#i mean not really but the tedious frame by frame drawing on someone elses animation is the same

[ria-the-camel]

im very close to looking for a good quality video of Bonnie and Marcy’s right from The Star and animating some ears on PB.

[alwaysahiccupandastrid]

SPOILERS: Aladdin (2019) - Review/Thoughts

So I just watched the new Aladdin at the cinema where I work (yay for free tickets, am I right), and I just wanted to do what I usually do and discuss some of my thoughts after seeing it.

Just as background, I of course grew up watching the animation; while it wasn’t my favourite Disney film, it was still one that I watched often and knew well. When they announced that they were remaking it, I was very apprehensive because obviously no one can beat Robin Williams’ Genie - no one. He improvised a lot of his stuff and there was hours of content that were unused because of how brilliant he was. So in that sense I’m a bit biased, but I’m not such a hardcore fan that the slightest deviation from the story makes me mad.

Anyway, moving on!

!!!SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

I’m honestly glad they didn’t just remake the original frame for frame - I always feel that remakes should at least try to improve on the original, or try to change a few things just to keep it more original.

Naomi Scott as Jasmine...I mean WOW. We are blessed. I was so thrilled to have a slightly more active feminist Jasmine - obviously in the animation she’s pretty feminist but in this they made her more so in all the right ways

Mena Massoud did pretty great as Aladdin to be fair, though I was surprised Aladdin was way more awkward at certain points in this film

The soundtrack is so good, to be honest - I’m not as familiar with the songs in Aladdin as I am with other Disney movies but I still think all of the songs had a nice charm

“Speechless” — I LOVED BOTH TIMES THIS SONG WAS SUNG, I AM SO GLAD JASMINE HAD HER OWN SONG

I am very curious about what happened to Jasmine’s mum?? They say that she was killed but never expand on it - I was half expecting to learn that Jafar offed her or something

I feel like they tried to imply a backstory to Jafar...but all I got from it was that he was tired of being second best and that he wanted to be all powerful

I mean, Marwan Kenzari wasn’t a bad Jafar, he just didn’t come across as scary or threatening as he probably should have

Oh god I love Abu 🐒

Shoutout to the Magic Carpet for making me think it was really dead at the end, oh my god my heart stopped

I wasnt quite sure how I felt about Jasmine having a handmaiden in the film since I’m the original the point is that she’s alone and has no one but Rajah to talk to. But I actually really liked the addition of Dalia to the film in a weird way

I KNEW right at the start that the Genie had married the fucking handmaiden and had kids with her, they didn’t show her face but I KNEW, IT WAS SO OBVIOUS

The scene where Aladdin is trying to impress Jasmine while pretending to be Prince Ali? Fucking hilarious 😂 JAMS

I said this before but Princess Jasmine fighting against the men who tell her to know her place? Who tell her to be seen and not heard? I STAN A SULTAN QUEEN

The nostalgia was too real in this movie to be honest, like I feel that if you have never watched the original, you probably wouldn’t feel the same as someone else watching who HAS seen the original

I can’t believe they had Aladdin practically break dance and do back flips in this movie

Other than that, the dancing sequence at the party was pretty cool

JASMINES OUTFITS WERE FABULOUS THATS ALL

I really had to refrain from thinking Twisted/Starkid jokes during the film, I’m so sorry but it’s true

At one point Aladdin is asked to point out on a map where his fake country (Ababwa?) is and the Genie puts Sleeping Beauty’s castle with the name “Fantasyland” on the map - this is so clearly a Disneyland Parks reference 😂 It literally looks exactly like it does on the map for Disneyland Paris

Also, I love that when they showed drawings of the Genie (on the map/hierarchy chart I think) they used a drawing of the animated Genie 🧞‍♂️

“A Whole New World” was very pretty - not quite the caliber of the animated version but still very nice. Obviously there’s more limits with live action than animation, so that makes sense I guess

Iago was SO FREAKY OMG WHY WOULD YOU MAKE HIM THAT BIG EVEN FOR THREE MINUTES

Also way too many shots of Iago flying - like it looked awesome at first but after a while it’s noticeable and tedious :/

RAJAH. THE GOOD BOY. GOOD KITTY. GOOD TIGER. MY BOY 🐯🐅 I LOVE HIM TOO MUCH

Rajah literally nearly took someone’s fucking arm off, I LOVE HIM

Now obviously everyone’s probably wondering about the Genie and like...okay, that deserves its own section because I have some stuff to unpack.

