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Hey, Answerman! [2007-06-22]

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There has only been two shows that so crossed the line that I had to put it down, even though I REALLY wanted to get into them, and those were D.Grey-Man and Le Chevalier d'Eon.

The objection to Le Chevalier has me a bit curious; is it the Psalm of the King element to the plot? I myself don't love Le Chevalier spoiler[(I just can't wrap my head around Robespierre as an occultist bishonen)], but I think that the use of the Psalm of the King is just an interpretation of a particular passage in the bible associated with alchemy in the story; at the very least, I think Le Chevalier shows a good deal more investigation into religion than most series, even if artistic liberties are taken with the material (as in all sorts of other productions, including innumerable American works).

Then again, perhaps it's because I found the whole "Christian magic" angle of the program particularly ridiculous. Unlike Japanese cultural religions that incorporate magical legends into their lore, Christianity and Judaism's roots show a profound disdain for magical arts. Just look at Acts 8:9-24 for a story about Simon, often referred to as Simon Magus, who was strongly chastised when he asked to buy the ability to use the God-given powers the disciples were displaying. As such, to see the "Poets" going around doing magic with "Psalms" is patently absurd. So is the whole premise of Lia possessing D'Eon by quoting "the Psalm of Vengeance" or even the notion that Lia's soul would wind up walking the earth without her body's burial. (Admittedly, at times in church history there have been some wild notions about the soul/body dichotomy, but this is the first I've heard of this one.) The "Psalm" quoted throughout the program is really an incantation, just like any other we see in a magical girl show during a transformation sequence. It makes the pseudo-Christian symbolism of Neon Genesis Evangelion look perfectly reasonable by comparison. Now this does not mean that there weren't religious cults in 1700s France; I have no doubt that the occult was practiced. But to equate Christianity with the practices of witchcraft? It goes to show how little the show's creators understand Christianity on the whole. I couldn't write a program that would do justice to Shinto, and I wish that those who don't understand Christianity would just leave it well enough alone. Things like the whole crossdressing/transgender issues between D'Eon and Lia didn't bother me half as much as this. One other thing...the characters have to explain simple biblical allusions to each other (at one point, D'Eon explains to someone that "Psalms" is a book in the Bible). In 1700s France? Not likely. They're doing it for us, the assumedly biblically illiterate audience, but their method is painful for those who know the effect of Christianity on Europe.

I think that a lot of people have problems with Christianity because of the inconsistency in the the beliefs of the people they've met and some of it's religious leaders. I'm not Christian because I disagree with parts of most of its denominations. If I meet someone who does something that I know is against their religion and then later says they are against gay marriage because it's against their religion, it's very hard for me to respect their opinion at that point.

Maybe I just don't understand how you can pick and choose from an organized religion.

There has only been two shows that so crossed the line that I had to put it down, even though I REALLY wanted to get into them, and those were D.Grey-Man and Le Chevalier d'Eon.

I wouldn't say that Azumanga Daioh is specifically directed to otaku audiences. Shows that are targetted at otaku generally:

1) Are about otaku (Genshiken, Welcome to the NHK, Comic Party)

2) Have jokes that tend to break the 4th wall and require extensive knowledge of other anime & manga series.

Azumanga Daioh has none of these; it's just a cute and random comedy show about a bunch of high school friends. As far as anime comedy shows goes, I think it's one of the more mainstream shows out there: a great choice to show to someone who is new to anime. Heck, even my 6 year old daughter loves it.

Hey "Answerman," who always supports the English anime companies no matter what because you are PAID OFF, please tell me this: how did that horrible English butchering company ADV get the rights to SLAUGHTER and DESTROY ~AIR~ TV, the most amazing anime ever made. All they do is ruin everything with English dubs and crappy subtitles that you know are wrong because the fansubs, which are better, say things differently. I will never EVER give them money to watch some horrible DESTROYED version of my beloved ~AIR~. They will rape it, of course you do not agree because your pockets are lined with BRIBES from ADV telling you to tell people to buy their butchered versions.

Words have meaning, and when you use them in meaningless ways, you're showing the ignorance of the power of the words you use.

Once again, I'm yelling more at ADV than Moriyama. Ignoring all the errors, the portrayal of nuns is completely disrespectful to everything nuns are and attempt to witness in the world. The sexual jokes strike me as especially problematic in this area, as the sisters of this order are suddenly reduced to gossipy teenage girls who don't mind showing a little leg and just happen to wear habits in the meantime. Real nuns pray constantly for help and struggle with real temptations to maintain their vows of chastity and humility.

If you have a giant creepy guy who smells like stale Doritos, hits on the girls, clutches his hentai manga and boasts of his creepy obsession with Osaka from Azumanga Daioh, it's really not that big a deal if you give him the cold shoulder or simply don't socialize with him.

That just means you like the series for something other than the fact that it targets otaku, right? [...] I digress, but the main point is that is that most series have merits other than their target at otakudom.

...nearly every geek social group of significant size has at least one member that 80% of the members hate, and the remaining 20% merely tolerate.

Are you living in the same US I am? This almost never happens. People write books all the time filled with the most offensive stereotypes imaginable, and while some people do object, it's usually in small numbers on a blog somewhere. Books are generally written for very narrow audiences, and those are usually the audiences that see them. No one complains because they're not the ones buying them.