I’ve said before that I think music from anime series is well worth listening to, including entire soundtracks, such as the Hunter x Hunter soundtrack.
At the end of my post on shamelessly listening to anime music, I included the end credits song to Kekkai Sensen (or Blood Blockade Battlefront), one of the many songs my child has gotten me hooked on.
And then a year or so ago, she started playing the soundtrack to the second season, Kekkai Sensen & Beyond (Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond). Covering different genres and sung in different languages, the soundtrack is excellent.
It opens with “Block Scholars,” a fusion of jazz and hip-hop…
… and moves on to the Brazilian-influenced “Poupees Vadoux,” complete with a cuica, one of my favorite instruments (it may be a silly one to be a favorite, but hearing one always makes me happy).
And that’s just the beginning. Several of the songs are jazzy, but stylistically they’re very different from each other. “Dare to Say” is an up-tempo big band piece, “White Beyond” is a vocal ballad, and “Minor Doll” reminds me of the jazz fusion that bands like Weather Report and Spyro Gyra were coming out with in the 1970s and ’80s.
There’s classical influence, too, including “Rhapsody in Blue,” which uses Gershwin’s original piece, and “Pebble Walts,” which reminds me of Claude Bolling’s Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano.
In a couple of places above, I’ve mentioned how songs remind me of pieces or bands that I know. While the album doesn’t feel derivative to me, there are times when I can’t help but wonder if I’m the only one who hears echoes of music I know while listening to this soundtrack. For instance, doesn’t “A Queen of the Night” sound a bit like something Steely Dan would write?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhQ5Dg6gdEw
I know most of what I’ve chosen to share with you has had some ties to jazz, so here’s something completely different — the hard-rocking “Determine On.”
I’ve only scratched the surface here. There are several more songs I’d love to include, but the purpose of this blog post is not to recreate the entire album, so I’ll just say: Give it a listen. The Kekkai Sensen & Beyond soundtrack is available on Spotify, or you can purchase it on Amazon. (You’ll have better results if you search using the Japanese name, and I might as well ‘fess up now that one of the Spotify playlists that will come up when you search is mine. I’ve paired every song on the soundtrack with a song that I think complements it, so every other song on the playlist is not from the soundtrack.)
Would your friends and family use any of the following words to describe you: weird, quirky, wacky, zany, goofy, odd, kooky, eccentric? Are you not above watching an animated show?
It’s time to check out Nichijou, or My Ordinary Life.
I’ve watched (and recommended) comedy anime before. But Nichijou is unlike anything else that I’ve seen. Each 24-minute episode is made up of a series of shorter stories about recurring characters, including school-age friends Yuuko, Mio, and Mai, and an eight-year-old scientist, Hakase (literally “Professor”), who lives with her robot creation, Nano. A few stories continue from episode to episode, but overall each episode can stand alone.
Here are just a few of the things that make Nichijou so delightfully odd…
Mai
Yuuko, Mio, and Mai all have their quirks, but Mai is over-the-top quirky. She has a strange, slightly evil sense of humor and delivers her pranks, many of which are directed at poor Yuuko, with a completely deadpan expression.
This isn’t one of my favorite clips featuring Mai, and I would prefer to share a version in Japanese with subtitles, but it gets the point across:
Nano and Hakase
As perhaps the most serious character in the show, Nano wants to be thought of as human, a desire that Hakase willfully disregards. Hakase and Nano have an odd relationship: Hakase is brilliant, but she acts like the eight-year-old she is, leaving Nano to play the role of parent to her creator. Hakase constantly wheedles Nano for sweets and at one point even modifies her to dispense desserts. She also lacks empathy for Nano’s desire to hide her robot identity. The Nano-Hakase segments have a tinge of sadness not present in the rest of the anime, giving the show a depth it would otherwise lack.
Koujirou Sasahara
One of the minor characters, Koujirou Sasahara is a classmate to Yuuko and her friends. The child of farmers, he has styled himself as an aristocrat. He adds a jabot to his school uniform, rides a goat to school, and is often attended by a butler. Another classmate, Misato Tachibana, has a crush on him, which she covers by shooting him with heavy weapons. This is a part of the anime that may not go over well with an American audience — although these “shootings” are merely cartoon violence, we’ve had so many school shootings that I found myself disturbed whenever Misato pulled a gun out of nowhere.
