Asiascape Ops 6 - Japanese Science Fiction in Converging Media

Carl Li, Mari Nakamura, and Martin Roth

Japanese Science Fiction in Converging Media: Alienation and Neon Genesis Evangelion

Introduction:

Japanese popular culture, represented primarily by manga and anime, has over the last couple of decades increasingly gained popularity both within and be-yond Japan. Based on the assumption that this is partly due to their distinct

qualities as media of political expression, this article aims to identify and discuss some of these expressions. Focusing on the SF franchise Neon Genesis Evange-lion (hereafter EVANGELION), often regarded as a landmark in the history of

Japanese animation, it will trace the recurring concept of alienation through the extremely popular anime (1995), the manga (1995–2012), and the videogame Neon Genesis Evangelion 2 (2003), thus offering an insight into their commonali-

ties as well as their differences. “Alienation” is a central concept in modern social and political theory, as well as in sociology and psychology, and refers to “the condition of

separation or estrangement.” 1 For Karl Marx, who developed the most influ-ential accounts of alienation in modern social and political theory, alienation is a central critique to modern capitalism. Analyzing the situation of wageworkers in the historical context of modern society, Marx observes that alienation occurs

for them in four interrelated senses in capitalist society: alienation from the very product they produce, from the act of production, from their fellow workers, and from their “species-being.”2 Marx sees “species-being” as the

unique human attribute which distinguishes human life from that of the animals, where one’s alienation from their “species-being” in a modern capitalist society is focused through the class structure and the proletariat experience.3 Thus for

Marx, overcoming alienation requires a change in material conditions for a his-torically specific class of the proletariat by way of their revolutionary activities. While Marx developed his idea of alienation from his wider socio-logical discussion on the political economy of capitalism, later scholars study

more individual and psychological aspects of alienation in a wider social con-text. Among them, American sociologist Melvin Seeman identifies five alterna-tive meanings as components of alienation: powerlessness, meaninglessness,

normlessness, isolation, and self-estrangement.4 Powerlessness is the sense that one cannot influence socio-political events in which one interacts. Meaningless

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ness is a feeling that is experienced when it is unclear what one ought to believe.5 Normlessness is a feeling which comes from believing that socially unapproved

means are required to achieve important goals.6 Isolation is a quality of estrangement from the goals and beliefs which are highly valued in the society. Self-estrangement is a feeling that an individual cannot find self-rewarding

activities that engage him. Seeman’s account opens up further investigations on various forms of alienation found in the relation between humans and machine, and

among different social groups in modern societies. With both Marx and Seeman, the notion of alienation in social and political theory appears to have a

negative connotation, as if it is something to be over-come. Yet, in another strand, the field of science fictional (SF) literature, the idea of alienation or estrangement is rather positive. Literary critic Darko Suvin notably de-

fines SF as “the literature of cognitive estrangement,” deriving this concept from German dramatist Bertolt Brecht’s concept of verfremdungseffekt (in English,

alienation-effect or estrangement-effect).7 Suvin and other advocates of this view such as Fredric Jameson argue that the power of SF literature lies in its potential

to detach its worlds from the everyday life of the reader, thereby facilitating estrangement that may lead to reflec-tions on the present. Here, alienation and estrangement

are essentially political, aiming to reveal that what is as-sumed to be eternal or natural is merely historical and, therefore, subject to change. 8

The concept of “alienation” is a central theo-

retical concept across different disciplines with both negative and positive connotations. The following analy-ses aim to trace the “alienation” found in EVANGELION

through different works and media, closely paying atten-tion in each case to the politics revealed through its ex-pression and employment.

Overview of the EVANGELION Franchise:

Airing from 1995 to 1996 on Japanese television, the

anime Neon Genesis Evangelion is arguably the most suc-cessful and most known part of the franchise. Set fifteen years after a catastrophe known as “Second Impact” has

wiped out the majority of the world’s population, the story shows humanity under attack from enigmatic, oth-erworldly creatures known as “Angels” (in Japanese shito,

or “disciples”), who seek to initiate a new and final cata-clysm, or “Third Impact.” In response, mankind sets up a final defense in the form of “Evangelions” or EVAs, bio-mechanical giants which possess abilities similar to the

Angels. Under the command of the paramilitary organi-zation NERV, the EVAs are piloted by the “Children,” 14-year-olds with a special affinity for them. EVANGELION

is not only a post-apocalyptic environment but also a pre-apocalyptic one; according to director Anno Hideaki, it is “A world with few children left to lead it into the future.”9

Drawing inspiration from works which feature themes of mistrust, uncontrollable power, and human

extinction such as the 1972 manga Devilman (デビルマン, Debiruman) and the 1981 anime Space Runaway Ideon

(伝説巨神イデオン, Densetsu kyōjin ideon),10 possibly

the most innovative and influential aspect of Neon Gene-sis Evangelion is the positioning of its characters in its

science fictional setting. Where previous titles of a simi-lar vein would showcase heroes with unbreakable wills or protagonists reluctant to fight but determined to end

conflict, Children are defined by the degree to which their deep psychological and emotional traumas over-whelm their lives. The protagonist Ikari Shinji constantly

questions the worth of his existence, while his fellow

Children Ayanami Rei and Soryū Asuka Langley doubt

the authenticity of emotions and exhibit a strong fear of inferiority, respectively. These problems of mistrust and emotional isolation extend to the rest of the characters

as well, further swallowing the problems of the many (saving humanity) within the problems of the individual. The original anime ran for 26 episodes, was followed shortly after by a series of theatrical films in

1997, and has since then reached far into other media. Many video games have been made based on EVANGE-LION in part or in whole, ranging from strip poker cli-

ents to strategy simulations to pachinko machines. Simi-larly, a number of Evangelion manga have been created, including alternate spin-offs which place the characters

into occult mysteries and other settings far removed from the original. The more recent Rebuild of Evangelion (ヱヴァンゲリヲン新劇場版, “Wevangeriwon shinge-

kijōban”) films, beginning in 2007 and set to conclude in 2013, even act as a heavily altered re-imagining of the

original. With many titles imitating, drawing inspiration from, and responding to its various themes, characters, artistic elements, and even marketing both directly and

indirectly,11 EVANGELION has shaped Japanese anima-tion profoundly both in terms of lasting and global popu-larity among young fans, as well as in the novelty of its

expression, a milestone in Japanese popular culture. Of these different versions of EVANGELION, we will be looking at three titles in particular because of





their proximity in both content and intent. The first is the original television series, Neon Genesis Evangelion. The second is the manga by Sadamoto Yoshiyuki, also titled

Neon Genesis Evangelion, which was published from 1995 to 2012 and closely adapts the television series to a comics format. The last is the 2003 game Neon Genesis

Evangelion 2, supervised by the original director Anno Hideaki, which encourages players to influence the Evan-gelion story through their own decisions.

