Anybody around here watch the Anime?

[Naruzeldamaster]

I tend to discuss with a lot of people who like anime vastly more than I do, so the chances of me missing something are slim. Plus, I do read manga as well.

I usually just fast forward through the scenes. When people talk about 'filler' this is usually what I think of, otherwise I don't agree that filler even exists. I honestly just don't want any romance at all, it's never needed and is always terrible. Early on Jiraya is absolute trash who adds nothing to the story, just like Roshi, both of them don't do anything interesting until way after they are introduced and I'm not even on those parts yet.

At a certain point I'm just like if I want that content, then I will just watch 'adult' entertainment.

I'm the same way, unless I'm watching a Rom Com where that's the whole point, romance is fine being a B plot on the side or even a C plot.
If I'm watching something action heavy like Big O or Naruto, focus on the main attraction please. I've heard what happens to Sakura romance wise later in Naruto Shippuden and yeah, I'll pass.

That said, PROPER romance (Not old men having 'antics' ) has a place I think, but it has to be done well / believably.
I wouldn't call the relationship between the two main characters of Big O a 'romance' in the strictest sense of the word, but it's framed that way.

I'd be extra wary of those ahem 'adult' anime though. There's a reason a lot of those are 18+ and it's probably not because they're well portrayed romance lol A lot of them are 'slop' and fanservice.

Although there are a couple good ones that I have seen. Don't say I didn't warn ya haha.

That being said I don't mind a BIT of (legitimate, non 'antic' ) romance, particularly if it's light romance between the male and female lead. But I'm a firm believer in a time and place for everything.

 

[ThrillhoBaggins]

I just don't watch rom-coms at all, and I didn't mean adult anime.

For me, overall anime doesn't work because they incorporate this way too much, it takes a long time for me to get through an already long anime as a result. Romance is just a waste of time in these sorts of stories, to be honest. There's a literal world ending threat and you want me to care about who is in a relationship with who? It's just very 90s teen drama to me.

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

I just don't watch rom-coms at all, and I didn't mean adult anime.

For me, overall anime doesn't work because they incorporate this way too much, it takes a long time for me to get through an already long anime as a result. Romance is just a waste of time in these sorts of stories, to be honest. There's a literal world ending threat and you want me to care about who is in a relationship with who? It's just very 90s teen drama to me.

I see what you mean you are not a fan of romance in general and feel it's not needed in an action show. That's an opinion I can understand.

I personally think romance can be...fine, my pet peeve is when it 'distracts' too much from the main attraction, again, set aside romantic comedies because that's part of the genre. I am not the biggest fan of forced/contrived romance (Some shows kind of 'force' the male lead and female lead together, and it's always annoying when that happens) but as my signature says I'm addicted to character interaction and good chemistry moments. Some of those moments big or small are my favorite moments in anime (Not even the blowing shit up parts) and I don't think that will change. I do agree that some genres don't 'need' a romantic sub plot, but I'm not the one writing the Manga/Show so I can't really do anything about it.

But like I said, every writing device has a place, and it's up to the author to decide that place. The fans can either love it or hate it, or try to 'fix' it with fanfiction (And that's a whole other rabbit hole)

 

[ThrillhoBaggins]

I don't know, I just feel like you can always tell that the author is either doing it solely because the audience expects/wants it or they decided to have a male and a female lead solely for that purpose.

 

[casval]

I like a lot of 70s and 80s anime - usually 25 to 50 episodes, enough room to develop a story and have a couple of characterful aside episodes, but not the only show I am watching for the next year and a half.

I'm not particularly loyal to any genre though, I tend to find directors I like and stick with them.

Yoshiyuki Tomino and Osamu Dezaki are two of my faves. Tomino is most famous for creating Gundam, but my faves of his are Space Runaway Ideon (more of a 'golden age of sci-fi'-style to it than Gundam) and Zambot-3 (a goofier monster-of-the-week show, though the death toll is still in the millions). Dezaki is more of a melodrama guy, a couple of his classics a Ashita no Joe (a boxing anime about how boxing is evil) and Rose of Versailles (a French Revolution story, lots of petty court politics episodes that end in 'it is now 21 years until she gets her head cut off for this'-type narration).

There are some great modern anime, too, but the 12/13-episode season length usually just means I wait however many years for a show to finish before getting too into them. Jaduugar, for instance, is a really beautiful show so far about Töregene Khutan and her favorite, Fatima, but with only 13ep/season... it'll be a decade before it gets to the events that made them famous.

