We’re taking a break, then, but rather than go out with a whimper, we have this group article instead. An idea sparked by blissmo’s Spirited Away review at Yukan Blog!, we present to you our thoughts and feelings on this one particular (and rather special) scene in Spirited Away, the train scene. For those not in the know, Spirited Away is a 2001 fantasy anime from the famed director Hayao Miyazaki. It won an Oscar in 2002 for Best Animated Film, the first anime in history to have won an Academy Award. Our writers Ben, Lewis, Martin, Paul (me) and Ryan have all contributed interpretations, but if you would like to add your own, please don’t be shy about leaving a comment below. Anyway, on with the show…

Lewis: OK, I won’t lie. I sneaked a peak at what everyone else has written about the scene. And while I agree that in general this scene is about growing up, I believe it can be looked at in a completely different way. To me, having never seen Spirited Away, this scene seems to be a very intelligent interpretation of the Japanese and their relationship with travel, particularly on trains. Let’s take the shadow figures and think of them as your typical Salary man. There is no life, no emotion, nothing memorable and, more importantly, no soul in any of these characters. Just one being, waiting to get from A to B. You are not so much a passenger on the train, as a part of the scenery itself.

This is very similar to the way the Japanese travel today. Talking loudly is frowned upon; many people just like to sit there sleeping, reading or generally lost in their thoughts. To me, this is where the main character comes in. As a child, if you asked them what a train journey should be like there would be laughter and music. However, as we grow old, we realise that what should be an enjoyable journey is just, after all, a dreary means to an end.

Towards the end when all the people have left the carriage, it shows the true characteristics of the standard Japanese commuting journey. While there were people there before, they were so isolated and emotionally disconnected from their surroundings that the journey is just as lonely now as it was at the beginning of the scene. It’s a fantastic take on the commuter travel and the shy characteristics of the Japanese themselves.

Ben: This scene is about Chihiro, who is on a transition from hedonistic and selfish child to selfless and responsible young woman. She is no longer the pig like her mother and father; rather, she is a fusion of the traditional moral values of the Japan of old with the modern day. After all, Chihiro is a woman, and she is demonstrating how they have taken a pivotal role in Japanese society. This is Miyazaki’s way of saying that EVERYBODY is responsible in society for one another and not merely oneself or one’s kind. The fact that Chihiro is responsible for those accompanying her is an indication of this.

So, the train is the catalyst by which Chihiro is escaping from an immoral world to the real one. However the train is not only the symbol of escape in this scene but also of fusion. The train runs through water and the countryside; two features of traditional life in Japan. The countryside is where traditional activities occur, e.g. farming, but also what spawned the modern world. The water provides fish, which Japan has enjoyed for many hundreds of years; however the train is not Japanese. It’s an English invention of the industrial revolution. So, the image of the train running through the water and countryside is perhaps the fusion of traditional and modern Japan.

In essence, Chihiro and the train are Miyazaki’s way of communicating the need for everyone to embark upon a transition in order to facilitate the fusion of tradition and modern and, therefore, a better Japan in terms of morality but also in regards to its history and tradition.

Ryan: Asked to write an interpretation of this scene, it was immediately apparent what shape my thoughts were taking. In particular, water has always struck me as a psychoanalytical symbol (for the boundary between the conscious and unconscious minds, among other things), and this dominated my interpretation of previous viewings, while guiding this one.

But the scene always reminded me of others as well; the moment where Lain confronts Professor Hodgeson in the Wired (’Serial Experiments Lain’), and the hesitant rise of Shinji to the surface of the deeply orange-hued ocean, following his reversion of the world back to it’s normal state (near the close of ‘The End of Evangelion’). Later into this sequence, the same emotionally laden, and primordially comforting, but, at the same time, unsettling, imagery; of the passing of time, and the sun setting, of evening, and life in recline; is briefly seen in ‘Spirited Away’ as well, representing the place between the conscious (day) and unconscious (night) minds - drawing on the same palette and imagery as when the dream world first began to awaken, near the beginning of the film.

Whereas in ‘The End of Evangelion’, the trauma and near-resolution of matters (if not their catharsis) concludes with the juxtaposition of the two - as the orange and red hues are strewn across the darker and equally unsettling imagery of night - Chihiro’s journey isn’t nearly as intense or revelatory. The conscious and unconscious minds, and the place that brings them together (the imagery of evening), is instead a representation of the life-cycle (reminiscent of William Blake’s ‘The Ecchoing Green’), the growing awareness of death (Haku is potentially fatally wounded), and perhaps the comforting, but equally uncertain onset of adolescent sexuality (given that Chihiro’s journey here is one for Haku’s return, who she is explicitly described as being in love with several times).