Alienation in the Anime Neon Genesis Evangelion:

Beginning with the television series, one of the central themes throughout EVANGELION has been the separa-tion experienced by its main characters, especially that of

the protagonist Ikari Shinji. By analyzing Shinji’s situation through Seeman’s five meanings of alienation (i.e. power-lessness, meaninglessness, normlessness, isolation, self-estrangement), this section will show how the anime

communicates those meanings, as well as how it works to contribute to concepts of alienation. As one episode title12 suggests, Shinji suffers

from “Hedgehog’s Dilemma,” the fear of being hurt when getting too (emotionally) close to another. Shinji is sepa-rated from his family (his father in particular, whom Shinji

believes to have abandoned him), his friends and his so-cial world, and has difficulties interacting with others to form interpersonal relationships. In addition, Shinji suffers from low self-esteem and has trouble constructing his

self-identity, another main theme of the series.13 Know-ing the nature of Shinji’s separation, we must ask if Shinji can overcome the condition of alienation.

Powerlessness and Meaninglessness:

Consider the first two aspects of Seeman’s alienation, “powerlessness” and “meaninglessness.” Shinji’s sense of estrangement is partly because of his low self-esteem, relating to his feeling of “powerlessness”. He feels that he

cannot influence his social situation, and that one of the ways to overcome this “powerlessness” is to combat the Angels. Committing to this socially high-valued goal (as in

valued by the immediate community around him, including NERV, his fellow pilots, and his father) is crucial for Shinji to feel valued and to gain power. The clear so-

cial goal of “resistance against the Angels” also helps to ease the second aspect, “meaninglessness,” especially because Shinji’s mission appears straightforward at a glance. Here, the presence of the Other (Angels) is cru-

cial to constructing the Self (humans) and to legitimizing the resistance against the Angels as a social goal. Yet, in terms of other aspects of alienation, for Shinji this belief

creates more problems than solutions.

Normlessness:

The later parts of Evangelion question the binary distinc-tion between humans and Angels-as-aliens, as well as the legitimacy of humanity’s resistance against them, resulting

in Shinji’s “normlessness.” In Episode 18, an angel infects a new Evangelion unit with the pilot still inside and mu-tates it into a hostile adversary. Under its control, the

rogue “EVA-03” defeats Rei and Asukas’s own EVAs, leav-ing Shinji as the only one still capable of fighting. Ikari

Gendō, commander of NERV and Shinji’s father, orders

Shinji to destroy the Angel/EVA, but Shinji refuses the order, unwilling to kill the human being trapped inside. In

response, Gendō activates an autopilot system inside of

Shinji’s EVA-01, the “Dummy Plug,” which mutilates EVA-03, severely injuring the pilot as well. Because Shinji would have to sacrifice the life of a peer, an illegitimate or immoral action, in order to contribute to the collec-

tive goal of eliminating the Angels, he experiences normlessness. This feeling further escalates when he real-izes that the unknown pilot is actually his classmate

Suzuhara Tōji, one of the few people whom he had managed to befriend.

Isolation:

The fourth aspect of alienation, “isolation,” is also found in the contradictory binary between humans (the Self) and Angels (the Others). Here, Shinji feels a sense of

estrangement from the collective goal itself (eliminating the Angels). In Episode 24, Shinji meets a new EVA pilot Nagisa Kaworu. Over the course of the episode, the two

become friends, establishing a relationship closer than any Shinji had previously experienced, including his

friendship with Tōji. When it is revealed that Kaworu is in fact an Angel in human form, Shinji is faced with the

decision of whether or not to kill his friend. In the end, Shinji follows through and kills Kaworu in a situation

similar to Tōji’s, but is devastated even more by the loss.

For Shinji, whose experiences have led to the Other being comprised of not just the Angels but also fellow

human beings, the fact that Kaworu is both has a com-plex effect on him. Shinji follows the social goal of defeat-





ing the Angel Kaworu, but rather than easing his “isola-tion” the act further deepens it.

Figure 1: Shinji’s inner struggle: to kill or not to kill Kaworu.

Kaworu’s death scene employs a variety of audio and

visual techniques in order to convey Shinji’s feelings of fear and loneliness. At the climax of the battle, Shinji’s EVA-01 remains still, holding Kaworu in its massive hand,

while a Beethoven symphony acts as musical accompa-niment. The scene lasts approximately sixty seconds, and its audio and visual technique leads the viewers to an-ticipate Shinji’s inner struggle and hesitation over ending

Kaworu’s life. The sequence acts as one of the more prominent uses of creative visual motifs in the series, but it should be pointed out that Evangelion frequently

incorporates visual techniques into its portrayal of emotions. Notably, the anime works to represent Shinji’s

inner struggle through the utilization of abstract or visu-ally ambiguous spaces. One prominent example is a re-curring setting involving imaginary dialogues held in a train carriage, either between Shinji and other main

characters or between Shinji and a younger version of himself. Here, the combination of the perpetual sunset with a symbolic orange color motif and the sounds of

the train in the background represent his loneliness. The dialogues—internal arguments in which he repeatedly asks himself the same questions—represent Shinji’s self-

condemnation. These techniques will be explored in more detail in the next section.

Figure 2: Imaginary dialogues in sunset train carriage represent Shinji’s

internal argument.

Self-Estrangement:

Seeman characterizes “self-estrangement,” a feeling that an individual cannot find self-rewarding activities that engage him, with two features.14 First, it postulates some

ideal human condition from which the individual is es-tranged. To be self-alienated means to be something less than what one might ideally be. Second, self-

estrangement can be seen simply as rhetorical appeals to nature. In other words, it is a loss of “species-being”, which Marx and others have considered to be an essen-tial feature of modern alienation. In relation to the first

feature the discrepancy between ideal self-image and actual self-image is a constant issue for Shinji and the other main characters throughout Evangelion.

The last two episodes focus heavily on Shinji and the other main characters’ reasons for living and the ways in which they pursue self-rewarding activities,

through a combination of narrative exploration of possibilities, peculiar animation techniques, and usage of voice-overs. In regards to the first feature of self-estrangement, the ideal human condition, the final

episode portrays a surprising shift to an alternative uni-verse in which Shinji is not an EVA pilot. This world is perhaps an ideal one where he, as his ideal self, can in-

teract with others without a sense of alienation. This ideal world eschews the portrayal of Shinji’s internal struggle though various visual and acoustic techniques

earlier (e.g. static images with voice-over, abstract im-ages, imaginary dialogues held in a train carriage) in favor of an environment without those inner conflicts. In rela-tion to the second feature, the appeal to nature, the end-

less psychic struggles for identity, self-fulfillment, and self-identification among the main characters is one of the more discussed issues on Evangelion among scholars.15

Piloting the EVA is crucial for Shinji to overcome his





sense of “powerlessness” and “meaninglessness”. This also acts to correct his sense of “self-estrangement” and to fulfill his reason for existence.

