#animation is a disrespected storytelling medium

[jennazed]

and it also pushes the harmful notion that the only "true medium" for cinematic storytelling is live-action. It seems like they're trying to push the idea that a story hasn't truly been brought to the big screen until it's been done with live-action and cgi, that the only purpose of animation is to serve as the blueprint for live-action and nothing more. It's so disrespectful to animation as a medium!

Your honour, I admit that I do have a superiority complex over not watching Disney "live action" remakes, but in my defense, I am right

[wheremyheartslingers]

Animation as a disrespected art form

Animation as a medium is one that is seen as childish and not an actual representation of art and human creativity. This is evident in the way more and more companies are pushing endless live actions and adaptations of iconic animated films as a way to cut on costs and make profit without being risky.

Despite animation bringing out some of the greatest films we have seen in film history, it is still arguably one of the most disrespected art forms. We have spectacular films such as The Prince of Egypt of Spirited Away that show us that the digital tablet is more than capable of producing such cinematic storytelling that is on par with traditional filmmaking yet we still have the CEO of Disney state that “animation is only for kids”

Throughout the years, Disney and other animation corporations have cemented themselves as the founding fathers and pioneers of an art medium dating all the way back to the early 1900s. Animation and the impact it has had on visual storytelling cannot be understated, however, it seems that corporations think otherwise

Judging from the live actions of iconic films such as ‘The Lion King’ and ‘the Little Mermaid’ that nobody asked for, it is clear that animation is not viewed as a legitimate form of film-making and storytelling. To these corporations, animation is not valid as an art form so it has to be adapted in order to be “real” which is a shame because animators such as Hayao Miyazaki and his multiple  Oscar award winning projects like ‘The Boy and the Heron’ and ‘Spirited Away’ beg to differ

[destinygoldenstar]

Golden Analyzes Animated Features (Intro)

“The Academy Award for Best Animated Feature is given each year for the best animated film. An animated feature is defined by the academy as a film with a running time of more than 40 minutes in which characters' performances are created using a frame-by-frame technique, a significant number of the major characters are animated, and animation figures in no less than 75 percent of the running time. The Academy Award for Best Animated Feature was first awarded in 2002 for films released in 2001.”

All my animation homies are salty and segregated by this award.

Seriously, the amount of disrespect for this storytelling medium is insane for ‘the elite Oscar awards for the objectively best works of creativity… as long as it’s live action’.

Next time I hear “How does it feel to work on the animation genre?” I wanna punch that person.

Let me get this out of the way: Animation is not a genre. It is a storytelling medium. It is the home to many creative thought provoking features and stories that have shaped imagination in ways that live action could never.

While I absolutely will not state one is better than the other, that’d be very subjective of me, I think it’s fairly little secret to people who see my blogs that I am an animation buff.

I as a person just cling to animation much more by its colors and routes of storytelling. It’s a subjective thing.

And so is my GF. We’re both buffs on the medium and crave to expand our animation horizons.

Ahoy segregation of animation in the Oscars. “Oh you want to be recognized? Here’s your own little category. Take it and leave us alone so we can talk about REAL movies”

And half the time they don’t even watch these movies and just give it to Disney or Pixar. Where there are SEVERAL animation horizons you could take from.

So that’s what me and my GF are doing. The two of us are watching every Best Animated Feature Nominee and making our own conclusions on the winner of each year.

No we are not the first ones to do it. But we wanted to, to both expand our animation horizons and also give animation the respect it rightfully deserves.

So you’re going to be seeing me posting reviews of these movies on my blog. Then one about what movie I think should’ve won that year.

So you know:

There are two of us watching these movies together. Me and my GF. She’s going to pick a favorite too, and her pick could be wildly different from mine. So there is always a second opinion being put in mind.

We are watching every movie on a separate day. There is no watching one after the other immediately afterwards. There’s a significant time gap between each of these.

We’re doing each year’s movies in alphabetical order. So there is no bias when it comes to what the Oscars picked as the winner being put in mind.

In every post review, I will post a claimer on whether or not we have seen these movies prior to this viewing. Cause that absolutely affects judgement and I wanted to make that awareness. There’s some we have seen before, and others we have not and this will be our first viewing. And of course there’s some I’ve seen but she hasn’t and some she’s seen but I haven’t.

There is zero bias regarding the makers of these movies and where they originate. We are just judging the movies, and whatever drama that went on behind the scenes is not a factor.

So… yeah. You’re gonna be seeing me reviewing some movies for the rest of the year. Interested? Sure. If not… idk what to tell you.

[vinylfox]

something something i absolutely love how animation is so consistently disrespected as an art form because most people just relegate it to “saturday morning cartoons for children” despite the fact that animation is one of the greatest storytelling mediums ever created by humans simply because of the fact it is not limited by physics or reality, and if it was treated with a modicum of respect it could produce some of the most visually spectacular and emotional stories ever but in the horrid state hollywood is in that will not happen anytime soon. something something capitalism destroys art etc etc.

[munchkinmarauder]

Guessing they wanted to avoid the colonisation tones as it's set in the Carabbian even though the castle and everything else is very Euro-centric...and also they still wanted one white lead (why couldn't Erik have been someone of Carribbean decent?).

Ive not seen Little Mermaid to be fair but I've seen the live actions on and off and feel the only really good live action of one of the classics (that isn't like a villian origin story) was the jungle book.

I think trying to recreate the animated classics perfecty is boring (it disrespects animation as a medium and it kind of wastes your time cause you can watch the animated version over the blander live action ) - more diversity on screen and female empowerment are great things but Disney's approach can be quite tocanistic sometimes and that diversity isnt behind the scenes - like the Mulan live action can accross more sexist than the original in some ways. Disney also doesn't seem to do much to protect its actors of colour when backlash happens. Execs pandering to the right will also blame it on them including minority groups and not that the product was shit as well (it's capitalist feminism and diversity of that makes sense)

And let's not forget Disney taking Peter Dinklage's comments out of contex and removing people with dwarfism from the snow white story entirely. Like speak to that community and do your best to protray them faithful and fairly dont erase them entirely - especially when there are not many opportunities for those actors

I can help but think these are stories that have been round for so long - way before Disney. What if the heart of the story was maintained but it was reworked to be told in different cultural and historical contexts or to tell the stories of LGBTQ+ protagonists or people with disabilities.

Or how about we tells stories based on African/South American/Asian/etc. Short stories, stories and folktales - there is a rich world of storytelling out there to adapt. Stories of minority groups don't have to be boxed in with cultural signifiers and focus on generational trauma of the immigrant story entirely either.

As a person of colour and someone who grew up between Sri Lanka and England (I also identify as Ace). Corporate diversity can sometimes feel very apparent and it's a double edged sword. Like it's amazing to see ourselves represented but you can very well feel the difference between tokenisation and when people from the community being represented are also behind the scenes/when the teams involved really care about the settings and have done their research respectfully and with passion (like in avatar the last airbander - the one of first show where I and many other asian kids/PoC felt represented for the first time). We've come a long way since AtLA, I think it's time we don't have to settle for just raceswaps. Having some representation over no representation isn't enough anymore.

