Mission: manga!
A dozen enthusiasts of the Japanese comics gathered at the Traverse Area District Library for the inaugural meeting of the Manga Book Club. Talking at top speed and near top volume for an hour Thursday evening, they discussed, dissected and debated all facets of the illustrated stories.
Planning to meet every other week, the club is off to a roaring start. It is geared to fans ages 13 and up, who want to immerse themselves in manga (generally pronounced as "mon-ga") and make new friends who share their interests.
"I was so afraid nobody would say anything but everybody was so enthusiastic," said Kristy Kermath, a longtime fan of manga who is the group's facilitator.
Moving from Flint where there was a manga program, she was thrilled to find the library had a robust selection of manga titles. She approached Linda Smith, public computer center coordinator, about starting a club and was pleased to find one being planned.
The first meeting drew teens and young adults who shared a common passion for manga.
"The Japanese are all geniuses, that's all there is too it," declared Sarah Krohn, a ninth grade student at Traverse City East Junior High.
Like many enthusiasts, Kermath first discovered Japanese comics via cartoons on television that were broadcast Saturday mornings when she was growing up. Called anime, these cartoons also have a devoted following outside of Japan and even a club in Traverse City: the Northern Michigan Anime Club. The history of anime extends to cartoons made during the 1950s and 60s, predating color television.
"[Anime has] different story lines and characters, things that we weren't really seeing that were begin censored in America because the Japanese are a little looser in their entertainment," noted Kermath of the weekly hour after her 'normal' cartoons. "I was, 'Woah! This is a little from left field,' but it was interesting."
Manga can also be a gateway to anime while some fans simply like one genre or the other.
Manga and anime differ in that anime is moving and almost always in color while manga consists of black and white illustrations with written text. Story lines span the gamut of entertainment or book genres: from fantasy to science fiction to comedies.
"Manga and anime in general are escapes from life — they're definitely not about things that are very possible," said Matt Homan, a junior at Traverse City Central High School who attended the first Manga Book Club meeting and is a member of the anime club. "Manga is pretty much comic books but a certain type of art style that refers to Japanese culture and every once in a while Chinese and Korean cultures."
Based at Northwestern Michigan College but open to the public, the anime club's first meeting the first week of February drew 20 attendees. Steady growth at meetings, which are held every other Wednesday evening, prompted coordinator Justin Pieske to float the idea of an anime convention. Enthusiastic response put the Northern Michigan Anime Convention on schedule for May 10 at the college.
The club has lined up a special guest, Tiffany Grant, a voice actress for major anime production houses in the United States. Other activities will include screenings, forum panels and video games.
"The goal is to both promote anime and let everybody with a common interest to talk with one another," said Pieske.
The next meeting of the Manga Book Club will be held at the Traverse Area District Library on Thursday, April 24, from 7 to 8 p.m. in the Nelson Room. The meeting is open to the public and geared to ages 13 and up.
The Northern Michigan Anime Club based at Northwestern Michigan College will next meet on Wednesday, April 23, from 5 to 9 p.m. in Room 216 of the James Beckett building. Members of the public are welcome to attend; the club's Web site is www.nmaclub.webs.com. For more information on the upcoming Northern Michigan Anime Convention scheduled for May 10, e-mail info.nmac@gmail.com.
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