Explain Anime to an outsider

[Vault101]

So......this "Anime" thing whats it all about?

as you can tell I never got into, or even know anything about this japanise stuff, only anime I was ever interested in was Pokemon, you know when it was huge (I didnt even liek it that much, I just thourght I did)Really I prefer western animation for obvious reasons

so I mean dose all of it mostly conform to alot of streotypes? and conventions? is it as weird as everyone says? what is it about anime that some geeks love so much?

EDIT:Thanks for all the descriptions! Im not sure if I would want to get into anime (though I can see the apeal of the awsome stuff) But I wanted to get a better understanding of somthing that seems so huge and yet I know practically nothing about it

 

[Tanis]

Anime is like any media - there's good stuff, there's crap, there's things that will blow-your-kind.

 

[Dango]

so I mean dose all of it mostly conform to alot of streotypes? and conventions? is it as weird as everyone says? what is it about anime that some geeks love so much?

It depends on the genre. Shounen anime (anime made for teenage boys, the most popular are action animes like Naruto and Bleach) generally tends to meet stereotypes. If you look past that, though then you'll find way more variety than you'd expect.

 

[FortyPercent]

It really can not be summarised easily. If I were to say all games were Mario, Pokémon or Call of Duty, I'd be making a stupid generalisation of a gigantic, and diverse medium of entertainment and artistic expression. The same applies here.

Anime is the specific subsection of the animation medium that denotes works released in Japan. Many people pay specific interest to this subsection because it's a section that attempts to escape the boundaries of animation in the public eye a lot more than other sections. I have nothing against the western animation industry, but it's settling with the 'family' image, only breaking out of it for cheap referential humour ala Family Guy, South Park and Simpsons, has caused stagnation and are stopping the western animation industry from making anything truly original. They still make great stuff, like Wall-E but not nearly as on a regular basis and not nearly as diversely as Japanese studios do, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, Mind Game, Kara No Kyoukai 1 - 7 to name just a few theatrical movies.

Compared to most sections of the animation medium, anime is a lot more diverse. There are action and comedy, like you'd expect, but it does go beyond that, with romance and mystery series, sometimes specifically aimed at adults. It has it's low brow and high brow stuff and it's that diversity that makes it so interesting to many people.

I actually enjoy animation and it's culture for similar reasons to why I enjoy video gaming and it's culture. They're both relatively fast growing mediums that are often treated like they're childish, when they offer things no other medium has to offer. And I think anime has the best examples of what animation has to offer. Something like the Kara No Kyoukai series or Mind Game? Could never exist if the entire animation industry was like the western one.

 

[Lord Devius]

snip

...This post is just about it.

Translation: Ninja'd, mostly /thread now.

Anime is just animation from Japan. That's all it really denotes.

 

[smearyllama]

All you need to know is that there is a show called Trigun, in which a pacifist gunman in a post-apocalyptic world seeks to bring love and peace to society.

This show is made of epic.

 

[Trivun]

So......this "Anime" thing whats it all about?

as you can tell I never got into, or even know anything about this japanise stuff, only anime I was ever interested in was Pokemon, you know when it was huge (I didnt even liek it that much, I just thourght I did)Really I prefer western animation for obvious reasons

so I mean dose all of it mostly conform to alot of streotypes? and conventions? is it as weird as everyone says? what is it about anime that some geeks love so much?

This is the only answer, I reckon, that will tell you what anime is without an over-generalisation that is really inaccurate and biased. Basically, anime is cartoons, like in the West, but Japanese. And done with a particular style of art that is quite different to what we see in the West. Regarding content, basically imagine any random TV show, then animate it instead, and there's bound to be an anime somewhere for it. Though fair enough, most anime seems to be full of either fanservice, sword fights, giant mechs, the supernatural, sci-fi, or any combination of those, that isn't true for all.

As a starter, watch the following. These are probably the best anime series to get into to really understand what anime is about and that you're likely to enjoy...

- Death Note
- The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (check the internet, make sure you watch the Chronological Order, rather than airing order, to avoid confusion).
- School Days, especially the last bits .

 

[Johnnyallstar]

Tentacle. Rape.

That is all.


Yes, I know there's more to it than that, but none of you mentioned it yet.

 

[DarthFennec]

There are a lot of different types of Anime, it can't all just be generalized into one thing. Consider how Western animation can't all be put in one category. I like a lot of anime, and I don't like a lot of anime, and it really depends on which shows and which genres you ask about.

I've seen plenty of people watch a couple of episodes of Naruto and come to the conclusion that all anime sucks. That's exactly like watching a couple of episodes of Spongebob Squarepants and coming to the conclusion that all cartoons suck. There are just as many types and flavors and genres and age groups and styles of anime as there are of Western cartoons.

Some genres conform to conventions and stereotypes, and some don't. It really mostly depends on the target audience. People who have posted before me have put it better than I could, I think.

 

[FortyPercent]

And done with a particular style of art.

Not necessarily. Look at Mind Game (or anything by Yuasa really), or Panty and Stocking, or Shin-chan. They don't look anything like the typical style most would associate with anime but they are anime. The perpetuation that all anime follow a set style is a bit silly, I think, since part of the mediums diversity is in it's design. Yuasa, especially, does works with some pretty vivid and crazy designs, and I'm also a big personal fan Imaishi's crazy as hell use of shading.