You’ll see glimpses of Koujirou and Misato in the intro to the show.
Buddy
Buddy is a dog that melts my heart. When Yuuko is upset about something, he often appears to place a paw on her for comfort. It gets me every time.
The Bizarre Interludes Between the Main Segments
Each episode of Nichijou is made up of segments featuring recurring characters, but in between those are unrelated interludes. In one recurring interlude, two men whose heads are encased in daifuku turn a jump rope for various characters.
Another segment, “Short Thoughts,” ranges from serious, relatable observations…
… to completely random statements.
Finally, there’s “Helvetica Standard,” short stories that are in a different style from the rest of the anime.
I’ve only glossed the surface of the weirdness that is Nichijou. But where I just saw bizarre humor that appealed to me, one scholarly work saw much more. While I was doing research for this post, I ran across an excerpt from Kyoto Animation: A Critical Study and Filmography. The book devotes several pages to Nichijou, arguing that “the orchestration of the show’s dramatic fragments appears to be governed by a pervasive sense of randomness whose ultimate objective is to throw into relief–in a jovial yet uncompromising fashion–the fundamental absurdity of human life.” So if you won’t watch this anime because I’m recommending it, do it to see if you agree that it expresses an absurdist philosophy.
If you’re ready to watch, you can currently find Nichijou on Funimation. You’ll need a subscription to watch the whole thing, but you can watch the first few episodes for free.
For some time, whenever I’ve considered writing about Puella Magi Madoka Magica, I’ve stopped myself, because I assume that few people in my audience watch anime. Part of what makes this series so great is how it subverts the magical girl genre in anime. But how many of my readers know anything at all about magical girls?
Then I realized that most of what I know about magical girl anime comes from the anime geeks around me. It’s not a genre I typically enjoy, so when I watched Puella Magi based on the recommendations of others, I was watching it with mostly secondhand knowledge of magical girl anime. And yet I still loved it and understood what makes it so good.
So, because it is such a good series, I’m going to give readers a very short introduction to the magical girl genre, and then I’ll tell you why you need to watch Puella Magi Madoka Magica, even if you don’t normally watch anime.
What’s a Magical Girl?
Magical girl anime has been around since the 1960s, when a Japanese cartoon called Sally the Witch first aired. (Some magical girl manga came out before that, as early as the 1950s.) It first took off in the U.S. with the series Sailor Moon.
Not all magical girls are exactly like this, but Sailor Moon exemplifies a very popular type in this genre: a regular schoolgirl who is called to save the world. Before doing battle, she transforms into a magical version of herself. She sometimes works on her own, but she often is part of a larger team, such as the girls in Ojamajo Doremi.
Magical girls also are often accompanied by an animal or animal-like mentor, such as the winged creature in Cardcaptor Sakura. In anime such as Sailor Moon and Cardcaptor Sakura, this “Mentor Mascot” informs the main character of her magical calling and then advises her as she learns how to be a magical girl.
Essentially, magical girls are cute, powerful girls who battle evil. I wasn’t at all surprised to find an essay titled, “I Want to Be a Magical Girl.” I’m sure many a little girl wishes she had powers like the characters in these shows.
And Then Came Puella Magi Madoka Magica
If you noticed the image at the top of this post, Puella Magi Madoka Magica appears to be just another magical girl anime.
It’s not. Puella Magi turns the genre on its head. While the magical girls are cute and powerful, and there’s an animal-like mentor, this series is dark. More importantly, it raises questions about what it means to be a magical girl.
In the world of this series, magical girls battle witches, whose presence can be discovered through concentrations of human misery, such as a rash of suicides in one area. Each magical girl possesses a soul gem, a container in which her soul is kept after she becomes magical. Over time, these gems become corrupted and must be cleansed through grief seeds collected from the witches that the girls battle. The very act of fighting evil corrupts a magical girl’s soul.
