Anime Analysis: Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin)

Note: This post contains SPOILERS.

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition...

So I'm ashamed to say that I've just finished watching the Attack on Titan anime. Yes, you can boo me down, I deserve it for not finishing it sooner.

Is it THE greatest anime ever? No. Is it one of the most important? Yes.

What do I mean by important? Well remember a time during your childhood where every anime or comic book geek looked up to heroes like  Superman or Sailor Moon as models of virtue? Remember a time where you wanted to pilot giant mechs, bludgeoning evil weirdos with your chest sword and whatnot? Nowadays with all the cynicism, self deprecation and self-loathing permeating society it seems like the idea of a hot-blooded hero saving the world from a massive apocalypse has gotten outdated and it seems that the otaku culture has gotten affected by this cynicism too. In the words of Kaichiro Morikawa:

Generally speaking, I see a downward spiral. Aum Shinrikyo was influenced by Genma Wars. In the 1980s, otaku dreamt of Armageddon; they fantasized about employing supernatural powers to create a new world after the end of the world. But Aum's subway attack in 1995 thoroughly shattered the post-apocalyptic otaku dream of creating a new world in which they would become heroes. After their apocalyptic fantasies collapsed, they steadily shifted to moe. Before their Armageddon obsession, there was science fiction, which provided otaku with an alternative to the actual future. In the broadest terms, moe has replaced 'future.'

This shit is the death of anime! No objections!

When it comes to otaku culture gearing more towards the 'cute' aspect of anime, others also cite the extremely cynical and extremely depressing Neon Genesis Evangelion as another factor leading towards this 'downward spiral'. Now here I am not saying that it is wrong to view or watch 'kawaii' or light-hearted anime and manga; I'm a Hayate no Gotoku fanatic dude. But it's interesting to note the opinions of others and the fact that the concept of 'cuteness' or kawaiisa is a huge influence on Japanese culture, an aspect that was satirized and deconstructed in Satoshi Kon's Paranoia Agent.

The reason I called Shingeki no Kyojin one of the most important anime to date is because a) its massive popularity may be a sign of otaku culture breaking away from all this mainstream generic cuteness, b) anime may not be viewed as something quite niche any more and most importantly c) it may cause many otaku and geeks to regain their old fantasies about dealing with the world at large. Shingeki no Kyojin has literally become one of the most popular anime in recent years (Don't believe me? Just look at the views its opening theme has gotten on you tube. That's more views than flipping Cruel Angels Thesis people) and has appealed not only to fans of shonen but also more casual anime viewers. Why? Well the scope of this article really isn't to tell why although there are various reasons as some have pointed out. Either way I'm going to say why I liked it and what I didn't like.

Shingeki no Kyojin is the story of Eren Yaegar, Mikasa Ackerman and Armin Arlert as they live the life of a child soldier battling a hoarde of man eating giants who drove humanity to near extinction, forcing the survivors to build a huge city surrounded by three long, massive walls in order to keep the Titans out. After a hundred years of peace with no real Titan attacks on humans taking place, a massive Titan, much bigger than all the others sited so far breaks down one of the walls leading to a massive massacre of civilians including the death of Erens own mother. Because of this terrible event Eren swears that he would kill all the Titans leading to him and his friends joining the military dedicated to fighting the Titans.

Nayahahahahaha!

First of all the anime has BEAUTIFUL animation, some of the best animations ever seen in an anime outside of a feature length one. The character designs are slick, linework is great, all the characters minor and major appear distinct from each other, and the action scenes cannot be described as anything but epic. I have to single out the animation and the designs on the Titans themselves whose faces go smack dab straight into the uncanny valley. The way they move is enough to make me shudder and though I rarely get scared, Shingeki no Kyojin actually succeeded in sending shivers down my spine by the mere look on the titans. Seriously, every time one appeared in a close up I was waiting for a jump scare...

Character-wise, all the character certainly are memorable, the have great chemistry, the main trio especially Eren are deep and well-rounded and you do get the feleing that these people are human, that they are people who have a lot to lose. Whilst it would have been a good thing to explore some of the other minor character's backstories, especially those of soldiers who would end up dying an episode or two after they were introduced in order for us to feel their loss more, I think they did a good job on establishing the angst, the sheer fallout that happens when a single soul died.

