On my way home today, I heard on All Things Considered a piece about how Japan Disaster Strikes Home Among Anime Fans.One Philadelphia conventioneer this past weekend said,

"We're not just worried about our anime being cut off," he said firmly. "We're actually concerned for the people there."

The latter sentiment is obvious and welcome. But I can't wrap my ahead around the anime part. I happen to be not just anime-averse, but moved to the point of actually passing judgment on fans and applying more than salty adjectives to the medium. But Japanimation aside, NPR followed that segment with one just as interesting. Melissa Block spoke with blog authors (and attorneys) James Daily and Ryan Davidson about their blog Law and the Multiverse. The two turn their

attention to the hypothetical legal ramifications of comic book tropes, characters, and powers.

Sidebar: I only watch one sitcom on television - The Big Bang Theory - in which the nerdy characters talk occasionally about comic book character. I laugh because the writing and acting are quite funny, but never having developed any interest in comic books past the age of maybe 12, I can't relate to Sheldon Cooper et al on that particular recurring thread. Nor can I relate to the nerdy lawyers on NPR and their musings on how the law would affect the statute of limitations and time traveling super heroes. Or can I? I recall a discussion in high school (I actually only observed and didn't participate ...that time) in which friends were debating the merits of a phaser (Star Trek's Starfleet issue, Type-2) over a Space 1999 stun gun (this would have been around 1977, pre-Star Wars and definitely before Battlestar Galactica ). The back-and-forth went on for a while before someone mentally slapped his forehead and blurted out, "Guys! We're arguing about fictional weapons. They're not real!" [caption id="attachment_17156" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Collage by Erich Vieth (using some of his own comic books)"][/caption] I don't recall having a what-if conversation about fictional characters or fictional items at any time since that incident. I think that sealed how silly the whole idea was to me. A cynic was born that is trying to come out again as I creep toward curmudgeon age. I'll try to beat him back with a stick. Or set phasers on stun. [To be fair to the attorneys, from the NPR article]:

But is there any practical side to this? Yes, says Daily. The blog lets them "educate people about the law." And, adds Davidson, they can use "rich, detailed stories" when doing it.