Spotlight on Fandoms: ROD: Read Or Die
Okay, LJ, don't eat it this time, all right?
Meet Yomiko Readman. She's about to save the world.
Read or Die is an anime movie from 2001. There is also a manga and an anime series (ROD: The TV). I have seen neither, so I'm not going to be talking about those. My characterization of Yomiko is drawn strictly from the movie.
Like cake or death, only with paper.
The premise of Read or Die is that the British Empire remained the major world power throughout the twentieth century. The movie has a high "no, really" factor, but it's a fun ride, so strap in.
Yomiko Readman is a substitute teacher by day, special agent for the Special Operations Division of the British Library (located in a huge, top-secret high-tech complex underneath the actual British Library) by night. She likes books. She likes books a lot. With even the promise of getting paid she sallies forth into the used bookstores of Tokyo to add to the stacks and piles of books already covering every semi-horizontal surface in her home. When one of Yomiko's new purchases is snatched by a man on a giant insect, she is less than amused, and rather than freaking out like you or I might do, she runs after him screaming, "Please give me back my book!" Yomiko is not like other girls. It's sheer luck she wound up with the book; another agent had been sent to collect it at the same time and they almost got into a catfight in the bookstore, but nonetheless.
Seems like these people called the I-Jin, clones of famous people with superpowers of their own, are after the book for their leader. The book, you see, was written by Beethoven, and together with another volume, contains a symphony that causes listeners to commit suicide. Not pleasant stuff.
So, the head of the Special Operations Division gives Yomiko a team and sends her out to retrieve the other volume and stop the bad guys, with the promise that he'll pay off her debt to the bookstore and give her the first volume if she succeeds and they don't all die. How does that work out for them? Watch the movie!
Some of them read. Some of them die. Some of them do neither, which seems totally unfair.
Yomiko Readman. Codename "The Paper" or "Agent Paper." Our heroine. Yomiko has the ability to control paper. She can make it a rope, a plane that flies with people on it, a wall, a lockpick, a blade. She can make it bulletproof or razor-sharp. She reads a lot, and is better with books than people. From what I've found, 'Yomiko' means 'one who reads' and Readman, well, that's obvious. She's naive and trusting, and the hardened government agents around her never seem to think she'll manage to get the job done. To paraphrase Mr. Joker, she shines when surrounded by books, but apart from that she's rather hopeless (In the course of the movie, she doesn't comb her hair until she gets to London. From Tokyo, where she'd been running around all morning.)
Nancy Makuhari (sometimes Nancy McHarry). Codename "Miss Deep." Nancy is the agent who bumps into Yomiko at the bookstore, and is then assigned to her team. She has the ability to move through solid matter. She hates her code name. She thinks it makes her sound like a porn star (though in all fairness, check out that rack). Nancy kicks ass and takes names. She and Yomiko have UST. Nancy is--SPOILERS. WATCH THE MOVIE.
Drake Anderson. Drake doesn't have a codename. That's because he doesn't have any superpowers. He doesn't let this slow him down. He's an American, former military, who now works for Special Operations Division. He's worked with Yomiko before and is less than thrilled about having to work with her again. He spends most of the movie wanting to go back to his pottery wheel and his daughter, Maggie, and kicking ass.
Mr. Joker is Yomiko's direct superior in the Special Operations Division. He acts long-suffering where Yomiko is concerned, and probably he is. Very proper and British. Mr. Joker answers to Mr. Gentleman, an old dude with a cybernetic eye who is about the only person in the movie who thinks Yomiko might have a shot at this 'saving the world' thing after all.
The I-Jin are famous people, yes, but I frequently refer to them as 'those guys' because they don't exactly have characterization--they just come onscreen long enough to try to steal the book. The I-Jin include Gennai Hiraga (electricity guy), Jean Henri Fabre (giant insects guy), Otto Lilienthal (glider guy), Genjo Sanzo (stick guy), and Ikyuu Soujun (crazy boss guy). Oh, yeah, and Mata Hari. THAT Mata Hari. Don't know who they are? Look 'em up like I had to. :D
Why it's shiny.
I first saw Read or Die during a marathon on Cartoon Network New Year's Eve a few years back. It was shown like ten times in a row, as apparently someone at Cartoon Network programming thinks it's as awesome as I do. I don't normally like anime. I watched it three times. It's funny, it's sharp, and the heroine is a bookworm who just wants to get this done in time for her next substitute teaching job to start. She spends half the movie scrambling around tripping over things and wandering off to look at books while her cohorts get involved in flashy battles. She's...me, if I had superpowers. And she's got to save the day. Her relationship with Nancy? Also very cute. There's one scene where they talk about love while Nancy braids Yomiko's hair. The end of the movie is also very touching. Watch it to find out why.
I find myself unable to articulate the awesomeness of this movie, which is kind of sad as this is the second time I've written up this post (LJ ate it the first time). But seriously. Go watch the movie. It's two hours well worth your time.
Read or Die, the movie, is readily available on DVD from Netflix if you want to rent or Amazon.com or Suncoast if you want to buy. ROD: The TV is also available on DVD, if you're interested. I'm told some things change (some drastically) from the movie. The manga has been translated into English and is very popular; it can probably be found on the shelves of a bookstore near you.
Some Links:
ROD on Wiki.
AMV to Madonna's "Die Another Day." Contains spoilers. The fight between Nancy and Mata Hari is especially awesome. There are loads of AMVs on Youtube. I like this one in particular.
Th-that's about it. Um. ROD's fandom isn't so much 'small' as 'nonexistant' as far as I can tell, although Yomiko is popular for cosplay.