 

[ThrillhoBaggins]

I can usually find something enjoyable about each anime, or shows in general, but sometimes if the cons outweigh the pros, then I will pick something else to watch over it every time so it takes me longer to finish it.

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

I can usually find something enjoyable about each anime, or shows in general, but sometimes if the cons outweigh the pros, then I will pick something else to watch over it every time so it takes me longer to finish it.

I do the same, usually if an anime is short-ish and not too offensive/stupid I will push through to the end though. Sometimes they end up being good in the end and just get off to a bad start.

I tend to find more good than bad with the shows that I watch. Though I will give up on a show if the first 5 episodes are rife with 'antics' as we called them or worse, fanservice. A bit of fanservice now and then won't spoil a show for me, usually, but don't overload the first 5-15 episodes of the show with it lol honestly kind of sends the wrong message even if the show ends up being good. Let the characters stand on their own two feet please lol

Video Girl gave up on it's initial 'joke' first episode (I was both saddened and relieved tbh) but I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. It was just wholesome goodness and not much humor except the few times they reference she's from a video tape. If you want to see a good rom com that's a bit silly, and has a trippy as heck ending, check that one out. Not quite Chobits level of goodness, but still fun.

Dog Days was another good one, just a light and fluffy anime with good/fun characters. I don't remember if it was labeled explicitly as a Rom Com but I vaguely remember the plot being good.

 

[ThrillhoBaggins]

Technically speaking I push through to the end too, it just might be years later. Like I know I like Dragon Ball GT and Dragon Ball Z better from the few glimpses I had of them, but, since I have to go through Dragon Ball first, it is taking an unbelievably long time.

 

[xena]

Yeah, after being 'gone' from it for a while it's hard to know what's good or not.

And there's soooo many new releases??!! There's shows I didn't even know got new seasons!

 

[ThrillhoBaggins]

I think that a lot of people would be glad if anime wasn't so mainstream anymore. But, to me, the problems with anime were there long before it got picked up by everyone else. The fans can be difficult, but they would only be a symptom of the overall issue, not the issue itself.

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

And there's soooo many new releases??!! There's shows I didn't even know got new seasons!

When I was still following anime, there were like at least 10-15 new shows coming out every 'season' (Spring / Summer/ Wall / Finter) I don't know if that's still the case.

It was getting to a point where I was having a hard time sifting through them all to find the good ones. ( I DID occasionally find 'hidden gems' though) Very rarely did I find 'gold' like Frieren etc, at least not to that level of goodness. But still. I got surprised by the few I did watch.

There was this one I checked out that seemed interesting and was like 'oo I'll watch it when there's more than one episode' but I instantly forgot the name of it XD I remember thinking it was cool but a bit on the edgelord side though.

I think that a lot of people would be glad if anime wasn't so mainstream anymore. But, to me, the problems with anime were there long before it got picked up by everyone else. The fans can be difficult, but they would only be a symptom of the overall issue, not the issue itself.

A lot of anime 'communities' are kinda bad TBH, lot of purists and 'serious' fans there's a reason people parody anime fans a lot even in 'real' shows.
Not every fandom is garbage though, or rife with purists. Chobits fanbase is pretty chill for example, but then Chobits is a pretty chill show.

I try not to interact with too many of them (the fanbases) because it's hard to get a read on how they're really like.

 

[pmmg]

But, to me, the problems with anime were there long before it got picked up by everyone else.

What problems were those?

 

[ThrillhoBaggins]

Mainly the ones we already discussed.

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

What problems were those?

Often unneeded fanservice for one (Although what qualifies as 'fanservice' depends on the individual) sometimes I have seen fanservice done well.

Characters who mostly exist to flirt with the opposite gender (or get into similar antics like Jiraya from Naruto) because 'haha being punished is funny' is another one. I don't think it's as common as Baggins is making it out to be though. But when it does happen, it's usually obnoxious. America actually has a character of this archetype in the form of Peppe Le Pew. And Jhony Bravo but Jhony is pretty tame tbh.

I don't mind these as much as most people if the character is otherwise likable. When he's not being a hopeless goober Brock is fine.

