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John
August 25th, 2006, 11:10 AM
Last week there was some curiosity about the e-mail I recieve. I'm not planning on making a habit of this, but to satisfy curiosity, this past week I kept track of all of the e-mail questions I recieved. They're presented here exactly as I recieved them. I've excluded responses. This is only questions. I haven't had a chance to send answers to all of these questions yet. So far, only one of these will eventually turn up on the AnimeNation site as an "Ask John" article.


How come anime fans seem to overlook the japanese metal scene??(not l'arc~en~ciel but bands like sigh,abigail,melt banana,324,merzbow,masonna,acid mothers temple,magane,narcotic greed,terror squad,SxOxBx,mono,boris,coffins,church of misery,christine 230nna,barbatos,endless dismal moan)

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Whatever happened to your links fowarder? Did it move or was it shut down?

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If Orochimaru were to die somwhere in the series, what'll happen to the seal on the necks of Sasuke and the other Sound cronies?

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I was watching some clips from Final Fantasy X, and Tidus was talking about his dad. There was a woman with his dad before he died. Was that Tidus's mom? If not, then who was she?

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I was listing to the song "black is black" on the noir OST 2 and I noticed that no credit was given for the Arabic (maybe Kurdish) vocals in the background. Do you know who does the background vocals in this song?

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Hi John , i was recently viewing the Dragon ball z uncensored site, while reading the episode comparisons i was appalled how the dub was treated ,the Dragon ball z dub has the worst screenplay in a dub Anime ive ever heard its patheticly laughable & frequently makes little attempt to logical thinking , eg do they really expect U.S audiences to believe an entire city could be evacuated in 2min or a building to be conveniently empty before Nappa decides to vaporise it ,its just pathatic writing & visual cover ups of death ,as above is just one of many examples John , how in the HFIL did it end up in the hands of FUNImation ?

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I'm interested in watching some "old school" anime. Could you recommend a list of titles that are released in the US? So far I've found Astro Boy, Leo the Lion (aka Kimba), and Gigantor. Thank you!

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When Legend of the Galactic Heroes was remastered in Japan, why did they edit and change so much visually? I heard the differences between the laserdisc and dvd release is huge.

Lastly do you think there is a market for space operas?

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What is your favorite anime/manga

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Lately Ren Ai games have started (very slowly) coming to North America, but all these games seem to be for guys. I'm wondering if you know, if versions for girls will be coming out anytime soon, such as Kaitou Apricot.

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How well do you think the bible black cdrom game that kitty media is releasing in the u.s. will sell??

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I recently learned that a couple of my favorite anime theme songs, "Omoide ga Ippai" from the _Miyuki_ TV series and "Ai * Oboete Imasu ka" from the Macross movie of the same name, were top ten hits on the Oricon singles chart (#6 and #8, respectively). I was wondering what was the first anime theme song to achieve mainstream success as a top ten hit, and what, if any, was the first one to reach #1 status?

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How do you think Japan's domestic anime industry will adapt to the country's declining birth rate and its shrinking youth population?

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A few days ago you answered a question regarding how there were dissenting opinions about the quality of American and Japanese animation. My question is this: If there are both fans of the American and Japanese way of creating animation, why do shows on either side never seem to intentionally try and resemble the other in art style? I've heard of American institutions that actively seek to promote "not anime style" animation and Japanese enthusists that may denounce Anime as "child fare" while taking an interest in American cartoons or animated features. If any sort of animation really is underlined by the universal medium of art, why does there seem to be some much cultural resistance when the art world itself seems to be increasingly focused on universal acceptance and personal interpretation of any qualified work?

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You've covered this topic before, but I understand things have changed since then. You've mentioned only Hentai was imported back to Japan because of the lack of censoring. With dvd prices dropping here and with the increase of internet sites and auction sites; how are American imports affecting Japanese sales? I ask because of the Burst Angel OAV delays. Thanks.

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Is it me or would some cradle of filth music be good for a bible black soundtrack (opening/closing themes)?

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I've heard from some sources that Japan makes more animated cartoons than any other country in the world. Is that the reason why there is so much anime? Is Japan more obsessed with making their television series and films animated than live-action compared to countries such as the United States?

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what do you think about Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-chan?^^ i find it funny!

