| WORDS TO KNOW |
| Ok, so you're a newbie. Fresh blood. Strictly a "dubber," You watch dubbed Gundam Wing, Tenchi, and Sailormoon on Cartoon Network religiously. You actually believe Thundercats counts as "Japimation" just because it was animated in Japan. You think you're a serious hardcore otaku just because you've never missed an episode of Dubbed Dragonball Z. Well I got news for you pal, there's a whole world out there you that you've never even set foot into. This is where you can learn words and phrases that will lead you into true Otakuism. |
| Super Deformed (SD) - The "cute" version of a character. Usually has short thick legs and arms, huge heads, even bigger "anime" eyes. Fushigi Yugi and Dragon Half do this a LOT! Manga - Japanese Comic books. I can't TELL you how annoying it gets explaining this to EVERYONE. These are the graphic novels you can fnd translated in bookstores like Borders. Usually the manga comes first, then the anime of that manga comes next, although there are some exeptions. Ranma 1/2 had the manga first, then the anime, Gundam Wing had the anime first, then the manga was made off the anime. Hentai - This is the anime not suited for "younger viewers." Usually has a lot of nudity and blood and gore. And it usually doesn't have a good plotline. Just something to tie all the nude shots together. Dragoon is guilty of this. Otaku - This is a hardcore anime fan. Someone who has a lot of anime under their belt. Not just TV stuff. Usually only likes subtitled anime. A quote from a friend of mine at Otakon "It's not the original story if it's not the original voices." I agree. Subtitled (subbed) - This is the original version of the anime in the original Japanese. The English translation is at the bottom of the screen. Ahem...sorry, but more often than not this is the better version. Dubbed - The Japanese voices are taken out and English ones are added. I'm sorry, but I deffinitely like subbed better because quite often you'll get actors in a dub that will just have NO voice acting talent. I won't point out any names tho <cough DBZ cough> Sometimes (rarely) you'll get an exellent dub, like Cowboy Bebop. Not usually tho, sigh... OVA or OAV (Original Video Animation) - These are the video releases, not TV shows. They are usually bloodier, or have more "mature" content. They often are a side story from a TV anime, or sometimes they are their own story. Rurouni Kenshin has it's own OVA, much bloodier than the TV show, explaining Kenshin's life before the TV series. The Record of Lodoss War was an OVA first, then they made a TV series based on it, then another TV series based on the TV series. Bishonen / Bishojo - Pretty Boy / Pretty Girl. These are the "Anime Heartthrobs" as a friend of mine put it. The good looking characters that people love. They usually have distinct personalities or quirks that make them very likeable. Fusigi Yugi has a lot of bishonen. Shadow Lady the manga has a major bishojo. Shadow Lady herself! Shonen / Shojo Anime - Guy / Girl anime. Usually there is a pretty definite line between the two. Shojo anime usually has more to do with love or friendship. Shonen anime usually has a lot to do with fighting or matrial arts, or women. Sailormoon is a good example of a shojo anime, Dragonball Z is a good example of shonen anime. This isn't to say girls don't watch shonen anime, or vice versa, these shows are just more geared toward their respective audiences. |