Her journey into the twilight of the mind - seen in the fall of night; her uncertainty and the unconscious - through the psycho pomp of the ticket dispenser (a ferryman into the depths of the unconscious) isn’t without remorse, but unlike the others, Chihiro’s journey is relatively innocent. The figure of lone islands, houses and shadows (recalling the native but dreamlike landscapes of Salvador Dali’s paintings) represent, at worst, her isolation, as she tries to recall Haku’s name, against the emotional scenery, and resolve her own feelings, with the water not coincidentally symbolising reflection, as Chihiro does on the train.

This is what Spirited Away is all about; Chihiro losing herself in her mind, as an escape, but eventually as a cure for her anxieties over moving to a new school and meeting new friends, surviving the trials of her unconscious mind and reflections, as she refines her character, through which she learns to remember who she is, despite not only her progression into a new environment, but also into adolescent maturity.

Paul: I must have watched this scene on YouTube nearly a dozen times since last weekend and often, my eyes flick on to the user comments posted below the video; one specific (and reoccurring) note caught my attention. Half way through the clip, just as Chihiro’s train is gradually pulling away from a station, the animation pans across the people leaving and waiting on the platform. Just before leaving (2:41 in the video above), we catch a glimpse of a small girl standing still, facing the train, alone. It’s just a fleeting moment, really, a matter of seconds, but it’s an emotionally striking image. Shadows are looming large over pavement and all the other passengers are moving, leaving and going home, so it’s odd that this Girl is just stuck there, waiting for something, so still, helpless and fragile. It’s a lonely image, sad, yet beautifully drawn, like a vivid, nostalgic memory, bitter-sweet.

Won’t someone ask if she is okay?

All of the people Chihiro stumbles across during her train journey are faceless, transparent silhouettes, more like ghosts. They move their bags and look out of the window into the distance. May be they don’t see The Girl because they aren’t looking for her? I suppose it’s a chilling moment because we’ve all been that Girl at some point in our lives, felt that alone in a crowd of people, isolated, just desperate to be seen.

Martin: Spirited Away is, for me at least, a story about growing up and learning to embrace the wider world rather than fear it. At the start of the movie Chihiro is afraid to move house; in this scene she is once again leaving a familiar place but this time it is by her own volition. That look of mature determination is quite literally a world away from the sulky pout she had earlier on, which highlights how she is maturing emotionally and how this affects her actions.

The train journey takes place through an alien, water-filled landscape, filled with unusual sights and sounds; reminiscent of train journeys that we’ve all taken for various reasons, but at the same time a fantastical and entertaining one. This point in Chihiro’s adventure is met with not just anxiety of the unknown but a resolve to move ahead, to explore and to look on with curiosity and wonderment at what lies around her.

The film as a whole is a portrayal of a young girl transported into an unfamiliar place and learning how to cope independently and making decisions for herself; this scene neatly sums up how she chooses her companions and the destination, but sharing her sense of childlike wonder. The film’s charm lies in the beautiful way in which the music and visuals convey these simple yet profound ideas.

The first part of the exhibition concentrated on how the artists are “Cowboys and Indians”. In essence Coley is saying that the western genre facilitated a need to express feelings, emotions, critiques etc. of then current political situations occurring. e.g. Cuban Missile Crisis (1962). So his use of the western in his exhibition is an attempt to juxtapose this vehicle of expression within a culture that, Coley suggests, has no way to express itself in such an accessible fashion. His exhibition, is, in essence, a confluence, a synthesis, of his different ideas and opinions that the exhibition was exceptionally elaborate, but exceptionally brilliant also.

What has this to do with Japan? Coley is not talking directly about Japan! This is a blog exploring japanese culture is it not? Well at Hastings Museum and Art Gallery had a fantastic collection of prints from various Kabuki performances.

Kabuki is a form of Japanese theatre where, like the Shakespeare plays of Elizabethan England, exceedingly popular but also the all the characters were played by men (Technically women were banned from 1629) but this form of theatre is a marriage of two elements.

Aragoto and Wagoto.

Aragoto is translated as “Rough Style”. It stems from the word aramushagoto which means “reckless warrior matter”. It is used to described performances which were often very dramatic and often to do with the great warrior classes (e.g. samurai) of Japan.

Wagoto is the opposite and refers to the “soft style” and being one with nature more than the bombastic and powerful Samurai of the Aragoto fold.