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Do Japanese R2 DVDs have better extras than thier US R1 counterparts? Also, are the R2 First Press discs identical to the later printings just without inserts or what?

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In a recent question you explained how American animation strives to be seperate from reality as opposed to Japanese animation. I just wanted to know why you think anime contains so many childlike elements such as extraggerated facial expressions, extreme body distortions, bursts of super power and speed, all usually stemming from a reactions and changes in mood.

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Do you have any idea why Hunter X Hunter (manga and anime) never got licensed over here in the USA? It is one of my favorite Shonen series and I would think it would have a market over here. Care to speculate?

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I am here in the united states and I am a big Anime fan. One of my co-workers said he has a channel of Anime 24hrs a day. He is in Columbus, OH and I live in Atlanta, GA. I have Comcast Cable and he has WOW how can I get that anime station where I live?

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about BECK coming to america...i think they should definatley bring it here and just release it with subs and not dub it at all for one because of the japanese to english speakings in the show and also the lip syncing and the vocalist for the music itself i can see chiba san being voiced by the man that is spike in cowboy bebop and mugen in samurai champloo but i cant see him singing and i dont think they should just use his voice for talking then switch to the japaense VO for the singing but anyway they brought over ghost in the shell 2 with no dubs and look at the huge fan base for it so peopel shouldnt complain about it being only subbed i say bring it on to who ever has the balls to import it and i dont think the sells would be dissapointing

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is there gonna be a anime sequal to beck? i think there is a second manga called BECK: guarlite or somthin i havent finished the series yet im only 4 eps away so im not sure if it really leads anyhting more to add

ZeroRyoko1974
August 25th, 2006, 01:30 PM
The DBZ question made me LOL. Do you have an answer for the anime theme songs in the top ten singles chart?

Area88
August 25th, 2006, 01:44 PM
How do you think Japan's domestic anime industry will adapt to the country's declining birth rate and its shrinking youth population?

Ouch thats a painfully tough yet very intelligent question.

I have no doubts that will be the one chosen for 'Ask John' article.

Soluzar
August 25th, 2006, 02:01 PM
Several of the questions produced a wry smile from me. The things that some anime fans expect John to know are extraordinary. I'm quite sure that as much as John does know, he doesn't know all the answers to some of these questions. :lol:

The Million Dollar Prons
August 25th, 2006, 02:17 PM
Cradle of Filth question = Major XD.

Bradster
August 25th, 2006, 02:20 PM
OK, I doubt you could turn a good chunk of those into a column, so it looks like you don't often have the luxury of picking something that you can really go to town on...

Several of the questions produced a wry smile from me. The things that some anime fans expect John to know are extraordinary. :lol:
I'm really tempted to take that and start some kind of seedy running joke, but will exercise restraint. ;)

Gibb
August 25th, 2006, 02:35 PM
John, in episode 256 of Detective Conan, why was the grass in front of one of the houses bermuda grass, when it's quite impossible for such a grass species to grow between the months of October and December in the southern areas of Nagano.



/end goofy question.

Carmel
August 25th, 2006, 03:42 PM
I'm not even sure if some of those questions have answers... :blink:

John, the almighty one who can look into the future!

Paul Soth
August 25th, 2006, 11:27 PM
You poor bastard.

Your restraint and patience is remarkable.

John
August 28th, 2006, 08:25 AM
Will use the Dokuro-chan question as an article probably this week. Haven't had a chance to answer the question about birth rates yet.

cat_clan
August 28th, 2006, 04:00 PM
I recently learned that a couple of my favorite anime theme songs, "Omoide ga Ippai" from the _Miyuki_ TV series and "Ai * Oboete Imasu ka" from the Macross movie of the same name, were top ten hits on the Oricon singles chart (#6 and #8, respectively). I was wondering what was the first anime theme song to achieve mainstream success as a top ten hit, and what, if any, was the first one to reach #1 status?
As far as I know there hasn't been any Anime song that has reached the #1 position on Oricon Weekly or Monthly Chart.

The Anime related songs that have made it to to the highest #2 on weekly are, as far as I know:
Tanpopo's "Last Kiss" CD Single - Majutsushi Orhpen 1st Ending Theme.
Mizuki Nana's "ETERNAL BLAZE" CD Single (2005/10) - Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha A's Opening Theme.