There are enough twists that I don’t want to give away too much about the plot of this series, but as it continues, it questions the whole notion of the heroic magical girl. Is becoming a magical girl, even for a very good reason, worth the cost? Is this really a role to aspire to?
Most magical girl anime is too sweet for my taste, but the depth and artistry of this series held my attention.
And speaking of artistry…
Don’t Just Watch This Because It’s Subversive
The animation for Puella Magi is stunning. When the girls are in the “real world,” the animation is typical of what you might expect of anime (and very well done). But when the girls move into the labyrinths where the witches hide, the style changes, and it’s really something!
The original series is only twelve episodes, each approximately 25 minutes long, so this isn’t a major commitment. If you get really into it, there’s also a trilogy of films (which I haven’t seen) and a lot of manga. You can find the original series on Netflix, Hulu, and Crunchyroll.
In 1979, I was watching American animation like The World’s Greatest Super Friends, which opened like this:
Fortunately, I also was being exposed to higher-quality animation in the form of the Japanese series Space Battleship Yamato or, as it was known in the United States, Star Blazers. Here’s how it opened:
Not only were the story and the animation great, but the series had really good music. In fact, it’s so good, that if you search YouTube for “Star Blazers concert” or “Space Battleship Yamato concert,” you’ll find several videos of bands and orchestras, ranging from school groups to professional ensembles, performing some of the most popular themes from the show.
That’s not to say that all anime has great music or that all American animation has terrible music. You need look no further than Steven Universe to find the jewel “Love Like You,” a beautiful jazz song that frequently accompanies the end credits.
But anime provides a treasure trove of music that stretches back for decades, like the opening theme for the 1995 show Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Part of the reason the music for anime is so good could be that anime isn’t just for kids. Anime has long targeted adults with series like Cowboy Bebop, which opens with the fabulous jazz song “Tank.”
And the artists will perform the full-length versions of their songs in concert, like this beautiful closing theme from Attack on Titan’s first season.
Excellent anime music can go beyond opening and closing themes, however. It’s clear that a lot of effort went into the soundtrack of my favorite series, Hunter x Hunter. The incidental music includes everything from references to Gustav Holst…
… to a jazzy theme for the character Leorio…
… to the screaming guitar of “Try Your Luck.”
Some of my favorite music comes from shows I’ve watched, but much of it comes from shows I’ve never seen. I’ve picked up the music mostly from what my child shares with me, though I could just as easily discover new songs by searching YouTube for “best anime music.” So while I’ve never seen Space Dandy, I agree heartily with my child that its opening theme is “a bop.”
And anime music has led me down rabbit holes to other music by particular artists: After listening to Kalafina’s “Magia,” the end-credits song for Puella Magi Madoka Magica, I ended up checking out and enjoying some of their other songs.
Now for the bad news: If you want to purchase the anime music you love, that can be difficult (in fact, even streaming the music can be a challenge). I’ve had some limited success purchasing MP3s of the original songs on Amazon, but many songs aren’t available there. I’ve successfully found Hunter x Hunter OST cds online for purchase, but not everyone wants to buy a cd, and they can be expensive and hard-to-find. You will have more luck if you’re willing to accept a cover, and there are some decent ones out there. For example, it can be nigh impossible to find an original version of “Great Days” from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure on a reputable site, but if you’re willing to accept an English cover, this version by Jonathan Young and Caleb Hyles is good (here’s the original for comparison). Not all of the links in the video work (Spotify does), but if you search Amazon’s digital music for “Great Days Jonathan Young,” you’ll find it.
I’ll leave you with one last song — another from a series I’ve never watched. Listen shamelessly. Dance along. Give in to the pull of great anime music.
I’ve always told myself I wouldn’t use my “something wonderful” posts to review things that were already quite popular, so I initially thought I’d never write about Studio Ghibli. It seems like everyone I know is familiar with at least some of co-founder Hayao Miyazaki’s work. But a short conversation with someone outside of my circle of friends made it clear to me that many people haven’t even heard of Spirited Away or My Neighbor Totoro, much less watched them. So I decided to cover Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki after all.
If you are among those who have no idea what I’m talking about, here’s a brief introduction to Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli.
