Comments on: Age, Innocence, and an unnecessary comparison between Card Captor Sakura and Kyou no Go no Ni

By: Aydz

Aydz — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 03:09:01 +0000

Hey, Eternal. This age thing got me to remember my first reading of Great Teacher Onizuka. Granted I’ve now read it twice or thrice adn am currently going through the anime, but I still get that feeeling of how different if would be if I had read that during middle/high school.

I guess, although I’m not sure if others feel the same, that it is that sort of thing that makes me regret not getting into Japanese pop culture just that few years earlier.

N.B: Do read GTO. The anime doesn’t do the themes or story any justice and basically just turns it into a serious/funny middle school story with a different perspective.

By: ETERNAL

ETERNAL — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 19:34:22 +0000

@ kaidan1364: Thanks for the warning, that was a mistake on my part. When I wrote the post, my goal was to link to something childish and innocent in one picture and something more otaku-targeted in the other. The idea sounded better on paper, though, and I only just remembered that shows like Chii's Sweet Home exist. Anyway, I'm sure you get my point. @ A Day Without Me: It's interesting when you rewatch shows you watched as a child and realize how differently you can view them now. It's also funny, as what happened to me with Honey and Clover to some extent, when you view something the exact same way you did5 years ago. @ gaguri: Yep, that's pretty much how I feel about 5-2. It's highlighted even more because so few anime take place at that age: aside from Noein and maybe some Ghibli movies, I can't think of a single show with schoolkids not wearing uniforms. @ IKnight: Good comment. I see you still have a knack for making my points better than I can :P (For what it's worth, I could imagine someone, somewhere, cringing at the thought of comparing CCS to 5-2, but I guess that doesn't make it unnecessary) @ Chris K: I've noticed that Ghibli does a good job with anything to do with childhood and innocence and growing up. Their stories never appealed to me subjectively, but they all seem to have a warm aftertaste and a vague message that you leave with, which is nice. I haven't seen Totoro but I know off-hand that Whisper of the Heart was a pleasant coming-of-age story. @ phossil: Incidentally, so do I. :P @ Y10NRDY: It's true, I don't mind ecchi and I like the unrealistically fluffy moe stuff, but it's such a breath of fresh air when you watch something devoid of pandering. I wouldn't want all anime to be like this, but it wouldn't want all shows to be like Key or K-ON either.

By: Y10NRDY

Y10NRDY — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 21:08:19 +0000

this is an excellent comparison of two shows i really enjoyed. i am an otaku in my early 30s and YES, there is a big difference between CCS and almost all other shows that share it’s themes per se. CCS gives you that warm and fuzzy feeling most commonly associated with moe characters without the pervy, horny edge to it. don’t get me wrong… i love my fan service! but ultimately itz the shows that favor substance and mood over gratuitous panty shots and ecchi-pandering scenarios that will stick with us over time and invite repeat viewings… and buddha preserve ‘em!!!

By: phossil

phossil — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 16:47:23 +0000

I loved Sakura’s Hoeeee~~ expression. :)

By: Chris K.

Chris K. — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 01:48:20 +0000

I agree with you that CCS does portray a more innocent version of childhood than anime such as 5-2 does, but my favorite version of an innocent childhood has to be how Hayao Miyazaki portrays Mei’s childhood in My Neighbor Totoro, a world filled with wonder. Even his portray of Mei’s older sister Satsuki is nicely done, we watch Satsuki begin to get her first stirrings of attraction to a boy her own age but in a nice way, blushes and so forth. I hate how a lot of girls in anime are now portrayed, they’re either a moe blog or a lolita predator in training.

By: IKnight

IKnight — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 08:37:16 +0000

I can't think offhand of an eighties mecha show that's completely devoid of pandering, but maybe that was your point. (Funnily enough, innocence is a running theme in VOTOMS, but that's partly because the hero lost his by growing up in the equivalent of the SS. And his love interest is a tabula rasa. But I digress.) I like the idea that, if I read this post aright, you can find CCS, with its child's perspective, much more convincing in its evocation of a more innocent time than Kyou no Go no Ni, even though it's CCS that features magic. Which perhaps goes to show how hollow most arguments about realism are. That said, I wouldn't be surprised to find that CCS's characters are purged of all the spite and cruelty that children their age are capable of, to extend your own point that real ten-year-olds would be more annoying. In this world, isn't that kind of innocence only found in fiction? Or, as you suggest, in hindsight, afterward. Though I'd argue that if anything that makes innocence more, not less, important. Which reminds me that Now and Then, Here and There is probably the anime which did the most to convince me that childhood is actually important, by portraying a world in which it doesn't really exist. (Also, what makes a comparison necessary or unnecessary?)

By: gaguri

gaguri — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 04:18:15 +0000

CCS is absolutely pure innocence, loved it (well, the innocent part, not the repetitious part). 5-2 is not innocent at all but is kinda guilty pleasure of mine. I think I would have loved 5-2 if I watched it at the age of, say, 10~12 years old. Back then, most of us were into girls of our age in more innocent way (i.e. more interested in kissing/going out/holding hands than sex), and not really into talking about older girls. But the anime has pretty good direction, and makes you remember that more immature and perverted period of your life, so instead of feeling disgusted by perving at little girls, I guess it’s more like looking at yourself from a long time ago (like a mirror) who is perving at little girls, and delighting in that nostalgia like you’ve mentioned.

By: kadian1364

kadian1364 — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 03:27:06 +0000

Actually, the CCS manga also made me want to take a long, cold shower, so the comparison might actually be more appropriate than as it first appears.

By: A Day Without Me

A Day Without Me — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 03:05:32 +0000

I must admit that I don’t believe I’ve ever had a case where an anime made me feel nostalgic for my childhood; granted, this could have more to do with the fact that I haven’t watched much with child leads in a while that portrayed its leads convincingly as children (the last I can think of is either Bokurano or Shadow Star Narutaru, neither of which would cause anyone to wish for a return to childhood or a childhood feeling, since both are fairly reiminiscent of Lord of the Flies). I also don’t think I’ve become removed enough from high school yet to feel nostalgic for that. Instead, I find that re-watching anime I’ve previously viewed at a much younger age makes me feel nostalgic for the age I was when I first watched it – particularly, nostalgia for that sense of wonder when I first really started being an anime fan and watching a lot of shows as opposed to just being into Sailor Moon and Pokemon.

This post makes me want to re-watch CCS; it was the first anime I ever collected, and the only one that I ever bought whenever the newest volume was out. I’d save up my allowance all month just so I could buy them.

By: kadian1364

kadian1364 — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 02:33:28 +0000

You linked to the same picture twice in the first paragraph. Not sure if that was intentional or not. Nor do I see much “innnocence” in it, aside from Pero-pero.

But I understand the nostalgia angle you were talking about. Peculiarly, both Azumanga Daioh and Kare Kano make me reminisce fondly about high school, though what they make me reminisce about exactly are entire different things.

And 5-2 made me want to take a long, cold shower.