The alternate world of the ideal Shinji is notable within the context of the episode, as it is conveyed in a more conventional manner, whereas for the most part the last two episodes make use of abstraction and ambi-

guity to a greater degree than any episodes prior to them. Episodes 25 and 26 use continuous montages of black and white images whose content ranges from the

Evangelions to piles of garbage. During these scenes, Shinji, Asuka, and Rei, portrayed solely through their voices, repeatedly ask themselves about their reasons for

existing. Shinji in particular says, “No, I am worthless. I have nothing to be proud of. By piloting the EVA, I can be me. I had nothing before I started piloting the EVA.” He

continues, “I’m allowed to be here, because I pilot the EVA…I have nothing, nothing at all.” This static scene leads viewers to focus on Shinji’s (as well as Asuka’s and Rei’s) motives for piloting the EVA. For Shinji, the act is

crucial to defining the Self, and is also a way to approach to his ideal self. Episode 26 in particular extensively employs

static abstract images and montage in combination with voice-over to represent Shinji’s fluid reality and his crisis in self-identification. Here, Shinji’s existential crisis is pre-

sented in one symbolic scene in which Shinji’s face is filled by the faces of other characters.16

Figure 3: Shinji’s existential crisis.

The techniques of limited animation combine with the use of voice-overs work effectively to represent the

sense of “self-estrangement.” Indeed, some scholars see Evangelion as a prominent example of expressional po-tentials of still images in animation. Routt notes, “The

series continually uses stills of Shinji and his surroundings to direct attention to his state of mind and to his memo-ries, constantly reminding viewers that what is going on

inside his head warrants our attention – and in this way predicting its own psychological denouement.”17 Lamarre argues that “the techniques of limited animation”, such as the usage of still images, which is central in Anno’s work,

“function as something other than cheap or hasty ap-proximations of full animation.”18

The Scales of Alienation:

By analyzing the Evangelion anime in terms of Seeman’s

five aspects of alienation, we find that Shinji tries to overcome his alienation by participating in the collective human resistance against the alien Angels, yet his attempt

reveals contradictions in the types of alienation. His ac-tions seem to ease his sense of “powerlessness,” “mean-inglessness,” and “self-estrangement,” but at the same time also deepen other aspects of alienation, namely

“normlessness” and “isolation.” By piloting the EVA, Shinji becomes a part of a highly-valued social goal in the form of “resistance” while also working to ease his sense

of estrangement. Yet, this attempt is problematic to his trajectory of self-identification, his pursuit of individual-ity. Furthermore, the human resistance against the Angels

highlights other issues of defining the Self, self-identification and subjectivity. Shinji’s “normlessness” and “isolation” reveal that the aliens which the humans resist are not aliens as such.

The Evangelion anime also portrays Shinji’s al-ienation and his inner struggle through the effective use of techniques involving images and sounds. Among those

techniques are the articulation of still images in the form of montage and abstract visuals, which act as very pow-erful expressions of Shinji’s sense of alienation. The re-

peated insertion of scenes showing imaginary/unreal moments with vivid color motifs also function to repre-sent Shinji’s psychic struggle and his loneliness. The analy-sis suggests that the Evangelion anime provides a lively

example to think about the political and philosophical concept of alienation through animation.

Alienation in the Manga Neon Genesis Evangelion:

In order to analyze how the Evangelion manga portrays and represents alienation through the techniques of manga, it is necessary to separate “inherent” aspects of manga as a medium from decisions born out of the na-

ture of the Evangelion manga as an “adaptation.” How much is the Evangelion manga a translation of the anime (and thus applies conventions of the anime in manga

form, e.g. iconic shots from the anime turned into similar panels)? To what degree does it matter that it is indeed manga (as opposed to anime)? How, if at all, is the manga

a response to the anime? Finally, what effect does the creator’s own preferences and approach to the work have on the concept? By answering these questions, this section will show how the nature of alienation in the





manga, though similar to the anime, differs to the extent that it changes the meaning of alienation itself within the context of the story.

The Position of the Evangelion Manga:

Relative to other forms of EVANGELION, one of the

most unique aspects of the manga is its production time frame. Whereas the original television series ran in under a year from 1995 to 1996 with the films Death, Rebirth,

and End of Evangelion coming shortly after, and the first Rebuild of Evangelion movie was released to theaters in 2007, the manga began as a parallel adaptation, starting in

1995 with the first chapter actually debuting a month before the premiere of the TV series.19 At the same time, despite finishing 15 years after the series and its

movies, the manga never surpassed the original in terms of the amount of overall story told. Events portrayed over the course of three or four episodes of the anime (i.e. three weeks to a month in terms of the original

broadcast) were sometimes separated by months or even years in the publication of the manga. Thus, while the anime was completed in a short time span in the

latter half of the 90s, and the new films are able to di-rectly respond to that original work, the manga’s unique position allowed it to gradually develop an increasing

capacity for hindsight. While largely similar in terms of overall narra-tive, even small differences affect the portrayal of aliena-tion. In Episode 24 of the television series, Kaworu ex-

plains the true nature of the “Absolute Terror (A.T.) Field,” a recurring element in the series. Ostensibly a powerful energy-like barrier possessed by both the An-

gels and the EVAs that cannot be breached with conven-tional weaponry, Kaworu reveals that the A.T. Field does not exist merely for combative purposes but is actually

the manifestation of the physical and mental divisions between beings, the “light of the soul” and “the wall that everyone has in their heart.”20 The A.T. Field thus be-comes a “concrete” representative entity in the narra-

tive, conveying the idea that human beings can never truly understand each other. The manga, however, while providing an identical scene in Volume 11,21 also adds a

more explicit explanation that was merely implied in the anime at that point: without AT Fields, human beings merge into a single entity. As will be seen in the following

sections, this tendency away from ambiguity is a key dif-ference in the manga and its approach to alienation.

The Straightforward Visual Style of the Evangelion Manga:

Sadamoto Yoshiyuki, the anime’s original character de-signer, is also responsible for writing and drawing the entirety of the manga. In contrast to the anime, which makes extensive use of abstract and ambiguous imagery

to detach characters from a definite physical space in order to emphasize inner thought, the manga is generally more straightforward and conventional in its approach

to narrative. Comparatively, the manga contains far fewer scenes which use overtly abstract imagery, and the over-

all visual direction leans towards somewhat of an Ōtomo

Katsuhiro-style aesthetic.22 The character designs in the first place have a fairly strong sense of physicality, and in

the manga this also translates into other aspects of the visual world more prominently. While the manga is not entirely without those scenes of introspection and inner

conflict, even the most abstract scenes in it still maintain a high degree of accurate physical rendering on both characters and environments.