To be fair to Will Smith, he did NOT have an easy job. It was going to be difficult for any actor to play Genie after Robin Williams. He really had a difficult job, and there will always be comparisons being made. I feel for him.

I still prefer Robin Williams’ Genie, but Will Smith wasn’t bad. He was clearly trying to make the character his own whilst still paying tribute to Robin Williams, so I can’t fault him for that.

There were quite a few moments he made me laugh - the scenes where he stands with Aladdin and makes little comments are the best, they had me choking on my Coca Cola!

“I’ve spent 2000 years trapped in a tiny lamp - and this is worse.”

I feel like my only issue with this Genie (other than constantly comparing him to the 1992 Genie) was that he’s such a big character and really over the top - and then the rest of the film is nowhere near as OTT. It feels almost like two different films at times.

I honestly didn’t hate him as the Genie like I thought I would - he’s not Robin Williams but he does his best to make his own Genie and I can respect that.

So would I recommend the film? Sure! It’s not the best Disney film ever made, not even the best remake, and I’m sure lots of people will trash it. It isn’t the best film it could have been either, but as a fun family movie with nostalgic feels, it’s still a good watch. I think people are so prepared to bash it already that they’re not giving it any chances - like I said, it’s nowhere near as good as the original, but it’s still a nice film.

And now here’s a gif of my boy Rajah who wasn’t even a real tiger but still stole the whole movie

[mintyvan]

#11

Request: “meeting Van on an airplane!” + “reader has a girlfriend whose favorite band is catfish and gets her tickets and they end up meeting the band after the show”

Note: I’ve been sick for like a week, so I’m sorry if this isn’t up to par. The next ones will be better!

________________

Trudging through the airport, legs dragging along with suitcase following, you sleepily walk toward the first baggage check counter. This airport was incredibly tedious to get through, and you weren’t looking forward to being patted down at five in the morning. Of course, it had to be done.

You received the A-okay on your ticket, and made it to the second round of baggage check. After being essentially groped by TSA agents and removing your shoes, you finally made it to the wide expanse of a hallway that led to the terminals. Scents of hot, warm, delicious croissants filled your nose with happiness, and led you astray to buy several while you waited for your flight to be called. Earbuds in, listening to soft background music and reading a book, you were content in the hard chairs as the intercom dinged and voiceovers dictated which flights were boarding. You had gotten to the terminal early, and after reading your book for a few minutes, you dreamily watched as planes took off and landed while the sunset framed them taxiing in the background.

The intercom relayed to you that your flight was boarding, and you stood up, stretching from the hard chair. If you were already sore, this was going to be a hard flight, though it was just three hours from Atlanta to New York. The sweet flight attendants with their crisp red uniforms and bright red lipstick scanned your ticket, and you made your way through the soft gray tunnel out to board the plane itself.

As you get settled into your seat, you realize you missed the window seat by one chair, and hoped no one was going to sit there so you could stretch out - after all, you were going to be there for a while.

Just as the plane was about to stop accepting passengers, a rowdy group of men dressed in black boarded the plane, and settled into their respective seats at the back of the plane. However, one of them was particularly ruffled, and you could tell because his voice kept getting higher pitched as he spoke. You caught bits of it when he turned more toward the front of the plane, angled toward the section you were sitting in.

“Whaddya mean I’m not with yous? This ain’t fair!” he almost squealed into the aisle - he was drawing attention to himself. “Did we not all buy these together? What kind of shit is this?”

“Mate, just deal with it, it’s like two hours of your life without us. You can make it,” a smaller, darker-haired guy tried to rationalize with him.

“Excuse me, sir, but you’re going to have to take your seat now. The plane is scheduled to take off at 7:00.”

The man trudged up the aisle, and you pretended not to have been watching the animated conversation he’d been having with the people he’d thought he was flying alongside. However, he stopped right at your aisle, and dejectedly put his carry-on into the overhead compartment. You looked back up from your book.

