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Subject: "Anime and more! Time for shonen and Tokusatsu!"     Previous Topic | Next Topic
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Reading Topic #1758
Kendra Kirai
Member since May-22-16
238 posts
Dec-02-22, 04:50 AM (EST)
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"Anime and more! Time for shonen and Tokusatsu!"
 
   LAST EDITED ON Dec-03-22 AT 08:32 PM (EST)
 
Alright, next up is some SHONEN anime! Buuuut, since I don't really *watch* many of those kind of shows, this would be a pretty short list.

So I'm going to expand this to include TOKUSATSU! Specifically Kamen Rider and Super Sentai, since I haven't gotten around to properly watching any Ultra, Tomica Hero, or Garo.

First up is the Shonen anime!

Hunter x Hunter
The story follows a young boy named Gon Freecss, who was told all his life that both his parents were dead. But when he learns from Kite, an apprentice of his father Ging Freecss, that he is still alive and has since become an accomplished Hunter, Gon leaves his home on Whale Island to take the Hunter Examination in order to become a Hunter like him.

--Hunter x Hunter (Pronounced just 'hunter hunter') is made by the same guy who did Yu Yu Hakusho (and who happens to be married to Naoko Takeuchi, creator of Sailor Moon), and is, I think, actually a better story than Dragonball, in how it's constantly expanding it's scope without just 'this guy's power is maximum, but the main character's power is maximumer'. There's a strategy behind everything that's extremely refreshing for Shonen.

Dragon Ball Z (also Dragonball Super)

Do I REALLY need to explain Dragonball to you people? Seriously?

Edens Zero
Shiki Granbell is a human and gravity Ether Gear user who lives among robots on the planet Granbell, a deserted theme park world in the Sakura Cosmos. The park is visited by two space traveling B-Cubers – Rebecca Bluegarden and her robotic cat companion, Happy – whom Shiki befriends. After the park's robots force them off the planet to save Shiki from being stranded before their batteries die, the three set out to explore the universe by searching for Mother, the wish-granting goddess of the cosmos, whom Shiki recognizes.

--Edens Zero is nominally an unbelievably distant sequel to Fairy Tail - to the point that it plays absolutely zero role except for some character designs and basic setting rules. Like how Nier is technically a sequel to one of the endings of Drakengaard. Anyway, I like it! It's a little bit horny, though, so maybe be careful about who you watch it around. Nothing actually shown, but still might raise some questions you aren't eager to answer. :)

Spy x Family
In order to maintain the state of peace between the rival nations of Westalis and Ostania, a Westalian agent code-named "Twilight" is tasked with spying on Donovan Desmond, leader of the National Unity Party within Ostania. However, due to Desmond being notoriously reclusive, the only way Twilight can get close to him is to enroll a child in the same private school as Desmond's sons and pose as a fellow parent.

-- Peter Eng has already written up a thing here so go check out that thread~ His writeup is far better than I could do it. Currently airing.

One Punch Man
On a supercontinent version of Earth that has four Moons, powerful monsters and villains wreak havoc. The millionaire Agoni creates the Hero Association, which employs superheroes to fight evil. Saitama, an unassociated hero, hails from City Z and performs heroic deeds as a hobby. For three years, he has trained enough to defeat any enemy with a single punch, his unmatched strength leaving him bored. He becomes a reluctant mentor to Genos, a cyborg seeking revenge against another cyborg who killed his family and destroyed his hometown, after Saitama defeats a monster that defeated Genos.

--WAN PAAAANNNNNNNCCCCCHHHH! ...*cough* I've only seen the first season of this, so I'm bending a rule here, but it's my list, I can do what I want. You could call this a deconstruction of the shonen genre as a whole, or super heroes, and it's kind of both, but it's really a story about depression and how getting what you want can be extremely empty.


Alright, that was a bit more than I thought, so I'll cut the Toku down a bit. First up is Super Sentai. These especially are going to be troublesome to watch, and unfortunately, I can't help you do so here. Use your best judgement.

Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger("Pirate Squad Gokaiger")
The story takes place in a world where previous Super Sentai groups exists, a group of young pirates come from space to Earth to obtain the "Greatest Treasure in the Universe",which can only be acquired after obtaining the "Greater Powers" of the different 34 Super Sentai Teams. However, they end up facing the Space Empire Zangyack, whose earlier invasion forces were wiped out by the 34 Sentai groups long ago before a new invasion force is established under Commander Warz Gill, the emperor's son. As a result, due to their history with the empire, the space pirates use the powers of the older teams and attempt to master their powers to fight the Zangyack forces as the Gokaigers.

--This was the first Sentai series I watched in its entirety, and it's the 35th anniversary series. Many episodes are what's known as 'Tribute' episodes, where a previous Sentai actor returns to personally pass on wisdom to the new team members. Knowledge of these prior shows isn't necessary, as they give the important information in those episodes, but it helps if you want to know the particulars. You may know this as the Power Rangers season 'Super Megaforce'. But probably not because it bears little resemblance to Gokaiger. Acquiring some Super Sentai cliffs notes wouldn't be amiss~

Ressha Sentai ToQger("Railway Squad ToQger")
Only those with a great Imagination can see the mystical railway known as the Rainbow Line, on which run massive trains known as Ressha. These Ressha are driven by five warriors known as the ToQgers. It is their mission to save towns from the evil forces of the Shadow Line who are using the residents' fear and sadness to establish their own railway to enable the coming of their leader Emperor Z, whose intention is consume light to plunge the world into darkness.

