Scribbled out a tiger in 20 minutes, slapped some blue on, and calling it fanart. ^u^
The funny thing about me enjoying Kpop Demon Hunters is that it feels like not too long ago, I was lamenting how maybe all my past favorite Shonen subgenres just weren't for me anymore.
"Demon hunters" is one of my favorite subgenres. From Mamono Hunter Yoko, to Buffy The Vampire Slayer, to Inuyasha, to Devil May Cry, to Claymore, to (some extent) Bleach, to (kind of) Yu Yu Hakusho, to Ushio & Tora, and numerous yokai/exorcist manga that never got anime adaptations---I've always loved the "demon hunter" subgenre. It often mashes together folklore/myth and urban fantasy. And that means a mash of magic with scifi. And then there's so much action... What's not to like?
But then in the past decade, I've felt like I fell out of love, not just with the "demon hunting" subgenre, but with the Shonen genre in general. I mean, I still liked them, but nothing new from those sub/genres seemed to get me excited. Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba turned out to be a slog for me. Dandadan equally had its perks but also turn-offs. I really thought Jujutsu Kaisen would be my new obsession, but characters got annoying after the first 3. After all the hype around Chainsaw Man, I just ended up not enjoying episode 1 enough to continue, and enjoying less, the things i heard from future plot points. I eventually dropped all those series. I hadn't stayed interested in anything from Shonen Jump in like a decade. I thought that maybe the Shonen genre, including the "demon hunter" subgenre's time for me had passed. And I was kind of sad about it.
But then I got into Wind Breaker, and that made me realize that maybe I was still interested in the Shonen genre, but maybe I was tired of Shonen Jump's/Shueisha's flavor of the Shonen genre. After all, I still also loved the Ranma 1/2 remake, a Shonen by Shogakukan. Maybe my fallacy was treating Shonen Jump as the representative of all/best for the Shonen genre.
And I feel the same thing happened again with Kpop Demon Hunters. It really reminded me how much I love action---and demon hunting, mixing magic and folklore/myth, and those "urban fantasy" elements. It reminded me how much I love action with swords and old-styled melee weapons. Sure, I had been into Wind Breaker recently, and I've always loved the martial arts genre, but those are predominantly open-handed, weaponless fight scenes. I guess I really missed swords and ancient weapons. (Back when I first started hanging my arrows on my wall, along with my swords, I remember my dad passing by and just noting how much I love ancient weaponry. lol I guess I do, without realizing it. lol) It's nice to watch fight scenes with magic melee weapons again.
One other thing I realize that I might enjoy about being in the KPDH fandom, is that I can finally return to drawing tigers again. I LOVED drawing tigers, with a brush pen. Back when I got into Sengoku Basara, the insurmountable difficulty of me drawing human characters was just too much. So I started drawing tigers and dragons instead, since Sanada Yukimura is called the "Tiger Cub" and Date Masamune is called the "One-Eyed Dragon". I got REALLY INTO drawing tigers. But I haven't really had an excuse in a long time. And I've been preoccupied, trying to draw human characters for fanart. (And though I've finally tackled chibi, which I've wanted to be able to do for years, I'm still struggling thru human characters.) But now I can be in a fandom where I can draw tigers again, paint it blue, and call it fanart already! ^u^ I'm really excited about drawing that derpy tiger and little hatted magpie. ^.^
"KPop Demon Hunters at select theaters across the country, which include options from chains like Regal, Cinemark and more for showings on August 23 and 24" (2025) for a "sing-along event".
Beginning to get the sense that Sony is aware of how popular their latest is becoming.
Sony Animation changed their official YouTube so KPDH is at the top. Banner and top recommended playlist.
Wouldn't it be interesting if from now on, the top animated Oscar contenders always included Sony?
Frankly, I've been wanting Sony to focus less on their live action movies, and invest more heavily into their animated movies, especially in recent years. Sony really should be more known for their videogames and animation. Live action? Electronics? Just focus on Playstation and cartoons, and I'd be happy with a Sony rebrand shift.
