Gurren Lagann Forum

AgentJ: Could we get a list of what you've already seen? 

For this site, I’ve watched DEATH NOTE, NEON GENESIS EVANGELION, FLCL, the first two BLEACH movies and, currently, some mix of GURREN LAGANN, COWBOY BEBOP and FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST BROTHERHOOD. There was also that month-long period where I watched maybe 30 or 40 pilot episodes of random shows. I’ve forgotten which ones, though. Outside of the site, I’ve watched VISION OF ESCAFLOWNE, RECORD OF LODOSS WAR, AKIRA, METROPOLIS, MEMORIES, CASTLE OF CAGLIOSTRO, PRINCESS MONONOKE, GHOST IN THE SHELL, JIN-ROH, both VAMPIRE HUNTER D movies, GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES and * SHUDDER * FINAL FANTASY: ADVENT CHILDREN. I’m probably forgetting some. When I was a kid, I watched odd episodes of DORAEMON, CAPTAIN HARLOCK and, of course, DRAGONBALL Z. 

Do I still qualify as a neophyte?

AgentJ: Based on what you have heard from friends and Animevice users, what show or series are you most excited to dive into in the future?

Sheesh… three long-form shows are keeping my mind pretty occupied as is. There hasn’t been enough room to even think about what’s coming next. There is no tomorrow!

You’ve recommend BECK and a number of users have recommend CODE GEASS and BLACK LAGOON pretty insistently. I’d like to eventually delve a little deeper into Miyazaki’s filmography. I don’t know… what do you Anime Vice lunatics think I need to see?  

AgentJ: You mentioned that western entertainment is often predictable and over-developed. What are your favorite aspects of Japanese comics that diverge from what you are used to in American Comics?

American comics aren’t really what I have an issue with. I love American Comics. I write American Comics. And I haven’t actually been reading manga for this site, just watching anime.  It’s just that I’ve been reading superhero comics since I was a kid - - they’re familiar to me - - and these shows have fully-developed universes that are new territory to me. I don’t know what to expect and I can’t predict what’s coming at me, so the experience is a bit more genuine. I’m surprised by the twists, I’m intrigued by the mythologies, I get behind the characters because they’re like new friends. It’s a bit more stimulating because my viewing experience is much more like it was when I was a kid and I wasn’t so savy about my entertainment.

But I do think that Western live-action entertainment is what’s over-developed in comparison. The mass audiences are so much more constipated about fitting things into boxes. This character has to be the hero, this character has to be sympathetic, you can’t mix these genres and so on… so it’s refreshing to seeing a place where all these square peg concepts and characters can not only exist, but also thrive. Where you can have an entire series about a detestable villain, like DEATH NOTE. 

Anyway, keep those questions coming, Anime Vice community! I WILL answer them, so don't hold back!

Tom Pinchuk’s the writer of HYBRID BASTARDS! & UNIMAGINABLE. Order them on Amazon here & here.

I've watched and read so many things I've completely forgotten some.    I mean, currently I try to keep up with more than 30 manga, and sometimes I just forget what I'm supposed to be keeping up with.
 
For recommendations....Beck and Black Lagoon, definitely.  There's Genshiken, which is one of my top 3 anime/manga, but that one is a bit weird, as it is just series about a college anime/manga/video game club doing things a club would do, but the characters are some of the most realistic I've encountered.
 
Ranma 1/2, Irresponsible Captain Tylor, Gunsmith Cats are all pretty good.  Gunsmith Cats is sort of a rarity, as it doesn't take place in Japan or in space, but actually in 1990's Chicago.  The anime versions of Ranma and GC are both inferior to their original manga though, but GC's is at least short (3 episodes).
Definitely catch the Hellsing Ultimate OVAs, the main character is a complete monster, literally.  He puts Light to shame.  Don't bother with the Hellsing TV series though.

I'd recommend watching at least the first couple seasons of Ranma 1/2, just because it's really one of those old school anime series that anime fans (or people who want to be anime fans) really should just sit down and watch a bit of. I specify the first two seasons because basically every character that's worth knowing about is introduced in those seasons. You can keep watching after that if you want, but, those are the main base. 
 
I wouldn't recommend doing Watch And Learn posts for Ranma 1/2 though, or at least not for every episode - it's more episodic and generally sitcommy (new word!). It works better to just sit down and binge on the show, like a bag of potato chips.

