Anime Treatise - January 2005 - The Golden Age of Anime
For the younger generation that is now being introduced
to anime, there is a certain lack of knowledge and respect for the historical
and monumental past
of where the current anime scene came from. There was a time when new anime being
released was a celebrated occasion, a time where terrific battles and tales of
valiant space pirates reigned supreme, a time known as
"The
Golden Age
of Anime" (G.A.A).
From a historical standpoint, there are no dates
specific to the G.A.A. Mostly, it is credited as falling between 1977 and 1989.
Leading into this period, titles
such as
"Mazinger-Z" and
"Space
Battleship Yamato" (known
as
"Starblazers" domestically), had already
taken hold in both popularity,
and the demand for more. The entire “space opera” craze really took
hold in 1977 when
"Star Wars" hit international
screens, and sold
out crowds in Japan.
From here, terrific lengths were made to mold anime from the small productions
of the past, into the huge productions of today. Millions of dollars and thousands
of manhours went into developing anime movies and series. One must remember as
well, that this era falls in a time before the prominent computer animation that’s
used today; everything was painstakingly done by hand.
Early in the era, Leiji Matsumoto developed what
would become one of the most well recognized figures in anime:
"Space
Pirate
Captain
Harlock". Harlock, well
known as the figurehead of the space opera craze, was a dashing figure that was
gallant, and heroic. From his original conception, other figures, such as Queen
Emeraldas, were born. Aside from his own share of series and films, Harlock was
made into a successful
graphic novel series as well. Harlock (sometimes referred to as Herlock) can
still be seen in new releases on DVD today.
At the end of the 70’s, fan magazines, like Animage ushered in a huge showing
of pride from fans for Anime. Companies were making Anime as fast as their staff
could work. Mini-trends throughout became popular, such as model “garage
kits” and the very first signs of Cosplay.
In the early 1980’s, anime exploded into
many different types of sub-genres. One of these titles that was extremely popular
was the animated version of Rumiko
Takahashi’s
"Urusei Yatsura", also
known stateside as
"Those
Obnoxious
Aliens". Huge theatrical releases were still being made, especially
from the
soon
to be
known as group: Studio Ghibli. Miyazaki’s
"Nausicaa: Valley of
the Wind"hit big screen in 1984, and after forming as Ghibli,
"Laputa: Castle
in the sky"followed suit in 1986.
Another anime staple had it’s roots during
the G.A.A.; it was the OVA, or direct-to-home anime title.
"Dallos", the first
of these in 1984, failed, but
in 1985,
"Megazone 23" was a hit. Other shows, like
"Patlabor", had their humble
roots in the OVA market.
In a story of Anime fandom exploding, the Daicon
amateur group went on to make the film
"Wings of Honneamise", released in 1987.
The Daicon group later was formed
into Studio Gainax, which now makes some of the greatest anime titles. More people
also gained fame during this period, faces such as Mamoru Oshii and Toshio Suzuki.
Towards the end of the 1980’s, it was clear
that the big animation companies were starting to wane, with the lackluster crowds
that were received for
"Akira"(1988). Even though the film came to a huge cult classic success worldwide, the
original release in Japan was a failure. The only exception to the falling industry
was the 1989 release of
"Kiki’s Delivery Service", from Studio Ghibli.
The unofficial ending of the Golden Age of Anime came when Osamu Tezuka died
in 1989.
I hope that you have gained some sort of appreciation
for the noble roots of what has become one of the largest parts of international
culture today. Please
feel free to pursue these titles and watch them for your own enjoyment.
Next month, the topic for Anime Treatise will be
"Harajuku, where anime
comes
to life", stay tuned and enjoy!
Mike Beargie writing for the Lakewood Public Library, January 2005.