Anime has become one of the most recognisable media forms in the world. We think we know it, we think we can define it, however the most recent part of its history, our anime era, demands we think again. Anime Unleashed is the hot-take of Oxford University’s ‘otaku-in-residence’ Cerise Jackson – does anime exist in between its contradictions, or is it beyond all reason — beyond our control?
Part critical theory, part pop culture, part imaginary and part memoir, this is a walk through the Anime Library, a dare to write a name in the Death Note, a thank you to the blind-badass in Avatar: The Last Airbender, a promise to Afro-Anime now and tomorrow. Anime Unleashed is a free-flowing expedition through the stories, styles, and creators that come to define our anime era, explored through the anime that grow in the shadows, that find holes in the chainmail of anime royalty, and pierce through. Over the last three decades, anime has pushed every boundary, defied every expectation and persevered with relentless ambition to continually redefine itself. Expect unpopular opinions out the gate from who the most hardcore fans are to the new overlords, and the thing about Ghibli.
The heartbeat of Anime Unleashed is in Attack on Titan’s rumbling, the brain is a d-mail message through Steins;Gate’s banana microwave, the body is its fans, broken, bizarre, brilliant… one billion and counting. Expect to be taken down rabbit-holes, to be converted into a fan or to deepen your appreciation, to discover new anime, discussions and controversies, to feel proud of this era and in awe of our anime beast.
With everyone trying to take the reins, Anime Unleashed is a warning. Anime may bite.
