Misha Mihailova

My student chose this particular JJK screenshot for her anime tropes assignment, demonstrating A skills in media literacy and A+ skills in knowing her professor.

Yes, there is room for so much more! I do want the Criterion Collection to have a more consistent strategy re: animation acquisitions but complaining when they *do* release a successful, well-crafted feature like this isn't the way.

'KPop Demon Hunters' Getting Criterion Collection Release Criterion’s release reinforces the film's cultural impact and marks a huge moment for physical media fans often left longing for their streaming favorites.

People are saying "[insert animation classic] deserves it more." Yes, BUT: The Criterion almost never platforms animation. Netflix is notorious for not releasing its films on physical media *and* for shelving successful animation for no good reason. So this is a win, and I'm excited to own a copy.

Personally, I prefer saturnine relationships. Perhaps even mercurial ones, if you're nasty.

Episode 167 - AI and Animation (with Mihaela Mihailova) — Fantasy/Animation The creative - and highly controversial - relationship between animation and artificial intelligence provides the focus of Episode 167 of the Fantasy/Animation podcast, which features as its special...

Had a fantastic time recording an episode of the excellent Fantasy/Animation podcast with hosts Christopher Holliday and Alexander Sergeant. We cover generative AI and animation, my current main research area. Give it a listen at the link below!

My pleasure! What a cool idea and a stellar line-up of colleagues!

Back in November, I got an unusual request in my inbox: would I be down with recording a Ghibli podcast on The Cat Returns, one of my least favorite Ghibli movies?

Turned out to be a really fun conversation, thanks to host @ettletodd.bsky.social

open.spotify.com/episode/6Cip...

Happy Circle Back Day to all who celebrate 🫠🫠

2025 anime recap.

Favorite shows:
- The Summer Hikaru Died
- Zenshu
- The Apothecary Diaries
- Dandadan
- Gachiakuta
- The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity
- May I Ask for One Final Thing?
- Kaiju No.8
- MHA
- Sanda
- Spy x Family
- Wind Breaker
- Orb
- Yakuza Fiance

This year's Xmas Eve pick is SANDA, an absolutely delightful anime (by Science Saru!) about a middle schooler who turns into a buff Santa. It's set in future Japan, where seasons no longer exist, Xmas is just a myth, and declining birth rates give children higher social status than adults.

Annual reminder that Satoshi Kon invented Christmas in 2003.

I know it's popular to hate on My Hero Academia for being "mid" but now that the anime has officially stopped airing, it needs to be said that Bakugo's growth over the series is one of the most compelling character arcs in contemporary shonen.

Opened my Letterboxd to log BUGONIA like a good nerd and it gave me this. Fair play.

I wrote about queer rep in the shōnen anime Wind Breaker, particularly one character's role in reframing masculinity and subverting many of the toxic masculinity tropes typical of the genre.

Same! I'm forever trying to get people to add it to their holiday roster.

Indie movie theaters which screen Perfect Blue around Halloween every other year but never show Tokyo Godfathers around Christmas need to get their shit together.

A Bulgarian Novelist Explores What Dies When Your Father Does Writing about a son’s vigil at his dying father’s bedside, Georgi Gospodinov examines what parents and their children reap and sow.

Glad to see reviews of this stunning book in the Anglophone press.

I saw a Christmas tree at 9 pm on Halloween! My favorite, however, is the neighbor who managed to replace his spooky clown garage door art with a cheerful snowman image sometime between last night and 10 am today.

The only creature that has genuinely terrified me this Halloweekend is the type of person who wakes up on November 1st and immediately puts up their Xmas decorations

*Sitting in office hours when there is nobody here*: Nobody ever comes to office hours! I have to just sit here pointlessly for two hours! This sucks!

*Sitting in office hours and a student shows up*: First of all, who the fu--

Celebrating International Animation Day, and especially May I Ask for One Final Thing?, a new anime about a magical noblewoman who just really enjoys throwing hands

Guillermo del Toro Says He’d ‘Rather Die’ Than Use Generative AI in His Films: ‘Not Interested’ Guillermo del Toro says he would 'rather die' than use generative AI in his films.

I'm finding it challenging to stan harder than I already do, but I'll put in the effort

Spotted at a BART station: this disgusting AI slop. If that's the level of quality control they maintain at Skechers, why should I trust them to make good shoes?

My fellow manga lovers in the Bay Area should check out the de Young's "Art of Manga" exhibition. If you teach comics/manga/anime, your students would enjoy it, too.

When the usual suspects (Cameron, Zemeckis) started shilling AI, it felt inevitable and fully on brand. But this? This is just deeply disappointing.

At some university reception today, another professor told me that she watched KPop Demon Hunters with her two children (aged six and nine) and kept pausing it to "make sure they understood that the lesson of this movie is radical self-acceptance." Anyway, academics shouldn't procreate.

Can’t decide what to buy on Prime Day?

Try: absolutely nothing, and then go support indie bookstores instead 📚

Brit Marling in conversation with Sherryl Vint at SFAM 2025. Guess I'll finally watch The OA now.

Born to play Hades II, forced to attend an academic conference the weekend Hades II finally drops.

I'll be in LA Wed-Sunday of this week, taking part in this cool speculative fiction conference. I'll be doing double duty - panel talk on AI-generated media + roundtable on adapting Ted Chiang's “The Lifecycle of Software Objects” (ft. Chiang himself).