As for Eren, whilst he is 'badass' and wild, whilst he is deep and unarguably one of the most interesting anime protagonists to come out in recent years, I have to say I was bothered by the fact that we don't see him actually fight enough titans outside of his Titan form. It didn't really detract from his character or anything although it did bother me enough for me to mention it.

Also, whilst I did say the animation was good and all there are way too many 'over-the-top' dramatic moments. I'm not criticising this anime for being over-the-top because it's an anime about humans fighting a ton of giants, it's sort of expected for it's story to be 'unrealistic'*. But when two characters enter an argument or are lamenting they don't merely cry, they weep uncontrollably; they aren't merely upset they break down and the animation elevates their feelings with it. Big dramatic sounds accompany almost every inner monologue or bitter confrontation and it can get a bit grating at times. Also, what was up with that scene between Krista giving some bread to Sasha in episode 3? I couldn't tell if it was going to be a serious moment at first and my only reaction to it was "Huh? That was supposed to be funny? I don't get it..."

Either way, don't try messing with this kid. He gives Guts a run for his money in the willpower and anger department. Also, he self mutilates. Yeah...

However, these are really just nitpicks. None of them detracted me from the shows enjoyment and if it weren't for my ahem, issues at the time I'd have finished watching it sooner. MUCH sooner. Now a reviewer whose content and opinions I think are otherwise excellent actually complained about how the only thing that forced him to not like the show was how selfish the upper society inside the walls were. He said that he sometimes wanted to side with the the titans in order to get rid of these assholes, that he couldn't stand these 'rich douchebags'. They said these 'rich douchebags' were one dimensional which I do sort of agree with. They also said that it was completely unnecessary to the story's development to set up humanity as a self destructive force. And I disagree. I think the fact that humanity not only had to fight the titans but also itself was one of the best aspects of the anime. Just as we have to fight out on our own against the problems that the world brings so we must also fight against ourselves.

As TV Tropes put it, it's about "...how people deal with trauma, survival, loss, and death...as they fight man-eating giants." To say that many characters die would be an understatement; insert obligatory Game of Thrones reference. They all have to face with loss and failure and for once things like collateral damage and loss of lives actually matter.

Throughout, the phrase "Letting go of ones humanity in order to fulfill a greater good" or a variation thereof is uttered. The theme of a person becoming a monster in order to kill an even bigger monster is a huge theme and it's best exemplified in the final two story arcs and especially in the final episode. I've never seen anything like the final fight between Eren and the Female Titan, partly because of how it dealt with the concept of civilian death. There's a scene where Eren sends the Female Titan flying into a building full of innocent bystanders killing them. Whilst he isn't really in control of his Titan form and whilst it is to be expected when two 15 meter tall monsters who are able to crush the very house you live in are ducking it out inside a friendly neighbourhood, I found that scene to be a big eye opener, a huge tear jerker. The scenes involving commander Erwin getting confronted over his decisions and crimes added to the impact that the scene left for me. It made me question the main characters' actions and whether they could have done something else in order to prevent such pointless deaths.

Ok, so this picture doesn't really have to do with anything but, I love women in dresses, hur hur :3

To conclude, would I call Attack on Titan a great anime? Yes. In fact if you haven't watched it, sit yourself in a chair and watch it right the fuck now. Shame on you. Better yet, if you HAVE watched it show it to some people who aren't fans of anime and watch how many times they go "HOLY SHIT!" It's guranteed to give one a good laugh. Despite it's admittedly minor flaws, Attack on Titan was a huge relief and despite its dark themes still very fun, and it's a good thing that it's serving a gateway for people to view other anime.

In all I give it an 8.5 out of 10. The only really serious problem is that it may take quite a while for a second season to even begin production. There's one thing Attack on Titan seriously needs to change and it is this perverted, idiotic practice of not continuing an anime even if its manga is ongoing 'cough' BerserkSankareaHaruhiSuzumiyaElfenLiedRurouniKenshin 'cough' . Ahem. of course we could have the equally bad  dragged out filler episode 'cough' NarutoBleachOnePieceDragonball 'cough'.

P.S. The soundtrack was f*cking amazing.

