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Anime - why is it so looked down upon?


Nintendoddysey

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Honestly I think its an industry image thing...I get the same reaction or the other famous one "You like cartoon bruh?". Sigh. Then I use a friendship breaking face punch to illustrate how anime shows are not cartoons. xD 

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Years and years (and years) ago science fiction was viewed the same way.  If you were interested in "science fiction" then it was assumed that you were mainly after the large-breasted women of Venus.  Even Star Trek TOS was considered scandalous.  My god.. just having Uhura on the bridge was bad enough, but when she and Kirk kissed on-screen that one time I thought people were really going to lose it.  :) (It didn't help that the morality-play aspect of the show actively tried to push the envelope.. and not incidentally push peoples' buttons in so doing.)  It really wasn't until "serious" movies like  2001: A Space Odyssey  made a splash that people started to tolerate SF, and it wasn't until Star Wars that it became anything approaching mainstream. 

Why?  I don't know.  Part of it is that most people like staying in their comfort zones.  Part of it is that the first thing that people usually hear about something is the extreme examples, and often those are negative.  From there they generalize that the whole subject must be tainted and start to erect barriers.  Very few people get to know the medium well enough to discover the good parts as well as the bad.  Often other politics like nationalism or religion reinforce the barriers to understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment.  People should keep an open mind and learn everything they can about a topic before deciding to blacklist it, but that all too often doesn't happen.

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Sadly, that is a very common stereotype.  I attended one anime panel that really focused in on debunking the "everyone into hentai" stereotype is, even going to the point of showing sales from the 80s and 90s of hentai versus the number of anime fans during the same timeframe.  It was very interesting.  I wish I still had the guy's information.  I found my convention booklet for that year but it just has the name of the panel...no speaker info attached.

 

Then, as said above, there's also the "cartoon" stereotype.  That is especially embedded in the "just for kids" stereotype.

 

It all really reminds me of the video gamer bad rap.  I was told by a colleague once upon talking about video games that I couldn't be a fan.  That was something just for guys....I MUST be making it up!  Not to mention how childish and immature I must be for enjoying them!  The horror that she had to work with such a child!  :largegasp:  No joke.  Then she went on to say that only men of a young age (12-22 years old) play video games....  Yeah...I nearly fell on my face laughing.  So, the next day I emailed her the most current report from the ESA (which at that time stated that 40% of gamers were women, and the average age if I remember correctly was somewhere around 35-40 years old LOL...I was actually younger than the average age!).  Take that hater!

 

The Most Recent ESA Statistics for those of you who are now wondering :) 

 

She hated me after that.  Good thing I wasn't going to have to deal with her but for another month.  She was the type of person who didn't like being wrong - and although she hated being wrong...she was terribly unprepared to perform her job...that's what happens when you go to a school that you pay to be given a degree (and yes, the place she graduated from is quite famous for that in my industry, no one takes their grads seriously).  Anyways, I really wish that the anime industry had a version of the ESA.  Truthfully, Japan does have an industry report.  I believe it's from the Association of Japanese Animation....but it doesn't have the nitty gritty viewership details that ESA has for its own report (maybe they just didn't include it in the English summaries...).  Sure it has how many people viewed or streamed something, but nothing like their ages and genders.  I honestly wonder if that is why there is so much ecchi and harems.  Do they really not have the viewership data to guide them in making a better anime?  Do they really think that they are mostly serving young horny males (a common EA Games mistake...even with gamership data to contradict it)?  Anyways....Click Here to Access the English Version of the AJA's Industry Reports

 

I would love to ask one of the producers or directors at a convention some day if they actually have the right statistics.  It would be interesting to see if they even know themselves.  I've done some digging and haven't been able to show much for it sadly. 

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  • Optic changed the title to Anime - why is it so looked down upon?

I completely agree.

Whenever my parents or brother walk into my room I feel it's necessary to pause my anime and switch tabs. Even though they all watch anime too, it's just a natural reflex to me even though they've all watched it too. My friend at school does the same except none of his family watch anime so he keeps it under the radar just so nobody judges him.

