I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about but maybe one of our readers do. Anyone have any ideas?

Roadmap, Please
From: Bob Jubb

Love the Site! Anyway, I have a question that I hope one editor can help me with. That is: If you don't know diddly about anime (like me) and don't speak Japanese, what are the best/most recommended anime films available here in the States?
I don't know SAILOR MOON from MACROSS from VOLTRON, all I know is that I saw AKIRA, GHOST IN THE SHELL, and PRINCESS MONONOKE and absolutely loved all three of them! What should I go buy next? Please help!

Well, it's a matter of what you like. It sounds like you like serious sci-fi anime. I'd suggest MACROSS PLUS for starters. But that's just one of many choices. In the future, we'll be putting together a sort of "Anime Primer" for people who are always trying to figure out what to watch. Of course, you can always read through our reviews and see if anything in there appeals to you.

Making the Grades
From: Dean Manning

Excellent website! I've been a big anime fan for a number of years now, but have been looking for some sort of magazine that reviews anime. After finding your site via IGN I couldn't believe my luck at finding a site that seems to know what they are talking about.
Just one short question, are you guys thinking of putting some sort of grading system after each review (5 star/percentage system) to make it easier for readers to decide on what to buy. It would be great if you do!

Thanks for the kind words. We always appreciate it when new readers write in to tell us that they've found us and that they'll be back.
About the rating system, we've gone back and forth on this a few times, and I personally don't like them. After all, a lot of those "rating systems" break things down into categories (like animation, story, etc) and then there's a final grade which is never an average. So if the final rating isn't an average, why even bother to rate the rest of it?
Besides, a rating system simplifies the whole process, and we think that actually reading the review would give you a much better idea of what the show's about, and if you would really like it, rather than just seeing four stars and saying, "I guess I'll check this out." Besides, our writers and editors put a lot of work into those reviews, so they're worth looking over. Then, at the end, you can make up your own mind about whether or not you'll like a certain title.

Rant of the Month
From: Jason Davis

OK its been known for many years that "anime" has been kinda a cult following in this country. And yes as POKÉMON becomes popular, and other anime such as DRAGONBALL and SAILOR MOON get more exposure, we achieve more fans. But that isn't where the beef of my problem is. My anger, and frustration is coming directly from Disney, and this whole Miramax thing. Now I am sure that this topic have been covered before, and people have expressed their angst about Disney handling Ghibli's films, but I am writing this letter, about post Disney/Ghibli/Miramax releases, and I am really upset about this. First off, I am assuming Disney shelled out some decent money for those rights for Ghibli, (only getting it because they agreed to not chop anything out), and second, after I accepted the fact that the "Big D" was going to have their way in releasing these truly original, awe inspiring films, I felt comfort in the idea that Disney would give good dubbing, and with their seemingly limitless wealth, be able to have the masses enjoy these films in countless American theaters.
Let us get back to reality. When the film was delayed for Disney's theatrical release of MULAN, I completely understood, more money for MONONOKE if I may say. I went to a bunch of films, and I saw not one trailer of MONONOKE HIME! The one I had seen was on the internet, and it was terrible! Why would such a big company pay money and not release any of it? Miramax didn't really even advertise it. I mean, does Disney know that Miyazaki has more originality in his finger nail clippings then every employee at Disney? I know its far fetched and maybe blasphemous to make such a statement, but it seems like Disney only pushed to buy Ghibli films so as to put the rights on the shelf so that no one Studio would push it against their own films. Please someone tell me what happened!
First off I had to search for the film to be released in the U.S. It had mild appearances in "indie theaters," I saw the film in the same art college theater where I had seen Streamline's prime early 90's releases of AKIRA, ROBOT CARNIVAL, and VAMPIRE HUNTER D, among others. I saw LAPUTA in that very same theater, dubbed (those enough lucky enough to see it, dealt with the less then excellent dubbing for the time). And even though I can remember what the dub kinda sounded like, I am sure, no... positive that it was better than the Miramax dub of LAPUTA, that was displayed on the video release of KIKI'S? And what is with the scourge of Dawsons Creek voicing over Pazu (Ears feel like bleeding when I hear it pronounced Potzu). Isn't that actor's age about 21-25? I thought Pazu was like 12 years old? Did Miramax believe that the story, and animation was so terrible that they would have to rely on cashing in on the names of more well known actors and actresses to get people to sit and watch these films? I cannot voice anymore of my pain of what happened to my favorite anime film LAPUTA.
My second rant and rave is of the future of domestic theatrical releases of animated movies. Sure gradually this country is being desensitized to animation that doesn't involve an element of children's appeal (i.e., SOUTH PARK). I believe anime like MEMORIES, the new VAMPIRE HUNTER D, and even BLOOD (having an African American as supporting character) would gross a lot of money in the theaters. Movies such as these are a tangent from a majority of Japanese anime, whereas they seem almost made to be not only enjoyed by the Japanese market, but it's as if, any "if its not American, it's crap" biased U.S. Citizen, could enjoy. Warner Bros. treated the POKÉMON Movie quite well, but then again they had a fail-safe animated movie in their possession. Will no studio take a chance?
So in conclusion, what will happen in this new century? GUNDAM is coming, and who knows what that will create. I still have yet to see what is to be of Ghibli's films. We all await to see the new movies from Japan. Some of them will hit here on video, some will not. Maybe my edge on this whole thing has to come from one day being in high school, and someone commenting on Anime, calling it "Chinanimation." I guess I just want everybody to see anime for what it truly is, beautiful, original, inspiring, emotional, films to which we too can relate.

