OFF BLXXK EPISODE 1

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Black Women Rappers and Their Love For Sailor Moon

Black Women Rappers and Their Love For Sailor Moon 1

By: Tiana Dowell

Who runs the world? GIRLS! The future is female. Sailor Moon, aka Usagi Tsukino, aka mother of Shoujo (specifically, the “magical girl” trope), reigns superior even over her Shonen counterparts. Yes, Usagi would totally destroy Goku in an all-out battle. Sailor Moon has taught us the value of friendship, motherhood, love, forgiveness, emotional intelligence, open-mindedness, and finding the good in those you’d deem evil. As the epitome of what it means to be a woman, Sailor Moon has forged an everlasting impression on those who love her.

In popular music culture, we have beautiful artists who embody those same attributes. Though I hate referring to women as “female,” female rap has also stood against the test of misogyny, showing just how much we can hang with, if not overthrow, the boys. From “Pu**y Rap” to conscious cadence, embodying that divine femininity is a common attribute amongst our XX- chromosome emcees. Let’s look at how Sailor Moon has influenced these attributes in our favorite women rappers.

Megan Thee Stallion

Megan Thee Stallion has always been vocal about her life as a “blerd.” From bars mentioning her watching anime to her classic Todoroki-esque hairstyle, she has placed her stamp in the nerd community. Her love of Japanese animation has even landed her deals with Crunchyroll. So, what influence has Sailor Moon had on our Houston hottie?

During the 2022 Summer Sonic in Japan, Megan Thee Stallion and her hottie senseis adorned themselves with slick and chic subtle Sailor Moon cosplays. Megan Thee Stallion displayed a big, vibrant red bow as a focal point to her swimsuit-style sailor uniform that was ever so popular amongst grade schools in Japan. She accompanied this look with a pleated blue mini-skirt and thigh-high boots. Her hair, styled in traditional “odango” fashion, perched a stylish zigzag part with messy stands left out to frame her gorgeous face. She tributed her Japanese visit to the powerful bunny on the moon.

Lizzo

As with Megan Thee Stallion, Lizzo is another phenomenal rapper who took fashion advice from our sailor guardian. During the 2018 Voodoo festival, Lizzo caressed her body with a beautiful rendition of one of Sailor Moon’s first transformation outfits. She complemented her dress with chic double space buns and braided pigtails. Lizzo, being a fan of Sailor Moon since childhood, has executed the life lessons of the character within her professional and personal life. Having multiple favorite characters from the series, Lizzo tweeted that she would like to visit Comic-Con dressed as Sailor Saturn with fellow musicians Grimes and Clare Grant. In one social media video, she twerked with her flute and retorted: “B**ch, I’m Sailor Moon! And in the name of the moon, I’ll vanquish you!”

With little representation of black beauty within media, Lizzo saw Usagi as the epitome of beauty. She wanted to look like her. Thankfully, matters have changed for the better, and she can appreciate the beauty of Usagi while also loving herself and her representation. In an interview with Vogue, Lizzo mentioned her favorite character was Sailor Saturn. But due to Saturn being the guardian of death and destruction, she opted for the guardian of love and beauty, Venus. As a woman who has broken barriers within the music industry, we can understand why Lizzo resonates with our Usagi.

Doja Cat

Doja Cat doesn’t speak too openly about anime as the other lovely ladies on our list, but she sure represented her magical girl transformation sequence well with her hit single “Like That,” Ft. Gucci Mane. Doja Cat’s live action-animation mixed music video really quieted the rumors on whether she was an anime fan. The transformation sequence gave us an exhilarating rainbow of color as her 2D character wielded a signature magical girl scepter. Embodying the pyrokinesis and the hand movement of Sailor Mars, flames spread as she shows just how hot she is. We like the galactic journey this music video invoked: Another win for magical girl supremacy.

Saweetie

Now on to our “Icy Moonie.” As another woman rapper who grew up on Sailor Moon, Saweetie mentions that she was irked by the “crybaby” nature of Usagi (via Sailor Moon Fan Club). This all changed once she found Usagi was a cancer. But, Saweetie’s favorite character is actually Chibi Moon. The “My Type” raptress owns and iced out a Chibi Moon chain to honorably home in on her love of little Usagi. She finds Chibi Usagi as a “rebel.”

