Magic: How Christians Should View It's Use in Literature

Join us as we talk about magic, Harry Potter, and knowing what your boundaries are with various controversial issues!

Genre Recommendation Video part 1

    So many options to choose from!

    Hopefully, this will help give you an idea of where to start.

Cosplay and Christianity

     Note: This post is addressing the topic of cosplay and Christianity, but it is also written by a Christian, to Christians as a whole. 

     Believe it or not, this is a topic that is met with a fair amount of controversy in religious circles. If one were to google “should Christians cosplay” (as I did recently - because I was bored and curious) they would be met with a wide variety of responses, ranging in emotional temperature from calm and cool to BOILING HOT! Today I am going to give my own opinion on the topic. I do not expect everyone to agree with me, in fact I know that that is not the case, but I hope you will hear me out.

     Cosplay, like practically everything else that has existed ever, is NOT inherently evil. However, this does not mean that it is not without it’s dangers. I think it is perfectly okay for Christians to cosplay. In fact, several evangelism ministries have been founded around the premise of cosplay (Note: As a rule I am not big on tracts to evangelize, but that is a discussion for another time). Christians are called to ‘be in the world, but not of it.’ Some would take this to mean that Christians have to live on earth (until Christ comes back), but they should be separated from the world in terms of lifestyle and values. I would agree with that, but I would also like to add that Christians should not seclude themselves from their unbelieving neighbors. Christ did not call us to remain isolated. Instead, we should be actively involved in the lives of non-believers. It is because of this that I see nothing wrong with engaging in activities that non-believers also enjoy.

     Okay, you may be asking, we’ve established that it is okay for Christians to participate in cosplay, but are there any exemptions to that rule? Sort of. Because we are involved in the world to reveal Christ’s love and his saving grace (this is what true Christians should be doing. I would like to personally apologize to all of you who have had a bad experience with someone who called themselves a Christian, but didn’t act like it) we must remember that we have a reputation to uphold. 

     So, for you Christian cosplayers out there: I think what you are doing is awesome! Rock on! But, you have to remember: people are watching! Let me repeat that: PEOPLE ARE WATCHING!!! Okay, that sounded a little strange. Let me back up a bit. I’m not trying to insinuate that big brother is watching, but merely remind you that Christians are Christ’s representatives on earth. When people wonder what this whole ‘Christianity’ thing is, they look to Christians around them to show them who Christ is. Be aware of your behavior and make sure you are acting in a way that is honorable and wholesome.

     Also, please walk the walk just like you talk the talk - don’t be a hypocrite! If you go to a convention with non-Christian friends who know you are a Christian and you act in way that is inappropriate and contradictory to what the Bible says (ex. revealing outfit, costume from a dirty genre, bad language, acting like a general jerk, ect.) then you are not only ruining your witness to your friends, but you are tainting their view of Christianity in general by acting in an un-Christ-like manner. Regardless if you are a Christian or not, you shouldn’t act like a jerk.

     In conclusion, there is nothing that should keep a Christian from cosplaying. In essence, cosplaying is simply putting on a costume--imagine the riots that would happen if Christianity outlawed “dress-up” for little kids! That being said, that does not mean that it is ok to act in a way contradictory to Christ while cosplaying. It’s not a pass to dress however you want, or treat people in a way that demeans them. Creativity is celebrated within Christianity, so have fun with it, just remember to treat people with respect and kindness.

Things We Hate About Anime Video

     About a week ago we posted a video on the YouTube channel called "Things We Hate About Anime."

     This is a fun little rant of things that get on our nerves related to anime. It is YouTube exclusive (as in, there is no written version this time), so we would highly recommend that you go watch it. We had fun making it and hope you enjoy it!

