A weekly look into American otaku culture

To all my readers,

Within the past few days, my life has been turned upside down, inside out, and every painful way in between. The result is a very depressed Scotty before you here today telling you that this blog has to be put on hiatus while everything is going on. As much as I need a distraction for it, reality is just too much right now for me to escape into my hobby and enjoy it. So for now, I’ll be focusing my attention on other things and trying to battle my own personal demons. It’s a dark and scary place, but I hope that I will succeed at it in the end.

Until then, wish me luck,
Scott

At first I was going to post a review of the live-action TV show entitled Train Man (”Densha Otoko”), but then I realized that doing so would not give this story enough justice. This simple story about a nerd turning towards the Internet for romance advice has become a phenomenon that is currently rocking the Japanese and American otaku culture. It is a representation of the geek and nerd lifestyle and where our hidden passions truly lie. I will take a look at the history of the Train Man, the kind of impact it has made in Japan, and just what makes it is so significant.

In reality, Train Man started off in an Internet message board. The Japanese have a board called 2-Channel, and it is known as an epicenter for geeks and otakus. It has become a staple in the Japanese Internet culture, giving birth to online slang and extraordinary ASCII-based artwork that would make an American smiley face cry. I’ve taken the following from Wikipedia entry because I feel that it summarizes the Train Man story better then I ever can.

Between March and May of 2004, an anonymous user posted in a thread for single men to decry their woes. His post detailed an event that had happened that day as he was riding the train. According to his account, he was sitting on the train when he noticed an attractive woman. Suddenly, a drunken man entered the car and bothered many passengers, who did not offer any resistance to his disturbance. This man then began to badger the woman, and seeing no one else coming to her aid, the poster took the risk of telling the man to stop bothering the passengers. The two struggled for a short time while the other passengers used this distraction to summon the conductor, who took control of the situation.

A bit later, Densha received a package from the woman he had saved. This package, originally thought to be a generic thank-you gift such as one would buy in a drugstore, turned out to be an expensive tea set. Flabbergasted, the he turned to the 2channelers for advice; he was soon convinced that such a gift was too expensive to be a mere thank-you gift. Densha contacted the woman and began meeting her regularly, all the while posting updates and conversing with other posters. Following their collective advice, he got a haircut, purchased new clothes, and began to come out of his shell. After a while of seeing her, his personality had changed for the better and this culminated a few months later in his confessing his love for her. She accepted and when the 2channelers were informed of this there was a mass celebration; posts began flowing in congratulating the new couple, extravagant Ascii Art pictures were posted.

A look at the original posts made by the Train Man on the 2-channel message board. Here, the online posters suggest that Densha take the girl out to dinner in return for the cups she sent him.

It should be noted, however, that no one can actually prove that what the Train Man was saying was true. It could have all just been an elaborate fabrication from one man or even a group of people. But that still didn’t change the fact that people were hooked on this story. The media went on a frenzy with it, and so did the entertainment industry. Shortly after its conclusion on the Internet, all the message board posts were compiled into a single volume novel and quickly became a best seller in bookstores. From there, a movie was made and became one of the top films of this summer and is still doing well in the box office. In addition to that, a TV drama is currently airing on Japanese TV, which has been accepted quite nicely to our own fansub community. And to top is all off, there are currently four different manga adaptations being serialized in both Shounen and Shoujo magazines.

Scenes from the Train Man TV show.

It’s hard to ignore that this simple story has made a huge impact, but just why that? Well, first of all, it tackles the subject of the Internet world vs. the real world. People tend to have different personas for when they’re online compared to how they normally act. The Internet gives you the freedom to break past the shell that society has created for you, so you can express what you really think without feeling much pressure from your social status. The Train Man was a good person with the sole desire to love and find happiness. While he couldn’t do it in real life, he was able to easily dream and express his feeling on the message board. So his story is remarkable because his goal is to bring that Internet persona into the real world. As the viewer, you closely monitor his progress and eventually are rewarded that, yes, the two worlds can merge together successfully.

Another factor comes from the people involved with this story. While the actual Train Man might have been a fraud, there’s no doubt that those who also posted on the board are real. They are geeks like you and me who come to the web to find information and share in ideas and hobbies. So the posts and suggestions that make up this story come from the real, honest opinions and life experiences of the Japanese people. Men would share their experiences with love and what they found to work best for it. Girls would talk about how they would like to be treated if the Train Man was pursuing them. The “characters” portrayed in the movie, manga, and TV show were actually real people just living out their lives. Even if you weren’t a part of the event as it was happening, there’s still the notion that it could have been you there talking to the Train Man and giving him your own advice. It adds a whole new level to reality TV.

