Information about Genshiken

Genshiken
Cover of the English version of volume 1 of the Genshiken manga.
げんしけ? (Genshiken)
Demographic	Seinen
Genre	Comedy, Slice-of-life
Manga
Authored by	Kio Shimoku
Publisher	Kodansha Del Rey Manga Heyne Star Comics Kurokawa
Serialized in	Afternoon
Original run	June 2002 – June 2006
No. of volumes	9
TV anime
Directed by	Takashi Ikehata
Studio	Palm Studio, Genco
Network	Kids Station
Original run	10 October 2004 – 26 December 2004
No. of episodes	12
OVA
Directed by	Tsutomu Mizushima
Studio	Ajia-do Animation Works, Genco
No. of episodes	3
Released	22 December 2006 – 25 April 2007
TV anime: Genshiken 2
Directed by	Kinji Yoshimoto
Studio	ARMS, Ajia-do Animation Works, Genco
Network	Kids Station
Original run	10 October 2007 – 26 December 2007
No. of episodes	12
Related Series
Kujibiki Unbalance

Genshiken (げんしけん, Genshiken) is a manga series by Kio Shimoku about a college club for otaku (extremely devoted fans of various media) and the lifestyle its members pursue. The title is a shortening of the club's offical name, Gendai Shikaku Bunka Kenkyūkai (現代視覚文化研究会, Gendai Shikaku Bunka Kenkyūkai), or "The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture". The series has also been adapted into an anime directed by Tsutomu Mizushima. The manga originally ran in Kodansha's monthly manga anthology Afternoon from June 2002 to June 2006, and has been reprinted in nine bound volumes. The ninth and final volume was released in Japan in December 2006.^[1]

Genshiken is known particularly for its down-to-Earth portrayal of otaku in Japan, who have frequently been stereotyped or otherwise caricatured by the Japanese media. It represents their habits and personal quirks without flinching, subtly criticizing its characters at times, but never sacrificing their humanity. Author Kio Shimoku also shows a great familiarity of his own with prominent anime and manga from the 1960s onward; this allows him to breathe more life into the characters, as the passing references they make (even when the names of the series are changed for legal reasons) cover a wide range of genres and timeframes, and suitably obscure for those who are supposed to be steeped in the medium.

Plot summary

Genshiken follows the lives of a group of college students drawn together by their shared hobbies, and the trials and adventures associated with being otaku. The story begins with the introduction of Kanji Sasahara, a shy, confidence-lacking freshman who on club day at university, decides to join a club he would actually enjoy, Genshiken. Over his four years at Shiiou University, Sasahara comes to accept himself for who he is and loses the inhibitions and guilt he once felt and associated with otaku culture, becoming an enthusiastic clubmember, and for a time, a capable club president. As the story of Genshiken progresses, focus is also placed on Saki Kasukabe, an emphatic non-otaku who initially struggles to drag her boyfriend out of the club, and Chika Ogiue, a self-professed otaku-hater who feels a deep-seated shame and self-loathing toward her own interests and hobbies.

During the course of the series, the reader bears witness as the group grows in its cohesiveness over time, and bonds form between the characters as they begin to see themselves as more than fellow club members, but friends as well. In this context, club activities such as group outings, the biannual pilgrimage to Comifes, and even simply hanging out in the clubroom, allow the characters' complex relationships to grow into friendship, infatuation, and at times, even love. While a few of them never quite see eye-to-eye about their interests or the lives they lead, they are held together by the bonds of friendship that they share.

Characters

Main article: List of characters in Genshiken

Kanji Sasahara (笹原 完士, Sasahara Kanji)

At the beginning of the series, Sasahara is just coming to terms with his otaku nature and much of the beginning of the series focuses on introducing him to the otaku lifestyle. He is the most balanced member of Genshiken, with no real focus on any particular aspect.

; Makoto Kousaka (高坂 真琴, Kōsaka Makoto) : Kousaka is the character who most focuses on video games, particularly fighters. He also does not fit the otaku stereotype in that he is much more handsome than would be expected. He likes his girlfriend Kasukabe very much, though she doesn't share his interests. ; Saki Kasukabe (春日部 咲, Kasukabe Saki) : The only "normal" main character, Kasukabe hates otaku and their lifestyle, but is forced to hang around the Genshiken in order to be with her boyfriend Kousaka. ; Harunobu Madarame (斑目 晴信, Madarame Harunobu) : Madarame is the most hardcore otaku of the Genshiken members. He carries his obsessions to an almost dangerous degree, spending nearly all of his money on dōjinshi, which leaves little money for food or other living expenses. ; Souichiro Tanaka (田中 総市郎, Tanaka Sōichirō) : Tanaka focuses on designing costumes for cosplay, and thus has a strong connection with Ohno. He also has a strong focus on plamo, or plastic models. ; Mitsunori Kugayama (久我山 光紀, Kugayama Mitsunori) : Kugayama is a stuttering, overweight member who is Genshiken's only artist until Ogiue's arrival. However, he lacks the motivation and commitment to create a full-fledged dōjinshi. ; Kanako Ohno (大野 加奈子, Ōno Kanako) : The first female to join Genshiken of her own free will, Ohno is a soft-spoken, well-endowed girl who enjoys cosplaying. Her enthusiasm for her hobbies serves as a foil for Kasukabe and later Ogiue, who both resist her attempts to get them involved in club activities. ; Chika Ogiue (荻上 千佳, Ogiue Chika) : Not introduced until later in the manga series, and not introduced until the OVA for the anime, Ogiue reads and creates female-oriented, yaoi dōjinshi. She is deeply ashamed of her otaku nature, but gradually comes to accept it as the series progresses. ; Manabu Kuchiki (朽木 学, Kuchiki Manabu) : Also not introduced until later in the series, Kuchiki is a loud and annoying member that is disliked by the rest of Genshiken, especially by the girls.

