Notices by AniFem (animefeminist@mstdn.social)

Resilience and Resistance: Reimagining marginality and agency in The Apothecary Diaries

A deep dive on how The Apothecary Diaries explores the oppression under a Confucian patriarchy, and how the women under it carve out power where they can.

https://www.animefeminist.com/resilience-and-resistance-reimagining-marginality-and-agency-in-the-apothecary-diaries/

Porygon Was Innocent: An epileptic perspective on Pokémon’s “Electric Soldier Porygon”

Everyone knows the urban legends about the seizure-inducing banned episode of Pokemon. But the facts of what happened are stranger and more complicated than many know

https://www.animefeminist.com/porygon-was-innocent-an-epileptic-perspective-on-pokemons-electric-soldier-porygon/

Social Commentary, Horror Manga and the Left: From Ero-Guro to Junji Ito

From the Marxist-leaning magazines of the 1960s to the modern era, the best horror has always been a way to unearth the unspeakable and speak for the voiceless.

https://www.animefeminist.com/social-commentary-horror-manga/

We're proud to have raised our contributor rate to $75 an article this year, and we want to keep it going into 2025. The good news?

We're already 50% there!

If you want more history, analysis, and interviews from Japan, consider tossing in a few dollars to our fundraiser:

https://ko-fi.com/animefeminist

#crowdfunding

The Villain Edit: Dissecting how Oshi no Ko evokes real-life tragedy in its depictions of harassment and reality TV culture

#oshinoko evokes a real woman's death with good intentions, but it's still worth asking if the story's execution did more harm than good

https://www.animefeminist.com/the-villain-edit-oshi-no-ko-reality-tv/

2024 Spring Three-Episode Check-In

Quite a few shows have taken a sharp turn this season, in ways that are both good and bad

https://www.animefeminist.com/2024-spring-three-episode-check-in/

2024 Spring Premiere Digest

All our spring premiere reviews in one place, plus some updated content warnings for shows with multiple episodes out

https://www.animefeminist.com/2024-spring-premiere-digest/

What was your favorite Winter 2024 anime?

https://www.animefeminist.com/what-was-your-favorite-winter-2024-anime/

Tonari no Yokai-san – Episode 1

A lovely and laid-back show about building community.

https://www.animefeminist.com/tonari-no-yokai-san-episode-1/

Tonbo! – Episode 1

A great little golf anime unfortunately locked away on Amazon

https://www.animefeminist.com/tonbo-episode-1/

A Condition Called Love – Episode 1

A shoujo romance where the boyfriend is neither a perfect prince nor an abusive assface, but something more complicated and human? Sounds nice.

https://www.animefeminist.com/a-condition-called-love-episode-1/

WIND BREAKER – Episode 1

A promising looking "delinquent with a heart of gold" story

https://www.animefeminist.com/wind-breaker-episode-1/

Train to the End of the World – Episode 1

A promising post-apocalyptic travelogue by an industry legend

https://www.animefeminist.com/train-to-the-end-of-the-world-episode-1/

Spice and Wolf: MERCHANT MEETS THE WISE WOLF – Episode 1

Contemplative, intriguing, and thankfully matter-of-fact about its use of nudity

https://www.animefeminist.com/spice-and-wolf-merchant-meets-the-wise-wolf-episode-1/

Curses and True Forms: Reading Fruits Basket as a lesbian

The manga's take on textual queerness is messy at best, but its broader metaphors about being supposedly "monstrous" can still resonate with a marginalized reader

https://www.animefeminist.com/curses-and-true-forms-reading-fruits-basket-as-a-lesbian/

My Fave is Problematic: I’m in Love with the Villainess

It's a terrible shame that ILTV's anime showcases all of the story's early stumbles but barely scratches the surface of the novels' inclusivity and ambitious ideas

https://www.animefeminist.com/my-fave-is-problematic-im-in-love-with-the-villainess/

Weekly Round-Up, 27 September – 3 October 2023: Yuri Phantom of the Opera, Missing Hatoful Boyfriend Royalties, and Nonbinary Manga

https://www.animefeminist.com/weekly-round-up-27-september-3-october-2023/

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou and Transgender Cyborgs’ Experience of the Apocalypse

The 90s manga's tale of rebuilding and self-discovery after the end has only become more relatable since 2020

https://www.animefeminist.com/yokohama-kaidashi-kikou-and-transgender-cyborgs-experience-of-the-apocalypse/

“An Inner Revolution Of The Japanese Women”: The Rose of Versailles As Feminist Historical Fiction

Ikeda Ryoko wasn't just an influential artist but a member of Japan's "New Left," and that passion for social causes shows through in her work

https://www.animefeminist.com/an-inner-revolution-of-the-japanese-women-the-rose-of-versailles-as-feminist-historical-fiction/

A transcript is now available for our Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury part 2 retrospective!

It was beautifully romantic (and gay). It was ambitious. It really needed to be at least 12 episodes longer.

https://www.animefeminist.com/chatty-af-190-mobile-suit-gundam-the-witch-from-mercury-part-2-retrospective/