Well, I wish I knew about this so I could’ve informed you sooner. TCM (Turner Classic Movies) showed two classic anime movies in primetime!

The night of January, 26th was a great night on cable TV. I was channel surfing when I saw what looked like an anime on a channel. It wasn’t Cartoon Network, so I watched closer. As it turns out it was TCM. They were showing Pom Poko!

Pom Poko is the 1994, Hayao Miyazaki produced, Isao Takahata movie about raccoons and their efforts to reclaim their forest from city development. Set in what is specifically the development on Tokyo suburbs, the movie tells the whole story about the raccoons and their lives. Like many Miyazaki classics, Pom Poko is very cute but still very serious. The film’s message is surely that of environmentalism and preservation.

The next movie was another Miyazaki-Takahata team-up. Actually it was on before Pom Poko but I caught it on a rerun. The movie, Only Yesterday (1991) is another notable film. It is about a woman’s reflections about her childhood. Some of it dramatic, some of it comedic, there is a nice balance.Only Yesterday may seem like an anime chick-flick but I found it to be a nice movie.

I was still most excited about Pom Poko though. The reason being that I’ve always wanted to see it. I actually almost bought the DVD 2 weeks ago. Thankfully, I was one to benefit from good timing and coincidence.

I really enjoy these older movies. They actually serve purpose and are enriching. It is also amazing to see such movies on a network like TCM. It’s suprising and a first (at least to my knowledge). It’s good to see a classic movie channel recognize these movies.