“S’cuse me, love,” he said, and you noticed immediately how his eyelashes framed his blue eyes, and it struck you with a sort of giddy feeling in your stomach. That is, until you realized he was also going to be occupying the window seat right next to you.

You sighed as he took a seat in the only solace you had warranted from this trip. And he was restless. One minute, his leg jiggled up and down. The next, his fingers drummed on his thighs. Licked his lips. Bobbed his head. You looked up from your book again, and gave him side-eye. He didn’t notice because he was too busy looking out the airplane window, frown on his face. Probably nervous to be separated from his group. You remembered the first time you flew alone, not to mention stuck between two snoring old men, and decided to cut him some slack.

Just as you were about to introduce yourself, the flight attendant’s voice filled the cabin with the obligatory “fasten your seatbelts” and “enjoy your flight”s. You pushed your headphones in your ears, closed your eyes, and turned up the music loud to drown out anything else.

You vaguely felt as if someone were watching you. Removing the earbud from your left ear and opening your eyes, you turned to the only other person sat in your row of seats, who was still unable to settle down. Unabashedly, he smiled at you, confirming that you were indeed being watched.

You went to put your earbud back in, but a slender finger on your forearm stopped you. You looked up at its beaming owner, expectant.

“Van McCann, nice to meet ya. Couldn’t help but overhear the music you’ve got playin’. I love everything you’ve played so far.”

“Ah… thanks. Hi. I’m Y/N.” From your position directly next to him, it was hard to shake his hand, and you had to reach across yourself. In the process, your in-flight magazines fell to the ground and slid underneath the chairs a few rows back.

“Shit, sorry ‘bout that. Looks like they’re gone now,” he chuckled. Tugging his own out of the compartment in the seat in front of him, he handed them to you. “Consider this a stand-in handshake.”

Laughing, you re-settled into your chair to continue listening to your music, but Van had other plans. “So, where are you from? And where ya goin’?” So nosy.

“Atlanta, born and raised. I’m going to a casting call in New York. My girlfriend and I placed a bet on a soccer game and I lost, so I had to do this. At least she paid for everything.” You waited for him to look at you like you shouldn’t be modeling. You really didn’t want to include the bit about how humiliated you were going to feel once you got there and they turned you down, so you settled for sighing to convey how disillusioned you felt.

“I think you’ll do great. Dead cute, you are.”

“Ha,” you said a little too self-deprecatingly for a conversation with a stranger you just met, “thanks.”

You knew he could tell you were a little bitter about the situation, so he changed the subject. “Ever heard of a band called Catfish and the Bottlemen?”

“Yeah actually, I’ve got their latest album on vinyl at home; been searching for The Balcony for ages though. They’re good. My girlfriend’s favorite band. Never been to one of their shows before though. You ever gone to one?”

He snickered at that, and leaning even closer into your personal space, whispered, “Google ‘em.”

You were a little pressed about him invading your space again for the third time in an hour, but tried to ignore it as you unlocked your phone and googled Catfish and the Bottlemen. You had a feeling Van wouldn’t get his nose out of your personal bubble until you did.

“Yep, I definitely have their album,” you said, looking at the little images above their name on the sidebar. Peering at the other photos, you clicked on a photo of the band members.

“No fucking way. You’ve got to be shitting me,” you said, voice lowered in disbelief. He chuckled, almost self-consciously. Sweet. “So which one are you? The bassist? You don’t look cool enough to be the lead guitarist, and you don’t have the arms to be a drummer.”

He turned to look at you, jaw falling open to laugh, shocked that you’d chosen to banter with him like that. “I’m the fuckin lead singer, mate!” His voice rose so high and loud that it almost cracked. People in surrounding seats were craning their necks to see what was happening. The group that had come in with Van erupted in raucous laughter from the back of the plane.

You were laughing too, so hard that your head was starting to hurt from the lower levels of oxygen in the plane. “Fine, fine. Let me order you something to get even,” you said through laughs, raising your hand and waving a bit so the flight attendant knew to come over with the cart.

