Something called the Aniblogger Interrogation Game

So apparently I have been tagged, not once, but twice by Justin and Naru in this Aniblogger Interrogation Game, which came as a bit of surprise since I rarely read blogs lately and had no idea that it even existed. But, once I had found some spare voodoo dolls and a handy tree to nail them to, thus cursing Justin and Naru I set about thinking of answers, questions, along with philosophising about the sound that a falling tree makes when there is no one there to hear it. This interrogation game appears to have been thought up by Iso of Nabe! as a way with which various bloggers could ask and answer questions thus sharing some information and various facts about themselves as human beings as opposed to disembodied existences on the internet.

There are of course rules to this game:

• Each person is supposed to follow the rule of fives. You are allowed to ask 5 questions, after which you can tag up to 5 bloggers by hyper-linking to their blog; 5 questions because it’s not too many to flood another blogger and occupy too much of his/her time, but yet a large enough number to ask your most important questions, and 5 bloggers to avoid spamming. Hence, prioritise your questions, and who you wish to ask!

• Those tagged are obliged to answer the questions in a blog post, and after which, they are entitled to create their own 5 questions and tag 5 other bloggers, so on and so fourth. You should answer your own 5 questions as well. You are allowed to tag the person that tagged you in the first place. Also, copy and paste this section on your blog so others can understand how the game goes.

• In the case where a blogger strongly refuses to answer a question, he/she must instead post a nice anime image, wallpaper or cosplay picture, et cetera in response to that question.

• To make things interesting, a blogger can include wildcards in his/her 5 questions by placing an asterisk, (*), after which those tagged are obliged to reveal something interesting about themselves that others did not previously know. There is no limit to the number of asterisks one can place (which means there can be up to 5 wildcard questions).

• Anyone can feel free to start the game; you don’t necessarily need someone to tag you. Just create your 5 questions and tag your 5 people of choice. However, the catch is that you must answer your own 5 questions as well.

• To potentially prevent an endless game, this round of games will end on the 8th September 2012, 12pm JST (GMT +9). After which, no more bloggers can tag others to answer their questions.

Let us start with Justin’s Questions:

1. What else do you like besides Japanese Pop Culture?

I do quite a lot of other things that don’t involve Japanese Popular Culture in fact, mostly involving some sort of outdoor or extreme sport. I go rock climbing, kayaking (white water and surf), surfing and bouldering, along with hiking, mountain climbing, and of course the occasional bit of archery. There are other sports that I have had a go at of course and a few that I would like to try if I was given the opportunity to. I have also taught many of these sports, spending some time in Japan working on summer camps in Hokkaido, which involved a lot of walking up and down mountains in the heat.

Generally speaking when it comes to things like television though it is mostly anime since there is rarely anything worth watching on television anyway, apart from the occasional film and of course the news. I am also learning Japanese as part of my postgraduate, which is focussed on the Culture and Society of Japan.

2. Since you started blogging, what is the one thing you learned about Anime (or Manga) that you did not know of?

I have not really learned anything about the anime and manga industries from blogging as a whole, it has been a combination of my postgraduate, my trips to Japan and my own interests that have done this instead. I am particularly interested in how anime and manga are almost universal in Japan, with everyone either reading manga or watching an anime at some point in the lives, and usually on a regular basis. However, the idea of being a fan of either is something that is frowned upon by society in general, which has in part given rise to the idea of the Otaku. It is this fascinating juxtaposition between universal, and sub-culture that has become central to some of my own study and research in fact.

3. If there is one thing you would like to see the Anime/Manga industry do, what would it be?

There are a lot of things that the industry could do, but in terms of attempting to gain new markets outside of Japan the industry needs to reassess its business model. The entire model is out of date, and has largely resulted in over-priced merchandise in both Japan and other countries. No matter how much I might love anime I will not spend several hundred dollars on a DVD or BD collection; the money could go to a new kayak or climbing gear for example. The problem is that the Japanese industry keeps a tight hold of the series licenses, making it incredibly difficult for other companies to release anything at a price that would be worth paying. Essentially the entire model is out of date and is one of the major reasons for anime piracy – something that is important to note is that piracy is essentially a service problem more so than anything else. If the industry actually addressed this and redid their outdated model, thus introducing more acceptable prices for their merchandise it is likely that piracy would decrease since more people could actually afford the items. This is an incredibly simplistic view of course and there is more to it than that, but the key elements remain the same regardless.

