Anime The False Assumptions of Anime and Manga

[gaarasgirl90]

[COLOR=DarkRed][FONT=Fixedsys]It gets on my nerves, and I know alot of other people feel this way, when people always assumn thiings about anime. They just don't understand it. They think it's either all japanese porn, or all Poke'mon or Yu-Gi-Ohish. They don't understand why they have those facial expressions or why they do the things they do. To them it is stupid, it always will be stupid. Some people just DONT GET IT!!![/FONT][/COLOR]

[sakurasuka]

[B][COLOR=DarkGreen][SIZE=1]I totally agree! Given, I'm not all to sure why this thread was created except to make a point with those who agree and cause confrontation with those who don't, but it's cool that someone was thinking the same thing as me! Neato!

Anyway, I believe that is because 'anime' is portrayed to young people nowadays as just 'more-advanced cartoons' and then peopel see 'adult rated' manga, so the average person would see EXTREMES, you know? But it's the same way with american 'cartoons'. There's Bugs Bunny, and there's Family Guy. Really, that about matches up with Poke'mon and.... Chobits, I guess. So they are really just not able to decipher that. Really, the only people that think that are 1) Teens who think it's dumb because it is in the same genra as Poke'mon 2) Over-protective parents, seeing the OT rating on comics scares them. 3) Dumb people who only see in extremes.

Well, I think I've said my bit. I'll just be on my way, now.

Later!
_Sakura_[/SIZE][/COLOR][/B]

[Cazzilla]

Oh the amount of times I have tried to explain to people that it isn't all cartoon porn.. :animesigh

[EVA Unit 100]

[quote name='SakuraMinomino][B][COLOR=DarkGreen][SIZE=1]There's Bugs Bunny, and there's Family Guy.[/SIZE][/COLOR'][/B][/quote]

Um, the original '40s-'50s Bugs Bunny cartoons were made for adults. Perhaps moreso than Family Guy, given that FG tries to aim for teens about as much as adults. Don't be fooled by the editted-for-syndication cuts from the '70s and '80s or the multiple spin-off TV shows that Bugs got. The classic Looney Tunes shorts were violent, sexy, racy, satirical, and subversive, and I liked 'em like that! :cool:

Anyway, there is one cure for people who hate anime:

Force them to watch Castle in the Sky.

Seriously, it is perfect. It's serious enough to disprove the Yu-Gi-Oh stereotypes, lighthearted enough to disprove the hentai stereotypes, exciting without being scary, emotional without being depressing, funny without being wacky, artistic without being pretentious, there is no way someone could hate that movie!

[Xander Harris]

I would like to say that Rurouni Kenshin in Japanese w/subtitles (if you show it in English, people get turned off by the cheesy translation work) works well for this, too.

It will introduce someone to emotive cartoonish expressions (but nothing as insane as Love Hina or FLCL), serious storylines (which fans of more traditional cartoons might not be used to), Anime style combat (but with a historical enough bent to please slightly more realistically minded people), and little-to-no fanservice.

My family, which usually balks at Anime, seems to enjoy RK. A lot of Anime fans I know started out with this series. It's a good Anime to start people off on, or to show to people who think it's all porn.

[gaarasgirl90]

[COLOR=DarkRed][FONT=Fixedsys]I think the only problem in getting them to watch it is simple: The titles. You would not be able to get anyone I know to sit through any anime movie or show if it sounds stupid. People judge books by covers too much!![/FONT][/COLOR] :animeangr :animesigh

[James]

[color=#B0251E]I am sort of lucky that my family really has nothing against anime, as in, while they may not all totally understand it, none of them are really dismissive of it.

My mum watched all of Animatrix with me and she also watched Spirited Away with myself and my siblings. My dad really has no interest in anime at all, but then again, he doesn't even like most subtitled films (though he did enjoy Ring and Hero). I think we just tend to view him as the uncultured one. ~_^

I tend to have more misunderstanding about music than anime. My brother quite openly bashes some of my music choices (despite the fact that I've introduced him to a good 90% of what he listens to). But that's okay, he's only young. I suspect he'll grow out of it. lol

But in general I do think it's fair to say that anime is misunderstood. I can understand why, but I think most people would probably have some respect for it if they saw one of the bigger name titles. Anime doesn't appeal to everyone (I am very selective about what anime I enjoy), however, there's usually at least one thing out there that people will enjoy.[/color]

[Panda]

It is very sad when you have people who make blanket statements about anything. Saying that all anime is porn is like saying that all vehicles are motorcycles. We all know there are more vehicles than just motorcycles...as we also know that there is more to anime than the hentai stuff.

I am like James and very fortunate to have an understanding family. My dad totally cracked up watching GTO. My mom watches anime with me and she gets really emotionally attached to characters. Like when we watched Grave of the Fireflies together she cried. Not all my friends understand why I am so obsessed with anime but they don't tease me about it.

It is really their loss when they have closed their mind to something that they might actually enjoy. Their loss, not ours.

