Just when I think I’m out…
…they suck me back in.
Seriously, though, as one of the more inveterate, irredeemable nerds around here, I was thinking about what it was that got me back into anime. See, back when I lived in the Japanese countryside (everybody should do the JET Program) I sort of had to keep my nerdhood on the down-low, lest people think I was even weirder than I already was.
And by the time I returned to the friendly shores of the United States, I had nearly forgotten that I was supposed to be an anime nerd. However, there were three anime series that, like carefully-placed shape-charges, blasted away the thin glazing of “normalcy” I had so carefully constructed, leaving my abiding otaku nature bare for all to see.
“What were they?” You undoubtedly clamor to know what animated entertainment could possibly be so potent as to override my ever-present desire to appear normal to my peers! Steady, friends, and I shall tell you. In order I viewed them:
- Planetes. Oh, Planetes. This show had the bad luck to be coming out right around the same time Fullmetal Alchemist was hitting it big, and even if it hadn’t been overshadowed by the huge hit that was FMA, its hard SF trappings and corporate politics arc plot aren’t exactly guarantors of mainstream success. But oh, readers, how it hit me! Its realistic sense of international politics along with its intense personal drama and lovingly detailed depiction of life in orbit seemed tailor-made to demand my attention. I nearly blew a translation deadline thanks to Planetes — and I’d do it all over again.
- The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. I’m always irritated when I see Haruhi dismissively referred to as a “fan favorite.” Yeah, it’s a fan favorite — because it’s completely brilliant. The writing fairly crackles with wit, the voice performances (in both Japanese and English!) are spot-on, and the animation and art direction never misses a step. And despite all its critical distance, the cool eye with which it regards common anime themes, it manages, in the end, to be remarkably affecting and moving. Kyon is a personal hero of mine.
- Genshiken. Manga artist Kio Shimoku’s depiction of life in a college anime club is rightfully acclaimed as pitch-perfect, and the anime version doesn’t break the tradition. With perfect casting choices for all the voices, a ridiculously catchy opening theme, and a warm (yet unflinching) depiction of the otaku life and the weirdos who lead it, Genshiken is probably the greatest of the recent glut of anime-about-anime-fans. It even approaches the heights of Otaku no Video, and that’s saying something.
So — did you ever drop out of a fandom, only to be sucked back in? What did the trick?
Well it’s a good thing that I ordered Plantetes then,huh.? I hope it gets here soon.
@Erik Well done, sir. You won’t regret it.
I started out watching Outlaw Star. After buying all the DVDs and watching it a million times I was left wanting more (anime that is) but I was very lost as to where to start. Till I discovered manga and the world of anime mags. From there I landed on FMA and Gungrave. It has all snowballed from there. Suddenly i have no money and several subs. to different mags. and Netflix shipping me endless amounts of DVDs of so many shows i have lost track. But it’s a good lost so what can I say
For me the problem I had with most anime was that fact that when it was made in English… they usually messed up the script… horribly. For example Dragonball was a well made anime for my age back when I was a kid, however a few friends and I looked up some of the Japanese original versions with English subtitles and it really surprised me just how much they took out for the American version. Though the ultimate heartbreaking mangas were Kite and X… they absolutely butchered the scripts and took out many vital scenes. So for a time I kicked anime and manga to the curb due to how poorly they were made in America… though about two years later when I got my first computer I learned the joys of downloading original anime and manga, and being able to purchase it on various websites. So from that point on I have been virtually devoted to anime and mangas figuring most of the time they are far more interesting than the garbage produced in America.
Censorship = Satan with a label!
Parental Advisory: This show will suck because we butchered it into an American approved show!
My thoughts,
Kevin
It all started with Sailor Moon for me. First anime I ever watched. After watching the majority of the series on TV, and renting all of the movies, I fell away from anime for a while. But then came Gundam Wing… Oh Lord, I can still hum the first few bars of “White Reflection”… And its been downhill from there. I’m completly addicted.
@Kevin: Completely agree about America butchering some of the best anime and manga out there. Thank goodness for the internet!
@ Lindsay &Kevin: The only company that is butchering anime in America is 4Kids.
