Mechademia

Mechademia: An Annual Forum for Anime, Manga, and the Fan Arts is the first English-language academic journal on Japanese popular culture products and fan practices. It is published by University of Minnesota Press and edited by Frenchy Lunning.

Volumes
The first volume, Mechademia 1: Emerging Worlds of Anime and Manga, was published by the University of Minnesota Press on December 22, 2006. The second volume, Mechademia 2: Networks of Desire, was released on December 26, 2007. The third book, Mechademia 3: Limits of the Human, was released on November 5, 2008. The fourth volume is titled Mechademia 4: War/Time and was released on November 11, 2009. The 2010 volume will be titled Mechademia 5: Fanthropologies, the 2011 volume will be titled Mechademia 6: User Enhancement, and the 2012 volume will be titled Mechademia 7: Lines of Sight.

Reception
Steve Raiteri from Library Journal commends Mechademia as a "great first effort" "bridg[ing] the gap between academics and fans. Christophe Thouny, writing for Animation also thought the writing and tone was accessible by both academics and fans. Ed Sizemore from Comics Worth Reading criticises the journal for its review and commentary section because they "read like summaries of the works (films and books) discussed with no actual critique of the work". However, Sizemore commends the journal's academic essay section. By contrast, Raiteri in Library Journal states that fans will find the Review and Commentary section "the most accessible" section of the journal. A review of the second volume of Mechademia by Comics Worth Reading's Johanna Draper Carlson criticises the journal for its dry tone and "flat statements following after each other separated only by footnote numbers". A later review by Ed Sizemore recommends that Mechademia "should stop trying to develop a theme for each issue". ActiveAnime's Holly Ellingwood comments that the journal's "strong academic bent may put off some potential readers but give it a chance and peruse through the many varied topics". A later review by Holly Ellingwood commends the third volume of Mechademia as being "extremely insightful and thought provoking ... [about] anime, manga, and even the future of mankind". Tomo Hirai of the Nichi Bei Times described the first volume as "an informative and inspiring read for those curious beyond the skin of anime".