Little mermaids context could work as an allegory for all three (given I think the original story was HCA working through his unrequited feelings for another man)- like imagine a Carribbean mermaid meeting a Carribbean prince and we get see and learn more about those cultures. Or the Cinderella story based on South Asia or new stories with people of colour entirely would that be a much better way to teach the kids about other cultures and people are hungry for these stories - they'll make money (look at everything everywhere all at once or wakanda forever)

so I did actually watch the new little mermaid from disney and the one thing that I cannot get over is how they made eric adopted. like why couldnt the queen (who is black) be his bio mom, why didnt they just make eric a biracial character, why didn't they just show a portrait of the king/queen and eric looking sadly at his dad (a white dude maybe) who's dead or something rather stress multiple times that eric isn't a royal blood prince but an adopted prince. sorry but i hated that.

anyways Cinderella (1997) multicultural family who didn't need to explain anything is still in my heart.

[tittiedshrek]

I made the mistake of looking at Twitter to catch up on the whole WBD/HBO Max situation and one thing that particularly pissed me off were the considerable amount of people going "oh well, x show didn't have an audience/sucked anyway so who cares".

Ignoring that shows like Infinity Train were some of the top rated and most streamed shows on their platform, it's such a disrespectful way of looking at this situation and it also misses the entire point of why animation fans like me are upset.

All of the shows that WBD/HBO Max are pulling are a product of months - if not years - of writing, storyboarding, animating, voice acting, editing, etc. These shows were made by a whole team of talented, hard-working professionals who gave it their all to tell their story in the best way that they can, and a lot of them had to continue working even through a global pandemic while all live action projects were halted. That's years of hard work all yoinked completely off the service, their entire art portfolio made completely inaccessible to view, and an entire section of high-quality shows featuring great representation, storytelling, and animation that kids will never be able to access.

All art has value - yes, even the shows you don't like. This isn't about your personal preferences, this is about the imporance of media preservation and the fact that your favorite streaming-exclusive show today can be pulled and entirely erased from the public eye tomorrow; it's about the lack of respect for the creators of these shows - who weren't even told that their shows were being pulled - and the lack of respect for fans of these shows, who now have no legal way of rewatching or financially supporting their favorite works; and it's about the clear and distinct lack of respect for the animation medium from giant corporations like WBD and Netflix, and how they would be more than happy to continue to underpay, overwork, and screw over young and inspiring talents while convincing the public that it's a "dream job".

It doesn't matter that you didn't watch or you didn't like the shows that are being removed from HBO Max. Content has become more disposable with the rise of streaming, and the creators of these IPs don't even own the rights to them; they're owned by giant corporations who care more about the profit margins they'll make in the short-term. A lot of these shows may end up becoming lost forever, and that's the problem here.

[mrawkweird]

I swear what you said about animation always being shit on has never been more true. Animation as a whole no matter what kind has forever been seen as "dumb Kids stuff" or seen as a lesser art form of storytelling compare to traditional films and live-action, when honestly half of most of my favorite series also movies are animated. A limitless medium where you can create any kind of world you want with any kind of setting, a medium that has so much creativity and freedom to do whatever or do things you can't do with live-action.

How Hollywood award ceremonies still disrespect animation as well as how poor animators are treated at times and can be highly underpaid or overworked for their craftsmanship. To see what Warner Brothers is doing to these creators and cartoons is both sad and aggravating, but sadly surprising. Since growing up I've seen how these networks have screwed over high-potential quality content and animated shows that could’ve been so much more if given the chance to grow. I've seen it with CN but also Nickelodeon has fucked over newer cartoons and their creators too, especially if it isn’t as big as SpongeBob SquarePants like what they did to Rise of TMNT that I'm still pissed about the fact that they screwed it over and didn't advertise a lot of it, while also screwing over other promising new cartoons like Glitch Tech or Heavey Beaks including the creator were he didn't even know his show was moved to Nicktoons.

Sorry if am all over the place but I can't stand this type of constant shitting on animation creators and seeing quality potential animated shows being fucked over non-stop.

No need to be sorry because you should be mad. Everyone that has any sort of connection to animation should be furious. There needs to be some sort of a catalyst for an "animation revolution" of sorts because something has to change. Nothing is getting through all of the stubborn greed that seem opposed to animated content and the number of good shit we lose in the process just keeps increasing.

It's bullshit that so many series can come around and hit all the right notes but if they can't become overly commercialized or be used as a prop to make a network look good then they are ultimately treated as useless. Like, GG to the animated shows that can manage to pull that hustle but it sucks that other shows always have to ultimately suffer because of it. Also, considering how Nickelodeon did their last TMNT series as time went on I'm just thinking at this point tell me you have something against the franchise that y’all fucking bought.

[fulltimeviking]

Literally ignore me, because I'm purely running off speculation and poorly sourced twitter articles, but if the word about live action httyd is true i am going to be sooooo sick. Like, on one hand just the lack of disrespect that it's existence would mean to the original franchise makes me kind of angry... because if httyd as a franchise did anything it was show that animated movies are as respectable a medium of storytelling and film as live action ones are. On the other hand, I'm ngl i've had a httyd shaped hole in my heart since 2019 that i've never truly gotten over, so there's a veeeeerrryyyyy small part of me that like... kind of WANTS to be excited but can't bring myself to be 💀

[inamindfarfaraway]

How To Train Your Dragon: A Soaring Success

[Note: I wrote this review as a persuasive writing assignment for GCSE English Language.]

Being a childhood fan of the book series by Cressida Cowell and formerly a staunch hater of the film adaptation on grounds of unfaithfulness, I was pleasantly surprised to find my unreasoning “But in the book -” bluster didn’t hold up. The basic premise is the same: a nerdy Viking boy named Hiccup befriends a dragon he calls Toothless; (mis)adventure ensues. The film does seem to have a more serious tone than I remember in the books, with genuine heart and realistic drama to offset the comedic antics. But what won me over was that it took inspiration from the books, yes, but never tried to stick to them fanatically or maliciously disrespected them, instead making the absolute most of its different medium and tackling the premise with its own unique flare.

You’ll see it how it makes the most of being an animated movie right from the start. True to Dreamworks’s reputation, the animation is gorgeous. Lush greenery in the forests; chilly, choppy, practically photorealistic ocean; weathered wood and stone surfaces making up the Viking village of Berk; intricate fabric; and spellbinding lighting effects all help to immerse you in the world - even the dragons themselves, especially the irresistibly cute Toothless, have as plausible proportions and anatomy as possible borrowing physical and behavioural traits from many real creatures while maintaining a cartoonish uniqueness. They actually felt like dragons to me for the first time in a long time, not just horses/dogs/etc. with a fantasy filter. The classic ‘fire-breathing winged vertebrate quadruped’ formula and aforementioned animal traits keep their creative designs grounded, but generic dragons these are not. Oh, and the humans’ designs and movements radiate personality and charm too. The voice acting, sound effects, and John Powell’s soundtrack are equally breathtaking. You’ll be humming the themes for days. Standout scenes of these two aspects harmonizing beautifully are the sequence of Hiccup and Toothless slowly building mutual trust (backed by the touching instrumental track “Forbidden Friendship”, aka the point the abundance of good reviews clicked), Hiccup’s exhilarating first proper flight on Toothless (backed by “Test Drive”, which I can only describe as the pure terror, wonder and majesty of flying in musical form), and his later “A Whole New World”-esque ride with his love interest Astrid (backed by “Romantic Flight”). In a bold choice they have barely any dialogue between them. If you want to know what flying feels like, watch this movie.

