Fandom Generations: My Take

My bro causeiambetta told me about the travesty that is the Stony Brook Anime Club. Reputedly, they played Wii all of the time, which is a bit unusual. Most otaku pride themselves in being at least a bit ridiculoun, which entails at least a PSIII, Xbox 360, or a vintage system. Mentions of this group, evidently, elicited snickers from the elite geeks at the SF Forum.

As I've probably mentioned before, I was throughly spoilt by the Animation Society at my college. We thought of anime as something precious. We hoped that it would come to these shores and would stay. I tried to corrupt -er- show anime to my friends, and thought there was an obligation to spread the underground gospel so that it wouldn't disapper.

The thought of an anime society that spends it time playing guitar hero, if the allegations are true, is a bit depressing. Also, they are unoriginal in light of the manga & anime Genshiken, which is about an anime club that is caught between other fandom societies and becomes the odd one out.

This surely as a sign of the times. I tend to split the times into five periods:

1. A legendary group that was into anime before there were really commercial releases. They got the ball rolling for the rest of us. Think Toren Smith [1].
2. The group that were high schoolers or adults when Starblazers or Gundam were released. The majority of their viewing were probably multi-generation raws [2] with scripts or fansubs.
3. These were my friends and I who got hooked on Robotech, Voltron, or Mysterious Cities of Gold as kids. There were a few translation companies. Fansubs were prevalent. The Sci-fi channel used to have a weekend block. The term Japanimation didn't sound wierd back then.
4. The Toonami transition phase who had Sailor Moon, DBZ, or Pokemon. Gundam Wing fanboyz 'n girlz and the Big O were the tail end. An editted version of Tenchi hit the airwaves, too. This was when anime went on widespread TV and got recognized as such. At this point, I was crossing my fingers hoping that anime was here to stay, despite the travesty that was Fox-caflowne. [3]
5. Narutards & up.
   

I judge these groups based on their attitudes toward anime & fandom and the advent of the internet. Back in the day (Gen 2 & 3), just owning some tapes was the admission to the club. Later on, peer-to-peer networks made this a moot point. Conventions became the center stage for fan displays and cosplay became more competitive.

Group 4 also saw the emergence of the fangirl, which evolved into the seacow of the 5th Gen fujoshi. And they are the ones that squeal at the Cons.

This is the group that the current guys jamming to Guitar Hero belong to. However, they are also the future of fandom and will there be a 6th group?

[1] He had an anime character named after him and had Noriko from Gunbuster call his name. Lucky bastard. Reeeeaaally lucky bastard.
[2] I'm talking magnetic tape: VHS or Beta. For those who don't know, these degraded with each copy.
[3] No forgiveness!

Come what may...

Another shi-ite-ty day at work. But come what may, the second movie of the Evangelion remake has been scheduled 06-27-09, and I'm going to watch it. The Eva movie 1.11 will be out in the U.S., soon.

My soul has been lifted by a super-shaman.

Chaos;Head - Bits 'n Pieces

Last time, I established a baseline anime that fell under the barely watchable category. That sets up my impressions of the Chaos;Head anime. There were numerous, promising pieces there

• The opaque mystery reminiscent of Lain
• Paranoid atmosphere like Boogiepop
• Eva-elements including the Rei-like singer named FES
  
• A long haired tsundere
  
• good female character designs
  
• whacky blades.
  

It was like a dating sim with swords. In fact, it's roots are a dating sim with swords, as I found out after posting the first draft of this review. And it does little to rise above the limitations of that genre.

The opening episodes were unappealing, to put it mildly. In Evangelion, the weak anti-hero Shinji was drawn along by the extraordinary events. Chaos;Head's main character is portrayed as a sniveling, disgusting otaku. As a fanboy and video-game playing otaku myself, I mean disgusting when I say it. Takumi has delusions about a game gal being his wife and plays an mmorpg all the time, then spends two episodes fending off the come-ons by a pretty student by the name of Yua Kusunoki.

The only reason why I continued watching was because I knew that she would betray him and the blood would start flying. I had read the first chapters of the manga scanlation [2]. When the audience gets a taste of gruesome New Gen crimes and Takumi is accused of the killing by Yua, the series begins to get off of the ground.

The opaque mystery gives tantalizing hints, but instead of letting them unfold, the answers are dumped into the otaku viewer's lap like a bucket full of ice. The ending is so full of tropes that it even had the evil council that was actually lame and the random evil corporation. I'm convinced that listing "megalomanical plot" or "apocalyptic project" in the investment information packet must add at least 50 points to the gain on the IPO.

