Quote:
Originally Posted by CraigD  Anime and manga enthusiast are often viewed by people unfamiliar with the media, particularly in the US, as members of a strange subculture, and impression reinforced by their conversational used of many Japanese words, including self-labeling words like otaku, which translates roughly to “obsessed, creepy fanboy”. |
I always think of the word in terms of "honourable house/head of the house" before "obsessed, creepy fanboy." The Japanese laugh at us, surely. But I have run into self-proclaimed otaku more often than I like. When browsing at bookstores in the fiction or SF and fantasy sections, often dangerously close to the manga sections, people sometimes bother me because my looks.
"Oh, you must come from Japan or China and watch anime all the time!"
"No, actually I was born here, but I do occasionally watch it."
"Have you watched X?"
"What?"
"You know, - that really cool series which has - and - and -..."
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| To understand anime/manga culture thoroughly requires a good understanding of several centuries of Japanese and other history, mythology, and culture, but to enjoy the media, one need only watch or read them with an open, unassuming mind. The recommendations made in this thread are all good places to start. Also, the internet being what it is, you’ll find excellent (and arguably obsessive) analysis of practically any well-known anime or manga there, such as the wikipedia article ”InuYasha” Watching and reading, and availing yourself of internet sources (which contain voluminous, free servings of both amateur and professional manga art), is IMHO the best and surest approach to understanding people who enjoy these media.
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Many Japanese manga and anime, both past and present, have drawn on Chinese and Korean mythological and historical sources as well. The inspiration for Dragonball, which was one of my favorite manga and anime as I was growing up, is the
Journey to the West, known as
Xiyou Ji.
Journey to the West The main character has an uncanny resemblance to Sun Wukong.
Ever-popular Japanese stories often come from or are inspired by
The Tale of the Heike Tale of the Heike.
I really like East Asian literature and mythology, and perhaps it's no surprise that my current favorite anime is Seirei no Moribito:
Seirei no Moribito Strong storytelling, strong characters, beautiful and careful animation, and a very strong East Asian feel to it. It makes me homesick for places I've visited all too briefly.
