In Which I Choke Upon My Foot

To those who know of my anime interests, I appear a "purist" - I watch anime in Japanese and in Japanese only. Until now, I have condemned dubbing as moronic and a waste of my valuable time. Even the dubbing of Miyazaki's films did not please me. I have always defended the superiority of Japanese voice acting and did not even think it possible for an American dub to be remotely equal to Japanese audio and subtitles.

So imagine my surprise when I watched Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and preferred the dub to Japanese! I still cannot quite believe it, but I really do prefer the English-speaking actors, especially with respect to the Tachikoma. The Chief in particular is excellent in English and it really does enhance the experience of watching if one must not spend a second reading the subtitles, especially in a wordy series like Ghost in the Shell.

At any rate, I enjoyed the series and am watching its sequel, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd Gig, and afterwords I shall watch the third film, Solid State Society. That shall sate my science fiction side, I think, and I shall be ready to move onto a new semester and a new series.

I do so love the Tachikoma.

Gunslinger Girl

Fortunately I was not disappointed. The second season, though inferior to the first, had a unified story and the characters were well-drawn; the relationships between the units and their handlers was treated well, and the intensity went through the roof more than once. Overall, I was pleased. The few elements that marred the season were largely fan-service based: sketchy quick scenes of medical examinations (I really do not need to see a 12 year old girl half-dressed) and drawing Triela taller, more like a mid-adolescent and less like a child: in my opinion, increasing her sex appeal in the wrong direction. But these are minor complaints; there is no hint of inappropriate behavior between the girls and their handlers so I can be mostly okay with the presentation.

Taken as a whole, Gunslinger Girl is a fabulous series. It is alternately light and dark, intense and fun, serious but never superficial. The finale (if one were to call it that) is a tour de force on multiple levels. I will never hear Beethoven's Ode to Joy the same way again. The OVA was also good, perfectly characteristic of the manner in which the anime presents itself - brief action and long scenes of reflection.

Now I must find some new material. As stated before, quality anime is becoming difficult to find, for so much is opprobriously stupid (lighthearted is too generous). I dislike most anime comedies (Haruhi and AMG! are the only exceptions; the first because it is intelligent, the latter because of its treatment of love), so things like Love Hina or Clannad are out. I may miss out on some decent material but the reward is the paucity of bad anime I have seen - most anime I decry is praised by many others - Hellsing and Vampire Hunter D (not to be confused with Bloodlust, which I adored), for instance. Zach recommended Requiem for a Phantom, and I think I may agree. I wish a third season of Gunslinger Girl were written though. That is mostly what I want to watch and I am saddened that I have finished.

New Semester, New Series

Five days till the semester is complete. During these sixteen weeks I have watched little anime, but what I have seen is largely fantastic. Samurai Champloo was first, hosted by the Anime Club (which is now concerned with Hellsing), and I watched Area 88, Murder Princess, and Gunslinger Girl. The last was the best, and the worst is probably Hellsing, though my taste in anime is far more strict than most. A glance over my anime list will betray a penchant for serious, often dark or disturbing, thought-provoking material. Very little light-hearted media of any kind - Haruhi stands out like a bloodstain on snow.

Samurai Champloo is similar in motif to Bebop: like the latter, it meanders while avoiding the general plot until the conclusion is close, but you love every minute of the journey. Area 88 was a beautifully drawn short series all about fighter jets - decent tale and great animation. Murder Princess (short OVA) was not so hot but could have been worse. Hellsing is a bloody mess, just fan service and ridiculous gore. But Gunslinger Girl! Now that is anime worth seeing.

It is impossible to spoil the plot because there is no plot - just five character sketches loosely tied to a larger theme of counterterrorism and Mob fighting. The implications and issues are profound, the characters real, and the animation quality through the roof. It wrenched me to see those little girls turned into systematic killing machines and wrenched even more to see how their handlers treat them. But I would watch it again in an instant and even buy it at some point. Questions on the ends and means, the power of the human spirit, morality in a covert war, and human cruelty are all raised, though none are answered. As Pan's Labyrinth was the best film I had seen since Citizen Kane, Gunslinger Girl is the best anime series since Claymore. It is an absolute masterpiece. Some called it everything wrong with anime and manga subculture (little girls "taken care of" by older men whilst clutching phallic symbols [why is everything a phallic symbol nowadays?] and whatnot), but they are as wrong as they are stupid. My taste is exquisite and I know Gunslinger Girl to be fantastic. I will probably let Zach in on the good news when next I see him.

I next plan to watch the second season though its animation quality plummeted - a severe disappointment. Afterwards, I found a short list of anime that look intriguing (a short list, for good anime is getting progressively harder to find): Le Chevalier D'Eon, Heroic Age, Gantz, Fantastic Children, Fafner, Full Metal Alchemist, Code Geass, and Devil May Cry. Their title alone interested me, and then they passed the Wikipedia and YouTube tests - I run searches on potential series; first an overview/summary test on Wiki, and then an Internet trailer. If they pass these triple challenges I grant them a pilot, but they had better deliver.

I hope S.2 delivers. I would be very sad if the fabulous first season had a Return of Jafar for a sequel.