Whoa... You raise a lot of issues here. Let's start at the beginning. There were a lot of delays in the release of MONONOKE. Several of them were in fact production related. If you had heard, seen, or read any of the interviews that English scriptwriter Neil Gaiman gave, he said that there were scripting issues that resulted in the dubbing dragging on longer than anticipated.
Now, you want to know about Miramax's distribution plans? Well, they were going to release it to select markets and, if it was successful, they would have expanded it. As a result, a large-scale marketing campaign would have been essentially a lot of wasted money, since it would be advertised in markets where the film wasn't scheduled to play. The film opened in ten cities and grossed over $2 million, but when you compare that to something else, like SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE (also a Miramax title), that's really not a lot of money. So, Miramax decided that MONONOKE wasn't a great success and chose to move on to other releases.
The bottom line is that MONONOKE did better than any other anime film except for POKÉMON, but given that Miramax is a large movie company, they were not impressed with the returns. And when you have a movie with Meryl Streep, where are you going to put your money?
I haven't seen the LAPUTA dub, so I can't comment on it. But you raise the point that James Van Der Beek is "too old" to play Pazu; that's not really great reasoning, because the original voice actor for Pazu wasn't 12 years old either. Maybe your point was he didn't sound twelve, but his actual age has little to do with it.
One thing you have to realize is that when you license films from other companies, they tend to cost a lot more than a television series. When you consider the licensing fees, localization costs (dubbing, etc), it can all add up. And since animation for adults has not proven to translate into blockbuster box office returns, many companies will choose to spend their money elsewhere.
But look at it this way... five years ago, did you ever expect to see a Miyazaki film in the U.S. at all?

Another Roadmap Request
From: Michael Bushnell

As a new anime/manga fan I was wondering if you could produce a 'must own' list for all the people like myself as I never know what to buy and what not to buy. Just a thought. Cheers.

As I mentioned above, we're going to do just that. Look for it in the next couple of issues.

Shopping...
From: Yukishiro Enishi

Do you know any catalogs that sell manga (mostly RUROUNI KENSHIN), magazines (mostly WEEKLY JUMP), or Japanese anime (subtitled)? Well if you do please give me the address of the place that gives out the catalog so I can receive it by mail and the price of the catalog if there is a fee. Also have you heard of KORO KORO? It is a Japanese magazine (mainly towards boys) filled with little freebies (like small calendars and cards), video game reviews, and comics. It has about 800 pages (I think it is a monthly magazine judging by the pages and price). Arigatou gozaimasu.

We've compiled a list of where to buy online, that deals with places that the EX staff has personally purchased from. There are, of course, others. But these are the ones we know well. Check the where to buy link at the bottom of any of the reviews to see the list.
And yes, I've heard of KORO KORO... They have some neat freebies in that magazine. Good luck with the shopping.

POKÉMON 2
From: Joe

I was wondering, since Nintendo of America has no marketing skills: Will the POKÉMON Movie that was just (maybe still is?) in Japan this year, will Nintendo call it in America "POKÉMON: THE SECOND MOVIE"? I mean, it could happen, since it's based more for little kids, (which, I think, was a wrong age group to go for, because kids are too gullible) and I think NoA should just use the original names like "Mewtwo Strikes Back" and "Pikachu's SUMMER Vacation" because otherwise, there's not that 'original anime flair'(?) almost to it... Tell me what you think, please!

Well, changing the title is always something that requires a lot of thought. However, if you think about it, calling it POKÉMON: THE FIRST MOVIE was sheer marketing genius, because it hinted that it was the first in a line of movies. And in fact, the second movie is due out in May, and will be called POKÉMON 2000: THE MOVIE (not a particularly original title either). And Nintendo of America isn't doing anything with the movies—they all belong to Warner Brothers.

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