Animation aimed at kids, Jap vs American

Arigatomina · Post by **Arigatomina** » Sun Apr 03, 2005 9:30 pm

To clear this up, are we talking kids (10-15) or pre-teens? Rugrats is aimed at babies who can talk - most under the age of 10. Nasty things like Ed, Edd, and Eddy and Cow and Chicken are aimed at teens stupid enough to lap it up - most under 15 but over 10 (how many American parents would let their 6 yr old watch a cow squirt people with her tits, get real). For the teens (10+, or 12+) who still enjoy animated shows, cartoons have gotten dumbed down excessively - all slapstick or even worse - playing on stereotypes with the "Proud Family" and "Wingz Club".

Most of the anime I've seen in the US is aimed at the 12+ group, not the preteens. People are listing Sailormoon and DBZ as 'kids' shows - they are, but they're 'puberty-approaching' kids. I think it's great that something is coming in for the 12+ kids. We only have a few cartoons that will actually engage teens - Xmen (the original and the remake) cartoon sagas are few and far between. Even batman got dumbed down to the 'stand-alone' episode types.

Then we have the character models - Rugrats suit children (under 10) because the main characters *are* children. How many 'kids' cartoons (american animation) feature main characters who are 15? Compare that to Japanese anime where most 'fantasy' series feature teens in the lead role. Our teenagers have live action shows to watch once they hit 15 and want to see 'potential rolemodels' on television. There just doesn't seem to be a market in US animation for these people, so anime fills the spot.

I don't think we need 'anime' for the preteens - our cartoons, if you pick carefully to weed out the crap, will keep them entertained. But the cartoons for teens is of very bad quality. I'd rather have a twelve yr old girl watching Cardcaptor Sakura than anything made in the US.

Most of the "for kids" anime I've seen is really more appropriately labeled "for teens". No 8yr old should be watching Dragonball Z. Dragonball, sure, but not Z.

OtakuMan22 · Post by **OtakuMan22** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 9:11 am

That oppinion is rather stupid. To make a clear good/bad destinction between japanese and american cartoons is nothing more than a typical anime fanboy pov. Most american cartoons aimed at kids are squarely AIMED AT KIDS. Most of the japanese cartoons you mentioned can get very serios alot of the time. It seems that the japeanese way with animation is to get the kids to grow up faster while the american way is to let kids be kids and enjoy things kids would enjoy watching without geting all serios. American cartoons are generaly fun, lighthearted and dont make much sence because that would defeat the whole point of it . If you cant enjoy shows like spongebob and powerpuff girls then you've grown up too much and have forgoten what it'l like to be a child.

WHAT!?! STUPID!?!

Okay, so I was in a rush because my fiancee was trying to call my attention away and I had to end the post abruptly, BUT STILL!

First off, the series I listed ARE aimed at kids in Japan. I'm talking about the UNDER 10 audience here to clear that matter up.

Dragon Ball is definitly aimed at boys around the age of 10 or younger in Japan. They would not make DRAGONBALL BREAKFAST CEREAL TOYS in Japan if they weren't trying to aim for a young audience.

CHILD'S TOY is aimed at a young audience! The main character is in grade school!!! Sure it may be aimed at a young girl audience that's slightly older than the Dragon Ball audience, but the point is that Child's Toy is fun, and admits that life as a kid can be sometimes dramatic, but also fun too!

Doraemon's audience is even younger! That can aim at a range from 6 to 12! Hamtaro's cuteness can strike chords with PRE-SCHOOL kids in Japan too!

Japanese kids shows take more of what being a child is REALLY like and puts it in their programming to make it intelligent and allows the kids to get into it, even though they know it's not real. Japan is the birthplace of aesthetic distance after all!

