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From: Rob (GenjuroURA@aol.com)
Hey EX Staff!
First off, I just want to say how great a job you do. For those of
us who don't necessarily have access to Animerica and other American
Anime/Manga mags, your publication sure does fill the void (perhaps even
surpasses it in some respects). The articles are fun and enjoyable as
well as informative. Your features on the anime industry and the Cons
definitely are great as well.
What I wanted to ask is why don't you do more features on the
"Average Joe" American Anime fan? If you ever peruse the Anime Web
Turnpike or other sites, you can see the many links to clubs at colleges
and otherwise across the nation. Not to mention the many various Anime
influences already exerted on American pop culture. On MTV we can see
Anime inspired commercials, including five women donning sailor fuku. On
Cartoon Network, we have "Toonami", a surely Americanized attempt to
Anime-ify american cartoons. (They even show Voltron, what more do you
need?) And anime is becoming increasingly visible in mainstream media as
well. U.S. News, the New Yorl Times, CNN, and other news organizations
have already done pieces on certain Anime that have hit American shores.
If the Japanese Animation phenomenon has spread so far beyond the
stereotype of "porn animation" into a true beginning of the integration
of intelligent anime series and movies in the U.S., EX should begin to
increasingly examine this evolution of anime in America.
Thanks for the time and keep up the EXcellent (cheesy ^_^) work!
I'll get right to the point and address your main question about
highlighting the average american anime fan. I believe that many of our readers
consider themselves "anime fans," but within them, you have a very broad range.
You have those who prefer dubs versus subtitles and vice versa, those who prefer
science fiction, comedy, drama, or other genres above any other. There are
TENCHI MUYO fans, and then there are those who can't stand
that show (I just used TENCHI as an example—don't all send
me mail about how I ragged on Tenchi). In short, what is an "average" anime
fan? Is it someone who has been involved with local clubs for several years and
spent his hard-earned money to go to a convention? Or is it the guy with a passing
interest who rents tapes from a local store? It's hard to determine what truly
"average" is.
And if you'll notice, EX tries to keep its coverage to things relevant to
anime in general. Even our convention coverage is straightforward and
informative rather than showcasing a "fun fun fun time." While clubs are a
great source of information for local folks, of what value is information
about a club in Nebraska for someone who lives in California, Malaysia, or
Peru (all places where we have readers, by the way)? And, as you said, they
are out there on the web if someone wants to find them. One stop at the Anime Turnpike will reveal many insights
into the world of anime fandom.
We will, however, continue to track animation in America and be critical of
its reception and its treatment by the media. (For an example of this, see
our booth at Sci-Fi Con 2.0).
From: Kan Hsiao (kenshin@eden.rutgers.edu)
Hi, I would just like to say that I think your magazine is incredible
and informative. I bet you have heard that thousands of time but heck, it's
a good opener in this letter and undoubtedly, it's very true .. well
anyway, I want to ask you if you know whether Viz is planning to release
MAISON IKKOKU on LD .. I never liked VHS tapes much.. also, I
saw in NEWTYPE that HARELUYA II BOY had become an anime series but
I am not sure because I can't read anything in that magazine .. can you confirm this?
Thanks...
Thanks for the compliment; it is really something we never tire of hearing.
To answer your question, Viz has not announced any plans to release MAISON IKKOKU
on LD, and it is doubtful as to whether they will do so in the future. (But heck,
you can go ahead and ask them yourselves. You never know.)
And Yes, HARELUYA II BOY was a series that has just
finished running on television in Japan. No plans have been announced to bring
it to the United States.
From: Alexander Bregstein (tenchim@ix.netcom.com)
Hello staff at EX,
Before I get to my question I must say how much I enjoy reading EX
every month. You do a phenomenal job of putting the site and the
publication together. I hope that I will be able to read EX for many
years to come. Now, for the question I wish to know if or when EL HAZARD 2
is coming out for domestic release in the US; if there is some
uncertainty about whether it will come out here then just give me an
address where I can send a letter to someone over at Pioneer. I have plenty of
friends that love EL HAZARD and would be willing to write some
letters. Thanks for your time.
While the U.S. release for EL HAZARD 2
has not yet been announced, it is nearly a certainty that it will be released here.
However, fans may have to wait until the entire EL HAZARD TV series, currently in
release in the U.S., is released before the second OVA series will appear.
But it never hurts to drop Pioneer a line and let them know that you would be
interested. A polite, nicely written letter can work wonders sometimes.
From: Andrew Duerner (Imperix@hotmail.com)
I find it hard to believe that a magazine that has supported a company
such as RIAP can be truly critical of the real anime industry. I
beleive criticism has to start at home. Can you honestly look at works
such as NO ENEMY BUT TIME or SILICON MOUNTAIN
and say they are entertaining? Or for that matter, even anime? On the flip side of
the coin, you sure can point out the downfalls of GUNDAM and
EVANGELION very well. If we want to bring Anime into the
American mainstream we cannot let American Anime companies leak sub-standard product
into the market and claim, " It's Anime." That would be truly detrimental to us all.
Well, to answer your first question first, yes I can watch them and say that
I find them entertaining. That's only one of the issues here, is it? There are two
issues—is it entertainment and is it anime? (Or are you saying that all anime is
entertaining? If so, I suggest you watch the animated TALE OF GENJI
and try to stay awake). Of course, the folks at RIAP are friends of mine, so I'm
going to sound less than impartial.
