[Anime] People's view on anime

[Jtbrig7390]

I don't know why anyone would call an American animation by a Japanese word for anime. Sure people in America could call anime animation, because that's the American word for it, same with Japan calling something from America an anime because that's their word for it.

Overall though it's easier to call stuff from Japan what the Japanese call it and stuff from America what the Americans call it.

Thing is anime is not just a Japanese word.

It is a word used all over the world to describe cartoons/animation in the region they live in.

Now it is used in japan a lot maybe even more so there then anywhere else but the word "Anime" is not a japan original word and it is short for Animation all cartoons is a forum of Animation therefor they are anime..

Now in the US it is more common to use the term "Cartoon" but that dose not change the fact it is a anime due to it being Animation.

[Axethor]

I would say it's an age and regional thing. 5-10 years ago, everyone I knew and talked to watched at least one anime. I remember everyone had to draw a picture of their interests and hobbies in my 8th grade class, so mine had a bunch of references to different animes. I was amazed at how many people would catch at least one reference, some being people I would never talk to in a million years if they didn't come up to me.

As I got older the people who watched Anime were less vocal about it, but you would still catch snippets here and there in the halls or someone would jump in to a conversation about Anime out of the blue.

Now in college it's gotten to be a huge thing again, with a big anime club and people discussing their favorite animes around campus. It's like 8th grade all over again.

Now, my college is a big game major and tech school, so obviously anime will be big here, but I hear similar stories from my sister who goes to a big state school. I feel my age is close to the upper limit, maybe 3-5 years below the limit, of where Anime is a norm and accepted thing. Then my youngest sister is where Anime starts to become weird again.

Now I can't speak for everywhere, which is why I think it's a regional thing. I know my family members in the Southern US have probably never heard of some mainstream animes, nevermind watched them.

[scamander]

Well, I have enjoyed some myself, but from personal experience the ones who bring it up often, probably to stand out (some people bring it up in weird circumstances where it is totally irrelevant) are in fact pretty weird at times.
The ones I know who are into the anime that all about girls / panty shots etc are pretty weird people and they make me uncomfortable alot :P still pals tho so its fine.
Then the ones who are into stuff like Naruto, Death Note, Akira etc seem to be more laid back and cooler guys in general, and not weirdly awkward in social situations.

In their defence though, these 'weirder' ones do infact take showers, and do leave their houses contrary to popular belief.

[Skizzit]

Thing is anime is not just a Japanese word.

It is a word used all over the world to describe cartoons/animation in the region they live in.

Now it is used in japan a lot maybe even more so there then anywhere else but the word "Anime" is not a japan original word and it is short for Animation all cartoons is a forum of Animation therefor they are anime..

Now in the US it is more common to use the term "Cartoon" but that dose not change the fact it is a anime due to it being Animation.

Anime only refers to all forms of animation in Japan. The word is an abbreviation of animation. It is a pretty common thing in Japan to abbreviate words in this manner, especially English words. For example, the huge dōjinshi fair Comiket is an abbreviation of Comic Market. Outside of Japan, anime refers specially to Japanese style animation.

[Time Sage]

how i understand you all m8s, most of my friends always said that is for kids. Now they keep asking if i saw naruto, one piece, among other ones.
I do not know how it is in your homeland but here we have a saying for this kinda people, "Do not throw stones if you have glass ceilings"

The phrase is "People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones"

I would say it's an age and regional thing. 5-10 years ago, everyone I knew and talked to watched at least one anime. I remember everyone had to draw a picture of their interests and hobbies in my 8th grade class, so mine had a bunch of references to different animes. I was amazed at how many people would catch at least one reference, some being people I would never talk to in a million years if they didn't come up to me.

As I got older the people who watched Anime were less vocal about it, but you would still catch snippets here and there in the halls or someone would jump in to a conversation about Anime out of the blue.

Now in college it's gotten to be a huge thing again, with a big anime club and people discussing their favorite animes around campus. It's like 8th grade all over again.

Now, my college is a big game major and tech school, so obviously anime will be big here, but I hear similar stories from my sister who goes to a big state school. I feel my age is close to the upper limit, maybe 3-5 years below the limit, of where Anime is a norm and accepted thing. Then my youngest sister is where Anime starts to become weird again.

