Welcome to NHK, Log Horizon, and No Game. No Life are all part of a trend of featuring NEETs (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) and hikikomori (extreme shut-ins) as protagonists. In the past several years, NEETs have been on the rise across the world. Anime, as an international storytelling medium, reflects this rise. In…
Author: Chris Kincaid
Gurren Lagann Does Suspense Right
Andrew and I often criticize shonen for ruining story pacing and suspense. I’ve wrote one article about the problems of anime/manga storytelling. Andrew, recently, wrote critiques of One Piece and Bleach. We often discuss what Bleach and other shows could do to tighten the storytelling and build suspense. The pull-back almost all shonen do, just…
How to get a Convention Girlfriend or Boyfriend: American Otaku Dating
Dating sucks, particularly for those who like anime. In the US, anime and manga fans are still stigmatized as loser neckbeards (including girls!). While this unfounded stereotype is wrong and slowly fading, it still hangs on in many areas. Because of this, many anime conventions feature speed dating events to help anime fans meet. The…
Idealizing the Country Side and Impulsive Artists: Barakamon
Barakamon is one of those stories that resonates and repulses me. I grew up in rural America and have a dislike for cities. I also dabble in art – drawing, painting, and writing – so a story about a city-slicker professional artist who goes country appeals to me. However, most of these types of stories…
Crackling Mountain: The Story of the Farmer and the Tanuki
Below is one version of one of the most popular tanuki stories in Japan. The translation dates to the early 1900s. During this time, the character for tanuki was translated as badger. If you want to learn more about tanuki, check out my ebook, Tanuki: The Folklore of Japan’s Trickster Long, long ago, there lived…
Goku vs. Superman: The Cultural Perspective
People debate who would win in a duel: Goku or Superman? Although entertaining, this question is the old oranges and apples argument. Goku and Superman are different types of heroes. Each reflects a different set of values and cultural views, and both types of hero are important. The Man of Steel Superman is the ultimate…