Anime/Manga: Why do YOU like it?

Status
Not open for further replies.
H

Ho-oh

New Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2009
Messages
1,550
Reaction score
2
Again, title summarizes everything. This is not meant to insult, troll, flame, or otherwise spark aggression.

Why do you like Japanese cartoons - plot, characters, other?

Oh yeah, and keep things civil, please.
 
I enjoy a good story. That's probably what I look for over anything else in whatever I watch/read (that and good characters). Anime and manga both just happen to be very good sources of these things.
 
Soundspeed said:
I enjoy a good story. That's probably what I look for over anything else in whatever I watch/read (that and good characters). Anime and manga both just happen to be very good sources of these things.
Click to expand...

This. American cartoons can't compare, IMO.
 
I was always a fan of cartoons since my childhood in the 80's (I can remember watching Hanna Barbera cartoons and the Smurfs on the kitchen television during the day even before I started school). When we finally got a VCR around 84 I think, I suddenly had even more great 'toons at my disposal through the local video rental place. I'd watch anything that looked interesting that I could get my hands on (most likely very few Japanese works as they weren't exactly commonplace yet). My love for animated works even continued on though my teenage years, though at this point animated works were generally seen as "kids stuff," so I didn't watch too much.

Then along came my one year at college, from fall 97 through spring 98. A guy down the hall had a major video collection, and through this guy I was introduced to two films that changed my life. Heavy Metal, and Akira. Heavy Metal I believe is a Canadian work, and this was the first time I had been exposed to an r-rated animated flick that I could say "wow, this is actually mature." Akira also introduced me to the world of Japanese animation, and quite a film to watch.

At this point I rediscovered my love for animations and started hunting down old VHS copies of childhood favorites, as well as more animated titles that weren't exactly for kids (along with my friend Rusty who shared a similar taste in movies). We generally stayed away from Japanese animation at this point though because generally when we'd see a title, the price tag would be rather high, and without knowing whether we'd really love it or not, we wouldn't want to spend 30+ bucks for a VHS tape. We still had a lot of amazing films to watch though, with varying qualities (oh christ, I still remember the bootleg "The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat" that we watched and loved... the video quality was pure shit, there were so many video dropouts that minutes would just be half static fuzz... but my god how we loved that film). Some of the films that we devoured through this point were midnight movie classics like the two Fritz the Cat movies, Down and Dirty Duck, Heavy Traffic, and Coonskin. Also around this

Somewhere around this point I started buying a little bit of Japanese titles as well (Rusty wasn't so much into them though, so I mainly watched alone). I was able to obtain my own copy of Akira (hard to find for ages until the Pioneer re-release came along), Fist of the North Star, Ninja Scroll, and more that I can't remember at the time. I really enjoyed these a bit, but then I discovered Miyazaki's works, which completely blew me away. At this point my animation purchases were mostly Japanese, and remain so, although a bit more balanced between Japanese and American now that I've built up my collection to a point where I don't feel the need to buy as much.

too long, didn't read version: I have always loved animation, anime is just a part of that love now.
 
The creativity. The beauty. Hayao Miyazaki movies pretty much spell it out for me. I think Japanese animation is unique and interesting. The ones that I watch, which are usually "slice of life", more realistic animes, are not only cute and funny, but also give a good insight into another culture.

I'm not going to diss American or other nation's cartoons, but if you ask me, they're not worth the time at all.
 
What Moo said

I mean, they both give the creators a huge oppurtunity to depict and convey their worlds in a way that CAN'T be achieved in a book or limited video game. Animation is an art form, and manga just adds to the fact that a picture is worth a thousand words.
 
Since Japanese animation and comics are taken more seriously than their counterparts in other areas of the world, they're made better.

As for me personally, I've been fond of anime ever since I watched My Neighbor Totoro as a small child. And then there were shows like Pokemon, Yugioh, Sailor Moon, Rurouni Kenshin, Yu Yu Hakusho, and Tenchi Muyo. And of course, what you watch while very young and impressionable defines what you like later in life, so that resulted in a lifelong love of anime.
 
