Eiichi Yamamoto, who died earlier this month, bore witness to crucial moments in anime history. As a young man, he was one of the talents behind the scenes at Ryuichi Yokoyama’s Otogi Pro studio, an experiment by a manga artist dabbling in the world of animation. But Yamamoto was the brains of the outfit, and […]
Sep 25, 2021 • Subscribe
More like this
MASAYUKI YAMAMOTO ’88
MASAYUKI YAMAMOTO ’88RELEASE DATE: January 25, 1988 With this post, I’m breaking a tradition that goes back to my very second post… the “40-Year Rule.” Although I’m stretching…
Nizo Yamamoto (1953-2023)
The background artist Nizo Yamamoto, who died on 19th August, spent his whole life working in the Japanese animation sector. Born in Nagasaki, he developed an interest in…
Eiichi Shimizu Does it Again: RIOBOT Raideen
Eiichi Shimizu is quickly becoming the hottest mecha designer nowadays. From doing Linebarrels of Iron, to the ULTRAMAN manga, and even western properties like Tech-On Avengers most recently.…
Episode 100 - Dr. Takahiro Yamamoto (Heidelberg)
In this episode, Dr. Yamamoto reviews Japan's diplomatic interactions with Russia in the northern territories of the Kuril Islands and Karafuto in the years around the Meiji Restoration. …
Eleven Samurai (十一人の侍, Eiichi Kudo, 1967)
Faced with dissolution, a wronged clan plots revenge against a selfish and entitled young lord in Eiichi Kudo’s nihilistic jidaigeki.
Wonderful Paradise (脳天パラダイス, Masashi Yamamoto, 2020)
An impromptu going away party descends into a psychedelic rave of death and rebirth in Yamamoto’s defiantly surreal nighttime odyssey
Robinson’s Garden (ロビンソンの庭, Masashi Yamamoto, 1987)
A young woman attempts to escape society by rewilding an industrial estate but discovers the land may not want her in Yamamoto’s ethereal drama
Batman: Justice Buster (Vol 1) by Shimizu Eiichi and Shimoguchi Tomohiro
When I do Western comic books, Marvel is normally my jam. However, growing up, I read pretty much anything in graphic format that I could get my hands…
Yamamoto Sho's Essential Songs Before and After Fruits Zipper
Tracing the producer's body of work from Phenotas to Fruit Zipper's big hit
“Genshiken Nidaime” Ogiue Chika Voice, Yamamoto Nozomi, Gets Married
We don’t get much Genshiken news these days, but the Hashikko Ensemble official Twitter account recently tweeted about Yamamoto Nozomi, the voice actor for Ogiue Chika in Genshiken…
Castle of Owls (忍者秘帖 梟の城, Eiichi Kudo, 1963)
A surviving member of the Iga clan swears vengeance on Toyotomi Hideyoshi only to slowly come to the realisation that the best revenge is living well in Eiichi…
Creative Producer Goro Taniguchi, Director Junichi Yamamoto Talk Web3 Anime
The Code Geass creator discusses his new project with Web3 company Azuki, Enter the Garden, and his hope that this new path could help the medium evolve.
Miki Yamamoto, Creator of A Smart and Courageous Child Manga
Her single-volume book explores a couple's first pregnancy and their emotional trajectories as they go from thrilled to fearful, examining the role of news and how the written…
The Great White Tower (白い巨塔, Satsuo Yamamoto, 1966)
The medical system is just another corporate body filled with egotistical salarymen and dangerously narcissistic careerists in Satsuo Yamamoto’s tense political drama
Fate Grand Order Babylonia #11 And Ken Yamamoto: Ace Among Aces
It’s time to recap all the recent happenings in Fate Grand Order: Babylonia‘s exceptional production, some shortcomings of the show, but especially to admire the work of a…
Nosari: Impermanent Eternity (のさりの島, Tatsuya Yamamoto, 2020)
An ore ore scammer’s cynical worldview is challenged when he finds temporary harbour with an elderly woman in Yamamoto’s touching indie drama
Kashikokute Yuuki Aru Kodomo / A Smart and Courageous Child by Yamamoto Miki
Have I ever mentioned that, while I sometimes complain about it, I have a very manga-positive library system? Because I really do. I found this odd little duck…
Exhibition Review: ‘Sakubei Yamamoto and the Rich Seams of Japan’s Coal Mining History’
4th Oct – 15th November 2019 at the Japanese Embassy in London It was Monday 30th July 1973 when, just before 620 am, Colin Burton (a maternal uncle),…
Manga One Scandal: The coverup of the crimes of Shoichi Yamamoto (Ichiro Hajime)
Shogakukan has released a statement that Joujin Kamen written by Shouchi Yamamoto (using the pen name "Ichiro Hajime"), real name Kazuaki Kurita (but we will refer to him…
Tale of Japanese Burglars (にっぽん泥棒物語, Satsuo Yamamoto, 1965)
A former burglar finds himself conflicted on realising only he can prevent a miscarriage of justice in Satsuo Yamamoto’s ironic tale of post-war moral confusion
Terror in the Streets (悪魔が呼んでいる, Michio Yamamoto, 1970)
A young woman finds herself in the crosshairs of mysterious forces in Michio Yamamoto’s folk horror paranoia thriller.