It is this kind of convergence which characterises kabuki. The Kabuki prints acted as a catalyst for me to realise that things are not as simple as they first seem. You can read a lot into different things. For example, is ‘Dominion Tank Police’ more complex than indulging Shirow’s weird fantasies that are embodied in the Puma sisters? Or is ‘Evangelion’ trying to tell its viewers about society personified within the protagonists of that series? ‘Lain’ certainly is trying to make a statement! Indeed ‘Serial Experiments Lain’ is a sophisticated synthesis of issues such as communication, memory, technology and exploring just what exactly humanity is about.

Nakama Britannia is also such a synthesis, although not as complex as ‘Lain’ and not as weird as ‘Evangelion’, just like the pieces of art mentioned throughout this sort post. It is a synthesis of different personalities and that provides to create a synthesis of brilliant articles exploring wide-ranging topics from cosplay to fan-subbing and Light to Osamu Tezuka. In many ways Nakama Britannia throughout this session has progressed to become a great confluence of ideas and articles concerning Japan and its popular culture.

For example Alex’s defence of Light’s character, two articles about people that have driven the medium of anime forward into popular culture (Abe and Tezuka) along with an examination of the Gothic within anime! It is this synthesis of different personalises that has been so successful in producing a great variety of posts discussing issues that I would never touch upon.

It has been an eventful session seeing me through my A-Level exams until today when I took my theory test. I am looking forward to the break but also looking forward to coming back and ensuring that I can produce some great articles to add to this growing confluence of anime and Japanese popular culture and continuing to work within this synthesis of great personalities.

These clashes of taste within the community seem so frequent because anime is, by its very nature, so diverse in content that it attracts such a varied audience. Yet many people seem to define themselves as fans of anime, but anime isn’t a genre, it’s a medium like music, a kaleidoscope of genres, art-styles and formats. So, if you’re just a lover of shonen series like Naruto, Bleach and One Piece, you’re not a fan of anime, and similarly, if you’re just a viewer of moe series like Air, Kanon and Clannad, you’re not a fan of anime. That requires an open-mind, being ready and willing to watch things that are different and not complain when the characters don’t look like Naruto, or not whine when there is no mecha porn, or whatever.

Quite clearly, anime fandom has been compartmentalized and, to borrow Orson Scott Card’s Hierarchy of Alienness, each compartment, from fans of shonen action to moe, could be classified as Främling; capable of communicating with each other, but ultimately, foreign in taste. Each compartment will never understand what another sees in that series, or worse, might presume it’s not for them on the basis that one other (almost Ramen) compartment has already embraced it. This brings us to the polarising 2008 anime series, Kaiba. Combine Total Recall with Kino’s Journey and you have Kaiba.

In so many words, OGT of Anime wa Bakuhatsu da! explains that he’s set against the series because it’s the kind of anime that the arrogant, pseudo-intellectual elitists will enjoy at the expense of other, dumber, anime fans. He might be right, but it’s still an issue outside of the actual anime in question; what we perceive something to be and what it actually is are two completely separate things. Is it right, or fair, to think that way? To complain about something because it adds weight to your own emotional baggage?

Knowing what you like is all well and good, but refusing to test yourself and your taste in anime is not only disappointing, it’s down right depressing. I’m guilty of it myself; I still haven’t seen much of any anime produced by Kyoto Animation, including their recent mega-hits like The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Lucky Star. Fandom killed them for me, but if I’d just joined the anime community a few months back and avoided all that hype, they would be on my watch list for sure. It’s all just needless baggage, really. Pointless, ignorant hang-ups, but we’re anime fans, it’s what we do. There’s no escaping it.

So then, I wonder, what better defines us as anime fans and, by extension, as people; what we choose to watch, or what we choose not to watch?

About 2 hours later and we arrived in Manchester.  The Urbis is a rather cool building, kinda coming out of nowhere in the middle of Manchester and juxtaposed next to an old church.  Very striking and modern, and quite a fitting place for an exhibition of this nature.  I took a picture of the building from atop the Manchester Wheel, which was right next to the Urbis but I think it’s not there now.

So as we got into the Urbis, we were greeted by people dressed in all manner of weird and wonderful costumes – Soul Reapers, schoolgirls, Hyrule-ians, Kiras, were among the ones I recognised.  It turned out that particular day was Manga Maniacs day, and people were invited to take part in a Cosplay competition.  “Ah”, I said to my friend, “seems like there’s a cosplay event going on today.”  “Cozz-pulay??  What’s that?” was the reply.  My friend is not into anime and manga, but he’s open-minded enough and luckily, he was entertained rather than put off (as some people are) by the cosplayers.

