Why don't people like anime?

[Pegghead]

ANIME IS NOT SOME KIND OF PERFECT FORCE FROM SOME KIND OF SUPERIOR CONTINE-

Okay, look, not everyone has the same tastes. Anime is not simply the story that makes, no medium is. Admittedly it's a bit archaic to deny entire mediums so rather I'm going to focus more on genres, anime is a genre, the term anime simply encompasses all films and tv shows which share traits like taking heavy influence from Japan, the animation style, somewhat bizarre takes on humour, drama and bloodhsed and the list goes on.

Some people's tastes simply don't suit this, I'm not all that into anime but I've seen a few hap-hazard episodes of shows and the odd movie that I've enjoyed but at face value anime as a whole (the process of getting into it, the kinds of shows and films I could expect, the fanbase) just doesn't seem that appealing.

If there's an anime based on Mortal Engines, you bet your ass I'm watching it. If there's a thousand bland, complex animes which have characters and situations that don't interest me watching it just because it's anime is pretty stupid. The thing I can't believe is people who eiether exclusively watch/have their interest in anime or people who watch aniem just because it's anime, that's just beyond me.

 

[somonels]

Emos, that and the fact that 1 out of 5 is watchable, 1 out of 5 of those are good.

 

[Loki Cain]

I enjoy anime, with that said i am not a anime freak i enjoy anime sometimes kinda like drinking. I mean anime isnt weed.

 

[renzozuken2002]

ITT: A hundred responses saying "Because they have different tastes."

OT: I'm going to assume OP meant why there are people who go beyond just disliking it and down right hating it with a seething passion and getting angry at anyone who claims to enjoy the genre. (I know people like this, it's very annoying.)
Honestly, I'm not really sure what goes through their minds when they decide they are going to go on parade about something that doesn't even concern them. The above mentioned people also happen to "dislike" Twilight and go to watch the movie in the theater so they can intentionally be loud, giving off spoilers and ruining the movie for everyone. (BTW, I don't like Twilight either, however I hate it so much I don't go to see the movie.)

Anyways, I just go on with my anime watching ways ignoring them. I find I have a lot less stress when I ignoring all the nuisances in my life.

 

[phantasmalWordsmith]

i like it, looking for a new one to watch actually but don't want to do yet another recommendation thread. got one in mind anyway, Kuroshitsuji (AKA Black Butler). anyone seen it? someone mentiioned it a while ago and said they really liked it.

I saw that. not sure what to make of it entirely. sometimes its borderline yaoi, sometimes its got some gags, sometimes its got some action scenes, sometimes its got that evil psychopathic thing going on

 

[Danny Ocean]

I have heard this a lot on forums and irl, but I find it hard to understand. I can see older adults not liking it because they think its a kids' cartoon, but I know teenagers who understand the subject matter and still don't like anime. Disregarding hentai, what are your reasons for not liking anime?

The antimation is jarring and jerky to me. Especially the mouths. There's also the silly poses and crap some of them pull, and the silly clothes etc...

IT's not out of some societal pressure. I just don't like them for the most part.

 

[Count Igor]

I do sometimes, but most anime is completely over the top sexual inuendo type things. (Purely my experienceh here) so I don't care for most of it. The only one I've watched all the way through multiple times was Roshiro vs Vampire (Or something like that). Don't know why, but I loved it.

 

[Soviet Steve]

Every anime I've seen makes me cringe or laugh for the wrong reasons.

I've been exposed to the generic children's shows and I've also seen the deadspace anime movie, the latter of which felt it necessary to show a fat man's overgrown crotch.

My exposure to these things and the fact that I dislike Japanese culture in general means I have little love for it.

Edit: Almost forgot to mention, I find that anything but the still images also looks cheap, with characters frozen stiff while a gif animation of an expanding or shrinking bubble hovers somewhere around the region where the mouth should be for whatever character is speaking.

 

[superbatranger]

People are allowed different tastes.

Can I hear a /thread over here?

Amen and hallelujah, sister.

OT: I always thought people didn't like anime because of the art style, the negative stereotypes associated with the medium, the content and plot of the shows themselves. But, we can't expect everyone to like it, so it's all good.

 

[silentrob77]

I like some anime, I just dislike many of the hardcore fans and the stigma attached.
I've lived in Japan, I speak Japanese, my wifes Japanese (the third point being the reason for the first two).
I just get...I guess the best word is embarrassed by North Americans using words like "kawaii", "desu", "konnichiwa" and just butchering the pronunciation.

Case in point: I know this guy who called himself a Japanese name (his real name was like Mike or something). He was one of those guys who would hunt down all the Japanese checks and try to impress them with his "Japanese" which consisted of phrases he had learned watching anime. He ended up going to Japan on a workingholiday visa and came back to Canada like 6 months (or possibly less) later. He learned that the culture in Japan does not revolve around anime and chances are if you know a bunch of random obscure anime titles and try to pick up girls like that....you will get the same response there as if you did that here.