@Erik, Lindsay, Kevin: Yeah, I think the vast majority of anime that comes over now is untouched. The fan pressure for authenticity has really paid off; look no further than unreversed manga and Del Rey’s blanket decision to leave the original honorifics unchanged.
Paul,
You hit it dead on with Genshiken. Any true otaku must fess up to how close that show hits home. I gotta say though, you fooled me with the Laughing Man logo. I thought for sure you would have listed Stand Alone Complex and/or 2nd G.I.G. for their smooth presentation and intricate plotlines. Luckily I’ve never had to “get out” of anime before, but I know if it ever came to that it wouldn’t be too long before a new show caught my eye and sucked me back in.
I guess the first thing that began my anime obsession was Pokemon. I hate to say it, but as a kid I was completely obsessed. Even though I /was/ smart, I loved the storylines, however repeated they were, and constantly wished the world of the show was, in fact, the one we live in. I even cried watching the second episode.
Then I saw Spirited Away. I was something like… 9. And I was so freaked out, I vowed never to look at anime again. So, what rekindled it? It was actually a magazine, and it (regrettably) wasn’t Newtype. I live in Australia, and I saw SFX Total Anime on the shelves at Borders. I thought, well, I love Japan, and I /used/ to love anime, so, why not? And I was infatuated again. I even watched Spirited Away for the second time, and thought it was beautiful.
The first anime I watched as the result of the mag was Tenjho Tenge. After the first two episodes, I was madly in love and decided I had to have the box set /immediately/. And then I watched the rest of the series… I wasn’t too keen.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya was the first anime series I watched from start to finish. And I’ve watched it from start to finish 3 times now. I’m now a true Haruhiist. Long live the SOS Brigade! ^^
I remember I watch first anime. The show was called Neon Genesis Evangelion.Since that show I begin to watch and learn about anime. I just watch Plantetes today and I really love it. I feel somtimes that I watch anime so much, I get bored and find another thing that interest me. The reading mangas and magazines help me from getting bored with anime. Also, Adult Swim help me to enjoy about anime. I been in the anime fan also four years now and still, I’m not totally committed to be a HUGE fan or an otaku,y’all fans call it but if oversees give an exciting anime or manga like the new anime called Code Geass everybody taking about, I might stay in anime phenomena a long time.
To Kevin: I understand the the point about butching the anime but one thing I disagree with your comment is they have alot of sex, violence and explict that us people like me don’t want to see. Good anime dosen’t have to use these bad images to make a good anime. Maybe that’s why many people who once in anime or take a peek don’t want to be an anime fan. People in America just want to a good show without too many bad images. Anime isn’t about all that stuff. That just my opinion.
The show that started my obsession with anime was Teknoman and the Saturday morning anime movies on Sci-fi channel. Man those were the days.
*smiles* My first Anime was Ghost In The Shell… I was utterly lost… imagine, a cartoon you could talk about cinematograph yand have it MEAN something…. unfortunately, for a logn while, that was all I could find, and without access to cable (Shocking, I know, but I live in the Net Ghetto :-/ NO form of broadband available for less than rent :-/), well, it’s still hard to find things I like… one reason an Anime Mag is so important to me is just EXPOSURE…. learning the sorts of stuff available, the culture, trends and subgroups and terminology to even proeprly read reviews
Maybe there’s less coming out new these days, but with the massive number of older titles around, a lot of us newer fans have a great deal still new to US 
Geez, I suddenly feel old
I started anime with Space Battleship Yamato (a.k.a. Starblazers) back in the early 1980s and have been hooked ever since.
I’ve followed the scene from Books Nippon and the old Ronin Network fan-paper (where I learned that Macross and Robotech were NOT the same) of the mid-80s, to Animag, and eventually Newtype USA.
I think the American distributors have done a fine job at improving the quality and preserving the original content of anime in the last decade compared to what I grew up with some 25 years ago.
While Robotech, Voltron, and Battle of the Planets (Gatchaman), were certainly a blast, they were not true to their Japanese origins and had been neutered to “protect children.”
Back then animation was not taken seriously, it was for kids.