Their entertaining. I love manga more than anime especially, because I like the idea of seeing the actions rather than reading about them. They really are not like American comics, that are just a bunch of superheroes. They actually, usually, have a plot that is trying to make a point. Hikaru no Go is the absolute peak of perfection in this regard.

I describe them as "books with pictures."

I like anime, but right now, I'm only talking about anime that hasn't been based off of manga. Code GEASS is my all-time favorite.
 
I like stories with actual continuity... stuff that doesn't go on forever like American Cartoons (and comics) have a tendency to do.
Of course that being said, Anime and Manga aren't immune to this (Yes I'm looking at you Pokèmon)

When a series continues beyond its scheduled ending (Dragoball did this, it was supposed to end after the Frieza-saga I think... instead they kept on introducing new villains that were the strongest in the world, overused Super-Saiyans so the original legend made no sense (one ever 10 000 years? SS level 2? 3?!) and when it actually DID end, some geniuses made up GT:disgust:) it tends to get old.
Of course its tempting to continue a popular series, but if you loose half your fans in the process it would have been much better to just let it end sooner.

Most American shows I've seen are composed by single episodes with no real plot that keeps them connected, and most of them are played for comedy. I can't really think of that many shows (that I've seen recently at least) that has an actual finale.

As for comics? I don't read any of the mainstream "serious" western comics, and this despite that I like seeing the movies about Spider-man and X-men. I tried reading the comics but I just got completely lost. I had no idea what was going on.
And this despite the fact that I bought an X-men book labeled Volume 1... sure it was volume 1, but following up on billions of other X-men series that came before it. :bash: AND IT DOESN'T END. Give me a manga that stops after 20 volumes and I'll be happy. At least it gives me a proper finale.
 
Not to mention that animes often try and convey a moral message. You dont get that in American cartoons. (In those you just get obnoxious slapstick >.<)
 
Mooites said:
Not to mention that animes often try and convey a moral message. You dont get that in American cartoons. (In those you just get obnoxious slapstick >.<)
Click to expand...

And if there is a message, its usually conveyed very blatantly. With anime, you actually have to think; stupid America. >=]
 
I love anime so much because of more scenes that are not found in its original manga, like Dragon Ball for example. I also enjoy hearing the Japanese voiceovers in animes and anime movies I have finished watching or currently following, because it's original and I stick with this version.

As for manga, I read more manga than watching anime too, no matter how old these books are in terms of print numbers. I really loved the amazing stories, its characters, and uncensored nonsense (ToLOVEru, Ichigo 100%) coming out of imported Manga that always includes dust covers, because reading a manga that I'm currently following keeps me occupied.
 
Mooites said:
Not to mention that animes often try and convey a moral message. You dont get that in American cartoons. (In those you just get obnoxious slapstick >.<)
Click to expand...

You and I grew up on different cartoons apparently. Back in the 80's we'd have cartoons that had a moral message, and many would even have a kinda public service announcement segment at the end, and the toons weren't really slapstick either (examples: G.I. Joe, Transformers, Thundercats, Ducktales).

While I didn't keep up with American cartoons in the late 90's and the 2000's so much, I am guessing that things are a lot different now (although now there is a very high quality block of animation on the public television stations that I have enjoyed watching from time to time that I could say has a lot of redeeming qualities and good lessons and morals).
 
Well, that was back in the '80s, when values were actually important.
 
Now now, let's be fair. There are contemporary exceptions with American shows (*coughAvatarcough*). It's just that good story, characters, and production are the majority in anime rather than the exception.
 
Soundspeed said:
Now now, let's be fair. There are contemporary exceptions with American shows (*coughAvatarcough*). It's just that good story, characters, and production are the majority in anime rather than the exception.
Click to expand...

I was hoping people would've caught on to what I was saying, and that I don't really like my statement, even though it is true. Values have been traded in for designer clothes and cell phones in America.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom