jumex's Anime Page

What is Anime?

Anime is the Japanese term for animation. To the American fan it is Japanese animation is specific. I was started down the road of fandom through a friend of mine, Brian Papp, in my Freshman year at WSU. The first shows I ever watched were Vampire Princess Miyu, Oh My Goddess, Ranma, and Akira. Each of which I recommend for the beginning fan. Although the times have changed a lot since I started watching and collecting anime in 1996, there are still a lot of great series out there and a lot more are being picked up by American companies like ADV Films, Pioneer, AnimEigo, and Viz.

What is an Otaku?

Otaku is a formal way of saying "house" in Japanese, you use it when talking about other's houses. But there is a story behind this word that makes it important to anime. You see, in Japan there were people that would work all day and spend all their free time on their computers, hacking or doing whatever. When they DID get out they didn't know anybody's names, so they called everybody "otaku" (your house, or a formal way of saying "you"). So it was like saying, "hey you!" These people started to be called otaku, because that is what they said. Otaku became a term for people obsessed with something, like computers or animation. In other words, freaks.

The American Otaku

What does otaku mean in America? Well, an otaku is a subset of a nerd. It is a person obsessed with anime. An otaku is the equivalent of a fanboy in the world of American comic books. I am an otaku (for better or worse), and I realized it the first time I watched Otaku no Video, the anime almost-documentary of Gainax, back in 1997. The sure-fire way to know that you have been sucked into the pitiful life of the otaku is watching Otaku no Video and relating to the characters (and if you have seen it, you will know what I mean ^_^).

My Favorite Shows

Well, bar none, Maison Ikkoku is my favorite all-time anime. It is a story spanning 6 years of the lives of Godai Yusaku, a college student, and Otonashi Kyoyo, the manager of his apartment complex, and the love that develops between them and the troubles and trials they must go through.

• The Maison Ikkoku Homepage -- This is the best site on the net I have found for Maison Ikkoku information.

My second favorite show is Kimagure Orange Road (Whimsical Orange Road). It is a romantic comedy (like Maison Ikkoku) about a love triangle between three high school students, Kasuga Kyousuke, who just happens to be an ESPer as his sisters Kurumi and Manimi, Ayukawa Madoka, the tough girl and Kyousuke's true love, and Hiyama Hikaru, Kyousuke's other true love and girlfriend. Which one will he choose?

• A Whimsical Trip on Kimagure Orange Road -- This is a pretty informative site about the show.

jumex's Anime Pages and Links

Dark-skinned Cat-like Female Anime Character Page -- This is a page I made with basic information on my personal favorite sub-genre of anime character. The always perky and fun, Dark-skinned Cat-like Female Anime Characters.

-- Aoi Tamashii is the coolest character ever to come out of a fan fiction, and by far the best character in the extended Neon Genesis Evangelion universe. Aoi plays a main role in the popular Eva-R American fanfiction.

-- No-Name Anime is the premiere Japanese animation club in the Bay Area. Since 1993, No-Name has been bringing the best in quality Japanese animation to Bay Area anime fans.

-- FanimeCon is a convention where enthusiasts gather to celebrate the art of Japanese animated cartoons (anime) and comic books (manga). Established in 1994, FanimeCon is THE anime convention of the San Francisco Bay Area.

-- I founded the WSU Anime Club in the Fall of 1996. The Club is dedicated to bringing Anime to the WSU Campus.

-- The Legends of the Galactic Heroes is the space opera to end all space operas. It is by far the best Science Fiction/Drama anime I have watched. It concentrates on strong character development and a wonderful story of two men's struggles in their military endeavors. The information center is the most complete collection of LoGH information in English on the Net.

-- Tinami is the best place to go to find tons of Japanese fan artists! Updated daily with new sites and a searchable database of artist's websites, this is a great place to go when looking for some good art.