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| Anime for beginners: five TV series to get you started | Anime for beginners: five TV series to get you started |
| (6 months later) | |
| In Japan, manga and anime represent a huge chunk of overall sales in popular culture. Anime alone accounts for billions of pounds a year and on its release in 2001, Studio Ghibli's Spirited Away broke all records to become Japan's highest-grossing film ever. | In Japan, manga and anime represent a huge chunk of overall sales in popular culture. Anime alone accounts for billions of pounds a year and on its release in 2001, Studio Ghibli's Spirited Away broke all records to become Japan's highest-grossing film ever. |
| The origins of Japanese cartoons can be traced back to woodprints of the Edo era and "Great Wave" Hokusai's notebooks full of drawings. When cinema became the artform of the 20th century, cartoons made an effortless leap to movie theatres, and later started to appear on TV. | The origins of Japanese cartoons can be traced back to woodprints of the Edo era and "Great Wave" Hokusai's notebooks full of drawings. When cinema became the artform of the 20th century, cartoons made an effortless leap to movie theatres, and later started to appear on TV. |
| The first popular anime TV series was Astro Boy, adapted from a 1950s manga book to appear on screens in 1963. His image was inspired by Walt Disney's cartoons, as you can see from his huge plate-like eyes – a feature found in anime characters to this day. Since then, anime has grown from kids' entertainment to a visual medium for any kind of story – something that the Pixar and South Park generation is just starting to understand. | The first popular anime TV series was Astro Boy, adapted from a 1950s manga book to appear on screens in 1963. His image was inspired by Walt Disney's cartoons, as you can see from his huge plate-like eyes – a feature found in anime characters to this day. Since then, anime has grown from kids' entertainment to a visual medium for any kind of story – something that the Pixar and South Park generation is just starting to understand. |
| Although popular in the west since the 1980s, anime cartoons still represent a fairly minority interest on these shores, and the sheer variety and quantity of styles can appear overwhelming to newcomers. The cartoons cover pretty much all genres: battle, romance, historical, humour or sci-fi. | Although popular in the west since the 1980s, anime cartoons still represent a fairly minority interest on these shores, and the sheer variety and quantity of styles can appear overwhelming to newcomers. The cartoons cover pretty much all genres: battle, romance, historical, humour or sci-fi. |
| So if you want to try this vibrant, dynamic artform, here are five offbeat, beautiful amine TV series to get you started. | So if you want to try this vibrant, dynamic artform, here are five offbeat, beautiful amine TV series to get you started. |
| Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo | Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo |
| Yep, that's the actual title. Based on a "gag manga", this is is a good gateway to Japanese satire: think Robin Williams remixed by André Breton. Surreal humour filled with non-sequiturs and absurd characters, Bobobo follows a gaggle of rebels fighting against the tyranny of the Hair Hunters that include a sexually ambiguous orange ball, a jelly baby, a bomb-shaped pinup girl and someone who fights with the power of (intestinal) gas. Parodies of battle mangas, TV series, celebrities and current events keep the jokes coming hard and fast. | Yep, that's the actual title. Based on a "gag manga", this is is a good gateway to Japanese satire: think Robin Williams remixed by André Breton. Surreal humour filled with non-sequiturs and absurd characters, Bobobo follows a gaggle of rebels fighting against the tyranny of the Hair Hunters that include a sexually ambiguous orange ball, a jelly baby, a bomb-shaped pinup girl and someone who fights with the power of (intestinal) gas. Parodies of battle mangas, TV series, celebrities and current events keep the jokes coming hard and fast. |
| Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. | Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. |
| Ghost Hound | Ghost Hound |
| Reminiscent in its disquieting atmosphere of Twin Peaks and the French hit Les Revenants, Ghost Hound is set in a remote village where the main character is in therapy following a mysterious kidnapping that led to the death of his sister. | Reminiscent in its disquieting atmosphere of Twin Peaks and the French hit Les Revenants, Ghost Hound is set in a remote village where the main character is in therapy following a mysterious kidnapping that led to the death of his sister. |
| The village is torn apart by past tragedies and secrets, the young protagonists are alienated and alone, and strange creatures start appearing to blur the boundaries between the normal and the uncanny. Astral projections and a laboratory experimenting with the limits of human conscience coalesce in a series where mysticism and psychiatry explore the deepest recesses of the human mind. | The village is torn apart by past tragedies and secrets, the young protagonists are alienated and alone, and strange creatures start appearing to blur the boundaries between the normal and the uncanny. Astral projections and a laboratory experimenting with the limits of human conscience coalesce in a series where mysticism and psychiatry explore the deepest recesses of the human mind. |
| Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. | Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. |
| Mouryou no Hako (Box of Goblins) | Mouryou no Hako (Box of Goblins) |
| Based on the award-winning novel by one of Japan's most beloved contemporary novelists, Kyogoku Natsuhiko, this series tells the story of the hunt for a serial killer in postwar Japan. | Based on the award-winning novel by one of Japan's most beloved contemporary novelists, Kyogoku Natsuhiko, this series tells the story of the hunt for a serial killer in postwar Japan. |
| It mixes up a range of genres, including fantasy, sci-fi, horror, historical and the detective stories, with long philosophical disquisitions on the nature of religion and science. Then it finally explodes in a climax that reveals dark family secrets. | It mixes up a range of genres, including fantasy, sci-fi, horror, historical and the detective stories, with long philosophical disquisitions on the nature of religion and science. Then it finally explodes in a climax that reveals dark family secrets. |
| Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. | Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. |
| The 12 Kingdoms | The 12 Kingdoms |
| One for Game of Thrones fans, this anime based on "light novels", or novels for teenagers, tells of the transformation of a timid high school student into a fearless warrior, when she is transported to a mythical land where the rulers of each of the 12 kingdoms are chosen by divine appointment with often terrible results for the population. A meditation on the nature of power and kingship. | One for Game of Thrones fans, this anime based on "light novels", or novels for teenagers, tells of the transformation of a timid high school student into a fearless warrior, when she is transported to a mythical land where the rulers of each of the 12 kingdoms are chosen by divine appointment with often terrible results for the population. A meditation on the nature of power and kingship. |
| Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. | Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. |
| Mushishi (The Master Mushi) | Mushishi (The Master Mushi) |
| A family who can't leave a forest, a man driven crazy by his pursuit of a fleeting rainbow, a boy whose calligraphy comes to life, a girl living in darkness because she can't bear the light: it's hard to describe Mushishi. Ginko travels the rural parts of Japan applying his shamanistic knowledge to heal people who have been infected by mushi: strange, inorganic creatures who accidentally come into contact with humans. With its minimalist style and simple stories of human affection between lovers, siblings and friends, as well as a deep compassion for the transience of human life, this beautiful anime attempts to address the issue of our relationship with nature and our place in the universe. | A family who can't leave a forest, a man driven crazy by his pursuit of a fleeting rainbow, a boy whose calligraphy comes to life, a girl living in darkness because she can't bear the light: it's hard to describe Mushishi. Ginko travels the rural parts of Japan applying his shamanistic knowledge to heal people who have been infected by mushi: strange, inorganic creatures who accidentally come into contact with humans. With its minimalist style and simple stories of human affection between lovers, siblings and friends, as well as a deep compassion for the transience of human life, this beautiful anime attempts to address the issue of our relationship with nature and our place in the universe. |
| Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. | Reading on mobile? Click here to view the video. |
| What would you recommend as a good intro to Japanese animation? | What would you recommend as a good intro to Japanese animation? |
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