The Manga exhibition is on the first floor, so we made our way up.  We were greeted by Umeko, the mascot designed by Sonia Leung for the event.  The exhibition is split into 5 sections: Cute, Action, Art/Fashion/Design, Communication, and Adult, and so, we methodically made our way around each section, taking it all in.  It was a Saturday when we went, so it was quite busy and there were cosplayers running around everywhere, but it helped add to the atmosphere of the exhibition.

Each section is quite small, and contains the expected pictures, panel, models, etc.  The information and the topics covered are quite basic, but then again, I wasn’t expecting an in-depth analysis of obscure genres or something like that.

Overall, we both really enjoyed it.  The exhibition itself is not that big, taking up one floor of the building.  It really doesn’t take too long to get around, and that’s even with reading all the panels.  For even a casual manga fan, it’s unlikely you’ll learn anything you didn’t already know.  But for me, it was just a chance to introduce my friend to one of my hobbies, and also to check out some really cool pictures, posters, installations, etc.  And ultimately, it was something fun and different to do on a Saturday morning.  My favourite section was the Action section, containing paraphernalia from the likes of Akira and Ghost In The Shell.  I particularly loved the huge Stand Alone Complex wall banner.

And I’m sure that some Japan-o-philes will want to head across the road from the Urbis to Wagamama and have some Japanese-style cuisine.  We did, and it was great.  (We were a little bit annoyed at being asked for I.D. at the age of 22, but that’s another story!).

So a trip to the Urbis makes for a good day out if you’re at a loose end.  It seems that there are some events coming up, including regular anime film screening, a discussion on Osamu Tezuka from Helen McCarthy, and Kamishibai Paper Theatre event.  The exhibition itself is open until Sept. 27 this year.

The Urbis Website

Not the normal kind of question posed by an anime, but Galaxy Express 999 is no ordinary series. On my recent trip to Tokyo, I was lucky enough to visit the animation studio Toei, the people also responsible for One Peice and Dragon Ball Z. Whilst wondering around their gallery I stumbled across the above poster and on my return to London, I decided to investigate the movie.

Telling the story of Tetsuro, an orphaned child, the story begins when he tries to steal a ticked for the legendary train, the Galaxy Express 999, which travels through space. Tetsuro lives in an age where the wealthy can buy a mechanised body which could mean they could live forever. But immortality comes at a price. Those who decide to change loose their humanity becoming cold and often cruel, losing what made them human in the first place. But Tetsuro wishes to become a machine out of revenge; he wants to kill Count Mecha, the mechanised ‘human’ who killed his mother. Tetsuro believes trading in his human self will make him strong enough to avenge his mother and allow him to escape his poverty stricken life on Earth.

While running from the police, he meets the mysterious lady Maetel who promises to gave him a ticket for the Galaxy Express on one condition, that he becomes her travelling companion for the journey. Tetsuro aggress as the final destination of the train is the planet Andromeda, known for giving away free mechanised bodies. And so begins his adventures visiting numerous planets along the way, meeting both humans and machines where he learns what it means to be human.

They visit Pluto, to an ice lake where the bodies of the humans who have forsaken their humanity are stored. Maetel cannot decide whether this is a kind act to preserve their human form in case they ever want it back, or a cruel joke, mocking these machines, showing them what they have lost.

Whilst Galaxy Express 999 appears to be a sci-fi adventure, it is deeply philosophical, questioning the limits of humanity and in part exploring what it means to live. On a run down planet Tetsuro meets a barman and hears a song which makes people cry. The young Tetsuro cannot understand why they are crying and the barman explains that it is only when you are nearing the end of your old age do you really understand the importance of youth. Tetsuro watches an old man die, painfully observing his desperate pleas that he still has so much left to do. In short, that he still has a reason to live. Realising the frailty of being human, Tetsuro says: “Being human means you have to die, whether you’ve lived out your dreams or not.”

And it’s at moments like these that I realised why Galaxy Express 999 has inspired so many people. Not many things can question not only why you live in the world, but also how you live, and still leave a deep impression on you afterwards. Watching the movie, I finally understood why the original series inspired Keiichi Sigsawa to write the novels that would later become Kino’s Journey. In the same way Kino travels the flawed world, Tetsuro also meets people on his journey and learns about human cruelty, regrets and ultimately hope.

I would definitely recommend any Kino fans to check out this movie. There is also a special treat for any Last Exile fans, as you get to meet Captain Harlock, Space Pirate extraordinaire, the character who was the inspiration for Last Exile’s Alex Rowe.

