Irresistible

A few weeks ago the "Answerman" column at Anime News Network asked an intriguing question that I've decided to write about here.  The question was directed to those who are collectors (of anime, manga, toys, animation cels, etc.) and asked what keeps your collection growing ... geekery, sick addiction, or something else altogether? 


Well it got me to thinking.  And has since led me to a realization and this column, which is something of a confession.


I have a problem. 

Yes, you have a problem!  Though it is kind of ironic if Izumi Konata (of Lucky Star - a Seinfeld-esque anime about nothing) is calling me out.  After all, Konata is an anime/manga/games otaku herself.  Rather the pot calling the kettle black, I'd say.

I hear that most 12-step programs begin with admitting you have a problem.  Well, I'm admitting it.  When it comes to my growing anime collection, I think the cause is a mix between my extreme "geekery" and an addiction (whether or not to label it "sick," I'll leave to the experts).

It started out innocently enough.  I was introduced to anime in 2008 and started out by renting disks (both via Netflix and the most excellent Cleveland-area library system).  I started out with an odd mix (Gantz, Inuyasha, Naruto; then Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo and Samurai 7).  A few are definite classics - specifically the latter three.  When Samurai 7 became one of the early shows to make the jump to Blu-Ray, I couldn't resist purchasing it.  It seemed silly not to buy Cowboy Bebop and Fullmetal Alchemist, when I loved them so much.  So my anime-purchasing addiction really started out with my purchasing shows I had completed and had loved -- healthy enough, rational, and purchases came few and far between.

Really, at that time my buying habits were nothing if not healthy.  Honest!  Maybe I spent a ridiculous inordinate sizable amount of time online, trying to find the best deals or an out-of-print show.  But still, not yet a compulsive drive to expand the collection . . . .

Then things started to change.  I started buying shows I liked a lot, but not ones that I absolutely loved.  Still, not too bad.  I collected Naruto and Bleach, fun shows I'd re-watched.  Also picked up classics (like Neon Genesis, RahXephon and Ergo Proxy), which I wasn't sure I would re-watch.  And that is where and when my collection began to really grow.

I started picking up shows that Netflix did not have complete sets of; I picked up shows that I thought I could lend to people (in my never ending quest to get friends, family and co-workers to open their minds to anime).  I really began in earnest when I started attending conventions in late-2009.  I would pick up shows that the voice actors attending the cons had been in so I could get them signed. 

And finally, I had to admit my addiction this last month.  For the first time, I started purchasing shows which I had never seen.  Not just shows I had only seen part of, but shows where I had yet to see a single episode; I bought based on reviews. 

Uh oh.  Methinks a problem might be developing.

So, per Wikipedia, I've looked up the next steps should I wish to overcome this addiction to anime:

Step Two: recognizing a greater power that can give strength.  Hmmm, not so sure about this one (especially due to my inherent skepticism in greater powers).  Maybe we skip this.

Step Three: examining past errors with the help of a sponsor.  I guess this would involve printing out my Amazon and DeepDiscount receipts and acknowledging which shows I bought without seriously considering the purchase.

Step Four: making amends for these errors.  Well, this involves admitting I made errors.  Not sure I'm ready to do that, as I covet my collections.
Step Five: learning to live a new life with a new code of behavior.  Let me just say, that if loving anime is wrong, I don't want to be right.  Seriously.

Step Six: helping others that suffer from the same addictions or compulsions.  I think we've determined that if this is an anime addiction, I'm not ready to come clean.  The only help I can offer other anime otaku would be tips on where to find good deals, opinions on which shows should be in any collections, and commiserating about the dearth of newly dubbed shows (due, in part, to the crappy economy).

I am unabashed in my anime addiction.  And I don't think I'd give it up for anything.  I will continue in my anime geekery and enjoy each new acquisition.  The real challenge is carving out enough time to watch the prodigious number of disks which I have accumulated - so many episodes .... so little time.