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Featured image for The Unfettered Mind by Takuan SohoBackground image for The Unfettered Mind by Takuan Soho

The Unfettered Mind by Takuan Soho

The Unfettered Mind contains essays and letters written by the Zen monk Takuan Soho, who was a friend and a teacher of Miyamoto Musashi. As Takuan neared death,…

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Anime and Body Boundaries

Anime has a problem with body boundaries, and the problem extends to both men and women. Fan-service centers on seeing breasts, abs, pecs, panties, and other parts, often…

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Featured image for Manga in Theory and Practice by Hirohiko ArakiBackground image for Manga in Theory and Practice by Hirohiko Araki

Manga in Theory and Practice by Hirohiko Araki

Manga in Theory and Practice seeks to provide a framework for manga writers. Hirohiko Araki is the author of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. Much of what he discusses applies…

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Featured image for The 82 Winning Moves of Sumo, the Kimarite ListBackground image for The 82 Winning Moves of Sumo, the Kimarite List

The 82 Winning Moves of Sumo, the Kimarite List

When a sumo wrestler wins a match, how he wins is recorded with the victory. This move is called a kimarite. Think of kimarite as fatalities from Mortal…

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Featured image for You Are Where You Are Meant to Be, As You Are Right NowBackground image for You Are Where You Are Meant to Be, As You Are Right Now

You Are Where You Are Meant to Be, As You Are Right Now

To insist on arbitrary action because you’re not reconciled to your fate is something that men should be most wary of. If people let their minds go off…

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Featured image for Who are Anime Fans? A Summary of the International Anime Research Project’s FindingsBackground image for Who are Anime Fans? A Summary of the International Anime Research Project’s Findings

Who are Anime Fans? A Summary of the International Anime Research Project’s Findings

The International Anime Research Project aims at studying anime, manga, and other fandoms. This team of scientists use techniques from psychology, anthropology, and sociology to understand the trai…

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Featured image for Golden Time: How Insecurity Splits OneselfBackground image for Golden Time: How Insecurity Splits Oneself

Golden Time: How Insecurity Splits Oneself

Golden Time is an anime adaptation of a light novel series. The anime released back in 2013. I will spoil the story in this discussion. Golden Time is…

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Featured image for Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise WolfBackground image for Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf

Spice and Wolf: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf

Spice and Wolf along with Eureka Seven and Inuyasha helped me through some difficult times in my mid-20s, so they retain a place in my best anime lists.…

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Featured image for If It Was a Snake, It Would’ve Bit Me!  Download My Retail Memoir PDF for Free.Background image for If It Was a Snake, It Would’ve Bit Me!  Download My Retail Memoir PDF for Free.

If It Was a Snake, It Would’ve Bit Me! Download My Retail Memoir PDF for Free.

Without wage-slaves, people would go hungry, go naked (not that health regulations stop them from doing that now), and go home (finally!). But retail workers remain under-appreciated, under-paid,…

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Book Ban Banality

Tony Yao discusses another book ban on his website Drop-In to Manga. This time, Florida has banned Sasaki and Miyano by Sho Harusono because of its LGBTQAI material.…

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Featured image for Today is Victory Over Yourself of YesterdayBackground image for Today is Victory Over Yourself of Yesterday

Today is Victory Over Yourself of Yesterday

Study strategy over the years and achieve the spirit of the warrior. Today is victory over yourself of yesterday; tomorrow is your victory over lesser men. –Miyamoto Musashi…

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Is Anime Woke?

Woke has become a buzzword throughout US media. People use the word to label all sorts of people and ideas: woke companies, woke video games, woke chicken nuggets.…

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Featured image for Zom 100: Work Sucks and is Bad For YouBackground image for Zom 100: Work Sucks and is Bad For You

Zom 100: Work Sucks and is Bad For You

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead continues the zombie genre’s tradition of critiquing capitalism and groupthink. Whereas George Romero’s zombie films centered on satirizing consumerism …

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Featured image for My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU Explains the Crisis of Middle-Aged MenBackground image for My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU Explains the Crisis of Middle-Aged Men

My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU Explains the Crisis of Middle-Aged Men

My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU, also known as My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong, as I Expected and Oregairu seems to be far away from lending any fictional…

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Featured image for Trigger’s Triumph: The Hero’s Journey in Kill la KillBackground image for Trigger’s Triumph: The Hero’s Journey in Kill la Kill

Trigger’s Triumph: The Hero’s Journey in Kill la Kill

Kill la Kill, released in 2013, follows the Hero’s Journey template, as Joseph Campbell outlined in his book The Hero with a Thousand Faces with interesting tweaks to the…

