Anime (アニメ) refers to the animation style originating in Japan. It is characterized by distinctive characters and backgrounds (hand-drawn or computer-generated) that visually and thematically set it apart from other forms of animation. Storylines may include a variety of fictional or historical characters, events, and settings. Anime is aimed at a broad range of audiences; consequently, a given series may have aspects of a range of genres. Anime is most frequently distributed by streaming services, broadcast on television, or sold on DVDs and other media, either after their broadcast run or directly as original video animation (OVA). Console and computer games sometimes also feature segments or scenes that can be considered anime.
Manga (漫画) is Japanese for "comics" or "whimsical images". Manga developed from a mixture of ukiyo-e and Western styles of drawing, and took its current form shortly after World War II. Manga, apart from covers, is usually published in black and white but it is common to find introductions to chapters to be in color and read from top to bottom and then right to left, similar to the layout of a Japanese plain text. Financially, manga represented 2005 a market of ¥24 billion in Japan and $180 million in the United States. Manga was the fastest-growing segment of books in the United States in 2005. In 2020, Japan's manga industry hit a value of ¥612.6 billion due to the fast growth of the digital manga market, while manga sales in North America reached an all-time high at almost $250 million.
Anime and manga share many characteristics, including exaggerating (in terms of scale) of physical features, to which the reader presumably should pay most attention (best known being "large eyes"), "dramatically shaped speech bubbles, speed lines and onomatopoeic, exclamatory typography..." Some manga (a small percentage) are adapted into anime, often with the collaboration of the original author. Computer games can also be adapted into anime. In such cases, the work's original story is often compressed or modified to fit the new format and appeal to a wider demographic. Popular anime franchises sometimes include full-length feature films. Some anime franchises have been adapted into live-action films and television programs.
Shakugan no Shana, also known simply as Shana (シャナ), is a Japanese light novel series written by Yashichiro Takahashi with illustrations by Noizi Ito. ASCII Media Works published 27 novels from November 2002 to November 2023 under their Dengeki Bunkoimprint. The story focuses on Yuji Sakai, a high school boy who becomes involved in an age-old conflict between forces of balance and imbalance in existence; in the process, he befriends a fighter for the balancing force and names her "Shana". The series also incorporates fantasy and slice of life elements.
Two manga adaptations were published by ASCII Media Works in Dengeki Daioh and Dengeki Maoh. Between 2005 and 2012, the series was adapted by J.C.Staff into three 24-episode anime television series, a four-episode original video animation (OVA) series, an animated film, and a standalone OVA episode. A PlayStation 2 video game was released in March 2006, which was ported to the Nintendo DS in March 2007. Viz Media licensed the novels and the first manga series for release in North America, but stopped publishing both prematurely. Geneon originally licensed the first television series for release in North America, but the license later transferred to Funimation, now Crunchyroll, who also licensed the remaining anime properties. Critics praised the series for its execution of typical story elements. (Full article...)
The chapters of the manga series Tokyo Mew Mew were written by Reiko Yoshida and illustrated by Mia Ikumi. The first chapter premiered in the September 2000 issue of Nakayoshi, where it was serialized monthly until its conclusion in the February 2003 issue. The series focuses on five girls infused with the DNA of rare animals that gives them special powers and allows them to transform into "Mew Mews". Led by Ichigo Momomiya, the girls protect the earth from aliens who wish to "reclaim" it. A sequel, Tokyo Mew Mew a la Mode written and illustrated solely by Mia Ikumi, was serialized in Nakayoshi from April 2003 to February 2004. The sequel introduces a new Mew Mew, Berry Shirayuki, who becomes the temporary leader of the Mew Mews while they face a new threat in the form of the Saint Rose Crusaders.
The 27 unnamed chapters were collected and published in seven tankōbon volumes by Kodansha starting on February 1, 2001; the last volume was released on April 4, 2003. The 11 chapters of Tokyo Mew Mew a la Mode were published in two tankōbon volumes on November 6, 2003 and April 6, 2004. Tokyo Mew Mew was adapted into a 52-episode anime series by Studio Pierrot that aired in Japan on TV Aichi and TV Tokyo from April 6, 2002 to March 29, 2003. The manga series is licensed for regional language releases by Pika Édition in France, Japonica Polonica Fantastica in Poland, in Finnish by Sangatsu Manga, and Carlsen Comics in Germany, Denmark, and Sweden. (Full list...)
A clip from the now-lost film Chikara to Onna no Yo no Naka ("Within the World of Power and Women" or "The World of Power and Women") (1933), the first anime to feature a voiceover.
