The anime series Cowboy Bebop is currently being turned into a live-action series for Netflix, but Cowboy Bebop doesn’t need to be Americanized. The original series was already an homage to Western films and movies. Authors Roland Kelts and Matt Alt talk about how Cowboy Bebop fits into a very Japanese tradition of adopting and even improving upon aspects of ... Show More
Jun 3
How Folklore Spirited Anime Away
Anime and manga are a global phenomenon, and their popularity continues to grow. Many of these stories are populated by supernatural beings called yōkai. Even though yōkai can be portrayed as ghosts, demons, or monsters, they're rarely purely good or evil. We trace the history of ... Show More
37m 49s
May 6
Many Faces of Jekyll and Hyde
Pop culture has been full of Jekylls and Hydes: Bruce Banner and The Hulk, Norman Bates and Mother, Walter White and Heisenberg, The Nutty Professor and Buddy Love. They all echo the archetype that Robert Lous Stevenson established 140 years ago in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll ... Show More
39m 50s
Dec 2022
Stevie Suan, "Anime's Identity: Performativity and Form Beyond Japan" (U Minnesota Press, 2021)
A formal approach to anime rethinks globalization and transnationality under neoliberalism Anime has become synonymous with Japanese culture, but its global reach raises a perplexing question--what happens when anime is produced outside of Japan? Who actually makes anime, and how ... Show More
58m 38s
Nov 2018
Retronauts Episode 181 - Dragon Ball/Sailor Moon Games
Ah, Dragon Ball and Sailor Moon: The twin jewels of '90s anime. Though many series have surpassed these two in longevity and popularity, these anime titans hold sole responsibility for getting so many Americans into anime during the late 90s, when Japanese animation wasn't so com ... Show More
1h 57m