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Arc the Lad
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"Arc the Lad" is a 26-episode series which was released in 1999.
This anime is about strength. If you’re weak you’re doomed, unless you become strong. Weak people are left homeless and without families. Weak people are forced to kill their friends, and are blamed for all problems that befall them.
I don’t know if it’s Anime, or Japanese ideology, but in the same way that American movies root for the underdog, many Anime support the "you must become strong or you’re nothing" viewpoint. It’s strange to me because it’s a "might makes right" viewpoint. Even the well-known "Rurouni Kenshin" anime, which gives lip service to the value of the weak, is hypocritical, because the only reason Kenshin can say anything and have it count is because he himself is strong. In "Arc the Lad", Elk was put through hell because he wasn’t strong, and the only way he can protect those he cares about is to become strong. Elk’s friend Gene appears, is used, and disappears without really being able to accomplish anything because he’s weak. Elk can’t save his childhood friend because he’s weak. Elk later is only able to help Lieza, meet up with Arc, and accomplish anything because he has become strong.
"Arc the Lad’s" theme reminded me of a lot of those Survivalist, Samurai, Ninjitsu guide books, something like, “The hunter must be strong in both mind and body.” Anyway, being a geeky guy, I enjoy the whole “Man must protect his woman or he is nothing” crap. I don’t believe it, but I find it fun in cartoons and movies. The only thing I hate about this cartoon is Arc. Arc and Elk are the same character, only Elk is more developed. This means Arc has no good reason to exist, except that this is an anime named "Arc the Lad", and is based an a video game named "Arc the Lad".
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