Never Finished Darker than Black…

…Yet I’ve chosen my blogging pseudonym to be Shion after Suou’s one-eyed brother from the anime. I like the name, possibly because it sounds similar to my real-life name, so I picked, but I’ve only ever watched maybe ten episodes of Darker than Black before dropping it and watching something else. Anyways…

Hello fellow Anime Addicts Anonymous podcast listeners and enthusiasts! I’m a student studying at UC Berkeley way over in sunny California and I’ve been an anime and manga buff for a great many years. It was only quite recently that I was exposed to the Anime Addicts Anonymous podcast hosted by the very amazing and funny team of Mitsugi, Chiaki, Roukou, and Kimiko, but I was instantly hooked. I’ll admit it upfront right now; after listening to a few of the ‘normal’ episodes, I went and downloaded every single hentai episode onto my iPhone and had to hold my stomach inside of myself from laughing at Roukou’s drunk antics, Chiaki’s steamy hentai impressions, and just the plain fact that I was listening to reviews of hentai, of all things. Luckily for me my brother didn’t choose that day to sneak up on me and snatch my earphones away to find out what I was listening to (an annoying habit of his).

For most of my life, I have lived here in California, where beautiful sunny weather is such a commonplace that most Californians take it for granted. I grew up around my fellow Asian-Americans, so exposure to anime was something that could not be avoided. The very first generation of Pokemon (what are they on now, like thirty?), Digimon, Dragon Ball Z, the original Yu-Gi-Oh, and Miyazaki’s epic films were all every-present staples during my childhood. All of them hold a dear place within my heart as fond memories, but in middle school I began watching anime that could be described as less ‘kiddy’ (if I remember correctly, it may have been Ouran High School Host Club). Don’t get me wrong though, a ‘kiddy’ anime doesn’t necessarily mean it isn’t enjoyable; it’s just intended for a younger audience. On occasion, I’ve watched episodes of Digimon: Xross Wars and Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal and found them to be quite entertaining and nostalgic.

Anime is only one of a few hobbies of mine (*gasp*), but it is a passion I have indulged in much longer than my other hobbies, including writing fanfiction, running and exercising, or gaming. It is a passion that I see myself holding on to in the coming years and decades, where I may even pass it along to my own children eventually. Some of my friends, and especially my parents, see it as childish and silly. It’s clear that they equate anime with American cartoons, a comparison which I find quite insulting, both to myself as well as the anime industry as a whole. I think I can speak for anime-watchers in general when I say that anime is a way of life, something that we may all have been introduced to as children but which we never outgrow. What I love about anime and manga is how effectively they are able to convey a story, the depth of the characters, and the importance of the morals that anime teaches to those who watch it. Anime is not merely a form of entertainment or a time-sink; to me, watching a good anime conveys the same sorts of feelings I get when reading a good novel.

Another great aspect of being an anime enthusiast (I’m gonna refrain from using the term ‘otaku’) is the wonderful and lively community that has built up around the anime world. First and foremost in my mind are the groups who sub every single episode of every single anime that makes it across from Japan. To those amazing volunteers who provide a service that they really ought to be paid for providing, the world of anime that we all know and love would certainly have a much smaller audience; their services are greatly appreciated. Then, of course, there are those people who form the websites and online groups where anime enthusiasts gather to discuss and share their thoughts and opinions. Our very own aaapodcast.com is one among a sea of many. Anime enthusiasts, of course, love to talk about anime. What the hosts of the podcast do is simply their way of sharing their passion for anime. For others, writing reviews, drawing fanart, writing fanfiction, role-playing in online forums, and cosplaying are only the tip of the iceberg. Personally, I am one of the writers.

In the past, I wrote reviews and fanfiction. Now I am taking the leap into blogging, where I hope to write about anything anime-related that is on my mind. This first entry has touched upon a few things I’d like to delve deeper into when writing future posts. I haven’t decided on a specific structure yet, if I even want a structure in place at, or what I’m going to be focusing on in my writings, but I hope you’ll all join me in sharing my passion for anime and manga through my online writings.