What is Studio Ghibli? And, who is Hayao Miyazaki?
Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation studio, co-founded in 1985 by Miyazaki and Isao Takahata. Takahata created excellent animated features during his lifetime, but Miyazaki has a magic touch; he wrote and directed the studio’s best-known films outside of Japan. If you have watched only a few Studio Ghibli films, I’m willing to bet that they were all Miyazaki’s work.
Miyazaki is a master storyteller, and his movies are always beautifully animated. Although each of his films is distinct from the others, certain themes pop up frequently in his work:
Flight. Miyazaki has the heart of an aviator. Castle in the Sky involves airships and a floating city. A witch’s ability to fly is at the heart of Kiki’s Delivery Service. Porco Rosso is about an aviator, and The Wind Rises is about an aeronautical engineer.
Magic. Miyazaki is one of those people who, to steal a phrase from a friend, “Went to fairyland and never came back.” His films frequently feature wizards, witches, or mythical beings. Miyazaki’s world is infused with magic.
The environment. Many of Miyazaki’s films touch on the importance of preserving nature. Princess Mononoke and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind both feature a conflict between humans and nature. Ponyo’s father, the sorcerer Fujimoto, is deeply concerned about what humans are doing to the world, particularly to the oceans. And when Ponyo decides to become a human, she throws the balance of nature out of whack.
War. Miyazaki is hardly the only Japanese film-maker and animator to touch on war. You can find the scars of Hiroshima and Nagasaki everywhere from Godzilla movies to Star Blazers. War is present in many of Miyazaki’s films, and it’s never glorified.
Absentee parents. Many people have noticed how many Disney characters are motherless children. Similarly, one or both parents are often missing in Miyazaki’s films, though they aren’t necessarily dead. In My Neighbor Totoro, Satsuki and Mei’s mother is in the hospital. In Ponyo, Sosuke’s father is a captain on a fishing boat, so busy with his work that he’s never home. Pazu and Sheeta, the main characters in Castle in the Sky, are both orphans. And I’m just getting started.
Strong female characters. If you want great female role models for your children, Miyazaki’s movies are the way to go. Girls are often central characters in his stories. They are brave and powerful. San and Lady Eboshi, two female characters in Princess Mononoke, are strong opposing forces in the struggle between humans and nature. Chihiro of Spirited Away is on a mission to save her parents… and in the process, she rescues other beings in the spirit world. Ponyo is unstoppable in her quest to become a human.
Joe Hisaishi’s music adds to the magic.
Miyazaki’s masterful storytelling isn’t all that makes so many Studio Ghibli features masterpieces. Many of his best films have gorgeous scores composed by Joe Hisaishi. Search for “Ghibli Music” on YouTube and you’ll find several long compilations of music from the movies; most of the songs on these compilations will be Hisaishi’s. You can listen to jazz versions, piano versions, harp versions, music box versions. And like John Williams, Hisaishi composes concert-worthy film scores.
Disney has played a key role in bringing these films to the U.S.
Before Disney got involved, Miyazaki’s work was already making it over to the U.S. in subtitled or dubbed versions. But Disney knows a good thing when they see it, and in the mid-’90s they began distributing Studio Ghibli films outside of Japan. They arranged for high-quality English dubs and re-dubs, bringing in renowned actors to do the voice work. While I generally prefer to watch anime with subtitles, I enjoy most of Disney’s English dubs.
What follows is by no means an exhaustive list of the works of Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. I couldn’t get my hands on one Studio Ghibli film — Ocean Waves — and Miyazaki has had a very prolific career. Several of his short films can be viewed only at the Studio Ghibli museum in Japan. That said, I included as many films as I could, and even a couple of television series — one that Miyazaki directed for a while, and another that was co-produced by Studio Ghibli. Unless you are a big Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli fan already, I hope that this list will either introduce you to these films for the first time or at least introduce you to some work that you didn’t already know.
I’ve arranged this list from “must-sees” — the movies that I strongly urge you to watch, even if you never watch another Miyazaki or Studio Ghibli film beyond those — to a few that I encourage you to skip, unless you are a die-hard fan who feels the urge to watch everything. Although most of the trailers I found don’t capture the movies the way I wish they did, I’ve included trailers whenever possible to give you a taste of each film or series.
