Anime/Manga Genres: Iyashikei

Iyashikei is Japanese for healing, which describes this extremely niche sub-genre very well. Iyashikei series are meant to be as soothing and calming as possible, taking place in worlds with very little conflict,with cute and likeable characters just going about their carefree mostly drama-free lives. 

The most important aspect of an iyashikei series is atmosphere; it is not meant to be watched, but experienced. For this reason, the technical side of this genre is outstanding. Backgrounds are filled with lush vegetation and aging buildings, the screen crammed with beautiful little details, from the solitary blades of grass sticking out of water so clear you can count the rocks on the bottom to the cracks in the walls of  an ancient city forgotten by time. Check out St Mark's Square in Aria, taking place in Neo-Venice (on Mars of all places):

Or how about the scenery in Croisee in a Foreign Labyrinth, taking place in Paris, France here:

Freaking look at that architecture!

Not every series goes for the hyper realistic art style. Many series go for a more warm, watercolor look, giving the art a very human touch, such as Usagi Drop.

It also gives the appearance that the character exist inside the world of a painting, making the escapist nature of these types of series more apparent. This genre exists solely as escapism. It exists to leave the audience with an feeling of inner peace and a smile, and a sense of awe at a vision of true beauty. I think the unique experience of watching an iyashikei series is best described as a sigh of contentment, filling you with a sweet serenity as you contemplate the many beautiful things that exist in our world. Some may describe it as cotton candy for your soul, light and fluffy without much content, but I prefer to think of it as a hot shower on a cold day, or a cup of hot chocolate while you watch the snow flutter slowly from the sky. It's pure, condensed bliss.

In keeping with the "life is beautiful" theme that this genre has, the characters are mostly all charming, entertaining and loveable. Before I learned the name of this genre, I called it the "I'll do my best today" genre, due to the sheer number of times you hear this phrase in these types of series. In Aria for example, possibly the most popular of this genre, Akari's greatest desire is to become a Prima, the highest ranking of undines, or gondolier tour-guide, but she doesn't compete with the other girls to become the best, but slowly moves through the ranks, happy to enjoy the simple things in life and befriend the other undines.  This genre is full of these characters; girls with a goal that they intend to reach, and do so without competing, cat fighting or even getting jealous of other girls with the same goals and dreams. They may be somewhat Mary Sue characters, but they’re the kind that you wish you knew in real life, someone who can brighten up your day, will always be there to comfort you if you're unhappy and always manages to say the right thing at the right time.

It's also touching to see these characters and how they learn more about each other and become extremely close, all without getting so offended that they punch each other through walls and ceilings. Usagi Drop is a great example of this heart-warming character connection, as you see Rin and Daikichi's first meeting, how Rin initially becomes attached to him, and how they continually learn more about each other and take care of each other, both helping the other grow as a person. It's just a wonderful experience to watch them grow, and you hope that they will always be a happy family.

To those outside its niche audience, it can be a bewildering genre. The slow pacing and lack of any conflict is certainly off-putting to those unfamiliar, and many find it impossible to enjoy something where nothing really ever happens. It's a type of series that is very unique to Japan, and I believe that there are several reasons for this. One reason is that an appreciation of simple aesthetics and natural beauty is very deeply ingrained in Japanese culture. This is shown in the simple yet eloquent designs on traditional Japanese pottery, dishes and lacquerware, the simple and lovely linework in traditional paintings, even the subtle presentation of food in a restaurant echos this idea of simple beauty. Appreciation of nature is an important trait of Japanese culture, as the blooming of the cherry blossoms is an important event always looked forward to and celebrated with big parties, as people watch the blossoms fall from the branches and reflect on how short and insignificant the lives of those blossoms were, and yet so beautiful and awe-inspiring. For people with this idea as a big part of their culture, watching a series so drenched in this appreciation of simple beauty after a long and stressful day is a very comfortable experience, reminding them that no matter how hard and stressful life is, the world still is a beautiful place, and the simple pleasures are always there to comfort.

Another reason the iyashikei genre might exist is another very Japanese idea, the idea that it's about the journey, not the end. In American fiction, it's often about the resolution, and a bad ending could ruin the entire experience. Having an ending spoiled is even worse, as though there's no longer any point in seeing it now that you know what happens. In Japan however it's different. It's okay for a series to have little or no resolution, or a particularly awful ending, because in the end, it's how they get there that counts, and when it's all over, you can look back and contemplate the fun you've had watching and learning about these characters lives. Due to this interest in the journey rather than a resolution, it's okay for many to have a series with very little conflict because you're not all that interested in the resolution of the conflict in the first place.