As I was saying, there were elements there, such as the singer Fes. She's a bit like Sister Creep from "Swan's Song". She's crazy when the world is sane, then is the best equipped to handle the craziness when the crap hits the fan.

There's a gorgeously animated scene where the long haired tsundere whips out her blade with Soul Caliber effects. There's also the voice actress of Kawashima Ami playing the sweet girl, who seems to betray Takumi.

In the end, it never integrates the tantalizing pieces into a work that's greater than its parts. The 12 episode work overall achieves half of a step above Yukikaze and can be entertaining in a looser fanboy kind of a way, but there are better works out there.

My gut instinct tells me that the Chaos;Head anime owes some of its mix of atmosphere and mystery to Paranoia Agent [3], but I haven't actually seen Satoshi Kon's work, so I can't comment.

[1] Fansubbed by m.3.3.w Fansubs
[2] Scanlated by SCX-Scans
[3] Drawn from trailers and comments of people that have watched it.

Baseline

My usual baseline for bad is Battle Fairy Yukikaze. I watched it fairly recent, and it managed to leave an impressively bad taste in my mouth with weak characterization, random plot elements and an unfathomable man-man-machine love triangle. Even more incomprehensible was the remake, which changed some of the planes to women, as if the audience wasn't bludgeoned numb by the mecha-sexual symbolism already present in the unfortunate anime. In the credits, I was horrified to find out that the half-assed storyboarding was a second look based on a manga.

One particular scene compared unfavorably with the GI Joe episode when Shipwreck believed that he had returned home from the war. The main character in Yukikaze thought that he was being treated at a friendly base, which had actually been taken over by the JAM. The aliens tried to seduce him having the mannequin-like nurse shove his face into her chest. I had a hard time figuring out which was worse. That scene or that the wooden nurse was not out of place with the rest of the cast. BTW, I watched that scene in Japanese and English, and writer didn't give either versions much of a fighting chance.

There are works that are worse than Yukikaze. Princess Army Wedding Combat comes to mind, as well as the middle of the drawn out Tenchi TV series. However, Yukikaze establishes a sharp baseline for barely watchable. Some kitsch is simply so bad that it goes so far that it hyperspatially warps from bad to mockably good, kind of like an Atari enemy going off the screen. Yukikaze manages to avoid this and just remains plain bad.

Local Flavor

Upstate vocabulary for today:
CSX Lottery = a lawsuit filed by someone who has been hit by a train, specifically a CSX train. Example: He won the CSX Lottery.

'Mail Hate

I was talking with my friend, when he pointed out that I don't read my email thoroughly anymore. Then it hit me that I've come to dislike email and sometime hate it. I'm sure that this aversion comes from work, where I get bombarded with many requests and many annoying requests.

It's the ultimate tool for delegation and it's the lowest energy level for low energy people. I could rant and rave about it, but I won't. Fortunately, I'm now conscious of the aversion and can now challenge my apathy.

Paprika: The Spice of a Fulfilled Life

Warning: reading this post will spoil the movie so rotten that a neo-otyugh wouldn't touch it.
Credit: First, Paprika is the work of Kon, copywritten by Sony, the original author Tsuitsui, and everyone else in the credits. Second, most of this post came from discussions from causeiambetta, a modest man with a modest handle.

In the anime movie "Paprika", script-writer and director Satoshi Kon explores the themes of wholeness and mental health through dreams.The movie uses a fictional device called the DC mini, which allows the user to enter another person's dreams. The technology is supposed to be used for psychotherapy. However, the it is corrupted to invade the dreams of others. As REM dreams invade the waking world, the sleeping yearnings of three characters are awakened: the Chairman, the scientist Chiba, and the detective Konakawa. By using these three foci, a nuanced view of wholeness is explored.

The Chairman is the the force that corrupts the DC mini to draw the waking world into the dream world. He does this so that everyone else can live in his dream where he is physically whole and powerful, as opposed to his wheelchair bound body in the waking world. The fact that this wish fulfillment consumes Himuro and draws others onto the parade to oblivion is irrelevant to him. To the Chairman, his fulfillment is the world's fulfillment: le monde, c'est moi.

When the DC mini prototypes first goes missing, the Chairman wanted to shut down the project and all of the psychotherapy machines to preserve the sanctity of dreams. He talks about the emptiness of science in the face of dreams. Yet, he hypocritically uses the DC mini in his plot. This could be dismissed as a convenient lie, but the Chairman later tells Paprika that his garden is a sacred space where science cannot trespass.

