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Hello everyone, AnimeFanFTW here, with a new blog, about why modern media ignores anime, while videogames and comics are not.
I've been reading about stuff that this for some time, and I thought I would put my 2 cents on the matter. And to people who say this has nothing to do with Minecraft, I mention Minecon. So yeah. c:
Also, my Sword Art Online 2 review may take a while. I'm barely halfway through the season. T-T
Anyway, I'm curious what you think about this topic. Comment below what you think. This might be a great brainstorm. :D
So yeah, enjoy!
_________________________________________________________________
It’s crazy to think that just 10-20 years ago, being a geek meant being bullied, being shunned by society, was only thought to be a thing for kids, and earned you a one-way ticket to a wedgie. But nowadays, being a geek is now normal. Whenever you go to the supermarket, stores filled with videogames are being visited by normal people. Every few months, multi-million dollar blockbuster superhero movies are made, and millions of people visit these movies, not to mention that comic books are more popular than ever. No longer do people view geeks as basement-living fat people that smell of stale corn chips, they are now viewed as normal people. Heck, it’s seen as “uncool” if you’re not a geek. Normally, this would be amazing. No more being bullied or being judged. But there is still one group of geeks that are still viewed as weird, and people acting like children, even being viewed as creeps.
That group is otakus. Fans of anime/manga.
But how could this be? Why is it that modern media almost shuns these groups of people, while videogame and comic fans get a pass? Well, today, I hope to brainstorm a reason why.
First, let’s get one thing out of the way first: Yes, there is some animes out there that are mainstream. To name a few, Dragonball, Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh, Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, and so on and so forth. But I’m not talking about anime being mainstream, that’s for a different discussion entirely. I’m talking about why modern media flat out almost ignores anime.
It’s been proven time and time again that anime/manga is incredibly popular. For example, in 2014, while all types of physical media saw a decline in sales, the only form of media that saw a rise in sales was anime. Another example is the manga One Piece, which holds the Guinness World Record for most copies in print. At the time of me writing this, the current holder for most copies sold per chapter was Volume 78 of One Piece, with a staggering 1.7 million copies sold in just its first week of release. It broke the previous record, Volume 77 of One Piece. One Piece broke its own record in-between chapters. In July, it was announced that 2.5 million copies of the English-translated manga of Attack on Titan was in print. And that’s not even counting the people reading it on the internet.
Normally, any book with giant figures like that per week would be covered by newspapers, magazines, and media no problem. But it isn’t. Why? Because it’s manga. They barely even mention it, while they announce fantastic sales of novels, superhero movies and TV series. If manga was given the chance to be counted in bestselling columns in newspapers, all bestselling lists would be filled with NOTHING but manga. But modern media has decided that it’s “not important enough”.
It’s the same story about conventions. The 2015 San Diego ComicCon, had an attendance of 130,000+ people. In 2014, The Australian Sydney SuperNova convention has a crowd of 50,000+ people. Heck, even Minecon, an expo all about one indie game, Minecraft, had over 10,000+ people attend in 2015. Those 3 events were covered by the media extensively. Then you have the 2015 Los Angeles Anime Expo. That had an attendance of 90,000+ people. It’s capable of getting as much crowds as any other expo. But was it covered by the media? Nope. It was simply ignored. It seems that according to modern media: Anime fans aren’t worth their time.
Heck, many people ridicule anime fans, and think of them as nothing more than creeps. A simple search of anime fans on Google will result in forums of people calling anime fans as “creepy”, “pathetic”, “stupid”, and so on. Heck, several times, when I play Rocket League, some people will simply call me a loser when they see my steam name.
Why is it that video game and comic fans get a free pass, while anime fans get the incredibly short straw?
Well, I think I might know some answers as to why. Please note that these are just what I think about the whole thing. Just because I say it, doesn’t mean it’s 100% true.