     Things to look forward to: a video of things to look forward to! Plus more reviews to come soon (now that we have more free-time). :)

     Also:
The Reviewing Modern Media/Rose Squad Reviews blog has been up and running for more than a year!!! We started in late November 2015. Here are a few of the milestones we have accomplished:
- 25 reviews
     - 21 anime reviews
     - 2 manga reviews
     - 1 movie review
     - 1 TV series review
- 4 first impressions
- 1,735 views

     We have come really far in a year! Thank you to all of you who read our posts! We hope that you have benefited from our reviews. :) Also, in the next year we hope to branch out to reviewing other forms of media and continuing to provide more quality reviews/videos for you all!

     Thanks so much for a great first year!

Top 5 Animated Features to Watch

This is a list that we put together of the 5 animated features we think you should watch (preferably sometime during your lifespan). The items on this list were selected because we believe that everyone can enjoy them, and because of their importance to the animated world. These are by no means the only good things to watch, but we highly recommend them to you in hopes that you will enjoy them as much as we did.

A video version is available:

1. Avatar: The Last Airbender

    Regarding this show, there are only two types of people: those who loved the series and those who have not yet watched it. I have not met a person who watched this show and thought that it was “just ok” or didn’t like it.

Avatar has something for everybody and for every age. While the plot is simple enough to be followed by a child, the characters are complicated enough to keep even the most intellectual person entertained. Also, the characters come from a variety of cultures and have relatable strengths and weaknesses.

The animation, while not flawless, is breath-taking in it’s own right. Fluid for the time, the fight scenes are simultaneously amazing, terrifying and beautiful. The voice acting, even several years after the show aired, makes it one of the best dubs today.

In conclusion, you are guaranteed to love this show no matter what!

2. Fruits Basket

    This anime is a classic. If you are any kind of anime fan you are REQUIRED to watch Fruits Basket. While it is a drama and romance, there are many life lessons that are taught. It gives the viewer a dose of reality, while in a fictional setting. It is appropriate for all people (it only has a little bit of language) and socially relevant. But above all it is a show about relationships: family, friends, acquaintances, strangers, and romantic relationships. It may not be the most exciting and heart-pounding show to watch, but it will win you over on class alone. This is a feel-good anime to watch when you are in the dumps, bored, tired, want to relax, happy, sad, just need to kill some time, whenever! Watch it. (For a review of Fruits Basket go here.)

3. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

    Sorry, you 2003 fans out there, but we are ranking Brotherhood over the original anime adaptation. Why? The ending. This is one of the few stories in the world where the ending was everything you were hoping for--and more! Fullmetal Alchemist just didn’t have the ending payout that Brotherhood did. In addition, Brotherhood is much more plot driven, making the sequences of events much more believable. Overall, it is a great show with a wonderful plot, brilliant characters, gorgeous animation, a beautiful soundtrack, and a spectacular ending!

4. Anything Studio Ghibli

    We realize this entry is more general than all the previous ones. Where the others were recommending a series of anime this entry gives you an entire brand! Studio Ghibli is the Disney of Japan, but (I would argue) better. No matter which title you decide to watch, you are guaranteed a complex plot with fleshed-out characters. Quality, every time.  Since there are so many to choose from here are a few suggestions to get you started:

- Howl's Moving Castle (Howl’s Moving Castle is an enjoyable romance that is mainly entertaining, but also heartwarming.)

- Spirited Away (This is Miyuzaki’s most famous work. It is very metaphorical.)

- The Secret Life of Arrietty

- My Neighbor Totoro

5. Trigun/ Your Lie in April

    As you can see, this final recommendation has two titles on the docket. That is because we just could not decide which was better and as they are both extremely good, we thought, "Why not do both?" So here you are; a double feature!

Trigun - Trigun is must-watch if only for the fact that it was the show that brought anime to the western world. Speaking of western, this show seems like it is set in the Wild West. Except, it is not the West we are familiar with. Jump on for a wild and crazy ride with Vash the Stampede as he tries to spread the message of love and peace (I promise you, it is not as cheesy as it sounds)! Bonus: there is a black cat hidden in each episode of the show. See if you can find it. :) (For a review of this anime go here.)

