The three shows that I finally began watching were anime that have risen to the top in the previous decade as their main characters train for something epic.
A long and exciting marathon
By Jerrison Oracion, Senior Columnist
In television today, there are a few shows that began decades ago and are still on at present. Some of them even went way longer than I think they should, including The Simpsons, Family Guy, and Bob’s Burgers; all of which kind of remake themselves as time goes by. Japan also has TV shows, movies, and anime that are still on today that keep them mainstream in Japan but they might not have crossed over into North America.
Shows like Pokémon, Doraemon, and Detective Conan would still appeal to new generations but may not have the same excitement as when they were first shown. But some animes have the same emotional impact as a traditional drama featuring seasonal breaks yet they still maintain a long, multi-year run. The three shows that I finally began watching were anime that have risen to the top in the previous decade as their main characters train for something epic.
Demon Slayer got people talking for a lot of reasons; one of which was the show’s theme songs mainly made by LiSA, one of the biggest female singers in Japan right now. Going into the show, I was expecting it to be violent but maybe not as violent as Attack on Titan.
The show begins with Tanjiro Kamado helping people in his village during the winter until he gets back to his home; there, he finds that almost his entire family has been murdered by human-eating demons except for one of his sisters named Nezuko. When she wakes up, she behaves like a demon, but Tanjiro—having a superhuman sense of smell—smells her and realizes that she is still human. The siblings are saved by a demon slayer who introduces them to his master. After finding out that both he and Tanjiro faced similar heartbreak, the elder sensei trains Tanjiro to become a demon slayer to bring Nezuko back. There are also two characters that Tanjiro meets during his training that I suspect might be ghosts; though one of them is key in Demon Slayer: Mugen Train.
Jumping from one anime based on a Shonen Jump manga to another, we have My Hero Academia. In My Hero Academia, Izuku Midoriya, or Deku, for short is about to graduate from high school in a world where almost everyone has superpowers, except for him. After Deku meets his idol All Might, All Might offers to train him and pass on his superpowers; this leads Deku to enter U.A.—a high-level hero academy—and eventually become the greatest superhero of all time. The show features commentary on fame and the impact of being a famous figure as well as satire throughout it. If Phil Hartman was still alive today, he would be a fitting choice for All Might.
Fame is also an issue in LoveLive! where a high school student named Honoka Kosaka and her classmates at Otonokizaka Academy try to save their school from being shut down by forming an idol group, an idea that is trending around the country. We see the group grow from three members to a full group as other students join. The story follows their unlikely rise to stardom as they create a legacy for the school and sh0w the world that you do not have to go to the best school to have success.
Anime is more exciting than ever and it is not too late to begin one.
