Greetings and salutations, my dear reader! This month at Hobility is all about sweet-sweet nostalgia, more specifically for those of us over 20s as we take a moment to remember the classics of the genre. We’ve a selection of animes ranging from shounen to shoujo, from action to romance, from comedy to drama, and of course mecha!
Now, as of late, we’ve heard the word nostalgia thrown around here and there for all sorts of things that reminds of us our past, but do we really know what nostalgia truly means? In the simplest of words and definitions, nostalgia is a feeling of longing of the past, of much simpler times that reminds us that life was better. This feeling comes in many forms and ways, one of which is in the form of entertainment, like tv shows of old that we’ve grown attach to- that is (arguably) better than what we have now.
While nostalgia is a good thing now and again, much like a lot of things, when taken excessively, can be bad for you. Too much of it can negatively take your attention of the present (the moment in which you live in now) and lead to feelings of depression and escapism by stunting interest of forming new relationships and growth. To paraphrase Don Draper from Mad Men “Nostalgia – it’s delicate, but potent. In Greek, nostalgia literally means “the pain of an old wound.” It’s a twinge in your heart far more powerful than memory alone.”
Don’t worry, my dear reader, this post is not a gloomy one, but merely an appreciation of the past, honoring them if you would. Some of the selections below reflect my own personal interests in the anime genre and mostly serves as rabbit hole for you fall into, but feel free to jump off at any moment.
Now, I’ve talked about Cowboy Bebop a number of times on here, and I’m going to do it again. This science-fiction masterpiece by Shinichiro Watanabe was widely unappreciated during its time, but has garnered a massive following as the years went on. It’s unique blend of cyberpunk, western motifs, martial arts action, and noir all mixed together forming this unexpected viewing experience. The series follows the exploits of a band of bounty hunters called cowboys as they take on jobs way more dangerous than they expected, sprinkled in with some neo-noir detective action into the mix. Cowboy Bebop ran for a total of 26-episodes with near-perfect storytelling, with some hit or misses here and there, especially with the episodic format in the middle portion of series. So far, no anime series has been close to match its level of storytelling and style. Additionally, Yoko Kanno’s music throughout the series just elevates the anime further, fusing blues, jazz, rock, and funk truly one of a kind.
Back when delinquent anime was all the craze back in japan, Yu Yu Hakusho ruled them all. When high school delinquent Yusuke Urameshi dives in front of an oncoming car to save a child’s life, killing him in the process but is later revived to serves as the Spirit Detective on Earth, protecting innocent humans from evil demons. While on paper this series doesn’t seem all that interesting, but Yu Yu Hakusho helped establish the now-staple shonen manga tropes like screaming attack names, transformations and power-ups, tournament arcs, and power of nakama! It’s for this reason, Yu Yu Hakusho is regarded as of the most important (dare I say: influential) series to debut in the early 90s. The series is currently available on Netflix.
The phrase “omae wa mou shindeiru” which has been forever preserved in meme culture came from this anime. A post-apocalyptic 80’s classic that embodies the shonen genre at the time, which was a big muscly dude clad in leather set to the back drop of a Mad Max-style wasteland beating up bad guys with kung-fu. Fist of the North Star is very simple story, it follows protagonist Kenshiro, the inheritor of a secret style of deadly martial arts as he takes it upon himself to cleanse the wasteland from evil. Packed with action and gore with both villains and allies joining in on the ride, making this shounen classic something not to be ignored.
Now, I’ve talked about Cowboy Bebop a number of times on here, and I’m going to do it again. This science-fiction masterpiece by Shinichiro Watanabe was widely unappreciated during its time, but has garnered a massive following as the years went on. It’s unique blend of cyberpunk, western motifs, martial arts action, and noir all mixed together forming this unexpected viewing experience. The series follows the exploits of a band of bounty hunters called cowboys as they take on jobs way more dangerous than they expected, sprinkled in with some neo-noir detective action into the mix. Cowboy Bebop ran for a total of 26-episodes with near-perfect storytelling, with some hit or misses here and there, especially with the episodic format in the middle portion of series. So far, no anime series has been close to match its level of storytelling and style. Additionally, Yoko Kanno’s music throughout the series just elevates the anime further, fusing blues, jazz, rock, and funk truly one of a kind.
