All Articles
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Digging Under the “Strong Female Character” Surface: The exploitation of women in Claymore
Going into it hoping to experience an underappreciated classic, I was met with a series that routinely undervalues the very women that define its main appeal, to the point of ritualistically torturing them on-page and treating what makes up their person as disposable.
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The trans resonance of Haibane Renmei
The series’ use of transformation and body horror resonate with the physical experiences of dysphoria and transitioning; its depictions of mental health struggles, particularly self-harm and suicide, may find special meaning with trans audiences; it thematically explores names as potential sources of both trauma and self-actualization; and the characters of Haibane Renmei strive to build a safe community that promotes healing and growth. Yet I have never seen this two-decade-old series discussed through a trans lens, despite the wealth of potential it has to offer. That ends today.
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Chatty AF 173: 2022 Fall Mid-Season Check-In (WITH TRANSCRIPT)
Vrai, Caitlin, and Peter check in on the absolutely stacked Fall season!
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Work Sucks, I Know: The Marxist horror of Aggretsuko
Aggretsuko isn’t just about the pitfalls that come with growing up and accepting responsibility. It’s about the pitfalls that come within the exploitative system of capitalism.
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My Fave is Problematic: Bleach
Bleach means quite a lot to me. It’s the foundation for so much of my work as an artist and writer that breaking it down into its smaller parts would be very difficult. Reading it carried me through high school as a deeply insecure, deeply in-the-closet teenager, and even through early college when the series ended in 2015.
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Arknights: PRELUDE TO DAWN – Episode 1
While not the most gripping premiere in the world, it’s honestly not bad.
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2022 Fall Three-Episode Check-In
We’re plagued with the best kind of problem: too much good anime to watch!
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Finding models of healthy masculinity in BL manga
In retrospect, I recognize those first fanfics as something that let me safely imagine myself as a boy in a relationship with another boy. That desire to find media that would let me project myself into the positions of these male characters was what led me to discover BL.
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Chatty AF 172: Kare Kano (His and Her Circumstances) Watchalong – Episodes 20-26 (WITH TRANSCRIPT)
Caitlin, Dee, and Meru complete their watchalong of GAINAX-produced shoujo anime and cap things off with some manga discussion!
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Romantic Killer – Episode 1
Cue incoherent screaming at the rotting corpse of Shinzo Abe clawing his way out of the grave as a zombie.
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Fandom Studies Resources
The list below offers some notable books and more informal discussion as places to start, as well as a few anime fandom-specific essays.
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Anime Feminist Recommendations of Summer 2022
Come in out of that brutal summer heat and enjoy the anime crop we harvested.