What captivated Saweetie as a fan of Sailor Moon was how innocent and sexy her transformations were: the perfect duality, the mystery of her reveal. Via Saweetie’s Instagram, she posted her outfit of the day, which embroidered a Sailor Moon graphic tee. She is definitely an “Icy Moonie.”

Baby Tate

In 2021, Baby Tate dressed up as our guardian Usagi for Halloween. According to her interview with Sailor Moon Fan Club, as a relatively new fan, she had only just watched the first episode of Sailor Moon a few weeks before her costume debut. Growing up, Tate wasn’t allowed to watch certain things (i.e., anime). What mesmerized Tate was Usagi, who cries at any slight inconvenience. Sailor Moon lets us know it's okay to cry, and strength comes from emotional intelligence. Tate relates to Sailor Moon in the way that she is boy-crazy and wants to find love vs. putting her effort into her other priorities. Sailor Moon’s iconic pigtails reverberated into Tate’s own personal style. She will forever be a fan of Sailor Moon.

As a big fan of Sailor Moon, myself, I understand the dynamics of mixing girlhood and power. Transmuting that energy in your craft shows tremendous power control. Sailor Moon stands for exactly what our female rappers portray within their music. Girl power is forever embedded into our lives and hearts because of Sailor Moon. GET WITH IT. And if you can’t, in the name of the moon, I’ll punish you.

When Should You Read The Manga?

By: Brenda Enfua

The way in which people decide to consume media varies. Some individuals prefer reading while others prefer viewing their favorite piece of work on television. There are even those who enjoy a little bit of both. As anime typically derives from Manga, it is very common for fans to enjoy both forms of entertainment. With both having pros and cons, it can be difficult to determine which one to choose. Both deserve the same level of attention, but a question arises: should one read a manga before or after watching its corresponding Anime?

There are several factors to consider when deciding regarding this matter. Fans must determine how different their viewing experience will be if the manga is read before watching the anime and if the manga will be enjoyable if read after the anime. As people usually have different experiences with media they consume, these questions can only be answered by each individual fan. I believe it is important to look at the positives and decide based on those.

You Are Less Likely to Miss the Little Details

Manga is typically the main source material for anime, so it tends to be a bit more detailed. Sometimes writing certain stories is easier than animating ensuring readers are more likely to get an in-depth experience.

With fewer limitations regarding the length of written work, an author can write without worrying about time constraints that they would deal with if it were an episode. Essentially reading the manga before the anime often gives fans additional information up front and will likely give them a more meticulous work of fiction.

It is very easy to miss little details portrayed in an anime especially if watching a show in Japanese with English subtitles. Reading the manga before the anime will allow you the comfort of knowing what to expect but still allow the satisfaction of enjoying the adaptation.

You Don’t Have to Wait as Long for The Next Chapter

As anime tends to come after the manga, viewers usually must wait quite a bit for new releases while avoiding spoilers from avid manga readers. Reading the manga before the anime would eliminate this problem.

Although one must still wait for manga releases, chances are if an anime has been released the manga already has a substantial number of volumes available. It is also often difficult to wait for studios to animate episodes when you know a completed manga is just within reach. Reading before watching would help those who just cannot wait for a one-episode-a-week release schedule.

The Ending Is Less Likely to Be Spoiled

On the other hand, the enjoyment one gets from watching a show for the first time may be reduced if one were to know exactly what was going to happen. Reading the manga before an anime would take the element of surprise out of the equation for viewers. As manga typically finishes before the anime, readers usually get the ending well before it can be animated. This may diminish the viewing experience as one would not hold the same anticipation for something they know is going to happen. Spoilers are sometimes unavoidable with social media being so prevalent in today’s day and age so reading the manga first rather than waiting on the anime could potentially solve this problem.

Enjoy the show without comparing it to something

Watching the anime before reading the manga will allow viewers to go in with a fresh perspective. You can watch an anime for the first time without comparing it to something which often will sway one’s opinion as people tend to prefer the original work over an adaptation. Whether it is anime or even a book turned into a movie, viewers who have read the story prior to watching the adaptation are often left disappointed, as translating written work to film or tv can be complicated. It is not always possible to include every detail in an adaptation, even things one would consider important to the story. This can lead to disappointed viewers while those who are seeing the adaptation before reading the source material have fewer expectations and are able to enjoy the work for what it is.