The anime community and the companies that opened to the international doorway to bring high end anime like Appleseed (the original), Macross Plus, the various Gundam series, Evangelion, and even Record of the Lodoss War during the end of the 1980s and throughout the 90s have helped keep old school fans like myself hooked to anime.
If the “child safe” standards had continued to be applied to anime coming into the US it is my humble opinion that anime (in the US) would have died as the older following would have lost interest and not spent their money on the titles being released.
For older Otaku like myself it was nice to see US versions of Japanese anime change from the “I wish I was a male microhuman” horrors of attrocious dubbing like that found in Clash of the Bionoids (a butchered version of Macross the movie) to the professional quality found in the US version of Akira and Ghost in the Shell (the first movie).
I think anime is in a creative and financial rut right now but just like in the late 70s and mid 80s it, with the help of its fans, the industry and art will pull through.
That’s my 2 cents.
I started my plunge into anime in the 70’s (old Otaku here) with getting up at 6 a.m. to watch Battle of the Planets on saturdays. The when I learned to drive I would make monthly trips to Suncoast for the newest anime. I started out watching dubbed, but when DVD’s started to appear I got in the habit of switch the audio to japanese and subtitling. Then Netflix came into being and now have over 300 disks in my Q. Bleach on tv always ends at episode 50 so I fell for DLing those episodes. I’ve kept up with purchasing titles when they come out. Favs are Black Lagoon, Genshiken, and Azumanga Daioh (Made me laugh so hard I had to keep pausing so I didn’t miss any thing).
haha.. Lets see now.
I guess my ‘fandom’ started when I watched Sailor Moon. I was obsessed with the show. My friend and I even made a website, fanfiction, fanart.. We had the manga, posters, figurines, ect. My friend started to get more into anime then I did, though.. and she kinda pulled me along. She really got into Serial Experiments Lain, which became my first subtitled anime. She bought the series (on VHS!) as they were coming out.
When I moved, I didn’t see her much. I also didn’t have Cartoon Network. My only source for anime (which consisted of Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z and Gundam Wing at the time). But, one birthday I got a giftcard to Borders. Not really knowing what to get, I picked up a manga (on accident, actually.) and looked at it. Realizing i’d seen the series (CardCaptor Sakura– or in butched english– CardCaptors) and bought it. Then, I went and downloaded (over Napster when it was still the new thing! LOL) CardCaptor Sakura. From there, I became a full time Otaku. Not as crazy as some of you… but… xD
On another note…. One thing that bothers me is how much people bash English Dubs. Believe me, I know some REALLY stink (mostly older ones). But, nowadays, I don’t think they’re exactly “bad” either. My biggest pet peeve is people saying “the english voice doesn’t sound the same as the japanese!”. My answer is always: “WELL DUH.”. They’re not the same people voice acting, let alone the same language. I think a voice that fits the character works. I don’t want someone squeaking their voice to sound like the japanese counterparts!
I’d seen shows like Starblazers and Robotech when I was little, and I had loved the sci-fi aspect of each, but anime was so scarce up here in Seattle during the 80’s. I remember seeing the original Ghost in the Shell on cable and loved it. But I never got the full force of anime thrown at me until, on a whim, I bough Ah! My Goddess the movie. At the time I didn’t know anything about anime and even less about manga. Needless to say that is when the obsession began for me. I’ve never looked back since.
I totally agree with you Paul. These three anime are simply amazing in their own right. Well done sir!
I remember seeing Robotech back in the early 80’s and that show got me hooked. That show was amazing, at the time. There wasn’t much you could do to get your anime fix back then (I actually had a boot leg VHS of Macross:Do You Remember Love that was undubbed or subbed). I drifted more into comic books since that was more accessible. Over time I would get Ghost in the Shell or Akira and just be amazed at the quality and the stories. It wasn’t until a few years ago that I went to a convention with some friends, on a whim … and it totally re-introduced me to anime fandom. I’ve been back with a vengeance … slowly building my Robotech/Macross library (and I even finally got to learn what the heck was going on in that VHS tape ) and learning about all this great work that’s been done and being done.