On to your second statement, which says that we cannot allow substandard
products into the market. I couldn't agree with you more. If you look at
what's being released by some of the anime companies these days (I won't
name names—the reviews in our issues speak for themselves), a lot of stuff
seems to be released merely to take up space on the shelves. Some of the
issues stem from bad or mediocre dubbing, and some extend further into the
original anime itself (such as the plot, art, etc.) For example, I say that
there are some episodes of EVANGELION that have a much lower standard of
animation than others; many people, including fans and people in the
industry would agree with this. Is this something we should just accept?
However, we, as anime fans in general, should also support people who do
well, or at least try to do well. For example, companies that release subs
and dubs at the same time, so that the fans can have their choice right away
(and not have to wait three months to see the sub version). But it is up
to every individual as to what they choose to support and how they do it.
From: Marco Sano (a8603126@pucp.edu.pe)
Hajimemashite, boku no namae wa Sano Marco desu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.
Congratulations to you and your staff for your online magazine (I
discovered it while visiting the Anipike.com website), the best Anime and
Manga magazine I've read so far. Your news and interviews reveal that you're in
contact with the Anime and Manga creators themselves and you know what is
currently going on in the Anime and Manga world. Your comments and
reviews of series, OVAs ,
CDs and Manga books, show a deep and accurate knowledge of Anime and
Manga.
Before I continue let me say that, since English is not my native language
(it's Spanish) I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistake I could
make. Also I wish I knew more English to express better what I'm thinking.
I'm writing from Peru in South America and I'm a devoted Anime and Manga
fan. I think this is strongly related to the fact that I'm a nikkei sansei
(both my Mom and Dad were born here from Japanese parents).
My Anime background comes from watching series through Peruvian television.
Starting in the 1970's with series like MACH GO GO GO,
and ASTRO BOYand continuing with GATCHAMAN,
CAPTAIN HARLOCK, TETSUJIN 28,
and others. Most of this series were broadcast incompletely with a few lucky
exceptions like ROBOTECH (MACROSS Saga),
UCHUU SENKAN YAMATO (first series) and SAINT SEIYA.
DRAGONBALL, SAILOR MOON, and
RAYEARTH are currently on the air.
However it's very frustrating to have so much to see and so little
available in my country, most people here think that Anime and Manga are
kid stuff (I consider that a prejudice). For that reason I have to admit
that I envy (in a healthy constructive way) the resources you have in the
United States : Anime distribution companies that sell around the world, a
lot of related merchandise, fast availability of new releases from Japan,
and one of the biggest markets for Anime and Manga outside Japan.
Two or three years ago a kind of "Anime fever" started in Peru. Fan
clubs began to appear and one of those clubs organized an Anime festival at
my university last year. The show the latest in Anime with productions like
MACROSS PLUS, GHOST IN THE SHELL and
other titles. This year they repeated the exhibition with new titles. Also This year
two bimonthly Anime and Manga magazines have appeared. This fandom is still in its
infancy when compared to what you have in the United States.
Although the situation has improved there are still problems. Most of the
Anime clubs have a sort of "members only" policy and are not willing to
accept new people easily; prices are another problem: for someone living in
a third world country US prices for OVA's and Anime CD's are expensive.
I have relatives and friends living in Japan that could record series and
send me the videotape at a reasonable cost (in fact they did it in the
past, but the tapes stopped arriving many years ago). However there is a
major problem: Nihongo.
I can read hiragana, and a few kanji, I can articulate some phrases and
sentences but I cannot speak nor understand Japanese when spoken. That's
because I learned the language in a classroom during my teen years (I'm 28
now) not at home (because of World War II most of the Japanese people
living in Peru at that time didn't teach the language to their children. My
parents were among those children).
There is one hope and I want to ask you about it:
- Companies like Blockbuster and West Coast Video are here. Do you know if
they can offer Anime products for rent?
- Do companies like Manga Entertainment, US Manga Corps, A.D. Vision, or
AnimEigo have plans to open branches in a Latin American country?
Well this e-mail has become too long so I'll stop bothering you. Since you
know latin and I have some knowledge of it too, I finish this letter by
saying: Cupio ut excelsa editio tua longam vitam habeat. Vale.
Thanks for the beautiful letter. It's always interesting for us to hear
what life is like for an anime fan in another country. I'm sure that many
of your American counterparts are jealous that you have three series on the
air at one time!
In answer to your specific questions, I can offer you a little hope.
Blockbuster and some of the larger chains are now carrying anime (unlike
before, where only the smaller stores would). So you may be able to find
some there. And if not, ask—they may be willing to do special orders. You
never know until you try.
Now, for your second question. I do not know of any plans by any of the
American companies to open branches in South America. In many cases,
American companies only acquire the rights to release anime in a certain
geographical area (usually North America). Rights in other places (such as
Europe and in your case, South America) must be addressed specifically in
the contract.
Your best bet for an anime company coming to South America, or at least
making tapes available for you to purchase, would be Manga Entertainment, as
they are already the largest licensor/distributor of anime in Europe, and
put out their tapes in many languages.
But if the base of fans continues to grow, you may soon see new companies
releasing anime in South America.
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