Spokon ( Japanese ス ポ ポ Supokon ) , abbr. from ス ポ ー ツ [soup: tsu] “ sport ” + 根性 [konjo:] “ willpower ”) - anime and manga genre that tells about sports achievements made thanks to the desire to win. [1] The main characters of Spokon are young athletes who are talented, motivated and determined in spirit, [2] and the plot describes their formation, triumph over difficulties, sports career, struggle with rivals and everyday life. [3] [4] The culmination of the plot is any important competition. [2]
Manga in this genre is usually designed for children or youth audiences ( shonen ) and is published in such shonen magazines as Shonen Jump . [5] [6] However, there is also a shojo- manga about sports. [7] [8] In the shonen manga, the emphasis is on grandiose sports achievements and humor, in shojo - on the heroine’s romantic relationship with other characters and emotional difficulties. [2] According to statistics, 60% of manga for children is sports manga. [9] Extremely popular in Japan, overseas Spokon is lesser known. [2] [4]
Most often, one of the popular sports in Japan is described: baseball (or its kind: softball ), volleyball , boxing , swimming , shogi , various martial arts. According to the content of Spokon manga, you can get an idea of the popular teams and sports in Japan, as well as modern youth culture. [9] The aesthetic and plot canons of Spokon were subsequently reflected in works on other subjects, in particular in culinary anime. For example, Yakitate !! Japan humorously reinterprets the genre, introducing a hero who dreams of becoming the best baker in Japan. [10]
History
The first spokon-anime was Mach Go Go Go , released by Tatsunoko in 1967 and known to the Russian audience as a Speed Racer . Osama Dezaki continued the tradition of the genre: his works, such as Ashita no Joe ( 1970 - 1971 ) (about boxing), and Ace wo Nerae! "( 1973 - 1974 ), (about tennis), were very popular. [eleven]
The second sports series was released a month later Animal 1 (1968) about the wrestling studio Mushi Productions , also created by Noboru Kawasaki. [12]
Attack No. 1 (1969), adaptation of the Tikako Urano volleyball manga, is the first sports series specially made for a female audience. Attack No. 1 , based on which four full-length animated films were shot, also spawned a whole subgenre of shojo-spokona. The same theme, but in a different environment, was later developed by the creators of Ace wo Nerae! Yawara! and the sci-fi anime Battle Athletes Daiundoukai . In 1997, the characters of Attack No. 1 returned to Ashita e Attack . [13]
In Slow Step (1986-1991), Mitsuru Adachi first appeared as an antihero whose negative qualities are eradicated by a love of sports and athletic talent. [fourteen]
In 1970-1971, Nippon Television began broadcasting the first football series - Akakichi no Eleven . The most famous work on football was the long-lasting manga Captain Tsubasa (1981). Although only 4% of Japanese people were keen on football in the early 1980s, Captain Tsubasa ratings in the weekly Shonen Jump magazine were comparable to the martial arts Fist of the North Star . In 1993, a professional football league appeared in Japan, which was used in the Shoot! (1990-2003), Ganbare! Kickers (1986-1987), Ashita e Free Kick (1992). [fifteen]
Notes
- ↑ Ivanov B.A. Introduction to Japanese animation. - S. 62.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Brenner, Robin E. Understanding manga and anime. - S. 121.
- ↑ Jonathan Clements, Helen McCarthy . The Anime Encyclopedia. - P. 122
- ↑ 1 2 Kelts, Roland . Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the US - Palgrave Macmillan , 2006 .-- S. 207. - 242 p. - ISBN 978-1403974754 .
- ↑ Napier, Susan J. Anime from Akira to Princess Mononoke: Experiencing Contemporary Japanese Animation . - Palgrave Macmillan, 2001 .-- S. 19 .-- 311 p. - ISBN 0-312-23863-0 .
- ↑ Brenner, Robin E. Understanding manga and anime. - S. 31.
- ↑ Brenner, Robin E. Understanding manga and anime. - S. 34.
- ↑ Genre. Shoujo Sports . Baka-Updates Manga. Date of treatment February 9, 2010. Archived June 1, 2012.
- ↑ 1 2 Oniki, Yuji. manga: Japan at the Bat . Viz Communications (1997). Date of treatment May 19, 2010.
- ↑ Jonathan Clements, Helen McCarthy . The Anime Encyclopedia. - P. 43.
- ↑ Ivanov B.A. Introduction to Japanese animation. - S. 303.
- ↑ Jonathan Clements, Helen McCarthy . The Anime Encyclopedia. - P. 21.
- ↑ Jonathan Clements, Helen McCarthy . The Anime Encyclopedia. - P. 38.
- ↑ Jonathan Clements, Helen McCarthy . The Anime Encyclopedia. - P. 83.
- ↑ Jonathan Clements, Helen McCarthy . The Anime Encyclopedia. - P. 88.
Literature
- Brenner, Robin E. Understanding Manga and Anime. - Libraries Unlimited , 2007. - 357 p. - ISBN 9781591583325 .
- Ivanov B. A. Introduction to Japanese animation . - 2nd ed. - M .: Cinema Development Fund; ROF "Eisenstein Center for Film Culture Research", 2002. - 336 p. - ISBN 5-901631-01-3 .
- Clements J. , McCarthy H. The Anime Encyclopedia: A Guide to Japanese Animation Since 1917 . - Revised and Expanded Edition. - Berkeley, CA: Stone Bridge Press , 2006 .-- 867 p. - ISBN 978-1-933330-10-5 .