Your Lie in April - Everything about this anime was beautiful! The animation, the plot and the characters. At times it can get a little over-dramatic, but I think this anime will endure to become a classic loved by many. Your Lie in April deals with difficult themes and its characters, while in middle school, are definitely able to deal with that (I found them to be more mature than highschoolers). (For a review of this anime please go here.)

My manga story

     Like I have described before (read my anime story here), I was fascinated by the manga style of drawing from early on. However, I didn't start reading manga until the very end of middle school. My friends introduced me to Library Wars (note: there is an anime, but it is rather bland and not as good). This was the first manga I had read. After that I would usually read manga if I had enjoyed the anime. So, by principle, I watch the anime first and read the manga later. This is especially true if the anime only covers a portion of the story line and I am dying to find out what happens next. But, having read the manga beforehand makes watching the anime more enjoyable because the characters you know and love are suddenly able to come to life and are so much more intense.
     
     Yesterday I finished the last volume of Library Wars, my first manga. It was a bitter-sweet experience. While I was eager to discover the exciting conclusion I was also sad that the story was going to end. When I first started reading the series only five or so volumes had come out. That number has grown to 15 volumes total. Now that the series is complete I would like to go back and re-read it all at once, to get the full grasp of the story's journey. One thing is for sure, Library Wars will always hold a special place in my heart.

Anime Dictionary

If you are new to the world of anime all the slang and lingo can get confusing. I have put together a 'dictionary' of terms you may or may not know.

Arc - a smaller story within the larger story. If Legend of Zelda were an anime, each temple would be considered its own arc.

Canon - an episode or part of a show that is in the original source material or is considered to be true to the author’s intentions (the opposite of fillers).

Dubbed - often shortened to dub. If an anime is dubbed over than that means a voice-over of another language than the original was used. Not all dubs are English.

Ed -  short for ending

Fanservice - material which was added to intentionally please the audience. Usually this comes in the form of ‘sexual eye candy’ (for example: dressing all the female characters in skimpy swimsuits). Fanservice for females is rare, but not unheard of.

Filler - a filler episode is based on material not found in the original source. While sometimes entertaining it does not pertain to the plot. (Note: Episodes can be neither canon or fillers.)

Genres - Most genres are pretty obvious, like action and romance. But, there are a few that are a little harder to figure out.

Ecchi - anime that contains sexual innuendos, usually for humor, literally translated it means ‘dirty’

Harem - where a male character lives with or is friends with a lot of female characters. An example of a reverse harem would be Fruits Basket

Hentai - anime with explicit sex

Shoujo - anime that is targeted toward girls

Shoujo Ai - anime that is about a relationship between female characters. The relationship is often romantic, but this genre focuses on the emotional rather than physical aspects.

Shounen - anime that is targeted toward boys

Shounen Ai - anime that is about a relationship between male characters. The relationship is often romantic, but this genre focuses on the emotional rather than physical aspects.

Slice of Life - anime with no clear plot usually set in everyday life.

Yaoi - anime that is about a romantic relationship between male characters (with sex)

Yuri - anime that is about a romantic relationship between female characters (with sex)

Keigo - formal Japanese

Light novel - short chapter books with illustrations

Op - short for opening

OST - acronym for Original (or Official) Sound Track

OVA - acronym for Original Video Animation. An OVA is usually an ‘extra episode’ that is not broadcasted on television

Subbed - often shortened to sub. For a sub the original voices are kept and subtitles in the target language are added.