Sources:

http://the-artifice.com/reasons-why-attack-on-titan-is-popular/
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Manga/AttackOnTitan
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Analysis/Moe

9 Dark Fantasy Stories Before A Game of Thrones

Skimming through forums with thread about Game of Thrones, Song of Ice and Fire, modern fantasy in general etc... I often see people bragging about how no and I mean no fantasy story before Game of Thrones ever discussed all the dark themes that GoT faces. But is this really true?

They claim that heroes never died, that morality was always black and white in those stories, that good always triumphed over evil etc... they say that GoT is better than older fantasy books because its darker, because it actually shows people dying and having sex and gore and blood, all that good stuff.

Oh they'll acknowledge that other fantasy books that are as dark or even darker than SoI&F exist but they'll usually be more modern books or books dating at around the same time, circa the 90s. Or at least acknowledge that childrens fairy tales (particularly by the brothers Grimm) were much darker than the Disneyfied versions of today, probably out of contempt for the medieval people of the past. In reality, its not so simple as there have been many, many dark fantasy novels in the past for adults, fantasy stories that make a GoTs look like Care Bears even.

Now this list wasn't made to say that these books are better than GoT because I think its a great story despite its gaping flaws; its been made to destroy this myth that fantasy was never groundbreaking, that it was always light fare and that it never explored dark themes. To wit, in order of age before Game of Thrones was released in the year 1996:

9. Vivia, by Tanith Lee.

Released one year before Game of Thrones, Vivia is the DARK story of a girl who after living through an orgy of death brought about by the plague running rampant in her fathers castle, becomes an immortal vampire by practically sleeping with a god of death. After that, she is captured by an evil Warlord called Zulgaris who uses her for his own gain and pleasure and lets just say it does NOT go well for Vivia from there.

Vivia is a truly beautiful work of fiction; Vivias character isn't really that likable but she is still compelling and sympathetic and Lees prose is great and poetic. But even for fans of dark fantasy, Vivia may prove too much for them; it features a ton of rape which is detailed rather explicitly, is very gory and goes into great detail about internal bodily pain and feelings and it is also very, very scary. And sad; you'll feel older as you're reading this novel and it will leave you with a great feeling of emptiness and I should know; its been a month since I've read it and I still haven't gotten over Vivia. It's that powerful.

8. Berserk, by Kentaro Miura.

One reason I think berserk is better than GoT is because Berserk is a more simple yet deeper story; no political bullshit here, its all about character. Sure, we have politics in the story with Griffiths quest for power etc... but Berserk focused mostly on Miuras beautifully written characters and as I've said before, Berserk has some of the best character development in any medium ever.

Part of what makes Berserk so great is the fact that its protagonist, Guts, is such a killing machine but at the same time you see that he is still human; he fights and almost always wins but he doesn't get out of it lightly. He gets heavily scarred and there is always a danger of him losing his humanity. Because of this, you feel for the character more; Guts doesn't come off as an archetype but as a person. He wasn't made to deconstruct any stock character; his brutality, his personality, his tender moments and the fact that he was raped as a child are all there because Guts just is. Coupled with one of the saddest and at the same time scariest scenes in anime and manga history, Berserk is a must read.

7. The Black Company, by Glenn Cook.

No discussion of dark fantasy is complete without Glenn Cooks Black Company series, except Black Company goes into a more interesting direction; instead of the more grey vs black morality that Song of Ice and Fire espouses (i.e. Starks vs Lannisters), Black company goes into grey vs gray morality. it is the story of the titular Black company, a mercenary group reluctantly hired by a tyrant 'Lady' who is worried about a prophecy that is about to be fulfilled, proclaiming her downfall. The people of her realm (rebels) rise up in anticipation.

Now, in the words of TV Tropes, the company itself is very frankly portrayed, the Lady herself has her own valid reasons why she would fight against the rebels and the rebels themselves can be a ruthless bunch. If that isn't morally ambiguous I don't know what is.

6. The Chronicles of Amber, by Roger Zelazny.

Ok, so Amber really isn't a dark fantasy and it won't have you grabbing your tissues over the death of a character. It does not mean that it is not a flipping great story or one of the most influential fantasy books ever because really, since when did 'dark' and 'rape' automatically equal 'high quality'?

Adult themes can be explored in books that feature little blood and Amber certainly has them. After a certain man named Corwin wakes up in a hospital where he was being forcefully kept in a coma, he escapes, confronts his own sister and realizes that he is the  crown prince of a far away fantasy land called Amber.

