Psycho Pass Series Review: No System Is Perfect But This Anime Is Pretty Fantastic

Posted on by Karandi
psycho1

Psycho Pass Overview:

With the introduction of the Sibyl System Japan finds itself at peace as those who would put the system at risk or might be a danger to others are identified by examining their mental state and passing judgement. Akane has newly been appointed as an inspector and now has the job of supervising enforcers as they hunt down latent criminals, however she soon learns that things are not as perfect as they might seem.

Psycho Pass Review:

I have to give Psycho Pass credit for taking an idea that has been used in so many dystopian stories before and yet it managed to make it feel nearly fresh. From the first episode this country controlled by the Sibyl System feels like a plausible future even as it reaches to shock its audience and to make us start to question notions of justice. That doesn’t mean that the show is flawless by any means as there are definitely some moments where I might have wished for the narrative to have had a bit more polish, but the overall experience of watching Psycho Pass is one that is greatly entertaining.

For me the introduction Akane gets to the job, while thrilling, seems very unlikely in such a world. To plunge someone into the field (short staffed or not) without sufficient training or supervision seems like a reckless way to destroy someone’s psycho pass if something had gone more wrong than it did. Also, Akane’s knowledge of how things worked seemed too lacking at times for her to have received any training even if it was convenient for the audience to have things explained from the beginning.

Psycho2

However, Akane is an excellent character and despite her use as a stand in for the audience early on in the series, she gains her footing and by the end of the series you will be very much right behind her. And she isn’t alone as Kougami is also a fantastic character in his role and Makishima makes for a truly excellent villain. The only problem is deciding which of these decidedly fascinating characters is actually the most riveting to watch when those two are both on screen.

Mondo

Affiliate Link

Mondo: The Art of Soundtracks (hardcover)

Some of the cases the characters end up on are not quite as thrilling as others, though ultimately all of them feed into the main narrative. The issue then is that the final reveal, while it works well enough, borders a little bit on the too fantastical to really feel as satisfying as I might have wanted. Certainly, it does work and it doesn’t contradict any of the internal logic of the story, but there’s definitely a moment of incredulity when you finally get there before you can take it in.

Psycho4

Kagari is the support character I ended up growing most attached to throughout the show’s run time and his role is quite interesting. Flagged by the system at a very young age he’s been detained most of his life, choosing the dangerous role of an enforcer to gain some semblance of freedom. While most of the time he doesn’t let his bitterness at this fate come through, there are one or two moments where Akane’s naivety breaks through his carefully constructed cheery persona and the resentment of one caged by an inherently flawed system comes through loud and clear.

Actually, Irina wrote a fantastic piece in honour of Kagari over on her blog so if you’ve seen Psycho Pass or are not worried about plot spoilers, definitely go check it out because he’s an awesome character.

Psycho5

Akane’s senior as an inspector, Ginoza presents another view of the system again. As someone with a parent that was flagged as a latent criminal, he lives with the pressure of not succumbing to the same fate while inner fears continue to eat away at him. And that fear wasn’t helped by his former partner also being flagged as a latent criminal. This makes his external personality quite cold at times even his responses to Akane’s youthful view is fairly understandable.

However Ginoza presents an interesting perspective on the system as someone who fights to maintain a system even while fearing the results of being on the other side of it. While he doesn’t take the path that many citizens have of medicating to a near comatose state in order to maintain his psycho pass, he acts as a bridge for the audience of someone walking a very fine line between ‘healthy’ and ‘criminal’ in this society.

Psycho6

This is a line that Kougami crossed. After the death of someone who was his responsibility he recklessly pursued revenge even though it damaged his psycho pass and ultimately he ended up an enforcer. However, unlike other characters, Kougami has gained a degree of freedom in being allowed to think of his revenge and to pursue it because he’s already a criminal in the eyes of the system. He also doesn’t bother with social graces and simply acts.

That said, he isn’t a simple character. Well educated and with a sharp mind, he pursues his goals with purpose and no longer has any real desire to answer to the system for his actions. While ultimately this will put him at odds with the Sibyl System, for Kougami revenge is more important as a goal and yet the enemy remains out of his reach.