Without a doubt Yoshinobu Nishizaki’s Space Battleship Yamato is one of the best space opera animes there is. Set in the near-future, Earth is devastated by unrelenting attacks from aliens, so humanity sends its last hope into space- that being the battleship Yamato and her crew, who are tasked in securing a device that might reverse the destruction left on the planet. SBY is a space opera through and through, with core of nautical adventure set in space jam packed with themes of heroism, self-sacrifice, honor, and nobility of a lone ship tasked with saving humanity against and defying the odds. If the outdated visuals are not to your liking, the epic has been remade for modern audience in the form Space Battleship Yamata 2199.
Considered to be legendary director Osamu Dezaki’s best work, Rose of Versailles is a tale of love, war, drama, and intrigue of epic proportions. It follows a cast characters from different walks of set during the French Revolution, and the anime manages to capture the look of period effortlessly. With exceptional pacing, well-constructed characters, and passionate melodrama made Rose of Versailles an instant classic. It has been credited for the rise on popularity of shoujo anime, and not only that, this anime is a major influence on Kunikhiko Ikuhara’s Revolutionary Girl Utena.
This unlikely combination of East and West, French and Japanese pulpy crime novels of the early 20th century, Lupin the 3rd sees’ its main character, a master thief, band together with a group of friends in pursuit of treasure, adventure, and intrigue. Add in an antagonist hellbent on putting a stop to their antics- its story elements almost mirror that of One Piece. Lupid the 3rd was considered revolutionary for its time as it set the standards for quality back in the 70’s, and with that era’s sense of style. Its influence can still be seen today, especially in Cowboy Bebop or Spy X Family.
When an alien ship crashlands on Earth, humanity enters a new age of technological marvel. Many years later, an alien species attempts to invade the planet, the citizen of the fortress Macross are teleported Lightyears away from home and must fight for survival. This anime is part mecha epic and one-part romantic drama, and has been left its mark on the shonen genre ever since. With its themes of humanities tenacity for ingenuity and survival can be seen in future mecha animes like Neon Genesis Evangelion and Code Geass.
While Sailor Moon is the first magical girl anime (that title belongs to 1966’s Sally the Witch), this series thought many girls that they too can be heroes, while still be feminine. The titular heroine Usagi Tsukino and other Sailor Guardians went through tremendous growth throughout the series’ five-seasons and proving that they’re more than capable battling evil while wearing high-heel stilettoes. Sailor Moon’s mark on the anime world can been today as many animes like Kill La Kill and Madoka Magica are arguably progenitors of her success.
A sports anime that has been praised for its passion and artistry of basketball while still being realistic. While sports anime like Captain Tsubasa does come to mind with its over-the-top super-moves, Slam Dunk on the other hand takes a more grounded approach with its characters and storytelling. Combining tried and true underdog sports drama teenage angst with its protagonist Hanamichi Sakuragi, a young, unlucky-in-love delinquent gang leader joins a new school where he joins the basketball team to help improve his chances of impressing a girl. In keeping with is realistic tone, our protagonist isn’t some natural talent either and has prove himself. Slam Dunk’s approach to storytelling has been repeated time and time again, especially in animes like Haikyu.
Serving as an introduction to the Gundam franchise for Western audiences in the early 2000s, this series managed to revived the series’ popularity and breaking away from tradition of taking place in the Universal Century timeline. Even though Mobile Fighter G Gundam (a year prior) tried to do the same, but just not to the same level of success as Gundam Wing. While G Gundam went for a more fun Super Robot approach, Wing Gundam went back to what the franchise is know for- war. The major difference being that Wing Gundam was more action based and centers around five gundam pilots with distinct individual mechas instead of a single protagonist. The series proved to be a hit with audiences and has had many sequels and spinoffs.
Well everybody, here are just some of my picks for animes to get all nostalgic over. Hopefully you’d find my selections on this list enjoyable, and find something new in these old series’ to enjoy about.
Di sini, saya akan senarai tajuk anime terbaru yang di tayangkan di negara Jepun untuk musim sejuk (WINTER) 2024 yang akan berlangsung dari bulan Januari hingga Mac 2024
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