Must-Sees
Castle in the Sky (1986) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
When I think of my favorite Studio Ghibli films, this is the first one that comes to mind. A fantasy with a touch of steampunk, Castle in the Sky jumps into action right from the start as an airship is attacked by sky pirates. Miyazaki delivers lots of adventure studded with moments of quiet beauty, such as a visit to a garden on a legendary floating island. This is a great starting point for people who are new to Studio Ghibli and Miyazaki.
My Neighbor Totoro (1988) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
My Neighbor Totoro is the classic Studio Ghibli film. Totoro is incorporated in the studio’s logo, and you can find all sorts of stuffed toys and other gifts featuring the character. This sweet film is one of two ideal Studio Ghibli starting points for young children (the other is Ponyo). The action and adventure in this movie are on a smaller, more personal scale than Castle in the Sky, well-suited to a younger audience. I don’t know anyone who isn’t completely taken with the magical creatures in the story — not only Totoro (particularly the big Totoro) but also “soot sprites” and a Catbus.
Spirited Away (2001) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
When Spirited Away won Best Animated Feature in the 75th Academy Awards, that may have been the tipping point that moved Miyazaki from a cult favorite to a famous name in the United States. This story is a fairy tale in which the hero, a girl named Chihiro, must rescue her parents from a curse and escape from the spirit world. As in many fairy tales, Chihiro befriends magical beings who help her on her quest. While the formula is classic, the story and characters are like nothing you’ve seen before. Except for the soot sprites…
Princess Mononoke (1997) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
This powerful film is not for young children. A fairy tale with strong environmentalist themes, Princess Monoke is about a war between humans and the beings of the surrounding forest. The characters are complex; neither side in this war is wholly good or wholly evil. The movie is very violent and very moving.
Ponyo (2008) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
This is the other film that I consider a great Studio Ghibli starting point for young children. Ponyo, the fish-child of a sorcerer and a sea goddess, escapes from home and befriends a human child. Once she has had a literal taste of the human world, she will let nothing stop her from rejoining her friend as a human herself — thus upsetting the balance of nature. The story is clearly inspired by “The Little Mermaid,” and it’s the best take on that fairy tale that I’ve ever seen (albeit very different from the original).
Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
Howl’s Moving Castle is based on the book by Diana Wynne Jones, though it has been simplified for the screen. While I can be a purist about these things, I think the simplification was necessary. Most of the Miyazaki movies I love best are original stories or, in the case of Ponyo, complete reinterpretations, but this is one of the happy exceptions to that rule. It’s also one of the few Miyazaki films with a full-fledged romance.
The Cat Returns (2002) — Written by Reiko Yoshida and directed by Hiroyuki Morita
The Cat Returns is the only non-Miyazaki anime from Studio Ghibli that I consider a must-see. Although the animation isn’t as beautiful as the other movies in this group, I enjoy the story and characters. Haru is an awkward teenager who rescues a cat. Unfortunately, he turns out to be cat royalty, and his father sees fit to reward Haru by arranging for her marriage to his son. With the help of Muta (a cat), the Baron (a cat figurine that comes to life), and Toto (a raven), Haru tries to escape an unwanted marriage and gains confidence in the process. This movie is actually the sequel to Whisper of the Heart (below), but it stands on its own. The score, by Yuji Nomi, is lovely.
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind was created before the founding of Studio Ghibli. The story is an environmental fable about a post-apocalyptic world in which humans fight for survival among poisonous forests filled with angry insects. It’s pretty heavy, so I don’t recommend it for small children. Despite the serious subject matter, I strongly suggest you don’t miss Miyazaki’s breakthrough film.
Highly Recommended
Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
My child was offended that I listed this film as “highly recommended” instead of “must-see,” but this is, after all, just my opinion. Kiki’s Delivery Service is a lovely story about a young witch who moves away from home and establishes (surprise!) a delivery service. The movie is cute, your kids (if you have any) will love it, and you will enjoy watching it with them; however, I don’t think it measures up to the very best of Miyazaki’s movies — perhaps because it was based on an existing book rather than coming straight from his imagination.