Code Geass + R2
Naruto + movies
Naruto Shippuuden + movies (ended watching at 155)
Bleach + movies
Great Teacher Onizuka
Chaos;Head (it's effing terrible)
Gurren Lagann
Darker Than Black
Durarara!!
Gintama (probably my favorite anime)
Soul Eater
Neon Genesis Evangelion + movies
K-ON! + K-ON!! (dont judge me)
Sayonara Zetubou Sensei + Zan + Zoku + Goku
I have a feeling that I forget about something, anyway my next anime gonna be Cowboy Bebop

Great lists, but nobody's got questions? Come in... jump into the pit with me!

 @Tom_Pinchuk: Funny how you talk about villains being the main characters. Black Lagoon only has one team of good guys. They're the ANTAGONISTS (sorta) of the OVA series, the US army.
Black Lagoon is famous for being one of the only three anime in which the Dub is infinitely superior to the Japanese version by declaration of the original authors: The other two are Cowboy Bebop and El Hazard. I've only seen the first two, but if you want a mindless anime about a normal guy joining Thai Pirates who fought Neo Nazi's on a boat one time, you won't get anything better than this.
 
Also about Deathnote, Bakuman is coming out this autumn/fall. It's done by the same manga team as Deathnote, but it's a story about two guys trying to get a manga published in Shounen Jump, and then making a manga in Shounen Jump, and its done by two guys, and it's published by Shounen Jump.
Yeah, it's very meta.
 
You really didn't leave us much to ask about. Do you want us to provide more questions for your Almost Otaku section? Well, alright then, I'll give it a shot.
 
Which do you prefer best, Deconstruction (If this fictional element were real, why would it suck?),  Reconstruction (This is why you enjoyed the stuff that was Deconstructed, remember?), or a straight-up Preposterone (PREPOSTEROUS AMOUNTS OF TESTOSTERONE!!), in terms of viewing pleasure, after-thoughts, or enjoyment?
 
For reference, see Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gurren Lagann, and DragonBall Z respectively, though Gurren Lagann also qualifies for Preposterone.

@lizcat said:

" @Tom_Pinchuk:  I have a question!  You pointed out that you haven't been reading any manga for this site, but you read/love/create American comics.  So what's your experience with manga? Have you read any? What have you read? Does anything in particular about manga seem really strange to you or scare you away?    And I guess the relevancy of this could depend on your answers to the above, but... a potentially fun project: Read the first volume of the manga version of one of the shows you've watched for Watch and Learn (Death Note or FMA, maybe, or possibly one of the Eva adaptations) and do a similar reaction/comparison column.    Anyways, hope that gives you a little column fodder.  "

I'd love to hear the answer to this question as well. We need to get you reading some MANGA! 
Since you started here by watching Deathnote, and the manga is only 12 volumes long, perhaps that would be a good place to start? You'll belt out each volume between 1 - 1 1/2 hours. Initially you'll probably miss the color, and reading backwards takes some getting used to, but you never know when you'll need to be ambi-literate. (word of the day) 
 
You know of my undying devotion to Beck, but there's two more I'd like to get you hyped up for: GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka, and The Count of Monte Cristo. The later you've almost certainly heard of as a french-origin story of betrayal and revenge, but I'll tell you what: The anime is legitimately heads and tails better than any other version I've read or seen. As for GTO, well, nearly everyone will tell you it is fantastic. Especially in Japan. You'll talk to a lot of non-otaku who have never heard of Deathnote, or Gurren Lagann, or even Cowboy Bebop, but if you drop those three simple letters (in order; that's kind of key) you will get a (positive) reaction.  
 
Question: In the Cowboy Bebop #2 watch and learn, you pointed out that different studios have their own distinctive character-design tendencies. Something that gets brought up frequently, and surprisingly, with a lot of emotion, is that many anime (and video game) characters that come out of Japan don't look "japanese". The idea is that it is common for characters to have facial structures or hair colors more closely resembling the west. What are your thoughts on this?

currenty watching Bleach's Bount Arc, up to the start of konohagure's invasion in shippuden, about 30 eps into eyeshield 21, watched most of Cyborg 009, most of Astro Boy, watched almost all of bebop, got tired of FMA/brotherhood, and a dozen or so eps into Gintama. and of Course, DB and DBZ. what should i watch next?