Shojo Anime - Magical Girls, Romance, Butlers and Ducks!

At the most basic level, shojo anime is Japanese animation that is specifically intended for young girls. It can cover a wide variety of topics, ranging from idealized romantic relationships to girls who fight crime and monsters with their magical powers. The animation style that is typically used in shojo anime is very pretty, and many shojo anime tend to use the "big eyes, small mouth" convention of art. The truth is that even though shojo anime is aimed at young girls between the ages of eight and thirteen, it is actually a genre that can be enjoyed by fans of any ages. For instance, Sailor Moon was one of the very first anime imported and widely distributed in America, and it has a cult following that covers fans of every type!
When looking at shojo anime, you may be a little bit surprised at the diversity of topics. For instance, one common type of shojo anime is the magical girl story, where a young girl realizes that she has magical powers and must use them to fight evil and to save the world. Sailor Moon is one anime that falls neatly into this type, though there are certainly others. Another common theme that you might see is a more realistic story about a young girl who deals with romance and friendship in a familiar setting like a junior high school. One example of this type of anime includes Hana Yori Dango, also known as Boys Over Flowers, where Makino Tsukushi, a working class girl, attends an elite academy and must deal with both bullying and her first real relationship.
Interestingly, some anime do not deal with girls as main characters at all, and are merely directed at young girls. One example of this would be Kuroshitsuji, or Black Butler, which is set in Victorian England and features the adventures of a young boy named Ciel, who investigates crimes for the queen and is assisted by his demonic butler.
Though each anime is different, and though there are exceptions to every rule, shojo anime tends to be focused more on emotions and feelings over action. There is special emphasis on how the characters behave and what they think, and though all of the series listed above have action sequences, there is a fair amount of time spent on what those actions mean and what the consequences might be.
One terrific example of a great shojo anime is Princess Tutu, which tackles love, relationships, responsibility and fairy tales! In this anime, a small duck called Ahiru is granted her wish to become a girl and to dance with the "prince," a beautiful silent boy named Mytho. She realizes that his heart has literally been shattered and that she must restore it, which can she can do by touching an amulet and becoming Princess Tutu. The story takes place at a ballet school, and Ahiru slowly learns that nothing is as it seems, and that the ones she originally believed were enemies are nothing of the sort.
Shojo anime is a wonderful genre to explore and if you have ever wanted a great story with plenty of drama and lots of great artwork, search the shojo anime titles out there and see what your options might be!

Robin's favorite country is Japan and her favorite pastime is watching Japanese animation, anime. Discover fun things to do while visiting Japan at VisitJapanNow.com

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Introduction to Naruto

There are literally hundreds upon hundreds of Japanese anime to be watched, all across different genres and hence catering to different tastes. Anime is appreciated by all sorts of people from various cultural backgrounds in the world. However, there are a select few that become so popular that they end up being translated into English (either subbed, dubbed or both) and released in English speaking countries.
The one particular anime I wish to discuss in this article is Naruto. If you are relatively new to the anime scene, you may have heard of Naruto but not know much about it. It's likely that you have already been exposed to anime and don't realize it. Other long running and classic series include Dragonball, Dragonball Z, Dragonball GT, Pokemon and Bakugan. These other anime series are designed more for younger audience, boys primarily. Naruto on the other hand, I believe, is richer and has a deeper theme allowing it to be appreciated by a wider range of audience whilst still appealing to young boys.
Like pretty much all other anime, Naruto started as a manga. The story concept was conceived by Masashi Kishimoto. He also wrote and illustrated the art in the manga. The Naruto manga was published in 1999, which was then turned into anime and released to the Japanese public in 2002. It proved to be so popular that the series was translated into English and aired in the US (2005), Canada (2005), UK (2006) and Australia (2007). Naruto is still an ongoing series. The original series has completed with 220 episodes. The current second running series is called Naruto Shippuden.
Similar to other anime, the Naruto plot line is structured into arcs of stories where each arc often spans across several episodes. The arcs are separated by "filler" stand-alone episodes which have little or no consequential impact on the overall plot or character development. This approach is different to having purely stand-alone episodes where every episode is unrelated and inconsequential on the next episode. The idea of using arcs definitely has its advantages as you get to see deeper and more meaningful plots. Rather than experiencing short spurts of climax and plot resolutions, you get longer and grander climatic endings.
Basically, the story revolves around a boy with the title name Naruto Uzumaki who dreams of becoming a Hokage in his local village of Konohagakure. In the original series, Naruto is 12 years old. A Hokage is highest level achievable amongst ninja ranks and the individual at this level has the added responsibility of leading the village. The English translation for Konohagakure is Village Hidden in the Leaves and this is the primary geographical location for the stories.