Figure 4: Shinji kills Kaworu in an act of love and mercy.

In this iteration of the fight between Shinji and Kaworu depicted in Figure 4, the moment in which Shinji kills Kaworu references an earlier scene where Kaworu per-forms a “mercy kill” on a stray kitten rather than let it

suffer through life (Kaworu also makes his first appear-ance much sooner in the manga, at roughly the half-way point). Whereas the anime shows only the silhouette of

Kaworu’s severed head unceremoniously dropping into a sea of orange liquid, the manga shows Shinji strangling Kaworu just as Kaworu had killed the kitten. Here,

though the emptiness of the field and the destroyed buildings (as well as the scene’s chronological placement in the manga) make it clear that this image is symbolic,





the manga still portrays the moment with a strong sense of physical reality.

Abstract/Real Transitions in the Evangelion Manga:

The “abstract” transitions into the “real” with much

more ease compared to the anime, where the difference can be abrupt and rather striking. However, while the infrequency of those moments should make them stand

out all the more because of how they diverge from the rest of the manga, this is not the case. To some extent, this can be explained by the fact that Sadamoto’s ab-

stracted sequences are still more real than equivalent scenes in the anime, but what is also important is that the geometric nature of comics itself, a medium com-prised primarily of rectangular enclosures and spaces of

various sizes, makes this transition smoother, especially when filtered through the conventions of “story manga.” To elaborate, the panel-based nature of comics

generally results in a certain level of visually geometric abstraction. A comic can be thought of as panels drawn and arranged in a way so as to organize its narrative in-

formation, for a comic is not simply images placed next to each other on a page.23 Generally, this leans towards some type of narrative clarity (e.g. the order in which the panels should be read), but with manga, the tendency

towards a “flowing” panel progression which emphasizes a guided movement from one element to the next fur-ther fosters this abstracted view of the narrative

contents. For instance, a particular character can occur multiple times on the same page and yet still not be seen as multiple characters. While this effect is certainly

achievable in other art forms, from film (Gollum’s “dia-logue” with Smeagol in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers film adaption) to non-

representational paintings (Marcel Duchamp’s Nude De-scending a Staircase, No. 2) to animation and games, the comics form is particularly suited for it because of how space is utilized by the panel-based format to convey

narrative content. The result is that, in manga, the panels act as a continuous reminder of the abstract properties they possess. Where other forms of media can accom-

plish the same thing and do so with great effectiveness, comics are a form where the combination of narrative and abstraction through framing is a convention that is

practically taken for granted.

Figure 5: Shinji and Kaworu converse against a vague backdrop.

Moreover, manga has a history of using symbolic, ab-

stract, and/or non-existent backgrounds to emphasize the characters (and by extension their emotions) in a

panel. In particular, shōjo (girls’) manga, notably the work

of the Shōwa 24 Group,24 has an extensive history of

utilizing this style, and an observation of works by authors such as Hagio Moto and Ikeda Riyoko show a

very liberal usage of panels and sequences far more ab-stract and elaborate than in Sadamoto’s Evangelion manga. Even there, however, the absence of clearly de-

fined backgrounds does not register a panel space as being particularly abstract. Returning once more to Shinji and Kaworu, we can see a conversation occurring be-tween the two of them, with the backgrounds lacking any

particular details, but the characters do not feel divorced from their physical environment Manga’s tendency to abstract its “physical ele-

ments,” or to remove characters from a definite physical and perspective-oriented space means that the transition between a moment grounded in physical “realism” and

one dedicated to making the internal world of the char-acter visible is much smoother than in anime. Thus, in the Evangelion manga, Sadamoto’s realistic style makes the visually ambiguous scenes less abstract, while the formal

elements of manga lend a degree of inherent abstraction to Sadamoto’s style, resulting in smoother transitions between the two.

Prominence of Character Communication:

The vagueness with which the characters express them-selves in the anime also turns out to be much less prominent aspect of their manga counterparts. In the lead-up to the fight with EVA-03 in Episode 18, the

anime shows how everyone, including the pilot Tōji him-





self, is unwilling to tell Shinji the truth until it is too late.

Here, Shinji finds out only after Tōji is critically injured in

the battle. In the manga however, Tōji tells Shinji about

his appointment as an Evangelion pilot, going so far as to confide in Shinji his own fears and doubts concerning the

position. Though the outcome is far graver (Tōji ends up dead instead of hospitalized), the prior scene shows how the characters do not stop where their anime counter-

parts would in terms of interaction. Even Shinji himself has different responses to the situation depending on the version of Evangelion. After the battle, Shinji tries and fails

to destroy NERV headquarters in retaliation, and is brought before his father to explain his act of treason. In each, Shinji shows himself to be angry at what he feels to

be his father’s betrayal, but whereas Shinji in the anime has few words for his father and simply quits,25 Shinji’s manga counterpart goes so far as to take a swing at him.26 Comparatively, the same scene in the Rebuild of

Evangelion films (where Asuka replaces Tōji) shows a

middle-point between the two, largely resembling the TV series but also showing how Shinji communicates his decision with more determination.27

Figure 6: Shinji attempts to strike his father.

If the characters in the Neon Genesis Evangelion anime can be summarized as individuals who have enor-mous trouble connecting to others in the first place, then the manga’s characters can be thought of as indi-

viduals who run up against the upper limits of personal interaction. In the manga, the characters are able to cre-ate and foster relationships, but they almost inevitably

reach a point where they end up questioning the validity of those connections. The interactions do not have to be “positive” ones either, as is the case with Shinji assaulting

Gendō.

A Different Site of Alienation:

Through a combination of Sadamoto’s tendency towards

“physical” realism (relative to the anime), smoother abstract-to-physical transitions of manga, and a narrative featuring improved communication between the charac-

ters, the Neon Genesis Evangelion manga shows a more straightforward approach to even its presentation of alienation. Unlike the anime, the expression of thoughts and emotions in the manga of Evangelion is typically not

as overt in its presentation. Thus, understanding is best culled from active character interaction, rather than the awkward conversations and moments of deep introspec-

tion utilized more consistently by the anime (though the manga is not without those scenes entirely). As the characters communicate with each

other in a more “normal” fashion, both in terms of the primarily non-abstract visualizations of their interactions and their more “natural” conversations, the upper limit of human interaction is brought to the forefront. For the

Neon Genesis Evangelion manga, alienation occurs among the characters when they become painfully aware of those limits. While the anime’s characters are afraid to

show their true selves for fear of being hurt, the charac-ters of the manga are frustrated by the upper boundaries of the individual.

