Stereotypes of Japan as a land of vague meaning and blunted expression are just straight up Orientalism that obscure a complex reality.
Sep 29, 2022 • Subscribe
More like this
The Witch from Mercury and Subtlety in Storytelling
Gundam’s newest series provides a refreshing sense of direction and well thought out storytelling.
Reactionary Fandom And The Myth Of The Snyder Cut, Chapter 5: Zack Snyder, Destroyer Of Myth
“For me, for the filmmakers I came to love and respect, for my friends who started making movies around the same time that I did, cinema was about…
The myth of the jaded critic
"Become a critic and you'll never enjoy your hobby again!"
Lotus Eaters and Steam Trains: The Myth of the Galaxy Express
Author’s note: I wrote this after watching the first 10 episodes of the show. If there is anything further on that contradicts this, I apologize. Galaxy Express 999…
BNA: Brand New Animal, Assimilationism, and the Myth of the Model Minority
There are anime where, if you really sit down and try to read deep underneath the surface for messages, you’ll find some surprisingly political messages. Then there’s BNA:…
Sakura Trick Episode 2: Subtlety within the Overt
What can I say? I’m a sucker for cute and sweet stuff.
Good Soil Makes a Good Crop: The Story of Saiunkoku and the myth of meritocracy
Despite its fantastical shoujo setting, The Story of Saiunkoku is no traditional fairy tale, and the sexist hurdles Shurei faces to achieve her dream of becoming a civil…
Talentless Nana #02 — Subtlety in Coloring
At least they're still making silly faces. Impressions: I guess it was marginally more tolerable than the first episode because there was less screaming, but on the…
First Impression: Aquarion: Myth of Emotions
“Perched above the yet oceanless ocean, there was once a dreamer. The dreamer dreamed about all the things in the world.” A beautifully illustrated creation myth of sorts…
Aquarion: Myth of Emotions Review — D+
Still confused by how this series resulted in Aquarion Evol and why they didn’t just stop when they were ahead…
AQUARION Myth of Emotions – Episode 1
I'm a total newbie to Aquarion, which either makes me perfect for this anniversary outing or in deep trouble about two episodes from now.
Let’s Talk About “Us”: The Myth of a Unified Front and the Sliding Scale of Solidarity
The greatest moment of Left unity in decades happened on April 8th, 2020, the day Bernie Sanders officially announced he was suspending his campaign to become the Democratic…
Reactionary Fandom And The Myth Of The Snyder Cut, Chapter 1: The Nerd Cultural Revolution
It’s not easy being a movie critic these days. Critics who truly understand the purpose of art criticism, or even what criticism is, are a dying species. More…
Myth and History: Jujutsu Kaisen's Ryomen Sukuna
For all Ryomen Sukuna's magnificent devilry, the ancient figure whom he's named after is shrouded in a lot of mystery, with some legends even treating this mythical Sukuna…
Debunking the Myth of Naoko Takeuchi having "no friends".
A popular “wholesome meme” that has been periodically making the rounds over the last few years is a screenshot image of the text “Let's cel...
Aquarion – Myth of Emotions #01 — …Where’s the Big Kaboom?
In many senses. There's five premieres today, plus Momentary Lily's second episode, and since I slept in a bit, five of the six shows were up by the…
Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions – 12 (End) and Series Review
My priorities for this sort of show are probably different from most viewers, but they were certainly met to a quite satisfying degree.
Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions – 04
If a genre piece can be both faithful and distinct, it's managing to thread a pretty thin needle.
Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions – 07
MOE does a good job of making sure every major character gets plot service.
A Hard Recommend – Aquarion: Myth of Emotions
This season has been generally really good. Some solid sequels, some good continuations from things that aired last season, and some good original-ness. Take that for what you…
Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions – 08
Sci-fi anime I can't fully make sense of have been one of the reasons I love anime since my very earliest days as a fan.
Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions – 06
That hug between Sun and Sakko may be the funniest moment of the series.
Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions – 10
"Tuning mana" has a distinct air of Human Instrumentality Project to it...
Star Crossed Myth Department of Punishments Review
Star Crossed Myth – Department of Punishments is a fantasy romance otome game published by Voltage Inc. It was originally released as a standalone mobile app, and has…
Aquarion: Myth of Emotions Anime Series Review
Despite a strong start, Aquarion: Myth of Emotions falters early into its run.
Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions – 09
Sincerity seems to be a key for me in whether a mecha series works or not.
Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions – 05
I really like that Aquarion MoE is weird in a totally fearless way.
Star Crossed Myth Department of Wishes Review
Star Crossed Myth – Department of Wishes is a fantasy romance otome game published by Voltage Inc. It was originally released as a standalone mobile app, and has…
Turn A Gundam Staff, Production, and Episode Analyses – Episode #32 “The King of Myth”
Turn A Gundam’s thirty-second episode was broadcast on Fuji TV on November 19, 1999. Turn A Gundam’s thirty-second episode was broadcast on Fuji TV on November 19, 1999.
Brief Thoughts On: The Dark Myth
"Show, Don't Tell" is a concept utterly foreign to The Dark Myth. A shame, because its animation is quite alright.
How Berserk’s Casca challenges the myth of the “Strong Black Woman”
Black women always have to be strong. Society thinks we have some superhuman ability to withstand trauma. We are depicted this way all over the media to devastating…
Reactionary Fandom And The Myth Of The Snyder Cut, Chapter 3: The Joss Whedon’s Career Memorial Fund
Previously: Avengers assemble to defeat the critic menace. Since the fandomization of pop culture began, critics have protested the growing and widespread anti-intellectual hostility towards them a…
Books: Japanese Film and the Challenge of Video
By Jonathan Clements. Tom Mes’s new book begins in 2022 with Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car winning an Oscar, followed by a flood of gushing articles about how…
success is a myth
Our whole lives, we’re told “work hard and you’ll succeed.” But this is just a myth. Success is deadly. The idea of having a villain arc is thrown around…
Third Impressions – Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions
Aquarion MoE is a bit confounding at times but in an increasingly predictable medium, that can definitely be a plus.
Second Impressions – Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions
This show has an elegance and eloquence to the writing that I rarely find in modern mecha series.
First Impressions – Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions
I'm definitely intrigued by Sousei no Aquarion: Myth of Emotions and anxious to see where it goes from here.
The First Korean - Dangun Wanggeom Myth | WooKong
Korean mythology is not very well know by most in the West and it is usually complicated thanks to how intertwined it is with Chinese and Japanese culture…
AKIRA: The 24 Frames-Per-Second Myth
I thought I’d share this on my blog with you all because of how commonly AKIRA is cited at being animated solely on 1s (or 24fps). This video…
Reactionary Fandom And The Myth Of The Snyder Cut, Chapter 2: The Superhero Revolution Will Not Be Criticized
Click here for Chapter 1: “The Nerd Cultural Revolution.” It’s no coincidence that the release of The Avengers in 2012, two years before GamerGate, marked both the beginning…
Benshi: The Voice and Color of Japanese Silent Cinema
Once when there might have been silence, the voices of the benshi rang out in the theaters of Japan. This is the story of a lost cinema art…
Reactionary Fandom And The Myth Of The Snyder Cut, Chapter 4: Unlike The Snyder Cut, Superheroes Are Not Myths
CONTENT WARNING: DESCRIPTIONS OF VIOLENCE, MISOGYNY, ABUSE Previously: how the myth of The Snyder Cut became a reality. Like “art,” “review,” “representation,” &…
Framing the Model Minority Myth with Neo Cat
Hi, it’s me, Chiaki, once again thinking too hard about cats in media. Today I’m here to tell you that Aoka’s Neo Cat conveys how being celebrated doesn’t…
The Speakeasy #173: The Dinner Table Detective, Witch Watch, Aquarion Myth of Emotions + More
This month is a catch-all of things we’ve finished and new titles: The Type-Moon (Moment) Minute Join us on Discord!
The Japanese Yokai of Spring
Explore the Japanese yokai of spring, from fierce thunder beasts to dangerous tree spirits. Discover cultural connections and folklore tales.
The Making of a Japanese
Elementary school students eat lunch in a scene from The Making of a Japanese. When the popular Japanese TV program Hajimete no otsukai (My First Errand) debuted on…
The Japanese Voices of Unico
Learn more about Unico's Japanese voice actors who played him over the years!
The Japanese Voices of Unico
Learn more about Unico's Japanese voice actors who played him over the years!
Best Japanese Dramas of 2021 and 2022
This is the list of what in my opinion the best Japanese dramas of 2021 and 2022 but first I want to mention what taste I have for…