Now I can't speak for everywhere, which is why I think it's a regional thing. I know my family members in the Southern US have probably never heard of some mainstream animes, nevermind watched them.

[Hardstyler01]

But sense I got into anime, ive noticed people have this really arrogant view on anime and people who watch anime, da faq is up with it? If you watch anime your instantly flagged as "weird" probably suicidal, probably a virgin, probably a rapist who watchs tentacle porn, you dont take showers, you "live action" LIGHTNING BOLT type shit, and you have no social life.

Well, I'll admit that I do view people who watch a lot of anime as such. That's because a lot of them actually do act like described.
You might be the exception, but most people I've met who watch a lot of anime aren't the most stable or hygenic people.

There's nothing wrong with watching some anime. Although I don't really know Death Note, it doesn't appear that childish or 'weird'.
But when you watch a LOT of anime, then you're getting in a danger zone imo. Especially if you're into the more weird and childish anime.

[Flimsy]

I cant stand it but that's just my opinion. I also find it hilarious when people link various anime scenes to threads like 'saddest moment in a movie ever'...mind-boggling.

To me (again just my opinion) it just seems like the latest 'internet fad'. I know anime has been around for years and it had many followers but these days it seems to be followed by 95% of reddit users that think a bit of blood/sex/swearing in a cartoon is cool.

[Sorrior]

Thing is anime is not just a Japanese word.

It is a word used all over the world to describe cartoons/animation in the region they live in.

Now it is used in japan a lot maybe even more so there then anywhere else but the word "Anime" is not a japan original word and it is short for Animation all cartoons is a forum of Animation therefor they are anime..

Now in the US it is more common to use the term "Cartoon" but that dose not change the fact it is a anime due to it being Animation.

Please lets not get into this eternal debate..No really this debate is SERIOUSLY old

Though my general answer is that it has gone beyond what it originally meant and like alot of words has changed. In english as well as most internet sites is is a direct reference to series animated in japan. If i say anime NOBODY i know thinks adventure time, simpsons, american dad and so on. They DO however think bleach, one piece, naruto, dbz and so on.

Thus it's meaning may have changed as words do. But it is definitely understood by most to mean cartoons of a japanese origin.

---------- Post added 2013-02-13 at 09:53 AM ----------

Well, I'll admit that I do view people who watch a lot of anime as such. That's because a lot of them actually do act like described.
You might be the exception, but most people I've met who watch a lot of anime aren't the most stable or hygenic people.

There's nothing wrong with watching some anime. Although I don't really know Death Note, it doesn't appear that childish or 'weird'.
But when you watch a LOT of anime, then you're getting in a danger zone imo. Especially if you're into the more weird and childish anime.

Or we get into anime to that degree because we ARE different and it's nice to us.

In my case if you name it i've seen at least one series like it. Yes that includes hentai. But despite what you might think social issues aside i'm the type of person who loves to help others and make friends. I just have a hard time in some ways.

[apepi]

One thing I have found anime/manga do good at is philosohy, they seem to have a great deal of it in it. Was one of the things that turned me on to it. They also have some of the best quotes.

[Skizzit]

Well, I'll admit that I do view people who watch a lot of anime as such. That's because a lot of them actually do act like described.
You might be the exception, but most people I've met who watch a lot of anime aren't the most stable or hygenic people.

There's nothing wrong with watching some anime. Although I don't really know Death Note, it doesn't appear that childish or 'weird'.
But when you watch a LOT of anime, then you're getting in a danger zone imo. Especially if you're into the more weird and childish anime.

That isn't limited to anime. I find that people who are really into any hobby, like video games, building model airplanes, collecting doll, or hell even fantasy football are bizarre people.

I cant stand it but that's just my opinion. I also find it hilarious when people link various anime scenes to threads like 'saddest moment in a movie ever'...mind-boggling.

