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NEWS: Reference Book Publisher to Ship Rough Guide to Anime


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Kit-Tsukasa



Joined: 16 Mar 2006
Posts: 930
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 6:35 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
will contain profiles of the top 50 "must-see" anime and the leading directors and creators


I can't wait to see the top 50 be made of a lot of fail and junk. Hopefully it won't be limited to stuff only licensed/released in the US/Europe.
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LordRedhand



Joined: 04 Feb 2009
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Location: Middle of Nowhere, Indiana
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 6:37 pm Reply with quote
This can only be a good thing really, as really something for a new fan that says "I want a good series to watch." will have another resource to use.
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TsubomiKoneko



Joined: 10 Aug 2004
Posts: 247
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 6:44 pm Reply with quote
LordRedhand wrote:
This can only be a good thing really, as really something for a new fan that says "I want a good series to watch." will have another resource to use.


Except not everyone likes the same things, so it could actually be very bad depending on what's on the list and have the ability to turn someone away from anime if they get the wrong idea and think that it's all that way.

And yeah there are people silly enough to do that, my grandmother still thinks all anime is Sailor Moon.
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enurtsol



Joined: 01 May 2007
Posts: 14754
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 6:50 pm Reply with quote
Hey, if this turns out anything like The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.... Laughing
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LordRedhand



Joined: 04 Feb 2009
Posts: 1472
Location: Middle of Nowhere, Indiana
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 7:00 pm Reply with quote
TsubomiKoneko wrote:


Except not everyone likes the same things, so it could actually be very bad depending on what's on the list and have the ability to turn someone away from anime if they get the wrong idea and think that it's all that way.

And yeah there are people silly enough to do that, my grandmother still thinks all anime is Sailor Moon.


50 series is quite a few, so potentially it can be genre diverse, so it would have something for everybody.

And perceptions for anime are influenced already by what you see and hear, so if anything this is just another source of influence. So some members of my family do have a perception of "what anime is." With something that maybe hard to change, especially if they are resistant to change.
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Kit-Tsukasa



Joined: 16 Mar 2006
Posts: 930
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 7:03 pm Reply with quote
TsubomiKoneko wrote:
LordRedhand wrote:
This can only be a good thing really, as really something for a new fan that says "I want a good series to watch." will have another resource to use.


Except not everyone likes the same things, so it could actually be very bad depending on what's on the list and have the ability to turn someone away from anime if they get the wrong idea and think that it's all that way.


My guess as to what the list will probably be/contain (everything show on Adult Swim and more):
Gundam Wing
Outlaw Star
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Azumanga Daioh
Escaflowne
Cowboy Bebop
Trigun
Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex 1st G.I.G
Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex 2nd G.I.G
Full Metal Alchemist
Big O
Wolf's Rain
Bleach
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion R2
Death Note
Dragon Ball
Dragon Ball Z
Dragon Ball GT
Rurouni Kenshin
Samurai X Trust and Betrayal
Samurai X Reflection
.hack//sign
Yu Yu Hakusho
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
Card Captor Sakura
Chobits
Noir
Gunslinger Girl
Great Teacher Onizuka
Full Metal Panic (very iffy)
Macross Frontier (very iffy)
...more in my mind, but these are the first that come to mind. See a trend here?
This list currently excludes movies...

Basically I'm anticipating that you will not see many things post 2004 except a few. Chances are 80% of the list will also be made up of action/"violent" series because that's just how the US is; they love blood, which means stuff like ef, the Key series, KGNE, Nanoha, School Days, Kodomo no Jikan, Ichigo Mashimaro, Onegai Teacher, Onegai Twins, will be excluded. If I see Lucky Star on this list, I deem the book fail because it doesn't deserve to be on there. I'd be very surprised if any of the titles I listed that won't be on there are listed except Nanoha.

As much as I like Ghost in the Shell, hopefully the author groups it all together as one franchise. Gundam is a different story due to Destiny, but listing too many would also be a waste of spots. Dragon Ball doesn't deserve to be on the list and I hope it isn't

Quote:
And yeah there are people silly enough to do that, my grandmother still thinks all anime is Sailor Moon.

My parents still think all anime is Pokemon so it can't possibly be worse. Every time they see a non-human creature while I'm watching they think it's pokemon <_<

I'll probably buy this book if I can find it anyways since I'm always interested in these kind of opinions for the hell of it. It's also because I often have nothing better to read aside from blogs, other anime related articles and manga. Very few books interest me these days.
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Xagor



Joined: 29 Apr 2008
Posts: 192
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 7:19 pm Reply with quote
Considering it's being done by a British journalist I don't see why you think that thing you said about what the US likes is even relevant.
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posterior_praiser



Joined: 21 Oct 2007
Posts: 296
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 7:23 pm Reply with quote
Kit-Tsukasa wrote:
My parents still think all anime is Pokemon so it can't possibly be worse. Every time they see a non-human creature while I'm watching they think it's pokemon <_<


Haha! that just cracks me up. I'm sure everyone has a similar story when it comes to friends/parents Anime hyper!