 

[pmmg]

Okay... Romantic plots, and some on screen silliness are not the things I would identify with problematic with anime, but I do sometimes wonder out loud things like....So the bad guy kidnapped your friend, and you are afraid he is going to kill him, and you think the most important thing to do right now is make sure the hero does not get away with his lewd comment.

But...as that is kind of the anime vibe, why would I be watching anime if I was not already expecting that kind of stuff? Anime is mostly aimed at a younger audience, and its trying to connect to them with that type of stuff.

 

[ThrillhoBaggins]

I will point out Zatch Bell once again. Not only Zatch Bell, but I think Yugioh as well. They are very good animes right out of the gate and, as far as I remember, never have to resort to anything like that. The story is able to breathe and speak for itself, which I think they do very well.

 

[Naruzeldamaster]

Okay... Romantic plots, and some on screen silliness are not the things I would identify with problematic with anime, but I do sometimes wonder out loud things like....So the bad guy kidnapped your friend, and you are afraid he is going to kill him, and you think the most important thing to do right now is make sure the hero does not get away with his lewd comment.

It really depends on the 'age group' the anime is targeting.
Anime aimed at adult audiences (Even more so the ahem 'adult' ones) seem to slip in that stuff without need. Some of the more flirty characters are genuinely creepy while others are much more harmless. I have seen Romances done well and tactfully. It really depends on the author of the manga and who's making the anime.

Ones aimed at younger audiences or even teen audiences don't tend to have that stuff unless it's a Rom Com.

But...as that is kind of the anime vibe, why would I be watching anime if I was not already expecting that kind of stuff? Anime is mostly aimed at a younger audience, and its trying to connect to them with that type of stuff.

I both like it and don't like it, my tolerance level for silliness goes a long way. But some moments cross the line of being silly. Most of the time I let it slide because Japan's humor is different than ours though.

 

[RoccO]

Japan has stopped making anime like they used to, I think it is time to say goodbye. The latest Ghibli movie was hard to follow, because the veil has been lifted. I sense the light dimming. The light of the balance that sustains the world. They have been making live action pieces most recently, like Mr. Queen and The Makanai: Cooking for Maiko House, which I think are well worth the effort. Before that they were branching out into what was the end of Jrock and the beginning of Kpop. When they begin with most things, it is the ending in some way. It is called going mainstream, and then selling out. The downfall was when Kotoko - Re-sublimity/Diawolf - Rebellion hit, and I think it is the same with the establishment of music composers, which is a lot of what happened when Gackt went solo after Japan X.

A good anime these days is something like A Whisker Away, which seems a morose debate about fringe society. Pokemon has apparently become taxidermy now, and they sold out with GITS for a younger audience. You must remember anime was aimed at adults half the time because the target audience was their demographic. They are showing some old japanese films at my local cinema, like Whisper of the Heart and Perfect Blue, because they know it is a cult following now, and on its way to heritage. Since streaming has arrived, there has been a change in a lot of the source material because you no longer need to go through a bunch of avenues that are milestones for educated producers who know what they are doing.

Following some of the stop animation that is going around, you can say that was the end of CGI in western society, and you could say CGI was the end of cartoon. Sure, something remains, but it is not what the kids are talking about at school. AI might just be the new genre, there is a lot of it going around and the lines are being blurred, it is not long until most places establish a style and theme for it, just as the producers and educators get a grip on the metric.

 

[pmmg]

Well...I did not watch Zatch Bell, but I did see yugioh. While I very much enjoyed the overthetop drama of a silly card game, I am not sure its success was because it had little or no romance in it. Or more to say, I probably could have had romance and still been a good show.

I'll also state that romance would not turn me off from an Anime, I thought it was actually a good part of the charm in Inuyasha.

I think, even for anime, the number one thing I still dont want is to be going BS, that would never happen, while I'm watching. For Inuyasha, I never quite came around to accepting that the character Coga would somehow escape having his shards taken from him. It always felt contrived that no one would let Inuyasha do what he needed to do.

 

[ThrillhoBaggins]

I think another big part of what I think made Zatch Bell and Yugioh feel like they had caught some magic was they started simple and if they got complex they slowly built up to that. They didn't add anything more than what they were. Whether that be games of chance or playing a card game to save the world. Despite having multiple seasons, at their core, that is what they were, and that took precedence over anything else. It is what hooked the audience and they didn't need to change it. Not saying you can never change it, of course, but it is more difficult to change what is working in an already existing project than it is to introduce it to the audience from scratch.