wednesday thoughts

Hi guys,

I think I’m starting to get the hang of posting stuff. I’ve been at my computer for a few hours trying to figure out how to post (even after reading Andrew’s excellent instructions) but I think I got it (I think my computer just hates me). Anyway, I just wanted to go over some of the things we talked over in class on Wednesday about the readings and manga/anime overall.

manga and anime

Genres of Manga/Anime

Shojo are written with a female (mostly teens) audience in mind and traditionally deal with a romance between a young man and woman. Kare First Love, a manga by Miyasaka Kaho, is 10 volumes long and fits the previous description given. The story revolves around an awkward teenage girl beginning high school who meets a teenage boy and they fall in love. What follows are the typical ups and downs of first love. A manga that is considered shojo but does just depend upon the romantic aspect of the story is Fruits Basket created by Natsuki Takuya. The series is 23 volumes and is one of the most popular stories in Japan and the US today, and 26 anime episodes were also created based on the story. The protagonist is Tohru Honda, a 16 year old orphan, who ends up living with a boy in her class, Yuki Sohma. Through various comical circumstances, Tohru learns that the Sohmas are cursed by turning into the 12 animals of the zodiac when they are hugged by members of the opposite sex. The creator of the series choose to highlight character development over the romantic aspect of the series. Although it is still a shojo manga at its core, it is also part of the newer trends of making more shojo that deal with activities and every-day problems young women may face. For example, in the US the magazine Shojo Beat was released in 2005 and follows the style of many shojo magazines in Japan. The magazine consists of several pages of advertisement, fashion tips, interviews of popular pop stars and manga artists, and other pop cultural news. However, the bulk of the magazine is divided into 6 ongoing series that deal with everything from the stereotypical romances to volleyball and magical shops that grant wishes. It is released monthly and is usually around 300 pages long, much longer than more traditional American comics.