Older Otaku Unite
I started out with the stuff on Toonami and Adult Swim. Yep i grew up on Cowboy bebop and Trigun. Like alot of other kids in my hood I was a big Dragon Ball Z fan and I thought Kenshin was the coolest person to ever pull out a sword. Then as I grew older I started to drift away from my hobby. There were times when I didn’t have cable and hanging out with my friends seemed much more appealing. Then when I was like 12 I saw Samurai Champloo and I thought, why the hell did I stop watching anime? Im 16 now and manga and anime is back toward the top of my hobby list. My friends make fun of me sometimes but I can care less.
On another note, I can sympathize with the people who bash english dubs because some of them really suck, although there are a few anime whose english dubs were very good. Samurai champloo had an amazing dub and so did Ghost in the Shell. In my honest opinion the english dubs for Cowboy Bebop and Full Metal Alchem,ist were way better than the japanease original dubs. So yeah some dubs suck while others are pretty good.
I was out of anime for awhile. Every series seemed to be dull to me. People suggested Lucky Star to get me back into the anime craze, but it was dreadfully boring. Yes, I understood the parodies. Still boring. They also suggested The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya— I found it to be horribly boring and overrated. Death Note was also thrown out there, but wow, it just wasn’t my thing.
It seemed like I was lost completely from the endless chain of anime fans… Until I watched Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. Or Gurren Lagann, for short. It’s too epic for words— nothing can describe how amazing it is! This is coming from someone who dislikes Mecha. Man, Gurren Lagann is what pushes all other anime to the side. I treat it like it’s my religion.
Clench those teeth.
@Olivia — I can’t wait to see Gurren Lagann. It’s been at the top of my list for quite a while now; I’m sure I’ll love it.
That said, you’re crazy for not liking Haruhi.
I was never “sucked back in” but because of a couple anime podcasts - good ones, not the usual garbage - I was convinced to take the dive in to FMA and Evangelion.
FMA swayed me.
Evangelion pushed me away.
Then Cowboy Bebop grabbed me by the collar and threw me in to a pit from which I would never return. In six months I think I’ve spent about a thousand dollars on DVD.
hmm. i think i started out with sailor moon. besides my arealy obsession with pokemon. i remember calling home sick all the time in second grade so that i could b home on time to c sailor moon. i preaty much stuck w/her for a while. then my friend picked up an Ah! my goddess manga at the library and i became totaly hooked w/that serries. from then i started to snow ball. i’ve invested in thousands of dollars of manga/anime since and dont plan on stopping anytime soon ^^. some of my favs now are hana kimi and fushigi yugi and the ever classic inuyasha. i just recently picked up genshinken and i love it. cant wait to get to college lol.
I don’t even remember the first time I saw anime but I was very young and it was cartoon network’s saturday anime when I saw Akira and Vampire Hunter D for the first time. Though I’d started watching Sailor Moon before seeing those two movies, it wasn’t until then when I saw Akira and Vampire Hunter D, that it was clear to me that this was anime. That’s when I fell inlove with it and couldn’t get enough. Eventually I lost access to cable and FoxKids cancelled Vision of Escaflowne (hopelessly in love with it) halfway through, when I fell out of anime. I didn’t get back into it again until college sophomore year when I had the tv on cartoon network for some background noise while i was burning the midnight oil. That night I discovered Inuyasha, Trigun, Cowboy Bebop and who knows what else and I’m a bigger otaku fan now than I ever was. Some of my friends didn’t like anime, particularly one who would call it a “cartoon” (really worked my nerves) but what right does she have to insult anime when she’s never been openminded about it and gave it a try. I’ve already have a mini library collection, dying to own The Irresponsible Captain Tylor and have a huge list of anime I want to watch online on various sites. Long live anime and otakus everywhere!!!
I think the one that got me to start watching more and more was akira then I laid off for a while and R.O.D. and Perfect Blue Found me which got me back into movies and Scryed did it for manga I read all of them and then just kept finding better and better ones It is a black hole that just sucks you in.
I think the thing that pulls me in with anime or manga in general has to be the fact that you never know exactly what to expect for an ending. Some are easier then others to guess but it is not so cookie cutter like american movies.
been an anime crack addict since 1994 when i rediscovered all the old-school favs i grew up on that i didn’t know were anime. ah, the blissful ignorance of pre-pube youth
i’m 30 now. in 30 more years, i’ll still be watching anime ^_^
like the air i breath and the birthmark on my right elbow, anime and otakudom is an inseparable part of who i am.
