Tearful Slut Anime
Things have been rather heavy lately. I’ve been feeling emotionally tapped out. I was really inspired by the last episode of For Colored Nerds where Brittany and Eric talk about things they are grateful for. So this week I want to talk about something I love and share my favorite animes with you. According to my Hulu and Netflix histories I’ve watched almost 30 animes over the last 18 months. Out of all of those I’ve only hated three. I’ve listed my top five. My criteria for top five in no particular order of importance:
- Fairly feminist
- Gotta make me cry or give me the feels
- Aesthetically and sensually pleasing
- Characters who undergo a transformation
- Grief, intimacy, vulnerability
- Must withstand multiple watches.
Disclaimer: I never read the mangas.
Tokyo Ghoul Of course Tokyo Ghoul is at the top of the list! I finally finished watching season two with Rachel, and I now await future seasons with frothing neediness. I’ve written a little about Tokyo Ghoul before and it is really one of the best animes I’ve ever watched. It’s dreadful. Poetically it reminds me of Wet Land. The rawness of the grief, the swelling musicality, and the sweltering transformations of the characters keeps Tokyo Ghoul on my mind. Like a good poem it increases, thickens the questions brewing in me. I feel like more than anything Tokyo Ghoul speaks to and moves me deeply as someone who feels like an outsider, someone who wants to survive and protect the ones they love.
Kill la Kill What to say about Kill la Kill? I didn’t think that I would like it at first. I tend to think I’m not going to like things that are marketed as action/adventure. But it reeled me in. I loved the way it pokes fun at very typical anime tropes. I also found it to be a very intense conversation around magical girl genre, fashion, and family. Poetically it’s very gurlesque, I think of The Hounds of No. Otherwise it’s your basic girl who’s best friends with her only pair of clothing, trying to avenge her mad scientist father’s death.
Kamisama Kiss In Kamisama Hajimemashita, we follow the journey of Nanami, a high school girl who becomes the land god of a shrine after she’s abandoned by her gambling, debt-dodging father. It’s a supernatural romantic comedy. Nanami matures as a young woman and deity, and navigates falling in love with a nonhuman. Poetically it feels very Rain of the Future to me. It’s really perfect, it gives me so many feels, and I really hope that there’s a third season. Until then I’ll be rewatching every single episode.
Attack on Titan This is the first anime that really sparked my interest in anime as a genre. Attack on Titan made me recognize anime as something that could unlock deep wells of emotion. Every episode is devastating. Poetically it feels very The Morning News is Exciting. I particularly love the opening and ending credits.
Ouran Host Club This anime was recommended by my best friend James. And it was a perfect suggestion. It began my love for seeking out of feminist-leaning animes. It’s considered a reverse harem romantic comedy. Similar to Kill la Kill it satirizes many shojo tropes. It remains a favorite because it gives me feels and displays a lot of vulnerability while maintaining humor and lightheartedness.
Honorable Mentions: Afro Samurai, Sailor Moon Crystal, Junjou Romantica, Fruits Basket, Maidsama.
This week’s Lonely Britchlist
- Wednesday I had dinner with Dori and Caleb who had just returned from South Korea. We ate a hodge podge of things, hot dogs, guac and chips, roasted brussel sprouts and cauliflower. Wine. All good things. It was fantastic to catch up with them.
- Thursday I spent the day with Katy. I took her with me to the studio and let her pick a dream machine to put on a scarf I was finishing. After that we went to JJ’s, got faded and went to see Inside Out for the SECOND time. I really fucking loved Inside Out. And I hate Disney movies. But Jay and Katy, both those bitches tricked me by suggesting a movie I would totally love. After the movie Katy and I did what we do best: be high, eat snacks, throw shade, talk about our feelings.
- Friday I hosted the informal summer writing workshop at Villa Rot. There was a little reading party beforehand. Reading parties are the shit, there’s nothing better than gathering a group of your friends and sitting quietly in the same room reading. It’s one of my favorite introvert activities. The poems Nichole shared for workshop were so amazing. And I feel another three poems closer to finishing self portrait. Around sunset we sat on the front porch and lit some fireworks and sparklers, watched the fireflies, and ate s’mores.
- Instead of celebrating the fuckass birth of this “great” nation, Saturday was an Independent Women’s Day. I had Katy and Nichole over. Katy made these delicious, from scratch brownies which we decorated together and they were super cute and so so yummy. Nichole baked an apple pie and that was the end of our patriotism. I made my famous ribs, Katy made some mac and cheese and we snacked on chips and hummus. We rewatched some of our favorite episodes from season five of RuPaul’s Drag Race.
- Sunday was a nice slow day. I was able to catch up with a friend who I hadn’t talked with for a while because last time we talked (like a year ago) he said some things that really offended me about racism. But not long into our conversation he apologized and spoke to me about growth he had made in his understanding of racism over the past year. And then he thanked me for my patience. And I really appreciated that. I’m easy. I really feel like a sincere apology is the only thing needed to diffuse my justified anger. That evening my friend Anna arrived in town. She’s getting married this Saturday and I’m so excited. I haven’t been to a good wedding in a while and Katy’s going to be my wedding date!
- Monday I had lunch with Anna and her soon to be husband David. They made me lunch while I was feverishly working on a featured writer application. I very secretly love weddings. Of course I do, if done right a wedding can be so full of tears and laughter and feels that I can’t even stand it. Later I went over to Rachel’s to watch the last five episodes of Tokyo Ghoul. Tears for everybody! I was really wrecked over the end of the season.
- Tuesday morning I woke up from a nightmare about being trapped on a spaceship that was crashing into the earth. Everyone else was so chill about it and I WAS FREAKING OUT and sobbing. It took forever to wake up from this dream. It was raining. My body hurt all over. I just wanted to spark up and crawl back into bed. But I went into the studio and I was so happy that I did. Mary Fran had prepared an indigo dye bath for us to use and it was the so much fun, such a creative day. I got a little obsessed with the dye bath. I can’t wait to go in and take really good pictures of all the silk we dyed yesterday. After work I rushed home to meet up with my friend Elaine. She’s been in Sweden working on a Masters in Education. It’s always a pleasure catching up with Elaine. She’s such a sweet and genuine person and I look forward to scheming with her about the future.
- BBHMM. BBHMM. BBHMM. BBHMM. BBHMM.
- Metta Sama. Jay Santa Cruz. Marissa Alexander. New podcasts to fall in love with. Roxane Gay. Joshua Jennifer Espinoza. Eunsong Kim. MCAG. Chani Nicholas.
Tata for now my lonely britches. Nikki this is for you.
Sade Murphy was born and raised in Houston, TX. She is the author of "Dream Machine," a poetry collection.
Latest posts by Sade Murphy (see all)
- Never Can Say Goodbye - August 19, 2015
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