felt like writing today, thanks Mr. Talbot
To the best of my memory, this is my recollection of my love affair with modern animation.
When I was a much younger boy, my brother introduced me to a particular show. One that I’m not all that proud of, but one that seems to have a lot of similar stories around it. I’m a little sick to say, that show was Sailor Moon. Yes, I watched that show on a daily basis during its first full run in the States. At the time, I couldn’t be happier with it, and my absolute love for such things started.
I’d grown up on a few shows that would seem to shape this love affair Japanese animation. Amongst those shows, few stand out. Strangely enough, in retrospect, I more greatly enjoyed the works of British cartooning then Japanese animation. My Asian influence stemmed from Voltron, Mighty Orbots, Transformers, and the like. Whereas my western sense of things sprung out of Visionaries, M.A.S.K., Go-Bots, Rock Lords, Thundercats, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, etcetera. Looking back, my appreciation was not sculpted enough to understand the fundamental differences between genres, though this has changed. Had I been exposed to a particular show a few years earlier, maybe my outlook would be different.
In the mid 1990’s, my brother, Phillip Brian Alford, had a lot of control on my outlook. He’d not been in my life much, as he was a bit of a drifter. When he eventually came back, even going as far as to live with the rest of the family again, I took everything about him a lot more seriously. Ten years separate us, giving him a completely different outlook then myself. I can’t imagine the burden he endured catering to a 12 year old at age 22, but he did, and I respect him dearly for it. That being said, this was his greatest contribution to my life; Robotech.
Guessing at the year, I’d assume it to be 1996. My brother decides to cart his younger brother around for a little fun and shopping. We land square in our old town, Berkley, a place I’d not been since I was 7, and certainly had little memory of. Coincidentally, I’d go back several times for the next few years. A very large, old, and unclean store named Time Travelers was our eventual arrival. Though I was mostly left to wander alone, Brian did guide me a bit. Though I’m not sure if this was the point of happenstance or not, I’m sure that this trip, directly or indirectly, led to my brothers introduction of Robotech to me.
Though I’m avoiding some details for the sake of flow, I was quickly hooked by this show, and soon dedicated myself into seeing it, completely. I’d bought a few copies in various places; a star trek convention, a comic books store, and the like. Eventually though, I’d begun to order them from my local video store, Family Video. I’d bicycle my way to the store, close from my house, and pay $12 for a 2 or 3 episode vhs. Every time I received another was a micro Christmas. I cherished those tapes, and I wish my young persona had the same determination I have now. I think I ended on 4 or 6 volumes of that show before slipping off to do something differently, and I hate myself for it, in retrospect. This led me further then you might think though.
Robotech was my gateway into a world of new experiences. Though I’d always loved the idea of Japan, and everything I could gather about it, I was never dedicated to it, nor was I good at study. The floodgates of proverb were now, at least as much as I could handle, opened. I spiraled out of control, I think. I’d begun to watch anime on a different basis, catching almost anything I could see, without bias. I’d fallen into the awful curse of Dragon Ball Z, only made easier by my recent befriending of Bob Wagoner, owner and operator of Masquerade Games, a somewhat local, and seriously bad ass anime store. I can’t recount the things I’d seen then, as they are far too numerous to get into. Luckily, this didn’t last forever.
I shall recount the eventual discovery of the modern myself, though the use of animation, martial arts, and car sales. Part of my transformation, including Trigun, Terry Gilliam, and philosophy.
When I was a much younger boy, my brother introduced me to a particular show. One that I’m not all that proud of, but one that seems to have a lot of similar stories around it. I’m a little sick to say, that show was Sailor Moon. Yes, I watched that show on a daily basis during its first full run in the States. At the time, I couldn’t be happier with it, and my absolute love for such things started.
I’d grown up on a few shows that would seem to shape this love affair Japanese animation. Amongst those shows, few stand out. Strangely enough, in retrospect, I more greatly enjoyed the works of British cartooning then Japanese animation. My Asian influence stemmed from Voltron, Mighty Orbots, Transformers, and the like. Whereas my western sense of things sprung out of Visionaries, M.A.S.K., Go-Bots, Rock Lords, Thundercats, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, etcetera. Looking back, my appreciation was not sculpted enough to understand the fundamental differences between genres, though this has changed. Had I been exposed to a particular show a few years earlier, maybe my outlook would be different.
In the mid 1990’s, my brother, Phillip Brian Alford, had a lot of control on my outlook. He’d not been in my life much, as he was a bit of a drifter. When he eventually came back, even going as far as to live with the rest of the family again, I took everything about him a lot more seriously. Ten years separate us, giving him a completely different outlook then myself. I can’t imagine the burden he endured catering to a 12 year old at age 22, but he did, and I respect him dearly for it. That being said, this was his greatest contribution to my life; Robotech.
Guessing at the year, I’d assume it to be 1996. My brother decides to cart his younger brother around for a little fun and shopping. We land square in our old town, Berkley, a place I’d not been since I was 7, and certainly had little memory of. Coincidentally, I’d go back several times for the next few years. A very large, old, and unclean store named Time Travelers was our eventual arrival. Though I was mostly left to wander alone, Brian did guide me a bit. Though I’m not sure if this was the point of happenstance or not, I’m sure that this trip, directly or indirectly, led to my brothers introduction of Robotech to me.
Though I’m avoiding some details for the sake of flow, I was quickly hooked by this show, and soon dedicated myself into seeing it, completely. I’d bought a few copies in various places; a star trek convention, a comic books store, and the like. Eventually though, I’d begun to order them from my local video store, Family Video. I’d bicycle my way to the store, close from my house, and pay $12 for a 2 or 3 episode vhs. Every time I received another was a micro Christmas. I cherished those tapes, and I wish my young persona had the same determination I have now. I think I ended on 4 or 6 volumes of that show before slipping off to do something differently, and I hate myself for it, in retrospect. This led me further then you might think though.
Robotech was my gateway into a world of new experiences. Though I’d always loved the idea of Japan, and everything I could gather about it, I was never dedicated to it, nor was I good at study. The floodgates of proverb were now, at least as much as I could handle, opened. I spiraled out of control, I think. I’d begun to watch anime on a different basis, catching almost anything I could see, without bias. I’d fallen into the awful curse of Dragon Ball Z, only made easier by my recent befriending of Bob Wagoner, owner and operator of Masquerade Games, a somewhat local, and seriously bad ass anime store. I can’t recount the things I’d seen then, as they are far too numerous to get into. Luckily, this didn’t last forever.
I shall recount the eventual discovery of the modern myself, though the use of animation, martial arts, and car sales. Part of my transformation, including Trigun, Terry Gilliam, and philosophy.