As anticipated, I wasn’t able to attend Otakon 2017 in
Washington DC this past weekend. This
meant I had to miss out on friends, cosplay, the new setting that apparently
kicked all kinds of ass. It also meant I
missed out on some good Anime viewing, especially the fan parodies. The Late Night Fan Parody Videos shown on
Friday and Saturday night are always a treat to see, a chance to see my
favorite Anime (or Anime ive never heard of or haven’t seen before) being used
to produce laughter in some unexpected ways.
They either have new stories grafted or poke fun at the already
established premisies of the shows and films theyre trying to parody. Today, I’m looking at my Top 5 Favorite Anime
Fan Parody Films. I already did Abridged
Parody Series a while back so if youre curious about that list, you can see it
here:
#5: Nescaflowne
What happens when you take a typical Japanese High School
Track Star and plant her on a planet where Coffee is the ultimate power and
those who farm it pilot giant mechas called Brewers? What happens when you add in a Sean Connery
mad genius who can alter the plot at will thanks to his Plasystation 2 powered
machine? You get what’s arguably a much
more understandable story than Escaflowne itself. Nescaflowne may run a little long but it’s
take on the shows main romantic trio, the confusion of the central plot and
motivations of the villains, and it’s hard rocking soundtrack keep you
entertained from beginning to end. And I
love the new names given to Van, Hitomi and Allen: now featured as Juan Valdez,
Hitme and Head and Shoulders of Maxwell House…priceless comedy gold.
#4: Macross 7.5 ½
Fan Parody Artist Trigger Mortis makes many of his
classic comedies based on old school scifi mecha Anime. Ideon/Off and Combattler V: The Parody both
have some truly hilarious moments.
However the first of his projects I ever saw, Macross 7.5 1/2 , is what
I consider the best. The parody focuses
on Basara and his failing band (due in no small part to Basara’s
lameness). However, it’s Basara’s lack
of musical talent that might be what saves the Macross 7 from Proto Mojo
juicing aliens and the poor captaining skills of Captain Max Sterling. Oh and it’s got an amazing 80’s focused
soundtrack, this guy knows how to make the most perfect mixes for any fan
parody.
#3: Fanboy Soze vs
the Reanimators of the Otakulypse
The was the first film I ever saw from Non De Fan Films,
a group who’s members have been part of Otakon’s staff, even heading the Fan
Parodies event themselves. Wow was this
a good one to start with. Using Akira as
their base for the parody, Fanboy Soze follows Tyler, Andy and a group of
underground Anime Activists seeking to take down a greedy corporate Anime
Company before they bastardize Dragon Ball Z one more time. Oh and Tylers would be love interest (who he
doesn’t know is a dude) is slowly being taken over by a psycho editing computer
who sounds like Glados. The film pokes
fun at redubbing Anime time and time again and even eggs on some of the “sins”
of dubbed Anime’s past (aka Robotech).
It’s a gut buster that every fan should see and only a taste of the
genius that is Non De Fan Films.
#2: Evangelion
ReDeath
I’ve talked about this one a few times before and I still
think that if you ever go to an Otakon, this is one fan parody that must be
seen. I still cant give my own adequate
description of this one, so I’ll let the official Otakon handbook handle this
one: “It doesn’t bother Shinji that his
father (who might be a pimp) thinks giant robots are babe magnets. It doesn’t
bother him that he shares an apartment with a strangely masculine German girl.
It doesn’t even bother him that the world may be coming to an end thanks to a
long forgotten Prince song. The only thing on Shinji’s mind is the nookie,
whatever that is. No one said
adolescence was easy.” The excessive use of Prince (and one of the most
perfect soundtracks ever put together), Gendo’s new level of bad ass (let’s
face it, we all wish we had his theme song), Shinji being more funny than
unbearable, German Terminator Asuka, and the funniest take on the end of the
world ever crafted. This right
here…might be Evangelion done right…right down to the cutest giant kaiju
plushie battle of all time: PIKACHU VS RYO OHKI FTW!!!!
#1: This is
Otakudom
This is Otakudom is a parody I tend to keep close to my
heart. Not only is it funny, it’s also a
very through exploration into the realm of Anime Convention Communities. The film, using footage most from Fushigi
Yugi, follows a small band of Anime fans from all walks of life: cosplayers,
gamers, fan fic writers, even those who aren’t as into Anime as others, as they
travel to their first Otakon convention in Baltimore. From Pre Registration chaos to trying to find
the right item in the Dealer’s Room, there is nary a detail about these amazing
weekends that is glossed over. This is
Otakudom is a Fan Parody for people who love to laugh and, like me, love Anime
Conventions with all their hearts…and kind of wish their adventures were as
wild and wacky as this one (ok that’s a bit much…I know others are far more
intense and memorable haha).
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