The japanese-like animation and comics.

[This note can also be read in spanish]


As a recap, i went to FanExpo, wich for me was a great, rewarding experience, and that's why i thank Marisol for letting me know about it (actually, i said i'm thankfull she invited me, but she says she never paid my ticket, so she didn't invite me). On that expo, i realized i shouldn't be "afraid" of getting into "manga" and "anime".

Why to feel afraid of it? I've met people who had become obsesive fans of the genre, and i was afraid to end like that, given my tendency to make everything i do an obsession, with no way back. But, sure there was people like that on the expo, but there was also normal people, like you and I. Some of them knew enough to participate, some came for a particular serial they were watching, or simply some didn't know anything but still they were interested in it. And for me, seeing all this people togheter, enjoying, singing and wearing costumes about what they like... I had symphaty with and among them.

Now, i could barely recognize 15% to 37% of all the series and sagas which were shown on products, or were represented by singing their main songs or playing as their main characters, but yet i have some clues about what i was attending. I know, by chilhood experiences and data from friends, what are the main stylish aspects of manga and anime, which i can't yet assimilate 'cause my hands don't want to. I've also heard of concepts, used in colloquial talk, as well as genre related concepts. I'm very interested (not exactly because of this, but for the technology development and biotechnological research) in learning japanses, too. And i must admit, as a self-taught person, it has been really hard to learn it. And another thing: I'm an "otaku", but not a "This kiddo is just another jap-fan" otaku, but as in the strict meaning of the term. Marisol explained me that i'm an otaku because otaku comes from:

O: Prefix. Gives authority or a uper degree in the subject.
Taku: Home. House.

Literately, "Mr. Home", or that i'm such a fan of something that i get locked in my home doing fan stuff. And in fact, i'm a webcomic otaku (watch the 62 webcomics i read in the links section, plus the ones i'm digging into the archives, which gives us the count of 83 or something). I love them. I just simply cannot find another way (except real-life-same-style jokes or TV cartoons) to laugh so much. Or to think so much, another important thing.

Well, i'll remove all the personal thinghie here and start with another issue i've (i can't really remove it. Isn't it?) want to write days ago, and which came back after a confference about some drawers of "chilean manga" i assisted during the expo.

You see, this girls draw stylishly acoording to manga. BUT IT IS NOT MANGA. Manga is a comic (any kind of comic) made by a japanese or japanese group, and they are not japanese. Neither do the rest of the people around the world who use that style. And that was hardly criticized by the audience. But they replied that, you could say their work is amerimanga, but IT IS NOT AMERIMANGA EITHER. Amerimanga, as the spokeswoman told us later in the confference, has this deep conection with the US plot and characters, e.g. classic superheroes. The concept is also scornful, because it restricts you to this continent, while there are europeans, people from Oceania, some africans and lots of asians doing the same thing, and good. Then, what is it?
For me, it was funny to see this discussion, becausei've already heard of it before, and i had a concept, of my own (i'm getting too conceited, if someone has already put the concept on the board, let me know about it for i've never heard it from someone else), to define the genre. You see, if it's manga, but done by foreigners, why don't we fuse the words "foreigner" in japanese and manga? With a little help, i found the solution:

Foreign manga = Gaikokujin Manga
Gai: Out, not from here
Koku: Country
Jin: Person

Final result: Gaikokumanga

And, in fact, i mentioned it on the confference. Here i must say i lied, saying that "the term is in vogue", but explaining why i found the concept to be appropiate, lots of members of the audience and the drawers themselves agreed. So from that moment i decided to go out on a limb and test the theory of the 100 monkeys. What does that mean? Easy, i'll spread the concept in so much places and people i can (hopefully with a certain level of agreement) and check if the concept expands, polishes and gets to a final consent. Frankly, i found this concept to be good, clear and global to the genre.

That's it. There's not much people reading this by now. But let's see how this goes...

53 114

I can't live without...

So finally i killed my block and started to write again. And now, i must admit that, although i've been away from this things a lot of time, i can't live without them.

The computer, for example. Ican't name a single day i'm off the computer, surfing into the internet or doing something else. Most of the things i do are only because i wanted to do them, so in fact i shouldn't be in there more than 3 hours, wekly. The facts are, i use the computer more than 7 hours... daily.... It's like i'm working freelance, but without getting paid.

Another thing i can't live without it it's any kind of music player, like a radio/cassette/CD/MP3 player. If i can't listen to my 25 GB of MP3s (in my computer), then i must have something for listening to my 15 CDs collection, or else, i can use all my music i recorded on many cassettes all over the years. And if all that doesn't work, i can always count on radio stations, may them be FM, SW or MW. But i need the music, the vibrating waves passing over mny ears.

And don't get me start about the TV. With a proper cable system, i can stand up to fifteen straight hours only wantching it without getting bored. For me, from cartoon to political forums and from tennis matches to horror movies can be something interesting to watch.

Recently, a couple of things had added, too. And they are pa pencil and a notebok. Now i feel more comfortable using them, writing everything i have to remember and can be forgotten. Songs to catch, numbers to call, things to do... And even i'm using the receipts and flyers i get during the day as journals, writing whatever happened on that moment. That way, if i forget something i did, i just go and find some receipt or bus ticket from that day. I'm also putting messages for me that remind me what i must do. Like this "WAKE UP!!!!" sign i glued to the ceiling, or my boxes where i et all the things i should do someday. Some people find it weird (and i understand. I mean, who can't get somewhat freaked out if you look at someone's room and find it covered in messages all over the walls), but it's my way to make some order into my life.

... Ok, on the other hand, i HAD BEEN LIVING without all that things sometimes. And i replace them with other activities. For example, change TV for a book or a field trip, music player for my ears or guitar and my voice, and the computer for an adventure. Yet, i can't find a way to replace my notebook, because i have my brain, but it can be tricky. Like those day i have no idea what i did, or those moments when i forget what i was doing just because something else caught my attention.

Let's hope i'm not getting some kind of psycological block.