Cultural references

The series, being focused on the otaku lifestyle, contains numerous references to other manga, anime, video games, and other aspects of otaku culture. Common plot points include such otaku-centric activities as the buying and creation of dōjinshi, fan-made manga usually of erotic content; convincing a character to try cosplay (the dressing up as characters from manga, anime, or video games); the creation of plamo figures, plastic figures that must be assembled; and visiting Akihabara, Tokyo's electronics shopping district, or Comic-Fest, an otaku convention.

Because the anime is co-produced by Sega Sammy Holdings, the Guilty Gear video game series is heavily referenced, with actual gameplay sequences from Guilty Gear Isuka being shown multiple times (including in the opening credits), Ohno cosplaying as Kuradoberi Jam, and various other minor references. The Sega puzzle game Puyo Pop Fever also serves as an important plot point as Kasukabe tries to gain Kousaka's attention. Numerous other non-Sega/Sammy properties are also referenced throughout the anime, but their names are changed slightly, such as The King of Fighters '95 being alluded to as COF 95 and Capcom vs SNK 2 as "S-Cup". Discussion of eroge, erotic video games usually of the visual novel genre, also occurs often.

Similar to the treatment of video games in the series, popular anime and manga are often alluded to by pseudonyms, such as "Gungal" (Gundam), "Haragen" (Fullmetal Alchemist), "Scram Dunk" (Slam Dunk), "Neko Yasha" (Inu Yasha), and many others. Genshiken usually avoids referring to these series so in-depth that it would require the use of names and lines from their real-world counterparts, with several notable exceptions: in the model-building chapter of the manga (but not the anime), actual Gundam mecha and characters are referred to throughout, while the dialogue quoted by Sue (except for one "Neko Yasha!" outburst) is pulled directly from Evangelion, Lupin III, Azumanga Daioh, and other series.

These cultural references have remained intact for the English adaption of the manga, which include a section for translation notes. However, due to the number of allusions made and the inability for a translator to always know what is being referred to, many explanations of otaku references are still absent. The anime however, has been criticized for having "excessive script variances" with its English dub translations, such as injecting English specific references like "talk to the hand", and for inconsistently including liner notes.^[2]

Kujibiki Unbalance

Main article: Kujibiki Unbalance

The majority of manga and anime references made in Genshiken are on the then fictitious series known as Kujibiki Unbalance, a stereotypical romantic comedy. Kujikibi Unbalance was likely originally conceived (at least partially) to avoid potential copyright problems from referencing another series too heavily, but has since spun off into its own full fledged manga and anime series.

Anime adaptation

The manga was brought to television by the production company Genco in 2004 as a twelve-episode anime and in 2006 and 2007 as a three-episode OVA, adapting the first five volumes of the manga. The TV series was licensed for North American release by Media Blasters.

The anime adaptation is very faithful to the original work, with few revisions being made, with the exception that many references to specific anime, manga, and video games are changed or removed. The previously fictional Kujibiki Unbalance manga series was also turned into an anime series to match the medium, with three complete episodes being created for sampling in the anime version of Genshiken. The three Kujibuki Unbalance episodes are provided as bonus OVAs with the purchase of the Genshiken DVDs.

It was originally announced by Media Factory at Comiket 69 that the second season of Genshiken would premiere in October 2006.^[3] However, Media Factory clarified their statement in May 2006, saying that the series airing in the fall would be a full-fledged Kujibiki Unbalance series, rather than Genshiken season 2.^[4] Nevertheless, the DVD releases of the new Kujibiki Unbalance series each included an OVA episode of Genshiken, for a total of three new episodes. The first new episode was released with Kujibiki Unbalance DVD Box 1 on 22 December 2006, with the two subsequent installments following on 23 February and 25 April 2007, respectively.^[5]

On 23 April 2007, it was announced on the Genshiken homepage that a second season of the TV anime would be produced, including the character Ogiue, who had been introduced in the OVA episodes. ^[6] The first episode of the second season aired on 10 October 2007 on Japanese TV. A radio webcast runs simultaneously with the second season's terrestrial broadcast.

Critical response

Genshiken has been praised for its execution of the slice-of-life genre, in that it is able to be funny while still maintaining a strong sense of reality. Anime News Network reviewer Bamboo Dong's review of the first manga volume called Genshiken "one of the best manga series out this year", praising Shimoku Kio's attention to detail and David Ury's translation work.^[7] Genshiken was also a 2005 Japan Media Art's Festival jury recommended manga.^[8]

See also

• Comic Party
• Otaku no Video
• Cosplay Complex

References

External links

• (Japanese) The official Genshiken web site
• Genshiken (manga) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Genshiken (TV) (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Genshiken (OVA) (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Genshiken (TV 2) (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• Genshiken : A fansite/fanlisting dedicated to the series
• Insert Credit article on fighting game based on Kujibiki Unbalance released with the complete Genshiken DVD collection