A page from one of the four Train Man manga adaptations, and the poster for the movie..

But it is the combination of those factors that make the Train Man the phenomena that it is. While many bill it as a real story, he is still just a fairy tale. A fairy tale that has been spawned through the collective hopes, desires, and imagination of the internet otaku culture. He is what socially inept men wish they could be, and the knight in shining armor that lonely girls wish would come to them. His story has won over our hearts because it is what our heart made. That is the magic behind the story of the Train Man.

If you want to learn more: check out this archive of the original posts on the 2-Channel message board Also, I would like to thank Matthew for his help with this article. (^_^)

I just can’t win, can I?

You all should remember just how much I got flamed for talking about how I feel that people who download fansubs don’t actually spend money at all to support the industry. I didn’t attack any people in particular because I know that there are some people out there who spend a lot. I was just saying that there wasn’t as much of that as there should be.

So then can you believe my reaction to this comment left on my review of “My Wife is a High School Girl”?

Let me first say I looked up your blog on Technorati and I like much of what I am seeing here. We obviously have very different tastes, but I am not getting into any of that. What is bothering me is your preview of the unlicensed title above. By “unlicensed” I am guessing what you mean is that you downloaded the eps from Kazaa or BitTorrent and watched them in their entirety without paying for them. As the top-ranked ‘anime reviews’ blog on Technorati I hope you don’t condone this sort of behavior. Personally, I am hoping you were on a cruise ship in Japanese waters for six weeks where you watched the eps on TV without the benefit of subtitles, understanding every word spoken with your fluent grasp of the Japanese language. That must have been fun! Tell us more about it will you?

http://animesnobs.blogspot.com/2005/08/bittorrent-and-anime.html

o_O!

And man, if you thought my rant on the subject was bad, you should see what he wrote! But then again, before I got into fansubs, I probably would be the same way. In fact, I guess I still am kinda the same way. There has to be a reason why I pissed off so many people, right?

Anyway, I just really thought I should share this with you all. I find it insulting but ironic at the same time. I wrote my retort to his comment right under that in the review, so feel free to look at that if you want. Either way, I hope this isn’t the last I hear from Mr. Snob.

I sent an email out, and I want to thank everyone out there who did this already. But I wasn’t able to reach everyone, so I might as well post it here too.

As you may have noticed, I have recently taken my name out of the title of this blog and renamed it to simply, “The Anime Almanac”. Unfortunately, this has created some problems in that Google has a hard time picking my site up. If you monitor the kind of traffic you get on your own blogs, then you know how important that Google audience is. My web traffic has dropped drastically in the past couple of weeks, and I believe I need your help to fix it.

It appears that Google’s ranking system is determined by the links you have pointing to your site. Since the new title of my site doesn’t match the keywords that everyone is using, I’m not a valid website. What I need is for everyone to please change their “Scott’s Anime Almanac” links to “The Anime Almanac”. It would really help me out.

And hey, if you don’t have a link to me on your blogroll, you’re always welcomed too! If you do, I’ll see it and I’ll add a link to your site on mine as well. We both benefit from that! (^_^)

Scott: I just spent $140 on ADV’s Labor Day sale. (^^;)
Token Asian: Good job!
Token Asian: You’re on your way to being a mini-moyism
Scott: Noooooo!
Token Asian: *does the Darth Vader scream*
Token Asian: *doesn’t want to feel left out*
Token Asian: “Noooooooooooooo!”

So I’ve just started working a great-paid internship, so now I’m finally seeing my bank account on the rise again. And therefore… ::mumbles:: Istartedbuyingawholelottaanimeandmangaagain… >_<. But I’m not going too crazy. I only buy things that are good bargains. For example, I’ve been enjoying the DNA^2 box set that I just got for only 25 bucks at Deep Discount DVD. Then I stumbled across ADV’s Labor Day sale, and with many of the things 75% off, I went on a frenzy! What kind of frenzy? Well…

DVD
Colorful
Magical Play Complete Collection
Nurse Witch Komugi 2
Panyo Panyo Di Gi Charat 1-4
Plastic Little Collection
Princess Nine Complete Collection
RahXephon The Motion Picture with Limited Edition Box
Sister Princess 1-2 with Box
Super Gals 2-4

Manga

All Purpose Cultural Cat Girl Nuku Nuku 1
Enmusu 1
Happy Lesson 1
To Heart 2-3

The total after shipping came to $140, which spread out between 20 items is only $7 each. That’s pretty good considering that even one of those tankoubon would cost $10 retail. I’m particularly interested in the Princess Nine collection. I’ve heard so many great things about it but never got a chance to see it.