Hiccup and Toothless really carry the story, their personalities and unlikely friendship instantly compelling. Apprentice smith Hiccup is a witty, intelligent, mechanically inclined, somehow both wise and naive teenage outcast whose warlike society - his well-intentioned, but stubborn and overprotective father Stoick the Vast in particular - dismisses his lack of grace and physical ability, leaving him yearning to prove himself. Killing a dragon is considered a rite of passage, since the fearsome beats conduct regular raids of food on Berk and destroy property. A war has raged between the species as long as anyone can remember. So he manages to capture the fastest, scariest dragon known to the Vikings: a Night Fury. Nobody’s ever seen one up close, or at least done so and lived to tell the tale. Except the Night Fury is discovered to be no more intrinsically evil than any other animal and expresses his curious, clever, friendly personality to the extent that Hiccup can’t stand to take such a humanlike life. Toothless is not only a lovable pet, he soon becomes the boy’s best friend. Guilty about disabling the draconic deuteragonist’s flight when his invention captured him, Hiccup works to restore it through science and stumbles upon the art of dragon riding and revolutionary idea of actually understanding dragons in the process. The rest of Berk... does not take this well. Especially anti-dragon hardliner Stoick, who embodies everything Hiccup isn’t. Did I mention Stoick’s the chief of the tribe?

I’ll admit, the plot can be predictable at times. You know Hiccup’s secret will come out. You know he and his dad will have a big falling out and then reconcile. You know the skills he was mocked for at the start will allow him to succeed. Astrid as a character was interesting, a cool, confident foil to Hiccup, yet refreshingly openminded and astute compared to the other Vikings. But her romantic suplot seemed rushed and a little tacked on for the sake of it.

There were still enough twists to keep me engaged. Blacksmith and dragon defence trainer Gobber’s markedly more likeable than his book counterpart and genuinely entertaining. I didn’t think I would like Stoick, but he did have moments of sincerity and vulnerability that made all the difference. His relationship with Hiccup was a realistic one of ultimately unconditional love and care strained by poor communication; conflicting views and interests; disappointment and disrespect on Stoick’s side; and insecurities clouding Hiccup’s judgement, exacerbated by societal pressure; culminating in a heartbreaking rejection that gravely hurts both of them. They echo each other throughout the film, showing their similarities. In one scene they attempt a hilariously/painfully awkward heart-to-heart where neither is able to just be a normal human being. Every scene felt perfectly paced, neither too long too too short, and little parallels like that tied all the character arcs together into a cohesive character-driven story.

The human and dragon war turns out to have human and dragon aggressors. Although peace and understanding is great, sometimes violence is unavoidable. To my infinite relief the final message is not another easy repeat of ‘Be yourself’: Hiccup already knew that, he wanted to defeat dragons with brains, not brawn, and have his individual strengths celebrated. Instead it’s more along the lines of ‘Compassion and a progressive mindset can be more beneficial than irrational traditionalism and fear’, plus a dash of the real meaning of courage and power of friendship thrown in. And Toothless and Gobber’s prosthetics demonstrate a mature approach to disability poignantly brought to the fore in the denouement.

In conclusion, if you can suspend your disbelief and accept a little unoriginal storytelling, go ahead and enjoy the vibrant characters, entrancing world, gripping action, emotional rollercoaster (or should that be dragon ride?) and royal feast for your senses that is How To Train Your Dragon.

[fanbot227]

Kids deserve quality content

I think a major issue that has cursed kids content since the beginning is the idea of “This is for kids so it’s okay if it’s bad.” 

Creating an entire show has so many parts and is much more difficult than people realize. However, allowing poorly made garbage heaps to be thrown in the face of millions of children for profit is a disservice to the human race. 

Storytelling is one of the most human things out there. We evolved to tell stories as a way of teaching others. I wasn’t the kind of kid to go out and take risks and be fine with making mistakes. I didn’t gain wisdom through my own experiences with life but over the years I have learned a lot from TV shows. Yes, most of it is fictional or altered to fit a format but that doesn’t mean that you can’t possibly learn from these shows. In fact, childhood is a crucial point in your life when it comes to learning. If we assume that you can’t learn anything from TV shows and that they’re just a dumb waste of time, then why are we so okay with subjecting our children to that? Wouldn’t it make sense to utilize this medium to encourage kids to learn? If we can’t trust shows to teach kids something, then what’s the point? 

Money. 

Since there are strict rules regarding child labor, companies found an alternative way to make a profit off of children. The more eyes on their content, the more profit they make. Since money is their main focus, they don’t care about whether or not their content is good or insightful. Companies have found great ways to boost profits and the result is an insulting vibrant rainbow of high-energy filth with screaming as the soundtrack. With parents not wanting to act like parents and companies wanting to make as much profit off of a single child as possible, these kids are spending their childhoods staring at complete and utter dross that doesn’t engage any mental exercises or take them on emotional journeys.

I am in no way a professional in anything. However, I am a human and I was a child. I had quality shows growing up and what hurts more than seeing the kind of disrespect companies show kids is the fact that everyone is okay with this. Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of quality content for kids today and there are plenty of parents who do care about their children. I just felt I needed to address the ones who think kids are just some dumb creatures that they don’t need to pay attention to.

Now that that rant is over, I would like to define what makes a quality show for kids.

There is a clear difference between good shows and bad shows. Do not be mistaken by the word “quality”. “Quality” isn’t having a large budget for A list (voice) actors, top notch animators or sets, or even having the greatest band in this century to make the soundtrack. There are plenty of quality kids shows that don't have a high budget. I think Popee the Performer is a great example of this. Although it’s questionable whether or not Popee the Performer is suitable for kids, it was intended for and enjoyed by children. This show is very violent but I think what overtakes that is the charm of it all. This show had a low budget and only had time for a couple of minutes each episode. They couldn’t even afford voice actors so the entirety of the show (minus a phrase spoken by the frog in the last episode) is voiceless. Even with all these restraints, Popee the Performer is a very enjoyable show with fun characters. Kedamono is a wolf wearing orange shorts and a mask who is a deuteragonist of the show. On top of his very sweet personality, what makes him so lovable is how he expresses emotion. Every time he changes expression, his mask falls off to reveal the next emotion. Throughout the show, a seemingly endless stream of masks fall off and I really adore this idea. There are even a couple of scenes where he’s cleaning his masks. This level of creativity was matched with a level of care put into how their world works, even if it’s ridiculous. What makes a show “quality” isn’t throwing in the best of the best to push out an entire show to slap in the face of children, but it’s the love and care put into every second of it even if you’re being rushed. The difference between a show made with passion and a show made for profit is blatantly obvious. 

Hilda is a Netflix original show that is so clearly bursting with passion. Experiencing the show is a journey through a world unlike our own full of wonder and adventure. This show is not at all like Popee the Performer but it does make an amazing kids show. Every detail--even ideas fully expressed later in the season--is carefully thought out and planned. Hilda is a case where quality tools, great execution, and great care all meet. It expresses ideas about relationships and explores how people view the world very beautifully. I think Hilda is a rare show where I don’t have any notes on how it can be improved. So much love was put into this show and it shines through. 