So going back to my original question, would you want to live forever? After watching Tetsuro on his journey, and seeing the loss and regrets of the people he meets, I don’t think I would want to. Although, I must admit, it’s a tempting offer. Watching Galaxy Express 999, I think I can feel the sentiments that Keiichi must have felt when he created Kino. After all, there aren’t many series that question your own mortality.

Much like the mechanised humans who only realise what they’ve lost after it’s already too late, Tetsuro decides to remain a human, even if that means he is weak and has a limited time to live. Tetsuro realises the cruel promise of immortality and the flaws of living forever: “Eternal life isn’t happiness, it’s because life is limited that people try hard to live.”  Instead he chooses to really live.

I’ve always considered the characters to be what brings pretty much every animated story to life: be it children, adults or talking animals/robots/loaves of bread, the characters and the way they look have a lot to do with whether you enjoy a series or movie. Many iconic faces in hit OAVs from the late 80s and early 90s (Bubblegum Crisis, Riding Bean and Gunsmith Cats) have the input of Kenichi Sonoda in common; Yoshiyuki Sadamoto has been a Studio Gainax stalwart from its inception, lending his distinctive style to many of their flagship titles in addition to the likes of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and .Hack (plus designing an Eric Clapton album cover!!). Yoshitoshi ABe is another one of those names that deserves to be remembered for his own distinctive contribution to some of my favourite anime titles.

Admittedly ABe’s CV is not as extensive as some, and he has kept a fairly low profile in the last couple of years. His projects are often the more intellectual and obscure titles too, often collaborating with the likes of Hirotsugu Hamasaki and the commonly paired team of Chiaki J Konaka and Ryutaro Nakamura.

Perhaps ironically, ABe didn’t initially set out to work in the anime and manga industry. He had little contact with anime and manga as a child but studied at the prestigious Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music; he only took an interest when he branched out into doujinshi while at college. He was approached by the creative team behind Serial Experiments: Lain after he started posting his efforts online and was consequently given the task of the character design and other conceptual artwork.

It was after the release of Lain on UK DVD when I first encountered ABe’s unique style: his character designs and background art greatly enhanced the atmosphere of the series and really made it stand out from other sci-fi anime shows that were popular at the time. Perhaps due to his differing background career-wise, his work is very distinctive and unusual. He makes use of both traditional drawing and painting techniques as well as digital technology; in the case of Lain and, later, Hamasaki’s Texhnolyze, his input was principally aesthetic and formed part of the pre-broadcast planning stages.

NieA_7, the light sci-fi sitcom concerning a hard-up student and her freeloading alien roommate and famously the fantasy drama Haibane Renmei, are both TV series stemming from ABe’s own doujinshi projects. NieA_7 was allegedly an opportunity for some of the Lain production staff to work on something a bit brighter in mood; Haibane Renmei was, interestingly, much more ABe’s story. The characters started life in his doujinshi but he also ended up writing the screenplay for the televised adaptation and as a result played a much more active and influential part in the series as a whole.

My appreciation of these titles has much to do with the storytelling - Konaka and Nakamura have impressed me with the likes of Kino’s Journey and Ghost Hound for instance, but those striking backgrounds, unnerving atmospherics and haunting character expressions that ABe lends to the projects he is involved in are just as memorable for me.

Sadly we seem to be waiting a while to see what he will do next. Aside from drawing the cover illustrations for the Welcome to the NHK! light novels and one or two artbook compilations (one of those is a Lain artbook collection, An Omnipresence in The Wired, and another, Robot, was a collaboration with Range Murata among others) he has not worked with an animation studio since 2003’s Texhnolyze. I for one hope that he is called upon to work on another TV series or, indeed, a feature film in the near future because the talent and innovation exhibited by the likes of ABe and those he works with are one of the main reasons why I’m an anime fan.

Last weekend I was invited to attend the ninth Japan Expo at the Parc d’Expositions de Paris-Nord Villepinte. When I first read the names of the mangaka and anime artists who were appearing at Japan Expo this year, I had to pinch myself. Because the team who organize Japan Expo had accumulated a wealth of expertise and cultivated their links with mangaka and anime production companies in Japan to produce a starry line-up. I was lucky enough to be introduced to Thomas Sirdey, the Vice President of Japan Expo, the one responsible for organizing this impressive event. When I told him how amazed we were by the big names he had attracted to participate in signings and interviews, he said that it was largely because he and the team had visited Japan two or three times a year over some time, establishing good relationships and thus convincing the Japanese of the seriousness of their interest in the visual media.

For anime buffs, there were panels (conferences) with: Go Nagai (‘Goldorak’, ‘Mazinger’ and ‘Cutey Honey’); Toshihiro Kawamoto (Character designer for ‘Cowboy Bebop’, ‘Wolf’s Rain’) and Munehisa Sakai (‘Streetfighter II’ and the TV series of ‘One Piece’).

