Ever wondered why there are so many hair colors in anime? Why there are so many cat- and dog- and fox- and cute animal- boys/girls? Come with us as we enter a variety of these worlds and explore not only these surface questions but also issues of gender (and the bending of), nationality (of the creators and the characters), and much more. We will focus mainly on the discussion of recent series, and convince you that anime is both worth watching and worth studying seriously from a scholarly perspective. Homework will consist of watching anime (we will supply all of it) every week and reading an article about it every other week (or so). As this class is open to students of all experience levels, we will do our best to accommodate your interests. (And honestly, what better excuse to watch animated goodies than to be able to say that it's homework?) Note: As we will be watching some R-rated material, an additional permission slip must be signed for this class.