The Anime Thread

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I figured that this would be a good place to post this. This is more of a free-for-all thread than anything else, but I guess it’s guided by these general questions:
  1. What are some of your favorite anime?
  2. Are there any anime that you find conducive to Catholic values?
  3. What annoys you about the portrayal of religion and the Western world in anime?
  4. So forth.
 
Hmm… Anything by Studip Ghibli is fantastic. There are several other series that are alright too… FLCL being my favorite.

I’m an animation major. Though anime ususally has a strong story, it has the absolute worst movement in all the world’s animation industry. Therefore, in school we are not allowed to watch anime as it might affect our knowledge of the principles of animation. I don’t watch a lot of it.
 
Hmm…

I’m a huge anime fan. Mostly stuff with Mecha.

Gundam, Macross, Gasakari, Neon Genesis Evangelion…

That last has some very interesting links to Christianity. Lots of Christian imagery…
 
The_Augustinian said:
I figured that this would be a good place to post this. This is more of a free-for-all thread than anything else, but I guess it’s guided by these general questions:
  1. What are some of your favorite anime?
  2. Are there any anime that you find conducive to Catholic values?
  3. What annoys you about the portrayal of religion and the Western world in anime?
  4. So forth.
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  1. Gundam Series (Except G and X)
  2. Rourouni Kenshin(Samurai X) perhaps? It shows that many conflicts may be resolved without violence. Gundam Wing and Seed/Destiny too… It shows the horrors of war and therefore tells people that war is bad…
  3. Well, religion, unless Shinto is portrayed as mythological and stuff. Some take things from religion to make things look cool and stuff like that. Take Evangelion for example… The enemies are called “angels” (aliens) and the 1st unit is a “god” (berserking mecha). such is also the case in Digimon where there are Angel Digimons…
To be frank, I think the western animations are more insensitive in religions than the east. Take South park, The Simpsons, Family Guy, Beavis and Butthead, etc. Many disespect the faith in ways that would make the animes seem innocent.
 
I like Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo, as well as Spirited Away. I’ve watched most of Hellsing, too. Some of my friends are really, really into anime, but I’m not.

I like Samurai Champloo because of its depiction of feudal Japan, and Spirited Away because it’s beautiful. Princess Mononoke was okay, but I didn’t think it was as touching.

In general, religious stuff is either Shinto and animistic, or sort of random- 'Okay, cross are, uh, lucky. And nuns. Let’s stick some nuns in!". There seems to me to be the same grab-random-Western-elements-and-run-with-it mentality in anime as there is for Asian things here in the West.

Did that make sense?

Anyway, I can’t think of a single anime that was even remotely Catholic.
 
Rourouni Kenshin(Samurai X) perhaps? It shows that many conflicts may be resolved without violence.
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And promulgates lies, lies and more lies about history. Kenshin’s boss, who was portrayed in the OAV as a saint, was a murdering terrorist who abandoned Yoshida Toshimarou to be killed at Ikedaya. Granted, Yoshida was a terrorist too, and a pyro, but still.

Also, they totally misrepresented the Shinsengumi, especially Saitou Hajime. The Shinsengumi were harsh, but they were unquestionably the good guys. There’s a line in Samurai X about them trying to rule and extort by fear, or some such. Really? Then why, when their leader Serizawa Kamo tried to use his power to run an extortion racket, did Hijikata, Kondou, and either Okita or Yamanami (the seconds-in-command and First Squad leader) assassinate him? Rule three, strictures of the Shinsengumi: Private fundraising is not permitted.

Finally, none of the four Hitokiri (manslayers) could have stood toe-to-toe with Okita, Saitou, or Nagakura of the Shinsengumi, and there’s a scene in Kenshin with both Okita and Saitou almost going in against Kenshin. He would have died, his arms and throat pierced by the three-piece stab of Okita’s Kikuichimonji, or he would have been cut down by Saitou’s sudden left-handed thrust.