Psycho3

Which actually leads us to the best part of Psycho Pass, and that is that it brings us a villain who is worth caring about. As the Sibyl System cannot judge him he feels excluded from society and as a result he acts out. But for the most part he does this via proxy. He sets up others who are discontent and gives them the means to act before sitting back and watching the show. Cold, manipulative, highly intelligent, and yet completely unbound by any kind of societal morals as the system has left him outside of it, he is a fascinating villain to watch in action.

Now, I should probably put a violence warning on this one. Given the first episode has a rape before they kind of blow up the perpetrator, it kind of sets the tone for the remainder of the series. I’m going to suggest that a story about law enforcement with the ability to use lethal force to neutralise targets in pursuit of a serial killer was probably never going to be overly peaceful, but there are some quite graphic moments that have a fair amount of emotional impact because of the believability of the society constructed.

However, if you are in the mood for a dystopian story with some action and gore and reasonably solid themes, Psycho Pass is definitely one to check out. It is one of those binge worthy series that just gets better with more watches.

Help Support 100 Word Anime This Spring Season 2000 ×
Donate to the blog.

Thank-you for reading 100 Word Anime.
Join the discussion in the comments.
Karandi James

Tuesday’s Top 5: Anime Characters Who Smoke

Posted on by Karandi
Tuesday's Top 5
https://blackandyellowotakugamers.com/

There’s a definite distance created when watching anime. In real life I cannot stand the smell of smoke or cigarettes and yet there are some anime characters out there that just look perfectly right when they light up their smoke, pipe, or whatever else. So today I am counting down my favourite 5 characters who smoke and I invite the readers as always to give a shout out to your favourite characters as well.

Who are my top 5 characters who smoke?

Please note, there will be spoilers below.

Honourable mentions: Jean Havoc (Full Metal Alchemist) and Toshio Ozaki (Shiki).

Number 5: Shinya Kougami (Psycho Pass)

Psycho Pass.jpg

It seems kind of odd for Kougami to only come in at number 5 and yet that is definitely the case. Mostly because his smoking always seemed like a crutch to show he’d become broken down after everything and it never really fit with his excessive exercise and drive to find the culprit. That said, like with most things Kogami did, he looked very good while doing it.

Number 4: Worick (Gangsta)

Worrick.png

Unlike Kogami, smoking really does fit with Worick’s character and lifestyle. It would actually be harder to imagine him not being a smoker. In the gritty world of Gangsta the cigarettes are pretty tame compared to the many other entertainments that could be found.

Number 3: Mikoto Suoh (K)

Suoh.gif

At least Mikoto will never have to worry about finding a light. The Red King again manages to make the cigarettes seem an extension of his character rather than something that is tacked on. It fits with his image and firey nature. It also makes a nice moment toward the end when he shares a smoke with the Blue King.

Number 2: Franken Stein (Soul Eater)

Franken Stein.gif

Could anyone else imagine this crazy character without his smokes? There’s something very careless about Stein and his overall appearance and temperament seem to lend themselves to living in the now. Though I have to wonder if smoking while dissecting a rare creature is particularly good practice.

Number 1: Yuuko (xxxHolic)

xxxHolic2

She’s such a classy and beautiful character and her elegant pipe just kind of finishes her image perfectly. Again, it is harder to imagine removing this aspect from the character as it really is a part of who she is. Besides, despite her outward appearance of being together and focused, when done with her work Yuuko is quite the whimsical individual who definitely lives for the pleasure of the moment.

There they are, my top 5 anime characters who smoke. Be sure to share your favourites in the comments below.

Help Support 100 Word Anime This Spring Season 2000 ×
Donate to the blog.

Thank-you for reading 100 Word Anime.
Join the discussion in the comments.
Karandi James

Top 5 Anime About Police

Posted on by Karandi
Tuesday's Top 5

Watching Cop Craft this season got me thinking. I love police procedural stories and I love buddy cop action movies with a bit of comedy and yet I don’t come across these kinds of stories in anime very often. Whether it is Bones, Castle, NCIS, Lethal Weapon or any of the myriad of TV shows and movies I’ve watched, I thoroughly enjoy them for some good popcorn viewing. So I decided to see if I could figure out which 5 anime that have police as a central focus in some way I have enjoyed the most. This was actually harder than I thought at first because it turns out I just don’t watch that many anime about police.

As always, I’d love for you to share your favourites in the comments, and in this case I’m really keen to hear your thoughts because I’d love to find some more police focused anime to get around to watching.