Although the genre is basically rooted in Japanese ideas, and as a result many Westerners looking for conflict and resolution in their entertainment will be put off by these ideas, I would still recommend the genre as a whole to anyone. Watching an anime designed to heal your soul is a wonderful and delightful experience that I think everyone should be able to experience at least once, if only to remind them that the world truly is a lovely place, with wonderful kind people living in it, and little miracles always ready to be found.

Recommended and standout titles of the genre: Aria, Yotsuba, Chii's Sweet Home, Usagi Drop, Only Yesterday, My Neighbor Totoro, Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, 5cm per Second, Haibane Renmei, Kiki's Delivery Service, Whisper of the Hear, Hanasaku Iroha

Manga Genres

Something that really sets manga apart from American comics is the fact that manga was allowed to develop naturally, without much regulation, and greatly experimented with. While American comics were once very diverse, with the creation of the Comics Code Authority 1954, comics were sanitized and strictly controlled, allowing very little diversity. Genres that were once very popular, such as horror and crime comics, became non-existent, and were replaced by very inoffensive and often silly superhero comics. The CCA started losing its prominence in the late 1980s, and as of January 2011, no comics are being published any longer with the CCA seal of approval. As a result of its waning prominence, comics have become more diverse and mature, but the influence is still felt, to the newspaper strips that are so wholesome that they lack anything memorable, to the prominence that superhero comics still has in the industry.

In Japan, however, until recently with the Tokyo Youth Ordinance Act, there were very little regulations involved, plus different cultural views on what's okay in fiction allowed manga is progress in a more natural way. It also helps that Osamu Tezuka, the "god of manga" was determined to publish in every possible genre, and created a large body of work that encompassed a wide range of themes, genres and audiences. As a result, manga became very diverse and splintered into several different genres and sub-genres, many of which have become very specialized and are very unique to manga. It's fascinating to see how these genres came to be and how they developed into the series that they are today. So I'm taking a look at some of the more specialized, unique and bizarre sub-genres of manga and how they came to be the way they are. First, I'll be taking a look at the extremely specific sub-genre of moe known as iyashikei, or healing manga. Look forward to it!

Webcomics: The Trenches

This isn't going to be a review, more of a news thing. It would be impossible to review a webcomic, for one, that's only got two strips out.

So recently Scott Kurtz, creator of PVP, started a new webcomic with Jerry and Mike, the guys behind Penny Arcade. It's called The Trenches, and it's about Issac, a video game tester, and his coworkers as they endure the hell that is video game testing.

There are several reasons I'm excited about the strip. Firstly, the dumb reason that I'm writing a character who is a video game tester, so it's interesting for me to see a comic strip about that subject matter.

Secondly, PVP is one of my all time favorite strips. It's a series that has significantly improved both art-wise and story-wise, and is often genuinely touching and funny. I prefer it over Penny Arcade, if only for the reason that I am simply not the target audience for Penny Arcade, and only every now and then do I get the jokes and video game references. PVP is a video game strip too, but it's also a character-driven one, so even I can "get it".

Another cool thing they're doing with the strip is that with every new strip comes a true story from a video game tester. Its really neat to see real people's experiences with the gaming industry, rather than just a fictional one.

However, like I said, only two strips have been released so far, and Issac hasn't even been hired yet.  I really like that it starts with Issac getting the job, rather than dropping us in the middle of the story. It gives the strip a more complete feeling, like there will be a beginning, a middle, and an ending of the story. And there really isn't enough strips out there with linear storytelling, so it's great to see the strips carry the story, rather than force a punchline in every third or fourth panel.

That being said, there are some things about the strip that I don't have a good first impression of. The main cast, from what I can gather from promotional images, appears to be extremely similar to the cast for PVP. We've got the Brent character, a sarcastic, snobby looking douche, the Jade, who is yet another single female character in a male dominated strip, and the Francis, the youngest member, who's the typical whiny rude teenager. It's just not a very unique looking cast, and it's going to take some big surprises from these characters or excellent writing to distract me from the "haven't I seen these guys before?" feeling.

Despite that,  I think it'll be worth your time to at least check it out at The Trenches. A comic strip can be read in a matter of seconds, and if you catch it now, you can see it before it gets really long, which is the problem I usually run into with strips.I just hope these guys can balance two different strips, otherwise their respective (and huge) fanbase will be disappointed.

First Impressions: The iDOLM@STER

Oh wow, is this the end of this season of First Impressions?