For manga fans, visiting mangaka included shonen luminaries: Takeshi Obata (‘Death Note’ and ‘Hikaru no Go’), Yoshiyuki Sadamoto (‘Neon Genesis Evangelion’) Kazuo Koike (manga author of ‘Lone Wold and Cub’ and ‘Crying Freeman’) and shojo stars: Junko Kawakami (‘Galaxy Girl, Panda Boy’) and my own personal favourite, Setona Mizushiro(‘Afterschool Nightmare’).

For gaming enthusiasts, big names and launches included: Oh! Great (‘Air Gear’) and Yutaka Izubuchi (‘Rahxephon’) talking about ‘Soul Calibur 4’ (Ubisoft) and Hironori Ishigami, Shinichiro Tomie et Kunimi Kawamura (Pokemon Mysterious Dungeon’).

On the music front, bands performing included schoolgirl group SCANDAL, CATSUOMATIC DEATH, BETTA FLASH, Ra:IN, and Video-X Japan.

Previews included the World Premiere Preview of the anime LINEBARRELS OF IRON from Gonzo and previews of new French subbed/dubbed series such as ‘Innocent Venus’, ‘Udon’ and ‘Eve no Jikan’.

Running as part of Japan Expo, were AziKulte, Kultigame and Kultima. Displays of martial arts from aikido to kendo, were on offer, as well as ‘go’, chess, and mah jong tournaments. RPGs were also well represented, as were card games as well. There were plenty of consoles too where keen players could to try out the latest games. And Kultima itself included many bandes dessinées artists, fantasy and science fiction authors with Editions Bragelonne and a big ‘Conan the Barbarian’ event. Azikulte explored many aspects of Japanese life, but also included work by artists from other Asian countries. And as for merchandise, to mention just one of the many promotions, new company WE PROD was launching its first three titles in its new label WE ANIME: ‘Himawari’, ‘Windy Tales’ and ‘Moonlight Mile’. In French, naturellement.

Then there’s the cosplay, which ranged from the usual maids, schoolgirls and Naruto look-alikes, to the most amazing and imaginative professional constructions. I was utterly amazed by the sudden appearance of an angel with magnificent wings that must have been twenty feet high (no photo, alas).

One of my favourite exhibits was the tribute to forty years of Shonen Jump which displayed pages of original artwork by artists such as Akira Toriyama (‘Dragonball Z’), Eiichiro Oda (‘One Piece’), Hiroyuki Takei (‘Shaman King’), and Takeshi Konomi (‘Prince of Tennis’) many of them in full colour. It was really inspiring to see the finished panels up close.

The most striking thing about being at Japan Expo was – in spite of the vast numbers of attendees, many in full cosplay mode – the excellent and good-natured atmosphere. Although just because it’s in France, don’t imagine that you’ll escape the written requests for ‘Free Hugs’, though; glomping was alive and well in Japan Expo. But plenty of free stuff was available too, although you had to jump high and catch as well as a manga sports star to get hold of any of the T shirts being thrown to the eager crowds.

So have I whetted any appetites? This astonishing assembly of the talents of Japanese Visual Culture takes place only just across the channel. So brush up your French (all the panels etc. are conducted in Japanese and French, natch) and book your tickets for next year! But if you can’t wait till then, there will be a mini Japan Expo in the autumn called ‘Chibi Japan Expo’ which will happen between October 31st and November 2nd .

http://www.chibi-japan-expo.com/

As Nargis said “Death Note is one of those animes [or mangas] where you can’t sit on the fence, you have to pick a side. Some see Light as a hero, others as a villain; it all really depends on your point of view.” So is Light justified in his belief that he is creating a better sense of justice for humanity? Or alternately is L justified in his belief that protecting the status quo, in regards to justice as it currently is in the Japan of ‘Death Note’, right?

Who is ‘good’ and who is ‘bad’?

“Kira. I think I’ve got a pretty good idea of why you’re doing this.” L, vol. 1 p. 68.

Homer and Westcott, in ‘Thinking through Philosophy’, define justice as “fairness, equal opportunities for all to make something of their lives, and a way back from the depths for all those who fail.” So in this way justice is redemptive and offers “a way back” to those in need of redemption. Charles Colson, a Christian Evangeliser writing in ‘Justice that restores’, argues that redemptive “justice is impossible without the rule of law, and the rule of law is impossible without transcendent authority.”