I think quality is something kids haven’t gotten a lot of. People don’t have respect for children and it’s obvious. I think we need to change how we view kids. They are the future, they should be getting as much love and care as possible. Wisdom does not come with age, we cannot expect children to just instantly understand how the world works. Our childhoods are here so we can figure out who we are and what our place is in the world. If kids grow up as tools for profit, then that’s what they’re going to be. I don’t know about you, but that world sounds terrifying and I’m not just gonna let that happen.

[cricktoon]

While watching the dark crystal series it really makes me think that puppeteering really should be the new medium for fantasy storytelling. We need a puppeteering/animatronic renaissance. Idk what it is to me about the constant barrage of CGI everything in entertainment that looks and feels so... empty. I'm not at ALL disrespecting the medium itself but every time a new animated/fantasy movie comes out it's like. It's all meant to either mimic life *exactly* or have the same wide-eyed small-faced looking characters that everyone comes to expect.

With puppets maybe you have to suspend your disbelief a little, but if our only other options are exact mimics of real life or glen keane's woman then well I'm not sure what to do with myself

[themattress]

Pokemon Franchise Narrative Comparison

To this day, there have been only three other mediums that have run for as long as the core Pokemon game series has: the anime series, the Pokemon Adventures manga series, and the Trading Card Game. With the obvious exception of the TCG, these have all had narrative arcs within each passing generation, and I want to use this post to compare their quality.

GEN I Games: Red/Blue/Green/Yellow Anime: Original Series: Indigo League + Orange Islands (The Beginning) Manga: Red/Blue/Green Chapter, Yellow Chapter  

1st Place - Manga. The original R/B/G Chapter brings the world of the Game Boy games to life in stunning accuracy, while also its own spin on certain things and crafting a simple yet sophisticated coming-of-age narrative, with the Yellow Chapter being its Actionized Sequel that raises the stakes even higher and deepens everything within this manga series. Add to this clear influence from the anime and the fact that it’s the only Gen I product to feature the character of Green in it, and we have the definitive story for the franchise’s first generation.

2nd Place - Anime. While increasingly less faithful to the details of the games, the anime remained very faithful to the spirit of them while telling its own coming-of-age tale for Ash Ketchum in the Indigo League series, plus a “postgame scenario” equivalent with the Orange Islands series. The highlight of this story is definitely how it fleshes out the games’ main antagonists: Gary Oak, Team Rocket and Mewtwo, into interesting, memorable characters.

3rd Place - Games. The 8-bit adventure that started it all is incredibly bare-bones and basic: take the Pokemon League challenge, thwart the evil Team Rocket along the way, and if possible fill up that Pokedex with all 151 Pokemon (”Gotta Catch ‘Em All!”). As a story, it’s not very interesting, but as an excuse for gameplay it works marvelously and established a winning formula for the series, and to this day it’s still charming in its wholesome simplicity.

GEN II Games: Gold/Silver/Crystal Anime: Original Series: GS (Gold and Silver) Manga: Gold/Silver/Crystal Chapter

1st Place - Manga. It’s funny - in the first volume of the G/S/C Chapter, things seemed to be a definite downgrade from the Kanto-based arcs that came before in terms of artwork, characterization and narrative. But then the mysterious masked antagonist appears at the end, and from then on out things just keep escalating to such epic heights that it becomes the best Johto story in the franchise and arguably the best arc in the whole manga series! Practically everyone and everything from the previous two arcs end up joining up with the new elements and the series up to this point is brought to a satisfying, conclusive note. 

2nd Place - Games. While the League challenge and Pokedex narrative threads are basically the same as before, and the Team Rocket thread is actually weaker, this story also features a stronger regional setting, a stronger rival, and stronger characterization for side characters both old and new, especially in the special edition, Crystal, making it a welcome step-up.  

3rd Place - Anime. An attempt at a new narrative was notoriously abandoned early on, with Takeshi Shudo leaving the head writer position and the whole show devolving into formulaic Filler Hell. While the Johto League tournament that concluded the whole thing was good, there was barely a story to support getting there, and the main characters had all become Flanderized versions of their former selves by the end. Without question, the anime had jumped the shark. But Shudo did give us the best movie and an OVA that properly concluded Indigo League’s Mewtwo arc before he was through, so let’s not say it was a total waste.

GEN III Games: Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald, FireRed/LeafGreen Anime: Advanced Generation (Ruby and Sapphire) Manga: Ruby/Sapphire Chapter, FireRed/LeafGreen Chapter, Emerald Chapter

1st Place - Games. The first time that the games get first place, but only on the technicality that the other contenders are worse, since this really isn’t that big an improvement over the previous two generations’ game narratives. The biggest difference is that your character is the child of one of the Gym Leaders, and the evil team narrative thread (Team Aqua and/or Team Magma this time) builds to an epic high-stakes event that involves the Legendary Pokemon mascot of the game which will become a mainstay of the formula from now on. There is also the remakes of the original Gen I games, and aside from some small tweaks of improvement and a postgame scenario in an island archipelago (anime-inspired, perhaps?), the narrative is basically the same as it was before. Nothing outstanding, but serviceable. 

2nd Place - Manga. Talk about a mixed bag...the R/S Chapter started out with promise but ended up going to shit in its second half, the FR/LG Chapter was fantastic only to conclude with a bullshit last-minute cliffhanger, and the Emerald Chapter that connects the two arcs is just stereotypical, badly-written shonen crap with only a few good elements in it (plus some ironic enjoyment to be had in its batshit insane climax). On the whole, this was the weakest period that the manga series has ever had, despite Kusaka and Yamamoto’s best efforts.  

3rd Place - Anime. Beyond May and her character arc which, by some lucky fluke, came together wonderfully, the anime hadn’t improved that much from the Johto days. Hoenn was not done any justice (even the manga did a better job with it!), and the FRLG/Emerald composite for the filler arc afterward was just weird in spite of how entertaining half of it was. All in all, the anime hadn’t gotten a real narrative back. It was just going through the motions.

GEN IV Games: Diamond/Pearl/Platinum, HeartGold/SoulSilver Anime: Diamond & Pearl Manga: Diamond/Pearl Chapter, Platinum Chapter, HeartGold/SoulSilver Chapter

1st Place - Manga. Pokemon Adventures retakes its crown in this generation, with a phenomental two arcs in the Sinnoh region that are so linked that they essentially make up one whole story, and a brief, adequate arc in Johto that properly bridges the gap between those Sinnoh arcs and the Emerald arc before them. Whenever I think of Sinnoh, it’s the region portrayed in this manga that comes to mind, which is a testament to its high quality.

2nd Place - Games. One word can describe the narratives of these games: overcooked. There are a lot of good ingredients here that elevate the series’ storytelling to a new level, but way too many cooks who don’t have a unified idea of how to properly mix them together means that it becomes a muddled mess of mythology, philosophy and vague character motivations. This particularly pisses me off when it effects the otherwise solid Gen II remakes. However, the good elements are still good regardless, and as showcased by the following generation this was a necessary learning curve to get through, so it deserves some respect.

