Planet Rinda

     My sixth entry into what is anime will focus on the anime fan community.  Exploring anime can make a fan of you.  But once you become a fan, what then?  Who do you share your excitement and questions with?  Who do you turn to for advice on what to watch next?  Where can you go as a fan and feel like you belong?  The fan community can be the answer to all those questions and more. It used to be that local anime clubs and conventions were a fan’s only options to connect with other fans.  These days, thanks to the Internet, international fans of all kinds can unite in cyberspace.  There are forums, clubs, websites galore out there.  They can provide the anime newbie with direction and advice.  They can provide a home with others who understand your love of anime.  They can also lash out with their own opinions, so be wary.  Explore and discover but keep an open mind.

      Local anime clubs remain one of the gold standards for anime fan community.  There’s a reason for that.  It allows anime fans to connect at a local level.  Weekly or monthly meetings, with screenings of animes, can create close bonds.  But finding an anime club nearby can be tricky.  The Anime Web Turnpike is a great place to start.  They have links to international as well as American fan clubs, not to mention a host of other information for the anime fan.  Meetup.com is another good place to check online for a club near you. Unfortunately, there isn’t always an anime club located near you.  Maybe you’d like to start one up yourself?  There are several resources online to help you that as well.  Ehow.com has some great advice to help you.  ADVFilms and Operation Anime can help fledgling clubs by providing information on new releases and freebies! 

      Conventions are another great place to meet other fans as well as discover what’s new in the industry.  I recommend checking the Anime Convention Nexus for conventions near you.  Conventions can be a lot of fun.  There’s such a festive air about them.  And if you can’t find an anime convention near you, keep a lookout for scifi/fantasy conventions.  These days, conventions rarely limit themselves to a single genre.  The fanbases overlap so much, they’re forced to cater to a wider audience. You’ll find a an anime room and various panels devoted to anime at most larger conventions.  Cosplay, as well, is becoming more and more mainstream.

      Another resource for the anime fan exploring the fan community is the wide-variety of anime forums and websites available on the Internet.  There are so many out there.  And their numbers grow everyday.  My advice is to use your favorite search engine to look around a bit.  Most are devoted to specific types of anime, though you can find some general anime types if you look. 
 
      It’s hard to know what’s the best fit for you until you explore a bit.  It can really be worth the effort though.  Being able to share your love of anime with others who understand is a wonderful experience.  So expand your horizons!  Go for it!

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     In part five of my continuing series on what is anime, I’d like to touch on the effects that Japanese anime can have on it’s fans. Anime itself can be quite entertaining. It’s just fun to watch! Regardless of which style is your personal favorite, it will slowly but surely expose you to new aspects of Japanese culture. Learning to love anime will undoubtedly stir one’s curiosity about Japan and it’s people. The lifestyle, the language, the history…anime can open it all up. Try watching InuYasha and not wondering about feudal Japan! The wonderful samurai animes like Ninja Scroll and Samurai Champloo have the same effect! They draw you into the history of Japan.

Try watching Ninja Scroll and not wondering about feudal Japan!

     Exploring anime will also expose you to the amazing costumes so common in most animes. They can be anything from the standard Japanese school uniforms and traditional kimonos to the fantastical extremes of the futuristic animes like Ghost In the Shell and Final Fantasy. The fans fascination with such clothing has led to an entire sub-culture of fans who attempt to recreate the fashions of their favorite anime characters in reality. This is cosplay.  Cosplay is, quite simply, the practice of dressing up as your favorite anime, manga, game or film character. Usually it’s for a convention or other such genre event. The detail and skill demonstrated by some of the fans is absolutely amazing! And it’s fun. You get to masquerade as beloved characters, take on their personas for a little while and share in the fun.

Cosplay is for everyone!

Vash the Stampede–Wanted Dead or Alive!

     Lastly, delving into anime, you’ll discover the merchandising that seems to go hand in hand with all entertainment these days. Anime is no exception. Though, personally, I think the products connect with anime are a lot more fun than your standard fare! The toys and models are like the animes themselves, amazing, colorful and unexpected!  The fashion spawned by anime can be as simple as a t-shirt declaring your favorite show or perhaps a bag, my personal favorite! You’ll find something cool for nearly every popular anime out there!

     One final thing I’d like to mention…the snacks! Oh, the joy of discovering anime snacks!! I’ve alredy talked about these delicious goodies before on my post Snack Attack and I’m sure I will again. So I just wanted to mention that as you get more into anime, you’ll find yourself longing to try some of the snacks and exotic foods that are so common among all anime. My advice is go for it! The Japanese palate is very different from the American so you’ll be trying things that simply aren’t our standard fare! You can try to resist but the food is everywhere in anime!

Mizuho Kazami–the siren of Pocky!

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     I’ve finally finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. (My boyfriend called dibs when it arrived so I had to wait my turn) My first impression of the book…thought provoking. There was a lot that left me thinking. At times, I found myself having to pause, consider and sometimes reread sections. There’s a lot going on in this book. Which shouldn’t be surprising. J.K. Rowling has a knack for layering her stories. And she’s very good at leaving certain scenes open to the interpretation of the reader.

     Another early impression of the book. It’s complete. I have a genuine sense of having reached the conclusion. It’s a satisfying feeling. More and more it seems these days that so many books, TV shows and movies never really tie things up and end. There’s always a cliffhanger. It’s kinda surprising because I didn’t think I’d feel this way but this book is a solid conclusion to Harry Potter’s story.

     There were some surprises. There were some tears. I anticipated beloved characters would die in this final book. It is a war that they’re fighting after all. Casualties are to be expected. But at least a couple of the deaths were completely unexpected.

     It’s a good book. I will admit that I felt it was dragging at times. By the halfway point, I couldn’t believe that she was going to manage to end the book, let alone the series because it felt like it was meandering so. But once I reached the end, I realized that a great deal of information was imparted in those seemingly slow moving parts. I just didn’t recognize it until it all came together. Rowling is exceptional at foreshadowing. At planting small clues or seemingly insignificant facts that later become pivotal points of reference. She has written an entertaining, delightful and highly addictive series of books that I readily recommend to young and old. These books go far beyond any hype that surrounds them. They are truly magical.

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