That is basic premise behind Naruto Episode 1. The huge following of this animated series is not just due to the intricate plot lines and deep characters, but also the incredible music. To learn more about it, check out this hub on Naruto Music.

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Anime Art

We all grew up with aspirations to want to be some kind of artist. Whether we were drawing cars or even painting scenery as children we always wanted to keep drawing and playing with our colors. We also loved and still do love to look at real art as well as beautiful art that touches us when we look at it. One such art that you can love to look at would be anime art.
Though in comparison Japanese anime art is not really the kind you find in art museums we love to look at them and probably put them up on our computers wallpaper and screen savers. If you are looking for this art you will probably find them through the numerous online websites that have anime cartoons.
Many of these anime art is of three dimensional also known as 3D and two dimensional also known as 2D and many will be still pictures. They will probably be of famous anime cartoon characters that you already know and some of who you don't. The art might be confusing at first because you know that they are Japanese and strangely they look more of western than Asian. With their blue eyes and yellow or orange hair the cartoons and pictures resemble more of the western look than those of the Japanese.
What always gets me however is the clothes they wear and the surroundings visualized in the cartoons. They are usually of the early days of Japanese history with Ninja's and Samurai's being key figures in the cartoon series and the manga comics as well. You will also find the manga comics and the anime cartoons play important key roles in the art of anime.

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5 Top Anime Figures

Today, a lot of people know at least something about the phenomenon called 'Anime'. Some people would refer to it as 'Japanese Animation', while others would say that they are the better cartoons than the American ones. And in fact it is true if you would ask the majority of Anime fans out there.
Anime has been around and blossoming all over the world for a long time. Now, anime I not limited to Manga, Video Games and other media forms, it is expanding online also.
In the early 1990s, Anime approached its fans slowly across the web. A number of sites were launched to display different Anime series with a variety of content. Soon people started searching for their favorite Anime series online very frequently. The fans would search for images and screenshots related to the specific shows they watched and liked.
The fans of Japanese Animation were verily into drawing own Anime pictures. And when the trend got hugely popular, the fans started to submit their Anime fan art online to show off their creativity. And this was only a starting point.
Today, there are many Anime characters that are loved by millions of people worldwide.
And there are Anime action figures manufactured after them and sold in a large number.
It was not possible to talk about all them in this article, so we listed the top 5 Anime Figures -
1. Queen's Blade -- The title does not refer to any single figure, actually this is a series of action figures based on visual combat book series published by 'Hobby Japan',
These Anime characters are licensed from 'Lost Worlds'. It features only female characters. These characters were created by these artists -- Hirokazu Hisayuki, Kazuhiro Takamura and Katsuzo Hirata.
Currently, Kaiyodo, a toy manufacturer produces these anime figures.
Characters -- Leina/Reina, Airi, Risty/Listy, Nanael, Melona, Irma, Nowa, Tomoe, Echidna, Menace, Elina and more
2. Final Fantasy Anime Figures -- Final Fantasy is a media franchise owned by 'Square Enix'. It centers on a series of science-fantasy console role-playing games and it is also available as anime, motion pictures, printed media and other media forms. In the mid 1980s, it entered the Japanese video game industry with simple racing games, RPGs and plat-formers for Nintendo's Famicom Disk System.
Characters -- Cid, Biggs, Wedge, Chocobos and Moogles
3. Neon Genesis Evangelion Anime Figures -- This is a commercially critically successful and also influential Japanese anime began in October 1995. This series has won several major animation awards. It was created by Gainax, written by Hideaki Anno, and co-produced by TV Tokyo and Nihon Ad Systems.
Evangelion is an apocalyptic mecha action series revolving around the efforts of a paramilitary organization 'Nerv' fighting monstrous 'Angels' using giant mecha 'Evangelions'. This anime has different forms -- TV, Movies and Games.
Characters -- Rei Ayanami, Asuka Langley Soryu, Shinji Ikari, Toji Suzuhara, Kaworu Nagisa, Gendo Ikari and Misato Katsuragi
4. Ikki Tousen -- Ikki Tousen is a lone rider with the strength to withstand a thousand. It is a Manga created by 'Yuji Shiozaki' based on 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' the classic Chinese novel. This Anime series features a very large cast of attractive young girls fighting in short skirts that get constantly ripped off and other ecchi situations like numerous rape scenes.
This Anime TV series ran from July 30, 2003 to October 22, 2003. The Manga of this series was released in English by 'TOKYOPOP'.
Characters - Inabaya, Hajime Iijima, Gakushu, Erica Shaffer, Amy Treadwell, Josh Phillips, Stephanie Sheh, Stephanie Sheh and many more.
5. Death Note -- Death Note is a Japanese Manga series Death Note was created by writer 'Tsugumi Ohba' and artist 'Takeshi Obata'. This Anime series revolves around Light Yagami, a student who discovers a supernatural notebook, 'Death Note' that is dropped on Earth by a dead God, 'Ryuk'. The notebook grants its user an ability to kill anyone they see just by writing the name of the person in the notebook. The story focuses on Light's attempt to fight crime and male clean world using the notebook and the conflicts between him and his opponents. It also involves a mysterious detective known as 'L'.
This anime is available in these media forms - Manga, Live-action films, Light novels and Video games
Characters -- Light Yagami, L, Misa Amane, Near, Mello and Shinigami
The popularity of Anime is growing very fast. It is liked by people of all age groups.

