In an effort to try and still keep somewhat informed of what's what in the anime world I one day came across an article on Otaku2 where Sato Dai, storywriter for some of the best series out there, voiced his discontentment with contemporary anime.  Can't say I haven't done the same on occasion, reminiscing about days-gone-by when the likes of Evangelion, Ghost in the Shell, and Lain were the big titles for an audience interested in substance.  What caught my interest in particular was Sato's mention of Eureka Seven having been dismissed in it's day as an Evangelion clone.


Not the best quality video, but probably the best trailer out there.
Having posted about NGE here in the past, as it compares to Lain, I couldn't resist digging up Eureka Seven to see what all the fuss was about.  A friend's mention of Eureka being his favorite anime nudged me further in that direction.  The initial similarities between Evangelion and Eureka are pretty obvious but they are mostly superficial.  The two series employ some genre-specific conventions but each has a very different feel to it.


While I can see how Eureka could be dismissed as just another mecha anime in the post-Evangelion days, it is less dark much of the time and ultimately resolves to have a more amicable outcome for its characters.  Now, I'm not going to go into the nitty gritty details of what happens in the series because you should just watch it but I definitely enjoyed Eureka thoroughly.  It may not have quite the psychological depth of NGE, nor does it have to.  The cast tends to be more archetypal and draws on our basic desires and ambitions with a healthy dose of romance thrown in.


The thing that I probably enjoyed most of all is that it was such a well executed series.  Within its fifty episodes you will find a great deal of character development in a steady progression.  It's well paced, provides plenty of tension, and an equal amount of resolution.  The animation is solid throughout and the last episode even kicks it up a notch with especially well done cells for key scenes.  When it comes to how Eureka wraps up it has Evangelion beat.  Not that it would take much to improve on Evangelion's original series ending, mind you.  Even so, Eureka delivers a great climax with plenty of heart-warming resolution to leave me feeling good about having invested my time in an anime of this length.

Over the last couple of months I have been watching the new-to-me anime series Welcome to the NHK, and loving it.  The story is the best part about the series and the premise is entertaining in an "it's funny 'cause it's true" kind of way.  Once you take away all the superficial content, some of which can be on the gimmicky side, NHK seems to actually present and address the real-life hikikomori issue.


In terms of visuals, you won't find anything spectacular here.  There are in fact some flaws in the animation which are pretty hard to miss.  The overall art style is mostly run-of-the-mill with a few episodes that clearly had some problems.  These tend to often be budgetary issues as I understand it, but it has been some time since I have seen such crudely done cells in a contemporary production (more screenshots here, via Tyler Junky).  Luckily those sequences tend to last for only a few minutes at a time, making them bearable.

Some of the content also seems too belabored.  This would fall under that "superficial content" category mentioned earlier.  The first and foremost is perhaps rather central, being the whole Nihon Hikikomori Kyokai angle and the series' namesake.  It is derived from a conspiracy theory which comes up time and time again as a metaphor that is truly developed all too late.  While the motif is presented many times as comical, main characters continue to reference conspiracies in a way that almost tried my patience.  I say almost because it wasn't a deal breaker by any means, yet it remains as a non-essential element that gets in the way of what is truly important.


The real substance in NHK is to be found in its character development.  Perhaps that is not saying much as this is true of any good story, especially those in episodic format.  It comes to mind here because I do wish the creators had put more time into it.  Less time on adding fantasy conspiracy theory sequences, and more time on the characters' actions and back stories.  The protagonist and supporting characters are relatively well developed but the female lead is left a mystery for far too long.  Creating suspense is one thing but providing little to no back story on Misaki's character for two-thirds of the series risks your audience loosing interest.

Pointing out the animation problems, filler content, and under-developed characters is starting to make NHK sound like an anime not worth watching after all.  That is far from the case here.  It's precisely because I liked it so much and care that I would have loved to see it done better.  These flaws are merely areas that could have been improved and pushed NHK toward greater success.  Besides, none of its problems stood out so much that I didn't want to continue watching.


When it comes down to it, this is a series that takes a good look at the otaku and hikikomori life-style and pokes a little fun at it.  Not in a judgmental way but with a little Otaku No Video flare.  It doesn't take itself too seriously and at the same time tries to present a message about the actual hikikomori phenomenon.  At one point NHK concludes that hikikomori exist because they are supported financially, only getting a job and re-joining the world when forced to support themselves.  Either way, once you get past the superfluous content and execution issues, Welcome to the NHK becomes a captivating story whose characters can speak to you and touch your little otaku heart.

As the tragedy in Japan slowly unfolded, artists across the world quickly came together and organized art shows and events to raise funds for the earthquake and tsunami relief efforts.  Many of these were organized on the West Coast, and local artists in the San Francisco bay area are mounting a two part exhibition with all proceeds going to Give2Asia: Artists Help Japan.