“I’ll have a green tea, please. And sir, what’s the most rock and roll thing you’ve got on this cart? This lad over here’s a lead singer in a band, so he can’t have anything less than your best” You asked the attendant loudly, smirking, and Van coughed hard, trying not to make any more pitched remarks.

“Here’s your tea, miss, and, sir, looks like all we’ve got that fits the bill is some Jack Daniels.”

“At nine in the morning? That’s a hell of a lot more rock and roll than I expected. We’ll take it. I’ll have one too, with some Coke,” you told the attendant, who went to retrieve the Jack.

“What’re you doing? I’ve gotta perform tonight!” he whispered in your ear.

“Chill, we’re just gonna do the one. We’ll drink some water afterward and you’ll be all good. Art of performing, am I right?”

He looked at you with narrowed eyes. “Fine.” Just then, the attendant arrived with two Jacks and a can of Coke.

“Bottoms up!”

****

“This plane is fuckin’ great, Y/N. So large, we both can just stretch out riiiiight here,” Van said, soles of his boots touching the soles of yours. You both were layed out, facing each other in the empty seats of the plane.

You didn’t mean to get Van tipsy, but the higher altitude and the high proof of the whiskey was enough to make your heads swimmy. The water was also taking a bit longer to hydrate you than you thought it would. It was hour two on the flight, and you were conscious that you had to sober up soon, but flying here while drunk was its own little bubble in the world and you wanted to enjoy it for a bit longer.

Van was drumming on the plane seats, and rapping out some song you couldn’t place as you swayed your shoulders back and forth to the music. He grinned a crooked smile as he started to hiccup, and then laughed between every one of them. He sat up and you patted his back; glancing at his eyes, you realized he was getting sleepy with the repetitive motion. Sitting up as well, you let his head rest on your shoulder as you stared out the window. Soon he was breathing softly and his body weight was heavy in your side, but it was nice. You put your earbuds in and drifted off too.

Before you knew it, the plane was landing, and you had to wake Van up. He startled, and with wide eyes, whispered “sorry” as he righted himself and adjusted his coat. Giving you a soft smile, he started gathering up his personal things and fastening his seat belt. You shivered from the lack of warmth.

Finally, Van was reunited with his group, a.k.a. The Band, as you’d established earlier, after walking out of the tunnel and into the airport. You were happy to see him back with the people he was supposed to be with. You were about to walk away, when his voice called after you.

“Y/N! Where do ya think you’re goin’?” he said, lopsided smile on his face as you turned around. “Got these tickets off my best mate. You’re fuckin’ class. Figured you might want to see just how rock n’ roll I can be.” He offered to exchange numbers as well.

Laughing, you realized how absurd your day was. “Thanks, Van. I was looking for something to do after my casting call. You’re amazing. It was so nice to meet you.”

“Likewise. Good luck, and see ya tonight!”

****

“Daria, babe, you will not believe what happened to me today. Sat next to Van from Catfish and the Bottlemen on the plane, got drunk with him, and he gave me two tickets to tonight’s show! I literally just wired you some money for a plane ticket. You better meet me there tonight.”

****

You got the job. You must have been high off the energy from this morning, because you were more confident than you’d ever seen yourself, and you strutted through the agency’s ballroom like you owned it. You were comfortable in your skin, and though you still didn’t feel any prettier than before, you felt more like you than you’d ever felt, and that in itself was an accomplishment.

****

Daria arrived an hour before the show started, in the nick of time. You rushed her out of the terminal and into a taxi you set on course for the gig. Just as they were coming onstage, you both entered the building and the roar of the crowd made your heart pound in excitement.

As Daria had told you most Catfish concerts are, it was incredible. Van thrashed about on stage, and his band mates were uber-cool playing their instruments. The music sounded better than the recordings, and it filled your lungs with energy. During the last song, Daria kissed you with teary eyes and shouted loud over the music, “This is the best night of my life!”

After the show, you texted Van and he had security let you and Daria in the back. She met her favorite band, and you felt like the best girlfriend in the world. After watching her take pictures with everyone and see her face light up when they offered for everyone to go out for drinks, you made a mental note to not be so unfriendly the next time someone sits down next to you anywhere; it might just turn out to be the wildest day you’ve ever had.

