Castle In The Sky (1986)

Set audio to Japanese, and subtitles to English. But why is this intro in American English playing? I can't imagine anything I want to possibly watch less than an intro track. I'm already here, and committed - I don't want to be told anything unless its from the creator of the work. Trailers are spoilers. Next track.

Taking a break almost half-way through. So far, so good. Though I haven't seen this movie before, I recognize something almost immediately, something that must be coming from Miyazaki himself: a sense of gentleness. Things happen, bad things drive forward the plot, but there something about Miyazaki's worlds that seem inclined to be kind, even when the situation gets mean. The endless references to air and flight are to be expected now. I also expect the high attention to detail, but I continue to be pleasantly surprised by it anyway.

I recognize a few other themes, like war, meddlesome beauracracy, the crudeness of technology, and the infinite wonder and resilience of nature. The characters are thin, again, but their motivations are made clear enough, and are believable. For a second there, I thought the pirate leader was going to get some deeper characterization as she let her guard down a little. But it was mostly an opportunity lost, or deliberately not carried forward. The physics are not believable, but I am learning to just go with the flow on that one.

Something a little more jarring is the voicework. There are times when from the sound of the voices you can clearly hear the approximate size and shape of where they are, and it doesn't match what's on the screen. Someone was yelling in a vast open airy space, and yet you could hear some echo off the studio walls that shouldn't have been there. It's a small thing, and probably long since improved upon over the decades, so I guess it can't be helped. I often spot little commonalities with Akira, like the way someone looks or sounds when they fell, or groan, etc. I'm also picking up changes in the animation quality, which I imagine to an expert allows you to tell about what year it was made.

Enough intermission, already too long.

This felt a lot like the last Ghibli movie, maybe even more strange and less subtle. I almost have the impression that the author was thinking the audience didn't get the point of the last movie, war bad nature good, so let me spell it out even simpler for you this time: stop fighting and be nice to your mother. Who could disagree with this message? And yet, all I am left with is the lingering shot of a flying space tree, powered by a giant glowing crystal, leaving the Earth forever. What?

Worth seeing, but I can't see myself ever coming back this way agian.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)

Knowing the greatness that is to come, Nausicaä seems a bit like an early (but good) draft of a greater story. All the elements are there, but it feels like a little something is missing. Maybe it was something about the dialogue, or depth of characterization, that could have been a little deeper. I almost hate to say anything critical at this point, because I'm comparing to it later works that I've already seen.

Again, I watched it in the original language with subtitles. One of the special features on the disk shows the all-star cast of English speaking actors used for the dub. It seemed like they put so much effort into it, and had so much fun doing it, that I should re-watch it using dubbed voices. But I feel like that is a side pursuit I don't need right now. I'm having enough trouble staying on track.

Another special feature showed the history of Studio Ghibli up to the release of Howl's Moving Castle, I think. It also showed twice as many movies by Ghibli and/or Miyazaki that I even knew existed. I'm still not entirely clear on who made what, but I'm quickly getting the sense I should focus on whatever Miyazaki was personally involved in (and not just produced by his studio).

Castle of Cagliostro (1979)

I liked Castle of Cagliostro, and I'm glad I saw it, but I don't think I'll ever watch it again. I was entertained while watching it, but that's about all. Amusing while it lasted, it leaves me with no lasting impression or knowledge.

I'm definitely starting to see certain little stylistic attributes which let you know its anime. First and foremost, even though this story is set in late 20th century Europe, Japanese elements are in the fore. Not that there's anything weird or unexpected about that, but sometimes it seems a little odd. There's also an assortment of facial expressions and other communications that seem particularly Japanese.

Speaking of communication, I am watching anime in the original Japanese voice work, with English subtitles. I'm pretty sure this means I'll have to seek out discs, and not watch streams. As a technical problem, I'm sure that the various streaming services will have that sorted out eventually, but maybe not any time soon for what I plan to watch.