CoA features the all the usual good stuff like political intrigue, betrayal etc... but what makes it so unique is that Corwin (the books written in first person from his viewpoint) is such a likable unreliable narrator. You can often see that our hero does horrible things, sometimes truly horrible things like sacrificing half a million innocent soldiers just so he could use them in a war to regain his homeland. Yet despite all this, he never becomes unsympathetic. Corwin will convince you to be on his side and as the books go on, Corwin changes and receives a ton of character development even though he always stays morally gray.

5. Children of Hurin, by J.R.R Tolkien.

Didn't expect a a dark fantasy by JRR Tolkien did you? Well children of Hurin can be described as one of the first examples of a modern dark fantasy. Whilst it wasn'tpublished during his lifetime, it was obviously written by Tolkien so it still counts. After his family is cursed for refusing to reveal the location of the Elvish city of Gondolin, the children of Hurin, the greatest of all mortal warriors, have to struggle living with this curse as it leads them into a terrible (terrible as in sad) ending.

Turin himself is deeply flawed character, from being someone who is hot blooded and arrogant only to slide down into becoming a murderer. His companions aren't that better either and a lot of his anatagonists are themselves morally ambiguous. That said, CoH is not lighthearted fantasy fare despite being made by Tolkien whose work is so dismissed nowadays by people who probably never read his work.

4. Faust.

Here, I'll be mostly talking about the 1926 movie as I am more familiar to it but essentially, Faust is the story of an aging alchemist who makes a deal with the devil to keep him alive so that he may not be touched by the oncoming plague. Another deal later, giving him back his youth and the ability to enjoy sexual pleasures, Faust meets and sleeps with a beautiful woman only for his bargain with the devil to end, forcing him to acknowledge the fact that his soul belongs to a demon.

Faust does end on a much happier note than the description above would imply, a happy note that is very well written but it still counts. Faust deals with a variety of topics like the loss of ones faith over superficial objects and finding true love. Not only that but for 1926 and even today, Faust is still a visual marvel.

3. The Great God Pan, by Arthur Machen.

The Great God Pan has been described by Stephen King as one of the scariest novels of all time and despite its clumsy and very verbose prose, it is still very scary and horrifying. I don't want to go into too much detail as it would ruin the punch that the story has but lets just say that for 1890, nobody took all the sexual horror well at all...

2. Don Quixote, by Miguel Cervantes.

OK so I'm cheating here as Don Quixote is not a fantasy novel per se but it does deconstruct the ideas of chivalric romances and adventure a couple of healthy centuries before George R.R. Martins series was even written. But unlike Martin, Cervantes didn't write Don Quixote with the idea of making the world a more brutal place but to show how superficial peoples perceptions of heroism were; in essence, Cervantes wanted people to realize what makes a true hero.

Don Quixote is the story of a poor man who disillusioned himself so much by reading fantasy literature that he literally started believing he was a Knight in shining armour. By the end, after all the ridicule and jokes he suffered from his peers, Don Quixote stops believing in his fantasy world and dies a death of despair because of it.At the same time, his companion Sancho Panza gets highly influenced from Quixote and starts believing in the same ideals that Quixote held. People back then and today sadly don't get the themes of despair and deconstruction of romanticism that Don Quixote explored but when it was published, Don Quixote was a huge cultural phenomena; everyone in Spain knew of Don Quixote in a matter of months and people started reading the same chivalric romances the book set out to deconstruct so in a way Cervantes fulfilled the most essential thing a novel should do: to change reality.

1. King Arthur. Just King Arthur...

Finally, we end this list with King Arthur, just King Arthur and his mythology. I watched the movie Excalibur and reads novels involving King Arthur long before I even heard of SoI&F and it changed me, Arthurian mythology really changed me. I think because of it I started appreciating 'deep' stories as I was truly astounded by how sad the stories of the good King ended, how Arthur himself was a very flawed human being, the territories that fantasy could explore.

This is a story where an idealistic King witnesses the downfall of his kingdom as his Knights die by one and gets betrayed by not only his own enemies but those most beloved to him; this is the story of a King who is forced into putting his wife on trial over accusations waged against her only for her to leave him after her trust for him vanishes; this is the story of a King who sometimes commits truly terrible actions in order to avoid trouble; and finally, this si the story of a King who dies with nothing left, declaring as he rides to his final fight: What have I left in this world to live for?

