Otaku no Video & the History of Otaku | KYOTO VIDEO
Added 2024-02-01 00:59:35 +0000 UTCFor my 6th anniversary, I wanted to take a look back at an anime that's more of a historical document than an actual anime. Through a combination self-effacing humor and true love for the medium, a Gainax co-founder made Otaku no Video as a way to poke fun, but also de-mystify the subculture he was a part of. But how does it fare in today's light where otakudom feels more mainstream than ever?
Comments
Where's the source for all of this info please?
Michael 'Jikorijo' Rookard
2024-09-30 14:10:39 +0000 UTCHappy 6th anniversary! Thanks for all the amazing videos ❤️
faifnir
2024-02-02 01:04:36 +0000 UTCHave to say, Okada always struck me as the "professional" in the Gainax bunch. He came from money, Entreprenurial money, and gave them all a veneer of professionalism which helped when they were say making their own gunpowder for Tokusatsu squibs. He was also the early "Ideas man", Gunbuster is a mix of Okada's "kitchen sink" approach to story-telling and Anno's unique vision (and library of others' visions which makes it much more interesting to watch than say Royal Space Force. Okada also talked Bandai out of a LOT of Money to fund Royal Space Force, when they had less than an hour of studio work to show, and he also clearly explains why Anime funding is so out of whack (I don't know WHAT percentage exactly that Mangaka get, but they don't seem to be suffering). American Otakudom was also pretty darn male-dominated through the mid 90s. Part of it was that it was a branch of SF (which bumped up the age, as did the sheer cost of it). Also those women who did show an interest, had slightly different tastes (I always saw Star Blazers as mainstream Otaku fandom, while Battle of the Planets had an obvious fem-fan demographic. LOT'S of Ken/Mark versus Joe/Jason good boy bad boy, I remember how shocked I was at the impression Jason had made on a couple of geeky ladies I knew. The Otaku no Video premier was not widely advertised (I missed it, I was too busy watching Peter (JList) Payne's fan videos in HIS room, and scrouging a subtitle program). And Gainax weren't quite well GAINAX yet (Nadia was kinda kiddy, older fandom you know). The real turning point to modern Fandom was when Okada made it to Otakon in State College PA a few years later. At this point, he was retiring to academia, and was telling us tales of what it had really been like (some of the details would later show up in the Live action Drama "Blue Blazes" (where Okada got to play Tezuka, giving advice/making points with his younger self). That Con also marked the fruit of the early TV exposure Anime had gotten (this is when Dragon Ball started to make inroads), it was also the con where Woodhead told some hardline old boys complaining about Sailor Moon "Sailor Moon, is a gateway drug". Okada finished HIS panel by telling us that Anno was back from his depression and working on a new project. When we begged for details, he just smiled and said "It's a Giant Robot show".. P.S. The "peek into the year bits in the mockumentary, include a sneaky "trap" for Otaku who insist they are above all the weird behavior. The second to last one, is set at the end of the 90s (the films were made in 90 and 92 roughly). The events mentioned are a direct reference to a famous Live-action Gerry Anderson TV show, and if you recognize THAT, you probably aren't TOO different from the guys you've been laughing at (heck I HAD that Dirty Pair Poster).
Andrew Dederer
2024-02-01 05:36:26 +0000 UTC
