How Avatar The Last Airbender pulled from anime in a way no one else did

A giant mech doing the “Gainax Pose” by standing with its arms crossed

Folks who grew up watching Avatar: The Last Airbender have high-key been in distress since its series finale aired in 2008. Unlike other notable pop cultural phenomenons like HBO’s Game of Thrones, whose divisive ending […]

All Studio Ghibli Movies in Order, Including ‘The Boy and the Heron’

All Studio Ghibli Movies in Order, Including ‘The Boy and the Heron’

Studio Ghibli’s Spiritual Inception with Nausicaä Before Studio Ghibli was officially founded, there was Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, a film that garnered substantial acclaim and success. Nausicaa may very well be the […]

Joe Hisaishi Is Studio Ghibli’s Unsung MVP

Joe Hisaishi Is Studio Ghibli’s Unsung MVP

Many factors contribute to Hayao Miyazaki’s mastery of the animated medium. His imaginative worlds. Their impeccable art design. A unique blend of nature, magic, and technology, all of which fascinate the 82-year-old creator, who has […]

Hayao Miyazaki’s optimism dims in ‘The Boy and the Heron’

When Hayao Miyazaki’s acclaimed new movie “The Boy and the Heron” made its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September, one of the Japanese master’s biggest fans stepped on stage to […]

Hayao Miyazaki’s How Do You Live? is a gloriously demented goodbye

Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki stands next to a statue of a stylized lion with one hand on its head in Venice, Italy in 2008.

This first impression of Hayao Miyazaki’s How Do You Live? comes from the movie’s opening in Japan. American release plans for the film have not been announced yet. It’s been 10 years since The Wind […]

15 Facts About ‘Spirited Away’ And Other Studio Ghibli Movies

15 Facts About ‘Spirited Away’ And Other Studio Ghibli Movies

When Spirited Away was unleashed onto the world back in 2001, lots of people were still wrapping their heads around animation being more than a kid’s genre. Studio Ghibli’s story about Japanese folklore and the […]