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Intro to Japanese Anime

Are you currently planning a stay in the wonderful country of Japan? Perhaps you are studying Japanese culture for a class in school or are possibly just enthralled by the wonderful world of modern Japanese pop culture. In any case, there is one aspect of Japanese pop culture, in particular, that is popular throughout the world. It is the style of Japanese animation popularly known as anime? If you haven't already fallen in love with Anime, you likely just haven't seen a good title yet. Today, there is likely an Anime series for just about anyone as it is certainly not only for children to enjoy.
While Anime is popular in Japan, its popularity abroad sometimes appears even stronger. There are very few Anime programs airing daily on regular television in Japan, in comparison to the abundance of titles airing daily in some western cities. Lately, it also seems like more and more classic Japanese animation titles are being made into blockbuster Hollywood movies. The futuristic "speed Racer"and the classic Japanese favorite "Astro Boy"are a couple of the highlights recently gracing silver screens around the world. Not to mention the highly successful "Transformers" movie franchise, based on a Japanese import from the 1980's. This and many other Anime titles have been popular in countries beyond Japan from the 70's through today. Many parents in western society today grew up enjoying such classic Japanese animation as "Robotech" and "Voltron". From the more modern and cuddly pokemon to the cinematic cyberpunk of "kira" the range is amazing and its influence on modern western media and younger generations across the world is increasingly evident. Not only have western animation companies adopted Japanese styles over the last decade or more, even pop culture and fashion itself has adopted some of the aesthetics of Japanese animation.
Historically the phenomenon known as Anime had its humble beginnings around 1917 with the oldest known anime first being screened in Japan. It was, poignantly enough, an animation of a Samurai testing a new sword. The first Anime with audible speech was produced in 1933 and again presented much more of an adult theme than its western counterparts. Japanese animation, influenced by Walt Disney and other early pioneers, was like a new pen in the creative arsenal of Japan. This particular pen would ultimately prove mightier than the sword at influencing the world abroad.
The archetypal style of Japanese animation being refined from the 1940's through the 1970's was largely based on a desire to produce Disney level product on a tighter budget. This style, pioneered primarily by the legendary artist and animator known as Osamu Tezuka and his team, is occasionally criticized as overly simple animation since it often involves most of the frame remaining still while a character's mouth would speak. Regardless, it was a breakthrough that allowed the animators to produce at the budget they had available. Although it was invented out of necessity, it later became a desirable aesthetic style of animation which is popular around the world today.

