Reflections of Seto

Here are my favorite Anime series.

There are different kinds of anime series. Shoujo anime is of the romantic kind, very popular among girls. Other genres include Science Fiction, Humorous, Sports and Samurai Anime. Hentai Anime is full of sexual innuendos, although it is often rather harmless stuff.

I. Shoujo Anime

Fushigi Yuugi

The first long series anime that I watched that has 50 over episodes is “Fushigi Yuugi”. I just fell in love with the series. I couldn’t stop watching it. I had to keep watching until the end. The art work is fantastic using pastel and vibrant colors. The characters are so well developed that one could identify and feel for them. The comic elements are so well blended into the story that they provide immense entertainment and helped lighten the mood of the movie when the movie is too heavy going and serious. It has a bit of everything for everyone: romance, action, intrigue, adventure, growing themes etc.

Ayashi no Ceres

This anime is also derived from the manga of the same title. The illustrator is Yuu Watase, the person who also did Fushigu Yuugi. The artwork is similar to Fushigi Yuugi but the story is slightly darker.

Kareshi Kanozyo no Jizyoo

(Kare Kano) “His and Her circumstances” is a must for the die-hard romantics. This series have lots of comic elements to make you smile and laugh at the same time! It is about two high school students (a girl and a boy) in Japan who both works very hard to be model students and hide their real personalities behind the masks that they present to the world. The rivalry between them soon turns to love as they discover the individuals hidden beneath. The art work is unique and unusual because it consists of animation, the black and white manga drawings, paper cuttings, photography etc making it into a collage. It’s quite avant garde.

The minus points are that there are quite a few chapters that are fillers recapping what had happened in the episodes before. The ending of the series is a bit dissatisfying as it ends with a bit of story about another couple than the main couple in the story. The manga comic of this story is still going on. I hope somebody will make an animation series continuing the story.

Marmalade Boy (Kodomo no Omocha)

It was first shown in Japan on television in 1994. The series ended in 1995 with 76 episodes. It is a great soap opera kind of love story about romance among teenagers. The story started with a very modern twist. One set of parents had switched partners with another set of parents. Then they all decided to live together so that their children will still get to be with their original parents. One couple has a girl and another couple has a boy. As they all live together, the girl and boy falls in love. Of course there are obstacles along the way coupled with lots of misunderstandings. However, their strong love for each other triumphs. A great series for all die-hard romantics out there. The storyline is so good that it had been made into a Taiwanese drama with the same title and one of the members of the boy band F4 is acting in it. A big treat here is that all the songs in this series are fantastic. They are catchy and melodious.

Ah! Megamisama (Ah! My Goddess / Oh! My Goddess)

The artwork of the three goddesses are very beautifully done with dark and vivid colors. The story is playfully lighthearted and leaves one smiling. The OVA and the movie are definitely worth watching.

Saishuuheiki Kanojo (She, the Ultimate Weapon)

This is a 13 episode anime based on the manga (of the same name) by Takahashi Shin. It is also called Saikano in short. This television series ended on Japan television in September 2002. It is a very intense love story between two senior high school students, Chise & Shuji. Chise is portrayed as physically weak but actually is the ultimate weapon of the army of Japan against foreign enemies. Serious issues are being explored against the backdrop of a war.

Are you still human if part of you consists of machinery? Are you doing something good if you have to kill people? (Chise has to kill the enemies in order to stop their advance on Japanese soil) Are you being selfish if you don’t want to fight and kill anymore for your country?

The above questions are voiced out during the anime. You have to think about your own response to these questions and contrast this with what happens in the anime.

I perceived an anti-war message from the anime. The uselessness of all that fighting is projected by what happens at the end of the anime.

If you can take the intensity and the seriousness of this anime, go for it. It can be pretty heavy going sometimes.

1. •Official Saikano website(JP):http://www.saikano.net/
2. •Fansite 1: http://saikano.black-brollies.net/main.shtml

Ai Yori Aoshi

This is a very sweet love story between Aoi (a traditional Japanese girl who always wears kimono) and Kaoru. The character Aoi is drawn beautifully with the kimono being represented as a very sexy apparel. Kaoru is illustrated as a rather handsome guy who has a kind heart and is liked by all the girls. One will be left wondering if these two lovers will finally get to be together at the end with all the other girls chasing after Kaoru. This anime has about 24 episodes so far and more to come.

II. Science Fiction

Vandread

It is a sci-fi series with lots of robotic fighting scenes. It is fun to watch because the story in the series pits men against women (where men and women are enemies) resulting in comic scenes. The fact that men and women don’t know much about each other provides fodder for misunderstandings. The diverse and deep colors displayed aroused the senses to the beauty of the animation. There are 2 stages in this story. There are about 26 episodes in total. I highly recommend this for pure entertainment.

Vision of Escaflowne

This is considered a classic in the anime world. There is the television series and the movie. The television series is a good place to start. It’s gripping fighting scenes and the uncertainty of what is going to happen next keeps one glued to the series from the beginning to the end. The story is about a Japanese high school girl called Hitomi who is drawn into another world. While she is there, she helps a prince called Van fight enemies with the robot called “Escaflowne”. Of course there are love triangles as the story progesses.