I stopped watchin a lot of my favorite anime when I transferred to a new school. I got sucked back in when I first saw FLCL on adult swim. I loved it so much and was so angry when I realized how short it was. After I got a taste for it again I pulled out some old recorded Tenchi Muyo Episodes and got addicted. I’ve been hopelessly looking for new great anime ever since, and watching all my favs constantly.
Well…I wasn’t into anime much when I was little….until my cousin and I stumbled upon Saber Marionette J. I loved the series and craved for more. After that I started watching Dragonball, Pokemon, and other kids anime (I was young at the time). But I did not become an otaku untill I started watching Rurouni Kenshin. The series just blew me away!! After that I watched Slayers, Cowboy Bebop, the Gundam series, Love Hina, Negima and it just spiraled out of control! I started reading mags, posting, reading blogs, buying manga, DVDs, and figures….now I have very little money -__-……but I have a lot of stuff and a lot of memories with my otaku friends ^__^!
I feel bad for some kids who are getting there first taste of anime from the saterday morning cartoons. I was comparing on ANN the list of episodes of One Piece that was shown on 4kids tv, and the amount that was cut down and changed was just rediculas. Poor kids are never gonna get into good anime other then the 34256 session of Pokeman when they finally decide to just color all the Pokeman pink and have dancing compititions instead of fighting. But thank god I always had decent anime to grow up to so I never had to go into an anime hiatus
I first got into anime back when cartoon network had tonami on in the afternoon during the week. I remember watching DBZ and Sailor Moon after school, but the one that really got me into anime was Tenchi Muyo which is to this day still my favorite anime. I also enjoyed watching Gundam Wing, and its many other counter parts, Zoids, Rurouni Kenshin, etc. I have to admit to watching pokemon as well as Dijimon because back then those where the shows. I, sadly, had a falling out with anime for a few years due to the lack decent anime being played on TV. I was able to re-discover anime through Peacemaker(which happens to be the first anime I ever bought), Chrono crusade, and Maze the Mega Burst Space. Since then my anime collection has grown with titles like Rune Soldier, Black Lagoon, Hell Girl, Yami to Boushi to Han No Tabibito, Miami Guns, Shakugan No Shana, Shadow Skill, and many more.
the melancholy of haruhi suzumiya is a great show it changed my friends lifes(weired)not just that other shows like inuyasha,blood+,fullmetal alchemist,bleach/death note,trinity blood,samurai champloo,the wallflower,& even more. if anime was never here my life would be ruined!that is why peple should aprecciate the hard work that people do 2 make us happy!
I’ve been an anime fan (or freak ^^) for ages now. How I first got into anime was quite amusing. My friend lent me a couple of animes (Initial D, and Love Hina) to watch, but I wasn’t very interested so I put it off. My sister picked it up and started watching. Then a couple days later, she’ll tell me, “Man, you gotta watch Initial D! It’s really good!” I had an idea what Initial D was about - cars. But I’m not interested in cars, I know nothing about cars. I’m happy as long as a car has 4 wheels and can take me from A to B. How can a ‘cartoon’ about cars be that interesting? But when I finally worked the effort up to start watching, OH Oh OHHhh, it sucked me in, especially when Takumi did that ‘Inertia Drift’ thing with the car! I was ecstatic! And Love Hina was so hilarious, it just made my love for anime insane! Anime nowadays are getting better and better! FMA, ROD, FMP (Especially Fumoffu) ~I LOVE YOU ANIME!~
My first anime that I fell completely in love with: Sailor Moon
Heck yesss…., Though I was young at the time so while I abstractly grasped the girl drama, and romantic intricisies of the series what really got me was those huge cute eyes! You cannot deny a character with eyes as big as her hands, people!
Today one of my favorites is Death Note. I am usually quite a critic to anime and am often disappointed from the transcription of a manga series to an anime series, but Death Note was just flawless. They intensified the intrinsic thriller-like pace and setup with the dynamic angles and presence of music and superior animation. My favorite animation sequence was in the first episode as Light writes down (and thus kills) the names of various criminals. The movement of his hand is fluid and precise, and the cut backs from his actions to the death of the inmates highlights the perverse mentality that has arisen in Light. Truly the best anime in terms of everything that accounts to quality.