Kids shows made in the USA are, well, not that good in comparison. Some hit the target and are really good like the new Ninja Turtles and many of the shows on Cartoon Network. I LIKE Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends and think some of their material can be pretty neat and entertaining. I'm a big fan of Samurai Jack, Powerpuff Girls, and Dexter's Lab because they are SMART TV SHOWS! They are not DUMBED down! Shows like CatDog and Spongebob however just seem like... well CRAP! They seem pointless, mindless entertainment to keep kids glued to the TV without gaining anything back from it. Any possible connection between a moral in the show and reality is lost in the sheer over-exaggerated cartoon styles.

The quality of a show is not based on whether it is episodic or not. Doraemon is a great kids show, and it's episodic! Nothing really strings together in it, and that's okay!

And now for a final thought, try THIS on for size. Sentai shows like Power Rangers, Ultraman, and Kamen Rider are often marketed to little kids in Japan. We've seen anime like "Aka-chan to Boku" (Baby and Me) where little tykes often love watching their heroes in the shiny colorful costumes. Yet, sometimes the show can get really deep and even have a main character die in the story. If you don't believe me, try watching Power Rangers in the original Japanese without the editing of Saban to muck up the story.

If I can find a link to the comparison site, I'd send it.

Keep this in mind that not all animated shows for kids made in the United States are bad. There are some really good ones that I enjoy watching too. I'm 22 years old, male, and can watch these shows without feeling like my brain is turning to mush.

Perhaps I should clarify... I intend to be a father figure in a couple of years and I want to know that there are TV shows out there that will be good for my kids and shows that I can watch WITH them. I'm an anime fan, sure, but I also want to be a good parent! I would not be able to sit down and watch CatDog with my kids for more than a minute because the sheer monotony and clear attempts at shameless marketing with no substance will turn me off right away. Worse, it will pander to the kids to get them hooked and rot away their heads till CatDog is all they can think about. Look at Spongebob for a better example.

NOT gonna happen! I'm gonna make sure that they have good TV available for when they do watch TV and that they don't get roped into stuff that's just rehashed, sedated, marketing fluff! I want my kids to have taste.

I can find what I like without any problem, and I know what I like. I care about what's on kids TV now because I'm gonna want there to be something good on when the time comes for my kids to get into Saturday morning cartoons. Otherwise, why else would I care?

So to wrap up:

Dissapointed in American animation attempts for kids save (for rare exceptions on Network TV and most of what's on Cartoon Network).

Think anime aimed at kids would be beneficial for my future kids to watch due to the lessons and intelligent stories presented. (Yes, I'll stick to age appropriate stuff, but only my fiancee and I will decide what's age appropriate when the time comes. So NYEH!)

Happy that more anime is on kids TV because that keeps out bad American hack jobs like The Cramp Twins (now mercifully cancelled!)

And that about wraps up my feelings.

So now... typical anime fanboy point of view eh? HA HA HA!!

~Otaku-Man

Evangelion Unit 01 · Post by **Evangelion Unit 01** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 1:28 pm

Most kid shows now a days I really can't stand, but some of the old school kid shows that I watched when I was young I think are still awsome. My favorites would have to be Ren and Stimpy, Rocks modern life, as A kid they were and now they are still. There are only really two kid shows I like now a lot and that is Ed, Edd, & Eddy, and Sponge bob. Those are funny, and as for more adult cartoons that are still in america Simpons, Family Guy, and South Park. All of these shows are main stream and very funny, there was another one shown on Fox called American Dad I think and it was buy the same people that did Family Guy. I thought that show was pretty funny two, I only saw one episode and that was the first so I wonder if they are still showing it or not. But anyway those shows rock.

One last one I liked when I was really young was rugrats. The old orginal one wa awsome not the new ones, and my favorite episode would definatly be Sand Ho! They hardly show it, but man that was funny

!

Zephyrias · Post by **Zephyrias** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 7:38 pm

SarahtheBoring wrote:So... blood automatically makes a series good?

Okay.

(I get what you're saying, but the way you said it... just... no.)