Porco Rosso (1992) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
Once upon a time, an aviator named Marco was turned into a pig… or rather, a sort of pig-man. Porco Rosso takes place after that transformation. It’s a sweet story, but it is probably more to adult tastes than many of Miyazaki’s movies.
The Wind Rises (2013) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
The Wind Rises is Miyazaki’s last film to date. A loving tribute to a Japanese aircraft designer, this movie is both sad and beautiful. Before you watch it with your children, keep in mind that there is some disturbing content, including an earthquake and a character who suffers from tuberculosis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QFBZgAZx7g
The Secret World of Arrietty (2010) — Written by Hayao Miyazaki and Keiko Niwa and directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi
Based on The Borrowers, The Secret World of Arrietty is an engaging film that retains the spirit of the book, but — like Kiki’s Delivery Service — it doesn’t have that spark that makes it a must-see. It also lacks the depth of most of Miyazaki’s films, so while most adults won’t mind watching it, the movie probably has greater appeal for children.
My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999) — Written and directed by Isao Takahata
This sweet, funny anime is a series of shorts about family. The animation style is very different from most Studio Ghibli films, but it is beautiful in its own way. Overall, I thought the movie was a delightful exploration of the ups and downs of family life.
From Up on Poppy Hill (2011) — Written by Hayao Miyazaki and Keiko Niwa and directed by Gorō Miyazaki
You’re going to see the name “Gorō Miyazaki” pop up occasionally on this list; one of Hayao Miyazaki’s sons, he has begun directing some anime with mixed success. From Up on Poppy Hill is probably one of his best-loved anime, a coming-of-age film set in 1960s Japan. Much of the focus of the film is on a convoluted romance between the two main characters, so it will probably appeal more to older children and adults.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-rhgSCAqDU
Whisper of the Heart (1995) — Written by Hayao Miyazaki and directed by Yoshifumi Kondō
The Baron from The Cat Returns was first introduced in this movie, though his role here is very different. The Baron never truly comes to life, except in the imagination of Shizuku, a young writer. This coming-of-age film gets a bit angst-y at times and has a somewhat awkward romance, but it’s worth seeing, despite those bumpy patches.
Only Yesterday (1991) — Written and directed by Isao Takahata
This slice-of-life movie alternates between the story of 27-year-old Taeko, a woman on vacation in the country, and flashbacks to her childhood. At times, it felt like it dragged on, but sometimes the most mundane scenes — such as one in which the adult Taeko assists with a harvest — are absolutely beautiful. The story continues into the end credits, so don’t stop watching when the credits roll.
The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013) — Written by Isao Takahata and Riko Sakaguchi and directed by Isao Takahata
The Tale of Princess Kaguya is one of the most beautifully animated movies I’ve ever seen. Based on a Japanese folktale, the film tells a heart-breaking story about a miraculous child who is forced into a role she doesn’t want. Its runtime is more than two hours, but it never bogs down.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tM6hcHp0_kU
The Castle of Cagliostro (1979) — Written by Hayao Miyazaki and Haruya Yamazaki and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
This is another of Miyazaki’s pre-Studio Ghibli movies, part of an enormous body of work about Lupin III, a master thief. Miyazaki had already done work on part one of the Lupin III television series when he was hired to direct The Castle of Cagliostro, the second theatrically released movie. This isn’t really like Miyazaki’s later work — after all, he was working with a pre-existing character — but it’s fun and action-packed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJudurbkv1E
Not Bad, But…
Ronja, the Robber’s Daughter (2014-15) — Written by Hiroyuki Kawasaki and directed by Gorō Miyazaki
This series almost doesn’t count as a Studio Ghibli film; it was co-produced by Studio Ghibli, but the animation was done by Polygon Pictures. The series is an extremely faithful adaptation of Astrid Lindgren’s Ronia, the Robber’s Daughter — in fact, while I’m normally a fan of faithful adaptations, I feel like they could have made some cuts and hurried the story along a little. The animation bugged me and my child a bit in the beginning, but we got used to it. Overall, it’s a high-quality series — the kind that might run on PBS. Right now it is streaming on Amazon Prime; according to Wikipedia, it will eventually be released by GKIDS.