Of course, there are more stories of King Arthur in existence then there are people living in this world so what can I recommend? Sadly that is a list for another time so until I actually do read more and more retellings of King Arthur, I'll say that the Once and Future King and the movie Excalibur are the best place for you to start, with OaFK being hailed as one of the all time greatest fantasy novels ever written by nermous people. Oh, and don't forget Monty Python and the Holy Grail of course...

Film Analysis: Raging Bull and the Theme of Self-Destruction

One man fights alone in a room full of people

The opening of Raging Bull depicts a certain Jake LaMotta practicing his punches, on a ring, all alone surrounded by lots of people who could help him or make him appreciate the fact that he has friends and family who care for him.

When I was watching Raging Bull, I was questioning why people would call this movie one of the all time greatest movies of all time and I held the same thought until after I finished it. That was when the whole message of the film sank in and I realized why it IS one of the greats. Heck, currently its my favorite movie simply because I related so much to its message and its main character.

Raging Bull is essentially a biopic about the real life Jake LaMotta, a boxer who doesn't fight for sport or fun but to release his rage. After leaving his first wife for a much younger girl, Jake continues his brutal fighting tendencies and as time goes on he grows more and more paranoid about the loyalty of his wife, Vicki, and his own brother Joey, suspecting that they are having an affair with each other behind his back. It culminates in Jake brutally beating up his brother and knocking down his wife Vicki. The rest of the movie explores Jakes life as it spirals more and more out of control.

The fights in Raging Bull are unlike any boxing fights ever seen, highlighting Jakes rage.

Based on LaMottas memoir Raging Bull: My Story,  lead star Robert DeNiro gave the book to Martin Scorsese on the set of Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore. Now Scorsese was never a sports fan and the executives at Hollywood were reluctant to tell yet another boxing story involving a "fighter who has trouble with his brother and his wife and the mob is after him". So why did Scorsese make this movie and what sets Raging Bull apart from other boxing stories like say Rocky or Ashita no Joe?

With all respect to him as frankly I don't have any business prying into his personal life, Scorsese was having a very difficult time with his personal life, dabbling in drugs and all which lead to the collapse of his second marriage. After almost dying of a drug overdose, he finally agreed to do Raging Bull with the initial thought of making it as his 'farewell' to cinema. Fortunately, Bull wasn't his last movie and Jake LaMottas story was what eventually saved his life.

On the set of Raging Bull: Robert DeNiro as Jake, right, Martin Scorsese (with beard) and the real Jake (with white shirt and trousers).

Maybe Scorsese saw that like Jake, the problems that arose in his personal life weren't just random encounters or from other people but were brought about by his own self destructive tendencies. Throughout the movie LaMotta doesn't do anything, anything that might make him likable; LaMotta is less of an anti-hero and more of a full blown villain protagonist. 

Instead of being a character who inspires people to never give up like Rocky Balboa or someone whom we admire for their values and moral character like Superman, Jake is a morally repugnant hypocrite who only cares about himself; we don't learn from him because he does great things, we learn from his mistakes. But despite all his flaws, despite being such an unlikable prick, I never found Jake to be annoying; I never said to myself "Look, this Jake character is too unlikable for me to care. Screw him and screw this movie". I cared for Jake, I cared about his wife Vicki, I cared about his brother Joey. Why did an unlikable character like Jake hit me so much?

One reason could be that Jakes plight, one that he brought upon himself, hit me personally. Unlike Scorsese or Jake I never did drugs or fought people to release my rage but I admit that before I practiced kendo, before I watched this movie I always had a type of depression, a feeling of intense loneliness brought about by my own anti-social tendencies. After Raging Bull and seeing so many other people around me being so socially awkward and keeping to themselves, never initiating a conversation with me and showing me general un-interest, I thought to myself screw it, if people won't socialize I'd better do the socializing myself; I recognized the anti-social patterns in my own life, the bitterness that paranoia and hatred brings and how bitter, sad and angry it made me. I wanted to avoid being another Jake and just enjoy life for what it is.