Like the anime, the setting of the Evangelion manga is a world recovering from destruction, where the inheritors of the future are wracked with personal de-mons which inhibit their ability to connect to others. But

whereas the original anime emphasizes the challenge of making connections in the first place, the manga allows for the establishment of relationships, only to call their

success into question afterwards. The more conventional narrative and visual progression of the manga pushes the site of alienation somewhat away from the enclosed

mental space of the individual to the ambiguous shared space that exists between people. Given this approach, the alienation of the Evangelion manga is similar to the anime in that it lessens the sense of powerlessness,

meaninglessness, and self-estrangement at the expense of increased feelings of normlessness and isolation, but it differs in that this contrast is most keenly felt in a devel-

oped interpersonal relationship, rather than in potential or half-formed ones.

Alienation in the Game Neon Genesis

Evangelion 2:Whereas the manga and the anime emphasize the psy-chological condition and developments of the characters





and express the uncontrollable and complex nature of human interaction side by side with the alien intrusion by the angels, the videogame Neon Genesis Evangelion 2 in

contrast abstracts both the characters and the interac-tion between them due to its algorithmic, numerical ba-sis. Focusing on the “free turn” sequence in the game,

this section will show that the structure of sociality in-scribed into the world of Neon Genesis Evangelion 2 pro-vides a radical and profoundly alienating experience to the player, thus engaging with alienation from a different

perspective. Among the various EVANGELION videogames, Neon Genesis Evangelion 2 (also called EvangelionS, hereaf-

ter Eva2), produced by Alfasystem, BANDAI, and GAI-NAX, sticks out in terms of its distinct expression of Anno’s vision. Following a rough version of the anime

story in its narrative, Eva2 adapts the anime's double structure by facilitating two altering modes, the so-called “free turn,” in which the players are able to explore the world and interact with non-player-characters (npcs)

controlled by an artificial intelligence, and the “combat turn,” in which they have to pilot the EVA and fight against the intruding Angels.

However, the game does not feature a singular main narrative. According to Anno Hideaki, who super-vised the project, it rather allows each player “to create

his or her own, individual Evangelion 2.”28 By granting a large variety of choices the social interactions in the free turn, the game's “sandbox-like” system allegedly allows the players to fulfill their desire and to set their own

goal freely,29 or alternately to abandon the notion of a specific goal overall.30 A fan describes the game as being “much more a simulation than a game. You cannot only

play Shinji, but also side characters (even Aoba!31). 2000 hours of play guaranteed. The speed is awful, but at the same time, it features a high degree of freedom. You can

for example fight Angels in Eva, run berserk, assassinate whomever you despise, stalk or be stalked, create a harem, get cheated on, go fishing with dad, etc.”32 The diverse playable scenarios shown in figure 7, which are

available to the player from early on, indicate that the game offers perspectives less central in other products of the franchise.

Figure 7: Possible Scenarios in Eva2

Space does neither allow for an analysis of these differ-

ent perspectives and “games” that are played in the Eva2 world, nor for a comprehensive discussion of the impli-cations this high degree of freedom on various levels has

both for the player and for the researcher. The following section rather aims to analyze the structure underlying the free turn with regards to its mechanics at play. Focus-

ing on the way in which social interactions are struc-tured in the so-called free turn, it hopes to show how the game succeeds in translating EVANGELION’s psy-chological and social complexity into its own language

and can be regarded as an intriguing example of the es-tranging and alienating potentials videogames facilitate.

Structural Elements of the Free Turn:

Located in Tokyo-3, Eva2 features a variety of places fa-miliar from the anime, such as Misato’s33 mansion, Rei’s apartment, the classroom, and the NERV headquarters. The player is able to direct a player character (pc) freely

through (most of) the environment and may, apart from some basic needs like food and an occasional bath, use the passing time in any fashion he or she deems appro-

priate. Apart from a variety of “functional” (bathroom, shower, cafeteria) engagements these rooms offer, they are populated by non-player-characters (npcs), which,

controlled by an artificial intelligence (A.I.) system, follow their own agenda. This free turn is interrupted by ap-proaching angels (i.e. the combat turn) about every two days at a randomly determined timing.





Figure 8: Example of the I.M (clockwise from top: Ignore, “What do you

want?”, Answer gruffly, Small talk.

Despite the open system, the free turn is not completely without structuring elements. A key variable in this re-

spect is the “Absolute Terror” (A.T.) value the player character and all npcs display. In contrast to its portrayal in the anime and manga, A.T. is explained in the game

manual as a kind of tension barometer that can be raised by making friends with npcs. Raising the A.T. is recom-mended, because this value not only affects the fighting

strength of the Eva during the combat turns, but, accord-ing to the solution guide, which refers to it as “something like the confidence for leading a life in society”, also in-fluences the so-called “Intelligent Material” or “I.M”, an-

other central element of the game.34 The I.M. is the term used for the large pool of (inter)actions the game facili-tates (more than 600 actions are available in total35).

From this pool, the computer selects up to four possible actions the player can choose from at any given time and location during the free turns. An example of how the

A.T. influences the I.M. in the game are actions like hug-ging or kissing, which seem to be available only when the pc’s and/or the respective npc’s A.T. value are above a certain level. The player’s actions will not only influence

the A.T. value, but also have an effect on how the npcs evaluate the pc.

Figure 9: Misato’s evaluation of Rei (from top to bottom): Friendsip,

Love, Parental Love.

Japanese science fiction author and critic Kotani Mari argues that, in the anime, the characters carefully play or

enact a paternalistic family in what she calls a “family game.”36 The video game facilitates a similar social game but puts a stronger emphasis on romantic relationships

through the structure of A.T. and I.M. and the numerical evaluation of the player’s actions by the npcs, thereby employing central elements of so-called dating simulation

games.37 Following the suggested aim of raising the A.T. value requires the player to engage in “successful” social interactions by choosing the right (re)action for her character. But, whereas gameplay in dating sims and visual

novels is often dominated by dialogues, the I.M. in Eva2 focuses more on physical exploration, both by facilitating a variety of actions along with phrases and by dynami-

cally changing the available actions according to the physical distance between pc and npc. For example, the player is able to “look at” an npc from a certain distance.

However, this option disappears from the I.M. selection when drawing closer. As one of the more successful ways to raise the A.T. begins with looking at npcs, this means that a considerable part of the gameplay can consist of

frequent “checking” on the actions available, with the player literally feeling his or her way through the map by pressing the circle button on the controller to access

the I.M. menu.38 Thereby, the free turn spatializes social-ity, requiring of the player a tactile exploration of the interaction possibilities or the (romantic) social space

the game world offers.