Perilous Wagers: Gambling, Dignity, and Day Laborers in 21st-Century Tokyo (Klaus K.Y. Yamamoto) | Japan Station 142
On this episode of Japan Station, we talk about life in Sanya--Tokyo's infamous day laborer district--with Klaus K.Y. Hammering. 👉Topics Discussed What it is like being…
Goto-san (2021) review [OAFF 2021]
“Gokan expertly reveals the position of the freeter as an attempt to escape the capitalistic machinery but also as a position that most easily falls prey to the…
Yuusuke Yamamoto & Naoya Takahashi – Interview on Sono Bisque Doll wa Koi wo Suru (My Dress-Up Darling) Season 2
Original interview from Monthly Newtype (September 2025), original interviewer: Hisashi Maeda; genga from studio ClowerWorks’s official Twitter account. Episode 14: Storyboards and Direction that bring the drawings to life —…
2021 Retrospective
Here's to another good one, friends. 3:02 - 2021 Recommendations 3:13 - Golden Kamuy 4:15 - Hina Change 5:21 - Kaguya-sama: Love Is War 6:57 - Curtains Up, I'm Off 8:01 - The Bones…
Summer 2021
Another 3 months gone and I don’t even know where it’s gone TBH. I had a Moot Court this past Monday and it left me emotionally drained and…
The Dungeon of Black Company, Battle Game in 5 Seconds, Scarlet Nexus, Sonny Boy, The aquatope on white sand
Summer 2021!
Summer 2021 is officially here! So, y’all know the drill.
Winter 2021
Hello! How many of us are looking forward to the new year?? I know I am! Winter 2021 feels like a brand new start, granted all our problems…
Spring 2021!
It’s been about a year now since we’ve all been experiencing (in one way or another) the effects of the global pandemic. I hope that you and yours…
Fall 2021.
Sweater season is upon us! Not really because it’s Spring in Melbourne but somehow still feels like it’s the middle of Winter. I’ve had hail in my area…
The Vampire Dies in No Time, Musashi, Platinum End, VISUAL PRISON, Blue Period
Spring 2021.
Wanna hear something embarrassing? This post has been sitting, complete and ready to post, in my drafts for over a month now. I just lacked the energy to…
Farewell, 2021…
Just a quick post about my next plans as 2021 is gonna end soon. Yes, we’re still under the mercy of the COVID-19 pandemic, but I’m hoping that…
Sweet Bitter Candy (2021) review [OAFF 2021]
“An amazing exploration of the clash between a sweet youthful romantic desire and the bitter urge of a wounded subject to defend his subjective wounds.”
Junho (South Korea/USA, 2021) [CAAMFest 2021]
John Atom reviews David Boo's topical drama Junho.
Spaghetti Code Love (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“Maruyama’s narrative speaks powerfully to the spectator’s subjectivity – his fears and hopes – and enables his evocation of a glimmer of hope that remains present in this…
A New Wind Blows (2021) review [OAFF 2021]
A great film that shows that the madness of the male subject is often function of a woman, of a woman that unknowingly puts the by a man…
Winter 2021 to Fall 2021 Anime Power Rankings
It's been 2 years since the last one, let's get right into it. Winter 2021 1) Wonder Egg Priority Worth watching for the animation alone. However the ending is chotto... 2) Re:Zero…
Attack on Titan, Lycoris Recoil, ZOMBIE LAND SAGA, Super Cub, Encouragement of Climb
Mari and Mari (2021) review [Japan Cuts 2021]
“A beautiful narrative that seems to bear no relation to our romantic life at first, but ultimately hits close to home.”
Seobok (서복, Lee Yong-ju, 2021) [Fantasia 2021]
A terminally ill former government agent reckons with mortality while bonding with a clone birthed to cure humanity’s ills in Lee Yong-ju’s high concept thriller
Follow The Light (2021) review [Fantasia Festival 2021]
The narrative might not offer anything new at a thematical level, but stands out due to his refusal to spell things out and, instead, imply certain subjective truths…
Escape from Mogadishu (South Korea, 2021) [NYAFF 2021]
South Korean cinema is no longer the producer of small and idiosyncratic films that have to seep through the cracks of international cinema. It hasn’t been for years.…
Midnight (미드나이트, Kwon Oh-seung, 2021) [Fantasia 2021]
A deaf woman and her mother become unwitting targets for a sadistic serial killer in Kwon’s extraordinarily tense chase through the darkened streets of Soeul
Special - NYAFF 2021
Hello everyone, In this special episode of Heroic Purgatory, John and Jason discuss the 2021 edition of the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF). For the second year in…
Underdog (2021) review
“Take’s film powerfully shows that the heroism of the art of boxing lies in the very subjective meaning that power the jabs, the hooks, and the uppercuts.”
Best of 2021
Hello everyone, As we move steadily through the new year, John and Jason take a look back at 2021 and talk about their favorite movies.Timestamps:2:23 - Media Consumption15:04 -…
Frantic (2021) review
“Fuji delivers his best movie yet and, quite possibly, the cult-film of the year.”
Summer 2021 Anime...
My thoughts on Anime in the season of Summer 2021.
IDOLiSH7, IDOLiSH7 Third BEAT!, Peach Boy Riverside, Sasuke, Tokyo Revengers
Winter 2021 2
One of those openings where you fly over and swoop down to the town. Let’s start with Ore Dake Haireru Kakushi Dungeon, where Noir Stadia, merely the third…