The Ottawa Citizen January 22, 1998, Thursday, FINAL EDITION SECTION: NEWS; LETTERS; Pg. A14 LENGTH: 717 words HEADLINE: Don't paint all Japanese anime with same sex-violence brush BYLINE: TIM PARK; THE OTTAWA CITIZEN BODY: Once again, the media perpetuate a common and misleading stereotype. In Tony Atherton's Jan. 17 review of Teletoon in " The good and bad of new cable channels," he states that "on the minus side is the late-night Japanese anime, lurid tales in which explicit sexual violence is fair game." To get an idea of the kind of blanket statement this is, replace the words "Japanese anime" with "American movies." I will concede that Ninja Scroll should not be viewed by young children if Mr. Atherton will concede that Showgirls should not be viewed by young children. Just as not all American movies are like Showgirls, not all anime is like Ninja Scroll. Unfortunately, anime's reputation for sex and violence has existed before Teletoon, with titles like Akira and the banned-in-British-Columbia Urotsukidoji being anime's poster children at the Mayfair theatre. These graphic examples do exist, but unfortunately all anime is painted with the same brush in many cases. Recently at a Tower Records store, a number of anime videotapes were placed in their hard-core adult section. One of these titles, Ranma 1/2, was on in prime time in Japan, and the protagonists barely get around to kissing. I have heard that some Japanese girls made fun of Japanese boys for watching this show, due to the romantic (not sexual) elements in it. As for the other anime that Teletoon plays, I would like the lurid aspects and sexual violence in The Wings of Honneamise, Patlabor and Macross Plus pointed out to me, since I do not recall seeing any. Duckman, a North American show on Mr. Atherton's "good" list, has more sexual innuendo than these titles. Although it is not on Teletoon's program schedule, I can assure Mr. Atherton that the anime movie Grave of the Fireflies is suitable for general audiences. To say that all anime consists of "lurid tales" is a slap in the face to those who have created excellent, child-friendly entertainment, such as Hayao Miyazaki. Mr. Atherton would be well advised to watch out for Disney, as they have acquired the distribution rights to a number of anime movies produced by Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. Although Disney has not released any of them yet, one title that is currently available through Fox Video is My Neighbor Totoro, which was called "wholesome, sane, intelligent and entertaining" by Roger Ebert. To cite examples that may be more well known, I refer to the Sanrio company's Keroppi and Hello Kitty shows. No sexual violence here, kids. I would like to point out to Mr. Atherton an article on the World Wide Web, "The New Stereotypes of Anime and Manga," written by Eri Izawa (http://www.ex.org/2.8/45-essay_ stereotypes.html). In it, the interesting hypothesis is posed that the anime stereotype "seems to be largely a product of the U.S. market itself." Since it is not feasible to bring the entire anime industry's selection to the North American mainstream market, titles that one hopes will earn back the great cost of licensing are released here. And of course, a mantra that is often heard is "sex sells," and thus the North American view of anime is distorted. Anime fans who know more about the subject than (mis)information the mainstream press provides know that there are many titles that are no more sexy than Sesame Street. Another recommended web site is the Anime Web Turnpike (http://www.anipike.com), which contains thousands of links to anime information of all types. Although more titles are being brought over commercially that are not as violent as the stereotypical ones, the negative press has done, and continues to do, its damage. Many fans of anime appreciate the fact that it can include mature themes (not necessarily sexual). Anime television series often contain engaging, ongoing plots from episode to episode, unmatched by many North American cartoon series. On a technical note, Teletoon also plays Dragon Ball Z, an anime show that is very well known, and gaining popularity in America. Taking that into account, Teletoon plays anime every night, not just Friday and Saturday. Also, it seems that Space: The Imagination Station was not reviewed, so Mr. Atherton missed out on another opportunity to slander anime, since Space also shows some on the weekends. Tim Park, Ottawa GRAPHIC: Cartoon: From the Web Site Http://Www.Anipike.Com / Japanese cartoons The Wings of Honneamiseare not as lurid as reviewer Tony Atherton suggested, reader argues. Cartoon: From the Web Site Http://Www.Anipike.Com / Japanese cartoons Ranma 1/2 are not as lurid as reviewer Tony Atherton suggested, reader argues. Cartoon: From the Web Site Http://Www.Anipike.Com / Japanese cartoons Macross Plus not as lurid as reviewer Tony Atherton suggested, reader argues.