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Featured image for The New Emerging Trend in AnimeBackground image for The New Emerging Trend in Anime

The New Emerging Trend in Anime

For the past decade or so, moe has dominated. Moe designs seek to create a feeling of attachment with the audience, eliciting desires to protect a character. Moe…

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Featured image for Immortality Isn’t What I Thought It Would Be – A Free Light NovelBackground image for Immortality Isn’t What I Thought It Would Be – A Free Light Novel

Immortality Isn’t What I Thought It Would Be – A Free Light Novel

I wrote Immortality Isn’t What I Thought It Would Be for fun several years ago. It languished on my file server, destined to never see a reader along…

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Featured image for Death to Kanji! The Movement to Eliminate Kanji During the Meiji RestorationBackground image for Death to Kanji! The Movement to Eliminate Kanji During the Meiji Restoration

Death to Kanji! The Movement to Eliminate Kanji During the Meiji Restoration

Ask most English speakers about what makes Japanese so hard to learn and you will most likely hear kanji. The Japanese writing system consists of kana, or a…

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The Importance of Journals

Journals help with mental health, self-development, and, for the purposes of this essay, understanding history. Few people start a journal with the belief that mundane, daily concerns will…

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In All Things, Do Not Have Preferences.

“In all things, do not have preferences.” Miyamoto Musashi wrote this in his work Dokkodo: The Way to be Followed Alone. His work is a collection of practices…

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Featured image for Why are Anime Girls so Horny?Background image for Why are Anime Girls so Horny?

Why are Anime Girls so Horny?

Anime girls are horny because they are written by men who want to fulfill male fantasies. /EndTopic. See references below. Nah, there’s a lot more to the true…

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Featured image for You’re Now My Darling, a Dive into the Darling in the FranxxBackground image for You’re Now My Darling, a Dive into the Darling in the Franxx

You’re Now My Darling, a Dive into the Darling in the Franxx

Darling in the Franxx was hyped when it released in 2018. Animated by Trigger and Cloverworks, the anime had a simplistic style the supported moments of intense action.…

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Disappearing Anime and The Problem of Preservation

When Crunchyroll and Funimation merged, many anime didn’t make it back to their merged catalog. Among them was one of my favorites, Eureka Seven. This bummed me because…

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Featured image for The Boundary Between Lies and Truth | Oshi no KoBackground image for The Boundary Between Lies and Truth | Oshi no Ko

The Boundary Between Lies and Truth | Oshi no Ko

Where do the lies end and the truth begins? This theme unifies the first season of Oshi no Ko. The story stares into the dark side of entertainment…

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Featured image for Call of the Night: FLCL with Vampires. The Rituals  Boys Need to Become MenBackground image for Call of the Night: FLCL with Vampires. The Rituals  Boys Need to Become Men

Call of the Night: FLCL with Vampires. The Rituals Boys Need to Become Men

Call of the Night, like most anime, explores the emotional tangle of growing up, only with vampires. Ko is a high school drop out who struggles with school…

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Featured image for Pachi-slot and Japan’s 20+Year Casino FightBackground image for Pachi-slot and Japan’s 20+Year Casino Fight

Pachi-slot and Japan’s 20+Year Casino Fight

In 2019, pachinko made ¥21 trillion. That was 3.7% of Japan’s GDP for that year (Higuchi, 2020). Historically, pachinko, when combined with Japan’s lottery and legal sports betting,…

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Featured image for Bushido Explained by Alexander BennettBackground image for Bushido Explained by Alexander Bennett

Bushido Explained by Alexander Bennett

Bushido Explained offers a good primer to how samurai thought across Japan’s different time periods. As the subtitle of the book states, it is a new interpretation for…

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Featured image for The Kyoto Animation Fire and Mental Health PleasBackground image for The Kyoto Animation Fire and Mental Health Pleas

The Kyoto Animation Fire and Mental Health Pleas

In 2019, Shinji Aoba broke into Kyoto Animation studio (also known as KyoAni), sprayed gasoline, and ignited it. He escaped to the nearby train station before collapsing from…

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How to Not Sound Like A Weeb

How does a weeb sound? That depends on vocal cord size, lung capacity, language, and–okay, the question deals with the words and references people use. First, what is…

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Featured image for Japanese Book Guide : 27 Books You Ought to Read about JapanBackground image for Japanese Book Guide : 27 Books You Ought to Read about Japan

Japanese Book Guide : 27 Books You Ought to Read about Japan

Here’s a collection of books to help expand your knowledge about Japan. I’ve referred to these books for my various writing projects. This list skews toward history because…

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Japanese Book Guide : 27 Books You Ought to Read about Japan

Here’s a collection of books to help expand your knowledge about Japan. I’ve referred to these books for my various writing projects. This list skews toward history because…

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Why are Anime Obsessed with Big Boobs?

