Anime Explosion!: The What? Why? and Wow! of Japanese Animation: Amazon.ca: Patrick Drazen: Books

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"This book is useful not only as a reference to Anime, but also as a rewarding guide to some aspects of contemporary Japanese culture." -- "Niagara University Library: Monthly Book Spotlight

Book Description

Suddenly anime is . . . exploding. But where did Japanese animation come from, and what does it all mean? Written for fans, culture watchers, and perplexed outsiders, this is an engaging tour of the anime megaverse, from older arts and manga traditions to the works of modern directors like Miyazaki and Otomo. Read about anime standbys like giant robots, samurai, furry beasts, high school heroines, and gay/girl/fanboy love—even war and reincarnation, plus all of anime’s major themes, styles, and conventions. At the end of the book are essays on 15 of fandom’s favorite anime, including Evangelion, Esca-flowne, Sailor Moon, and Patlabor.

"A good resource and guide to the foundation, historical development and overall themes in Japanese animation and serves as an excellent reference source whether you are an established fan or a person who wants to learn about the cultural aspects of this specific and increasingly popular genre. It is an easy yet thorough read on the myriad of societal aspects and cultural references Japanese animation holds." -- Active Anime

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10 Reviews

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3.8 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)

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3.0 out of 5 stars Good information - flawed organization, Mar 29 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Anime Explosion!: The What? Why? and Wow! of Japanese Animation (Paperback)

As a novice to anime, I found many of the cultural explanations new and useful in understanding some of the themes underlying Japanese animation and Japanese cultural myths in general. On the other hand, the first part of the book is mainly devoted to nudity and sex (p.48 - 104) as if that were the most important aspect of Anime. After reading the author's explanations of Hentai, I went to the internet to find out what all the fuss was about. It turns out to be - nothing! Anime experts place these films into a fringe category that is generally of lower quality and questionable taste. Certainly it is not representative of anime or Japanese culture. So why is it given such prominence in Anime Explosion?

Another problem is the use of acronyms and lingo seems to expect some expertise on the part of the reader. Just what are OAVs anyway?

Other than these problems, the book provides a good introduction to Japanese animation that will surely get the reader to explore further into this fascinating realm of entertainment.

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1.0 out of 5 stars Many Words, Few Insights, None Correct, Dec 30 2003

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Polycarp (Concord, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Anime Explosion!: The What? Why? and Wow! of Japanese Animation (Paperback)

The book appears at first to be an in-depth review of the anime phenomenon and claims to offer insights into the Japanese understanding of the medium. Unfortunately, once one starts asking questions of his assumptions, the whole structure crumbles. This book operates under the fallacy that what you see in anime reflects the values of the Japanese people (just like "South Park" reflects American values, right?), so we get concepts like "yasashii" thrust at us, and claims like "harmony is the most important thing to the Japanese." He overlooks the concept that the Japanese are not a monolithic people and seems to indicate that all the Japanese think alike on an issue.
Actually, the author seems to base his theory that anime is great on the basis that it's not American and his praises of Japan frequently revolve around knocking American moral values (there are quite a few asides to the evils of "conservative America")
Similar to Susan J Napier's book on anime, this book takes the author's preconceived notions and forcs examples to fit them, even when they don't have the meaning he tries to make them convey.
This would be more tolerable if his writing style was not so imperious, giving the impression that these views were solid and immutable facts instead of opinions

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5.0 out of 5 stars Scrutinizes certain popular animated films and series, April 8 2003

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Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Anime Explosion!: The What? Why? and Wow! of Japanese Animation (Paperback)

Japanese popular culture expert Patrick Drazen's Anime Explosion!: The What? Why? & Wow! of Japanese Animation is an informed and informative introduction for non-specialist general readers to Japanese animation called "anime", as well as Japanese animated television shows, videos, and feature films. In addition to discussing history, tradition, conventions, common cinematographic techniques, cultural hallmarks, etc. relevant to anime, the latter half of this fascinating volume scrutinizes certain popular animated films and series in depth, including Pokemon, Sailor Moon, Escaflowne, and Key the Metal Idol. Anime Explosion is very highly recommended read for anyone seeking to learn more about the beauty, grace, and foundation of this unique and popular form of cinematic art.

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Most recent customer reviews

1.0 out of 5 stars uggghhhh
Anime and manga have to rate as the down side to art and eroticism...The art is childish and bland at best, more the art of someone on LSD and a migraine than true art. Read more

Published on Nov 29 2003 by Beloved Infidel

4.0 out of 5 stars A very detailed book...
The author starts off with the history of anime and manga then gets into folktales, hardcore anime, themes, the Way of the Warrior and the Way of the Teeenage Girl, Japanese... Read more

Published on April 3 2003 by Michael Valdivielso