--ToQger is almost relentlessly joyful, even when it gets dark. It's childish without being immature if you get my meaning. There's a childlike wonder to the whole thing that's incredibly infectious and will - I hope - leave you happier having experienced it.


Now for some Kamen Riders! These are *slightly* easier to watch, but not by a lot. The Toei Tokusatsu Youtube channel has the first two episodes of every series so far, but they refuse to put up more than that. Again, use your best judgement if you want to look for them. I can't really think of too much to talk about these ones beyond the wikipedia excerpts, so I'll just do those, mainly.

Kamen Rider W(pronounced "Double")
Many people live in peace and harmony in Fuuto, an ecologically-minded and wind-powered city. However, this peace is undermined by the Sonozaki Family, who sell mysterious flash drive-like devices called Gaia Memories to criminals and other interested parties. These individuals use the Gaia Memories to become Dopants, committing crimes with the police force powerless to stop them. To make matters worse, the Gaia Memories can cause their users to go insane, to the point where they could die from using the devices unrestrained. After the death of his boss Sokichi Narumi, the self-proclaimed hard-boiled (actually half-boiled) detective Shotaro Hidari works with the mysterious Philip, who possesses a set of purified Gaia Memories, to investigate Dopant-related crimes in Fuuto. With their Gaia Memories and the Double Driver belts, Shotaro and Philip transform and combine into Kamen Rider W to fight the Dopant menace and keep Fuuto safe.

--W is one of, possibly my favorite, Kamen Rider series', more or less tied with another.

Kamen Rider OOO(Pronounced "Ohs")
Eiji Hino is a traveling man who has no place to call home and a tragic past. When metallic creatures known as the Greeed awaken after their 800-year slumber to attack humans and feed off of their desires, the disembodied arm of the Greeed named Ankh gives Eiji a belt and three Medals to fight the other Greeed as Kamen Rider OOO. The mysterious Kougami Foundation approaches Eiji and begins assisting him in his fight against the Greeed, though their true motives are not clear. As Eiji fights the Greeed and their Yummy monsters, learning more about the Greeed and Ankh, he starts to find a purpose beyond his journey.

--This is the other show that is possibly my favorite Rider series.

Kamen Rider Gaim
n Zawame City, a large company known as the Yggdrasill Corporation transformed the once-bustling suburb a city into a jōkamachi. To escape the resulting feeling of oppression, many of the youth in Zawame formed dance crews called Beat Riders to bring joy back into people's lives. Also rising in popularity is the Inves Game, a simulator that uses strange devices known as Lockseeds to summon monsters known as Inves. Kota Kazuraba, a member of the dance group Team Gaim, tries to find his place in the world while torn between his loyalty to his teammates and his sister Akira's insistence that he starts acting like an adult and finds a proper job. When Team Gaim's captain disappears after informing Kota of a strange belt he found, Kota discovers that the Lockseeds and Inves are from an alternate dimension known as Helheim Forest. Encountering a mysterious girl resembling his Team Gaim teammate and close friend Mai Takatsukasa, Kota uses a Sengoku Driver belt and the Orange Lockseed to become a samurai-armored warrior that is later named Armored Rider Gaim.

--Okay, have something to say about this one; it was written by Gen Urobuchi, of Madoka Magica infamy. This show is a touch darker than some other Rider series, so it may appeal to those with a more mature taste. Mind, it's still Kamen Rider, a show made for ten year olds, so darkness is relative. Still, the story is exceptionally good, but I don't find it as *fun* as W or OOO, which is why it's not a particular personal favorite. I tend to value fun above all other considerations. :)

Alright, I think that's good for now, but some honorable mentions here; Kamen Riders Den-O, Drive, Zi-O, Ex-Aid, and the new and currently airing (episode 13 is upcoming as of this post) Kamen Rider Geats (hard-g "geets", like 'greets' without the r)


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Gryphonadmin
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21728 posts
Dec-02-22, 01:15 PM (EST)
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1. "RE: Anime and more! Time for shonen!"
In response to message #0
 
   > Kamen Rider Geats (hard-g "geets", like 'greets' without the r)

Fun fact: the Geats were the ancient Germanic people of whom the legendary warrior Beowulf, of Old English epic poem fame, was reputedly a prince. Their name lives on in all the southern-Swedish place names that have Got or Göta in them. They may or may not have been predecessors of, successors to, contemporaries of, or just the same thing as the Goths. Nobody really knows, because anthropologists cannot agree on the exact timeline or about whether the Goths even really existed, something that modern goths can probably relate to. :)

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Mod
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
zgryphon at that email service Google has
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.


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TsukaiStarburst
Member since Jan-5-15
125 posts
Dec-04-22, 00:18 AM (EST)
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2. "RE: Anime and more! Time for shonen!"
In response to message #1
 
   The name's supposed to be an adaptation of 'Gitsu', as in gitsune/kitsune- pretty much every Rider in this series has a very simple and unsubtle animal reference name (Da-Paan, Buffa, Ginpen) mostly because there's a lot of them to get through. It has nothing to do with... well, the geats.


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Kendra Kirai
Member since May-22-16
238 posts
Dec-04-22, 01:50 AM (EST)
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3. "RE: Anime and more! Time for shonen!"
In response to message #2
 
   Fun fact, it's also based on battle royale type games like Fortnite and such (Called out as a specific inspiration) and there's some Streamer type language being used it in, too~

It's really good so far, *so many questions*!


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