Plot Synopsis: Based on the XBOX 360 game The iDOLM@STER 2, The iDOLM@STER follows 13 aspiring idols aiming to reach their goals.

Before viewing: This looks like the gender-reversed version of Uta no Prince-sama, another harem series about people trying to make it into show biz. The character designs vaguely remind me of K-ON, which makes me suspect that this'll be a moe-rific series. It sounds a bit dull and flat. Also, I can tell that this series is going to suffer from character overload. It's probably not a good idea to have more main characters than there are episodes. Much like any other series with lots of of "important" characters introduced from the beginning, I suspect that none of them will get enough screen time for us to actually learn anything about them or grow to love them.

After viewing: Playing this game is exactly like watching someone else play a dating game. Everything about it screams it; from the set-up of the plot, to the way the characters are introduced, to how they interact with each other. The "main character" that the girls all talk to is a cameraman interviewing them, whose voice is never heard, but his dialogue appears on-screen, exactly like in a dating game. The way they talk, everything about them is like a girl in a dating game. All the different types of girls that always show up are there too, naturally. And just like watching someone else play a dating game, it's boring. It's even more boring than watching a dating game because there's not even the underlying sexual tension or the possibility of a relationship, it's just an interview with all the girls.  It's mind-numbingly dull. Hopefully the rest of the episodes aren't done in this same format, or because you can't possibly create an entire series through interviews with the cast.

And with that, the First Impressions of the Summer 2011 season are over! I'll be posting a summary of the season later, since I only did a first impression of half the series. The other series I'm going to do a review of.

First Impressions: Appleseed XIII

Plot Synopsis: (from MAL)It is the 22nd Century, the Third World War (2099-2126) has decimated a large part of Earth even though nuclear weapons have not been employed during the conflict. Old nations such as England, France and China have survived but have difficulty restoring their power. On the other hand, new nations and organizations such as the Sacred Republique of Mumna and the Poseidon Organization have been born on the ashes of the world resulting from the Third World War.

In this bleak future, we are introduced to ex-L.A. SWAT members Deunan Knute and Briareos Hecatonchires. Having survived the world conflict and living in a desolated city, they are found by a young woman called Hitomi who proposes them to follow her to the utopian city of Olympus which has become the world's most powerful organization and which registers the new relations in terms of politics, economics and military between new and old nations/organizations. In Olympus, they are integrated in the prestigious ESWAT (Extra Special Weapons And Tactics) organization, whose main mission is to protect Olympus from terrorist attacks and Olympus's interests in the world.

From here on, the two main protagonists encounter a great number of other characters and organizations who will be implicated in international plots that target Olympus.

Before viewing: Masamune Shirow is very renowned in the world of anime. Most well known for Ghost in the Shell, he is a prolific cyberpunk science fiction writer with an impressive record of work behind him. This particular series is an adaptation of his 1985 manga which has been adapted to anime several times. This series is CG animated, which is a bit of a turnoff. Japanese CG animation is usually pretty bad. The only time I've been happy with it was in the Final Fantasy VII film, which was a film I would prefer to watch mute; the animation is so lovely, while everything else is so convoluted and makes no sense. From what I've seen, this animation isn't nearly as up to par.

After viewing: The animation is pretty bad. It feels like watching cutscenes from an older video game, and a pretty badly made one at that. The scenery is nice enough, but the people sit on that line between anime and CG, and it just doesn't look good. Also, the way they move can be really awkward. It's not so bad in the fight scenes, but when they're standing around talking, the way they gesture, stand, blink, or how their lips move are all so fake looking, like marionettes. It's pretty distracting and makes it difficult to get yourself sucked into the series, because its distracting and doesn't flow together very well. Its constantly reminding you that you're watching something created in a computer, something lifeless.

Story-wise, there doesn't seem to be much at this point. It mostly seems to be about Deunan and Briareos and their missions in the ESWAT team. Deunan isn't a team player, and it astounds me that she managed to become a member when she consistently refuses to pay much mind to orders, trust any of her team members or work as a team. Don't they do team building exercises as a part of training? She is constantly being scolded for it by her partner, Briareos, but she shrugs it off or makes excuses, like how it was how she was raised, or it doesn't matter because everything turned out all right anyways. She never gets punished for her insubordination, so she just keeps doing it. She's a pretty Mary Sue-ish character, and it's pretty annoying.

A personal pet peeve of mine is when a character is half-"insert race/species/other" here and it's some throwaway fact about them, something that doesn't affect their character designs, abilities or character at all. Deunan is supposedly half-black, and she's as white as they come. Can they at least give her darker skin or hair, rather than be blond and pale? They use racism as a way to establish some angst in her life, (her mom was killed because she's black apparently), and it feels so forced.