Number 5: Psycho Pass

psycho2

Okay, I actually really love this one but technically not actually police but a part of the Ministry of Welfare Public Safety Bureau. But a rose by any other name still gives us a down and out detective tracking down the criminal who he knows is out there because he can see his fingers in so many crimes but cannot prove it. For all its sci-fi and dystopian trappings, Psycho Pass is at its core a police procedural story with the new kid on the block getting drawn in over her head in a case that will shake the foundation of the country. Very cool story with very cool guns.

Number 4: Psychic Detective Yakumo

psychicdetectiveyakumoepisode33

I always thought the title of this one was a bit misleading. Yakumo isn’t actually a detective. He’s a moody college student who tries to avoid people. However, he does actually see ghosts and a detective who saved him when he was young regularly drops by to seek advice on whatever case he is working on. The detective himself has a bit of a reputation for solving these weird crimes and in fairness the detective isn’t a slouch and doing nothing on his own, but Yakumo is definitely the one who solves most of the cases and there’s very little police work involved given mostly it involves Yakumo just asking the ghosts where the evidence is.

Number 3: Death Note

death note misa2

This one is a little bit weird because even though Light’s father is in the police and initially it is the police trying to track down Kira, very soon the Japanese police drop the case leaving L, an independent, and a small group of former police on the job. Again, there isn’t a lot of standard police work going on as L and Kira both prepare to play some fairly elaborate mind games, but there are still some tense moments in the game of cat and mouse.

Affiliate Link – Cushion
BANANA FISH DIE-CUT CUSHION

Number 2: Terror In Resonance

horriblesubs zankyou no terror 10 720p mkv snapshot 06 12 2014 09 22 11 18 31

The story here primarily focuses on the terrorists and their plans, however early on in the story they send taunting videos to the police with riddles to solve. Shibazaki, an older and jaded detective who learned earlier in his career that it didn’t really pay to seek the truth out, unravels one of the riddles and then becomes obsessed with seeking out the truth behind the terrorists in this story. While he does play a secondary role, he is vital to the success of this story as he really is the only character looking clearly at the truth and wanting all the facts laid out.

Number 1: Darker Than Black

darker3

Beginning with Misaki Kirihara, a section chief in a division that specifically looks after cases involving Contractors, Darker Than Black is a fun story with so many different factions. The police are only notable in that Kirihara is our main contact point with them and her narration bookends the series as it establishes the scenes and concludes the first season. She is a great character but her superiors seems more like they are under the thumb of the many other agencies playing in this anime, so again don’t expect a lot of police work going on here as by and large these guys are late on the scene. Still a very fun anime though.

And that’s my list this week but be sure to let me know what your favourite anime with police are.

Help Support 100 Word Anime This Spring Season 2000 ×
Donate to the blog.

Thank-you for reading 100 Word Anime.
Join the discussion in the comments.
Karandi James

Tuesday’s Top 5: Anime Bookworms

Posted on by Karandi
Tuesday's Top 5

As an avid bookworm myself I definitely appreciate seeing characters who read, who talk about books, and who generally respect stories and it is no surprise that some of my favourite characters ever are bookworms (though there are plenty of book reading characters who are neither here nor there really). Today I’m counting down my top 5 anime bookworms and why I enjoy them so much (though those who have been following the blog for awhile will already know who number one is sure to be).

Please note, there will be spoilers below.

Honourable mention: Sunako from Shiki and Makashima from Psycho Pass. Okay, I seriously want to add Makashima onto the list and I just can’t fit him so here’s a picture anyway.

Number 5: Jibril (No Game No Life)

jibril.png

Jibril loves knowledge. As a member of the Flugel race she craves it and after defeating the King of Imanity in a game she claimed the library as her own. There’s something really special about a character who is powerful enough to have more or less anything and she picks the library and while her reaction to a tablet full of books from a world she didn’t know may have been a bit over the top, you have to appreciate the enthusiasm and thirst for knowledge.

Number 4: Kaneki Ken (Tokyo Ghoul)

Kaneki.jpg

While I haven’t much liked much of Tokyo Ghoul since season one, it is undeniable that I quite liked Kaneki’s character way back when. The shy book loving boy who just wanted the pretty girl to notice him and discuss books with him was adorable and the tragedy that befell him suitably heart wrenching. If only they’d continued to evolve his character sensibly from that point I probably would still love Kaneki as a character. Still, any guy who thinks of a bookshop for a date is definitely going to get a spot on my list.

