Yesterday I talked about shows that suck. Fortunately, there’s a lot of amazing anime to make up for it. I watched a bunch of shows a second time this year. Instead of food, shopping, or what have you, I went on anime binges whenever I was in need of comfort. I’m not saying it’s any healthier, but it’s certainly my drug of choice!
Here are a few shows I experienced the second time around in 2014.
Revolutionary Girl Utena
The first time I watched this show was in middle school, so I was pretty hazy on the plot. And judging by the subtle metaphors only an adult would get, I am pretty sure I missed a lot the first time. For example, I thought “Nanami’s Egg” was a pretty Dada episode when I was thirteen, but it’s pretty clearly a metaphor for puberty. Weirdly, I remember being kind of happy for Utena when she and Akio got together. Now, I see their uncomfortable relationship for what it is. It’s amazing how astute you get after 15 years of anime watching.
Welcome to the NHK
I watched this for the first time in 2010 when I was at the lowest ever point in my career—essentially, before it had even begun. I was a gym cashier with a Master’s degree, living at home with my parents, wondering why I couldn’t get a real job being that the recession was supposed to be over. This time, all the things I found comforting before seemed a little too convenient: Misaki’s need, Sato’s many second chances to successfully complete an eroge. There’s a little bit of luck when it comes to life, but most of it is hard work.
Natsume’s Book of Friends
I couldn’t shut up about this show in 2013, and I couldn’t even wait 12 months to watch it again. Natsume was even warmer and more consoling when contrasted with the similar but moodier Mushi-shi, which I watched for the first time this year. For me, it’s emotional catnip, a calming story against a muted background where even the spiritual elements are very human. I crave it whenever I feel lonely because it does such a good job of personifying that particularly universal human condition.
The Eccentric Family
Another 2013 favorite. As I wrote back then, it’s pure escapism to a world that never existed. Now that I know the plot by heart, I spent my second watch-through focused on the gorgeous scenery and music that embody this magical world the characters move through, seemingly ignorant to how good they have it. Backdropped against the turning of the seasons, the rich and varied settings are exquisite and cozy and make me want to live there. As Benten, preferably.
This post is the sixth installment of The Twelve Days Of Anime, a blogging series in which anime fans write about shows that inspired or impressed on them this year. For all the posts in this series, visit my table of contents.
14 Comments.
I think I’ve watched the list reading scene at the end of Welcome to the NHK something like 6,000,000 times. Such a sad, honest, tender moment. Great picks to rewatch, by the way!
@AnimatedInk:disqus it’s the kind of anime I want to watch every five years and see how my reaction to it changes. There are a couple of those benchmark animes – they stay the same, but wow is your response different.
Sign of good art…or at least individual growth :)
[…] Dec. 19 — Anime comfort food […]
I really liked the Welcome to the NHK manga, but never really tried the anime because of how much people said it had been sanitized and cleaned up for TV. Maybe I should give it a second chance.
I also did a #12daysofanime blog about a 2014 rewatch; for me it was Rumbling Hearts
@realinvalidname:disqus I’ve never read the manga, so maybe it’s worth a try! The anime seems so raw and vulnerable to me, I can’t imagine what a less “sanitized” version might even be.
The manga’s definitely darker, but the anime has its worthwhile charms. The original novel, I hear, is even more morose.
Both are excellent, but yes, one thing that was missing from the anime that played a part in everyone’s personality issues in the manga, was drug use. There is a particularly entertaining section where Sato and Yamazaki pop a bunch of pills while at a hot spring. The reason Sato see’s the appliances talking to him is because he’s on drugs. But then again, Akira suffered the same problem, drug use was one of the main catalysts for the events in Akira.
@disqus_kVvzChmZjW:disqus at first this blew my mind but now, it makes PERFECT SENSE.
Drug use is pretty rampant in Japan. Mostly pharmaceuticals, particularly amphetamines. Especially after World War 2 when much of the worlds supply of combat drugs ended up being dumped on Asia. Check out the book Speed Tribes by Karl Taro Greenfield, its a good read on some of the ‘hidden’ groups in modern day Japan. Until about 2005 there was an entertaining section on Mainichi Shinbun’s website called WaiWai which featured all sorts of interesting articles about the less desirable portions of society. I believe they got in a bit of trouble for fabricating some articles, outing a few people about their ‘issues’ and generally Mainichi wanting to scrub their image a bit. One that still sticks in my memory was a trend for girls to hang out in Shibuya in furry outfits offering, services, in exchange for CD’s and concert tickets.
My anime comfort food remains BECK, which I had a strong desire to watch post-Kids on the Slope. It’s always good knowing a show is out there that keeps us happy when we need it.
@charlesdunbar:disqus you know I still haven’t seen BECK. 2015 goal!
[…] always something to make us smile a bit. Lauren Orsini from Otaku Journalist shares a few of her “comfort food” shows, all of which should be on any fan’s […]
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