Jake comes in to beat up his brother Joey for 'having an affair' with his wife

This anti-social personality was Jakes main flaw.

Of course, Jake rejects all this help and fixes upon his mind the idea that the world is out to get him. In the scene where he is arrested for (unknowingly) allowing a 14 year old at his bar (a business he found after he quit his boxing job, gaining a lot of weight in the process) and put into a jail cell, Jake contemplates where he all went wrong. It is at this moment that he thinks about all that he's done, about all the people he's alienated and how he is all alone in the world; he denies that he is a monster despite his problems being all his own fault. Even when he tries reconciling with his own brother there is a subtle element in the scene that indicates that Jake isn't really sorry for what he did. He wants to reconcile with his brother but he isn't wholly sincere in his apology.

In the end, even though he does come to terms with the fact that he was solely responsible, he's still ostracized from his family. In a more optimistic movie, we'd have had a scene of Jake and Vicki making up and kissing, with both brothers sharing hugs after Jakes goes down on his knees in pleading apology; maybe we would have gotten a scene of him trying to get back into boxing. But this is Raging Bull and that wasn't what happened to the real Jake.

Once I was blind but now I can see. Raging Bull ends with Jake
having learnt something but all alone.

Heck, the real Jake didn't even know he was that terrible a person before he saw this movie. When he asked his ex-wife if he was accurately depicted she told him he was worse. The film ends with a quote from the Gospel of John that shows the Pharisees confronting a once blind man who was healed by Jesus: "Whether or not he is a sinner I do not know.All I know is this; once I was blind and now I can see". Jake can merely see that he is a loathsome human being; it doesn't mean he has fixed his problems.



Trivia:

• Sponges soaked in red liquid were inserted into the boxing gloves to give the impression that the fighters were drawing blood as they fought.
• Joe Pesci didn't know his character was going to get beat up so when Jake does beat Joey up, the scene for the actor came completely out of nowhere, making Joeys struggling against Jake a more believable.

Sources:

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/RagingBull?from=Main.RagingBull

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raging_Bull

http://image.toutlecine.com/photos/r/a/g/raging-bull-80-tour-01-g.jpg

Ten Well Written Anime and Manga you need to see (now if not sooner...)

10. Sankarea. 

At first glance, Sankarea seems like a clichéd romantic comedy that just happens to be about a guy with a zombie girlfriend. But it isn’t. The story involves a schoolboy named Chihiro who meets up with a girl called Rea who happens to suffer from constant sexual and emotional abuse by her father. A suicide attempt turns her into a zombie, a type of zombie that still retains their memories and personality when they were truly alive. The series explores the two getting closer together and Chihiros struggle with protecting Rea from her father and supporting her with her zombie illness. None of it is played for laughs and the two make what has to be one of the sweetest but most heartbreaking couples in all of anime. The anime and manga certainly were some of the most emotionally taxing I’ve ever seen.

9. Five centimeters per second.

Nothing much can be said about 5cm without spoiling the whole punch of the film; it isn't a story with a plot so much as an experience on the trouble people have with love, making a really haunting and beautiful romance movie. It's a film that is sure to be enjoyed by both girls and guys as its message applies to anyone who has had tough luck with love. One other thing that can be said is that the ending, set to the famous Japanese song 'One more time, one more chance' is very poetic and beautiful. It’s like Twilight was written well but didn’t involve any soppy emo whining; people Bella in Twilight was supposed to lack a personality in order for the typically female teens to put themselves in her shoes. 5 centimeters does this blank slate concept right.

8. Hayate the Combat Butler.

Hayate is a spoof of shonen action manga and anime that also happens to be a romantic comedy. It's also the story of a boy meeting new friends and getting closer to them and the misadventures they go through together. Hayate because of it's usage of different genres and never taking itself too seriously gets away with a lot of jokes and ideas that in a different story would not make any sense; a lot of the events that take place in Hayate are either genuinely funny, genuinely awesome or both. Beneath it all, Hayate has a great cast of fun and likable characters and in my opinion they're its biggest strength. It's very fun seeing them play off each other or being genuinely kind to each other and the heartwarming moments in the series make it one of the most joyful reads out there even though as of late the manga has decreased in quality rather drastically.