Grave of the Fireflies (1988) — Written and directed by Isao Takahata
Grave of the Fireflies is an anime classic, so I feel a little guilty about putting it on this part of the list, but it is extremely depressing. I do willingly watch and appreciate sad movies, but in my opinion, the merits of this one don’t outweigh how hard it is to watch. The movie definitely does a great job illustrating the horrors of war.
When Marnie Was There (2014) — Written and directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi
When Marnie Was There is based on a book by the same name. At the time of this writing, its Wikipedia entry notes that the critical consensus on Rotten Tomatoes is that it is “still blessed with enough visual and narrative beauty to recommend, even if it isn’t quite as magical as Studio Ghibli’s greatest works.” Perhaps that lack of magic is why I couldn’t bring myself to put this on my “highly recommended” list. Yes, it is beautiful, but now that I’ve seen it once, I don’t need to see it again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZq4uuMP8ss
Sherlock Hound (1984-85) — Various writers and directors, including Hayao Miyazaki
Miyazaki directed the first six episodes of this Sherlock Holmes-inspired series. It is a not-unpleasant cartoon for young children, but after five episodes, I thought, “Okay, that’s enough.” (This was before I realized that Miyazaki had not directed all 26 episodes in the series. I might have powered through one more, but by the time I learned that I had only one Miyazaki episode left, I didn’t feel that going back to watch that episode would change my opinion of the series.) I wouldn’t go as far as to say, “Don’t bother,” but I also don’t think you need to make an effort to see these.
Only for Die-hard Fans
Tales from Earthsea (2006) — Written by Gorō Miyazaki and Keiko Niwa and directed by Gorō Miyazaki
Tales from Earthsea is very loosely based on some of the Earthsea novels, particularly The Farthest Shore and Tehanu. (Apparently Ursula LeGuin said, “It is not my book. It is your movie.”) This is one of the least popular Studio Ghibli movies ever produced, although apparently it did well in the box office in Japan. Even if the movie stood on its own and didn’t pretend to be based on LeGuin’s novels, it’s surprisingly dull for its genre. Or maybe I was just sleepy when I watched it.
Pom Poko (1994) — Written and directed by Isao Takahata
Maybe I don’t like Pom Poko because it doesn’t speak to me culturally. The movie is an environmental tale about a group of tanuki, Japanese raccoon dogs, that declare war on the developers who are destroying their forest. Certain elements of Japanese folklore about tanuki show up in this movie — including the notion that they have shape-shifting powers, as well as an emphasis on the size of their testicles. While there’s a lot of humor, Pom Poko is also very sad. There are scenes that are littered with dead tanuki. And while the movie is “only” 119 minutes long, it seems to drag on and on.
Panda! Go, Panda! (1972) — Written by Hayao Miyazaki and directed by Isao Takahata
I used to check Panda! Go, Panda! out from the library for my child to watch (without actually watching it myself — shame on me). She enjoyed it, so when I started working on this post and found I could no longer get the movie from the library, I bought it, thinking it would be a worthwhile addition to our collection of Miyazaki and Ghibli-related films. That was a mistake. The dubbing is extremely annoying — particularly the voice for Papa Panda. My child has seen a version with subtitles and claims that’s much better, but you are far more likely to run across the dubbed version that I bought. The DVD technically has two Panda! Go, Panda! movies on it — the original and Panda! Go, Panda!: The Rainy Day Circus. I made it through the first movie and couldn’t bring myself to continue.
In addition to being annoyed by the dub, I kept thinking about how the story wouldn’t fly today. A young grade-schooler, Mimiko, is left alone at home for several days when her grandmother, who is her caretaker, goes to an out-of-town funeral. While Grandma is gone, Mimiko lets a baby panda, Panny, and its father into her house and decides they should be a family. She is Panny’s mother, and Papa Panda plays the role of father to both of them. Nothing creepy about this story at all.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mtKB92WQEI
Bonus Video
On Your Mark (1995) — Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki
“On Your Mark” is a music video to a song by Chage & Aska. The video tells a sci-fi story about two policemen who rescue an angelic being; the story jumps back and forth in time, offering alternate endings. If you have the opportunity to view this short work, I highly recommend it.