Number 3: Nagato Yuki (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya)

Nagato.jpg

The only member of the literature club who then is forcibly joined into the SOS brigade, Nagato is very seldom seen without a book. She even passes message to Kyon about meeting by lending him a book (a failed strategy when he at first just forgets to read the book and it isn’t until the second night he gets the message). Still, she’s persistent. It is hard to figure out whether Nagato actually enjoys reading or whether it is just a habit, but she’s one bookworm you do not want to mess with, or apparently try to verse at any kind of computer strategy game.

Number 2: Chito (Girls’ Last Tour)

GLT11a

Chito’s genuine joy and love at finding a book and her genuine horror at Yuu’s callous destruction of a book, is something that really drew me to her character during Girls’ Last Tour’s run. There’s a lot to like about the quieter and more contemplative of the pair, and I definitely think that anyone who wants to save books even at the end of the world deserves to be mentioned on this list with love.

Number 1: Maka Albarn (Soul Eater)

Maka1

In fairness, I think Maka loves studying more than she actually likes books, and yet she’s a badass character who takes time to read, to learn, and to genuinely bury herself in words. Although, she isn’t above using a book as a weapon of mass destruction should the person near her annoy her enough. Honestly though, Maka and books are more or less inseparable in my mind and they are a part of what made her character so incredibly relatable and memorable to me all those years ago. I love Maka as a character and she well and truly deserves the number one spot on this list.

Maka Chop

So I’m dying to know who your favourite anime bookworm is. Be sure to let me know in the comments.

Thanks for reading.

Karandi James

avatar

Consider supporting the blog by:

Patreon2
Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com
x click but21

Let’s Try Something Different and Build A Harem

Posted on by Karandi
yona harem

I’m going to thank Cactus Matt from Anime Q & A for throwing this tag my way. I have never even considered building a harem and so when I was nominated my brain suddenly went a little bit crazy with the possibilities. Then of course I had to think about when I could respond to the tag and ultimately I decided just to make it my feature for the week. I think this is going to be fun if only because I decided to go all out and not think for a moment about the reality of what such a gathering would be like.

buildaharem.jpg

The Idea:

You are the central protagonist of a harem anime. Pick five characters (of any gender) that fit into a different harem character type. The characters must be from existing anime (but can come from any anime). If you want the full list of original rules, click here.

My Amended Idea:

You are the central protagonist of a harem anime. Pick five characters (of any gender) that will play a particular role within the harem. The characters must be from existing anime (but can come from any anime).

The reason for the change is I don’t really use labels from the types and tropes that this list should probably include (Tsundere, etc). I actually find these labels really limiting as they only focus in on one part of a character, much like the ‘manic pixie girl’ label that gets thrown around. So while I do understand these terms, I tend to avoid using them except when I’m being really sarcastic toward something, so I decided not to use them in my harem.

My Harem
01. The Dangerously Perfect Guy

Okay, we all know this type in fiction, though fortunately few of them exist in real life. This guy can do anything. Literally anything. And he does it perfectly, flawlessly, and looks really good while doing it. Too bad he’ll chew you up and spit you out and not even look back as he moves on to the next meal. And of course, to fulfil this role in my harem I’ve enlisted the aid of one hell of a butler, Sebastian Michaelis, from Black Butler. The one advantage of this, is by default I get Ciel Phantomhive to be part of the harem without using one of my five because Sebastian isn’t going to just join someone else’s harem. So realistically, I’ve somehow connect Ciel into it and Sebastian came along for the ride.

Ciel and Sebastian.jpg
02. The Smart and Sexy Guy

He doesn’t necessarily have to wear glasses, but why would you turn down a gorgeous looking guy with glasses who also has a brain to back up the look. He’s probably a little bit sharp tongued and he’s probably talked down to you on more occasions than you can count, but he genuinely smiles when you argue back and win a point or two in the verbal sparring match. This guy has a plan at all times, doesn’t respond well to sudden shocks, and isn’t great at expressing emotions, but he’s just too cute because of his awkwardness. So yes, I’ve selected Uryu Ishida from Bleach. He’s smart, deadly with a bow and arrow, he sews, and the guy is seriously stubborn. Plus, he really does rock those glasses.