The first point is obvious: Anime is weird. I’m not the first to admit that anime is very, very weird. While some people like the weirdness of anime, many turn away from it. And that’s understandable. And looking at modern media, even they avoid weird things in comic books. They don’t explain about superheroes like Matter-Eater Lad, a super hero that eats anything.
Or Eye Scream, a superhero that can turn himself into any flavor of ice cream.
These 2 are official DC superheroes. But why have we not heard anything about these superheroes? Because modern media deems them too weird. Imagine if modern media covered anime like Kill la Kill, or Panty and Stocking? Modern media avoids weirdness.
Another thing to consider is that people who don’t watch anime either see it as children’s entertainment, or as an adult show, filled with R18 stuff. While both sides are kinda right, both sides are also wrong. Look at any form of media. Books, TV Shows, Cartoons, Movies. What do they have in common? All can be enjoyed by everyone, depending on what they are seeing. Books can be read by all ages, TV shows and movies are rated between G to R18, and while cartoons are more of a form of children’s entertainment, it has seen a massive surge of shows which cater to any age. Cartoons like Steven Universe, Adventure Time and so on. Heck, one of my favourite rugby league players for the NRL team Penrith Panthers, Jamal Idris, a 25-year old behemoth of a person, capable of bone crunching tackles, admitted in Rugby League Week magazine, that he enjoys Adventure Time. If a strong athlete is capable of enjoying a cartoon, then anime is no different. There is a ton of famous actors that have admitted to liking anime. Celebrities like the late Robin Williams, Zac Efron, Keanu Reeves, Kanye West, Quentin Tarantino, even Hulk Hogan. These highly regarded celebrities all enjoy anime. Yes, there is some anime that cater to children and adults alike, but there is also a ton of anime in-between that can be enjoyed by everyone.
Another point, which is most important, is that a lot of people, media included, see anime fans as nothing more than weirdos, people that don’t seem normal. This question is surprisingly very hard to answer, since it involves a lot of different factors. The biggest factor is probably the fanbase, and how it functions. While there does exist people out there who are fans of anime, who are generally normal, there is a lot of people who, let’s face it, obsess over anime. Explore any fanbase, and you’ll find out that if you say anything bad about a show, people who enjoyed that show will probably attack you, saying you’re an idiot. Fanbases like SAO, Naruto, and so on are very famous for this. People that explode if anyone so much as says one bad thing. People like these have given anime fans a really bad name. Like with any fanbases, like the FNAF fanbase for example, a lot of extreme examples of fans overreacting and exploding have given the image of the anime fan as an immature bloke, eating pocky, speaking weeaboo, and fantasising over characters. This image can’t really work in the videogame fanbase, since people focus on actually playing the games, while this can’t happen in comics, since it focuses more on the heroes, and them saving the day. And it doesn’t help when companies churn out hundreds of erotic anime and visual novels, further turning the image into a creepy pervert. The anime fandom isn’t helping itself keeping a normal image. And what does the human mind normally do when introduced to something weird and creepy? They avoid it. They hate it.
That’s not to say that all anime fans are creepy weirdos, of course. Heck, I enjoy normal hobbies, and I do admit, that anime has a lot to hate about it, but at the end of the day, it must be asked: Should anime and otakus be noticed more, and be given more respect?
Of course! It is still a huge part in our large group of nerd culture. There are plenty of fans out there just enjoying the shows they love, and for media to not cover it, while video games and comics are talked about like crazy is a bit unfair. Who cares if anime is a bit controversial? Video games aren’t strangers to the topic of controversy, with games like Mortal Kombat and Grand Theft Auto still a largely debated topic. Anime has proven time and time again it has been able to tell an incredible story. From the Studio Ghibli films, to shows like Gurren Lagann, and Clannad, and Akira, and so on. Heck, modern media is slowly noticing without realising it. Movies like Pacific Rim, which is heavily Evangelion inspired, to Edge of Tomorrow, a movie based in a popular manga. There’s been a plan of Warner Bro’s making a future Death Note movie, there’s plans for an Akira live-action movie, Hollywood is starting to notice. And pretty soon, modern media will also notice.