Curious as to why you find that mind-boggling. I am not sure why a story would have a stronger emotional impact with live action vs. animation. There is an anime movie called Grave of Fireflies that has just as much impact as any live action or even written work I know of and is by far the saddest movie I have ever seen. Here is the synopsis for it: "In the aftermath of a World War II bombing, two orphaned children struggle to survive in the Japanese countryside. To Seita and his four year old sister, the helplessness and indifference of their countrymen is even more painful than the enemy raids. Through desperation, hunger and grief, these children's lives are as heart-breakingly fragile as their spirit and love is inspiring. "

[Sorrior]

One thing I have found anime/manga do good at is philosohy, they seem to have a great deal of it in it. Was one of the things that turned me on to it. They also have some of the best quotes.

LOL gotta agree here. Still love lelouch's line from code geass

"To save the world would become a god or a devil"

BTW my answer is the same as lelouch's devil.

[-Ethos-]

I cant stand it but that's just my opinion. I also find it hilarious when people link various anime scenes to threads like 'saddest moment in a movie ever'...mind-boggling.

Grave of the Fireflies is one of the most heart-wrenchingly devastating movies ever made. Why does what medium it was created with matter?

Also, calling anime a fad is naive at best. As the internet has expanded, the ability to access and distribute anime (and everything else) has expanded with it. People are being exposed to it through all forms of social media and are able to expose their friends to it in the same vein, not to mention to list of releases outside of Japan is growing each year thanks to growing fanbase.

[Itchen]

I watch anime because there is nothing on T.V that can give me the feels i get from anime.

[Parawhore]

I had a chance to come back and read what everyone was saying, its sad what some of you say.

One Main thing id like to touch on that I saw alot "I know tons of kids who watch anime who are like this."

Everything is like that, it's called negative stereotypes.(w/e makes the juiciest story in media/gossip) The thing I don't get about anime is it plagues most of the population rather then just people 40+ like let's say, video games. Most of you know how video games are shown to the general public, incredibly inaccurate information(the mass effect "sex" scandal...), rare situations front lined as if its the 90% norm(world of warcraft, shooters make killers). The people who listen to reports like this are ignorant of what video games truly are, and never have really played them themselves therefore arent informed enough to think whats being reported is wrong. Anime is the same way for you. ignorant of the subject, listens to the worst stereotypes and latches onto the worst case scenarios.

When people talk about video games you hear things like "oh that guy shot up that school, and he played that black ops all the time-It brainwashed him!" And you probably roll your eyes because its stupid-Its 1 guy and they just latched on to whats convenient. When your friends say "Oh theres that kid who stinks and never talks, I hear he watchs anime-Lol he probably jacks it to hentai to cause he cant get any!" This is the same situation, yet anime being associated with this kid being a loner who doesent bathe is seen as accurate. Its not a norm for anime but because your ignorant of the subject and its a convenient thing to latch onto its believed.
When people who watch anime hear these comments, they think the same thing as you did for video games-Oh this crap again. They Know its not true yet people who are ignorant of the subject just accept it as the norm. If there is a guy making straight A's has a GF and a ton of friends loves video games and anime-and he saves 30 kids from a building on fire-The fact that he loves video games isent going to be mentioned, neither is anime. Why would it? It's not convenient to latch onto, people want to hear the negative stereotypes.

[Tsuna]

I watch anime because there is nothing on T.V that can give me the feels i get from anime.

All of them feels.

But really, the people who condemn anime for whatever reason probably only have a tiny bit of information on which they base their judgement. I tend to be quite heavily biased against western television because of my overwhelming preference to anime. I really would prefer not to have such bias since there are plenty of western shows that I do enjoy (Glee, Big Bang Theory, Family Guy, etc). But it does suck when I have to grin and keep my silence when people vilify anime and label it as a reason for social problems.

[Zonas]

God, are people still going on about what anime really means? That's honestly something that just needs to die. It's an annoying as hell debate that just makes people look more stupid than they generally should. The fact of the matter is, whether you like it or not, when people generally hear the word anime, they are going to think about the "adult-esque" japanese cartoons with lots of blood, big boobs, weird expression, etc. (the typical stereotypical anime tropes)

That's what it generally means in this day and age, get over it. Trying to state otherwise just makes you look like an ass. I'd tie it in with someone wearing a swastika on their shirt, then when someone calls them out on it, they immediately get the biggest head and start shouting, "No! It had other meanings before the nazis started useing it, idiot!"

