Anime. I don't get it

[LongAndShort]

Mate of mine trying to convince me of the joys of anime used to say "its hot chicks and excessive violence, what's not to love?"

Personally i find it varies from show to show. There are some i like and some (many) i don't.

 

[TheFacelessOne]

Don't worry. I don't get it either.

I only watch Avatar. Even that is arguably a cartoon.

 

[BK-110]

I really don't understand what you're trying to say. Might as well ask "What's the big deal with video games?". In anime, there's a story, characters, animation. And if you like the result of these mixed together, with anime's distinct style, you like anime. It's as simple as that. Like with games, TV shows, comics.

 

[azurawolf]

I have grown to like anime. There is an anime for just about everyone. Most of the people I know are really into anime and they got me started on it. I will watch all kinds of anime. One Piece, Pokemon, Zoids, Trinity Blood, Naruto. It just depends on what you like.

 

[sumanoskae]

Depends on the anime, you can't judge them all based on bad ones. If I played a shitty video game and decided I didn't get video games I would be generalizing. Which anime did you watch?

 

[Terramax]

I don't know why anyone likes all the cutsy, childish stuff that's released nowaday, but back in the 90's I love anime because it didn't talk down to me/ didn't treat me like a child.

Check out the more mature stuff like Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex, Akira, Ninja Scroll, Evangalion, Studio Ghibli's older works, Dominion Tank Police and 3x3 Eyes.

Fantastic storytelling, fantastic visuals. That's what anime was about. Then pokemon destroyed everything.

 

[theklng]

Anime =/= A Genre

actually it is a genre. it is distinguished by being animated cartoons from japan rather than the rest of the world. compare to the folk music of different countries.

 

[Woodsey]

It's interesting because it's better than real life
more interesting things happen. and not to the viewer, so they don't suffer the consequences.

Huh? You mean like in films, TVs, books and games? I don't think you need anime for that.

I've never got it, never will and to me it's the ultimate nerdism. And it may be popular on here if that's what you mean, but I only know one person in real life who even acknowledges it.

 

[Smudge91]

I'm basically going to repeat what everyone else has said. Anime has different genre's like books and movies. Anime are cartoons basically and the style in how they are made makes it anime or not. I like some anime where as there are others which i just refuse to watch .

 

[historybuff]

I dont understand what the big deal with anime is, other than .hack, i just dont understand what its about

if you please enlighten me about why everybody loves it, that would be nice

As to that:

... That's like asking why people like movies or television in general. There are many different types of anime and not everyone likes all of them. So it isn't really possible to answer properly.

This. There are tons of genres of anime. Asking someone to lump them all together is just kind of not-productive.

There is anime for sports fanatics, for people who like romance, comedy, action, horror, blood and gore, crime, young boys' anime (primarily stuff like DBZ and Pokemon), young girls' anime (stuff like Card Captor Sakura and Sailor Moon), porn, adventure, fantasy, sci-fi and paranormal. There are ones based on historical novels and plays (The Count of Monte Cristo has an anime and so does Romeo and Juliet and Les Miserables).

So I mean, seriously. Anime is not just one thing---it's many, many, many things that a western eye associates primarily with Pokemon or Dragonball Z. But anyone who's watched Lain, Cowboy Bebop, Ranma 1/2, any good Gundam series, Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni, The Count of Monte Cristo, Hellsing--can tell you that there's some excellent storytelling and real artistic expression to be had. Not with all of it, of course. But different people like different genres.

 

[Gebi10000]

I agree with just about evry one else here and say, it depends what you watch.90% of anything is crud the other 10% is brilliant. try deathnote or code geass, or heck if your in to mind rape even try neon genesis evangelion

 

[Bakaferret]

... That's like asking why people like movies or television in general. There are many different types of anime and not everyone likes all of them. So it isn't really possible to answer properly.

I personally have only watched around 10 different anime shows (not including kids shows when I was younger such as pokemon), I am extremely picky with what ones I watch just like with regular television. I by no means consider myself an anime "fan".

My thoughts exactly. If you lump anime into one huge category like that, your only impression of what "anime" is must be pokemon, .hack and dragon ball z.