The Anime related songs that have made it to the highest #3 on monthly are, once again as far as I know:
Hayashibara Megumi's "Bertemu" CD Album (1996/11/01)
Hayashibara Megumi's "Northern lights" CD Single (2002/03/27) - Shaman King 2nd Opening Theme.
Sakamoto Maaya's "Single Collection+Nikopachi" CD Album (2003/07/30).
"Happy Material" CD Single (2005/05/11) - Mahou Sensei Negima! Opening Theme.
"Happy Material" CD Single (2005/08/03) - Mahou Sensei Negima! Opening Theme.

Tomoe
August 29th, 2006, 12:44 PM
As far as I know there hasn't been any Anime song that has reached the #1 position on Oricon Weekly or Monthly Chart.

The Anime songs that have made it to to the highest #2 on weekly are, as far as I know:
Tanpopo's "Last Kiss" CD Single - Majutsushi Orhpen 1st Ending Theme.
Mizuki Nana's "ETERNAL BLAZE" CD Single (2005/10) - Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha A's Opening Theme.

The Anime songs that have made it to the highest #3 on monthly are, once again as far as I know:
Hayashibara Megumi's "Bertemu" CD Album (1996/11/01)
Hayashibara Megumi's "Northern lights" CD Single (2002/03/27) - Shaman King 2nd Opening Theme.
Sakamoto Maaya's "Single Collection+Nikopachi" CD Album (2003/07/30).
"Happy Material" CD Single (2005/05/11) - Mahou Sensei Negima! Opening Theme.
"Happy Material" CD Single (2005/08/03) - Mahou Sensei Negima! Opening Theme.

While Miyuki's theme and "Do you remember love?" are somehow well known among Anison fans, I can tell you for sure that all the others you listed are not considered Anison classics, not even famous songs; they've never been part of "Anime Song Countdown" TV programs or NHK Anime Shudaika concerts, and they've never been performed at Anison events.

Starchild
August 29th, 2006, 01:46 PM
I remember Godiego's The Galaxy Express 999 topped the Japanese hit chart as long as seven weeks in 1979. (it ranked 2nd in Ori-Con chart, though)

The Galaxy Express 999 will take you on a journey, a never ending journey, a journey to the stars...

ransom
August 30th, 2006, 12:31 PM
Okay future Ask John question:
"When are you going to compile a list of all the Ask John questions again? They were a riot!"

John
August 31st, 2006, 07:09 AM
Well, if there's actually some interest, maybe in another week or two I'll bother to keep track of them again.

ransom
September 1st, 2006, 10:19 AM
Irony Alert!

I was joking ..... XD

Beet28
September 6th, 2006, 03:15 PM
"When Legend of the Galactic Heroes was remastered in Japan, why did they edit and change so much visually? I heard the differences between the laserdisc and dvd release is huge."

Please, PLEASE answer this question, at least in this topic even if the question/answer doesn't make it to your regular column. I love the anime to death and have never heard about this controversy, and I'm very curious to know what he's talking about.

John
September 7th, 2006, 10:09 AM
"When Legend of the Galactic Heroes was remastered in Japan, why did they edit and change so much visually? I heard the differences between the laserdisc and dvd release is huge."

Please, PLEASE answer this question, at least in this topic even if the question/answer doesn't make it to your regular column. I love the anime to death and have never heard about this controversy, and I'm very curious to know what he's talking about.

I've also never heard anything about this. If there are changes in the animation footage between the VHS/LD version of LOGH and the DVD version, I've never heard of them.

Chef Wun
September 7th, 2006, 01:08 PM
John are you able to answer all the questions you get sent? either becuase their too goofy or they're ust too far fetched?

John
September 8th, 2006, 08:22 AM
No, I don't answer all of the questions I recieve. Sometimes I just don't have time to get to them all, but more often I don't know the answer or the question doesn't seem like an honest, legitimate request for information. But I do try to answer as many of them as I can.

ben93085
September 9th, 2006, 09:35 AM
John, in episode 256 of Detective Conan, why was the grass in front of one of the houses bermuda grass, when it's quite impossible for such a grass species to grow between the months of October and December in the southern areas of Nagano.



/end goofy question.

LOL. So true.
Any Geek-dom circle has those people. I guess it can't be helped.

GREEDO SHOOTS FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, and that DBZ question was a classic. Whats worse, the script butchering, or his grammar?