Ahem. So, anyway, the anime I like:
Kiddy Grade. I’m a sucker for a pretty-girl anime with hard SF and a cool storyline. Armblast is one of the best characters ever.

Excel Saga. Yes I know it’s filthy, but it’s also hilarious. One of the few anime that simply can’t survive dubbing, because it’s so full of puns. Abenobashi’s the same way.

TRIGUN. Unquestionably the best, it features a lot of Christian ideas and, unles I’m very much mistaken, may borrow from GK Chesterton. Eminently quotable, too.

Bebop’s all right, but Outlaw Star is ten times better. Those Chinese sorcerer space-pirates? Perfect.

FullMetal Alchemist. Sort of anti-religious, with some simplistic anti-military stupidity thrown in, but Al’s a great character–an animated, giant suit of armor with a little boy’s voice. Also, Mustang and Armstrong are awesome.

Gungrave: made by the same guy as TRIGUN, and even more Christian. Anime villains never repent, except in this.

Naruto. Just the best damn ninja show, period. Features the ninja’s Mikkyo Buddhist “Kuji-in” practice, Onmyoudo numerology, and Kakashi, the coolest teacher ever. Also has a very good message for young boys (it was published by Shounen Jump, after all).

Peacemaker Kurogane. The real story of the revolution Kenshin participated in, from the other side. How does holier-than-thou Kenshin feel about his buddies murdering Ayu-nee? And it also has the episode with Hijikata’s poetry.

And finally, Gensoumaaden Saiyuki. The 15th century novel Journey to the West, warped and twisted. Sanzo’s a horrible Buddhist, but he’s actually a very real practitioner of Zen. That ought to scare you.
 
Hastrman said:
And promulgates lies, lies and more lies about history. Kenshin’s boss, who was portrayed in the OAV as a saint, was a murdering terrorist who abandoned Yoshida Toshimarou to be killed at Ikedaya. Granted, Yoshida was a terrorist too, and a pyro, but still.

Also, they totally misrepresented the Shinsengumi, especially Saitou Hajime. The Shinsengumi were harsh, but they were unquestionably the good guys. There’s a line in Samurai X about them trying to rule and extort by fear, or some such. Really? Then why, when their leader Serizawa Kamo tried to use his power to run an extortion racket, did Hijikata, Kondou, and either Okita or Yamanami (the seconds-in-command and First Squad leader) assassinate him? Rule three, strictures of the Shinsengumi: Private fundraising is not permitted.

Finally, none of the four Hitokiri (manslayers) could have stood toe-to-toe with Okita, Saitou, or Nagakura of the Shinsengumi, and there’s a scene in Kenshin with both Okita and Saitou almost going in against Kenshin. He would have died, his arms and throat pierced by the three-piece stab of Okita’s Kikuichimonji, or he would have been cut down by Saitou’s sudden left-handed thrust.
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Wow! Didn’t know that. Thanks for the info.
 
You’re welcome. I’m glad the slight edge didn’t offend; I just really don’t like Rurouni Kenshin. It has such bizarre ideas about, among other things, bushidou, the Shinsengumi, and swordfighting. Naming the final villain of the series “Makoto”, the Shinsengumi’s motto (it means something like Sincerity), really irked me.

Another series I like is Gundam Wing, though I have to disagree that it simply shows that war is bad. Especially if you see the movie, “Endless Waltz”. There really is an idea in that series that, in Lady Une’s words, “Battles can indeed be beautiful.”🙂

I forgot to mention before the hard-to-find SF/horror series “The Soultaker”. That show’s plot is confusing and not entirely satisfactory, but it has some of the most beautiful art I’ve ever seen.
 
I thought of something that annoys me about the portrayal of the West in anime: not getting other cultures at all. For instance, Americans in anime are fairly diverse, but all English and French people act like Japanese aristocrats, and all Germans act like Japanese ultra-right wingers.