Anime is obsessed with breasts. Top-heavy female characters appear across anime stories, including stories aimed at girls. Female characters obsess over their bust size, fondling larger friends or…

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Why are Anime Obsessed with Big Boobs?

Anime is obsessed with breasts. Top-heavy female characters appear across anime stories, including stories aimed at girls. Female characters obsess over their bust size, fondling larger friends or…

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Featured image for Crunchyroll’s Western Anime MonopolyBackground image for Crunchyroll’s Western Anime Monopoly

Crunchyroll’s Western Anime Monopoly

Sony Pictures Entertainment, the owner of Funimation, bought Crunchyroll from AT&T for $1.175 billion in 2021 (Simons, 2021). In the past, Funimation and Crunchyroll worked together, distributi…

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Crunchyroll’s Western Anime Monopoly

Sony Pictures Entertainment, the owner of Funimation, bought Crunchyroll from AT&T for $1.175 billion in 2021 (Simons, 2021). In the past, Funimation and Crunchyroll worked together, distributing pieces…

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Featured image for Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Facing Death and MemoryBackground image for Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Facing Death and Memory

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Facing Death and Memory

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End goes deep. You won’t find philosophical musings like in Ghost in the Shell, nor does Frieren goes into the darkness that some stories dive…

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Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Facing Death and Memory

Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End goes deep. You won’t find philosophical musings like in Ghost in the Shell, nor does Frieren goes into the darkness that some stories dive…

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Featured image for How Do You Know How to Know?Background image for How Do You Know How to Know?

How Do You Know How to Know?

All knowledge is a matter of faith. You trust that I offer something worth your time and thought. I trust that you understand the words and my logic.…

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How Do You Know How to Know?

All knowledge is a matter of faith. You trust that I offer something worth your time and thought. I trust that you understand the words and my logic.…

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Anime I Keep Revisiting

Some stories continue to resonate years after you first watch them. I revisit few anime. Fewer still do I watch again and again. Every so many years, I…

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Anime I Keep Revisiting

Some stories continue to resonate years after you first watch them. I revisit few anime. Fewer still do I watch again and again. Every so many years, I…

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In the Future, Human Skill Will [Increase | Decrease] in Value

The typed version of this hand-written article follows below the notebook scans.   In the future, the value a skillful human hand has will increase. As machine learning…

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Featured image for In the Future, Human Skill Will [Increase | Decrease] in ValueBackground image for In the Future, Human Skill Will [Increase | Decrease] in Value

In the Future, Human Skill Will [Increase | Decrease] in Value

The typed version of this hand-written article follows below the notebook scans.   In the future, the value a skillful human hand has will increase. As machine learning…

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Revisiting Horimiya

When Horimiya: Pieces released, I decided to revisit the original season. My original observations still hold. The series offers a heartfelt, nostalgic feeling toward growing up. For those…

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Featured image for Revisiting HorimiyaBackground image for Revisiting Horimiya

Revisiting Horimiya

When Horimiya: Pieces released, I decided to revisit the original season. My original observations still hold. The series offers a heartfelt, nostalgic feeling toward growing up. For those…

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Featured image for Sweatshop Content and our Content Consumption HabitsBackground image for Sweatshop Content and our Content Consumption Habits

Sweatshop Content and our Content Consumption Habits

  After I resigned from my library position (I had moral and ethical problems with how I was expected to police policy), I started hunting for remote work.…

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Featured image for Sweatshop Content and our Content Consumption HabitsBackground image for Sweatshop Content and our Content Consumption Habits

Sweatshop Content and our Content Consumption Habits

  After I resigned from my library position (I had moral and ethical problems with how I was expected to police policy), I started hunting for remote work.…

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Revisiting Shuffle!

I had watched Shuffle! back at the beginning of my anime-watching career, and it was my first exposure to harem anime. For perspective, the anime released back in…

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Revisiting Shuffle!

I had watched Shuffle! back at the beginning of my anime-watching career, and it was my first exposure to harem anime. For perspective, the anime released back in…

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Featured image for Men Live in Despair. What Can Be Done?Background image for Men Live in Despair. What Can Be Done?

Men Live in Despair. What Can Be Done?

It’s no secret that many men struggle with depression and despair. This desperation has many factors, such as lacking a sense of purpose. The problem also isn’t new.…

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