Resources
Here is my guide to helpful resources, including my own work and recommended reading that has furthered my understanding of denpa.
My focus is primarily on cinema and anime but there are also variations of denpa in different mediums, so I have separated them out below.
Quick definitions
Writing on denpa
Denpa in other media:
a. music
b. video gamesAround denpa - a broader look at cinema and anime in this era
1. Quick definitions:
Works that feature themes of social dissociation, delusions, and other issues like suicide, bullying, self-isolation, paranoia, and technological necessity in daily lives. Classic iconography: telephone poles, rooftops, and trains.
- The definition for the denpa tag on anilist
To see examples of the denpa aesthetic have a look at my instagram account, @denpa_diary with screenshots of denpa film and anime.
For works I consider to be denpa browse my list on letterboxd.
2. Writing on denpa:
My essay on the genre focusing on cinema and anime / also in audio form [2022]
A longer piece and extremely influential on me, tracing the origins of denpa through 20th century otaku culture, visual novels and more. [2019]
This post has a good description of denpa that brings together denpa music and denpa videogames in an analysis of the anime series Boogiepop Phantom. [2021]
3. Denpa in other media
a. music:
Possibly the earliest and most influential english-language writing on denpa with a focus on music cited by most of the essays I have linked here. [2012]
Fun cultural commentary blog post comparing hyperpop with denpa music. [2020]
Introduction to denpa with a focus on idols and otaku culture [2022]
b. video games:
A well-written description of denpa with a guide to denpa visual novels, watch on youtube / also available in written form [2021]
Definition of denpa on the wiki of games news/entertainment website Giant Bomb
The denpa tag on VNDB - the description is a bit vague but there is a long list of titles under the tag and most entries have screenshots.
Four entertaining reviews of denpa games from the same blog: For Elise, Shizuku, 101 Ways to Kill Yourself and Odeon [2020]
to note: I think there is denpa in other mediums, in particular photography and literature, but there is even less written about denpa in those forms.
5. Around denpa
Sometimes I come across people talking about denpa without realising they’re talking about denpa… these are recommended reads on media in this era more generally.
Evangelion, alienation, and Japan’s 1990s economic crisis [2024]
The Heisei Malaise denpa and other intersecting trends in Y2K anime [2024]
Related lists on letterboxd
These lists are not strictly denpa but have overlapping themes:
Trains in Japanese cinema with an affectionate write-up.