But yeah. I might check out the book. It's hard to make a guide to anime cause what is good in anime is so subjective. I hope it'll include a wide varitey of things.
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CorneredAngel



Joined: 17 Jun 2002
Posts: 854
Location: New York, NY
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 8:13 pm Reply with quote
Kit-Tsukasa wrote:
Basically I'm anticipating that you will not see many things post 2004 except a few. Chances are 80% of the list will also be made up of action/"violent" series because that's just how the US is; they love blood, which means stuff like ef, the Key series, KGNE, Nanoha, School Days, Kodomo no Jikan, Ichigo Mashimaro, Onegai Teacher, Onegai Twins


Actually, the book will be current to last summer. And as far as all the series you mention, I highly doubt that anyone who has never seen an anime before would *want* to watch them - or if they ever did, would actually enjoy/understand them. Whereas the point of this thing really is to give someone who knows *nothing* about anime an introduction that is basically safe, or at least, to show them what all those people who go on about 'anime' are actually talking about.
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Kit-Tsukasa



Joined: 16 Mar 2006
Posts: 930
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 8:49 pm Reply with quote
CorneredAngel wrote:
Kit-Tsukasa wrote:
Basically I'm anticipating that you will not see many things post 2004 except a few. Chances are 80% of the list will also be made up of action/"violent" series because that's just how the US is; they love blood, which means stuff like ef, the Key series, KGNE, Nanoha, School Days, Kodomo no Jikan, Ichigo Mashimaro, Onegai Teacher, Onegai Twins


Actually, the book will be current to last summer. And as far as all the series you mention, I highly doubt that anyone who has never seen an anime before would *want* to watch them - or if they ever did, would actually enjoy/understand them. Whereas the point of this thing really is to give someone who knows *nothing* about anime an introduction that is basically safe, or at least, to show them what all those people who go on about 'anime' are actually talking about.


doubt it. School Days is called the epic twist of anime. You will never see that. KGNE is your typical drama slice of life series...ef would also be good, but since it's only up to summer 2008, that would exclude the second season from fall 2008. Probably as close as you could get to realistic stuff, especially for people who hate all this fantasy stuff and think that they're for kids, etc... Kodomo no Jikan along with the Onegai series I can understand what you're saying. Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha is more like if you are CCS, you may as well watch this while you're at it.

Since it's up to Summer 2008, eat Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto ~Natsu no Sora~ and Fate/Stay Night, as well as Terra...e (aka Toward the Terra 2007) I would name more, but I'm blanking here as I run through the list of around 1000 series I've seen in my lifetime so far (and if any of you are thinking I'm old, better think again)
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walw6pK4Alo



Joined: 12 Mar 2008
Posts: 9322
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 8:58 pm Reply with quote
Kit-Tsukasa wrote:
Quote:
will contain profiles of the top 50 "must-see" anime and the leading directors and creators


I can't wait to see the top 50 be made of a lot of fail and junk. Hopefully it won't be limited to stuff only licensed/released in the US/Europe.


Needs Zeta Gundam and Legend of the Galactic Heroes to be complete, despite anything else on the list.

I think they might do a little more research than just what's popular, but if they do then it's pointless to think talk about them. What should be mentioned are the highly influential shows that shape how other shows later come out. So yes, Eva will definitely be on there and hopefully some form of Macross which started the transforming craze.
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narutoismybrother



Joined: 10 Aug 2007
Posts: 198
PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 9:22 pm Reply with quote
posterior_praiser wrote:
Kit-Tsukasa wrote:
My parents still think all anime is Pokemon so it can't possibly be worse. Every time they see a non-human creature while I'm watching they think it's pokemon <_<


Haha! that just cracks me up. I'm sure everyone has a similar story when it comes to friends/parents Anime hyper!

But yeah. I might check out the book. It's hard to make a guide to anime cause what is good in anime is so subjective. I hope it'll include a wide varitey of things.


That's what one of my friends thought. She didn't know what I was showing her was anime, because it didn't look like Pokemon. I showed her The Girl Who Leapt Through Time a few weeks ago and she was like "OMG! This is anime!? It's really good!" Just goes to show ya what a bad influence Pokemon is... XP
psh~ I loved Pokemon, loved Digimon waaaaaay more, when I was little, but that's what everyone thinks. Anime is either Pokemon or porn. It's been like that for years and it aint gonna change.
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walw6pK4Alo



Joined: 12 Mar 2008
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PostPosted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 9:29 pm Reply with quote
narutoismybrother wrote:
but that's what everyone thinks. Anime is either Pokemon or porn. It's been like that for years and it aint gonna change.


This alone is why no one will ever take anime seriously, because it can't shuck these connotations no matter how hard you try. And if it's not kid's shows or porn, then it's needlessly violent cartoons or giant robots. I'm not even sure that stuff like the live-action Cowboy Bebop or AKIRA will have an effect on changing it. The comic movie adaptations only helped in making comics into something slightly less lame, but comics have always been a part of American sub-culture, anime has not.
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pparker



Joined: 13 Oct 2007
Posts: 1185
Location: Florida
PostPosted: Thu Mar 05, 2009 1:19 am Reply with quote
Not likely to list ef ~A Tale of Memories~, for instance, because it isn't licensed and thus isn't "available", even though it's definitely a Top 50 series. They would be promoting fansubs and p*ssing off the English industry. Many of my favorites won't make the list for that reason. So, we'll likely be getting the most Anglicized, dubbed anime more than anything else instead of the hardcore Japanese shows. "Anime for Dummies", I expect.

But it's a good thing nonetheless. There are few books on anime worth reading, and that's from having bought most of the ones I could find. If you can get past the sexual fixation chapters (her own obvious personal Freudian problems) of Napier's book, it does offer some valuable insights. Hands down the best primer for anime is Levi's Samurai from Outer Space, but she never revised it so it's out of print. All of them are outdated.

I'll buy this one just because there are so few anime books. Hopefully it's intelligent.
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walw6pK4Alo



Joined: 12 Mar 2008
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PostPosted: Thu Mar 05, 2009 1:32 am Reply with quote
Same argument goes for tons of great shows that exist but don't exist here. Turn A Gundam and Macross 7 for example.
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