|
"As our local club
come near the end of the Marmalade Boy saga I've gotten to thinking
about MB and how it's affect me...
Quite simply, I would not be
an anime fan without the Marmalade Boy. Sure, I'd watched Sailor
Moon on TV, read a Ranma TPB, and took Akira out of the local
public library, but I wasn't hopelessly obsessed. Far from it
- I didn't even know what "anime" was."
"But a chance encounter
with Marmalade Boy (the episode when everybody first discovers
the Namura (no "chan for you!) Meiko scandal) quickly sucked
me into the culture of the Otaku. No other show has ever grabbed
me in such a complete fashion since, with the exception of Oniisama
E. and the Ghibli films"
"But what is it about Marmalade
Boy that demands my devotion? Darned if I know, but I'll give
it a shot..."
"Probably the first attraction
was it's almost puritanical nature...to this day, it's one of
the few shows (aimed at the old than "Hello Kitty"
audience) that has foregone the infantile panty jokes and predictable
T&A that plagues most anime. It was a refreshing breather
to see something that I wouldn't be worried about showing to
my mother!"
The second thing to hit me was
the "realty" of the characters and their behaviors.
Sure there's wild slapstick and implausible melodramatic situation,
but the characters act as you and I would...very little rings
false about their behaviors. And actions have consequences in
Marmalade Boy - unlike, say, all those anime where the female
character are subjected to gropings ("Hey, that's sexual
assault" I often find myself yelling at the screen) which
no one seems to concern themselves with and never have any emotional
effects on the victim."
"But what I probably enjoy
most about Marmalade Boy is it's high melodramatic character.
It reminds me of the Klondike Melodrama that's performed during
a local festival each year. Marmalade Boy is a modern manifestation
of the Vaudeville Play. We "Boo" and "Hiss"
at the villains and cheer the heroes. It's a masterful mix of
comedy and pathos". |
",,,I cried through
all of Volume 16 of Marmalade Boy. I've really been hurting for
Miki ever since Yuu left for the U.S., but all I did was sob
from the time she met up with Jinny to the time she decided to
start seeing Kei. Now I just sniffle every once in a while. I'm
glad you explained what "tired" means."
Monica
***********
"I just want her (Karen) to know how much many
of us appreciate her work. We ran all 76 episodes of Marmalade
Boy at our club here at UCR, and everyone absolutely loved it.
She has a wonderful style, and the care she takes with timing
and editing really shows in the finished work. "
JB
**********
"My husband and I (we are
newlyweds) decided that we will make our future children watch
MB> Since MB thoroughly deals with dating situations, MB may
help our future children cope with jealousy, rejections, love,
infatuations, and other emotions. Is this a neat idea, or are
we just a bit fanatical?"
Vaughn and Jenny
***********
"I just wanted to
tell you how much I've enjoyed watching "Marmalade boy!.
My twin sister and I first discovered this series about a year
ago."
Teri
********** |
"Tonight, I just finished watching the
last episode of the Marmalade Boy series, and I must say, wow,
what a wonderful show this was. I think this is one of the best
anime series I have ever seen - the characters just seem to grow
on you so well! Too bad it's over! I wish there were more series
like this one... Maison Ikkoku comes close, but I thought Marmalade
Boy was more romantic and touching. :) Thanks so much for translating
this series."
Phillip
*********
"You won't believe
how much Marmalade Boy has meant to me. I even tried writing
an essay about Marmalade Boy in my Japanese class here at U.C.
Berkeley...but I had to scrap those plans as my limited vocabulary
was in no way sufficient to allow me to "critique an art
form" as my Japanese professor put it. Anyway, if you for
your loving devotion to subtitling Marmalade Boy, I probably
would not have experience the emotional roller coaster that Koishikawa-san
was put through."
Larry
************
"Marmalade Boy was and is one of my favorite
series. Without your version, I would not have known of the series'
existence."
"Your work has given me a great deal of pleasure.
You have my regards and respect."
Neil
********* |
