This series is my occasional countdown to Anime Weekend Atlanta. I’ve done it two or three times with varying levels of success, and I am once again embarking on a quest to spend 100 days writing 100 posts about anime, manga, animation, comics, film, and conventions. We’ll see what happens.
100 Days of Anime 2026
Day 008/100
OP of the Day: “A Cruel Angel’s Thesis” by Yoko Takahashi from Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)
Currently Watching: Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
I’m not going to lie to you. I’ve been at one desk or another since 6 a.m. with very little in the way of a break. I don’t want to write a post tonight. But I will. It’ll be short, though.
There are plenty of movies I’ll never watch again, but very few of those are Ghibli movies. I am one of those rare souls that likes Tales from Earthsea or at least finds it interesting enough for the occasional rewatch.
Three works from Studio Ghibli have landed themselves squarely in my “do not revisit” list. The made-for-TV Ocean Waves from 1993 is the least interesting of these. It’s just dull, not terribly good, not terribly bad. I watched it once to say I have seen the entire Ghibli oeuvre. No need to spend any more of my life on it.
Isao Takahata’s Grave of the Fireflies from 1988 is perhaps a less surprising entry on the list. I love the movie. I think it’s important, powerful cinema. I also have a little sister and a tendency to get sad thoughts stuck in my head, and I don’t like crying. This one hits too close to home to ever go back to unless it is the only way I can get someone else to watch it.
Alas, Takahata’s 1994 film Pom Poko also falls onto this list. I’ve seen mixed responses to it, and I actually have no very strong feelings about the movie. I bought it on Blu-ray once upon a time. I was going to be home alone for the weekend so I’d picked up a couple of movies as a matter of fact, plus snacks. I ordered in my favorite pizza, and I settled in for a night of cartoons and calories.
I honestly can’t remember what the other movie was, but within the first 15 minutes of Pom Poko I was slipping into a migraine with a horrible case of nausea. I tried to fight it, refusing to let my night be ruined that easily, but every second of Pom Poko was another mile further into pain and suffering.
Suffice it to say, the movie has been forever linked with that horrible sensory experience. I’ve managed to watch it once more and ended up with a headache and no appetite just from the memory. I sure would like to enjoy those tanuki antics and powerful environmental messages.
Until next time.
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