The idea that the Chairman considers his dreams sacred is consistent with his overall arrogance. When Osanai is dying, the Chairman clings to his body, because Osanai's able and handsome body is needed to complement the Chairman's noble soul. The Chairman is stricken over what he will loose, not what Osanai looses or that Osanai is a human. During another scene, after Osanai pins Paprika, the Chairman invades Osanai's body and becomes outraged when Osanai refuses to kill Praprika/Chiba over "petty" love.

After his apotheosis, Paprika comments that his image of totality lacks a female component. It is implied that the Chairman's homosexuality is an extension of his narcissism. The implication is that his ideal is a male form that is similar to his own and because it is similar to his own.

The Chairman's wholeness ignores the needs of others and, therefore, becomes destructive when his wishes are fulfilled. Wholeness is necessary, but not sufficient for mental health.

Chiba's conflict is far more innocuous, but touches all of us: romance. She is outwardly cool and professional. Her beauty is intimidating. Yet, she feels constrained from revealing her feelings for Tokita.

Throughout the movie, clues are given to the depths of her emotions. The elevator scene gives off a sense of an onee-san type character with her bumbling surrogate brother. In the diner, after they investigate Himuro's apartment, she scolds Tokita for his gluttony. This could also be taken as the care of close friend, but the evidence mounts. However, her argument with him, while he is fiddling with another DC mini, has the heat and passion of a lover.

During the argument, Chiba touches on the idea of responsibility and selfishness; she wants him to improve. She also strikes the DC mini out of his hands. By contrast, an eminently professional boss, which is the usual Chiba, would order or reprimand him. The uncharacteristic heat of her blow and tone sounds more like a lover having a spat with her clueless man rather than a manager dressing down her subordinate.

It is only in the dream world that she can re-write the dialogue for the elevator scene. Then she can tell him that she loves his mind, despite his body, and that she can tolerate a spare tire, but he can't be a Michelin warehouse. And through Chiba, the film explores the idea of romance as a part of the fulfillment of life.

It is this union that lets Paprika defeat the Chairman in the end. Tokita and Atsuko/Paprika's union produced something bigger and better than themselves. While the unified girl resembled Chiba, it had Tokita's all-consuming creativity. The sums were greater than the parts and their dreams were bigger and stronger than the Chairman's insular vision of me, me, me.

While Chiba's growth focused on romantic connection, Konakawa's development examines fulfillment on the life path. His nightmare takes the form of movie scenes: Tarzan, a spy film, and then seems to take on real life at the murder scene. However, the murder scene turns out to be a movie scene from the movie that he made with his best friend, who Konakawa calls his other self. Even the bar scene is taken from "The Shining".

These movie scenes comes from his love of cinema that was suppressed following his best friend's death. They were to become directors together, but Konakawa gave up the dream. His best friend died from sickness before he could fulfill his dream, and the guilt lay heavy on Konakawa for abandoning filmmaking and leaving their film unfinished. By being plunged into the dream world and meeting Paprika, he acknowledges his past and comes to terms with the path he took.

In psychoanalysis, mental illness is believed to be born from the frustration of desires. The human mind shields itself from the conflict between desire and deprivation, but the coping mechanism often becomes the problem itself. The cure becomes worse than the disease that it was intended to cure. In Paprika, these subconscious desires were excavated by the DC Mini and brought to fruition.

Where many movies explore a concept through the actions and consequences on one character, the film "Hanabi" contrasted two lives on crossing trajectories, and "Paprika" used three movers-and-shakers as a sampling of the different aspects of fulfillment. And we are reminded that to find a whole and satisifying life, we all need at least a little spice in it.

[1] causeiambetta pointed this out to me. [2]
[2] other references pop up in the movie. The posters at the end were obvious. Also his pose after rescuing Chiba is probably from Golgo 13: the Professiosional. Finally, I believe that the pin scene was another. Megumi Hayashibara was the voice talent for Chiba and Ayanami Rei, who suffered a similar trespass from Ikari Gendou in "End of Evangelion".

From the Sunni Triangle to the Canvas Ring

There are many other better sites devoted to the politics, so I stay away from them in this blog. However, this post is more about entertainment than politics, though it is inspired by Muntadahar al-Zeidi. He was the Iraqi reporter who tossed his shoes at President Bush during a press conference. There have been many conclusions drawn by the politicos and partisans. After some thought, I've concluded that the shoe throwing means that Iraq could benefit from the introduction of pro-wrestling in the next few years.

