Anime mainstream

Meksikanfude · Post by **Meksikanfude** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 12:19 am

Theres a point to this...

I remember when I lived back in mexico, I watched anime before I even knew what anime meant. My first was Saint Seiya, or "Caballeros del Zodiaco" in spanish. It even had a cool spanish song. Anyway, then came drabonball and many others to the land south the border, but I never really considered myself an otaku back then. I moved to the Sates at age 11, (Im 16), and i was shot off anime for a while. Sometimes friends would mail me Dragon Ball Z from mexico, but thats about it. Then i met my best friend who reintroduced me to the anime (and RPG) world. He showed me Slayers first, and then Evangelion. Naturally, I was hooked.
Then came many many... many more (there was a store that rented anime), and i was a fan. Ive been buying DVDs, and showed it to friends, succesfully convreting them after showing them cowboy bebop.
Isn't anime awesome?

I'm almost done.

So, Toonami and some Satudray morning cartoons show anime, a few here and there, a few that I watched, but I didnt really feel it getting out of control until Adult Swim came out, and then moved to 6 times a week. I was overwhelmed by the attention anime was getting. I always wanted the world to appreciate anime. Art.

...

Anime is becoming really popular, specially in my school, where from jocks, to skaters, to stoners have seen anime. It's all wrong. My brother likes evangelion and trigun just because of the action. he doesnt care about character development, or any story advances. Censorship is peeling away anime, taking some of its charm off of it. (Like in Eva in cartoon network...... you dont wear a swimsuit... to take a bath... right?)

To make a long story short, anime was something really out there, but to show it to the general public who gets a kick out of watching "Dude, whereves my car?" is stupid. They interpret it the wrong way. When anime was obscure, i was happy that i was holding something special, but now its crumbling...

Was that dramatic enough?

KLin · Post by **KLin** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 12:41 am

Trust me, several people feel the same way. But you can't really prevent people who don't appreciate Anime for the same reasons that you do to stop watching and promoting Anime that they enjoy. Just remember the reasons you like Anime and try not to let some of the sillier things that the general public says about it get to you.

jonmartensen · Post by **jonmartensen** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 12:46 am

Some people consider flatulence an art, that doesn't make it art, though.

Most current anime is just as artistic as what gets spewed out of Hollywood every week.

Tsuji Mania · Post by **Tsuji Mania** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 12:54 am

The only trouble I can see is it being dumbed down during translation as so often happens. But it is happening less and less nowadays.

Companies like FUNimation will always edit or misshape Japanese animation to line their pockets, but many others have been loyal and improving by the month.

FATTY_VM · Post by **FATTY_VM** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 12:56 am

shit .. i hated that movie ... and every stoner who actually paid money to see it in one form or another .. on more than one occasion ... i mean .... its not even the stoners ... its the "poseurs" who do stuff just to be "cool" ... ive played both sides of that fence ... and i hate those who put on an act .. almost as much as they hate themselfs ...

and yes ... what you say is true ... i believe when anime does become mainstream .. the more mature viewers are going to be pushed out .. by the flood of shit that will follow.

Lonley Driver · Post by **Lonley Driver** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 1:09 am

Most current anime is just as artistic as what gets spewed out of Hollywood every week.

Absolutetly. I've seen my fair share of crap anime, and imagine, 100 some new anime are aired each week in Japan? In the U.S. we only have to deal with 2 or 3 crap movies a week. In Japan I'm sure they have to deal with atleast 85 crap anime a week.

-David

Meksikanfude · Post by **Meksikanfude** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 1:09 am

Thats one of the reasons I like AMVs so much. They are great, are funny, dark, depressing, can express feelings easily, and you need to be smart to appreciate it. I showed my brother (after hours of insisting), the Eva video, Evangelionopus, with bohemian rhapsody. Its one of my personal favorites, and he just dismissed it as random clips put together. I pointed out the synch, style, theme, and he just smacked me on the head and walked away.
I remember when I was 10 or 11 in mexico, and I would run home to watch dragonball, and next day talk about it in school...
Those were the days...

Jiima · Post by **Jiima** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 6:28 am

Lonley Driver wrote:Absolutetly. I've seen my fair share of crap anime, and imagine, 100 some new anime are aired each week in Japan?

When I try to explain my stance on anime to some dumass that thinks it's all big eyed, big breasted women, and Funky colored hair styles... I say... Look, think of anime in terms of Live Action. Yes, live action is a broad comparison, but that's how broad anime is. You've got different directing styles, genres, etc. I mean, from Romance, comedy, action, drama, and, yes, even pornography, anime is just as broad as live action, so there are bound to be crappy titles. In the same sense look at how many movies and shows the US cranks out. The ones that are good enough make it overseas... That's to them what anime is to us. And GOD don't be one of those anit-pop freaks that like something that's not pop-culture and the minute it hits high ratings and the <insert clique>'s go to see it, you denounce it. Enjoy anime as for it's individuality... not for it's underground appearance.

Yaia · Post by **Yaia** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 7:45 am

hmmm after reading this i must say you are lucky...
i live in israel where the best anime was pokemon, digimon, yo-gi-yu and dbz (no i don't like it) and it was dubbed to hebrew and it made it even worse.

and mononoke hime that was nice

here anime isn't an underground theme it almost don't exsist.
i know something like 4 people who watch anime from my city (80,000 people).

i wish it was an underground theme.

Meksikanfude · Post by **Meksikanfude** » Wed Feb 26, 2003 6:49 pm

Ill always love anime, thats not the point. My concern is also toward people, who like anime, but dont see it as more than a cartoon.
I remember when i finished watching cowboy bebop, I was like "Spike's not dead... no... he'll stand up... right?" and people who seen it in adult swim are all like "that was aweomse when they both killed eachother!"
Everybody has their way to look at anime, lbut not everybody appreciates it.