At the end of the day there is no right or wrong answer as to whether one should read the manga before or after the anime. The order in which you choose to consume media should not matter if you are enjoying what you are reading and/or watching.

Essentially reading the manga before the anime often gives fans additional information up front and will likely give them a more meticulous work of fiction.

Do You Need to Watch Fillers?

By: Brenda Enfua

With the ever-growing popularity of Anime, long running classics such as Dragonball, One Piece and Bleach continue to gain new viewers daily. The number of anime available is at such an all-time high, it is nearly impossible to keep up, let alone catch up for those who have just entered the fandom. In an attempt to avoid the risk of spoilers, people are binge watching these anime with over a hundred episodes at an astounding rate. For many, this can be considered a wonderful thing. To find anime you love with so many episodes should be a good thing, but what happens when that show is packed with fillers?

What are Filler Episodes?

Fillers are episodes that do not further plot in any way and are essentially thrown into an anime to lengthen the story. This is more common in long running anime such as Bleach or Naruto. These anime tend to have lengthy story arcs. Essentially skipping filler episodes would not take away a viewer's experience of an anime, but are they worth watching? This is one of the many long-standing debates amongst fans, and there are negative and positive arguments in favor of both sides.

They Can Be Entertaining

As straightforward as it may sound, filler episodes can be entertaining. From my experience, fillers tend to be lighthearted and humorous. This can paint typically hard and serious characters in a completely unexpected light, which in my opinion is sometimes worth watching. Getting to see your favorite character who’s usually fighting for their life or slashing up demons play an action-packed game of baseball is pretty entertaining. When binge watching lengthy series, it is easy to lose interest in an arc. Depending on what specific story is playing out, you may need an episode to mix things up and brighten up your viewing experience. A filler is the perfect thing to do this as although they are usually unrelated to the story, they are often entertaining to watch.

They Can Give Viewers a Break

When watching an anime with 100+ episodes nonstop, it is very easy to lose focus. Some story arcs might be a little too heavy to watch back-to-back, and I believe throwing in a filler every now and then can help alleviate some of these problems. It is very common for a filler episode to be thrown in not just at the end of an arc, but sometimes right in the middle. A filler will give viewers a chance to take a step back and process the possibly sad or stressful chunk of episodes they might have been watching for a week straight. Anime arcs can sometimes be lengthy, often lasting over 50 episodes. With this in mind, a comical filler thrown in the mix could be considered a good thing.

Fillers Are a Waste of Time

As many popular anime continue to release episodes on a weekly basis, new fans are having a hard time catching up partly because of the large number of filler episodes. An example of a show with an extreme number of fillers is Naruto. The first part of Naruto has 220 episodes and 91 of those are filler. Essentially as this is nearly half of the show, a viewer could finish watching this in half the time if they were to skip the filler episodes. With so many different anime available, finding time to watch everything is important. Skipping these filler episodes could save viewers a huge amount of time giving them a chance to catch up on other shows on their watch list.

The Filler Episodes are Irrelevant

One of the main arguments on the side of skipping fillers is the simple fact that they have nothing to do with the main plot of the story. There are sometimes instances where you may learn something unexpected about a character or even just something interesting, but this does not change the fact that these episodes are simply padding and have no actual purpose other than to stretch out the show. For those who are interested in strictly the story that derived from the manga, it makes no sense to watch the filler episodes. Although they can be fun and entertaining, they are essentially created to stretch the story and are not a part of the original source material. Some would call these episodes a waste of time but essentially the episodes are irrelevant.

Ultimately, the choice of whether to watch the filler episodes or skip them remains up to the viewer. There are definitely pros and cons for each side of the argument, and I think it is safe to say fillers are not going anywhere anytime soon. For those who decide to skip over these added episodes, there are sites

available that provide a full list of filler episodes to help viewers know exactly which to skip including Anime Filler List and Anime Filler Guide just to name a few. For those who enjoy the extra padding thrown into the mix and watch every single filler, enjoy the journey and appreciate the laughs.

This can paint typically hard and serious characters in a completely unexpected light, which in my opinion is sometimes worth watching.