My obsession with anime began when I was about … I think seven. My grandparents had every animated movie in existence [hence both of my uncles are in the animation industry] and I picked out ‘My Neighbor Totoro’. For awhile, about until I was 13, I wasn’t entirely aware of what anime even was. I still remember watching Cartoon Network late at night, [adult swim], and it just took off from there. I don’t really watch anime on television anymore [seeing as I agree with a majority of you in saying they crapped up a bunch of the good ones...] But I think it’s going to stick with me for a good time longer.
Hmm…My obsession started when I was 17…about four years ago. Sure, I had watched Pokemon, Sailor Moon, Gundam Wing, Escaflowne, etc. on T.V. (at the time I was obsessed with Gundam Wing) but I didn’t know what anime was. I just thought it was just another cartoon. When I hit high school I stopped watching much television (except for Stargate!!! ^___^) since I was so busy. Then I did a little English project my junior year in high school that featured the characters from Miyazaki’s “Spirited Away” (even at this time I had no idea what anime was, but to me Miyazaki was some kind of god). One of my classmates, who is now my best friend, literally pounced on me after class, shoved “Fruits Basket” in my hand and disappeared.
I watched it.
I fell in love.
I bought all the DVDs that night.
And that was how I ended up diving into it. ^___^
I guess, technically, my obsession started way back in the 80s when Voltron was on Saturday mornings. I obsessed over the show with my neighbor-we’d watch the show religiously and then go play with out Voltron toys (the big metal clunkers of the time). A few years pass and I travel to Boston with friends and happen to see Akira in one of the theatres there. We decided to try and bluff our way into the show (the guy selling tickets didn’t care, if I recall correctly) and we were utterly…confused… by it. HOWEVER, I thought it was visually brilliant and it dusted off and reminded me of my love for anime and started me on this never-ending journey.
The first title I ever grew to LOVE (since I still debate whether or not Voltron counts…) was Ranma ½. It was and still is my all-time favorite series. It was the first series I bought fansubs of, it was the first manga I scoured city shops for and it introduced me to my faviorite mangaka Takahashi Rumiko.
Man…I feel old now…
The proverbial anime whirlpool that sucked me back in after my nearly two year stint was not anything new, but anime that I had loved from before but never had the opportunity to finish. I’m talking about the old-schoolish stuff that had been on before there was Adult Swim, when it was known as the Midnight Run on Cartoon Network and Tom (as voiced by my favorite Spike Spiegel seiyuu Steven Jay Blum) was a chubby, way cooler host of some pretty shweet anime.
The hooks?
Cowboy Bebop(Number one favorite anime of all time). Outlaw Star(I’ve yet to see the last episode). Gundam Wing. And yes, even Sailor Moon.
I’ve fallen back into the bliss that is anime because now I can buy all of the anime I love in their entirety, complete seasons for me to watch and enjoy over and over again. I love buying anime as a complete set, because collecting and owning them all makes them that much more enjoyable for me.
I’m not completely against the new or anything. I also bought xxxHolic(fav), Ouran High School Host Club(fav), Kyo Kara Maoh! (happy fun good times!), Gravitation (uber-fav, both the manga and anime), and Coyote Ragtime Show, amongst others. I love to read up on new anime coming out here in America, but I’ve been a bit hesitant to buy anything yet. Since I’m into buying complete sets, can anyone recommend any good anime out here in America that are complete?
The remake of Appleseed. The technology and process used in that film was awesome. That is the future of adult anime. I felt like I was in the movie.
Anime needs to head beyond the teenage group more, childish art and themes be banished!
I started with Robotech in the early 80’s broadcast on an independent TV station (before it became a FOX station) in Nashville TN. Here it is now 2008 and my anime addiction has not waned. My ability to purchase as waxed and waned over the years. During the lean times I concentrate on my manga collection. It can be cheaper, but not much cheaper sometimes. I would pay good money for high definition subtitled downloads. iTunes does offer anime, but it is generally from series I already own on DVD and it is dubbed.