Neon Genesis Evangelion
This is the most puzzling anime that I have ever watched. You have to think about what the director (Anno Hideaki) wants to say through his anime. It leaves you with many questions and not all of them answered by the time the anime ends. So you will be left wondering what is the “real” story about. Actually this is where the fun starts. You have to search the web and discuss it with people who have seen the anime to try to find the answers to your questions. Actually there is no one true answer to some of the questions as the rest of the fans out there are also still speculating as to which is the “real” theory or story behind Evangelion.

This anime is definitely not the regular robot fighting story. This was a breakthrough anime when it came out in 1995. Deep and complex psychological issues were explored resulting in fans and scholars writing papers about them. Even now, eight years later, no anime like it has been produced. This is one of a kind anime. Go watch it!

III. Humorous & Hentai

Ranma ½

Ranma ½ is a nearly never-ending series. However, it is worth watching, maybe not all at once. It is funny and slapstick at times with weird plots regarding Ranma, his father and his fiancée. The anime is an adaptation from the manga series with the same name. The manga was so successful that the anime resulting from it has so many variations and new additions due to the popular demand. So far, there are 8 seasons of more than 10 episodes each. Furthermore, there are OVAs (original video animation) of individual stand alone episodes. OVA are episodes that are made directly into video for selling unlike the television series that are made and then sold in box sets. Ranma ½ is a series that will grow on you. Yes, it’s slapstick. Yes, it’s silly but you will end up laughing and feeling happy after watching an episode. It’s great for relaxation and pure entertainment. Of course, the great martial arts fighting scenes are a big plus here.

GTO (Great Teacher Onizuka)

This anime is very slapstick with some echi scenes. It is pretty harmless fun. However, it may not be for everyone as some of the scenes are pretty ridiculous especially the ones with lots of blood flowing out of Onizuka’s head! I wanted to see this anime because the drama version of GTO is amazingly good. The anime has many plots similar to the drama version. It is not surprising as the drama version came first.

Handmaid May

The desire to see the different varieties and genre of anime has lead me to see a so-called “hentai” or “echi” series called Handmaid May. It’s full of sexy scenes showing bouncing bobs, short skirts, panties etc. It’s kind of funny and the sexual innuendoes are harmless.

III. Sports & Games

Hikaru no Go

“Hikaru no Go” is an amazing anime that is derived from the manga of the same name. It is captivating and manages to hold your attention even if it was originally intended for children or teenagers. The story is about a boy called Shindou Hikaru who accidentally stumbles upon his grandfather’s old Go board and let an ancient spirit possessed a part of him. The involvement of a spirit or ghost might be scary but the anime successfully made us see the ghost as a friend instead of something to be feared. Later on the spirit whose name is Fujiwara Sai became Hikaru’s best friend, sharing in his growing up pains and helping him overcome problems in life. The anime focuses around the board game called Go. Go is an ancient game of strategy played between two individuals using black and white stones on a board. Sai became a spirit because he did not die a happy man. He wanted to play the best Go game to achieve the “hand of god”. “The hand of god” is a term to describe the best move ever played. He was framed when he was living in the Heian period. After he drowned himself, his spirit entered into a Go board. Hikaru was the second person who can hear his voice & allowed Sai to enter into him. Sai is one of the best drawn and well thought out character in the anime. When Sai disappears before the end of the anime, we can’t help but grieve his loss. He is a character we have grown to love and felt that he was the best thing that ever happened to Hikaru. How many of us can have a best friend like that who can share all your joys and sorrows and helped you through your bad times?

The anime consists of 75 episodes. It may seem long but you don’t feel it at all as the anime is very fast moving.

One of the good things about this anime is that it follows the manga version closely. If the manga is a winner, then you have almost a sure thing if you make a reasonably good anime with the good story line available. On the other hand, following the manga closely could be viewed as being non-creative with the material. However, I don’t think so. The director could be inventive with the way he presents the story line. The physical angle he takes, the characters’ feelings that he elaborates on, the color he uses etc, all illustrates the creative ways that he brings the messages across. The decision whether to have certain scenes in comic character mode etc are all part of the creative process.

The influence of “Hikaru no Go” is amazing. It has taken many people by surprise and has spawned an entire new generation of young Go players in Japan, all wanting to be like Hikaru, trying to achieve “the hand of god”. At the end of each episode, there is a short clip on how to play Go, the rules etc. The pretty lady who teaches the Go sessions on TV is a pro player herself and introduces us to the world of Go playing with her two young assistants.

Why “Hikaru no Go” is so fun to watch? The anime is done so well that you can identify with Hikaru and grow with him for 3 years as he becomes a teenager and overcome his problems. One can feel the tension when they are playing a game and be happy for him when he wins. Of course one is entertained by Sai’s antics. He is so cute and funny when he is in comic mode.

Hikaru no Go Resources:

1. Sensei’s Library

IV. Samurai Genre Anime

Rurouni Kenshin

Although it is an old anime (it came out in 1996), it is definitely worth watching. This anime came from the manga of the same title. There are some amazing fighting scenes involving samurai sword techniques. The storyline is also unusual and entertaining.

One drawback is that it is extremely long with 94 episodes in the TV series with 3 main story arcs. In addition, there is a 90 min movie in 1997. And a 4 episode video series (known in English as Samurai X).