[Dagger]

To be honest, I find it much easier to forgive total ignorance on the part of a non-fan than total ignorance on the part of a fan. I can sort of understand how people get the idea that it's all "Pokemon or porn." But few things irk me more than seeing fansub-only watchers try to justify their leeching by bashing the American industry and basically pulling false accusations out of their behinds. I've been amazed at how many self-professed die-hard fans seem to operate under the assumption that all R1 anime DVDs are edited and dub-only, for example. Gao. :animeangr

My family accepts anime-collecting as just another one of my eccentricities, and it's not really something I go out of my way to advertise. My close friends are aware that I watch it, but that's about as far as it goes. For me, anime is very much a personal & private hobby.

~Dagger~

[Delta]

[COLOR=#b33D79][SIZE=1]They'll grow out of it.

Hmm, I for one took the presence of [i]bishounen[/i] as a sign of a good anime/manga. I do love them but even an army of well-drawn characters cannot make up for a bad story.

I guess people will always see anime and manga in different lights. Perhaps in fifty years, the habit of tagging them with particular genres will end and people will think of them as plain media (like movie=film and not movie=screen-adaptation-of-a-book).[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Semjaza]

[QUOTE=EVA Unit 100]Force them to watch Castle in the Sky.

Seriously, it is perfect. It's serious enough to disprove the Yu-Gi-Oh stereotypes, lighthearted enough to disprove the hentai stereotypes, exciting without being scary, emotional without being depressing, funny without being wacky, artistic without being pretentious, there is no way someone could hate that movie![/QUOTE]

Most of this time this does not work. We had to watch it in my Mythology and Pop-Culture class and most of the students were bored out of their minds. Many talked afterwards about how lame it was. Some people just didn't even like the animation style, even though it's honestly more like traditional Disney stuff (and obviously older Miyazaki stuff) than the anime of today. I've shown it to other people and have gotten pretty much the same response.

In some ways I can understand it, even though I enjoy the film (Miyazaki has far better stuff as far as I'm concerned anyway).

I think most anime is absolutely terrible personally and I have been watching the stuff since I was a small child. It's not a conclusion I came to quickly or based on little experience. I find the good stuff to be a rarity, same with any medium.

As for the people who love downloading fansubbed anime, it's just an excuse to not have to pay for stuff as far as I'm concerned. The chance of any anime changing on its way here is close to zero at this point. Dubs don't matter much when DVDs allow multiple audiotracks and subtitles (and honestly, these translations are generally more correct than the fan ones). It's a dead issue.

I've read a lot of recent articles about how most Japanese animators and creators are actually upset about this whole Western fansubbing underground. Some have even formed organizations to help fight it and voice their disapproval. There's a few that seemingly approve of it, but they seem to be in the minority.

[Gravy Train]

I guess I'm lucky that the only people I know that don't understand anime are my parents. It's weird, but the "popular" guys at my school all watch Cowboy Bebop and Big O and this one kid can even get away with wearing a Naruto headband without getting killed.

[gaarasgirl90]

[COLOR=DarkRed][FONT=Fixedsys]I wish people I knew were more understanding. You try to get away with wearing a kyo hat to my school, ears and all and see how that goes. :animesigh [/FONT][/COLOR]

[gaarasgirl90]

My fonts were messed up. What I ment to say was-

I think the only problem in getting them to watch it is simple: The titles. You would not be able to get anyone I know to sit through any anime movie or show if it sounds stupid. People judge books by covers too much!!

and-

I wish people I knew were more understanding. You try to get away with wearing a kyo hat to my school, ears and all and see how that goes.

[EVA Unit 100]

[quote name='gaarasgirl90][COLOR=DarkRed][FONT=Fixedsys]I wish people I knew were more understanding. You try to get away with wearing a kyo hat to my school, ears and all and see how that goes. :animesigh [/FONT'][/COLOR][/quote]

Everyone at my school thinks that my Yuki hat is cool. Nobody knows who Yuki even is though :animeswea .

Anyway, about my Laputa comment, I understand if someone didn't like it. What I'm trying to get at is that Miyazaki is so great he's made at least one movie for everyy person to enjoy, and Laputa is one of the safer bets in general. Someone who thought anime was all gore and sex could try to ignore any quality, plot, or beauty in Mononoke to try to prove their points. On the reverse side of the spectrum, someone who thought anime was all little kids stuff could take one look at the DVD cover for Totoro and just dismiss it as kiddie crap without even watching it. Laputa is in the middle-of-the-road of Miyazaki's demographics, so it is one of the safer bets, but if someone doesn't like Laputa, they still would probably like at least one other Miyazaki movie.

[Lord Dante]

People who make over-generalised blanket-statements about anime/manga tend to be individuals who are afraid to try new things. for example, there is a person at my colledge who hated anime. and i mean REALLY hated it. Me and a friend of mine sat him down and made him watch ninja scroll in japaneese, with no subtitles. now, three months later, he has an anime collection of over 30 dvds.

my theory is: try it, you never know, you may like it!

