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[ the café mailbag ]

The Café Mailbag


The Café averages about 400 pieces of e-mail a month... Admittedly, many of those are entries into the Café contest, but we still get many people who simply drop us a line. Several of the letters are rather interesting, so we thought we'd share them with you. In most cases, the identities of the writers are kept confidential.


September 2001

Just a quick question serving a Japanese belief and numerology. During one of the first Episodes of the infamous series "Neon Genesis Evangelion" the main characters refer to a mecha as the "09 project". They later say that "09" spoken is the same as the Japanese word for "devil". So the question is what would the romanization for "09" be, or what does the term "devil" mean to the japanese culture?

FM

Does anyone know what episode this happens in? I can't place the reference offhand, and will need to actually see the scene to see where this comes from...



August 2001

I love your site and think it's great. I just want to say that you didnt, or forgot, to put the "Petshop of Horrors" movies here in the rating thing, or some Tenchi stuff, including Tenchi Universe(It's name in USA) and Tenchi in Tokyo(USA)/Shin Tenchi(Japan). You also forgot the Other 2 Tenchi Movies, Daughter of Darkness and the 3rd Tenchi movie... the one that came after (And had the same crappy animation as..)Shin Tenchi.

But thats not why I am writing. In you review of Sailor Moon, You mention that there are implications about Zoisite and Kunzite and Uranus and Neptune- Thats because in the Japanese version they are coupled. It makes me mad because arent people supposed to be accepting more and more things?! By covering up homosexuality its like saying "It's okay to be against things like that because it will just be pushed under the rug so no one will have to see it." I cant believe that did that to Zoisite-It should be illegal to change things like that. BTW in the Japanese version of it Uranus and Neptune ARE together, but in the American version it makes them cousins, but I have seen some episodes and it's pretty sad that they would just make them cousins and not even bother to cover up the interactions the two have together. Cousins should not do what Uranus and Neptune do! As if Incest were better than homosexuality?!

ES




I was wondering if you could add one manga title to the upcoming manga releases. It's called Hunter x Hunter (Hanta Hanta) by Yoshihiro Togashi published under Shueisha, Jump Comics. Really appreciate it.

L

And so it was done.




I saw that a reader asked about this anime, so I thought I should share what I know.

Actually, my grandparents have the video, and it's on Beta. It's so old, it doesn't even really work anymore, but I don't know if that's due to the age of the tape or the Beta machine.

I used to watch and rewatch this anime as a child, and I know all the music, characters, and scenes by heart. I used to think Odette was the most beautiful girl in the world. Swan Lake is touching, innocent, and magical, and I'm glad to know others out there were able to enjoy this wonderful little work, seeing as almost nobody has ever heard of it. Incidentally, my best-friend is one of the only other people I know of who has ever seen it--the odds of that are astounding, considering she didn't even grow up in the US, but in Mexico.

I hope this helped somebody out a little bit, and I wish I knew how to get a good copy of this film. It holds many memories for me and was one of my first anime experiences.



July 2001

Hey dudes, i have heard that the evangelion movies are coming out in an english translation in december, are they? i have seen all the episodes and everything a million times and read the scripts and all but it hasnt been dubbed into english there was a thing going round that it was coming out but im not sure can you clear this up for me?

S

Both Eva movies are scheduled for future release from Manga Entertainment. Current release dates are listed as Feb 28 (The Movie) and Mar 31 2002 (Death and Rebirth).




I happened upon your interesting site and have been exploring it.

But the reason I write is that as I was growing up (late 70's and early 80's,) there was a cartoon called 'G-force' which I have been told is now called neo-gotcha men (or something.) I find it hard to believe that it was not an imported cartoon yet I don't see it listed anywhere in your encyclopedia or in 'the history of anime.' Later on in my teens I watched Tranzor-Z, Robotech and both Voltrons, so it was before those cartoons that g-force was shown.

Have I overlooked it on your list? I doubt that you guys would have missed it. The only reason that I can fathom is that it somehow was not 'true' anime or manga. Can you help me?

D

G-Force, aka Battle of the Planets (aka Gatchaman) is indeed an old anime from the '70s and (if I'm not mistaken) is being re-released in Japan on DVD now. Most, if not all, of the encyclopaedia entries on the Cafe are those shows we have access to in order to get production information, cast listings, etc. Thus it is currently not listed in there. However, as it is very much a "work in progress" the title may find its way into the encyclopaedia eventually.



June 2001

I know you people probably detest getting letters from people who disagree with your reviews (different strokes for different folks, yada yada yada) and I usualy don't write letters like this unless someone is WAAAAAAY outta line. Well, after 3 lines of build up, the time has come to finally state my gripe: Neon Genisis: Evangelion. You gave the series an overall review of 2.9, somewhere between: "Average" and "Don't Waste Your Time". A series ranked as 5th best ever overall, and the BEST in the science fiction category in a poll on YOUR site, certainly seems a bit above "average" as opposed to a bit below. It was just better than you said. Go me. I have way to much free time. All that aside, NG:E was a great series, and everyone I've spoken to, or read from agrees, and this is the only place I've seen that says otherwise. So, in summation: NG:E should have gotten a score between 4.5 and 5, not lower than a piece of garbage like "Fatal Fury III: The Motion Picture".

