Kathryn Tse-Durham: ANIME! How Our Childhood Favourites Shape Us

“I do not miss childhood, but I miss the way I took pleasure in small things, even as greater things crumbled. I could not control the world I was in, could not walk away from things or people or moments that hurt, but I took joy in the things that made me happy.”

― Neil Gaiman, The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Writing this makes me giddy, because it brings back so many happy memories. As Neil Gaiman imparted, it is not really childhood that I miss, but the things that made me happy. My favourite stories were one of those things.

As part of the Chinese diaspora growing up in Australia, I grew up speaking passable and slightly off-key Cantonese, and reading and writing Chinese was, at best, abashedly rudimentary. So when it came to books, I devoured English-language stories like The Baby-Sitter’s Club and Sweet Valley High, and aplenty Roald Dahl, Judy Blume, Christopher Pike, and Paul Jennings. Oh, the nostalgia!

But personally, the childhood stories that have stayed with me the most, the ones that really conjured magic in my inner life, were the ones that I watched on TV. I was a great lover of Cantonese-dubbed Japanese anime which had a wonderful and profound influence on me in my formative years. Yes, I know what the purists are thinking: anime is best watched in Japanese. But I feel like I grew up with those dear TVB voice actors whose excellent, emotion-laden dubbing defined so much of my childhood, that to this day watching anime in Japanese feels weird to me.

As a mother to a four year-old boy, I often find myself breaking into a smile at his round-cheeked sweetness and marvel: he’s so innocent, so pure, so uncomplicated. And by most accounts, that’s how most little children appear to be. But then I imagine what he might be like six years down the road, by which time he’ll be ten and I’d no longer be the centre of his universe, and his life will revolve around friends and video games and sports and private jokes, and he’d already have had a few years contending with that seemingly monstrous thing called peer pressure, and his heart experiencing the first stirrings of crushes. And when I imagine what my boy might be like as a pre-teen, my heart quivers and aches with a sense of loss; because as children grow, they inevitably lose that adorable innocence bit by bit, don’t they? To grownups, children’s inner lives may not seem much complicated. But we often unconsciously play down what kids feel and think. As kids grow up, it’s hard for them to talk with their parents about ways they are gaining strength, inspiration, and a strong sense of self. And even harder to talk about is what they’re struggling with, in fear of being reprimanded or judged; or worse, ignored and dismissed.

But you know what? Their favourite stories offer them solace, and a clue to what they value and root for. Kids are drawn to stories that resonate with challenges and experiences they’re facing. Overcoming adversity, loneliness, bullying, speaking one’s truth, enduring tragedy, finding a kindred spirit, making a sacrifice, relying on wit or cleverness against all odds. Have you ever found yourself rooting for a protagonist who isn’t a flawed hero, who doesn’t have to fight for something? Think about your favourite heroes. I know grown men in their thirties and forties and fifties who still root for Batman, whose alter-ego Bruce Wayne is a tycoon who seems to have it all; but he was tragically orphaned when his parents were killed right in front of his eyes as a child, and he was left to ward off all the vultures vying for his enormous fortune with the help of his loyal butler, Alfred. Adversity, tragedy, hardship – this is the stuff that translates into purposeful meaning for a child. And the thing about my favourite Japanese animes is that regardless of how incredibly ridiculous and far-fetched their stories got (just watch Captain Tsubasa “足球小將” and be utterly dazzled by how those spiky-haired kids can make a soccer ball transform into a fiery meteor!), the emotional depth that their characters carry and convey is often so masterfully done that you can’t help but become emotionally invested.

The following is a list of Cantonese-dubbed Japanese anime that are closest to my heart, the ones that popped into my head the instant I thought about writing this post. These are the stories that have stayed with me well into my adult years and still make me smile and ache with nostalgia. Do you know any of them? These, to me, are pearls that make up my string of childhood memories, and each and every one is special. By reading this, I hope that you, dear reader, can also look back on those stories that made your childhood special, bearable, wonderful, quirky, magical – however you want to describe it. For without these stories, what would have become of us? And I hope that like me, my boy will one day look back on his childhood and think: yes, those stories really made a difference.

Creamy Mami —《我係小忌廉》

Captain Tsubasa —《足球小將》

I Love Persia! —《魔法妖精貝露沙》

Dragon Ball —《龍珠》

Mister Ajikko —《伙頭智多星》

Saint Seiya —《聖鬥士星矢》

Hello! Lady Lynn —《新小甜甜》

City Hunter —《城市獵人》

Tomb of the Fireflies —《再見螢火蟲》

Anne of Green Gables —《安妮的故事》

Kathryn Tse-Durham
Author of The Ellanor Chronicles
27th April 2020

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