Anime from Akira to Princess Mononoke: Experiencing Contemporary Japanese Animation

Amazon.com
Although packaged as a book for general readers, Anime: From Akira to Princess Mononoke is a dreary academic study that showcases the clichés of "higher" criticism but tells the reader little about the art form. The potentially interesting points that Susan Napier raises (e.g., Are characters with blond, pink, or purple hair really perceived as Japanese?) are ignominiously buried in arcane jargon. And she too often discusses other authors' theories instead of anime itself. In a section on Ranma 1/2, she refers to various books, but in a footnote she cites only a single published interview with series creator Rumiko Takahashi. If Napier regards the Ranma series as significant, why didn't she interview the artist?

FROM THE PUBLISHER

With the popularity of Pokémon still far from waning, Japanese animation, known as anime to its fans, has a firm hold on American pop culture. However, anime is much more than children's cartoons. It runs the gamut from historical epics to sci-fi sexual thrillers. Often dismissed as fanciful entertainment, anime is actually quite adept at portraying important social and cultural issues such as alienation, gender inequality, and teenage angst. This book investigates the ways that anime presents these issues in an in-depth and sophisticated manner, uncovering the identity conflicts, fears over rapid technological advancement, and other key themes present in much of Japanese animation.

FROM THE CRITICS

Sharalyn Orbaugh

Informative, well-written, and yet entertaining...both generous and critically insightful.

Sharon Kinsella

This is a riveting and inspiring book...a source of concrete information about Japanese animation it is invaluable.

Choice

This worthy addition to the burgeoning literature on Japanese popular culture will stand the test of time.

Entertainment Weekly

Napier draws a rather complete picture of Japanese animation as a legitimate art form, and uses anime as a key to the culture that creates it.

New York Times