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I think people are more and more seeing anime for how good it is. With movies coming out on them, shows taking ideas from them, and certain anime becoming more popular; people are becoming more aware of how great it is. Although, Netflix's Death Note didn't help at all. Lol

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30 minutes ago, Nintendoddysey said:

Though, it didn't help me when my ex spread drama saying I like hentai then started a anti-anime instagram account and everyone started hating me lol

Don't allow others to judge to that way, they probably don't even know how special it might be for you ( ̄▼ ̄)

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1 hour ago, Nintendoddysey said:

Though, it didn't help me when my ex spread drama saying I like hentai then started a anti-anime instagram account and everyone started hating me lol

Wow! That's just doing a lot of something for nothing. Sorry to say bro, but your ex is a huge B#%*#. LOl

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2 hours ago, Nintendoddysey said:

Though, it didn't help me when my ex spread drama saying I like hentai then started a anti-anime instagram account and everyone started hating me lol

Whadda nasty individual! Serious! >:(

On the note of hentai, can't get into it but I can see how some people associate anime with hentai not knowing the difference. Of course normal anime titles that push that boundary when seen just embeds it firmly into their mind. Anyway, back onto hentai, I (and not judging here) just can't watch it because one though keeps creeping through my head, some dude drew these characters getting their stank on. Total mood killer.  But I did date a woman once that enjoyed it. Again though, watching it with her didn't get my gears twisting like it did her. Again...dude...drawing...O.o

 

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Mostly because of stigma related things. For example, there are people who think all anime is packed with shameless amounts of fanservice and oversexualizes all of the female characters, even if they're minors (lolicon and what happens when the high school setting is paired with fanservice). I can understand why they'd think this, given there are non-hentai shows that do that, otherwise it wouldn't be well known as an anime trope. However, because they don't watch anime, they don't know that not all anime does that type of stuff, can be focused on actually telling a story, and won't break it's own plot development for the sake of drawing more plot development. It would be like saying all movies have robots when the only one you have ever seen was the first Michael Bay Transformers movie when if first came out.

There's also disrespectful weeaboos who hate every country that isn't Japan and the bad apples who do absolutely crazy stuff over anime. But those people just get the most attention. Every fandom has it's crazy people, they usually stick out the most.

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I guess I understand why people might think anime is weird because honestly, it really is, but usually, people who say they don't like anime have never even sat down and tried to watch one, they just base their opinions off of what they've heard about it and stereotypes. 

All I can say to them is don't knock it till you've seen My Hero Academia :P

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On 16/2/2018 at 3:21 AM, Stackrates said:

I completely agree.

Whenever my parents or brother walk into my room I feel it's necessary to pause my anime and switch tabs. Even though they all watch anime too, it's just a natural reflex to me even though they've all watched it too. My friend at school does the same except none of his family watch anime so he keeps it under the radar just so nobody judges him.

I'm used to do that too, even if they know I watch anime ●﹏●

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11 minutes ago, Wedgy said:

When I was in high school, I noticed that generally the crowd that was open about liking anime were the kind of people I might describe as an 'acquired taste.' As young and impressionable as we were as teenagers, some of us tended to mimic the sort of interactions we see in the anime genre, and if you'll notice, it's not typical. For example, some I knew were loud, easily excitable, and had this habit of pointing at other people when they are talking to them. I'm talking arm fully extended and pointing at you. It was uncomfortable... And we all know 'that' guy running around like Naruto. Yeah.

What I'm getting at is that the kids who were outwardly fans of anime seemed to give off this vibe that you'd be associated with their strange mannerisms if you liked anime. That was just the impression that was given off. 

Nowadays I couldn't give less of a spit about people knowing I like anime. I'm really past caring what others think of me, because I know who I am and that's really all that matters at the end of the day. But I find it likely that this 'stigma' has been planted early on in some way and some who like anime in the closet might in fact find it embarrassing in some way.

Your high school sure sounds like a somewhat great place for Anime fans!

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You know, I figured that wasn't the thing now. I figured more people were open to the whole anime thing. Shows how much I know. lol  I know my folks thought it was weird back in the day when I was watching anime (or anything animated) as an adult. That was the only thing since animated stuff = kids stuff, unless it was something intentionally geared towards adults, like the Simpsons, Critic, South Park, Family Guy, etc.