[fynessajynx]

[quote name='gaarasgirl90][COLOR=DarkRed][FONT=Fixedsys]I think the only problem in getting them to watch it is simple: The titles. You would not be able to get anyone I know to sit through any anime movie or show if it sounds stupid. People judge books by covers too much!![/FONT][/COLOR'] :animeangr :animesigh[/quote]


Bubblegum Crisis comes to mind...

though I just posted in another thread the story, my sister thought anime was cartoon porn, and for a couple of years after I told her I liked anime, she looked at me funny whenever I brought up the subject. now she knows it's not like that, but she did buy me a yugioh calendar for the holidays >.> oh well, she's trying anyway. I think I should give the calendar to my nephew before the year is up, lol.

[Guest BakuraShindou]

y is it that everyone hates yugioh? whats so wrong with it! is it because all the stupid edits they did? i hate that they did that =P y are ppl always judgeing bleh. at school ppl are always like ugh u like yugioh grow up! yeah u wouldnt be saying that if u saw the unedited version FOOLS its not baby stuff retard. :o anyway....i have a friend who hates anime an another one that hates it so much he wants to blow up japan. he watched rave master once and said his eye was twiching. than i have another friend, we call her dirty hentai cause shes a dirt hentai, she hates it too shes never even watched it before sometimes she wants to read my gravitation books but only when its yuki or shuichi making out or somthing or yuki getting a blow job. wel bah to you u hentai :catgirl: haha you dont know what ur missin out on HA! well to the point ppl shouldnt just judge something maybe they should just acually watch it before saying things about it. o well thats just my opinion. i also have the same problem with my parents they think there is somthing wrong with me and that i need help...professional help XD 2 nights ago i was up at 3:30 in the morning watching dn angel when my mom told me that :animesmil ha..she just doesnt know ive acually have gotten her to watch dragonball z with me once and she liked majin buu XD i guess thats all

jya ni

[celestiallight]

Some people are just plain stupid: They think it's for little kids or for filthy adults :animesigh

[fynessajynx]

[QUOTE=BakuraShindou]y is it that everyone hates yugioh? whats so wrong with it! is it because all the stupid edits they did? i hate that they did that =P y are ppl always judgeing bleh. at school ppl are always like ugh u like yugioh grow up! yeah u wouldnt be saying that if u saw the unedited version FOOLS its not baby stuff retard.
jya ni[/QUOTE]

hmm.. I don't particularily like yu gi oh, and the calendar my sister sent me I don't like. I love pokemon and it's considered a kiddy anime... so I hope you weren't referring to me as a retard because that's just not nice. different people like different things and there is nothing wrong with that. pft.. it's bad enough when non otaku bash us for liking animes.

[Nony]

I'm very grateful that I have siblings that all watch anime, and parents who don't mind that we watch it.
All four of us (me, my brothers and sister) have been watching anime since Sailor Moon, and we all watch pretty much the same shows.
I haven't encountered too many people who think anime is dumb (thank goodness), but I do know they're out there. Of course, people are entitled to their own opinions, so if they don't like anime, that's fine. But, it gets annoying when they totally flame anime and anyone who likes it.
If you ever go the Adult Swim forums, you'll know what I mean. :animestun

The best remedy I could think of for "Anime Flamers" is to make them watch anything by Hayao Miyazaki (Castle in the Sky, Spirited Away, Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind, etc).

[gaarasgirl90]

[COLOR=DarkRed]I feel lucky, I have an english teacher that is letting me make a doujinshi sort of comic for my Romeo and Juliet project. He's cool. But then the other day I got judged by anime if that makes sense. I was drawing japanese tsunamis on a poster for art and this kid comes up to me and says "I bet you watch that stupid Puffy Ami show thingy or whatever." I was like "uhh NO thats not even anime it's just based on two jpop singers." But he walked away by then and did care. Then today I was wearing my Kyo hat and these guys working at KFC said it was awesome even though they had no clue what it was. The one guy was like "dude the ears alone make it awesome!" I was flattered. :animesmil [/COLOR]

[Konami]

I've got a fairly taxing problem regarding this with a friend of mine, who is usually quite a reasonable person but... He doesn't like anime because he can't take cartoons seriously; I asked him for this reasoning behind this, and he said he can only connect when there's real people on the screen. I was somewhat dumbfounded and attempted to explain that pictoralism can make people even EASIER to identify; but he says he was conditioned as a child to think of cartoons as only being funny, and he doesn't WANT to try and uncondition himself. If an anime tries to make him take it seriously, he gets turned off instantly XD.

Still, I think he's being an idiot... So I'm going to try and change his mind. I'm not sure what series would be good to get his attention though. I'm thinking of Mobile Suit Gundam or maybe FLCL.

[Transmutation]

Why can't these narrowminded assumptionists relize that this is a different culture, a different country, its cartoons are as diverse as America. America has The Simpsons and Blues Clues, and Japan has Tenchi Muyo and Hello Kitty. It is not just one kind of entertainment. I hope one of those idiots reads this.
Anime is one kind of entertainment where everthing is the same.
That was so funny I forgot to laugh.
Seriously.
Now I remember.
:laugh:

[EVA Unit 100]

[quote name='Konami']he says he was conditioned as a child to think of cartoons as only being funny, and he doesn't WANT to try and uncondition himself.[/quote]

I feel very, very sorry for his parents trying to explain what happened to Bambie's mom...