Warning: review contains some profanity

Our hero in today’s story is Yukio, a 14-year-old nerd who live a very boring teenage life. He has a crush on his childhood friend, Izumi. She used to be a tomboy, but now she’s the hottest chick the whole middle school. In other words, he doesn’t stand a chance of getting with her. But all that changes when he comes across Beck, a dog with Frankenstein-like fur. Yukio saves the mutt from being bullied by a group of kids. Beck’s owner, a 16-year-old rock musician named Ryusuke, takes a liking to the boy, and returns the favor later on when Yukio is in trouble. What they later discover is that Ryusuke had just come back from America, where he had just missed out being part of a Nirvana-like band. To show that he’s not a complete failure, Ryusuke has made a vow to form the greatest band in the world, and it looks like he wants the timid Yukio to be a part of it.

There’s really only one word you can use to describe BECK, and that would be, “cool.” Everyone has their day-jobs (Yukio and Izumi are students, Ryusuke is a fisherman), but at night they like to hang out and listen to rock music. The mood that is created by reading it is exactly what it’s like to experience it. It reminded me a lot of my teenage years going to those run-down rock clubs.

While the “Loser-to-Rock-Star” formula is quite old in American stories, it is very unique to Japanese comics. In fact, the whole idea of American pop culture being trendy in Japan is what makes this story so interesting. While Yukio wants a beef bowl from Yoshinoya, his hip friends want McDonalds. While he listens to the latest J-pop star, his friends are into grunge rock. English and Japanese are constantly being interchanged with each other, and if you are familiar with both languages, you can relate to how much the characters struggle with it. And even some negative American stereotypes, such as gun violence, are present in this book.

	If you get the jokes behimd any of these images, thent BECK is the kind of book for you.

But this series does have some serious things going against it. The main blow is the artwork. It’s just… ugly! It’s simple character design and attention to clothing styles and attitude makes it look like a stylish shojo manga, which is my least favorite kind of manga. And then there’s the dog Beck. He is a Frankenstein creation of different breeds of dog fur stitched together. It’s sad and disgusting, really. That’s not to say that it’s all bad, though. Every once in a while, the artist does manage to make the lead girl, Izumi, look very cute. But that still doesn’t make up for the rest of the art.

Another thing that’s questionable is the behavior of the characters. Since the story is based on American teenaged punks, the characters act just like them. They use a lot of profanity and say some of the dumbest things possible. It reminded me all too well about having these kinds of dumbasses in my high school class, and how much they annoyed me.

But at the same time, this kind of behavior is the subject of many jokes in this series, and I really like having a good laugh over the stupid things that people say. Take for example this lovely analogy uttered by a random rock fan as he’s watching Ryusuke’s band perform:

Rock Fan: Whoa, this band’s got, like, two ass-kicking guitarists! Two radically different styles that blend together perfectly. Like two snakes fucking!
Yukio: Snakes fu–? I guess that means they’re good!

I don’t know why, but something about “two snakes fucking” is stupid but comedicly brilliant at the same time. And this series also has some great moments too when it “breaks the fourth wall” and talks about itself as a manga. One of the funniest panels is Yukio watching his friend playing a video game at an arcade, and then the narration instructs the reader to “Just stare at this panel for 10 minutes to get an idea of Yukio’s life is like.”

But finally, I have to express my disappointment in how Tokyopop handled this translation. In a move completely unlike anything else the company has done in the past, the editor went nuts with adding comments in the margins of the pages. Sign translations, inside jokes, and explanations pollute the white space, and it really is a waste of time to read and at times confuses the reader. I get the most confused at the points where very tiny Japanese text is translated in the margins. You have to actually search for where the text originally appeared in the art because it’s not that obvious.

If you like what you see, please support this series by buying BECK vol. 1 at Amazon.com or your local bookstore.