3rd Place - Anime. Ugh. Newly appointed head writer Atsuhiro Tomioka tries to have his cake and eat it too here, maintaining the anime’s banal filler formula while also attempting to tell a legitimate narrative, but he as just one man somehow manages to clutter up that narrative more than the several writers did for the games in this generation! It is an increasingly insufferable roller coaster of plot threads and supposed character arcs that are drawn out to the point of disinterest across four years, with you really feeling the disastrous pace when it takes a years’ worth of time between Ash winning his 7th badge and him winning his 8th. Combine this with the source material of the games being disrespected or cast aside perhaps worse than ever, and you get what I will always believe is the lowest point for the anime.  

GEN V Games: Black/White, Black 2/White 2 Anime: Best Wishes + Best Wishes Season 2 (Black and White) Manga: Black/White Chapter, Black 2/White 2 Chapter

1st Place - Games. With this generation, particularly with its first set of games, the learning curve undergone in Gen IV paid off. This is quite possibly the richest narrative in the whole game series in terms of plot, characterization and themes, and the peak of the traditional formula. Combined with stellar gameplay, it creates a high point that has yet to be matched.

2nd Place - Manga. The Black/White Chapter had a rough start, just copying the games’ plot almost to the letter but with the characterizations for the main characters truly being less than ideal (see what I did there?) However, once Black and White go their own separate ways the arc starts rapidly improving until it ends on a phenomenal high note that segues perfectly in the Black 2/White 2 arc that, like the Yellow arc, is an Actionized Sequel and, like the Platinum arc, is essentially the continuation and conclusion of the same story as in the previous arc. The only real mark against it is that it can be too fast-paced which only adds to the frustrating irony of the absolutely Hellish schedule slip it underwent (8 fucking years for an arc of just 24 chapters / 3 volumes to be completed! It’s never going to live that fact down!)

3rd Place - Anime. Kind of the reverse of the manga: had a great start being the best that the anime has been in a long time, only to get progressively weaker, with the third and final year being a trainwreck of checking off plot points in a mad rush to promote the upcoming Gen VI and pander to the whiny fanboys who’d been complaining about the loss of the formula and D/P-style story writing (yes, they actually liked those) plus the “soft reboot” aspect going on, particularly with Ash. However, much like the Gen IV games, the Gen V anime proved to be a necessary learning curve for the future and is a highly impactful series in that regard, so it deserves respect for that (although I hate that both a natural disaster and the B2/W2 games screwed up the originally planned Team Plasma arc! It’s never going to live that fact down!) 

GEN VI Games: X/Y, Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire Anime: XY + XY&Z Manga: X/Y Chapter, Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire Chapter

1st Place - Manga. I thoroughly dislike the story of the X/Y games and the Delta Episode of OR/AS, so imagine my surprise when Pokemon Adventures actually makes something good out of them (or, in the Delta Episode’s case, something tolerable at best). The X/Y Chapter is a delightful deconstruction of a lot of what’s in the games, turning what was light and fluffy and hollow into something dark and suspenseful and meaningful. And the OR/AS Chapter gets points for being the best that Ruby and Sapphire have ever been characterized, to the point where they’ve been officially Rescued from my Scrappy Heap (Emerald’s still lame tho).

2nd Place - Games. Like I said, I dislike the X/Y games’ narrative and the Delta Episode of OR/AS; I think they are the worst writing the game series has ever seen to date. But the main narrative of OR/AS - the actual remake of the Gen III games which features a lot of new and necessary improvements - is solid, and that’s enough to put the games at second place here.

3rd Place - Anime. Similarly, the one thing the anime series does really well - the Myth Arc, which includes the Team Flare storyline - is not enough to elevate it beyond third place, because the rest of the series’ narrative is just as lame as the X/Y games’, there’s not much benefit from OR/AS elements, and everything that it positions in its shameful fan-pandering utterly fails to deliver or add up to anything meaningful in the end. The Mega Evolution specials pretty clearly demonstrate that this should have been Alain’s show, not Ash’s.

GEN VII Games: Sun/Moon/Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon Anime: Sun & Moon Manga: Sun/Moon/Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon Chapter

1st Place - Games. The Gen V games have serious competition story-wise with the Gen VII games. Both S/M and US/UM are excellent, with things not done so well in one being done better in the other and vice-versa to the point where they compliment each other beautifully.

2nd Place - Anime. Miracle of miracles! For the first time since Gen I, the anime series gets its narrative in second place, with Daiki Tomiyasu and Aya Matsui completely reinventing it in a refreshingly fun and vibrant way. There are some missed opportunities here and there, but overall it’s a perfect adaptation of the Alola region and everything that makes it so great.

3rd Place - Manga. While this is still an arc of good quality that I like, it’s also perhaps the most disappointing since Ruby/Sapphire back in Gen III. After doing so well with Sinnoh, Unova and Kalos, one senses that Kusaka and Yamamoto struggled to adapt Alola to that same standard, and while the decision to keep US/UM as part of the same arc rather than be a separate one was wise, it’s during the US/UM half of the arc that things really start falling apart and the wasted potential of stuff that got set up earlier becomes overbearing. It doesn’t help that the leads are an unlikable hero with an interesting, relatable goal and a likable heroine with an uninteresting, unrelatable goal respectively. Let’s hope that the patchwork done in the volume releases fixes some of the problems so that I can like this arc even more.

GEN VIII Games: Sword/Shield Anime: New Series (Journeys) Manga: Sword/Shield Chapter

1st Place - Manga. As I recently stated, Kusaka and Yamamoto are back at their A-Game with this arc, taking advantage of all that was lacking in the games’ story and utilizing them in an interesting narrative that I can’t wait to further experience alongside our surrogate, Marvin.

2nd Place - Games. If the Gen IV games’ narrative was overcooked, then the narrative of the games four generations later is most definitely undercooked. It’s not the worst story - that’s still Gen VI - but it’s possibly the most disappointing since it’s so easy to see how it could have been better and you are left baffled as to why the writers didn’t go in that direction.

3rd Place - Anime. This series is highly enjoyable thanks to the continued leadership of Daiki Tomiyasu, but not only is there not as much of a narrative as there’s been in earlier shows, it isn’t even uniquely Gen VIII-based: taking place across all regions in the Pokemon World and taking influence from mobile games like Go (released in Gen VI) and Masters (released in Gen VII).  Add to that the unfortunate hiatus it’s now on and it can’t help but be placed last.

[yors-truly]

Huester's Pacing Thoughts (HBOMax/WB Discovery and Animation)

Decided to post this on Tumblr of all places because 1) I don't really feel like making a twitter thread that may not even fit all of my thoughts, and 2) I haven't been getting much satisfaction typing on a word document recently because school started back up and I can't seem to use it without thinking about that, apparently.

I just wanted to utilize this energy I've built up while pacing around the room with my thoughts to ramble about my current gripes with the whole thing between HBOMax/Waner Bros Discovery and animation. I'll probably regret this later, as I get totally overwhelmed speaking my mind, but animation literally means the world to me and I'm feeling mighty courageous right now, so I'll give it a shot.

IDK how long this is gonna be, so I'll put a small wall here to bless your scrolling experience. You're so super welcome :)

Yo, you actually care about what I have to say? Thank the blue moon!

My thoughts may not be communicated well, due to me feeling so strongly about this, so I apologize if my writing comes off as a little clumsy.