“So, am I rock and roll enough?” Van asked, coming in for a hug. Everyone else in the room tried to decipher the inside joke, unsuccessfully.

“Definitely,” you replied, laughing into his chest.

[eliselowingwrites]

Manga and Anime: Movement of Art

Lately, I’ve been very interested in manga and anime.  Just something about the aesthetic of the art really catches my attention.  Not to mention, I love drawing in that art style.  While I prefer to have a simplistic look to my drawings, while also adding a bit of detail to make it come alive, I’ve also seen works that are very realistic and detailed.

But that’s another story for another time. 

However, this editorial isn’t really about the different art styles that manga/anime can do, but more about a debate that I’ve been seeing lately. That debate being whether manga/anime is only considered as such if it comes directly from Japan.  Or, because of the influence it has had on western shows like “Avatar: The Last Airbender” and “Steven’s Universe”, is it becoming a universal movement.  And whether or not animations and illustrations with a Japanese influence can be considered manga/anime, even if they were created by people and studios outside of Japan.

To clarify, this is more of an editorial piece to discuss my points of view on what I think manga and anime have become.  I will bring up a few facts in this, but this is mostly meant to open up discussion among the community.

I guess I should start with the reason as to why I decided to write this editorial in the first place.

Going back to what I said before, I have become interested in the medium, and I feel like it is a very unique and interesting way of storytelling.  For someone who loves crafting stories from words and pen strokes, this is definitely something that grabbed my interest.

My first exposure to this medium was back when I was a little girl.  My experience with Japanese animation was Hayao Miyazaki’s, “Kiki’s Delivery Service”.  I had seen a lot of animated movies from Disney and Universal Studios, but I knew that there was something unique about this kind of movie.  Just something about the atmosphere and animation set it apart from other family movies that I had seen.

Then one Saturday morning, I discovered “Digimon Tamers”.  At the time, I couldn’t quite explain it, but there was something different about the animation and the way the episodes flowed. It was like they were all connected together by a single narrative thread that the other Saturday Morning cartoons like “Kim Possible”, “Recess”, and “Doug” didn’t really have.  At least, not as predominately as “Digimon Tamers” had.

But then we got to the episodes when the bio-merging introduced, my mom saw what happened during those sequences, and turned off the TV, and that was that. 

Although I didn’t know it then, that was my first glimpse at the difference between American and Japanese culture when it came to that side of things. It wouldn’t be until I was in high school that I was able to see the rest of the Tamers season.  By then, I knew why my mom turned off the TV.

But I digress.

Over time, thanks to YouTube, I discovered other shows that shared similarities to the series I saw before.  Shows like “Sailor Moon”, “Naruto”, “Tokyo Mew Mew”, and the rest of the Digimon Seasons, just to name a few.

I learned that the term for these kinds of shows were called “animes”, which meant “Japanese Animations”.

However, as the years went by, shows like “W.I.T.C.H.”, “Avatar: the Last Airbender”, and “Legend of Korra” came out.  All of which have different country origins and art styles, but still had a few things in common to anime.  Such as having limited lip movements, greater attention to character and setting detail, complex camera movements that would normally be seen in live-action films, more realistic looking characters than what you would see in typical American cartoons, and having long-running stories that were strung together by several episodes, as opposed to simply having self-contained stories in every episode.

Not to say that all American cartoons were just made up of self-contained stories.  I’m using broad strokes here.

When I seriously got into anime, I soon discovered manga, or Japanese comics. Just like with anime, I loved the art styles and aesthetics of the medium.  I got many different kinds of manga drawing books that I could get my hands on, and practiced the style as best I could.  I soon integrated that into my own drawing style because it resonated with me so much.  I watched and read more of this intriguing medium, and soon became familiar with the community.  I even got a Funimation account to watch dubbed shows legally.

Yes, I watch dubbed shows instead of subbed.  Not all the time, I’ve watched “Hibike! Euphonium” (a show that is not dubbed in English) and enjoyed it.  I’ve also watched episodes from shows that are both subbed and dubbed in their Japanese version, and enjoyed them, too.  Or if nothing else, it was at least interesting to make comparisons between the two languages.

