Tokyo International Anime Fair 2010

28.03.2010 by Patrick W. Galbraith

The Tokyo International Anime Fair has come and gone again. We go each year, and noted a general shrinking phenomenon. The opening ceremonies were the expected line - anime is a bright spot in the otherwise poor economy, the fair can be enjoyed by people of all ages from all over the world, etc - but it sounded like bluster, given the fact that the anime industry is in fact suffering. The event is still the largest anime trade fair in the world, but many of the big international favorites (Production I.G., Studio 4C, Bones, etc) had very small presences. Gainax wasn't even there (or if there were, we all missed their booth entirely...). Many of the large booths were for studios from overseas (China, for example). There also were many anime trade schools introducing the work of students, who hopefully will be the next generation of creators in Japan. There was a lot of space between booths, too, making the massive hall at Big Site feel empty. An offhanded comparison to the energy and bustle of Comike came off as sobering. That said, there are many very interesting TV shows coming out this year, and the lineup of movies is truly awesome. Not only will "K-On!" have its second season, but on the moe front there is "Angel Beats" (from Key), "Overrun" and "Working!!" A more serious show is "Senkou no Night Raid," which is set in a retro Shanghai and immensely stylish. Bone's will release "Heroman," written by Stan Lee, which has incredible animation. One highlight of the show was the giant "Heroman" bag (we guess that Stan Lee must have heard people give away big bags at anime shows, and decided to one-up everyone with an American-size bag that was so voluminous that looked more like a dress or cape). For movies, there is "Trigun," "King of Thorn," (which looks like something from Otomo Katsuhiro, but is not), "Hetalia," "Welcome to the Space Show," (like a mix of "Totoro," "Night on the Galaxy Express" and "Summer Wars"), "Karigurashi no Arrietty" (from Ghibli), "Mitsubachi Hutch" (a remake of the classic) and "Marduk Scramble" (with Hayashibara Megumi). Fans of "Magical Princess Minky Momo" can expect a stage musical in Ikebukuro. Fall 2010 will see the much-anticipated "Bakuman" anime on NHK, as well as "Occult Gakuen" and "Mitsudomoe." All in all, it seems that things are looking rather dim at the moment, but there is much to look for in the coming year, when the situation may well turn around for the Japanese animation industry.