Hello, all! I figured that I should post, since I tend to leave it til the last minute. So, what do I think fantasy is? That's a touch question, since I've always disliked putting a label on things. However, I would say that fantasy revolves around things that are fantastical (my new favorite word!). Fantasy makes me think of things that cannot be explained by rational thought, such as magic. You just have to accept that something happens because it is magic. There is that element that cannot be explained rationally.
I read a lot of fantasy, starting when I was a child, so I have a lot of examples. Some of my favorite authors include Mercedes Lackey, Tamora Pierce, Piers Anthony, Raymond Feist, Amelia Atwater-Rhodes, Laurell K Hamilton, Philip Pullman, etc. One book that I love that has a lot of fantasy is Dracula! It has so many spinoffs, it's crazy! My favorite fantasy movie is certainly the Labyrinth, but that could be because I love David Bowe. I don't care how old he is!! There are certainly a lot of animes that fit the fantasy genre, if we are going there (I blame Casey for starting this one). Inuyasha, Bleach, Escaflowne, Weiss Kreuz (my personal favorite!), Fruits Basket, Yu Yu Hakusho are some examples. Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, and other Hayao Miyazaki movies all have a strong basis in fantasy. Okami is the best fantasy video game ever! Oh, and television wise, Xena: Warrior Princess is the coolest!!
I have been addicted to the fantasy genre since I was really little. I started in kindergarten, with Dr. Seuss (and no one can say that Dr. Seuss isn't fantastical), and was hooked ever since. I love to read, which is something I do often, and fantasy is still my favorite genre. I watched the Labyrinth every time it came in the Disney channel when I was in elementary school, which was often. So yeah, lots of experience.
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Miyazaki's Spirited Away was the fantasy movie on my syllabus for several semesters, but as it was released in 2001, it passed my self-imposed five-year rule, and I retired it. It's highly recommended, though, and an interesting companion piece to all sorts of things on our syllabus, including Pan's Labyrinth and Geoff Ryman's story "Pol Pot's Beautiful Daughter."
AHH! You like Laurell K. Hamilton too? I love her! I don't know many people who do read her stuff and enjoy it. I need to read the new one in her Anita Blake series -- The Harlequin. Have you read it?
I'm sad to say that I have yet to see "Spirited Away" but has anyone seen "Princess Monoke"? It was so much so one of my favorites that I used my little brother as an excuse to watch it all of the time!
Amy, I can't believe you jumped on the Miyazaki train before me. I practically LAID DOWN THE TRACKS! lol. Anyways, I actually own a copy of PRINCESS MONONOKE. It's...fantastical. Hands down, it's my favorite Miyazaki. Well, maybe not hands down, because SPIRITED AWAY is also...fantastical.
Here's a brain teaser: thinking about fantasy in anime really made me consider how different cultures portray/handle/accept fantasy. Ponder for a moment. It's pretty neat.
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