Uryu Ishida
03. The Guy You Just Want To Hug

He’s like your little brother, only fortunately not. His smile is infectious, his tears make you melt, and all and all, this is the guy you want to hang around and spend time with. He tries hard at everything, he’s always looking out for you, and when he falls down he pulls himself back up but you just know one day he’ll need you. Yep, I had to throw Katsuki Yuri, from Yuri on Ice, on this list. Partly because I actually needed someone nice in my harem, and partly because I really would like to give Yuri a hug. It probably doesn’t hurt that if Yuri is around there’s a good chance Victor might show up.

Yuri.jpg
04. He’s In His Own World, But One Day He’ll Need You

It’s amazing how many girls in anime fall for the guy who barely know they exist and yet insist on just waiting patiently. And yet, there was one guy I thought of who might just be worth waiting for. Natsume Takashi from Natsume Yuujinchou. The guy literally lives in his own world and at times his human friends get quite forcibly pushed aside, and yet, for someone like that, I could definitely see them being worth the wait. As he slowly opens up to people, there’s such a kind and gentle soul there. Much like with Yuri Katsuki, I’d just like to give Natsume a hug.

Natsume.jpg
05. Finally, The Bad Boy, Because Every Harem Needs One

I’m going to be honest and point out that I’m not a big fan of bad boys in real life, but in stories they work beautifully. The joy of watching a rebel or rule breaker in a narrative is fun and safe, in real life they are a destabilising factor that is best avoided. But for my fictional harem, I’m throwing one in because that allows me to toss this truly gorgeous guy in, and I’m pretty sure most of you will agree he belongs in the list: Shinya Kougami from Psycho Pass. He’s fighting for his sense of justice, or revenge, and he doesn’t worry about whether or not he has to break the rules to do it. His single-minded focus is attractive as hell, but also dangerous as it is likely to burn those who come too close.

Kougami

Your Thoughts:

Given I’d never put together a harem before, or even considered it, this ended up being a lot of fun. Of course, I then visualised these five guys (six if you count Ciel) in a room together and realised there is no way I’m stepping foot into that room. And with the exception of Natsume, am I noticing a trend in my type of anime guy? Definitely. Now the question would be, if this was a real harem, who would be the OTP? Karandi and…

Nope. Can’t see it. Not with any of them

Thanks for reading.

Friday’s Feature: Plot vs Character and What is Darling in the Franxx?

Posted on by Karandi

There’s something of an ongoing debate going about whether stories are better when they are plot driven or character driven, or whether some sort of balance is needed in between the two. For me, it always comes down to what type of story it is as to what I prefer the focus to be.

For example, I loved Fruits Basket even though the anime has almost no plot. Tohru is living rough when she’s taken in by the Sohma’s and then she meets various Sohma’s and helps them out with various things but there’s no real driving plot. There’s the ongoing issue of the curse and some of the inner workings of the family that link things together as well as the characters themselves, but realistically it is the characters and their interactions that drive the audience’s engagement with the story. The plot itself isn’t really doing that.

fruitsbasket00

However, there are some anime that take the same approach as Fruits Basket and bore me silly. I end up wondering why the plot can’t get moving along. This is usually when I haven’t made any kind of a connection with the characters and so their interactions offer little of interest for me. Other people will find the cast perfectly charming and the story will work for them, but it ends up being very much about whether the characters work for them or not.

And I’d be lying if I didn’t say that my overall preference would be for stories that had a clear and driving plot. A definite goal that is being headed for and an end point that can either be achieved or failed. I’ll put up with some fairly ordinary characterisation as long as I can see where the average characters are trying to get to and I’m interested in that journey.

But what do we do with stories that can’t seem to decide what they are?

And by that, I don’t mean character driven stories that actually have a plot (such as Baccano) or plot driven stories that put some time into their characters (Psycho Pass), but rather stories where the character development seems to be actively competing with and at times undermining plot development.

psycho

Our current case study: Darling in the Franxx.