World Mastery:

Where the anime depicts a complex web of social and personal struggles, the video game reduces the charac-

ters to numbers and the social interaction to a prede-





fined and preselected set of possible actions to choose from, in order to facilitate a goal structure. By introduc-ing the A.T. and other mentioned numerical values as

variables influenced by the actions the player takes, which in turn influence the players interactive possibili-ties or the fighting strength of the Eva, the combination of A.T. and I.M. produces a variety of potential goals to

follow. In other words, the player can master the social game Eva2 offers to a certain extent with respect to the goals he or she sets, by developing an understanding of

the system’s algorithms and the npc’s behavior. The nu-merical abstraction of the characters emotions can be “deciphered” and influenced through an effective use of

the I.M. system. For example, effectively pursuing the goal of raising the A.T. and beating the intruding angels is to approach the npcs in ways that are likely to be success-

ful. Figure 10 shows the results of research into the game system done by a player, who explains that passivity is the basis for a successful relationship.39 As already indi-cated by the above-cited fan description of the game,

raising the A.T. is by far not the only possible way of play-ing the game. That is, although it amplifies the fighting strength of the EVA, and while the game has a narrative

ending that can be reached when all angels are defeated, players can choose to ignore it or even deliberately de-crease the A.T. and “play a different game”.

Figure 10: How to get the girl controlling Shinji. Source: “Eva2 Sūpā

Kōryaku, Furī tān.”

The “learnable” social space of Eva2, in which interac-

tions can be calculated and selected with regards to their potential success, offers a sense of mastery and allows the player to make the pc and the npcs obey his

or her initiative. Put next to the depiction of an “apoca-lyptic psyche”40 in the other works, the rational and con-trollable world of Eva2 may seem like a resolving answer

to the formers’ struggles. However, the scarcity of avail-able (inter)actions at a given point on the map, some-times limited to one possible reaction to a situation, constantly reminds the player of how limited her possi-

bilities are, thus contributing to her estrangement from the everyday. Yet, in combination with the vast possibili-ties the game world offers, this same scarcity also cre-

ates a productive tension insofar as it challenges the player to explore these possibilities by subscribing to and

mastering the available means. According to Susan Napier, the last episodes of the anime Evangelion show that its “final apocalyptic vision is an ironic one: even

when we think we can control the reality around us, we are actually at its mercy, cartoon characters in the hands of the fates or the animators.”41 The game, however, of-

fers a world in which control can be gained to some extent by the player, who is thus able to determine her own goals, potentially facilitating engagements and expe-riences beyond the directions predicted by the design-

ers, like “not to talk to anybody/only to talk to Pen-Pen42,” “create a harem,” “homosexual pairing,” “how many people can I assassinate,” “refuse to work when

playing Misato,” “move in with Rei as Shinji,” “survive with 0 A.T.,” etc.43 While not further pursued at this point, the examples hint at the game’s possibilities to

fulfill a wide range of desires, with the player claiming control over the characters and the game system alike.

Beyond Science Fiction?

With regards to the anime Evangelion, Kotani argues that

it has a very “real feel” despite its fictional setting, be-cause it mounts a critique of the present.44 In terms of alienation, both manga and anime deploy their expressive

potentials in the science fictional setting of EVANGE-LION to emphasize a feeling of alienation familiar from our present. The game, on the contrary, seems to deploy the A.T. and I.M. to detach or alienate its world from this

present. While sacrificing the psychological depth offered by the anime and manga due to the abstraction of the characters, this reduction structures what could be

called “numerical sociality” and facilitates the player an estranging experience of social interaction. In this sense, A.T. and I.M. function as so-called science fictional

“nova”, according to SF author and theorist Adam Rob-erts “the thing or things that differentiate the world por-trayed in science fiction from the world we recognize around us.”45 Beyond its aesthetics or narrative framing,

Eva2 can be said to realize science fiction in its own gamic language. What Otherness is created by these nova? The

abstraction of the characters and the social world in Eva2 generates an estranging playing experience. Dealing with the question of whether “any human thought pat-

tern [can], in the end, be reduced to a program, thus reducing humans to mere ‘statistical beings,’ similar to

automatons,” Japanese SF writer Yumeno Kyūsaku, ac-

cording to Nakamura Miri, confronts the reader with





what she terms the “mechanical uncanny,” or, “a mode of fear that stems from the mechanization of the human body”, as something that “threatens what we perceive to

be ‘natural,’ including personal memories and personal identities as a whole. The idea of a coherent self comes under attack, as bodies become both divisible and me-chanical, and as characters are duplicated and become

reduced to statistical beings.”46 The game, through its rationalization and abstraction offers a similar experi-ence of a “mechanical uncanny” in the interaction with

the non-player characters. In order to play the game, the player has to accept and analyze this “uncanny” otherness, which is all

the more alien due to the “intelligence” the npcs are equipped with. Developing the A.I. system of the game Gunparade March47 further, the A.I. system controls the

npcs and seemingly makes them act either spontaneously or in response to the player actions. In their actions, the npcs appear neither restricted by the pressure to raise their A.T. value, nor by the context or their surround-

ings. Despite being based on algorithms, which can be identified and analyzed to some extent, the npcs remain radical Others to the player because they often appear

indifferent in interactions, aimlessly moving through the environment. In his analysis of the science fictional char-acter of Star Trek, Roberts argues that the Borg are a

successful representation of radical otherness. “It is im-possible for us to enter imaginatively into the world of the Borg because certain key values we hold, values like individuality, life/death and so on, are too centrally part

of us, whereas for the Borg they are neither good nor bad but simply irrelevant.”48 In a similar sense, the npcs in Eva2 at times may appear alien beyond imagination,

although they are developed to facilitate the player with “intelligent” or “human-like” counterparts for social in-teraction, and thus could be said to represent alienation

on the level of “species-being.” If Gadamer is right in claiming that human play always requires a task it can be directed towards,49 understanding the aimless npcs might be impossible unless the player stops playing all

together. As argued above, limitation in Eva2 both es-tranges the player from the everyday and challenges him

or her to dig deeper into its world, stimulating explora-tion of the system beyond mere reaction to the situa-tions at hand. While this can be identified as a structural

element of most videogames, the extent to which every-day experience can or has to be applied to the game world in order to understand it may vary. Whereas some games turn towards realism in order to facilitate the

player with instantaneous understanding, Eva2 rather employs a variety of mechanisms and elements that al-ienate and detach its world further from the everyday

present. Playing with(in) this “alien nation” and its inhabi-tants means to both submit to its rules and to explore its possibilities within and arising from these boundaries

according the player’s individual desires. Roberts argues that “SF, by focusing its representations of the world not through reproduction of that world but instead by figura-tively symbolizing it, is able to foreground precisely the

ideological constructions of otherness.”50 It may be ar-gued that the game’s alien world potentially confronts the player with an symbolic figuration of the present in

Roberts’ sense, with all the political potentials this may have. In fact, identifying the npcs as an Otherness should be regarded as part of this process. However, the “alien

nation” in Eva2, in which the utopic dream of control over one’s social interactions and the dystopic fear of the “mechanical uncanny” meet, may be better described as “symbolizing beyond recognition,” particularly where

its inhabitants and rules seem impossible to understand but can still be experienced and interacted with. Fur-thermore, the game derives its potentials not from forc-

ing the player into a particular direction or narrative, but rather from facilitating a choice of how deep he or she wants to dive into it, thereby providing a context for

personal playful estrangement.