Now back on topic. I personally have nothing against anime or the people who watch it. I'd probably watch more if I ever had the time to watch them from the start. I've mostly only ever seen the more typical for a non-dedicated anime lover, like the ones they showed back before toonami was killed then given the jaws of life.

Really, the only thing I hate about it are those one people who make the idea that they watch anime their whole identity. I don't know if it's just an American thing or what, but I remember this one girl back in highschool, you know the type, who couldn't go a day without letting the world know that they watch (insert semi-popular anime here). It was a school that didn't have alot of anime enthusiests so that might have had something to do with it, but it was still annoying as hell.

I also just HATE those one idiots who get the biggest ego you could find only because they watch the animes that aren't that popular, like anime hipsters I guess. Ugh, I honestly wish I had a nickle for whenever I've seen someone start bashing a cartoon someone mentions they like, whether it be a western one like MLP, LoK, Adventure time, etc. or another anime out of the many that there are, and the only thing they've ever "enjoyed" is the most obscurest anime you could find. Like on forums, they'll literally have their profile plastered with details about it.

So yeah, nothing against anime, just the more steretypical people who like it. Then again, every fandom has people like that, so I try not to get bent out of shape about it.

[Digglett]

God, are people still going on about what anime really means? That's honestly something that just needs to die. It's an annoying as hell debate that just makes people look more stupid than they generally should. The fact of the matter is, whether you like it or not, when people generally hear the word anime, they are going to think about the "adult-esque" japanese cartoons with lots of blood, big boobs, weird expression, etc. (the typical stereotypical anime tropes)

That's what it generally means in this day and age, get over it. Trying to state otherwise just makes you look like an ass. I'd tie it in with someone wearing a swastika on their shirt, then when someone calls them out on it, they immediately get the biggest head and start shouting, "No! It had other meanings before the nazis started useing it, idiot!"

......What?

[Still Rampant Rabbit]

I have a strong disliking for lolicon. It makes me feel dirty, and sad. This doesn't happen easily to me.

[draynay]

Then again, every fandom has people like that, so I try not to get bent out of shape about it.

pretty much

most of the people who would think ill of anime but don't know much about it are only familiar with the really big shows, and since I don't like most of those shows either there isn't much conflict, plus I'm not dealing with highschoolers ever so thats nice

I have a pretty good idea what non-anime folks look for, I was in their camp for 25 years and remember not liking it, so I don't subject people to weird shows they have little chance of liking, even if I like plenty weird ones

[Kathranis]

Anime only refers to all forms of animation in Japan. The word is an abbreviation of animation. It is a pretty common thing in Japan to abbreviate words in this manner, especially English words. For example, the huge dōjinshi fair Comiket is an abbreviation of Comic Market. Outside of Japan, anime refers specially to Japanese style animation.

Outside of Japan, "anime" is typically used to refer to animation specifically from Japan. Likewise for "manga" referring to Japanese comics. A lot of fans in the US will make a big stink about them being referred to as cartoons or comics.

The irony is of course that in Japan, "anime" is used for all forms of animation, regardless of country of origin. Many channels even air dubs of Western cartoons during their anime blocks, back to back with domestic programs. The term "manga" is also rarely used in Japan; most people in Japan call them comics (or "comikkusu"), specifically referring to foreign comics as "American Comics" and what have you, with the exception of French comics which are called BD or Bande Dessinee, just as they are in France.


Anyway, I view anime in much the same way as any other type of film or television program: some anime is good, most is crap. There are a few masterpieces. In recent years the anime industry has had a pretty notable decline in quality and these days there aren't many series worth checking out unless you're into moe and harem series.

I generally prefer manga, which have far more variety than televised anime. I've got a subscription to Viz's Weekly Shonen Jump, as I've been reading Naruto and One Piece for ages and their translations are far higher quality than fanmade ones. One-Punch Man is also brilliant. In general, though, I prefer seinen series. Blade of the Immortal probably being my all-time favorite (its anime adaptation was unfortunately not too great).