So, effectively, L is right to be perusing(ed) Light because Justice can operate within the tight confines of law, otherwise how would justice be administered? This is true consider if people were allowed to carry out their own justice it would end in chaos! What Light is doing is perhaps a manifestation of what could occur if a human had this power over the whole of humanity.

However, what if the justice being administered by a nation is considered wrong by its people? Light is proof that what the Japan of ‘Death Note’ was administering the wrong kind of justice. What sort of justice allows for those who have taken the life of another to be allowed to live? As Homer and Westcott say “It is the ability to use force that compels obedience.”

“This World is a rotten mess. It needs to be cleaned up.” Light, vol. 1 p.42.

Justice in this way is administered in a very utilitarian fashion: it is attempting to do the best for the greatest number. Unfortunately there will always be some for whom justice is never administered in exactly the right fashion. Light is merely trying to break free from that utilitarian morality and back to a mould a justice where, he feels, justice is done. The Death Note is his way of ensuring that justice is done.

Light believes the criminals to be completely evil and not able to be morally just. For example after killing Kurou Otoharda he believes, or consoles himself, that he was “doing a service killing him”. Again the power of the Death Note ensures that the World is cleansed of a man that only existed to do harm.

“…what you are doing is EVIL” L vol. 1 p.68.

How does Light know that man is just going to commit autocracies for the rest of his life? Take the example of Nicky Cruz, once notorious gang leader of the New York Gang Mau-Maus and now reformed character attempting to ensure young people do not live the same mistake he did, should he have been killed for his crimes? Given, he should not have lived a life of crime but now he is trying to prevent young people from committing the same crime. Is killing people really ensuring “a way back from the depths for all those who fail” or just evil?

L appears to believe that justice needs to be done to the criminal who takes a life, “Kira. I think I’ve got a pretty good idea of why you’re doing this”, but knows that killing these people is not “a way back” because in the long run it does not prove much benefit to society. It is also because the sort of justice that Light is concocting is also quite evil by its very nature. It is very much a dictatorial sense of justice where only one moral agent controls what is justice and what is not. This is not a human form of justice; it is a ‘Light’ form of justice.

“They’re the evil ones!” Light, vol. 1, p.68.

However Light’s issue with the state’s justice also becomes clear since the world needs to be “cleaned up.” The issue of justice often branches out to equality. Indeed how can the justice system of Death Note’s Japan treats those who perpetrate the killing of other humans as, relatively, equal to those who have not killed a fellow human being.

Light might take the example of Lindsey Ann Hawker who was killed by Tatsuya Ichihashi in a bath of sand. Ichihashi was put on trial before being released for lack of evidence. Even Lindsey Hawker’s sister, Lisa Hawker, does not wish the police to capture Ichihashi because “she would find out more details about the death” and she wants Ichihashi to “just turn up dead”. Why is he treated as a human being like you and I?

In conclusion, Light’s justice, again, appears autocratic and selfish. Although Alex describes Light as “a twisted megalomaniac, a flawed genius” he is less the latter and more the former. His sense of justice is conceited and terrible, not offering “a way back” nor being redemptive. Conversely L’s defence of the justice of the state, although being described as by Homer and Westcott as being decided whoever “is strongest to rule”, is valid because how could justice operate otherwise? Unfortunately justice is fairly utilitarian but reasonably fair. Just not fair enough for Lindsey Hawker.

Plato, a Greek philosopher writing in ‘Republic’, wrote that justice is an objective, knowable reality, on which the concept of law rests. Perhaps the law needs to become the objective standard by which justice are like the Forms. There is a perfect form of justice. However that would require this “transcendent authority” to work. Even Kant utilised the idea of God as a “transcendent authority” to ensure that morality was always objective and clear cut.

Unfortunately, justice is, like the humanity that spawned it, subjective and varies from person to person. Even within a religion there is an objective standard present, created by a Deity, problems still persist. For example in Christianity was it right for God to order Abraham to kill his son, Isaac? (Indecently, God stepped in to prevent this.)

Justice is not clear cut and although I disagree completely with Light, his sense of justice is appealing. After all it is summed up by Lisa Hawker who wished that Tatsuya Ichihashi would “just turn up dead”.

Information about Lindsey Ann Hawker from BBC. Information about Nicky Cruz can be found here

‘Claymore’ is the brainchild of Norihiro Yagi, a mangaka whose previous works include the likes of ‘Undeadman’ and ‘Angel Densetsu’. ‘Claymore’ is a good read, especially if one appreciates a story told in such a bleak world, dark atmosphere and complemented with a compelling protagonist. However the manga is spoilt by a mediocre plot and sterile supporting characters.

