_{Apologies for the delay in this article!}

This year was the third year that the Journal of Anime & Manga Studies had a symposium at Anime Expo.

If you have never been to AX, or know what JAMS is, I’m happy to be your introduction. When I was first referred to this by The Anime View, I knew I wanted to attend the panels – and once I saw the type of panels, I knew I wanted to attend them all.

Each panel was hosted by Billy Tringali, the founder and creator of JAMS, and all the panelists were specialists in their topic and in their field. Before I get too ahead of myself, let me answer the question: What is JAMS?

“The Journal of Anime and Manga Studies (JAMS) is an open-access journal dedicated to providing an ethical, peer-reviewed space for academics, students, and independent researchers examining the field of anime, manga, cosplay, and fandom studies to share their research with others. JAMS is peer reviewed by scholars with experience in these areas. The goal of JAMS is to explore anime as an art form and bring visibility to the deeper meanings, understandings, and/or cultural significance of anime, manga, cosplay, and their fandoms.”
(Taken from their website)

As much of a panel person I am, I could have just sat in their room all 4 days. There is an abundance of knowledge at these panels, with new insights for fan favorites, new releases, and titles you might have buried on your watch list. Some of the lectures I had the pleasure of attending were:

• Performing Girlhood: Princesses, Cosplay, & Identity in Anime
  • “Challenged conventional ideas of self-expression by exploring how anime heroines, cosplay communities, and chosen families can offer powerful alternatives to traditional gender roles.”
  • Titles mentioned: Witch Hat Atelier, Azumanga Daioh, Nichijou, Spy x Family, and Revolutionary Girl Utena
• Music of Studio Ghibli
  • Led by professors David F. Lopez, Elliott Jones, and John Marr as they discuss the flows and the magic of Ghibli.
• Worlds of Knowledge: Animes Keepers of Discovery
  • Led by “four scholars whose research explores how anime presents the wonder of knowledge. From magic, to music, to museums, to bibliometrics, learn how anime celebrates, rebels against, or explores the concept of inquiry. Discussing ways to map the resources of Anime and Manga Studies, and points from a music theory scholar for music in anime.”
  • Titles mentioned: Frieren & The Guardians of the Louvre
• Pirates, Ecology, & K-Pop: How Anime Explores Worlds & Culture
  • “Explored the cultures of worlds both real and imagined. From teaching anthropology through your favorite pirates, to satirizing capitalistic consumption, to seeing how anime explores Korean IPs in Japanese animation.”
  • Titles mentioned: One Piece & Campfire Cooking in Another World
• Physics of Anime*
  • “While there are anime that are based firmly on science, other anime, especially those in the science fiction genre, include well-established physical principles… They discussed some of these concepts in an in-depth yet beginner-friendly manner.”
  • *I did leave this panel early due to time conflict, but the NASA experts on this panel were absolutely amazing in explaining scientific principles in anime, both logical and not.

All panel information from 2025 can be found here.

Hearing these experts discussing the blend of real life into fantatsy was an amazing opportunity. If you’re not a person who goes to informational panels, you’re definitely missing out on a lot of hidden gems. You’ll never know who you’ll meet or know how they use their knowledge and communicate it through a mutual medium.

Thank you to Anime Expo for the press badge! Please bring JAMS back every year for amazing panels like these!