I don't know a single person who thinks the opposite so far (other than the people behind this, apparently), but I'm extremely frustrated with the decision made to erase several animated shows from the platform. Shows like Close Enough, Infinity Train, Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart (my beloved), and Mighty Magiswords (my beloved and my childhood) are all being tossed into a drenched wasteland, totally inaccessible to the public (maybe unless you pirate or something). Not only that, but the history of these shows are being replaced by space, too! From what I hear, the Infinity Train pilot and all other content has been deleted off of Cartoon Network's YouTube Channel and the show's soundtrack has recently been removed from streaming services, such as Spotify.

In addition to the above, all future content for these shows has also gone down the drain. For example, Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart was supposed to get a second season - one that my brother and I hyped over for 2 YEARS - fully complete and ready to go, only for this to happen and the season to never see the light of day.

This is where the knuckles get cracking. And I mean AUDIBLE cracking.

I am beat by the constant disservice of animation. We - the people who care - are beat by the constant disservice of animation. Not only is it massively disrespectful to the series, but it's disrespectful to the team(s) behind them, the fans of the content, and to the people who pay for this streaming service just for these shows (I know you all are out there... maybe...).

It's not just HBOMax, either, though. It's some major houses in general, contributing to the fall of what made them rise to begin with. They're just about being their own grim reapers, in a weird sense. I very much understand that new heads and whatnot run these houses, but the fact that they have that position to begin with should mean that they care at least a bit about these properties and their history. I tend to forget, though, that that's not always the case.

There are so many other examples of animation and the people behind them getting similar levels of disrespect, other than the complete erasure of them from the face of the Eather. A major part of that having to do with how animation is perceived, from the looks of it. You've got the teams of these shows being mildly overworked and underpaid (and still fighting for fair treatment) and animation being boosted less than whatever else we've got going around. While the thought of at least some stuff getting pushed is great, it's also super degrading and exhausting at the same time.

These points further enforce the false idea of animation being a medium "just for kids," and therefore not worth the same amount of time and recognition - and being viewed as less valuable - than whatever else is being produced in other storytelling mediums.

Coming from someone who is a minor, animation is not "just for kids." Never has been, and never will be.

Coming from someone who has had past experience with animation, has been wanting to get back into it and take it seriously, and has a brother whose been working on a webseries of his own for the past 2 years now with a totally neat crew of voice actors, other animators, and background artists, it is a lot of work, and deserves all of the attention in the world.

Coming from someone who is passionate about storytelling, animation is the best form of it we have ever had, and probably ever will have... unless something better comes into the mix and outshines it, which I doubt.

You wanna know why I doubt that?

Because animation is art, and art is forever.

Art is created by the hands of the soul. Sometimes, many souls. Art often reveals the journey of the person who created it, usually about a truth or lesson that they have grown to learn and wishes to share with others creatively, as a way to provide a sense of comfort to the viewer during their points of struggles, or just to entertain someone for even a second with something that catches their eye. Art comes with authenticity, intention, and a vision that the creator was willing to share with the world. To have their work consumed alive by some greedy time eater - acting like it never existed - is not only insulting, but it's also a major slap in the face; a shot to the heart. You're looking at the creator - who chose to be vulnerable - dead in the eyes, and saying, "You do not matter."

I don't know about you, but if that were me and my months-to-years of hard work, I would've combusted on the spot, have it be internally or externally. Maybe both, if I'm really feeling it.

So uh... yeah. That happened. We're all upset and somewhat hogwild. Now what?

Well, from what I've seen, people have been using this opportunity to boost and support indie animation until the big boys respawn into their senses. To that I say: GOD BLESS!

I am very much in love with indie animation, major reason why I usually have nothing to talk about with my friends, and although all of this is very crappy, and we will NEVER forget it (best wishes to the teams and their hard work lost into time), the fact that this idea was the result of it is literally heart-throbbing to me! Like I love to see it! Even though I love indie animation, I actually don't have a lot of stuff on my radar, so I'm willing to see what pops out of this.

To end this on a groovy note, go check out and support indie productions! As much as you can! Recommend some by commenting, if you made it this far and wish to share! WE ALL GOTTA EAT!!

Go look at Monkey Wrench and Defenders of Alodia! Go binge Eddsworld, Madness Combat, and Battle for Dream Island again! I'm this close to watching Helluva Boss, despite me not yet being of age, because I want to support the series as much as me and my dry wallet self can! (Had some second thoughts. Changed my mind. Still, go support it!)

There's another show known as Wayfarers of the Multiverse that I heard about on Instagram, supposedly releasing a pilot soon, if not already, so there's another one to go look at!

Also, shameless plug of my brother's own work, inspired by Battle for Dream Island, called Battle for Wonderland. It's still in the works and only has a few clips and a short posted right now, but a plan to release still holds to this year. I also voice act a character in that show, so all the more reason to check it out LMAO!

I'll provide links to all of these in time :)

Maybe, at some point, we can have a streaming service made SPECIFICALLY for animation, hopefully by people of the community, so we can have a home for stories of all sizes and prevent stuff like this from happening in the future, because these stories matter.

(or we could just get DVDs back in business. That'll work, too.)

[recentanimenews]

FEATURE: Intimidated By One Piece? Here's How I Finally Started Watching

  Hello everyone, and welcome to Why It Works. Have you ever considered starting One Piece, but felt intimidated by the show’s massive length? One Piece is nearing 1,000 episodes now, meaning you could watch an episode a day for literal years and not be finished. That stretch of content used to intimidate me as well — my prior attempts to dive into the franchise petered out somewhere around 20 episodes or so. But this spring, I’ve at last plunged into the One Piece deep end and am now munching through episodes at an almost terrifying rate. With One Piece now available in a bunch of new regions, I figure it’s a fine time to share my own experiences getting into One Piece and hopefully help a few of you sink your teeth into this anime titan!

    First off, I should make something absolutely, unambiguously clear from the start: I get it. I really do. One Piece is a ridiculously long show. Not only that, but in my opinion, the beginning of the franchise is a genuinely rough watch. We all have a natural tendency to get defensive of our favorites, but I feel in One Piece’s case, it can actually be quite discouraging to hear “it’s great right from the start!” When you’re starting out, it’s quite possible you’ll find the show to be rough going, so learning fans think this part is “great” is likely to just tell you it’s not worth continuing. Well, I’m here to tell you that that’s nonsense and that it’s worth emphasizing the tangible ways One Piece improves over time.

  As one last qualifier, I should emphasize that I’m normally pretty skeptical of the phrase “it gets better over time.” I generally see such an argument as a reflection of a growing emotional attachment, or simply the sunken cost fallacy — but One Piece strikes me as the rare case where the material truly does improve substantially over time, as a reflection of both the production’s increasing resources, as well as Oda’s flourishing abilities as an artist and writer. 

    Early One Piece possesses some clear limitations — the animation and background art are limited, the arc narratives are a little too similar to each other, the villains can seem a bit underwhelming, and the islands the Straw Hats visit all seem kinda interchangeable. I’d be the first to acknowledge these issues, and also the first to say that the franchise does indeed overcome them. Yes, the animation and art design will become stronger down the line. Yes, the storytelling and characterization will get more complex and compelling. Yes, the islands Luffy visits become far more creative and start to feel like a reward in their own right. Over time, Oda matures tremendously as a writer, One Piece’s world blooms into a vibrant universe, and the ensemble appeal of following a pirate crew kicks into gear. But at the beginning, none of these strengths are readily apparent, and I can absolutely understand any doubts that the story might get there.