I only mention this because of the debates I see with subs versus dubs.  For me, my personal preference is just to watch a show in a language I can understand.  Because I find that having to speed-read subtitles to understand what’s going on to be frustrating, and pausing the video is just tedious to me. But with an English dub, I can enjoy the show while also consuming it a whole lot easier than if I had to constantly read subtitles.  Even if there are changes from the Japanese version in terms of translation, I still find it enjoyable.

I also find that with English voices, I have a much better time in determining which characters are talking without having to look at the screen. With Japanese voice, more often than not, I find that voices start to blend together, and I can’t really tell who’s talking anymore unless I can see them on screen.

Granted, that’s probably because I’m not Japanese, and I have not grown up with the Japanese culture.  So that’s probably why it’s hard for me to distinguish Japanese voices most of the time.

Which leads me to my next statement.

I want to create a manga series, but I am not Japanese.  I have no Asian background whatsoever.  I am an American with a Swedish and Irish background.  And for a lot of hardcore manga/anime fans, any story using the manga style, but is created by people outside of Japan, it is not considered as “authentic” manga/anime.  As a result, they tend to dismiss these series as simply imitations.

This caused me some concern.  Would my series be taken as a manga, despite its American origin?  Or would it be just taken an American comic series with manga elements?  Don’t me wrong, I have nothing against American comics.  I have enjoyed a few from time to time.  However, I didn’t want my series to not be considered a manga simply because it is created by an American woman who happens to draw in that kind of style.

This then got me thinking about something.  Something I’ve been noticing over the course of my time with manga/anime.

What defines manga and anime today?

When I stopped and thought about it, there are lots of examples of manga/anime styles that are created outside of Japan nowadays.  Just look around on DeviantArt.  There are lots of artists from different countries who draw art work with this kind of influence in their art style.

On top of that, Japanese animation and comics were inspired from American works such as superhero comics and Disney animated movies.  While the manga/anime style originated in Japan, it’s roots can be traced back to places in America.  And great Japanese directors like Hayao Miyazaki, Naoko Yamada, and Shoji Kawamori drew inspirations for their series from Western media.  In fact, many of Studio Ghibli’s movies take place in European-styled settings.  “Kiki’s Delivery Service”, “Castle in the Sky”, “Howl’s Moving Castle”, “Tales of Earthsea”, and “Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind”, just to name a few.

And not just Studio Ghibli either.  This also extends to anime shows.  Two major shows I can think of are Fullmetal Alchemist and D.Gray-man.  Both series take place in a fictional setting of Europe, with protagonists who have European backgrounds.

Note that both series were created by Japanese mangakas: Hiromu Arakawa, and Katsura Hoshino.

Upon realizing all of this, it got me thinking about what defines the medium today.  Is it an art form that is just limited to Japan?  Or has its meaning and influence changed?

To refer back to “Avatar: The Last Airbender”, there’s a quote from Master Piandao in the episode, “Sokka’s Master”:

“The way of the sword doesn’t belong to any one nation.  Knowledge of the arts belongs to us all.”

After remembering that, I remembered something else.  When I was in university, I took a course that discussed the different kinds of ways of how the English language came to be; how it has evolved over time, how it changed over time in America, and how it has changed within different regions of America.  Not to mention, certain words and phrases have changed meanings throughout the years, and are continuing to change.

While I don’t claim to be a linguist (I even have trouble with my native language most of the time), I’m sure that other languages have evolved over time as well.

Like language, art has also evolved over time.  We have the Renaissance, which was a movement in the arts, developing a lot of techniques that many artists still use today.  And art has continued to develop over time, with many artists finding inspiration from cultures outside of their own.

Animation came along and showed that 2D drawings could be used to express movement through a series of still frames.  Walt Disney took it a step further when he created “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, showing that animation can do so much more than just silly slap-stick cartoons. Animation can capture the hearts of its audience, and make people laugh, smile, or even cry.  It can evoke emotions just as much as live action films could, and maybe even a little more so.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg.  We now have the technology to do movies that are completely CG.  Artists can put their art on the screen with the use of tablets and intuos pens to draw directly onto their computers, and enhance their art work that couldn’t have done before.

Heck, I do that all the time with my own art, and I’m just an amateur.

