Week 9: Cyberpunk

Cyberpunk is a genre I was a bit unfamiliar with prior to the week. I knew the general style as an aesthetic but had never watched/read any cyberpunk. For this week I read some of Ghost in the Shell and watched Akira which I was unfamiliar with both.

I thought Akira was incredible! The animation wasn't anything like I've seen before. I thought it really pushed the capabilities and limits I thought 2-D Animation had, even all the way back then. I thought in general, the movie was very intense, especially the street riot scenes. The themes of terrorism and anarchy were very thought provoking and nothing like I had seen before. I understand now why this film is so inspirational to anime fans, creators, and even filmmakers. It told an intense story well in a very aesthetically interesting world. Kind of a side note but I really think the poster for this movie is one of the best designed movie posters ever, its so intriguing and well designed making anyone want to watch the movie. 

I also read some of Ghost in the Shell which I again, had no prior knowledge of besides seeing jokes about the remake. I thought this manga was a bit hard to understand because it seemed to jump all over the place. I'm not one for wanting everything explained to the viewer in media but I think this manga didn't do enough explaining and left me just confused instead of curious. Visually though, I thought it was wonderful and i appreciated the badass female protagonist but I'm not sure I'd recommend for anyone else to read this. Maybe I should watch the movies.

Week 8: Diversity of gender and sexuality in Manga and Anime

This was my favorite week to discover because I hadn't ever really read LGBTQ+ manga that I felt realistically represented the community (in a non-festishy way). So I really really enjoyed My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness, so much that I also recommended some friends to read it.

I felt the story represented depression and anxiety really realistically and how easy it is to fall into negative cycles. It also explored the pressure women are faced to fit into boxes by what they do, how they look, and who they're attracted to. I love how the author wrote about their experience with the prostitute, it showed sex workers in a positive light and how it can really effect peoples lives. Sex work isn't always a negative thing and it was awesome to see it in this light.

I also really enjoyed the presentation on Nana. It was something I was familiar with based just on the art style but had never read/watched it. It seemed to really represent female friendships in a positive light which I think is very important. Reminded me a bit of Carole & Tuesday.