When I wrote about “Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto,” I promised not to try to convert my readers into dedicated anime viewers, but I did say that there are gems worth watching. “My Hero Academia” (“Boku no Hero Academia”) is one that I can’t help mentioning, particularly because I think it will appeal to Harry Potter fans.
This series is set in an unspecified future, when superpowers have become the norm. Approximately 80 percent of the world’s population has some sort of “quirk,” or special power. Many people have relatively minor quirks, but the most powerful may become heroes, gaining fame and fortune as they battle villains. Especially talented children compete for slots at U.A., an elite high school from which heroes are recruited.
Izuku Midoriya is a quirkless boy who has wanted nothing more than to be a hero since he was very young. He studies heroes carefully, writing down everything about them in his notebooks. His life changes when he is rescued from a villain by his idol, All Might, the “Symbol of Peace.” With All Might’s help, Izuku is able to pursue the dream he thought was unattainable.
The series is by no means a ripoff of Harry Potter, but parallels are there. U.A. is much like Hogwarts, and All Might plays a similar role in Izuku’s life to the one that Dumbledore plays in Harry’s. Just as Harry and Draco Malfoy are enemies, there is a strong rivalry between Izuku and his classmate Katsuki Bakugou. Izuku even seems to be developing a close friendship with two classmates — a girl and a boy.
“My Hero Academia” has the sense of adventure that is present in some of my favorite anime series. It also explores themes like motivation and heroism without ever getting heavy-handed. Its second season recently started. I wasn’t as crazy about the first couple of episodes of the new season as I was about last season (in fact, episode 13.5 is just a recap of season one), but the last couple of episodes have gotten better, and I have high hopes that this season will end up as good as the last. I do recommend you start with the first season rather than relying on the recap. You can view “My Hero Academia” on Crunchyroll, Funimation, or Hulu. Do yourself a favor and watch the subtitled version, not the dubbed version.
I think it’s safe to say that most American adults don’t watch anime — with the exception, perhaps, of Hayao Miyazaki’s films. I don’t plan to try to convert my readers into dedicated viewers, but there are some gems out there. One of them is a short series called “Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto” (“Sakamoto desu ga?” in Japanese).
What makes this series worth your while is the completely over-the-top title character. Sakamoto is the coolest, most stylish kid in high school, worshiped by females and males of all ages. He regularly wins over his most jealous foes with his unflappable ability to handle any situation that is thrown his way. He is a fantastic student, but he is never awkwardly nerdy. He is aloof but usually kind (there are a couple of weird exceptions, like when he refers to a fellow student’s “zit face”). He is good without being a goody-goody. He is, in a word, Sakamoto.
My daughter pulled me into this one. After the first episode, I said, “They can’t possibly keep this up.” The situations Sakamoto faced and the ways he handled them were so outrageous that it would be easy for the creators to push the concept too hard and end up falling flat. But they kept it up for 13 episodes and then gracefully brought the show to a close before it got old.
I’ve shared the show with a couple of people who don’t watch anime, and they found it entertaining enough that I feel confident that it has broad appeal outside of anime nerds. That said, your appreciation of it will only deepen if you’re an anime watcher. Sakamoto’s “secret techniques” are funny, whether or not you are familiar with anime; however, if you’ve watched certain shows like “Hunter x Hunter,” you’ll recognize the techniques as a trope.
My daughter, who has taken two years of Japanese, has an even deeper appreciation of “Sakamoto” than I do. In providing the subtitles, the translators try to let English-speakers know that certain characters are “bad boys” who swear a lot, but my child says that these kids are speaking a sort of “bad boy” slang.
Episodes are approximately 24 minutes long. The show falls into the PG/PG-13 range, so parents will want to review it before sharing it with young kids. This week, when you need a laugh, take in an episode. Like everyone around him, you’ll fall in love with Sakamoto. You can find the show on Crunchyroll.
