokan Sensou runs for 12 episodes. Much as in real life, solutions to such complex issues don’t come easily and at the end of the day, while progress was made, the road remains long. The difference is in those who give up and those who keep up the good fight for the freedom they believe in.

Toshokan Sensou is currently unlicensed, though it is a prime target for a domestic license. With the success of similarly veined anime such as Read Or Die, Toshokan Sensou already has a ready and willing audience. As an avid otaku, reader, poet, and writer myself, Toshokan Sensou touches very personal issues and reminds me of what is precious no matter what day and age.

To check out all of Otakuden’s reviews, check out her blog at http://otakudenreviews.livejournal.com/