Conclusion

In examining concepts of alienation in EVANGELION across the media forms of anime, manga, and video

games, the image of alienation at first appears to grow only more convoluted, particularly in places where the three iterations seem to contradict one another, such as

with the concept of “A.T.” In the anime and manga, the Absolute Terror Field is conveyed in a negative light. In addition to its prominent role as a defensive weapon utilized by the most physically monstrous entities in

Evangelion, the Angels and the EVAs, it is also the “wall of the heart” which exemplifies the alienation of Shinji and every other human being. In the game Eva2, however,

Absolute Terror is given a positive connotation; it not only increases the EVA’s fighting strength, but when raised also offers more possibilities for interaction. In

this way, the contradiction of the A.T. Field actually re-sembles the competing attitudes towards estrangement and alienation found in social and political theory and science fiction. Just as how estrangement is a source of





problems in the former and a source of solutions in the latter, so too does “Absolute Terror” possess a similar duality, where its presence can protect an individual’s

confidence but also reinforce their sense of psychologi-cal loneliness. Even the anime and manga versions of Evangelion also offer somewhat competing views, placing

either the effect of alienation (or the presence of Abso-lute Terror) either at the “beginning” of a relationship or at its “end.” The characters of the anime lessen some forms

of alienation at the expense of others, while the manga delays its characters’ sense of alienation initially, only to unleash its effects more thoroughly later. The game, in

turn, allows its characters to have varying degrees of alienation. At the same time, the gamic language of Eva2 and its simplification of interpersonal relationships can

create a feeling of alienation through its sense of artifici-ality. Taken together, the combined image of alienation conveyed through these three versions of Evangelion suggests that alienation may not just be a matter of

manifestation through different conceptual forms (pow-erlessness, meaninglessness, normlessness, isolation, self-estrangement) which can affect a person in a given mo-

ment, but also a question of when and where alienation takes place in a personal history of social interaction. The contradictions of alienation can occur in time as well as

space, and the two dimensions of alienation may be ca-pable of creating increasingly complex forms of aliena-tion. Medial forms of expression can either employ al-ienation to criticize the status quo, or to offer cognitive

estrangement by generating Otherness.

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1 David Miller et al. eds., The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Political Thought (Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 1987), 6.

2 Marx deployed his analysis of alienation in capitalist produc-tion in The Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844 and later further developed in detail in Capital. See István Mészáros, Marx’s Theory of Alienation (London: Merlin Press, 1970).

3 Anthony Giddens, Capitalism and Modern Social Theory: An analysis of the writings of Marx, Durkheim and Max Weber (Cam-bridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1971), 14.

4 Melvin Seeman, “On The Meaning of Alienation.” American Sociological Review 24(6) (1959): 783-791.

5 Seeman gives an example of post-war German situation, which Adorno described as “meaningless.” Adorno notes that the individuals in post-war Germany could not choose with confidence among alternative explanations of the disasters of the epoch (ibid., 786).

6 Seeman derives “normlessness” from Durkheim’s description of “anomie.” For the discussion about alienation and anomie, see, for example, Steven Lukes, “Alienation and Anomie,” in Philosophy, Politics and Society 3rd series, ed. Peter Laslett and WG Runciman (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1967), 134-156.

7 Darko Suvin, Metamorphoses of Science Fiction (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1979).

8 Fredric Jameson, Brecht and Method (London and New York: Verso, 1998), 47.

9 Anno, Hideaki, “What Were We Trying to Make Here?,” in Neon Genesis Evangelion v1, 1996 (San Francisco, CA: Viz Media, LLC, 2004).

10 Sadamoto, Yoshiyuki, interview, Der Mond-Sadamoto yoshiyuki

gashuu (Der Mond―貞本義行画集) Deluxe Edition, (Japan:

Kadokawa Shoten 1999), Translated from Japanese, “The Initial Title was Alcion,” [EVA] If it weren't for Sadamoto – Redux, last modified November 30, 2006, http://eva.onegeek.org/pipermail/evangelion/2006-November/003855.html.

11 RahXephon (ラーゼフォン, Rāzefon), Martian Successor

Nadesico (機動戦艦ナデシコ, Kidō senkan nadeshiko, “Mobile

Battleship Nadesico”), the Suzumiya Haruhi (涼宮ハルヒ) se-

ries, and Serial Experiments Lain, to name a few.

12 Episode 4.

13 For the discussion on the issues on human identity and real-ity in Evangelion and the anime Serial Experiments Lain, see Susan J. Napier, “When the Machines Stop: Fantasy, Reality, and Termi-nal Identity in Neon Genesis Evangelion and Serial Experiments Lain,” Science Fiction Studies 29 (2002): 418-435.

14 Seeman, “On The Meaning of Alienation,” 789-90.

15 For example, as Napier notes, “[W]hat makes Evangelion truly groundbreaking are the psychic struggles in which the charac-ters engage.” Napier “When the Machines Stop,” 425. For more discussions, also see William D. Routt, “Stillness and Style in Neon Genesis Evangelion,” Animation Journal 8(2) (2000): 28-43 and Thomas Lamarre, The Anime Machine: A Media Theory of Animation (Minneapolis and London: University of Minnesota Press, 2009).

16 Lamarre discusses this scene in relation to Shinji’s existential crisis and a technical crisis of animation. “The animation re-minds us that this crisis is not just about a subjective point of view. Rather the animation gives us an exploded view of the psyche.” Lamarre, The Anime Machine, 183.

17 Routt, “Stillness and Style in Neon Genesis Evangelion,” 41.

18 Lamarre, The Anime Machine, 183.

19 Horn, Carl G, “Editor’s Note,” Neon Genesis Evangelion v1 (San Francisco, CA: Viz Media, LLC, 2004).

20 "The Beginning and the End, or 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door,'"Neon Genesis Evangelion episode 24, directed by Hideaki Anno, 1996, Neon Genesis Evangelion: Platinum Complete (Hous-ton, TX: ADV Films, 2005), DVD.