The first episode of Darling in the Franxx set up a real standard dystopian future with generic teens becoming mecha pilots and having to protect their city from some inhuman enemy. Certainly Zero Two as a character left an impression even back at episode 1, but the episode itself was very much setting up a plot driven story. At its core we had Hiro, the one who was being left behind having failed to become a pilot and having had to fight to overcome this, finally getting a chance to pilot with Zero Two, the rumoured pilot killer.

FRANXX1g

As expected, the next couple of episodes focused on this partnership that allowed Hiro to overcome this weakness and gave some backstory on the main character. There were some diversions as other characters had a little bit of development to flesh out the world. And then they face a minor crisis, the third time piloting which was meant to be the end of the road.

All of this was pretty standard fare for the genre and while some of it was clearly exaggerated to a level that almost became self-parody, it was setting up what should have been a really interesting story.

From episode 7 on, however, the story has kind of flopped about and if the last two episodes are anything to go by, we’ve become strictly a character drama set to a back-drop of the dystopian world.

Franxx7a

Episode 7 of course being the infamous beach episode. While it did some world building and had some character moments, we all know why the super controlling adults let the kids spend a day unsupervised on a beach. The production team wanted an excuse to put the cast in swimsuits. It broke the logic of the world and just because they give us an explainer about one of the scientists being eccentric and trying different things doesn’t mean we need to swallow it.

We had progressive episodes after that which moved us through the support cast and gave them all more depth and interest. It was lovely and all but it started to feel like a totally different show. Then we had the blow up with Ichigo and Zero Two in episode 14 where fans went crazy and I honestly had to stop and wonder why they cared so much. Sure there had always been the whole love triangle going on but to me it had always been background to a story that kept getting buried and delayed. The only reason I cared about it at all was because the character relationships directly effected their ability to pilot.

Franxx14d

Then episode 15 hit us with a massive amount of plot points, utterly and completely buried under a thinly disguised teen melodrama.

Which made me think that maybe the entire time I had it wrong. Maybe Darling in the Franxx never intended to be plot driven. Maybe the robots and dystopian setting were all just background to a teen version of Days of Our Lives and it just took me 15 episodes to notice.

My problem with that theory is that the first episode doesn’t support it. Actually, the first three episodes don’t support that idea. The characterisation is very much background as the plot is being firmly established. It is just after the ground work was laid down, the story abandoned it in favour of character development.

Franxx1a

And that’s where we get this character vs plot problem.

This story isn’t delivering a satisfying plot because for chunks of it at a time the plot has been forgotten and when we finally had some plot development it was rushed through and not given the time and attention needed to have an impact.

And the character drama, while it is definitely a drama, comes in after the fact and just kind of starts taking all the attention but at the same time what it is offering isn’t really that unique. It’s just another teen romance gone wrong and if that was what the show was going to be about, I probably wouldn’t have signed up to watch it.

Franxx15h

What really gets me here, is that we’ve seen character driven mecha anime done right. Neon Genesis Evangelion all but wrote the book on teen drama and mecha pilots. And it was extraordinary.

The key difference?

Even in episode 1 of Evangelion, when they were definitely setting up the setting and the plot, the audience became aware of Shinji as a character and his short comings and the issues he would overcome. He wasn’t generic pilot protagonist who we might get to know later, as Hiro definitely was early on in the Franxx (though I guess people who like Hiro’s character will probably disagree with me on that). It kind of links to what I said at the start of this post. I enjoy character driven stories when I connect with the character and Evangelion did it right.

evangelion5

Darling in the Franxx made me think I was getting a plot driven story and has since delivered more or less anything but, and the overall impression I’m left with is that it is just a bit of a mess that hasn’t quite figured out what it wanted to be. That isn’t to say that a lot of what has happened hasn’t been interesting. There are definitely things to think about and moments that have been pretty spectacular. But to look at the anime as a whole, my main impression would be that it is messy and a little bit problematic.

What do you think?

Thanks for reading.

Karandi James

avatar

Consider supporting the blog by:

Patreon2           Thoughts on Anime           74iz

Anime Blogging Party – Psycho Pass Coversation

Posted on by Karandi
psycho

For those who don’t know, Arthifis started the Facebook Group “Anime Blogging Party” which lets people share ideas about anime and meet other bloggers and anime fans. To help keep the conversation going, each week a new member is selected to choose an anime to start a conversation about and last week was my turn and so I turned my attention to Psycho Pass. If you haven’t joined the group, you should definitely check it out as it is yet another great place to meet people who just want to enjoy anime.