E

What would I do without the occasionaly e-mails about the Cafe's ratings for Eva? However, while my response to this e-mail is too long to post, I leave readers with these questions: For any given episode's review, do you feel that the review is decidedly unjust? Not how things look on a serial basis, but on an episode-by-episode basis, are they unfair? or are there problems in a given episode? Were there episodes which were weaker than others? Or were they all the anime equivalent of academy award material? Should each episode be held in such high esteem as Miyazaki's movies?




Hello, like the sight very much. I am a computer science major in Michigan and hopes omeday I can contribute some to your wonderful site. I was thinking of doing my own but why compete with a site like this. I am writing inr esponse to your cafe espresso column. My Comment is about Subs vrs.d ubbs. I am a huge fan of Subtitles for many reasons, I would like to list them in hopes of opening the mind of those that prefer dubbs. I have been watching anime for nearly 10 years now and have seen many in both versions.

  1. Main reason - The authenticity of the voice and emotion of the voice actors isc ompletely compromised in a dubbed video (this goes for all foreign video not just anime). The American voice overs (Princess Mononoke for example) loose the original meaning and direction as a result of beingr emoved from the process of making the movie. In some cases thed irectors and producers are not even aware that their movie was dubbed. The original Anger, Love, sorrow, happiness, surprise, determination can not possibly captured in the dialog this way.


  2. Cultural Nuances - The Japanese Culture is a very old culture with many traditions. Many of these traditions simply can not be described in another language effectively. One of my favorite things about anime is the amount ofi magination the directors allow the viewer to exercise, most of these moments are preformed strictly with imagery and symbolism and without any dialog. However, dubbers feel the need in many cases to translate or narrate explanations in these situations. I feel this is a distraction and much content is taken from the movie when this happens.


  3. Translation errors - Although I have studied Japanese for over a decade now it is still difficult to follow some dialogs in Japanese Movies. However I do catch translation errors more often in dubs than I do in Subs. Many times these errors are serious enough to effect the meaning of the scene.


  4. Cuts - As I mentioned before many Japanese animated movies have powerful moments ofi magery and symbolism without dialog. Often Dubbed versions will cut out these parts because they feel they are too slow for American Audiences. This is a shame. These scenes often make a powerful points that beautifully enhance the plot.

I readily admit to the cons of subtitles. It is a tedious task sometimes to follow thew ording and watch the amazing drawings move before your eyes. One thing we must remember is that there is much more to anime than the picture. Anime makers have such profound story telling abilities and they do so with a pen, but also with a voice. Once the original dialog is removed from the picture, the picture is neutered in my opinion. For those of us that appreciate the creative and mind blowing stories that these directors create, realize that the story is not just in the drawing but in the voice as well. Imagine someone leaving the original sound track and redrawing all the scenes, would it be the same movie? I leave you (the reader) to pnder that question...

F

As always, there are two sides to this issue. However, with so much going towards DVD, unless there are incompatibilities between the two versions, DVD will contain both versions such that it's up to the viewer to decide which they want rather than which they want to actually buy.




i just wanted to say i luv your website!!!i like the parent guide cuz it tells me if its my kinda anime or not .i also like it cuz i know if its approved by my parents ,cuz i dont want anything embarrassing~_~when im watching w/ someone!!!keep up the great work!!!i gotta go now so i can explore your website more thoroughly!!!

A



I was wondering if you could add some titles to your new releases list. I love these mangas but they're not as popular as the shoujo mangas... So it's especially hard for me to find out when they are exactly released in Japan.

They are:

  • Shoot! Aratanaru Densetsu, by Ooshima Tsukasa (Kodansha)
  • Whistle! by Daisuke Higuchi (Shueisha)
  • Fantasista! by Michiteru Kusaba (Shogakukan)

If you could help me, that would be great. Thanks in advance.

L

And so it was done.



May 2001

I'm running an anime festival this weekend to support a Japan exchange program and I've been using the Parent's Guide to Anime very extensively to choose and evaluate titles before receiving them. Your site is fabulous.

I was wondering if I could use your ratings from the Parent's Guide in splashscreens and programs for the festival with the proper credit and the site address. Would this be possible?

BA

And so it was done.


Hey, great site. I'm going to suggest it on my newsletter, "The Monthly Backstab"

-NCY



April 2001

Hi! I just wanted to tell you that i really like your site!! I was first introduced to anime at a friend's house when we watched sailor moon, and this quarter at college, i have the privaledge of sharing my dorm room with a japanese foreign exchange student!!! I am learning a lot from my roommate and I am growing to love japan and all things japanese more and more!!! In a year, my family is going to japan to visit my brother who is stationed there by the air force. I have been wanting to learn more about anime and your site has really helped!

K.E.



For a site dedicated to anime reviews you really have very little. You don't even have some of the basics like: Marmolade boy, weiz cruise, Rose of Versilles.

C.R.

To each there own say I. And while we actually did try to acquire a couple of these titles, luck hasn't been with us on this.


Hey Guys at the Cafe! Your site is great and the reviews are just what I need! They are very specific and give all the details. However, there needs to be more! I was wondering if you could post a review of the Anime series called: Shamanic Princess. Could you? huh? huh? please write back and tell me if you can. THANKS A BUNCH!

P.

Unfortunately, we haven't acquired Shamanic Princess at the moment, so we won't be able to do a review for it for awhile yet. Should we get hold of the video however, we'll be sure to let you know!




While the Mailbag hasn't been updated between May 2000 - April 2001, I hope to start updating it more regularly from here on.


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