  So, how long does One Piece actually take to get there? Well, I’d say things start shaping up around Arlong Park (roughly Episode 30), when Oda starts to get a handle on poignant character beats, narrative arcs with a variety of threads, and creating a sense of physical place on his islands. After that, One Piece really starts to embody the thrill of adventure when the crew actually hit the Grand Line (Episode 62), and start visiting islands that all feel like dangerous, improbable amusement parks.

    Of course, that’s still a pretty long time — longer, in fact, than most anime in their entirety. Fortunately, I’m here to let you in on a little secret: a great deal of that time is dead air and easily skipped by even a slightly vigilant viewer.

  When you’re watching a new anime on a weekly basis, every minute of opening, recap, and next-time-on can feel like squandered potential — after all, you’re only getting one episode that week, so you want it to be a full meal of an experience. But when you’re watching a back catalog, all of that stuff can be easily skipped, resulting in a far more propulsive experience. For One Piece, as time wears on, most of its episodes offer a good seven or so minutes you can easily cut and instead start straight from the title drop. As a result, the show shifts from a collection of 22-minute episodes with a lot of dead air to crisp, efficient 15-minute episodes. Don’t even get me started on recap or anime-original episodes — if something feels inessential, don’t be afraid to look up if it’s truly important!

  To top off this sacrilege with another piece of sacrilege, here’s some more advice: One Piece works phenomenally as a second-screen watch, particularly if you’re watching the dub. The relative stillness of early One Piece animation means the story is generally carried by the dialogue, so if you keep One Piece on in the background, you can keep up with it while getting other tasks done. Obviously, this isn’t a great strategy when the show starts to get really visually compelling, but by that time, hey, the show’s really visually compelling! Problem solved.

    I’m aware these gambits might sound a bit disrespectful, but the fact is, we’re talking about a 1,000-episode series here, one where most people’s favorite moments don’t start cropping up until several hundred episodes in. Once you’re deep into One Piece, you’re likely to be hooked and have no need for such tricks. Therefore, rather than making sure to watch the show in some allegedly “correct” way, I feel it’s far more important to make sure you get hooked, using whatever shortcuts are at hand.

  Finally, I strongly suggest taking advantage of the natural “chapter breaks” provided by One Piece’s island structure and breaking the journey into chunks that work for you. Though I’m sure you’ve heard of the show’s eventually mammoth arcs, early on, each adventure only lasts for, at most, a dozen or so episodes. Embrace this structure — set yourself reasonable watch goals, and frankly, if you’re not enjoying a particular island, feel free to just skip ahead. One Piece is so freeform that, while you might eventually reunite with a missed character, there are relatively few consequences of just jumping to whatever sounds exciting to you. The very fact that Oda’s writing improves so substantially over time means the early material is inherently somewhat segregated from the later stuff — if you want to rush ahead to grand adventures, go for it!

    Ultimately, anime should be about your own enjoyment. One Piece shouldn’t be homework, and if it does feel like work, you should feel no compunction to continue. But please know, from one person who struggled with it to another, that I am extraordinarily glad I put in the effort. Like the Straw Hats themselves, the journey to the Grand Line is rough and perilous, but the spoils of victory are rich beyond wonder. Once One Piece blooms into its fullest form, it possesses a creativity and scale of ambition that rivals anything in the medium. I’m delighted I finally climbed aboard, and I wish you all luck in your own One Piece journeys!

      Nick Creamer has been writing about cartoons for too many years now and is always ready to cry about Madoka. You can find more of his work at his blog Wrong Every Time, or follow him on Twitter.

  Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: Nick Creamer

[amelia-lorenz]

There's been a image shared throughout the internet for years now titled "Cartoons Then Vs. Cartoons Now". It compares various faces from Hanna Barbera and Warner Bros era cartoons to "CalArts" cartoons (Steven Universe, SVTFOE, Gravity Falls, Clarence, etc), and it implies CalArts style is two circles for a head and big eyes and that all cartoons now are like that, compared to more diverse and artistically wholesome styles of the "old days".

Okay, this is the image we’re referring to:

I hadn’t seen this meme before. Very interesting! I could see the point they’re trying to make, but only on the surface. Once you deconstruct it you realize it’s silly...

Caveat: I graduated from Calarts, and I worked on two of these shows, so it’s pretty likely I have a bias toward defending the “cartoons now” stance. So there you go. But I had lunch with my peers today and we discussed this very topic, and we come from both Calarts and non-Calarts backgrounds. And we all agreed this meme was just...annoying. Here were some of our points:

First of all, I'm construing that the people who made this meme are arguing that cartoons today look too similar. Is this the same thing as the “calarts style?” If it is, then their “argument” is off to a bad start. Two of these current shows were created by people who didn’t attend Calarts. (Steven Universe and The Amazing World of Gumball) And the two that DID had the same character designer contribute to the designs for a time (Phil Rynda). 

Secondly, it’s comparing 80+ years of cartoons vs. cartoons from 2011-2015; just 4 years. Pick any 4 years since the beginning of animation as a storytelling medium and my hypothesis is that they, too, followed a somewhat recognizable trend in style and quality, right? Although I still feel like each of these shows is stylistically very unique and stands on its own. 

Thirdly, if this is what people are calling the “calarts style” then it is choosing to ignore the other 99% of animation that comes out of that school. Every year there are new innovative styles of storytelling and character animation that push the envelope--and not just from that school, from ANY animation school! So no, there is no “calarts style,” not in my book, and to me it’s kinda disrespectful or ignorant to assume that there would be. 

It would be fun to pull this apart even more, but I think I’ve put in my two cents worth... I would tell the people who complain about a “calarts style” to just go make your own cartoons if you don’t like what’s out there. 

Thanks for the fun topic! 

(P.S. that dipper is off-model)

[aion-rsa]

With Far Sector, N.K. Jemisin Gets a Turn in the Green Lantern Sandbox

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We talked to author N.K. Jemisin about diving into the world of Green Lantern, her favorite comic books, and why fanfiction matters.

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A three-time Hugo Award winner for her Broken Earth series, N.K. Jemisin is one of the most exciting and celebrated authors working in speculative fiction today. For the first time ever, Jemisin is working in the comic book medium, collaborating with artist Jamal Campbell on a new Green Lantern story that's part of Gerard Way's revived Young Animal imprint for DC.

The new series is called Far Sector, and it follows Sojourner "Jo" Mullen, a member of the Green Lantern Corps who is the sole protector of the City Enduring, a massive metropolis of 20 billion people countless lightyears from Earth.

read more: N.K. Jemisin's Fifth Season TV Series in Development at TNT

The City Enduring has maintained peace for over 500 years by stripping its citizens of of their ability to feel emotion. Therefore, murder and other forms of violent crime are virtually non-existent... until now.

We had the chance to catch up with Jemisin earlier this month at New York Comic Con. Here's what she had to tell us about diving into the world of Green Lantern...

Den of Geek: What your familiarity with Green Lantern before taking on the project?