There's something interesting the series does, which is kinda cool but seems pointless. It is full of references to Greek mythology, and it's not very subtle about it. There's a terrorist group known as the Argonauts and some political entity known as Poseidon. The opening theme is basically just the constellations outlined in the stars, while statues of the figures in the constellations, like Orion and others appear on the screen. And most bizarre, Greek murals constantly pop up in the middle of dialogue, which is admittingly pretty interesting, and nicer looking than the characters talking awkwardly at one another. Deunan even has a dream sequence all done in mural, and it's pretty cool. But I'm not sure what the point is, or if there even is a point to it. It might simply be from the Evangelion "we did it because it looked cool" mindset behind their biblical references. I hope that later episodes will give the allusions a point because at this point it feels like they're trying to make the series look smarter than it actually is, and it comes off as super pretentious.

This is a seriously flawed series, with more bad points than good ones. There is much better science fiction of this ilk out there, with more likeable characters, better animation, and  more interesting futuristic settings than this series. I could only recommend this for Shirow completists.

First Impressions: Cat God

Plot synopsis:Koyama Yuzu is running an antique shop. Mayu, a cat god (nekogami), is living off Yuzu and leads an idle life playing games. Lots of other gods visit Mayu and enjoy merrymaking.

Before Viewing: Do you remember those older harem series, like Oh My Goddess! and Tenchi Muyo, or even going back even further Urusei Yatsura? This sort of feels like one of those supernatural harem series that were crazy popular back then. Most harem series these days aren't like that, so a series like this is actually a little nostalgic. Remember when Tenchi Muyo was on Toonami? You couldn't do something like that nowadays! That being said, I was never crazy for those kinds of series, and it's rare that I find a harem series I like.

After viewing: So obviously I was wrong about this being a harem series. That's a pleasant surprise. The one male character is definitely not at the center of a love pentagon or anything. It's a fairly typical supernatural comedy, about gods living on Earth and the shenanigans they get up to. It's a cute, light and fluffy series, where not much happens, just some somewhat entertaining characters goofing off and being cute. It's pretty cute, and makes for a entertaining half hour. It's nothing special, but it certainly won't hurt to watch if there's nothing else to watch.

First Impressions: Mawaru Penguindrum

Plot Synopsis:Three siblings, twins Kanba and Shouma, and the in-and-out-of-the-hospital Himari who's in poor health, live together at the Takakura home. One day, when the siblings are out on a trip to the aquarium, Himari collapses. The doctors state that nothing can be done for her anymore, but then, a miracle occurs...

Before Viewing: Revolutionary Girl Utena is one of the more highly acclaimed series out there. As a result, I have some pretty high expectations for this series, as it's by the same people behind Utena. Admittingly, I don't know much about this series, other than that it's a slice of life series and that it has a really weird title. What's a penguindrum anyways? I'm hoping this will be a great series.

After Viewing: What. The. Fuck. Did I just watch? How is this remotely a slice of life series? Posession, Revival from death, magical penguins all over the fucking place! The hat is magical, what? Robot bear, ripped out heart, WHAT'S A PENGUN DRUM, aleajwoifjalrihtaowirtjaoijnsaofiuwaer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As you can probably guess, this is not your ordinary show. It's rather...strange if you will. I mean, I know that Utena is a bizarre show, and I probably should have seen it coming, but the beginning trolls you hard. For the first half, it's gentle, peaceful even, with a tragedy just around the corner. I assumed it was about the last days of a dying girl and her brothers. But from the moment her corpse sat up and screamed "Survival Strategy!" any form of sense slowly begins to fade, culminating in a complete explosion of insanity in the last five minutes, with absolutely no explanation, just the order to find the Penguin Drum and insane visuals being thrown at you constantly. Nobody has any clue what it going on. It's awesome!

I really don't know what to say about this episode. The ending is so incoherent that I can barely pull my thoughts together. I'm sure that later episodes will explain things in time, or maybe it'll just keeping throwing weird shit at us and expect us to understand what just happened. I do enjoy the surreality of it, and the confusion makes me want to see more so I can comprehend what I just saw.

I want to punch the person who labeled this as a slice of life and confused the ever living hell out of me. It's like they stopped watching the episode at the ten minute mark and decided that was good enough, but they were dead wrong.

By far the weirdest thing I've seen this season, and after Twin Angel, I never thought I'd say that.