Update for Robot Anime I’ve been watching + Mega Man Megamix

Tuesday afternoon I had a chance to catch up on some robot anime. I watched episodes 15 and 16 of Casshern Sins.  There is no bad episode, this show is so great and powerful.

After watching Casshern Sins, I watched episode 8 of Android Kikaider the Animation. It was a compilation episode, but I didn’t mind. It was a good idea that episode 8 happened to be a compilation episode because it has been a while since I watched Android Kikaider the Animation anyway. If I wanted to watch robot anime, lately it was Casshern Sins. Episode 8 of Shotaro Ishinomori’s animated series touched up on some issues that were pretty important to the show; Mitsuko’s feelings for Jiro; Jiro’s loneliness; Jiro’s negative self-image as Kikaider; Kikaider’s strength, and other things important to the story.

Now there are only five more episodes of Android Kikaider TA that I have to watch.  I am almost sorry that the series is only thirteen episodes.  But that means I can watch the series again in Japanese audio.

Recently, I think on the night before watchin the anime, I read the first chapter of Mega Man: Megamix Volume 2. The author and artist is Hitoshi Ariga. This chapter features Skull Man. I can only say that the story for this chapter reminds me of the many reasons why I love robot literature so much, especially when it comes to robot characters that lack something (like love) and are misunderstood.  Even if you are not a Mega Man fan, but you like robots/ robot literature, read this manga.  Hitoshi Ariga’s stories for Mega Man are truly amazing.

Watched Android Kikaider the Animation, Episodes 5 and 6

It's been a while since I watched Android Kikaider the Animation, so I wanted to watch episodes 5 and 6.  I really loved episode 4, and so far, episodes 4 and 5 are my favorite ones. 

I recentely found out when visiting the blog Black Sun that there is a link at the bottom of the page for the website called www.generationkikaida.com/ and the picture for it had what I thought was someone dressed up like Kikaider.  So I went to that website and I learned in the archives for 2002 that Kikaida was actually a live action TV show before Shotaro Ishinomori made the anime.  I forgot, was Android Kikader a Japanese manga series also?  I need to look that up.

Ha ha, I didn't know that it was live action before, so I learned something new.  But I 'm going to stick to the anime.

I would really like to write my reflections on the episodes of that anime that I watch, but they will have to come later.  I especially want to write one for episode 4, since it brings up a lot of interesting issues that the characters Jiro and Mitsuko are individually realizing.  In this episode, titled "Mirror,"  Jiro, the android, still doesn't know what he looks like when he transforms into Kikaider.  Near the end of the episode he does get a chance to look at his own reflection, and he doesn't like what he sees.  Okay, I should save this for another separate post.

The Japanese Anime DVDs Arrived...

Thursday the first three volumes of Android Kikaider the Animation arrived at my house.  I was so excited and I couldn't wait to watch it.  I ended up watching the first two episodes the following night.  Amazon.com is so cool...

I've known about Android Kikaider for some time, but I never watched it.  In the spring of 2002 I found out it was coming on the Cartoon Network, but I didn't watch it.  I didn't know what it was about, plus it aired at 11:30pm or midnight.  Over a year later I found out what it was about--an android with a human soul--but the show wasn't on Cartoon Network anymore.

However in summer 2003 I had started watching Cyborg 009, another Japanese animated show that was originally created by Shotaro Ishinomori.  This aired on the Cartoon Network also.   I was hooked on that show.  In another anime DVD I found out that Ishinomori also created Android Kikaider.  Little did I know that I was going to be a fan of his.

I am glad I will finally have a chance to enjoy this Android Kikaider series.