Okay, sorry, my bad. I was typing about a particular series but then deleted it, and I forgot to change that last part.

To add on to what I said, although I personally dislike the majority of American cartoons, the ones I think are complete crap are the ones that teach young kids absolutely nothing.

I mean, what can series like 'Spongebob' or 'Cow and Chicken' teach little kids? How to sing "I'm ready! I'm ready!" or start looking at the butt sizes of people? In the end, it's just taking steps backward for children's maturity.

Even though I really don't like shows such as 'Samauri Jack' and 'Static Shock', I think that they at least give a somewhat positive message to kids, such as to never give up and the value of friendship.

I'm sure that I haven't seen nearly as much anime for kids as I've seen American cartoons for kids, but I found that all of the anime series I've seen give a good message to children. Series like 'Cardcaptor Sakura', 'Hamtaro', and 'Digimon' show kids themes like friendship, working together, and self-confidence.

While some people may find the crude (and sometimes sick) humor attempts of shows like 'Cow and Chicken', 'CatDog', and 'Ed, Edd, and Eddy' funny, I think that the best kids shows are the ones that teach good morals and lessons. I feel that American cartoons put too much value on dense humor and random spasms rather than the ones that would benefit our youth. A good deal are probably just doing it for the money.

Declan_Vee · Post by **Declan_Vee** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 3:41 am

Bah, the art of a the good childrens animation aka "cartoon" died in the early 90s.

OtakuMan22 · Post by **OtakuMan22** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 9:59 am

Really? Where would you say it died and with what series?

~Otaku-Man

Declan_Vee · Post by **Declan_Vee** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 4:29 pm

You can't pinpoint it towards a particular series. Things were already showing strong deterioration by 1989. Things just crumbled.

MomochiZabuza · Post by **MomochiZabuza** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 5:01 pm

Man, I dont know about anyone else...but I love the animated movies for kids that came out (a long time ago). What about movies like The Land Before Time, Ferngully, The Great Mouse Detective, and The Rescuers Down Under. Man, I loved those movies... and they were good quality. In fact I still watch them now because I am a kid at heart.

I like animated movies like this.

supersayian313 · Post by **supersayian313** » Wed Apr 06, 2005 9:44 pm

EmilLang1000 wrote:You have to look at it this way
Early 90's - ANYTHING goes...either country (Ren & Stimpy, thank you.)
Now - Spongebob's as bad as you're gonna get; Batman Beyond and Zim got canceled cause they were "too violent for children." Japan, well, their TVY7 is what we call TVPG... ain't it grand?

wow batman beyond, i forgot about that one. that was one of the last shows i was into before i got seriously into anime. thats why i jumped into anime, because everything on american tv was starting to suck. it was addicting to watch a series that continued the story in every episode, other than ,like american cartoons, something major happens then in the next episode it forgotton and never referred to again. like when i got into dbz i was like wow. you cant wait to see the next episode to continue the story.

OtakuMan22 · Post by **OtakuMan22** » Thu Apr 07, 2005 7:02 am

This would make for another great thread: episodic versus continuing storyline!

But to add on that, I find episodic shows, like Adventures of the Mini-Goddesses, Azumanga Daioh (sort of), and certain episodes of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (half are "Stand Alone" while the other half are "Complex"), can be very intelligent or entertaining without having to delve into a continuing storyline.

DORAEMON! DUH!!! Why didn't I think of that one earlier! Or Detective Conan (Case Closed in the USA).

These shows go on episodic content, but they do things right by having a beginning, middle, and end. Characters don't get stuck on an island or horribly wounded before coming back in another episode like nothing happened.

Where I'm going is that a show that's episodic does NOT have to be bad! If the writers do a good job of providing enough stimulation to last and then leave you satisfied at the end without feeling like they left something in the air.

Damn, it's still not coming out right. How to put into the words the concept that I've got in my head. Perhaps I should re-do this after I wake up a bit more.

~Otaku-Man