The only thing stopping otakus for being respected and acknowledged is the people that hate otakus, that abuse them simply for the things they enjoy. While I do agree, the anime fandom does need to grow up and improve its image, at the same time, people should try to research anime more, find out about the different shows, and then judge for themselves. And modern media should also do this. Anime isn’t just a thing viewed by only kids and immature people, it’s just another form of media that doesn’t get enough coverage and respect. Let us otakus join the table of geeks. We also want to be with the cool kids.
____________________________________________________________
Until the next blog...
This is AnimeFanFTW, over and out!
I've been reading about stuff that this for some time, and I thought I would put my 2 cents on the matter. And to people who say this has nothing to do with Minecraft, I mention Minecon. So yeah. c:
Also, my Sword Art Online 2 review may take a while. I'm barely halfway through the season. T-T
Anyway, I'm curious what you think about this topic. Comment below what you think. This might be a great brainstorm. :D
So yeah, enjoy!
_________________________________________________________________
It’s crazy to think that just 10-20 years ago, being a geek meant being bullied, being shunned by society, was only thought to be a thing for kids, and earned you a one-way ticket to a wedgie. But nowadays, being a geek is now normal. Whenever you go to the supermarket, stores filled with videogames are being visited by normal people. Every few months, multi-million dollar blockbuster superhero movies are made, and millions of people visit these movies, not to mention that comic books are more popular than ever. No longer do people view geeks as basement-living fat people that smell of stale corn chips, they are now viewed as normal people. Heck, it’s seen as “uncool” if you’re not a geek. Normally, this would be amazing. No more being bullied or being judged. But there is still one group of geeks that are still viewed as weird, and people acting like children, even being viewed as creeps.
That group is otakus. Fans of anime/manga.
But how could this be? Why is it that modern media almost shuns these groups of people, while videogame and comic fans get a pass? Well, today, I hope to brainstorm a reason why.
First, let’s get one thing out of the way first: Yes, there is some animes out there that are mainstream. To name a few, Dragonball, Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh, Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, and so on and so forth. But I’m not talking about anime being mainstream, that’s for a different discussion entirely. I’m talking about why modern media flat out almost ignores anime.
It’s been proven time and time again that anime/manga is incredibly popular. For example, in 2014, while all types of physical media saw a decline in sales, the only form of media that saw a rise in sales was anime. Another example is the manga One Piece, which holds the Guinness World Record for most copies in print. At the time of me writing this, the current holder for most copies sold per chapter was Volume 78 of One Piece, with a staggering 1.7 million copies sold in just its first week of release. It broke the previous record, Volume 77 of One Piece. One Piece broke its own record in-between chapters. In July, it was announced that 2.5 million copies of the English-translated manga of Attack on Titan was in print. And that’s not even counting the people reading it on the internet.
Normally, any book with giant figures like that per week would be covered by newspapers, magazines, and media no problem. But it isn’t. Why? Because it’s manga. They barely even mention it, while they announce fantastic sales of novels, superhero movies and TV series. If manga was given the chance to be counted in bestselling columns in newspapers, all bestselling lists would be filled with NOTHING but manga. But modern media has decided that it’s “not important enough”.
It’s the same story about conventions. The 2015 San Diego ComicCon, had an attendance of 130,000+ people. In 2014, The Australian Sydney SuperNova convention has a crowd of 50,000+ people. Heck, even Minecon, an expo all about one indie game, Minecraft, had over 10,000+ people attend in 2015. Those 3 events were covered by the media extensively. Then you have the 2015 Los Angeles Anime Expo. That had an attendance of 90,000+ people. It’s capable of getting as much crowds as any other expo. But was it covered by the media? Nope. It was simply ignored. It seems that according to modern media: Anime fans aren’t worth their time.