So thats my rant. Not hating on anime fans, just the ones who don't take the time to really understand the language or culture.

 

[blankedboy]

Well, I wouldn't know, because I love anime. I only just started watching, I've seen Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni and am now a chunk into Texhnolyze. I'm thinking either Ergo Proxy or Hellsing next, but that's probably gonna change at some point.

Either way, Higurashi pwns.

EDIT: I utterly despise kid's animes like Dragonball and Pokemon, for obvious reasons. Not to say that I wouldn't (hypothetically) enjoy a comedy one...

 

[PureChaos]

i like it, looking for a new one to watch actually but don't want to do yet another recommendation thread. got one in mind anyway, Kuroshitsuji (AKA Black Butler). anyone seen it? someone mentiioned it a while ago and said they really liked it.

I saw that. not sure what to make of it entirely. sometimes its borderline yaoi, sometimes its got some gags, sometimes its got some action scenes, sometimes its got that evil psychopathic thing going on

got a little bit of everything, should be good. what's yaoi?

 

[DarkPanda XIII]

Depends on the situation. For the most part, they get turned off by some of the heavy anime-ish scenarios that...is just annoying for alot. They don't get into it because they miss out on some of the cooler animes, or just can't really get into the artwork. It's..just not their thing, really.

Trolls just troll because Hater's got to hate, so ignore trolls that want to make fun of anime

 

[Wintermoot]

well some of it is a bit too sugary sweet to the point my eyes want to puke cotton candy (just look at lucky star) I,m not hating Lucky star but its a bit too sugary sweet for me to enjoy

 

[Wintermoot]

I like some anime, I just dislike many of the hardcore fans and the stigma attached.
I've lived in Japan, I speak Japanese, my wifes Japanese (the third point being the reason for the first two).
I just get...I guess the best word is embarrassed by North Americans using words like "kawaii", "desu", "konnichiwa" and just butchering the pronunciation.

Case in point: I know this guy who called himself a Japanese name (his real name was like Mike or something). He was one of those guys who would hunt down all the Japanese checks and try to impress them with his "Japanese" which consisted of phrases he had learned watching anime. He ended up going to Japan on a workingholiday visa and came back to Canada like 6 months (or possibly less) later. He learned that the culture in Japan does not revolve around anime and chances are if you know a bunch of random obscure anime titles and try to pick up girls like that....you will get the same response there as if you did that here.

So thats my rant. Not hating on anime fans, just the ones who don't take the time to really understand the language or culture.

I think they,re called Weeabo,s (please dont bat me) I hate them to

 

[Hateren47]

Anime is, to me, Japanese escapism. I don't get it, I'm not Japanese. I like some of the classical themes and recognise stories like Journey to the West but it's still not really my thing. It's just too weird for me + I'm getting too old for cartoons. I did like it as a kid though but I only saw stuff like DB/DBZ(Cool. Superheroes), Fist of the North Star(Whoa bloody), Akira(Which I will never understand) and Uproar/Havoc in heaven (MONKEY!!). As I got a little older anime just stopped being cool.

Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

Havoc in Heaven doesn't counts as anime though because it's Chinese.

 

[Fetzenfisch]

I dont like the way of depiction at all. Which makes it hard to give it even a chance, as soon as i see oversized eyes, way too big swords, screaming girls in front of a flashing backround wit a face like this ^U^ i get disgusted and turn it of.
Thats it, plain and easy.
Plus most lil anime fans telling me that the crap on tv everyday, way past the 300 episodes is anything near watchable. When i worked in a comic book store about 10 years ago, i quite enjoyed to read the First Dragon Ball comics, still dont like the style, but they were quite funny. The series was butchered to nothing, everything remotly offensive was cut out in the worst way,which leaves behind a bad dubbing and a few pieces of eastern imagery that no one here understands or probably even recognises and the rediculous fighting scenes are pumped up to infinity, so that a regular episodes consists out of 3 spoken sentences (animated with 1-5 pictures) and 20 minutes of boring world explosion.
I could enjoy Deathnote to a degree, because of the story, at least up to the point L died, the new "antagonists" were just as bad as i expect from anime.


I really like a lot "cartoons for children" and animated movies. But most stuff i get presented from anime is way less believable than everything disney or pixar ever made.
If you go way over the top, deep into space of ridicule and sillyness, then dont try to tell me you mean it serious at the same time. Thats the whole problem.
If you got 12 year old megaheroes with extreme uberpowers, dont let them try to be toughguys, it just doesnt work. And god dammit start a little bit lower, if you have to give them more power every few episodes, then it wont interest me at all if one blow now explodes 3 planets and not 2 any more. You are just trying way too hard to impress.
Thats all aimed at the most lil fanboys popular series, I know there are a lot more and quite some mature ones. But The Bad stuff killed any interest in me to give them a chance despite the art style i dont like.