The word “otaku” has come to mean a very specific thing in the West. It is generally taken to mean “an obsessive fan of anime and manga”. In Japan, it is a different matter. There the word can be applied to being a passionate fan of anything. Anime and manga certainly, but also trains, military, games, or building electronics. Generally considered oddities for not fitting into social norms, they didn’t gain notoriety until the late 80s. At this time a number of incidents, including the infamous “Otaku Killer” in 1989, caused a shift in perception of otaku to being deviant and dangerous. Enter “Otaku no Video” (1991), a two-episode OVA produced by the legendary Studio Gainax that captures the essence of what being an otaku truly means.
Buy This Title
by clicking on the image below
In 1982, Kubo is a young college student involved in his school’s tennis team and seeing his girlfriend Yoshiko. After a chance encounter with old school friend Tanaka he discovers a world of enthusiasts, otaku, which lead to him devoting himself to being the ultimate otaku; the Otaking.
At its heart, “Otaku no Video” is a coming-of-age story. Kubo seems to be living the typical ideal of college life with an active social life, a girlfriend, and involvement in a team. There is a sense of definite dissatisfaction, one that is slowly lost upon meeting Tanaka again and getting involved in his club. There is something so beautifully analogue about the band of misfits and their expression of fandom. This is a time of self-made VHS tape collections and grassroots organisations long before streaming and online forums. The group’s interests are also varied, including guns, alcohol, cosplay, and general science fiction. This is the concept of otaku in its purest form of individuals banding together who don’t quite fit with society and find satisfaction in their hobbies. Yet Kubo’s increasing interest in their world is almost played like something sinister. It’s like one of those bizarre moral panic movies from the 80s where a promising youth spirals down a dark path to ruin after exposure to deviant material. Except instead of alcohol or rock’and’roll, it is anime and airsoft rifles. And it’s hilarious.
The second episode is another beast entirely. It’s a rapid rise, fall, and rise of Kubo and Tanaka’s otaku enterprises. It’s like a wish fulfilment fantasy mixed with a rough history of Gainax’s founding, particularly the company’s founder Toshio Okada. Kubo and Tanaka’s garage model kit company is Grand Prix, Okada’s was General Products. Similarly, the animation studio is Giant X, which when said aloud can sound like Gainax. It’s all over exaggerated, as it’s hard to believe a company focused on such a niche market as garage kits could grow that much that quickly, but at the same time it’s good fun. It also shows the value of extreme hobbyists to the wider modern capitalist society, making money. The pacing in this part of the story is uneven with huge chunks of events sped through in montage. Yet, you can’t help but root for Kubo and Tanaka as they believe so sincerely and wholly in their dream of bringing otaku life to the world. It’s through them that you get this sense of the OVA claiming back the image of otaku from what it had become in the public eye. Even the title feels like a deliberate choice as in 1989, the magazine Bessatsu Takarajima did a special issue on the particular culture, called “Otaku no Hon”. Here otaku are the passionate dreamers, the ones who are separate from society but also capable of changing it.
If there is any fault to be found in “Otaku no Video” it’s in the shallowness of its characters. The female characters are little more than wallpaper. Even with Kubo we know so little about him outside of the immediate action. However, it is not particularly necessary in many ways. The thrust of the story and ultimate goal of expressing the joy of otakuhood in a self-parodying manner is achieved without getting into minute personal details. It just would have been nicer to have the cast of characters fleshed out and get some insight into their own stories.
Whilst the animation is overall good if a little simple with a few creative flourishes, the OVA does feature character designs by Kenichi Sonoda who has a knack for expressive people. It’s very fitting for a cast of otaku characters. Similarly, the cast is good but with no particular standouts.
The most curious thing is that the animation segments are broken up by live action “documentary” sequences where various otaku are interviewed and give their worldview. These segments do break up the flow of the narrative and without them it might mean there would be room in this two-episode OVA for more story. Yet it wouldn’t be right to dismiss them entirely. The interviewees are unknown with fake names and voice modulation, but their true identities are that of Gainax staff and associates. This adds to the overall air of affectionate self-parody. It has never been officially confirmed, but the Hentai gaming otaku is popularly believed to be “Neon Genesis Evangelion” (1995) director Hideaki Anno.
As well, as the Gainax staff making fun of themselves and people they know, they give a wider context to certain aspects of otaku culture that might be unknown to people not already familiar with it. This includes things like cel stealing and garage kits. There are some interview subjects whose behavior will be off-putting to many, the hentai game otaku and porn otaku both come to mind, but they give an overall impression of pitiable harmlessness.
Check also this video
Possibly the oddest interview in the bunch is the one with an American anime fan. The interviewee, Craig York a staff member from the early days of Gainax’s US merchandise department, was not told the full extent of what the project was and so gave a genuine interview. The intention is unclear, but what the subtitles and voiceover say that he is saying is clearly not what he is actually saying, being a more exaggerated idea of a “gaijin otaku”. Jokes like this are funniest when everyone is in on it, and this is the only part of the project that is just a bit on the mean-spirited side.
There are also these on-screen date cards to give a timeline of events, starting with the major historical event of the airing of the first episode of “Magical Princess Minky Momo” (1982), and ending in the future with a Gerry Anderson reference along the way. It’s jarring and disjointed but was certainly designed to be so as a random cutaway gag. It’s just one that doesn’t entirely land.
Follow our coverage of anime by clicking on the image below
Whilst “Otaku no Video” wasn’t a hit upon first broadcast it was a different matter overseas. It gained a cult following in America and is shown every year at the convention Otakon, which also took its name from the OVA. Even if “Otaku no Video” didn’t introduce the word to Western anime fans, it almost certainly contributed to its usage.
“Otaku no Video” is an appealing watch for many reasons. It’s a time capsule of 80s anime culture. It’s a good-natured ribbing of said culture by those who know it best. It’s a company looking back at their beginnings and their dreams for the future. Most of all, it’s an ode to what it means to be a passionate fan in a world that would make it something wrong. An undoubtedly odd time, but it will leave you smiling.