I recognize that Iraq could use a stable infrastructure, public order, employment, and good jobs before devoting any thoughts to semi-nude men pouncing on each other in scripted violence. However, the world does not proceed in an orderly fashion, and people are always looking for some enjoyment out of life, no matter how hard it is. I take that as a sign of resilience of the human spirit. And one does not need to take the place of the other. A few enthusiastic luchadores should not hold up rebuilding the sewage system, there are plenty of youths looking for jobs.

But, why wrestling? I cite this brilliant post from Captain Japan's Sake-Drenched Postcards. The cultural gist was that the occupied and rebuilding Japanese used American heels (1) in their matches to bolster their pride. Though it was scripted, the sight of Japanese beating Americans was still a visual symbol to hold on to.

Recall that David Carradine was chosen for the original "Kung Fu" series, because he was half-Asian. While the creators of the series showed respect for the power of Asian mysticism and martial arts, they changed their original choice of lead actors, because they feared offending their largely white audience by showing an Asian hero beating on white villains. The symbolism was significant for Japanese wrestling fans and American viewers.

Similarly, al-Zeidi's use of his shoes was symbolic, as opposed an actual violent attack by using a knife, gun, bomb, or simply a heavier object. His action appealed to a sizeable number of Iraqis that cheered his symbolic defiance. Pro-wrestling has always adressed the events of the day with such, physical acts. Along with the heel Destroyer, mentioned in the Sake-Drenched Postcards, former wrestling hero - turned wrestling villain - Seargant Slaughter kissed what was claimed to be the boot of Saddam Hussein to the jeers and boos of the American crowd during the Gulf War in the early '90s. Anyone who remembers wrestling during the Cold War probably remembers the regular heel Nikolai Volkoff (2). The use of patriotic storylines indicates that these played well with the crowds and had an impact.

The visceral melodrama of pro-wrestling appeals to young men, who are the most likely to act out anger and frustration violently. These actors could fight it out with American and British heels and, hopefully, Iranian ones eventually. The staged battles would be a (non-lethal) catharsis for a nation defeated in war as it was for the bombed-out Japanese(3). A charismatic tag team Shia-Sunni duo would be more reinforcement that Iraqis are Iraqis before sect. These high flying actors would be one of many groups of creators helping the people endure the long night. Stories, movies, music, sports are the signs returning normalcy; so why not pro-wrestlers? After all, everyday life takes all kinds.

Notes
(1) in wrestling, the heel is the bad guy that usually looses at the end.
(2) and those who don't should know that his role was parodied in Avatar during the boulder episode.
(3) I realize that the circumstances of the wars were very different. The Japanese were apart of the aggressors in WWII. However, the Iraqis derived pride from fighting Iran to a standstill. After the Arabs lost several wars to a badly outnumbered Israel, the Iraqis considered the outcome of that Persian gulf war to be an achievement. Then they got walloped twice since the 90s.
(3 cont'd) Here's a thought experiment, would America have been impacted by the Vietnam war in the same way if America had successfully established a sustainable South Vietnam? What would have happened if America won strategically AND militarily. Then again, I wouldn't be here to write this post, invoking a destructive time paradox.

Loser + Vampire: The Anatomy of a Harem

After watching most of the first season of Rosario + Vampire, my thoughts on harem series have become fleshed out. While the most obvious feature of the harem is the number of femmes throwing themselves at the hero, the other key feature of the harem genre is the "zero" hero, where the viewer can insert himself into the unfolding events. From this starting point, the actions of the lead throughout the series and at the end must also fit in the scope of this everyman aspect. Much of these thoughts probably apply to otome (2) series; however, my experience with the reverse harem is mostly confined to Fushigi Yuugi (3).

In both Rosario + Vampire, the lead Tsukune Aono is too stupid to get into high school after graduating from middle school. He played some soccer in school. He does not have any outstanding abilities, unique appearance, driving ambitions, or dearly held beliefs. From what I saw of the series, his hobby disappears from the story. Also, little is said about Tsukune's families or their friends from before the story starts. As far as I know, none of his pre-Yokai High relationships, past, or interest influences his decisions or provides a jumping point for advancing the plot or a hook for a side story. Tsukune serves as placeholders for the otaku viewer. Though the story is told from a 3rd person perspective, the thinly detailed leads counts more like a 2.5 person perspective.

