DGFischer

As long as I remember, I have always enjoyed animation, and a lifetime of innovations in the creation of the animated feature.  I can remember episodes of Crusader Rabbit, Tom Terrific, Scrappy.  I was enthralled over the action-feature of Johnny Quest and the element of sanitized violence it ushered into what were simple cartoons.  I recall two waves of super-hero periods through the sixties and nineties.  The advent of the live-action concept of H. R. Puffinstuf and the bizarre adventures of the Power Rangers.  My two youngest daughters gained the nicknames of Mo and Jo thanks to a certain monkey connected with the Powerpuff Girls (unsanitized violence, if you'd call that progress).

I began to get into anime through the usual way.  THe girls enjoyed something called Pokemon, followed shortly later by Yu-gi-yo!  I was mildly amused, but never thought much about the content.  Kid stuff.  It wasn't until my daughter Miriam (Mo) went to college and mentioned something called Sailor Moon.  A little risque and soapy for my tastes.  But Mo loved anime, suggested a ton of shows, kept me intirqued in shojo-style.  Girls need to be affirmed, and I liked the spunk of many of the characters.  Being a former teacher, the girls always shown more initiative.  The more memorable girls were because of their intensity of work ethic.  The more memorable boys ... horror stories!!!!

My first adventure in anime was [not] Glitter Force.  OK, let's call it Smile Precure ... once I discovered there was such a thing as Smile Precure ... and Max Heart ... and Splash Star ... and ... and Star Twinkle Precure ... and Healin' Good Pretty Cure.  My lifetime winter adventure has been to work my way through the Pretty Cure corpus, and any other anime which follows a girls-go-get-em plotline.  To see similar/same lines of action, the see all the nuances and common themes.  Summer festivals.  Transformations.  Storylines which were oh so predictable and those which had plot twists I still can't wrap a head around.  As a writing teacher and a writer, I love analyzing a story to discover the complexities of a superior story. 

After Pretty Cure, I have no idea which direction of anime to follow.  But have you seen a modest list of anime series?  The options and possibilities are mind-blowing!

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The second phase of anime-watching focuses on shojo, though I'm finding a growing interest in shouen and magic girl/boy genres.  I'm taken with BanG Dream franchise, but the similar premise of K-On!! has piqued interest.  In replacing Precure, the ever-developing Cardcaptor Sekura series and spin-offs will do.  My simple listing of under fifty Precuria has ballooned to over 100 various anime selections.

Also, I had learned of the importance of Studio Ghibli in the production of quality anime, and this should join Toei Animation as premier sources for entertainment.