The last night of the Worldcon in Yokohama, I wound up in a conversation with a couple of Japanese fans and another American. At the suggestion of the other American (whose name I forget-- sorry), we spent a while trading questions: we'd answer a question about the US, then they would answer a question about Japan, and so on.
Eventually, one of the Japanese fans asked "Why are there so many otaku in America?" I answered "Because Japanese anime is really good," (doing my bit for international relations) and that kicked off a general conversation about anime. After rattling off the paltry few shows I've watched, they started recommending stuff, and I eventually ended up with two titles written on the back of a business card.
I've misplaced the card, but it doesn't really matter, as they said the anime in question were only available from "otaku stores in Akihabara," and we didn't make it there (what I would do with a DVD in a language I don't understand, I'm not sure...). Also, I couldn't really read the titles, as they were written in Japanese, in lousy handwriting. But, on the off chance that they're the sort of thing that will eventually make it here in translated DVD editions, I thought I'd see if anybody could identify them from the partial titles. Somebody on the Internet must know what they are, after all.
The first sounded something like "Green Ladder" or "Green Naga" or something like that. The title started with the katakana "Gu" and "Ri," and then I think there were some kanji. That, or katakana written so badly I couldn't make them out.
The second was "Happy something something Go!" Written in Japanese, it started with the katakana "Ha," and then there was some indistinct stuff, followed by "GO!" in roman letters.
I suspect these are giant-robot shows, given the other things they were recommending, but I'm not clear on that. Did I mention that we had been drinking? Anyway, if anybody can tell me what the actual titles are, I'd appreciate it.
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I am not a major anime fan, but I do like searching for things on the intern nets.
I'm going to guess Hikaru no Go for the first one:
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=912
and then Gurren-Lagann:
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=6698
I already tried Hikaru no Go on Chad and he said it was definitely not that.
"Gurren-Lagan" is a possibility, though I really though it was a "Gu" then a "Ri," not a "Re."
It's definitely not Hikari no Go, as the first character was a "Ha" not a "Hi," and the GO! was in Roman characters, with an exclamation point.
(Though Hikari no Go does sound weirdly interesting...)
Or perhaps Green Legend Ran ã°ãªã¼ã³ã¬ã¸ã§ã³ãä¹±?
It starts with GuRi...
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=672
As for Gurren-Lagan. It's a fun show. And yes, it has giant robots (and giant head-only robots :D ).
As for not understanding them, for almost all Japanese animes out there, there are fan subs...
Speaking as another non-Japanese (Singaporean) anime fan, you might like to try Genshiken and NHK ni Youkoso! Both are pretty good (even if they're deficient on the giant robot or action content) series about animanga otakus of the native kind.
When did you stop calling them "Japanese cartoons"? Or was that Novak...
When did you stop calling them "Japanese cartoons"?
Right about the time I needed somebody to identify a mystery title for me...
Depends on what you mean by anime. If you mean Pokemon on Fox on Saturday morning, it could be that the size/experience of the animation industry in Japan means it outcompetes US stuff sometimes.
If you mean Ghost in the Shell on Cartoon Network in the middle of the night? First, not as many people watch anime as you'd think. There are a lot of influential people who do, and a relatively high percentage of viewers are involved in writing about or subbing or distributing anime, but in terms of raw numbers, not so much. Cartoon Network iirc runs anime not because lots of people watch it but because they like it. Next, there is a cultural thing where people in the US feel bad when they don't quite understand something, much more so than in Japan, so there is room for shows with smarter things in them. Then, there is a little bit of a gap in terms of adult animation in the US. If what you enjoy is shows with strange settings, that is easier to do in animation. Another thing that comes to mind is the tendencies for anime series to usually be designed to be a certain, not too long length, and have a grand finale. That style appeals to some people, vs the US model which involves indefinite length that makers hope is years, and basically the same characters and situations every time.
If you mean people downloading shows as they're aired and watching then raw or fansubbed? Well, first off, in all these situations where someone in the US is watching anime, there is a bit of a quality filter. There is a massive amount of terrible terrible anime produced, and the majority of anime is probably a blatant rip off of an earlier work, but you're less likely to run into that. Next, anime on the internet is about as hard to come by as air. Suppose there is some obscure show that has a dozen episodes and has a cult following. American shows like that (Wonderfalls comes to mind) are actually going to be harder to find than anime series of equivalent obscurity - I mean find both in terms of downloading and buying but also in terms of encountering, because anime has a much higher proportion of people who write about/review anime. Next, I think some people becomes real Japanophiles simply because people want to believe that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. Then, there may be more effort in Japan towards making stuff that appeals to nerds. Then, there are cultural things again - yaoi, for whatever reason, appeals to some number of girls, and I seriously doubt it's going to be made much in the US. And lastly, anime acts as the nucleus of something of a self-perpetuating community that attracts people of certain types because it already has people like that.
There's more, but that's all I can think of for now.
Finally, be wary of anime reviews. I'd suggest finding anime that a fair number of people are fanatical about, then watching the first two episodes to decide if you like it. A lot of people make the mistake of finishing watching things they don't like. squit, those are more like things that only anime fans will understand the references in than things that will enlighten you about otaku. There's not really anything everyone has liked. The closest thing would probably be Samurai X: Trust and Betrayal.
The closest names I see at ANN under G are Grenandier, Grendizer, and Grimm Douwa:
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?list=G
Though obviously the title could have been translated instead of transliterated.
On a side note, Hikaru no Go is excellent, though the pacing is slow early on.