Tag: Analysis
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Flying, Freedom & Nature in Laputa : The Castle In The Sky (Studio Ghibli)
Flying, a dream for Miyazaki to paint and for the viewer to embrace. Persistent and unmarred in a body of work that spans an ocean of significance, the notion of flight is unassuming yet essential to Miyazaki’s work. The oneiric quality that distinguishes his work is often held by a meticulous but vacillating sense of…
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Arakawa’s Truth in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Studio Bones (Original Work Hiromu Arakawa)
The world molded by Hiromu Arakawa is mysterious and intricate, yet there is a familiarity to it. Though the journey of the Elric brothers, our protagonists, may take the guise of fantasy, it is a deeply personal introspective into our relationship with faith, science and the human condition. Alchemy, much like natural sciences, is the…
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The theme of duality in MONSTER , Studio Madhouse (original work, Naoki Urasawa)
Monster is an introspective work on the human condition; it challenges our understanding of good and evil through the collection of very personal stories interwoven with our protagonist’s chase of the titular monster. A recurring theme throughout this journey is that of the duality of the things that we perceive; coins are always two-sided Urasawa…
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The Grotesque in Dorohedoro, Studio MAPPA (Original work, Q Hayashida)
Anime is an art of the visual, its aesthetics often betray the intention and motifs behind the story. Sometime, breath-taking and grand sceneries work in synergy with vibrant colours to paint pictures of beauty and tranquil feelings. Dorohedoro is none of that. It is a dark, grimy and chaotic show that wallows at times and…
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Escape in A Whisker Away (Original Work, Studio Colorido)
Life is like a storm. In its winds, we are thrown and whirled in chaotic mayhem. The works of Mari Okada have a flair for pulling on the emotions of lives fraught with doubts and sadness, yet her stories never stray from the value of life. In ‘A Whisker Away’ we experience alongside Miyo Sasaki…
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Reaching for the Stars in TENGEN TOPPA GURREN LAGANN!! ( Original Work, Studio Gainax)
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (“TTGL”) is a loud and flamboyant story that swirls and spins to the tune of outerworldly robotic battles. It is a tale of rebellion for a humankind that is continuously pushed around and shackled. As we dive headfirst into the madness of this world alongside Shimon we connect to a primal…
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Growing Up in Spirited Away (Original Work, Studio Ghibli)
Beneath the mesh of colours and imagery in the worlds that sprout from the imagination of Hayao Miyazaki is a subtle organic quality. There is an appeal to something truly fundamental within us; a nature that perhaps the viewer himself has drifted away from. The world of Spirited Away is whimsical and serene at times,…
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The ‘Self’ and The ‘Other’ in Attack on Titan, Studio Wit (Original Work, Hajime Isayama)
The structure of the world we are introduced to in Hajime Isayama’s Attack on Titan is fascinating. At a glance, humans have been driven to reclusion within the perimeter of the three walls that take on the role of guardians, wardens, and sentries. To venture outside is to confront a world dominated by the men…
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Chasing Sunshine in Weathering With You ( Original Work, CoMix Waves Films)
There is beauty to Makoto Shinkai’s works; colors, sounds, and emotions blend seamlessly into scenes of esotericism at times, and grounded contemplation at others. Weathering with You is no exception in its exploration of new love, growing up, and responsibility. In a world where we are constantly being reminded of the responsibilities and burdens of…
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Nature, Development and Princess Mononoke (Original work Studio Ghibli)
What makes Studio Ghibli films so poignant is often the truth of their subject matter. The windows they open into the fantastical worlds they depict are a surreal traverse at times and a grounded meditation at others. The world of Princess Mononoke is beautiful and mysterious as much as it is ugly and violent. The…
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Conflict and acceptance in Vinland Saga (Studio Wit, original work Makoto Yukimura)
The adaptation of Makoto Yukimura’s seminal historical fiction lays bare the ugliest and the grittiest of a tumultuous time, the Viking conquest of England in the 11th Century. It is a reminder that our history is riddled with war and soaked in blood; a time when we failed to comprehend one another. Yet. Vinland Saga…
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Crisis of Identity in DURARARA!! , Studio Brain Base (Original Work Ryohgo Narita)
Like its older sibling Baccano, Durarara!! (“Drrr”) is a mayhem of a story featuring a vast ensemble cast of varied and interesting characters. Ikebukuro, the stage of this story, is a lively and frantic district of Tokyo and the crossroad on which our characters will intersect. A prominent theme of the story is an increasingly…
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Peace , Change and Porco Rosso (Studio Ghibli)
Films by Hayao Miyazaki have something special about them, oneiric, mysterious, and deeply personal; they appeal to something fundamental within us. Porco Rosso is no exception. It feels like being gently carried away by Mediterranean waves on a warm summer evening, evoking sentiments of sceneries from pastel paintings and old photographs. Yet, deep below the…
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Chaos In Baccano!! , Studio Brain Base ( orginal work Ryohgo Narita )
Studio Brain Base’s adaptation of Ryogo Narita’s light novel is not an easy show to describe. True to its namesake, it is a noisy show set in an equally noisy era. Prohibition America, during which the bulk of the story takes place, was a complicated time rife with crime, social tumult, and economic hardships. It…