Anyway, back to this particular anime, I did not like that the protagonist looks so simian. It was really pronounced and distracting, and I hope this is not common. One thing that should have bothered me but didn't was the on and off relationship with physics. Sometimes the main character could defy gravity, sometimes not; its all in service of moving the story along. I think the movie established early that it you're getting a mix of James Bond, the Pink Panther movies, and Indiana Jones, so entertainment always trumps realism. I can accept these kind of stories, but probably not love them. I don't mind a fantasy world, as long as it is internally consistent.

I'm thinking about my upcoming view order, and how maybe its somewhat self-defeating, and how I'm choosing what I perceive as the best to watch first. Miyazaki, Bebop, Evangelion. If these really are some of the best, maybe the rest will look that much worse. I wonder if I should do some sort of chronological approach, rather than hunting for quality. But then I might end up wasting time on something historically significant but potentially mediocre. I might as well take the best and then see if I want to go any further.

Late To Anime

Like most geeks of my (middle) age, I watched anime as a kid but didn't know it. I can still recall Battle of the Planets and Star Blazers, there may have been others. I remember they seemed different than the other cartoons, but I didn't know why.

I didn't really see anime again until I saw a VHS tape of Akira, and I loved it. As a big fan of all things science-fiction (books, movies, TV, etc.), I suddenly felt I had been missing out on a big segment of the sci-fi spectrum, and I had to get into anime. I was quickly disappointed. I tried again, every so often, finally watching Ghost In The Shell, which was supposedly considered as good as or better than Akira. I found it also disappointing  and decided to give up on anime altogether.

A lot more years passed, I found myself on 4chan and other such sites, where anime was a constant part of the background culture. Something that ran this long and deep in geek culture could not be entirely discounted. I found out about Miyazaki, oft described as the Disney of Japan, so I watched Spirited Away, and I loved it. What had been a cold trail up til now was suddenly warm, and I had real proof that there was something substantial here. My previous efforts were inadequate, and I needed to know more.

There was so much anime, and I had no idea where to start. Could I understand the anime of today, without having watched much of the past? After all, this is the art of another culture, and there are many layers of context and translation to try and understand my way through. Also, a lot of anime is based on manga, maybe should I be reading that first? The more I researched, the farther I found it went back, and the more complicated it got. I need guidance.

Maybe I could get into this another way. I've been listening to podcasts for a while on various topics - maybe an anime related podcast could help? I tried a bunch, and found most to be unlistenable (well, most podcasts are unlistenable - you really have to do a lot of sifting). I finally settled on Otaku Generation, as they seemed to be very long-running and consistent up to the present. Because it was so long-running, it seemed only right to start at the beginning, even though it went back as far as 2005 (and I think it was around 2010 that I started listening).

I got caught up in the show rather easily. Besides learning about anime, it was just good entertainment. I used to listen to the Howard Stern Show a lot, and I missed that clubhouse feel of a virtual place where you could hang out, spend some time, and get at least some virtual social. At some point, I just couldn't relate to Howard's show anymore, and with Otaku Generation I got back some of that clubhouse feel. Except I didn't understand many of the references they made to anime and manga; luckily all the other geek references I did get, which gave me a bridge to listen to the show.

After two years of listening to that, I still haven't watched much anime, but I feel like I've learned a few things. It seems that two series in particular, Neon Genesis Evangelion and Cowboy Bebop, are staples of the community. Everyone knows and loves the works of Miyazaki. Everyone reads at least some manga, some read a lot or even mostly manga. And no one really talks about Akira. That got me thinking again about its place in the evolution of anime - was it some weird exception, and would I never get into any other anime?

I tried a few more Miyazaki movies and liked them all. I even watched the notoriously sad Grave of the Fireflies. I still didn't find much motivation to actually sit down and watch more. I think its because I find it hard to sit down and watch anything. Years of internet usage, and my fidgety nature, make it hard to me to pay attention to a glowing screen for any length of time without me interacting. But I think I have a new angle - watching while exercising. That, and starting this blog, might be enough to get me to catch up with anime, and decide if its something I need in my life, or not.