4. Would you like to get paid to write about anime?

Yes, no, perhaps – largely depends on what I would be writing and why.

5. What’s the one type of work that you would like to see created someday?

Well, anime and manga are incredibly diverse mediums, with stories involving all genres and numerous time periods. What I would like to see is more anime in a Josei style, along with more mature topics and relationships. There are manga series that deal with more mature topics such as the consequences of rape, or perhaps a series about university life or even a Josei style anime looking at working individuals that are rarely adapted into any sort of anime series. I like much of current anime, but there are times when I want a more mature story that doesn’t involve ridiculous (and bad) philosophy and pretentiousness.

Right, on to Naru’s Questions:

My victims will be GoodbyeNavi and Avvesione this time, because, well, I felt like it……..

1. Ten years from now can you still see yourself immersed in Japanese culture?

I don’t see why not, its not like the culture is reserved for teenagers or those in their early 20s. Culture is or at least should be universal, even when you grow older there is no reason to suddenly grow up and leave something behind that you really enjoy.

2. What is your favourite quote from an anime series?

‘I think its time we blow this thing.

Get everybody and the stuff together.

Ok, 3, 2, 1, Lets Jam!’

Technically not a quote from an anime, but its got style and is accompanied by smooth jazz which is what counts really.

3. What do you enjoy most about being an aniblogger?

Not really sure, it wasn’t until the last couple of months that I even started thinking about things in terms of being an aniblogger. For the most part I write because I enjoy writing, and like exploring anime in a little more depth than I used to.

4. How would you react if you receive any negative comments concerning your way of writing or your thoughts on a certain subject?

Negative comments are simply something everyone has to live with, however, unless they are constructive I ignore them. Everyone has their own thoughts on an anime or a subject, none of them are entirely correct, but neither are many (not all) wrong. Blogging is a subjective past time, and you are putting your thoughts down into a post, which very often do not align with those of numerous other people. Unfortunately the Internet has created, or at least distilled an attitude of being entitled and being right in everything that you say. Ultimately its simpler to act calmly or in some cases ignore what amounts to little more than background noise.

5. If there was one element you could remove from anime, what would it be?

Everything has its place, and as such it fits in its own special corner of the anime culture. However, given the chance I would make long shounen shows disappear of the face of the earth, but that’s only because I find them incredibly dull.

My questions, such as they are:

1. How important is a good soundtrack to your enjoyment of a series?

To me a good soundtrack is one of the most important elements of any anime series. There have been series that are good but not spectacular that I have enjoyed far more than really hyped anime simply because the soundtrack has been so good. A good soundtrack can pull you into the series, bringing you into the action as if you were standing with the characters. More so than voice actors it is ultimately the music that can create emotion in the viewer. Of course, music is one of the most subjective things in existence, so my concept of a good soundtrack is likely not the same as others.

2. Name an anime series that had a big impact upon you as a viewer (not necessarily favourite).

I am going to have to go with Bubblegum Crisis 2040, largely because it was the first anime series that I ever watched. There is something about the combination of soundtrack, futuristic setting and characters that really got me interested in anime. It was unlike anything that I had seen before and started a search for other anime, and films.

3. Are you interested in other parts of Japan other than this aspect of its popular culture?

I am generally fascinated by the country and its society, which at first may appear to be entirely different from the west, but on closer inspection is actually incredibly similar in numerous ways. So yes, I am interested in things other than anime when it comes to Japan.

4. What are your thoughts on anime adapted from light novels?

Generally I am not too bothered with these adaptations, and there have been, and will likely continue to be numerous light novel adaptations that keep me amused. I don’t actually read light novels so for the most part I tend not to notice that some series are adaptations until it has been pointed out to me or I have looked up the series itself. I know such anime invites a lot of criticisms and derision from a particular group of viewers, but in general I see no problem in these series. They do have their problems of course, a major one being a tendency towards non-endings largely due to the on-going nature of the original series and the anime having a limited number of episodes (usually 12-13). This does mean that while the series may have a lot of potential it rarely gets the chance to actually properly explore the story and the characters. But in general, I don’t see a problem in this type of anime series.

5. Why is all the rum gone?

I do not wish to answer that, here, have a picture instead.