With the blank slate of a lead, the question usually arises about what the females see in him. The answer is that there really isn't much to see. In Rosario, Tsukune forms a bond with Moka through their shared loneliness as he does with Yukari the witchling. His simple openess to and belief in Shirayuki wins her devotion. Similarly, in the now-venerable Tenchi Muyo, Tenchi wins over Ayeka by being sympathetic to her after she finds that she is stranded on Earth. Meanwhile, her bond with Ryoko the Space Pirate is established, because Ryoko observed him over the years as he grew up. She is the childhood friend in a one-sided way.

These good intentions and coincidences are within the reach of the otaku's abilities and preserve the ability of the otaku to continue inserting himself in the main character's shoes. This is in sharp contrast to the sports hero who must improve himself to strive to be the best. The sports hero usually tries to inspire the fan to strive. The epic or traditional hero transforms himself through his journey. There is an aspect of growth in these other types of heros. Not the harem lead. What is required of him is the continuance of his devotion and good intentions to the women around him.

After the bond is established, it is passionate and nigh unbreakable. Mako et al. end up defending Tsukune from monsters week in, week out. They also fight each other over him, though his actions make it clear that his bond with Moka is the strongest. Such is the devotion of the harem. This all-consuming and slavish devotion marks the bond between the harem and the lead.

The end of the tale comes when the main character must choose. Part of the lead's good intentions is the unwillingness to cut ties with any of the harem girls. To shed the girl's devotion is to hurt her. So the lead is forced to enjoy her devotion (4). I haven't seen the end of Rosario, So I'll need to draw on other works.

In the Shuffle! anime, the long relation between Rin and Kaede is a stark illustrator to this. As children, Kaede grew to hate Rin, to the extent where she drops an exacto knife on his face from the top of a stairway. When she realizes that the root of the hate is a lie, she devotes herself to him unconditionally. When Rin chooses another girl, the crap hits the fan and crazy Kaede comes back out, showing the psychic shock that comes with severing a harem bond.

Throughout the Tenchi series, this attempt to do no harm leads Tenchi to maintain the untenable equilibrium between the girls. Indeed, Tenchi the Movie 3 starts with Tenchi attempting to flee the bickering over him and is lured away by the phantom Haruna. During the protracted chase, Ayeka and Ryoko make it clear that their romantic feelings drive them rather than a sense of justice or platonic friendship or fellowship. The long standing rivals become allies and bolster each other when hope fades. At the end, Ayeka gives in during a bittersweet scene and asks Ryoko to bring him back. Severing ties is serious business in a harem, because it also disentangles the underlying weave of the story's central conflict.

Still, the choice is within the otaku's grasp (5). The otaku may make a different choice from the placeholder, but the story clearly leads to happily ever after (6). And the key to the placeholder is to keep most of the main character's action within the scope of the otaku from the begininng, to the middle, and to the end.

Notes:
(1) translation at www.baka-tsuki.net.
(2) one female, many men.
(3) and (parethetically) my friend the Polish "Ponytail girl" was accused of having a harem of her own. During her first weeks at college, she befriended a group of computer geeks: a jewish genius, a gay guy with a 'fro, a guy obsessed with poneytails, and the silent one. I was declared an honorary member at one point. Her relationship to all of us, save one, was strictly friendship. But that's neither here nor there and is, therefore, confined to the footnotes.
(4) Again, something the otaku consumer can do.
(5) That is where the safe habor of the fanfiction comes in to safely shelter his favorite 'ship.
(6) for every rule, there is the exception that proves it. School Days with the bloody "nice boat" ending is a parody with the main character sleeping around (and violating the harem trust) and caring only about his own convenience and pleasure. He basically gets what he deserves at the end. The appeal of School Days is partly in the shocking break from the harem pattern.

Defraggler

Causeiambetta pointed me to a defragging software called Defraggler. I don't defrag often and the Windows native defragger shows me a mass of raw meat when I request an analysis. This is before AND after the MS defrag. I'm behind the times with computers, but I knew enough to know that this was no good.

So I down loaded Defraggler along with Ncleaner. Ncleaner did its job cleaning up junk files that have lingered around for years. However, it balked at going through my registry. I don't blame it. I don't like to go their either. Defraggler fought a long and hard battle against the tangled forest that is my 40 GB hard drive (it was pretty big when I bought it).

There were 160k+ framented files. At the end of the five hour struggle, there were only 12-14, depending on which defragmenter was asked. Well fought, Defraggler.