From Natural Disaster to Japanese Cultural

While the media releases footages revealing the magnitude of destruction and casualty report, it is so surreal to watch how it happens.

If there is any positive message from all these (I need one), it would be the spirit of Japanese culture.

To me Japanese have already demonstrated their communitarian over last few days. While those who have lost love-one and possession, they show little grudge. They wipe in tears, but still hold up with dignity. Even when panic is already spreading, social order very much continues.

They have touched me.

Growing up from a historical background where Japanese imperial army has invaded, and with Manga playing a role in my adolescence, the nation to me symbolises reinvention.

The new Japan still keeps its cooperative root, although with blend religion. The nation is resilent to cope with adversity as post-war has revealed.

In some way, their culture transcends hardship and individual sacrifice. Such moral has hold up against time, from Harakiri to the era of mass culture (see example).

If one has to pick a country that could come out from major disaster, Japan should be among the discussion.

Will continue to pray for this nation.

I Luv Anime

I grow up in local-made comics and foreign cartoon. While situated in a proximity to Japan, Hongkong has the benefit of viewing many of their most popular Anime and getting first-hand media coverage.

In the early 70s, the Anime being imported are all main-stream series, featuring variety of "hero" type, from humanized role-model to half-human/robots. Anime at the time are iconized as children-friendly. Air-time are concentrated around the children-friendy schedule. No matured content, let alone any "hentai” (cartoon in pornography), can be found at the time. The only way to access alternative genre is through imported Manga or translated version if lucky.

The local comics all features the non-robotic type of "heros". These characters are teenagers with little education but great talent in martial-art. They are mostly one-dimentional stereotype, with similiar age and background to the audience, who prefers these comic than any written-form novel.

While I left Hongkong in the 80s, I missed the Anime. I could still access to Hongkong comics overseas, but I missed the variety of genre in Anime and the creativity of storyline.