In the late seventies, two new animes made a prominent appearance on American TV: "Star Blazers" [Uchu Senkan Yamato -- Space Battlecruiser Yamato], and "Battle of the Planets" [Kagaku Ninja Tai Gatchaman -- Science Ninja Team Gatchaman]. Unfortunately these were deemed to contain too much violence for the audience targeted by U.S. distributors -- children. As a result the episodes were mercilessly cut and spliced with conspicuous sub-standard domestic animation to render them 'harmless'.
Around the same time, an underground of American anime fans began to congeal. En masse screenings of uncut Japanese animation, much of it unavailable to the general public, had been held in homes, rented meeting halls and at Sci-Fi conventions since the 1960s; as word spread, demand for uncompromised anime grew. PBS was the first to respond by running prime-time episodes of Uchu Kaizoku Captain Harlock -- Space Pirate Captain Harlock (pictured left, from the feature film Waga Seishun-no Arcadia -- My Youth in Arcadia). In the mid-1980s, terrestrial TV gave the nod to "Robotech", an amalgamation of three different Japanese animes: Super Dimension Fortress Macross; Genesis Climber Mospeada; and Super Dimensional Cavalry Southern Cross.
While this period saw a boom in new releases of both TV series and feature-length anime films in Japan, it wasn't until a decade later that U.S. cable and satellite began to pick them up. Today, anime fans the world over are familiar with titles such as: Urusei Yatsura -- (popular translation is Those Annoying Aliens, though we have heard it described more floridly by a Japanese animator as "Those Noisy People from Outer Space Whom You Wouldn't Want Living Next Door"); Lensman; Project A-Ko; Megazone 23; Ranma; Area 88; Dirty Pair; Bubblegum Crisis; Akira; and Maison Ikkoku,
to name just a handful. Japanese anime is also readily available on laser-disc or video.
Many Japanese animators regard classic Disney animation as the ruler against which they measure their own work. Ironically, during the 1980s, it became common practice for U.S. animation studios like Disney to 'farm out' a portion of the animation process to Japanese studios for cost-effectiveness. Those of us on the Japanimation Tour '86 saw cels from Disney's "Gummy Bears", among others, on animation tables in Tokyo. Even in this form Japanese animation is easy to spot for its superior quality; if you see an eye-catching American cartoon, check the credits. You'll probably find at least one Japanese animator listed, if not an entire studio.
Despite its modest beginnings with "Astroboy" and "Kimba", much of anime is targeted for the teenager on up. Behind the lush artwork and heavy-duty battle scenes are often morality plays, and the Japanese don't shy away from adult content or graphic violence if their inclusion lends itself to realism or humor. In-jokes abound: the observant viewer will catch fleeting cameo appearances by characters from rival shows, or such animator pranks as a launched missile that morphs into a can of Coors as it flies past, then changes back into a missile, a process seen clearly only in frame-by-frame replay.
Altogether, anime is just plain good fun to experience. International recognition of this unique art form has been long in coming, and Japanese animators should be proud of their achievements.
We gratefully acknowledge Fred Schodt, Keith Sewell and Ernie Cervantes (wherever you are) for portions of the info contained above. Anglicizations of show titles provided by yours truly.
Additions? Corrections? We'll listen.