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How To Get Top-Quality Japanese Anime DVD Downloads

Presently, there is a constant rise in demand for Japanese Anime DVD downloads. Anime enthusiasts are on the height of searching the superior quality videos from various sites. Download sites therefore also increase. Due to this, the search for the best download site becomes a little bit tricky.
Japan is where the Anime fad started. Actually, it is developed from Manga, a Japanese style of drawing. Anime is a Japanese disambiguation for the animation of Manga. Today, Anime are manipulated with the aid of computers. However, it was traditionally done manually by the hands.
The World Wide Web serves as the home for a lot of Japanese Anime DVD downloads that claim of holding the best deal. However, you should not immediately believe their propositions. In fact, there are only a small amount of sites that can give you the best downloads of superior quality.
There are some guidelines that you need to ponder upon before you position your pointer over a link. The first decision to make is your choice between a pay site and a free site. Always remember that a site without fee can only hold a very limited number of titles. You may also experience a higher risk of getting your computer infected by spyware and adware when you choose to settle for a free site.
Real Japanese Anime fans will definitely settle for pay sites. Only pay sites can offer you the superior quality of downloads that you are constantly searching for. Do not be afraid that it could not fit your budget because several sites holding Japanese Anime DVD downloads come in reasonable prices. Another thing, files are usually safe and clean from pay sites because they always filter their contents.
When you finally made up your mind and decided that a pay site is the right choice for Japanese Anime DVD downloads, you should then decide if you will prefer a pay once over a paid movie download site. If you are planning to start a collection and to satisfy the avid fan in you, pay once site is the right choice. Paid movie sites are only good for one time viewers.
Pay once download sites are perfect for the real serious Anime lovers. It is the most economical choice if you are really planning to start a treasured collection. Pay sites can allow you to download Anime DVDs until you drop.
Although it can really be tricky, do not allow yourself to fall into the bait of free download sites. Weight first the advantages and disadvantages of free sites against pay sites then you will realize that pay sites are the best deals after all. Basing from my and my colleagues' experiences, the best deal of Japanese Anime DVD downloads are mostly in pay once sites.

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The World of Naruto Uzumaki

The whole manga series is based on the ninja world. It takes place in a virtual world consisting of five great nations and two-three other nations that are not so important. The main character Uzumaki Naruto resides in the hidden leaf village located in the Land of fire also know as the Konohagakure which is lead by the Hokage. The people of hidden leaf village are said to follow the will of fire. It is featured mainly during the series and most of the happenings take place there in the series.
The other Nations are:
Land of Wind - It hosts the Hidden village of sand lead by Kazekage.The ninjas of this village specialize in wind based Justus however it has been seen in the series that they also use puppets for fighting.The Current Kazekage.The Garra is a very good friend of Naruto.
Land of Water - It hosts the Village Hidden in Mist also known as the Bloody mist as it used the brutal methods such as killing own comrades for graduation for training. It is also home to the seven swordsmen who can wield heavy swords and have massive amount of chakra.
Land of Lightning -- It hosts the Village Hidden in the Clouds lead by the Raikage. The ninjas of this village specialize in lighting based Justus.
Land of Earth -- It hosts the Hidden village of earth lead by Tsuchikage. The ninjas of this village specialize in Earth based Justus.
The other villages that had been featured in the manga but are not that much important:-
Land of Waves - It is shown in the very beginning of the manga and the Naruto gets his real combat experience there only where his team fights one of the seven swordsman namely Zabuza. It does not have any of the hidden village.
Land of Rice - It hosts the hidden village of sound that was lead by Orochimaru. The ninjas of this village specialize in the Sound based Justus but the main purpose of this village was to act as a safe house for the Orochimaru to conduct his experiments.
Land of Star -- It hosts the hidden village of star. It was shown in the anime series not as a part of the original manga series.

Aleem Asghar has multiple interests and he enjoys talking about them. As a fan of Anime, he likes watching and listen to Naruto MP3 at the best Naruto site with the newest Naruto out first.

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