I don't know what else to say. WATCH THE MOVIE.
Meet Yomiko Readman. She's about to save the world.
Read or Die is an anime movie from 2001. There is also a manga and an anime series (ROD: The TV). I have seen neither, so I'm not going to be talking about those. My characterization of Yomiko is drawn strictly from the movie.
Like cake or death, only with paper.
The premise of Read or Die is that the British Empire remained the major world power throughout the twentieth century. The movie has a high "no, really" factor, but it's a fun ride, so strap in.
Yomiko Readman is a substitute teacher by day, special agent for the Special Operations Division of the British Library (located in a huge, top-secret high-tech complex underneath the actual British Library) by night. She likes books. She likes books a lot. With even the promise of getting paid she sallies forth into the used bookstores of Tokyo to add to the stacks and piles of books already covering every semi-horizontal surface in her home. When one of Yomiko's new purchases is snatched by a man on a giant insect, she is less than amused, and rather than freaking out like you or I might do, she runs after him screaming, "Please give me back my book!" Yomiko is not like other girls. It's sheer luck she wound up with the book; another agent had been sent to collect it at the same time and they almost got into a catfight in the bookstore, but nonetheless.
Seems like these people called the I-Jin, clones of famous people with superpowers of their own, are after the book for their leader. The book, you see, was written by Beethoven, and together with another volume, contains a symphony that causes listeners to commit suicide. Not pleasant stuff.
So, the head of the Special Operations Division gives Yomiko a team and sends her out to retrieve the other volume and stop the bad guys, with the promise that he'll pay off her debt to the bookstore and give her the first volume if she succeeds and they don't all die. How does that work out for them? Watch the movie!
Some of them read. Some of them die. Some of them do neither, which seems totally unfair.
Yomiko Readman. Codename "The Paper" or "Agent Paper." Our heroine. Yomiko has the ability to control paper. She can make it a rope, a plane that flies with people on it, a wall, a lockpick, a blade. She can make it bulletproof or razor-sharp. She reads a lot, and is better with books than people. From what I've found, 'Yomiko' means 'one who reads' and Readman, well, that's obvious. She's naive and trusting, and the hardened government agents around her never seem to think she'll manage to get the job done. To paraphrase Mr. Joker, she shines when surrounded by books, but apart from that she's rather hopeless (In the course of the movie, she doesn't comb her hair until she gets to London. From Tokyo, where she'd been running around all morning.)
Nancy Makuhari (sometimes Nancy McHarry). Codename "Miss Deep." Nancy is the agent who bumps into Yomiko at the bookstore, and is then assigned to her team. She has the ability to move through solid matter. She hates her code name. She thinks it makes her sound like a porn star (though in all fairness, check out that rack). Nancy kicks ass and takes names. She and Yomiko have UST. Nancy is--SPOILERS. WATCH THE MOVIE.
Drake Anderson. Drake doesn't have a codename. That's because he doesn't have any superpowers. He doesn't let this slow him down. He's an American, former military, who now works for Special Operations Division. He's worked with Yomiko before and is less than thrilled about having to work with her again. He spends most of the movie wanting to go back to his pottery wheel and his daughter, Maggie, and kicking ass.
Mr. Joker is Yomiko's direct superior in the Special Operations Division. He acts long-suffering where Yomiko is concerned, and probably he is. Very proper and British. Mr. Joker answers to Mr. Gentleman, an old dude with a cybernetic eye who is about the only person in the movie who thinks Yomiko might have a shot at this 'saving the world' thing after all.
The I-Jin are famous people, yes, but I frequently refer to them as 'those guys' because they don't exactly have characterization--they just come onscreen long enough to try to steal the book. The I-Jin include Gennai Hiraga (electricity guy), Jean Henri Fabre (giant insects guy), Otto Lilienthal (glider guy), Genjo Sanzo (stick guy), and Ikyuu Soujun (crazy boss guy). Oh, yeah, and Mata Hari. THAT Mata Hari. Don't know who they are? Look 'em up like I had to. :D
Why it's shiny.
I first saw Read or Die during a marathon on Cartoon Network New Year's Eve a few years back. It was shown like ten times in a row, as apparently someone at Cartoon Network programming thinks it's as awesome as I do. I don't normally like anime. I watched it three times. It's funny, it's sharp, and the heroine is a bookworm who just wants to get this done in time for her next substitute teaching job to start. She spends half the movie scrambling around tripping over things and wandering off to look at books while her cohorts get involved in flashy battles. She's...me, if I had superpowers. And she's got to save the day. Her relationship with Nancy? Also very cute. There's one scene where they talk about love while Nancy braids Yomiko's hair. The end of the movie is also very touching. Watch it to find out why.
I find myself unable to articulate the awesomeness of this movie, which is kind of sad as this is the second time I've written up this post (LJ ate it the first time). But seriously. Go watch the movie. It's two hours well worth your time.
Read or Die, the movie, is readily available on DVD from Netflix if you want to rent or Amazon.com or Suncoast if you want to buy. ROD: The TV is also available on DVD, if you're interested. I'm told some things change (some drastically) from the movie. The manga has been translated into English and is very popular; it can probably be found on the shelves of a bookstore near you.
Some Links:
ROD on Wiki.
AMV to Madonna's "Die Another Day." Contains spoilers. The fight between Nancy and Mata Hari is especially awesome. There are loads of AMVs on Youtube. I like this one in particular.
Th-that's about it. Um. ROD's fandom isn't so much 'small' as 'nonexistant' as far as I can tell, although Yomiko is popular for cosplay.
I don't know what else to say. WATCH THE MOVIE.