21 “Stage 73: Reaching the Boundary,” Neon Genesis Evangelion v11, Sadamoto, Yoshiyuki, 2007 (San Francisco, CA: Viz Media, LLC, 2008), 64-84.

http://www.geocities.jp/s_shin_r/eva2/free.html






































http://www.geocities.jp/s_shin_r/eva2/index.html#2












































22 The creator of Akira (アキラ), Ōtomo is famous for an em-

phasis on realism and attention to detail while also commanding a strong sense of flow, i.e. panel progression.

23 Groensteen, Thierry, The System of Comics, 1999. Translated from French by Bart Beaty and Nick Nguyen (Mississippi: Uni-versity Press of Mississippi, 2007), 18.

24 A group of female manga creators who in the 1970s pushed the artistic style and narrative scope of girls’ manga.

25 Neon Genesis Evangelion, episode 19, DVD.

26 “Stage 41: Fist,” Neon Genesis Evangelion v7, Sadamoto, Yoshi-yuki 2001 (San Francisco, CA: Viz Media, LLC, 2004) p.21-22.

27 Evangelion: 2.22 You Can [Not]Advance, directed by Anno Hideaki, 2009 (Forth Worth, TX: Funimation, 2011), DVD.

28 Minoru Funatsu, “Bandai, PS2 ‘Shinseiki Evangerion2’ kansei kishakaiken kaisai,” Game Watch, October 30, 2003, accessed November 23, 2011, http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/20031030/eva.htm.

29 “Shinseiki Evangerion 2 Seihin Shōkai,”, Alpha System, ac-cessed November 22, 2011, http://www.alfasystem.net/game/eva2/product_introduction.html.

30 Yūri Shibamura, “Shinseiki Evangelion 2,” accessed Nov. 22, 2011, http://www.bandaigames.channel.or.jp/list/eva2/about.html.

31 A minor “computer technician” character in EVANGELION.

32 “Eva2 Sūpā Kōryaku, Hajime ni,” Supa, accessed November 23, 2011, http://www.geocities.jp/s_shin_r/eva2/index.html#2.

33 The EVA pilots’ commanding officer.

34 Hiroyuki Katō and Junichirō Tamura, Shinseiki Evangerion 2

Kōryaku gaido (Tokyo: Kadokawa Shoten, 2003), 30-31.

35 “Shinseiki Evangerion 2 Kōryaku Fairu no. 26,” Alpha System, accessed November 25, 2011, http://www.alfasystem.net/game/eva2/text_conquest/mel015x.cgi.

36 Mari Kotani, Seibo Evangerion - A New Millennialist Perspective on the Daughters of Eve (Tokyo: Magajinhausu, 1997), 28-29.

37 Displaying a considerable history and popularity in Japan, dating simulations are games in which the player can approach various npcs with the aim of developing a romantic and/or erotic relationship with them.

38 The German words “tasten” or “herantasten” are more sug-gestive in this case, as they combine the notion of “to feel around” with that of touching, and are also used in “Tastsinn”, meaning “tactile sense”.

39 “Eva2 Sūpā Kōryaku, Furī tān,” Supa, accessed November 23, 2011, http://www.geocities.jp/s_shin_r/eva2/free.html.

40 Napier, “When the Machies Stop,” 428.

41 Napier, “When the Machies Stop,” 430.

42 A comical, beer-drinking penguin featured in EVANGELION.

43 “Eva2 Sūpā Kōryaku, Furī tān.”

44 Kotani, Seibo Evangerion, 12-13.

45 Adam Roberts, Science Fiction (London/New York, Routledge 2006), 6. The term “novum” was coined by SF theorist Darko Suvin.

46 Miri Nakamura, “Horror and Machines in Prewar Japan: The Mechanical Uncanny in YUMENO Kyûsaku’s Dogura magura,” Science Fiction Studies 29 (2002): 369, 377.

47 Kōkidō Gensō Ganparēdo Māchi, 2000, Sony Playstation. Developed by Alpha System.

48 Roberts, Science Fiction, 123.

49 Hans-Georg Gadamer, Wahrheit und Methode (Tübingen: J.C.B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck), 1972), 103.

50 Roberts, Science Fiction, 19.





























































































































































































Established in September 2007, Asiascape.org is an attempt to build a new international research coali-

tion in the rapidly emerging fields of cyberculture (New Media, Conver-gence Culture, Video Games and other related media, such as fan-

culture) and animanga (Anime and Manga), especially as they relate to (or originate from) East Asia.

It is well known that a large proportion of this type of media emerges from the East Asian region

(Japan, China and Korea), and Asiascape seeks to sponsor and organize research into the impor-tance of these media as a series of

transformative, cutting edge, tran-snational global commodities, and/or as a series of cultural products that

reveal much about East Asia itself.There is a scattered (and grow-

ing) group of international research-

ers working in this field and, in addi-tion to conducting its own original research, Asiascape aims to provide a hub for the organization and di-

rection of this rapidly emerging field. With an international advisory board of leading scholars, Asiascape

will sponsor a series of ‘state of the field’ conferences and disseminate research using new and old media,

including via this website and its associated news-blog, vistas.

Asiascape is based at Leiden

University and is funded through the generosity of the Netherlands Or-ganisation for Scientific Research

(NWO), Toshiba International Foun-dation (TIFO) and the Modern East Asia Research Centre (MEARC).

© 2013, Asiascape.org



ABOUT THE AUTHORS:Mari Nakamura, Carl Li, and Martin Roth are PhD candidates within the Goto-Jones VICI project, ‘Beyond Utopia: New Politics, the Politics of Knowledge, and the Science Fic-tional Field of Japan.’ They are part of the core project team and should graduate in the summer of 2014.

More information:asiascape.org/beyondutopia.html

INTERNATIONAL ADVI-SORY BOARD:Prof Wendy Hui Kyong Chun (Brown University)Prof Chris Goto-Jones (Leiden University)Dr Mark Harrison (University of Tasmania, Australia)Dr Sharon Kinsella (Manchester University, UK)Prof Tom Lamarre (McGill Uni-versity, Canada)Prof Stefan Landsberger (Am-sterdam University)Dr Angus Lockyer (SOAS, UK)Prof Susan Napier (Tufts Univer-sity, USA)Prof Ivo Smits (Leiden University, Netherlands)Prof Takayuki Tatsumi (Keio Uni-versity, Japan)Prof Mark Williams (Leeds Uni-versity, UK)

SubmissionsPlease send submissions to the editors at: [email protected]



http://asiascape.org/beyondutopia.html

http://asiascape.org/beyondutopia.html



Asiascape Ops 6 - Japanese Science Fiction in Converging Media

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