Saturday, July 6, 2013

Another by McLelland

I have added another book by Mark McLelland to my recommended prose listings.  In fact I have now decided that when a new title by him is announced I'll just buy it, his books have been that informative.

Here is what I wrote on the recommended page:


McLelland, Mark J.

Love, Sex, and Democracy in Japan during the American Occupation

The post WWII Allied Occupation of Japan is often blamed for modern censorship in Japan. Nothing could be further from the truth. Many of the publications of that time would have been illegal in the US until the later 1960s and even 1970s. McLelland provides us with a great study of how the Japanese redefined gender relations and sex in the post war period after over 15 years of increasing censorship and suppression under the wartime government.

Monday, July 1, 2013

(Watanabe x 2) + Kanno

I now am adding two more anime to the recommended titles listings. Both directed by Watanabe Shinichiro, one with arrangements and original music by Kanno Yoko.


    - Kids on the Slope
When I sat down to watch Kids on the Slope last week I had my dinner and planned to only view the first episode. After the eighth episode I decided it was time to get to bed. This is an interesting drama about three high school students and set in Kyushu. You really don't know when as the show starts but there are clues set throughout the series, things that are there and things that are not there. For Japanese some of these would be obvious but for non-Japanese they are not, eventually you see a calendar. Don't worry too much about the time period, just enjoy the series and the great music.

    - Samurai Champloo
When I first heard of Samurai Champloo being a samurai story mixed with hip hop my first thought was "What a stupid idea." However presentation and story quality are separate from that basic idea. An associate dropped by at one of my potlucks with the first DVD and insisted we watch it. After the first episode I said "I'M BUYING THIS SERIES."
OK that does it. From now on if Watanabe Shinichiro is directing something I am buying it.