Also, what’s with the Christian priests in anime all having Kansai accents? Kansai, in case you didn’t know, is the accent of the region around Osaka, Kobe, and Kyoto; it’s associated with standup comedy. The priests in Hellsing, TRIGUN, and several other anime have that accent. The only thing I can think of is that when the Jesuits missionized Asia, they adopted the habits of the upper class to get more respect from the class-conscious Asians; in Japan, that still meant Kyoto, where the Emperor and all the nobles lived, and thus Kansai. Although all the ones in anime have Osaka accents, not Kyoto–most people not from Kansai apparently assume they’re all the same.

Logically, though, shouldn’t Christians in things set after the initial evangelization have Kyushu accents? That’s where Nagasaki, the only place Christians were tolerated between the 1600s and the 1870s, is located.
 
My favorites are:
  1. Cowboy Bebop: I like characters’ redemption stories, especially Spike’s. Ed has got to be the cutest kid genius ever.
  2. Howl’s Moving Castle: or the movie that made me cry in the threaters…it’s such a great film…you will believe in love after this one!
  3. Spirited Away: another great film
  4. Full Metal Alchemist: you’ll never look at the names of the seven deadly sins the same way again.
I’m just getting into anime; I find it more satisfying than American cartoons.
 
Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Digimon…

I only recommend one to watch the Japanese version of Yu-Gi-Oh!, not the English version.

Nope, in Pokemon, religion was never mentioned, so presumably, Ash, Misty, and Brock are atheists. So they promote anti-Catholic values.
 
ribozyme said:
Nope, in Pokemon, religion was never mentioned, so presumably, Ash, Misty, and Brock are atheists. So they promote anti-Catholic values.
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Huh? How does that compute? Lots of works don’t mention religion.
 
Liberalsaved said:
Huh? How does that compute? Lots of works don’t mention religion.
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Well, it shows that one can be an accomplished person without God. For example, we do not see Ash Ketchum praying or going to church, and he is a great Pokemon trainer despite his lack of religion.
 
ribozyme said:
Well, it shows that one can be an accomplished person without God. For example, we do not see Ash Ketchum praying or going to church, and he is a great Pokemon trainer despite his lack of religion.
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That’s a bit too extreme. It also places most protaganists in the history of story as atheists. You can’t assume that because they don’t insert a visit to mass into a story, the story is anti-Christian. Or, for that matter, that because it includes Mass, it is pro-christian. The Hunchback of Notre Dame has it’s very main character a cathedral, and I’d say that it shows a rather grim (if accurate) portrayal of the medeival church.

Such assumption as “no mention of religion=work of atheism” is taking this whole anti-christian entertainment conspiracy too far.
 
Liberalsaved said:
That’s a bit too extreme. It also places most protaganists in the history of story as atheists. You can’t assume that because they don’t insert a visit to mass into a story, the story is anti-Christian. Or, for that matter, that because it includes Mass, it is pro-christian. The Hunchback of Notre Dame has it’s very main character a cathedral, and I’d say that it shows a rather grim (if accurate) portrayal of the medeival church.

Such assumption as “no mention of religion=work of atheism” is taking this whole anti-christian entertainment conspiracy too far.
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I guess you are correct, but I will add that in the Pokemon anime, the writers had hundreds of episodes so Ash can demonstrate his religiousness (if he has any). It is safe to say that Ash is an atheist. So do you watch Pokemon?
 
ribozyme said:
I guess you are correct, but I will add that in the Pokemon anime, the writers had hundreds of episodes so Ash can demonstrate his religiousness (if he has any). It is safe to say that Ash is an atheist.
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Meh, Pokemon supports slavery, anyway.

“Gotta catch 'em all,” indeed. 😛
 
Hastrman said:
Logically, though, shouldn’t Christians in things set after the initial evangelization have Kyushu accents? That’s where Nagasaki, the only place Christians were tolerated between the 1600s and the 1870s, is located.
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Come to think of it, I’d be hard-pressed to think of any anime with Kyushu accents.

And it’s a bit of a stretch to say that Christians were “tolerated” in Nagasaki during the Edo period. Heck, even house-church Christians in Red China are tolerated more than the Kirishitan in Nagasaki were.
 
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