90’s Anime Swag

By: Tiana Dowell

Before we had swag, steez, drip and sauce, the forefront of fresh to death and dopeness transcended the celebratory affirmatives to our fashion forward peers. The ‘90’s is known as the “Golden Age” of fashion streamline. Streetwear on a western (American) standpoint as well as Japan’s unique approach to streetwear set the tone on how we navigate streetwear in modern times. But how did these influences translate into the creative minds of our favorite mangakas? Why was ‘90’s anime style so monumental in terms of drip? Let’s explore these dynamics.

Yoshihiro Togashi, creator of YuYu Hakusho, stylized his characters with the ultimate fashion sense. We usually see character repeating outfits or being very bland with their peacock of personality, but these character designs truly optimized ‘90’s culture. From the layered looks to the exceptional hairstyles, we are captivated tremendously by the foundation of their character sauce. We see these styles translate into the Urahara movement in Japan. This style incorporated influences from western standpoints.

Slam Dunk, courtesy of Takehiko Inoue, is a basketball manga/anime who’s influence runs rampant. Inoue was an avid basketball fan, this translated into his character design and the compounds of their “drip.” During the ‘90’s, Michael Jordan was a prominent player in western basketball league. His popular sneakers, Jordans, can be seen displayed within the anime during shopping sprees and game plays. Wardrobe of the main characters and the extras consisted of baggy pants, Jordans, Airmax 95’s, bucket hats, adidas Superstars and Nike cortez. Inoue undeniably chose his hairstyles directly from those in the NBA.

From the layered looks to the exceptional hairstyles, we are captivated tremendously by the foundation of their character’s sauce.

Sailor Moon is another prominent ‘90’s figure. Created by Naoko Takeuchi, she very much based the casual and streetwear styles based off high fashion. Takeuchi studied vogue and fashion week runway shows. Each character transitioned from laxed streetwear, high fashion, roman inspiration as well as traditional Japanese wear. Most of the laxed streetwear looks are still easily replicated in the real world. Closet cosplays are very trendy among moonies. Girls wanted to mimic the Odango, double bun look our Usagi rocked as her signature.

This ability to adapt between formalities allows a more relatable feel to the characters. As a ‘90’s kids myself, seeing the cultural influence of Japan and their art of animation gives a sense of relief. In comparison to their western counterparts, street fashion isn’t about competitiveness but rather the story you could tell. What can your clothes demonstrate about your personality? Who do you hang with, where are from, what do you like? Manga and anime are all about storytelling, character develop and finding the personality traits within each character. What can it teach us about honing our own personal style?

What is OFF BLXXK?

OFF BLXXK is the goal is to create a welcoming environment for all of us to be seen in the interests that we’ve carried in our hearts for years. The idea for this magazine first arose when we looked around and saw that, although, many of the sources we used for ongoing anime/manga news are well made and accurate there weren’t many people behind the articles, social media pages, and videos that looked like us. As the world has grown these niche interests no longer became niche, but it felt like our opinions were still not being considered. With this in mind, the next thought was “How do we bridge the gap?”. How do we find a way to make our voices not only heard but recognized and respected?

When talking about their journeys as fans each at different times of their life they felt “at odds” for having these interests in one way or another. A disconnect between their close friends, family members not understanding the appeal, or peers looking down on them for liking something “different” the story can be told multiple different ways but always ends the same. The feeling of being “OFF”. That feeling is something we all share at OFF BLXXK and is precisely how the name came to be.

It took time, effort, and sometimes venturing out of your comfort zone to find the community that you now feel found in. This community of “OFF” people that feel perfectly balanced when put together.

The found community of OFF BLXXK uses their unique perspectives to create engaging and interesting articles that touch every fandom. Our focus is set on anime/manga, but we do not allow that to limit us. Articles will span from stories on CoryxKenshin to discussions on which anime season is king. The limit for what we want to write about doesn’t exist so why should we create one? The feeling that brought us all together hasn’t dissipated but grown stronger. The world has shown that it is accepting and in turn we’ve decided to give it every piece of our passion.

The doors are always open for newcomers, and we welcome a challenge. We thank you for choosing to give OFF BLXXK a chance and hopefully you can also be a member of this found community.