7. Baccano!

Another series with a great cast of characters, Baccano takes place in prohibition era America in the years 1930, 1931 and 1932 respectively; 1930 deals with how certain crime families are in a huge conflict involving an elixir that grants immortality; 1931 deals with the highjacking of a train called the Flying Pussyfoot (snigger…) and the struggle that takes place onboard it; and 1932 deals with 16 year old Eve Genoard as she searches for her brother who mysteriously disappeared following the 1930 events.

 All the events are distinct but towards the end connect in a way that is just genius. The anime jumps around with little to no warning between them, giving a non-linear but ingenuously written story that is very rewarding to anyone who tries connecting the dots. It's a story that doesn't focus on the plot so much as it's twists and turns and there is no central main character; there are many and they are all equally compelling. Special mention goes to Isaac and Miria: these two have to one the funniest and most likable criminal couples in all of fiction, with antics involving robbery whilst dressed up as Charlie Chaplin and robbing rich people in order to fight for what they think is 'heroic justice'.

6. Paranoia Agent.

When I finished Paranoia Agent, my head hurt because it's one of those anime that makes you seriously think about what it wanted to say and what on earth you just saw. While simultaneously a psychological thriller and a mystery, Paranoia Agent also has a really innovative way of telling its story: it uses heavy symbolism and we're constantly seeing things through the eyes and the mindset of the individual characters leaving what is real and what is ultimately their imagination up to interpretation. Is it a deconstruction of Japanese kawaisa culture or is it just a supernatural mystery? Who knows, I myself think it's a mixture of both. It's highly recommended for anyone who wants something that is almost free of any of the usual anime clichés for anyone who loves a deep mystery. One thing though: I do disagree with some aspects of its message but that is a discussion for another blog post.

5. Monster.

Monster is another psychological thriller, albeit FAR from being as confusing as Paranoia Agent. It’s the quest of the  kindly Doctor Tenma as he struggles to search for Johann Liebert, a patient he had healed of a gunshot wound to the head years before only to realize later on that Johann himself is an absolute monster of a person who literally has no motivation for all the evil that he commits. Monster is what every great mystery story should have: very compelling and relatable main characters, an equally compelling villain, a suspenseful, complex and deep mystery that still makes sense by the end, plus the philosophy and aesops it delivers will seriously change your perspective of life in a way only few works of fiction can ever do. It uses all of Naoki Urasawa's greatest strengths and is highly regarded as one of his greatest works. Speaking of which...

4. 20th Century Boys.

Another Naoki Urasawa work, 20th Century Boys is in one word, epic. Its story is of a huge scale, one that spans several decades from the 1960's to even the late 2010's, a deep mystery that rivals that of Monster with the quality of it's writing, very compelling main characters and themes that include what struggles society has to endure living in a post apocalyptic world. Characters that seem minor at first constantly turn out to be important later on and the ending which practically involves the power of music to turn the tide is too awesome to describe. However, by the end of the manga you'll be feeling too wowed to care for any lesson you may have learnt. The winner of numerous awards, 20^th Century Boys is a must read for any fan of epic stories.

3. Rurouni Kenshin.

There was a time when Rurouni Kenshin was the Naruto of the day; it was simply the most popular anime around and everyone was busy buying the videos and merchandise related to Kenshin, and with good reason. Kenshin is one of those anime and manga whose simple story and themes influenced a lot of the works that came after it. Unlike most shonen manga of the day, it had an older protagonist who himself was tired of adventure and wanted to settle down instead of actively seeking more diversions in life. Of course, the story goes out of its way to prevent that from happening but who cares? It also took themes like romance, the way war and politics affect people and the ethics of killing vs. not killing seriously and deconstructed a lot of the common tropes found in fiction dealing with the Jidai Geiki genre. The titular character, an ex-swordsman who wields a reverse-bladed sword so as to not kill people is in my opinion one of the greatest characters in all of anime and manga. He's the type of guy you look up and wish were more like but at the same time he is still very relatable because he is not invincible; there was always the danger of him giving in to his former murderous habits. Kenshin is a must watch for any hardcore anime fan both for it's plot and it's really, really convincing philosophy.

2. FullMetal Alchemist.

This entry deals with the manga and its anime adaptation which follows it very closely, not the 2003 anime.