Jemisin: Almost none. I watched the Justice League cartoon back in the day that had John Stewart as the main Green Lantern. And I mean I knew that Green Lantern was a popular superhero, but beyond that I really didn't understand very much about it. I knew there had been a movie; I didn't see the movie. I rode the Green Lantern ride at Six Flags. That's about all I knew.

That was the limit of it. So when Gerard Way asked me if I would be willing to write the Green Lantern comic, I said, "Look, I need to do some boning up on the lore and the literature," and so the first thing that they did was send me the big Geoff Johns compilations. I don't know if you've seen them, but it's like this big. All hard cover, and the first few years of the original Green Lantern storylines. Not the original, but of some of the most iconic Green Lantern storylines.

And so I was able to read through those. Of course I was able to jump on the various Wikis that exist out there, and then I began to realize that I was drowning in information, because Green Lantern continuity is like any other comic book continuity: there had been retcons, there are contradictions, and I had to try and find ways to resolve that. So, fortunately, with the the Far Sector comic, because it takes place outside of the normal Lantern system, so far away from Earth and all the other Lanterns. In some ways, I was in an isolated space where I can make things happen.

What kind of freedom did you have? Were there things that you did that they were like, "No, actually this contradicts something that already exists in canon," or did you really have pretty much free range to tell your story?

I mean, yeah, I had free range, but I wanted to fit within canon. I mean, there's no value for me in taking these stories so far away from its fanbase.

So the challenge is to make it fit into the continuity, even if it's not directly related. So,at some point, if this character proves popular, if the book proves popular, at some point, she may want to come back and meet the other Guardians ... the other Lanterns. She may move back to Earth, so I need that to be able to work if I do.

I'm curious if your background and presence as a fanfic author helped you in that process of diving into an already-existing narrative universe?

Yeah, effectively, I was writing fanfic—I love it!—except that I wasn't already a fan of this. So I mean it's professional fanfic, but we've seen that out there before. There's a long history of, effectively, fan works insisting within the literary fiction sphere.

Sherlock Holmes story, for example, or the Cthulhu Mythos, all of that is effectively fanfic. The challenge of it is you read the history, you make sure that you've got the canon down pat, and then once you've got that down pat, then you can riff on it.

So that was the idea.

Tell me about working with Jamal Campbell. What did it look like logistically, in terms of your process?

Well, logistically what it means is I gave him a phone call at the beginning of it and I haven't met him in person. So we're doing everything electronically. I write the scripts, we send the scripts to Jamal, Jamal sends us pages.

That's how it's been working, and then we talk back and forth about ... For example, I wanted to convey in this one particular scene that she feels like she's being disrespected. Can we add a little panel where she looks at a thing and gives it a side eye? Something like that.

Cool, and I don't know how much experience you have collaborating in that way while writing a story.

None. This is my first collaboration.

What's that been like?

I'm loving it, I really am. This is the first time, outside of fan art, this is the first time I've ever seen anyone put my stories or characters or anything that I've created to a visual form. I'm used to being able to see it in my head, but I've never had other people try and see it for me.

And he's got a good eye. He's been able to capture what I've been thinking, for the most part.

This story takes place in a city where people no longer have the ability to feel emotion. There are a lot of mainstream, especially female-centric superhero stories that have been commenting on emotion as power, or trying to do that in ways that I feel haven't been super nuanced or complex. I'm curious about that setting and what, if anything, you wanted to say about the strengths or limitations of emotionality or emotional intelligence.

Well, remember that Jo is a black woman, so there is a different nuance or a different variation on that problem that I feel like black women often have to deal with, which is them being treated as too angry, as if anger is dangerous or problematic in some way.

Even when we aren't angry, we're perceived as angry sometimes, and it gets to be a problem, and so Jo is in some cases going to have to deal with being the only emotional person in the room, and she can't get too emotional in her reactions to what she's seeing and what she's having to deal with.

When she starts working through bureaucracy and she expresses frustration with it, she's not going to be perceived as just an emotional woman. She's going to be perceived as a primitive human being. She's going to be perceived as a poor representation of her species, a poor representation of the Lanterns.

She can't get too emotional, so she's got to be able to solve these problems as the lone person in the room that's allowed to be this way, but also judged for being this way. And there's definitely commentary in it.

You're telling a frontier science fiction story of sorts...

A super high tech space society with near omniscient power. I don't know if that qualifies.

It is a high tech story, but Jo is the only Lantern there. She is the only person, as I said, who has emotions. She has to work with the local cops. She's got to form alliances and relationships with her local community and earn their respect in order to have any real power, cause even one person, no matter how powerful, is not going to be able to solve the problems of 20 billion people unless she gets some buy in from them.

Where there other graphic novels or comics that you looked to during this process?

Well, learning how to write, yes. I read The 2000 A.D. Script Book, which has art rendered pages alongside the script agents so you can see how the writer communicated with the artist or how the writer framed the scene and the artist chose to interpret that scene. So that helped me figure out comic writing format and how to do it.

Of course, I read Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics, which was really helpful for helping me understand how storytelling changes in this medium. I've been a comics fan for quite some time, ranging across different media. I did superhero comics a lot when I was back in college, but it got super expensive and I was a poor college student, so I quit around that time.

I read a lot of Japanese manga for awhile. Lately, I have read more indie comics, like Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples, Monstress by a Sana Takeda and Marjorie Liu. I'm a big fan of Kelly Sue DeConnick's work, so I've read a lot of comics more recently ... I mean I enjoy the format, I enjoy good storytelling in all of its forms, but lately I've been reading more superhero stuff.

I did already bring up fanfiction, but I have been asking the authors I'm talking to, especially after Archive of Our Own's Hugo win this summer, that fanfic has meant to them, if anything, both professionally and personally.

I mean, I'm not going to say I started out as a fanfic writer, cause I didn't, but fanfic helped me, I think, develop in a lot of ways, my storytelling. I've been writing fanfic basically since grad school, when I started writing it for stress relief, and really when I got access to the internet. That was back in the AOL days. I'm dating myself, and I continue to write it to this day.

It's a place, like a playground, where I can go and sort of write things that I feel like writing without having to worry about my professional fiction readers coming to scrutinize what I do, and I'm not going to tell anybody what fanfic write or what pseudonyms I use or any of that.

Yeah. What else are you working on that you can talk about?

Oh, well I've got a new novel coming out next year. It's called The City We Became. It is based on a short summary of mine in which the city of New York comes to life and develops an avatar, a human being, one single person who represents the spirit of the city.

Well, in the book, all of the boroughs come to life too, and so there's an avatar in Brooklyn, an avatar in Manhattan, and they all have basically magic powers that grant them the ability to protect the city, and they're protecting the city from basically Cthulhu.

It's not really Lovecraftian, and it's not really a Lovecraftian story, although I'd say it's in conversation with Lovecraft, but yes, there is a giant eldritch abomination that is not happy with New York right now and is trying its damndest to destroy the city, and that comes out in March.

Green Lantern: Far Sector comes out on November 13th. Find out more about N.K. Jemisin's work here.

Kayti Burt is a staff editor covering books, TV, movies, and fan culture at Den of Geek. Read more of her work here or follow her on Twitter @kaytiburt.

Read and download the Den of Geek NYCC 2019 Special Edition Magazine right here!

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Interview Kayti Burt

Oct 21, 2019

Green Lantern

DC Comics

NYCC

NYCC 2019

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