And thanks to the internet, the growth of social media, and aerial travel, industries have been able to find artistic talent from around the globe, and can collaborate with other countries to create a product.

I mention all of this because it made me realize something.  Art as a concept is something that does not belong to one country.  Styles can have roots and origins in a specific country, but art itself is universal. It’s used to express, communicate, and evoke emotions and ideas.

So, for myself, I came to the conclusion that manga/anime originated in Japan.  For a while, it was exclusive to Japan.  But today, thanks to the global access that countries all over the world now have, it has become a universal art form.

Now, going back to my original question.

What defines manga and anime?

Well, that’s actually hard to answer.  Because manga/anime itself has many different styles depending on the creators, even within Japan.

Just look at series like “Naruto,” “One Piece”, “Bleach”, “Fullmetal Alchemist”, “D-Gray.man”, and “Fairy Tail” (just to name a few).  All of them are long-running shonen series, but their styles are all vastly different.  Really, just put one page from each series side-by-side, and the differences in art style are apparent.  Same with their anime adaptations.  Take a screen shot of the main characters of their series, and I guarantee the differences will show themselves right off the bat.

Not to mention, the way they tell their stories are varied as well. “Naruto” is inspired by ninjas, “Bleach” was influenced by samurais, “One Piece” is about pirates and adventure, “Fullmetal Alchemist” is about alchemists fighting in a war, “D-Gray Man” is about exorcists fighting evil, and “Fairy Tail” was about wizards and magic.

Again, I’m using broad strokes.

As for shojo series, look at “Salior Moon”, “Tokyo Mew Mew”, and “Magic Knight Rayearth”.  Again, stories about a team of magical girls saving the world, but the way each series was drawn, and the stories they told were different.  Although for “Magic Knight Rayearth”, I would say it falls more into the shonen category than it does with the shojo category in terms of how it’s plot and premise are executed.

I mention all of this because these are examples on how the same medium is used in different styles and methods of storytelling.  This can give series a distinct feel and look so that when you see them, you know what series they are from.  At the same time, this makes manga and anime hard to define, as it is not just one specific style.

Yet, when you look at them, you automatically can come to the conclusion that they are indeed that kind of art form.  While they all have different styles and methods, they all have that distinct feeling that when you look at them, you know what kind of art form they are.

So, what defines this art form?

Is it country origin alone?  Or is it something more?

Because with the accessibility to stream anime on sights like Crunchyroll, Funimation, Amazon, and Netflix; and with manga and anime being translated into different languages and sold in local stores; I think it’s safe to say that the medium isn’t just restricted to Japan anymore.

So, what is it that defines it?

Is it the way they are drawn?  How characters are designed and portrayed?  Simplified lip-flaps, but with great attention to details on characters and single shots?  How the camera moves like a live-action camera would, despite not being in a real-life setting?

Is it how the storytelling is different from western media?  Willing to go into darker themes that western cartoons and animations wouldn’t go into?  Having more mature content that wouldn’t be appropriate for kids in a western audience, despite some series being for a younger audience in Japan?  Portraying philosophical themes in an artistic setting?

I’d say yes to all of these, but I think it’s something else, too.  And this is the best way that I can describe it.

Manga and Anime are yet another example of how expressive and diverse art can be.  The mediums are essentially 2D art that are treated like live action.

These two mediums have shown that art itself, much like our imaginations, has no limitations.  There is so much you can do with just a pencil and some paper.  You can create new worlds, more varied character designs, fantastic adventures, and much more.  These two art forms have taken the concept of comics and animation, and have raised them to a whole new level.

Whether that’s good or bad is a subjective issue depending on what your critiquing and what your standards are, but that is what the medium has done. And with manga artists from different countries all over the world starting to create their own series, Japanese anime becoming dubbed in other languages like English, American animated shows starting to implement a Japanese way of storytelling into their works, and with Japanese works being influenced by Western culture, I think it’s safe to say that this is no longer just a form of entertainment that is restricted to Japan alone.

It has become a universal art form that is continuing to grow to this day.

At least, that’s what I believe.

What are your thoughts?

Do you think manga and anime have become universal art forms? Do you think it’s become a movement?

Feel free to share your comments.

Have a Good Day!