Apologies to Marth as I realised too late I forgot to expand his comment.

Facebook1Facebook5Facebook6Facebook2Facebook3Facebook4Facebook7Facebook8Facebook9Facebook10

Thanks to everyone who contributed to the conversation. I had a great time revisiting such a great series (and no it wasn’t entirely because I got to revisit some of my favourite character pictures). And thanks Arthifis for creating a space for us to have these conversations. I really appreciate it.

Thanks for reading.

Karandi James

avatar

If you enjoyed this post and would like to see Patreon2more great content on this blog, consider becoming a patron for as little as $1 a month.

Thoughts on Anime.jpg

Another way you can support the content here is by buying a copy of ‘Thoughts on Anime 2017‘ as an ebook. It contains a selection of reviews, features and top 5 lists from 2017 and while the content is available free on the site, this is a great way to give a one off show of support for the blog. It is available for $3.99.

Finally, you can use the affiliate link to shop at Play-Asia.com ifPlay-Asia.com - Play-Asia.com: Online Shopping for Digital Codes, Video Games, Toys, Music, Electronics & more you are interested in anime, soundtracks, figures or games. Should you use the link and make a purchase, I will receive a small percentage of the purchase price.

 

Tuesday’s Top 5: Anime Guys with Black Hair

Posted on by Karandi
Tuesday's Top 5

Last week we did the list of top 5 anime females with black hair focussing on the cool beauties of the anime world. This week my attention shifts to the male characters and I think my main focus here was focussed and dependable. That said, there are an enormous number of males with ebony hair that I just could not fit onto my list so I would love to know your thoughts and who would have been included on your list.

Please note there are some spoilers in the descriptions below.

Honourable Mentions: Jiroh (Black Blood Brothers), Kazuya Shibuya (Ghost Hunt) and Gilbert Nightray (Pandora Hearts), plus the dozens of others that were considered and ultimately left off the list.

Number 5: Hei (Darker Than Black)

Whether he’s on a mission, infiltrating an organisation, reporting in, apparently having a break, Hei is always focussed on his primary goal, find out what happened to his sister. He might be a crazy powerful contractor but even before he became a contractor he was feared for his skills. he is one guy you do not want to cross because once he sets his sights on something, one way or another he’s going to make it happen and he’s going to look really good while doing it.

Number 4: Kirito (Sword Art Online)

Another highly focussed character and one I very much enjoy watching in action, Kirito does not let anything stand between him and his current goal, not even death. Plus, once you get through his protective shell and anti-social exterior, he’s actually a genuinely caring person who looks after those he considers his friends. While his tunnel focus might work against him when he gets fixated on single points and sometimes misses the bigger picture, in terms of drive it is hard to argue against his actions.

Number 3: Kuroh Yatogami (K)

If you are looking for dedication and loyalty than you can’t go much further than Kuroh. Not to mention the guy can cook and rocks that pink apron. Admittedly, there’s a bit of a disconnect between his good looks and personality when fighting to his more laid back persona and he definitely has some personality traits that are a little questionable, such as listening to the recordings of his dead master for guidance on a daily basis. Still, he’s a strong fighter, wields a sword, has an absolute sense of duty, and ultimately does what he believes is right. He is one very cool character for this list.

Number 2: Shinya Kougami (Psycho Pass)

I’d like to let the pictures speak for me on this one. Kougami is tough, focussed, and relatively unstoppable once he puts his mind to things. He’s also really great to watch in action. However, he isn’t a muscle head who only relies on his fists, he’s got a good head on his shoulders and knows when to use it. A pure joy to watch as he unravels the mysteries in Psycho Pass and seeks out his revenge.

Number 1: Sebastian Michaelis (Black Butler)

Was there ever a moment of doubt that Sebastian would not be number one on this list? The guy can do anything and look amazing while doing it. Okay, he might be a demon so has an unfair advantage. In a fair world, Kougami would be the number 1, however fair or unfair, Sebastian is perfect, except for the whole eating people’s souls things. That’s a minor hiccup in an otherwise flawless persona.

Alright, I’m done so I’m handing it over to you for your top 5 guys with black hair.

Thanks for reading.

If you enjoyed this post and like the blog, consider becoming a patron to support further growth and future content.