Rise Japan Vol. 1 took place at Kokoro and Gallery Heist on on April 2.  Most artwork was priced around $100 to make it more affordable and each piece is both shows is a full donation on part of the artist.  My friends Jeremyriad and Sean-Franc are now happy owners of some beautiful original work as a result.  They helped a very worthwhile cause, along with everyone else that night, and contributed to raising an amazing $15,542!


On Thursday, April 7, the second installment opens at Arc Gallery as Rise Japan Vol. 2.  With the larger exhibition space at Arc, this night promises to have an even greater selection of work.  If you are in the area I encourage you to swing by at 7 pm for the opening.


For Vol. 2, I contributed a piece that I hope will sell and add to the growing sum to be donated.  I trust the organizers that donations will be put to good use in the ongoing difficulties that the Japanese people are facing.  Because my work has so long been inspired by Japanese culture, these events have preoccupied my mind for weeks.  Especially the fact that when applying for the JET Program for the 2010 season I was requesting to be in Sendai.

Update: The opening reception was a big success, with artwork practically flying off the walls.  Check out more photos from the opening in the slideshow above or see the whole album here.  More great photos are up in Ben Needham's Facebook album.

This post would have gone out last week, but it just didn't feel right to be putting it out while the tragedy in Japan was unfolding.  Not sure that the time is right even now, but here it is anyway lest it become completely outdated.

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To coincide with GDC this year, Giant Robot S.F. opened it's fourth annual game inspired art show to a huge crowd.  Getting into and through Game Over 4 during the opening reception was not for the faint of heart.  Outside GR-SF the masses blocked entry and passage to the point of having to be broken up by local police.  Inside the small gallery space, the line was at a standstill.  In retrospect, I should have timed how long it took me to get through just for fun.

The video game inspired art spans multiple mediums both traditional and digital, hung salon style with varying degrees of professionalism.  While some pieces were framed and displayed well, others were works on paper simply tacked up on the wall.  Not exactly what one might expect from a show garnering national media attention from the likes of Wired and Game Set Watch.

Logistical issues aside, the quality of artwork in Game Over 4 was a less mixed bag. With a huge roster of artists numbering 54 in total it's essentially impossible that every piece would appeal to every viewer.  Especially when it comes to the subject matter of video games, which in many cases touches on very personal experiences.  Each person who has played games will have those specific titles that are associated with certain fond memories.  The artwork that brings out those feelings and nostalgia will differ for each of us.

Since I can't tell what is going to pluck your nostalgic heart strings, allow me to get personal and look at some of what spoke to me as both a gamer and artist.  Don't forget to check out all the art after the jump.


Cats shooting lazors from their eyes, destroying a Mario Bros. mushroom is a win win situation.  Artist Jeni Yang put a lot of effort into this piece and her other contribution to the show.


Love the isometric take on FFVII by Jesse Fillingham.  The scruffy treatment given to cloud and the giant are a nice touch.  This somehow combines my memories of FFVII with other more old school experiences with isometric strat-RPGs.

The first visit to Giant Robot S.F. for me was marked with a multitude of girls dressed in kawaii fashion to the point of filling up the gallery space and making it nearly impossible to see the artwork that I came to view. While GR-SF does not boast a huge exhibition space, there was initially enough room for people to get around, but as the aforementioned demographic continually filtered in things got tight. Still, I was not to be deterred and managed to snap a shot of each piece in the exhibition for your viewing pleasure.


As a long time fan of Kaikai Kiki and it's female artists such as Chiho Aoshima, Aya Takano, Akane Koide and others, I was excited to see an exhibition of work by female contemporary Japanese artists come stateside. The cute theme is the common thread between all works in Shibuya Girls Pop: Real Japanese Kawaii, which opened with a reception on Saturday, February 5. As it turns out, Sugarpill Cosmetics was doing free kawaii makeovers in the gallery space, hence the appropriately attired contingent.


The show represents twelve female artists all part of the Shibuya Girls Pop project, which initially started in Shibuya as a distribution of free post-cards to woman in the city in order to spread a positive message. Artists from the collective that are in the show include the following...

Nana Aoyama, Eimi, Sayaka Iwashimizu, Marrontic, Hiroshi Mori, NICO, Keiko Ogawa, Ra'yka, Shinjuko, Yuki Takahashi, Kayo Tamaishi, and TAMMY.

As a new Tokyo-based collective, Shibuya Girls Pop collaborated with Giant Robot to exhibit Real Japanese Kawaii for the first time in America. Yet in all honesty, none of the work blew me away. While a small number of pieces felt interesting, the show as a whole was not brilliant. The most interesting art pieces for me personally were those by Eimi, Kayo Tamaishi, and Yuki Takahashi. Both demonstrated technical skill, interesting use of color and good composition. The fact that the artists were not there in person certainly didn't help to drum up interest for the work itself either. As one person at the opening familair with GR put it, "it's just filler" until the next show goes up.