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When In school people always thought that was a really lame  and nerdy thing to get into and like. Some thought it was hentai at times and others thought it was stupid and no point of having it, I guess It depends on the person. I don't see any harm in liking anime and getting into it. It's for all ages I think and anyone can enjoy them.

 

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What it really comes down to, is that people haven't gotten over the stigma's they believed as a child. It's kind of sad really. We've grown and matured so much this generation, even if the youngest generation may not have as much, and changed our perspective on so many things, and yet for some reason anime is not something that has gone through this change. Perhaps that's one of the reasons it hasn't really changed at all is so long outside of visuals, because the stigma hasn't and people seem unwilling to open their eyes to the medium. It could also be that because the world has changed so much and people seen more reluctant than ever to admit that perhaps their emotional reactions to something may not be what actually is, and they don't like being questioned, even though they can't avoid it, that anime has just become one of those things that people can get mad at to let loose some frustrations from their daily lives on. The point I'm making overall I guess, is that beyond the stigma, there's a slue of reasons that people still look down upon anime for. 

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It’s about ignorance first. People think anime is either for children or “pervs who watch hentai”.and there is nothing in between. Those people never really tried to explore and watch anime to see what is all about, but their opinion is formed based on stereotypes and rumours rather than their own decision.  Remember the time when people who used to listen to Punk music were all labelled as delinquents and scum? 

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On 2/15/2018 at 9:14 AM, Beocat said:

It all really reminds me of the video gamer bad rap.  I was told by a colleague once upon talking about video games that I couldn't be a fan.  That was something just for guys....I MUST be making it up!  Not to mention how childish and immature I must be for enjoying them!  The horror that she had to work with such a child!  :largegasp:  No joke.  Then she went on to say that only men of a young age (12-22 years old) play video games....  Yeah...I nearly fell on my face laughing.  So, the next day I emailed her the most current report from the ESA (which at that time stated that 40% of gamers were women, and the average age if I remember correctly was somewhere around 35-40 years old LOL...I was actually younger than the average age!).  Take that hater!

Not trying to intentionally but I'll "One up You" on this: Worked for a guy (My boss) who happened to catch a break conversation I was having with a coworker. Think we were discussing "Mortal Kombat" but don't quote me on that since I already did...O.o...but she happened to be a woman (and yeah that's kind of dating us both). Ironically his opinion on the whole conversation, and mind you it was a A-B conversation, was that video games were the (And yes this is a literal quote) "Devils work and did nothing but rot your brains and stain your soul." Soon after both of us were terminated on the grounds of "Low Sales Quotas" (Again a direct quote), but we both knew it was because from the point he heard our conversation about video games and his view on them. Anyway, to round this out, most of the people I knew that were into video games were female. I'd almost say more than 60% were, so bad stereotyping people, don't do it!...sigh.  :)

On 2/17/2018 at 6:28 PM, RepentantSky said:

What it really comes down to, is that people haven't gotten over the stigma's they believed as a child. It's kind of sad really. We've grown and matured so much this generation, even if the youngest generation may not have as much, and changed our perspective on so many things, and yet for some reason anime is not something that has gone through this change. Perhaps that's one of the reasons it hasn't really changed at all is so long outside of visuals, because the stigma hasn't and people seem unwilling to open their eyes to the medium. It could also be that because the world has changed so much and people seen more reluctant than ever to admit that perhaps their emotional reactions to something may not be what actually is, and they don't like being questioned, even though they can't avoid it, that anime has just become one of those things that people can get mad at to let loose some frustrations from their daily lives on. The point I'm making overall I guess, is that beyond the stigma, there's a slue of reasons that people still look down upon anime for. 

I think you're right that the stigma is firmly resident in people's minds and that they refuse to challenge that. For me anime is another form of art. I love the works of the great masters and appreciate what their visions were, and at the same time feel the same way about anime. If more people would openly see it as a form of artwork and expression I think that it would force a change making it recognized as such. 

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