It's interesting because it's better than real life
more interesting things happen. and not to the viewer, so they don't suffer the consequences.

Huh? You mean like in films, TVs, books and games? I don't think you need anime for that.

I've never got it, never will and to me it's the ultimate nerdism. And it may be popular on here if that's what you mean, but I only know one person in real life who even acknowledges it.

You must be referring to anime fanatics. I don't understand how liking a type of media makes someone the "ultimate nerd". It's like saying "I don't understand why people like TV. It's the ultimate stupid prep thing." when all you've seen is MTV reality TV shows. Honestly, there is a LOT of anime I don't like. A few shows are very intriguing though. And a few are just silly fun. Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

 

[StarStruckStrumpets]

Some is good. Some is bad. Just like with everything. Akira is an excellent film, Death Note is very clever and Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann...well, that's just flat out crazy awesome.

I loved the part about crazy awesome. I have to agree though, some is good, some is downright terrible (if any of you know of Eiken, you'll know what I mean), and some is mediocre.

 

[RabbitDynamite]

While its certainly true that anime is a diverse medium, I can't help but feel this not a sufficient answer by itself. You do not find many sites on google devoted to "action anime" or "romance anime",you find anime sites. I myself have watched anime shows of genres I wouldn't touch if they were live action shows on british television. If animeis just a particualr medium produced in a particular country, why are there not communities and conventions of Americans devoted to thw wonders of,say, Chinese live-action television or South African drama.

The only thing I can think of is that Japan is the only country I know of where animation is such a widely accepted and diverse medium for storytelling. So what are the advantages ofanimation? Is it just the vibrant, love-or-hate it look? Is it the fact that its easier to convincingly portray a wider variety of subjects? Do the relatively low costs encourage off-beat and idiosyncratic shows like Kaiba, Kino's Travels or Evangelion? Or is it that xenophilia makes anime look exotic and vibrant to eyes unused to it?

 

[Lord Mountbatten Reborn]

I don't watch Anime - at least, not since my boyhood yoofz, where I watched Pokemon, so I have no real opinion on it, but as long as you can put through a good story I don't really mind. If it's derivitive tosh however, then I'll just have a grumpy face for the rest of the week.

 

[CaptainCrunch]

A lot of what I've seen happening in action movies follows the form of action anime. It's just a visual storytelling medium capable of mature themes, adult situations, and innovative forms of violence. I realize it's a complicated way of saying "cartoons for grownups," but that's why I like it.

The only thing I can think of is that Japan is the only country I know of where animation is such a widely accepted and diverse medium for storytelling. So what are the advantages ofanimation? Is it just the vibrant, love-or-hate it look? Is it the fact that its easier to convincingly portray a wider variety of subjects? Do the relatively low costs encourage off-beat and idiosyncratic shows like Kaiba, Kino's Travels or Evangelion? Or is it that xenophilia makes anime look exotic and vibrant to eyes unused to it?

The advantage of animation is the ability to do things that would otherwise be inconceivable in a live action production. Japanese anime tends to be extremely stylized, which is why we wind up with the "love-or-hate it" look. When you boil down any style of motion art (live action, anime, what have you), the root of everything out there is a story build on myth. Since Japan has a big pot of mythology to dip into, I think they have an advantage over other regions when it comes to anime.

I speak not from the perspective of an anime fan, but a movie fan.

 

[Beatrix]

Nobody's forcing you to "get anime", it's too varied material to really be called a genre.
If you want to get it then I suggest you just go and get it, there's quite probably something in there for everyone.

Of course I'm only kidding, it's about giant robots, girls in short skirts and tentacles. What's not to get?

 

[ThePeaceFrog]

It's Jappan's graphical portrayal of Western Culture through an Eastern mindset, its what happens when your entire culture is pretty much wiped off the map by a concentrated application of fire and radioactive fallout and than rebuilt by outsiders.

 

[Syntax Error]

Anime is great because it's not Reality TV. See what I did there?

 

[tsb247]

I'm not really a fan of anime either. OP, you aren't alone.