interesting observation in anime

[Blessed-one]

i just realised after watching another anime that there's one common thing across a lot of anime. All of them say that the future is what we make of it. I wonder why the Japanese like this theme so much, what freedom are they seeking and what is restricting them? (these questions come to mind as a friend of my bros who is doing a project on how anime has influenced the Japanese society. She has to watch an anime with a good theme for it, and bro lends her Kenshin)

 

[Ryder]

Japan has felt they were ineffectual before, they've reached out a few times in history to try a prove themselves or control destiny. I can see your point being very plausible based on the little bit of Japanese history I know. I think it has something to do with the inferiority complex they developed regarding the western world. It doesn't really exist anymore today, but it's lineage may in-part be this theme your thinking of, where they want to make their future. Christian themes/subtexts could also be read into a desire for freedom too!

 

[Ryder]

BTW, I was not trying to say that the Japanese are ineffectual or inferior. Only that they've had issues in the past regarding the west where segments felt they were.

 

[ThePhoenix]

Or there's Lain. Have your brother's friend watch Lain, there's a thousand symbols in Lain for every one in Kenshin.

 

[ashibaka]

All of them say that the future is what we make of it.

Wow, you summed up Evangelion in one sentence...

Well, in the past Japan had a strictly fatalistic society, didn't it? When people were born, they already had a mandated job to grow into. "The future is what we make of it" can be compared to whatever anti-Victorian message American TV might be saying subliminally.

 

[Blessed-one]

great, thanks for the little history lesson Ryder.
Lain? i've never seen it myself, uh.. just by reading the title reminds me of some weird scientific experiments.

haven't seen Evangelion either ashibaka, i heard it's really strange though, and that it's hard to get the message.. thanks! hehe.

it's interesting to watch all these animes and see how the theme never grows outdated and old. It's used over and over again and all it brings is more tear and excitement in watching anime, lol, and more thoughts.

 

[ThePhoenix]

You can read the thread on it, if you don't mind a lot of spoilers (not that spoilers do much to Lain, its far to information dense for even a blow by blow description to damage the mood it creates). The Matrix basically skimmed a few ideas of the top of Lain to get the nature of reality theme that it used.

 

[ferment8]

At least its better than the good old "hot-headed" jap boy who impossibly becomes a hero due to his 'bravery' *cough* and literally speaks out the theme on top of a mountain and all his friends go.. WA!!!

example: Vandread.

how i dislike those anime..

 

[ferment8]

no offence to allll those vandread FANS out ther,..

*cough*.. -__-

 

[MoonlessNight]

BTW, I was not trying to say that the Japanese are ineffectual or inferior. Only that they've had issues in the past regarding the west where segments felt they were.

I wonder if one Admiral Perry had anything to do with that?

 

[SqueakyGerbil]

haven't seen Evangelion either ashibaka, i heard it's really strange though, and that it's hard to get the message.. thanks! hehe.

EVA isn't that hard. I just don't recomend sitting and watching it in one sitting (I tried that, at the end of it my head hurt and I didn't understand the last half of the series). A lot of people just get sucked into the "their has to be a reason" view when the series was basically created to have people go "what in the world was that suposed to mean".

 

[Blessed-one]

At least its better than the good old "hot-headed" jap boy who impossibly becomes a hero due to his 'bravery' *cough* and literally speaks out the theme on top of a mountain and all his friends go.. WA!!!

example: Vandread.

how i dislike those anime..

you've probably seen enough... not bad to watch one once a while uh? hehe.

thanks, i don't mind spoilers, i'll go check out the thread Phoenix!

to have people "wait in the world", Sqeakly?

 

[SqueakyGerbil]

you've probably seen enough... not bad to watch one once a while uh? hehe.

thanks, i don't mind spoilers, i'll go check out the thread Phoenix!

to have people "wait in the world", Sqeakly?

What in the world, not wait. You misread my post.

 

[Shyguyelite]

I haven't watched any new anime in about two years. Just watching old school DBZ as the new eps air on USA, looking forward to watching DBGT, along with commercials, with PERFECT image quality on my TV, instead of trying to find the entire series on KaZaa and watching it at 320x320 resolution and it being all choppy and terrible looking.

Any way, there are some animes where fate plays a pivotol role, there has to be.

The future is what we make out of it? I haven't gotten quite a clear impression of that statement, mostly because I haven't watched much anime besides the old school; Trigun, Evangelion(first 4 episodes are my claim to fame, the other 20 or so... eh ill watch them someee day), DBZ, maybe some Cowboy Bebop; American Kenshin + OAVS(what does OAV mean), End of Evangelion(holy, what a movie, it blows the mind away... quite the apocalypse).

And thats about it. I would think that since "the future is what you make it" is such a positive view on life, it would be widespread all over the world.

I, on the other hand, more like things determined by fate, by something more than human... And I also enjoy when fate is broken as well

 

[MoonlessNight]

OAV stands for Original Animation Version (or Video maybe) I think... It gets hard to tell.

 

[Blessed-one]

yeah, i always get confused when people try to distinguish between OVA and a movie.. since both (well, obviously OVA) can be based on a series.

sorry Squeaky!

I haven't watched any new anime in about two years. Just watching old school DBZ as the new eps air on USA, looking forward to watching DBGT, along with commercials, with PERFECT image quality on my TV, instead of trying to find the entire series on KaZaa and watching it at 320x320 resolution and it being all choppy and terrible looking.

Any way, there are some animes where fate plays a pivotol role, there has to be.

The future is what we make out of it? I haven't gotten quite a clear impression of that statement, mostly because I haven't watched much anime besides the old school; Trigun, Evangelion(first 4 episodes are my claim to fame, the other 20 or so... eh ill watch them someee day), DBZ, maybe some Cowboy Bebop; American Kenshin + OAVS(what does OAV mean), End of Evangelion(holy, what a movie, it blows the mind away... quite the apocalypse).

And thats about it. I would think that since "the future is what you make it" is such a positive view on life, it would be widespread all over the world.

I, on the other hand, more like things determined by fate, by something more than human... And I also enjoy when fate is broken as well

Shyguyelite, try Kenshin, the gundam series, Get Backers, and many of the old animes, you'll find the theme literally being shouted at your face. I just find it interesting that they go into so much effort to spell it out in many animes.

um, it isn't fate then if it could be broken, at least that is my understanding, lol.

 

[SqueakyGerbil]

I've only gotten to about episode 13 but also Scrapped Princess (even though I might regret this post after I finish watching it)

 

[Artema]

I, on the other hand, more like things determined by fate, by something more than human... And I also enjoy when fate is broken as well

Hmmm... try Clamp's X/1999. Read either the manga or watch the anime series, but DONT watch the movie. ^^' They crammed about 18 books worth of storyline into it and it gets confusing fast.

I really enjoy the series, it's quite angsty and very fatalistic, but fantastic nonetheless.

 

[canaanlilli]

first let me say Kenshin and samuri x are my absolute favorite anime so far......

one of the things that intrigues the most in anime is the continuing theme of salvation in many of them...great examples are kenshin, cowboy bebop, trigun, escaflowne, evangelion(which by the way anyone who knows who phil keaggy is, he supposedly composed part of the theme to that one) and el hazard....
it is amazing how much they are looking for the truth, and in some of them it seems as if the hit the nail on the head....

anyways .so on and so forth.

how do i get an anime picture for my icon????

 

[Blessed-one]

almost canannlilli... Kenshin and Trigun do depict Christianity in some episodes, but of course, they don't say that's the truth.

the anime avatar? there're no anime avatars on the custom avatar list, you'll have to find one on the net, either upload it to your computer or just link it to CF.