Beyblade: The Basics

Beyblade (known as Bakuten Shoot in Japan) is an anime, and for those of you who are unaware, anime is the term given to any sort of Japanese animation. Some have called it "Japanimation," but that is not the correct name.
Beyblade the anime shows characters of varying ages participating in the sport of beyblading, which is in fact an actual game people play in real life. It involves futuristic tops made of metal and plastic. The large difference between the real life game and the anime is that, in the anime, some of the beyblades are possessed by ancient and powerful animal spirits.
These animal spirits are known as bit beasts. Not every character in the anime has one. Bit beasts are highly respected creatures that form a strong bond with the human they choose. In terms of the storyline, they play a very important role. While giving it a stronger fantasy/science-fiction twist, they also help to make the plot and game more interesting.
In the game of beyblade, it is most often one top against another, although sometimes two-on-two battles are implemented. The players battle each other with their beyblades in a dish-shaped arena. The beyblade that stops spinning first, or that is knocked out of the dish, is the loser. It sounds simple enough, but the game involves much more than purchasing a beyblade and throwing it into battle.

The Parts of a Beyblade

Beyblades consist of several parts, and each part of every beyblade acts differently. Some are stronger than others.
The most basic parts are the bit piece (this is there the bit beasts reside, and in real life this part is more or less for show), the attack ring, the weight disk, and the core.
The attack ring does as its name suggests-- it is used for offensive moves. Some beyblades are made for attacking, while some are made more for defending.
The weight disk determines the weight of the top. A heavier top will be more stable and will be harder to knock out of the dish.
The core helps lock all the parts together and also determines how the beyblade will spin.
Not all beyblades are created equal. Having several different varieties is always helpful, this way the player can mix and match parts. The outcome could prove helpful, or it could turn out to be a disaster. It all depends on how good one's strategy is. The launchers used to set the beyblades in motion also make a difference.

Advantages of the Game

If you are a parent with a child or children interested in the sport of beyblade, you are probably wondering what it is doing for them. Beyblade is actually a great game for children and adults to play. There is little risk of injury (so long as the players step back from the dish after the tops have been launched), and it can actually be educational.
To win in a beyblade match, the player must have a great strategy and know how to mix and match the right parts to make the best beyblade. The more kids play, the more strategies they pick up, and in turn they will learn to make their own.
Beyblade also gets children involved. No one can beyblade against himself or herself, therefore kids are forced to get out and find people to play the game with (and hopefully make friends in the process :-) ). Beyblade is also an anywhere sport. It can be played outside when the weather is nice, and can be played inside if the weather turns bad.
Hoping to get your kids interested in science? The sport of beyblading relies heavily on it, most especially physics. Who knows? Maybe little Timmy's interest in beyblades will get him interested in the fields of math and science. He could be the next astrophysicist.
Most important of all, though, the game of beyblade gets kids excited and shows them that thinking strategically can be fun. It's a worldwide phenomenon bringing everyone together, which is a major theme of the Beyblade anime.

Beyblade the Anime: The Basic Plot

The anime Beyblade follows the main character Tyson (Takao in Japan), taking him from a nobody to a rookie sensation.
Tyson is an outspoken and audacious teenager who enjoys eating, sleeping, and beyblading. He befriends another teen named Kenny, who is more or less Tyson's opposite. Kenny is a quiet individual but a hardworking friend. He is not much of a beyblader, but he knows all about the sport and acts as a coach for Tyson. Both Tyson and Kenny meet another teen named Max who enjoys beyblading as well, and very soon the three become inseperable.
Early on in the series, Tyson meets his rival, Kai, one of the most mysterious and intriguing characters in the series. Kai is more or less the teenager a parent would forbid his or her child to associate with, but not all of Kai's strange behavior can be blamed on him. Kai comes from a dysfunctional family and was raised by his grandfather, who is an evil man, and this plays a larger part in the plot later on.
Tyson, Max, and Kenny enter a regional beyblade tournament with the hope of defeating the champion, who just so happens to be Kai. By this point, Tyson is feeling confident because he has been chosen by the ancient dragon bit beast known as Dragoon. Kai possesses a bit beast as well-- a phoenix called Dranzer. Max soon acquires a turtle bit beast called Draciel, and Tyson's new friend Rei has a white tiger bit beast called Driger. These four creatures are based upon the four magic animals of China. Kenny has a bit beast as well, but her species is unknown. She is trapped within his laptop and provides information as well as comic relief in the plot.
Without giving away too much of the storyline, our hero Tyson is chosen by a man named Stanley Dickinson (head of the Beyblade Battle Association (BBA)) to become part of a team that also includes Max, Rei, Kenny, and Tyson's rival Kai, who becomes team captain. The five travel all over the world to different tournaments with the hope of becoming the best team around. Not all is as sugary sweet as it seems, however...
All in all, the series with its three distinct parts (Beyblade, Beyblade V-Force, and Beyblade G-Revolution) contains a little bit of everything that is sure to appeal to the masses. Its real life themes, colorful action, brilliant humor, and witty, colloquial dialogue is something just about anyone can relate to and enjoy.

Real Life Lessons and Themes

This brilliantly colorful anime and its charming, lifelike characters are enough to make anyone smile (and perhaps feel a bit of nostalgia). The vivid personalities of the characters are sure to remind any viewer of people he or she knows in real life. I know this is certainly true in my case.
Beyblade helps kids cope with upsetting real life issues without getting too dramatic or scary. Take the character Max, for example. His parents are divorced and live far apart, a topic that affects so many children in the present day. Although this issue is sugarcoated in the english-translated version, it still helps children see that they can live a great life and make something of themselves despite the fact that their parents are separated. Max's sunny personality gives us hope and the courage to smile to our problems.
Beyblade teaches children the importance of teamwork and friendship, most especially that it can happen among people of different races. Tyson, our hero, is thrown into a world with so many different people. Even his own team is comprised of different ethnicities-- American, Asian, and Russian-- yet they all have to learn how to work together and get along despite their differences and sometimes conflicting personalities. The character Kai, who has a very dark past, is shown that good friends are a great asset and that everyone, no matter who they are, has someone who cares.
Beyblade teaches children that we all have different opinions and points of view. Perhaps the best example of this from the anime is the instance where Max and his team are pitted against a team that his own mother coaches. While Max and his mother may have had different ideas about what makes a good beyblader, they personify the idea that people can think differently but still care about and love each other.
Beyblade shows us that life isn't always as we would like it to be. While the main character Tyson may get lucky on several occasions, he doesn't always come out on top. No one does, but his persistence pays off for him and encourages children to continue trying hard themselves.

Getting Kids Excited About the World

This is one thing the Beyblade anime excels at. Having a favorite character in the series is fun in itself, and because every character has a unique background and ethnicity, children are sure to become interested in different cultures and countries. The Demolition Boys, for example, are a beyblading team in the anime that has proven to be exceptionally popular with viewers. As a result, their fans have shown a greater interest in the geography and history of Russia, the country the Demolition Boys are from.
An aspect of the anime that I am especially fond of is the fact that the characters make an effort to talk about the different countries, their landmarks, and history. The character Kenny is perhaps the one who does this the most. By giving children a taste of what each country and its people are about, their interest grows and some have even made learning about these cultures a hobby.
Tyson and his friends travel all over-- from Asia to Europe and everywhere inbetween. In the first season alone they visit eight different countries including China, Italy, Russia, and the United States, and several other ethnicities are given airtime as well. The details in the landscapes and architecture are very well done, and the look of the historic landmarks and people remains true to the respective heritages while not being too stereotypical. The characters show signs of their ethnicity, but are dressed in casual and modern clothing, keeping things more realistic.
Another plus: there are no racist themes in the plot whatsoever. Any disagreements and arguments between the characters occur only because they have conflicting personalities and/or ideas, not because they dislike each other's race. Unfortunately racism exists in real life, but by introducing other nationalities in the anime and showing acceptance among them, children learn that they can be accepting of others as well.
As added proof to my claim that the Beyblade anime instills new interests in the people who enjoy it, here are some viewer comments on the topic:

Fiorella (StephanieBell_666@hotmail.com) age 16 says: "Beyblade got my interest with how different nationalities can interact with one another. Cultures from the show have also caught my attention with each specified place.. I also think that it shows a good way in some of the episodes that there is no sense of racism. The first thing I liked about Beyblade was the variety in cultures. There are a lot of fans who create characters from various parts of the world to join in the fun as well"

Rianu (BliZZard_X115@hotmail.com) age 15 says: "I got interested in the countries that various characters came from, and started researching the various cultures. It also got me interested in learning other languages. I am taking German, and I plan on learning Russian and Japenese. I think that it's a good show because of the fact that it deals with multiple nationalities"

Lia (Lia_and_Trowa@hotmail.com) age 18 says: "I like when they were traveling around that they drew all of the different kinds of people in the style-- the art style and such-- and how they took the history of the different places and put it into the show"

Serena (private email) age 15 says: "It made me want to learn more about Russia"

Gabby (mirokusgirl10@aol.com) age 15 says: "It got me interested in learning about different cultures because I thought that it was so cool that guys from different places could get together and form a team"

Neveru (cheskacat@ameritech.net) age 14 says: "The variety of people basically made me realize, ' hey, people that do things differently are cool.' So I wanted to learn about different cultures and customs and whatnot. Sometimes, I practice some of the things I learn just to see how it plays out and it's all pretty cool"

Miranda (private email) age 12 says: "After taking a great liking to the Demolition Boys (especially Tala), I've been looking into Russian culture and learning about of the language"

Encourage Equality Everywhere

Some people
It's a pity
They go all their lives and never know
How to love or to let love go
But it's alright now
We'll make it through this somehow
And we'll paint the perfect picture
All the colors of this world
Will run together
More than ever
I can feel it
Can you feel it?

Come on over,
Down to the corner
My sisters and my brothers
Of every different color
Don't you feel that sunshine
Telling you to hold tight
Things will be all right
Try to find a better life
Come on over,
Down to the corner
My sisters and my brothers
There for one another
Come on over
Man, I know you wanna
Let yourself go