Also, about Haruhi... chronological order isn't really the best way to watch it. It was aired in the order it was aired in for a reason, and similar, the novels were released in such an order too. That said, if someone was watching it as one of the first anime, then yeah, chronological order would be better, so as not to avoid confusion or put them off watching further.

 

[Drakmeire]

Like all other forms of media with good shows (Higurashi no naku ni), bad shows (Garzey's Wing), and a few explicitly awesome shows (Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann).

It's good if you have friends who are fans so they can steer you the right way to find some good shows. That's the reason that it took me until about my 8th series to find a bad show.
Word of warning, Anime like everything else, can be addictive.
I hate if someone says they hate ALL anime since there is such a variety everyone is bound to find something they like.

There are MANY stereotypes that certain genres will use but it's no more than all the reused plots from sitcoms or action movies. and every once in awhile a series will break new ground is really cool ways.

as for weirdness...
well this happens
<youtube=2vBUaGP7L3w>
Bokusatsu Tenshi Dokuro-Chan (Bludgening angel: Dokuro-chan)
Hilarious show.

In closing:
to enter the fandom I suggest Fullmetal Alchemist, Death Note, Trigun, and maybe Soul Eater since they are fairly normal and grounded in a straight-forward story structure with nothing overly "weird"
afterword I suggest Neon Genesis Evangelion, FLCL, Higurashi no Naku ni, and perhaps Welcome to the NHK as they are more experimental and hard to grasp, and best enjoyed as a form of artistic expression.

 

[Zydrate]

They're cartoons. From Japan.

Explanation over.

They do tend to be more mature (even the super tame ones) than American cartoons. They tend to be in depth.

 

[aeroblaster]

Anime is a more cinematic approach to animation. You'll notice western animation is mostly only shown from a few points of view, most commonly the side view, which I find to be pretty bland sometimes. (not to say that the shows themselves are bad, they can be quite good)
Examples
http://www.confusereviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Chowder-group.jpg
http://www.animatedviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/flapjack-2.jpg
http://images.starpulse.com/Photos/Previews/Dexters-Lab-tv-14.jpg

It almost looks like a sitcom

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Skoh-lE8sO0/SAwB0ixdTNI/AAAAAAAAHk0/D-D1LtY3gvM/s400/116%2BSitcom.jpg

Always shown from that point of view...

Anime on the other hand, is very dynamic. Cinematic in nature, showing things from many different angles.

looking up
http://threatqualitypress.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/anime-gunsword-11.jpg

looking down
http://img3.lln.crunchyroll.com/i/spire2/08012008/6/1/7/6/6176a57616e060_full.jpg

any angle really
http://i.ytimg.com/vi/QHej01Mibyg/hqdefault.jpg

Plus it's usually drawn WAY more detailed than any western animation.

 

[Drakmeire]

SNIP

and then this comes along and screws up all comparisons.
http://images4.fanpop.com/image/photos/18500000/Panty-Stocking-anime-18530759-500-283.gif
artstyle changes so much in the show, I don't think comparing western to eastern animation even matters at this point.

 

[Et3rnalLegend64]

Well, first thing would to remind yourself and anyone around you that anime is a medium and not a genre. As said above, generalizing anime is like saying video games are Mario, Pokemon, and Call of Duty. Anyway, the Japanese call all animated cartoons "anime" as short for "animation." We in the west use it to refer to Japanese animation, either because we're misguided or because it's simpler to differentiate them that way.

Does it conform to stereotypes? List some and I'll get back to you on it.

What is it that makes geeks love it so much? There's probably a camp that likes it "just because it's Japanese." Part of that camp probably only listens to the Japanese audio track without exception too. Some might like it for the unique animation. Maybe it's because it isn't strictly aimed at little kids or are entirely inappropriate like cartoons are here (South Park and a lot of Adult Swim makes up the latter). There are a lot of reasons and you can't just pin down one.

 

[Saelune]

Anime is just a style. It has any kind of show like anything else. You want drama? Theres an anime for it. You want action? Theres an anime for it. Comedy, romance, crime mysterys, sci-fi, fantasy, whatever. I cant stand people who hate anime because they think it is all one thing. Only fair reason, is you hate the style.

 

[Et3rnalLegend64]

Anime is a more cinematic approach to animation. You'll notice western animation is mostly only shown from a few points of view, most commonly the side view, which I find to be pretty bland sometimes. (not to say that the shows themselves are bad, they can be quite good)

Anime on the other hand, is very dynamic. Cinematic in nature, showing things from many different angles.

Plus it's usually drawn WAY more detailed than any western animation.

Add all of this to my point.

SNIP

and then this comes along and screws up all comparisons.
http://images4.fanpop.com/image/photos/18500000/Panty-Stocking-anime-18530759-500-283.gif
artstyle changes so much in the show, I don't think comparing western to eastern animation even matters at this point.

Haha, I was wondering if I should mention that show. Leave it up to Studio Gainax to utterly destroy the line separating Western and Eastern animation.