My anime story

     Even though I was born a few years before the turn of the century I would still classify myself as a '90's kid. My family was a little behind the times because we preferred to wait until the price went down before buying something new, especially electronics.
     As youngsters my little brother and I were no into many video games besides those made for the PC. It wasn't until 2nd grade that we got our first Game Boy Advance, at a time when the X-Box 360 was making it's debut. As a result my first video game was Pokémon Red, a game that was almost as old as me. I was officially thrust into the wide world of Nintendo at the ripe old age of eight. With my new-found interest in Pokémon came a small exposure to anime (sorry Pokémon doesn't count as a real anime in my books).
     I soon became enthralled with the manga art style and checked out books from the library so I could learn to draw manga style. However, I did not start watching anime until much later. I remember seeing merchandise from Naruto and Avatar: The Last Airbender in stores and thinking, "What is that?!". Avatar teeters on the border between anime and not-anime, so I'd have to say that my first true anime was Naruto. Thanks to my best friend and neighbor I was pulled in with no hope of return.
     Next came Bleach, which caught my brother's attention (he had also seen Avatar, but it would be a couple years before he would admit to seeing Naruto) and Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood. Following were shows like Ao no Exorcist (also called Blue Exorcist), Fruits Basket, Sword Art Online, and  Akatsuki no Yona (or Yona of the Dawn).
     My top three anime (in no particular order of importance) are Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood, Yona of the Dawn, and Fruits Basket. Akagami no Shirayukihime follows as a close fourth.
     If you would like, please comment below what your favorite anime are. Thank you for reading!

Review Framework

This is the format that we will be using in reviews. In our reviews we try to be objective rather than subjective. This means we don't rant on and on about what we did or didn't like. We try to judge each piece of media by the quality is showed in several different categories. To eliminate confusion you can read a definition of each of the categories below. We hope you find our reviews to be helpful and constructive.

Title:

Genre:

(Some of our earlier reviews have and overall rating out of five stars)

General Set-Up: A quick description of the first few episodes.

Characters: The question we are trying to answer is: Do the characters change throughout the storyline or do they remain static? Also, we might include a description of the character's personalities.

Plot: This is not a description of the plot, but rather a critique.

Ending: Sometimes the ending can ruin a good anime. Without revealing too much we will let you know if the ending offered a satisfying resolution, made sense, or if it went off the deep end.

Appropriateness: Could you watch this anime with your little sister?

Humor: What kind of humor is present? Is this a comedy or is the tone more serious?

Some of our earlier reviews include moral lessons.
Sights and Sounds: A critique of the art and music (if applicable) in the media form.

Other Media: Is there a manga that corresponds to this anime? How similar are the manga and the anime? What other forms of media have been made using the original as a base?

Fillers: How many fillers are in the anime?

Length: How long is this anime? 
Where to Watch: A list of the places you can get this form of media for yourself.

Anime and Manga - Defined

     To some people the terms 'manga' and 'anime' are familiar. Other people may have heard about them, but are confused as to what they mean. It is possible that some of you have no idea what I am talking about. Well, if that is the case then I encourage you to read on!
     Anime is often thought of as 'Japanese cartoons.' That is correct, but not entirely accurate. Unlike American cartoons, which generally stick to a super-hero format, anime covers a wide variety of genres. Anime can be about anything from action to mystery to romance to sports. If you can think of it there is most likely an anime available on that subject! Also, anime is not restricted to Japan. There are Korean and Chinese anime too.
     Manga could be generalized as 'Japanese comics' but the same issue would arise. Not many manga's have the kind of superhero's that are so common in American comics. Manga can also be used to describe the drawing style that is most commonly associated with Japan. Most anime is based off an original manga -> the manga comes first! Manga is set up so the reader has to read it right to left. For people used to reading left to right this can take some getting used to. You will know you are a manga fan when you start picking up regular books and reading them like manga. I admit I have done it once or twice.

     I hope this helped you understand what manga and anime are. This was only a short definition so I would really encourage you to visit this blog article for a more in depth explanation. The author did a really good job explaining it. I would rather direct you there than plagiarize.
Some people might call manga and anime evil, but they are no more evil than the TV shows we watch or the books we read. Inappropriate manga and anime do exist, but keep in mind that there are also inappropriate movies and books. Just be careful as you explore new anime. Good anime does exist and it is easier to find than you think!