After Edward and Alphonse Elric lose their limbs and their body respectively, they unite together to search for the philosopher’s stone in order to get their bodies back. What follows is an epic quest that involves the two brothers bonding closer together, a government conspiracy, alchemy, and the fate of the entire world they live in being at stake. What is so great about FullMetal Alchemist and its adaptation Brotherhood? Literally everything as it gets everything a good story should have right, and it is what distinguishes it from all the other entries; The characters are all deep and very well developed with the heroes being very likable and the villains being truly horrible people; it has a perfect mix of comedy, tragic and downright horrifying moments; the story is of a truly huge scope and with a very well developed world and well crafted plot that never insults our intelligence; It is in some ways the story I always wanted to read as a kid and more. FullMetal Alchemist has something for everyone and if you haven’t watched it yet, I envy you. So go watch it. NOW. FMA would have topped this list if it wasn’t overshadowed by another work called…

1. Berserk.

Note: No one image from the manga can define Berserk, it is THAT good.

Widely regarded as the most well written manga ever, Berserk deserves the number 1 spot because it gets everything what Brotherhood and all the other anime and manga did excellently on this list and blows them out of the water. There has never been a manga as subtle yet with a message with as much impact  than Berserk. it is the story of Guts, a fearsome swordsman seeking revenge against his former leader and best friend Griffith. Guts himself always lived a very, very rough life from being raped as a child culminating to him losing his arm, one eye and almost everyone he really cared about in a very traumatic and hellish event called the Eclipse. He turns from a man with a dream to a bloodthirsty brute only concerned with vengeance but through his harsh journey, he meets up with a lot of new and old allies that force him to realize that maybe revenge isn’t really worth living for…

Berserk isn't good for children at all or for anyone with a very weak heart. It easily is the most violent manga ever and the subject of rape is practically a theme. However, it's all done to show how horrible the world of Berserk is and together with these deep themes, Berserk has some of the greatest character development not only in any manga but in all of fiction. Period. Guts himself is a very inspiring character who despite all his suffering never gives up on life and continues to live just because it’s worth living for by itself. Plus, the artwork in the manga is just amazing; every page looks like it was drawn by Albrecht Durer and is very detailed and beautiful.

All this considered, Berserk easily lands the number one spot as the most well written manga of all time. It deserves to be studied and analyzed as a work of literary genius.

On the reason I made this blog...

Reading this you may be asking yourself just what the flying f*** you're doing on a random blog like this one. Isn't it just another blog by some douchebag who thinks his opinion is just so flipping great he thinks he deserves a blog to write about what makes him tick? In a way, yeah, this is that kind of blog if I can indeed be called a douchebag. But what made ME want to start blogging? Well there are a few reasons, the three main ones being that:

a) I'm tired of seeing boring, boring posts on facebook that only involve the boring aspects of ones social life or ultra-mundane things like eating cookies with milk at 8 o'clock at night. Why on earth would I care what type of sweets you are eating? To go together with this I'm also rather tiored of seeing poor quality content on sites like Listverse which as of late has been hosting way too many sensationalist articles that have no place on listverse. And frankly the community there is flipping terrible, containing some of the most arrogant dreck to ever grace the internet.

b) I'm an author and a storyteller. At least that's what I want to become because other than a bunch of unpublished articles I haven't really written much. I want to change that with this blog. I want to use it to force myself to post new and fresh content every week and to actually publish valid stories, stories that who knows, may touch a lot of people or induce reactions in them they had never experienced before. Also, I'm writing a book and I need publici... I mean fans, yeah! Fans!

c) To go with that, I'm making this blog in order to be able to freely and calmly state my own opinions without fear of offending anyone. I'll say it right now: sometimes I write and think about very, very, VERY mature subjects so if very heavy and taboo subjects are not your thing, look away now.

Because I'm a big believer in grey and gray morality, it's a fact of life that my pieces, my writings are subject to opinion. When you write it isn't always a case of either the writer or the critic being right or the other wrong; sometimes a mix of the twos opinions,feelings and mindsets is necessary to draw a real answer. Sometimes, you don't even have to win in moral dillemmas in order to do the right thing and that is a subject that is explored in the book that I am writing. Either way, this blog isn't really here to change people into clones set in my own image but it's made for the enjoyment of others and nothing more. I hope everyone who reads it has fun and may I finish the book that I am writing. And that day WILL come...