Heck, many people ridicule anime fans, and think of them as nothing more than creeps. A simple search of anime fans on Google will result in forums of people calling anime fans as “creepy”, “pathetic”, “stupid”, and so on. Heck, several times, when I play Rocket League, some people will simply call me a loser when they see my steam name.
Why is it that video game and comic fans get a free pass, while anime fans get the incredibly short straw?
Well, I think I might know some answers as to why. Please note that these are just what I think about the whole thing. Just because I say it, doesn’t mean it’s 100% true.
The first point is obvious: Anime is weird. I’m not the first to admit that anime is very, very weird. While some people like the weirdness of anime, many turn away from it. And that’s understandable. And looking at modern media, even they avoid weird things in comic books. They don’t explain about superheroes like Matter-Eater Lad, a super hero that eats anything.
Or Eye Scream, a superhero that can turn himself into any flavor of ice cream.
These 2 are official DC superheroes. But why have we not heard anything about these superheroes? Because modern media deems them too weird. Imagine if modern media covered anime like Kill la Kill, or Panty and Stocking? Modern media avoids weirdness.
Another thing to consider is that people who don’t watch anime either see it as children’s entertainment, or as an adult show, filled with R18 stuff. While both sides are kinda right, both sides are also wrong. Look at any form of media. Books, TV Shows, Cartoons, Movies. What do they have in common? All can be enjoyed by everyone, depending on what they are seeing. Books can be read by all ages, TV shows and movies are rated between G to R18, and while cartoons are more of a form of children’s entertainment, it has seen a massive surge of shows which cater to any age. Cartoons like Steven Universe, Adventure Time and so on. Heck, one of my favourite rugby league players for the NRL team Penrith Panthers, Jamal Idris, a 25-year old behemoth of a person, capable of bone crunching tackles, admitted in Rugby League Week magazine, that he enjoys Adventure Time. If a strong athlete is capable of enjoying a cartoon, then anime is no different. There is a ton of famous actors that have admitted to liking anime. Celebrities like the late Robin Williams, Zac Efron, Keanu Reeves, Kanye West, Quentin Tarantino, even Hulk Hogan. These highly regarded celebrities all enjoy anime. Yes, there is some anime that cater to children and adults alike, but there is also a ton of anime in-between that can be enjoyed by everyone.
Another point, which is most important, is that a lot of people, media included, see anime fans as nothing more than weirdos, people that don’t seem normal. This question is surprisingly very hard to answer, since it involves a lot of different factors. The biggest factor is probably the fanbase, and how it functions. While there does exist people out there who are fans of anime, who are generally normal, there is a lot of people who, let’s face it, obsess over anime. Explore any fanbase, and you’ll find out that if you say anything bad about a show, people who enjoyed that show will probably attack you, saying you’re an idiot. Fanbases like SAO, Naruto, and so on are very famous for this. People that explode if anyone so much as says one bad thing. People like these have given anime fans a really bad name. Like with any fanbases, like the FNAF fanbase for example, a lot of extreme examples of fans overreacting and exploding have given the image of the anime fan as an immature bloke, eating pocky, speaking weeaboo, and fantasising over characters. This image can’t really work in the videogame fanbase, since people focus on actually playing the games, while this can’t happen in comics, since it focuses more on the heroes, and them saving the day. And it doesn’t help when companies churn out hundreds of erotic anime and visual novels, further turning the image into a creepy pervert. The anime fandom isn’t helping itself keeping a normal image. And what does the human mind normally do when introduced to something weird and creepy? They avoid it. They hate it.
That’s not to say that all anime fans are creepy weirdos, of course. Heck, I enjoy normal hobbies, and I do admit, that anime has a lot to hate about it, but at the end of the day, it must be asked: Should anime and otakus be noticed more, and be given more respect?
Of course! It is still a huge part in our large group of nerd culture. There are plenty of fans out there just enjoying the shows they love, and for media to not cover it, while video games and comics are talked about like crazy is a bit unfair. Who cares if anime is a bit controversial? