This Improv blog series, incredibly, contains minor spoilers for the anime Hunter X Hunter.
For his series Hunter X Hunter, Yoshihiro Togashi created a magic system called ”Nen”. Nen dictates how his characters develop and use their incredible powers. In HxH, most of the characters are trying to become powerful fighters, so their Nen powers are for combat. However, an exciting aspect of Nen is that it doesn’t have to be used to fight. The work also features characters who use Nen to be great artists, or players of games. I've daydreamed about Nen in the context of chess, and tennis, and playing the piano, but I’m most inspired by its application to my favorite craft: Improvisational comedy.
What follows is a guide to training Yen, which is a loose portmanteau of "yes and". It is a re-imagining of Togashi's Nen in the context of Improv, that uses Nen's principles to identify and categorize overlooked-but-critical aspects of the art. I also hope that looking at Improv in this way will inspire you to strive to become the strongest improviser in the world, like the shonen protagonist you are! We’re not just learning how to make stuff up on stage, we’re learning MAGIC. Tsuyoku naritai!
Disclaimer, plagiarized from Pirate Robot Ninja: An Improv Fable
This book is for those already doing long-form improv who want some advanced theories. We do not explain the basics. For that, take a class at a nearby long-form improv theatre.
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TODO: Some additional thing about how this metaphor applies to everything? Like LIFE? Like Getting Things Done?