Patreon2

Thanks,

Karandi James.

avatar

Friday’s Feature: Philosophy in Anime

Posted on by Karandi
yuko

These days it seems everyone has a personal philosophy (or at lease a fortune cookie slogan that they hold up as one) and anime isn’t any different. There are literally barrels of characters who will throw their own personal view of the world at you (ad nauseam if someone else in the show doesn’t hit them first). In a previous feature I looked at anime that discuss what it means to be human and today I’m in a similar mood so am really just wanting to look at some of these philosophies that characters are carrying around out there in the anime universe.

And of course, I am going to start with Yuko from xxxHolic. She is definitely the queen of making statements that can be taken multiple ways and each sentence is either flippant or loaded but sometimes it is difficult to tell which is which. And she loves to remove context from her statements which makes them fairly applicable in almost any situation and very difficult to prove wrong when they are said as portents of future events.

But what do her quotes amount to?

She frowns upon those who would sacrifice themselves for others and as a direct result more or less condemns the horde of shounen protagonists to be seen as kind of childish and self-absorbed (also makes you wonder if some of those rescued people would bear a few scars if that meant being saved).

Yuko1.jpg

She challenges people to confront their assumptions and to also realise that most people don’t. She accepts that she will be called a liar and that it is simply the way things are. It doesn’t affect her actions in the least.

Yuko2.jpg

The last Yuko quote I’m looking at forces us to realise how inconsequential our actions really are in the grander scheme of things. That said, she doesn’t belittle us for making choices, only for fearing the consequences of actually making a choice.

Yuko3.jpg

There’s nothing earth shattering in Yuko’s view of the world. While it is a little left of centre at times, these are all ideas we’ve heard before. However, when they come thick and fast, episode after episode, and with the plot of xxxHolic revolving around Watanuki slowly learning to see the world from Yuko’s point of view (in between all the other ideas that are thrown in for good measure) you walk away from the story feeling that maybe you learned something or at least you’ve considered an idea you hadn’t before.

However, by Yuko’s own wisdom, accepting her view of the world without question would be just as foolish as never questioning your own perception of reality.

Moving on to Psycho Pass. There are a lot of questions raised by this show about morality and sanity and violence and justice but the character that really makes you think is the central villain, Makishima.

Of course, I might just like Makishima because he still likes paper books.

Makishima.jpg

Not that E Books are all that bad (great for travel and such) but there’s something really amazing about the tangible feel and smell of an actual paper book.

While Makishima might be twisted and warped, he echoes Yuko’s sentiment about making your own choices and how there is value in determining your own fate. Ultimately, Makishima’s entire crime spree is in direct defiance of a system that removes free will and choice from the equation. If he’d chosen a different method (or had been a character in another anime) he’d probably have been the hero, the leader of the rebellion, and the one who would liberate humanity. That said, he’s still a cold blooded psycho.

Makishima2.jpg

His dual nature makes him interesting. On the one hand he claims a love of ideas and art and freedom, and on the other he manipulates and orchestrates disaster. That said, he does expound upon the power of stories.

Makishima3.jpg

Which of course brings up the interesting discussion about censorship. We can see it in relation to the anime itself as artists and works need Sybil approval but we can also see this in our own world where we put viewer warnings and advisory’s on things and lock certain ideas away. The questions of how much censoring is too much and the harm lack of censorship might do come forward and of course that is a rabbit hole that is filled with a never ending tirade of personal opinions and opposing theories.

Lastly, I just want to touch on Kamina from Gurren Lagann. Perhaps one of the most over the top characters of all time, he seemingly lives his life in the belief that positive affirmations will make things so.

Kamina.jpg

Kamina is all about being bold and daring and not letting self-doubt get you down, which given Simon’s timid nature (the protagonist of the story) is a needed attitude to kick the story into motion. That said you sometimes have to wonder how big Kamina’s ego is or conversely how much of what he says is just plain bravado.

Kamina2.jpg

So on that slightly more upbeat note I’m going to end my post. I’d love it if you would share some of your favourite (or some of the more interesting) anime character philosophies out there.

Help Support 100 Word Anime This Spring Season 2000 ×
Donate to the blog.

Thank-you for reading 100 Word Anime.
Join the discussion in the comments.
Karandi James