In spite of this ‘Claymore’ can be interpreted in a number of different fashions and this article’s aim is to explore ‘Claymore’ and to peel away at its exterior to peer at the core of what drives the story forward; what ideas Yagi attempts to communicate through his manga.

This article covers volumes One to Three and scenes (Chapters) one to fifteen. Scene One ‘Silver Eyed

This artical covers volumes One to Three and scenes (Chapters) one to fifteen. Scene One ‘Silver Eyed Slayer’ introduces the reader to the two characters whom with which we are going to follow the journey of. Claire, a Claymore, ( a half-human, half-Yoma half-breed) breed with the sole intention to seek, locate and destroy Yoma. Raki, made an orphan by a Yoma attack, is the boy who will provide a channel for a Claymore’s humanity.

Claymores, themselves, are the personification of the theme running throughout the first three volumes: the conflict between the delicate humans and the resolute Yoma.

The conflict, itself, is simple: humans are portrayed as helpless and innocent creatures, not creators of a genetically engineered organism which is designed to kill which will become Yoma themselves in order to ensure a continuing supply of Yoma and therefore continued business for the Claymore.

The Yoma, alternatively, are nasty, malicious and evil creatures. This is reinforced when the Yoma, masquerading as Zaki (Raki’s brother), reduces human existence to merely that of being food for Yoma to consume.

So The Claymore encompass the inner-battle running between the two races. This demonstrates that Yagi is not developing any shades of grey in terms of the characteristics of both humans and Yoma. This is perhaps trying to communicate the idea that humanity should harness ‘morally dubious’ ideas in order to pioneer humanity’s continued existence.

It is this survivalism throughout the whole book that underpins the whole three volumes. For example Claire’s first words dismiss the offer of money because “If I get killed there’ll be no reason to pay.” This brings the reader back to the Claymore, the fusion of humanity and Yoma. In many ways Claire is more human than Raki or his pure-bred kind present in the manga.

Claire is an emotionally complex character, desiring a return to humanity whilst experiencing the positive characteristics of Yoma e.g. the resoluteness to be able to carry out a promise (like in scene four) whilst also being very human, she wants revenge for herself for all the maltreatment she received at the hands of Yoma in her youth.

Raki and Elena are the personification of the inner-turmoil being experienced by Claire. The fact that Claire kills Elena is an indication that she has both a human side that wants to keep Elena alive but at the same time has a utilitarian streak about her enabling her Yoma resoluteness to seal Elena’s fate. The fact that Claire kills Elena is an indication that human survival has been programmed into all Claymores too ensuring their slavery to human-kind.

Claymore is a good read and this can be read into it. ‘Claymore’ is a continually growing series and has eleven volumes released in the west through Viz Media and in Japan by Shonen Jump. If Yagi was a cricketer he would have a test batting average of thirty. He really needs to get up to forty to be with the best. Hopefully he can achieve this in due course as ‘Claymore’ has a lot of potential.

“A loss-making Japanese railway company is back on track thanks to the popularity of a stray cat.

Wearing a black cap and posing for photos with passengers, Tama is credited with boosting Wakayama Electric Railway’s revenue by 10%.

The firm had to axe all staff at Kishi station in western Japan two years ago.

But Tama stuck by her post and was rewarded with promotion to station manager. The pet mascot even has her own office, a former ticket booth.

The feline, who was born and raised at the station in the city of Kinokawa, Wakayama prefecture, is living proof of the Japanese belief that cats are good luck.

“She never complains, even though passengers touch her all over the place. She is an amazing cat. She has patience and charisma. She is the perfect station master,” said Yoshiko Yamaki, a spokeswoman for the rail company.

The nine-year-old - who receives cat food in lieu of a salary - won national stardom last year when the firm formally appointed her as “station master”.

Since then passengers have been gradually returning, recently rising 10% to about 2.1 million a year.

The cat has spawned a range of popular merchandise, including a picture book called: ‘Diary of Tama, the Station Master.’”

I think it’s great in this day and age that something as simple as a cat can help boost a failing business. I guess that goes to show the nuttiness of the Japanese people but it brought a smile to my face. To be fair it could be made into a pretty decent anime aswell. Following along the lines of Ghiblis film The Cat Returns.

While this post isn’t an essay or a huge thought provoking article (to be honest i’m ill and my brain has buggered off) it should atleast bring a smile to your face. Mind you, i have a sneaking suspicion that if this happened here the cat would have had to taken out a loan to get on the train, which would have been late anyway, only to be stabbed by a hoodie and having its cat food taken by the inheritance tax.

Courtesy BBC News - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7421259.stm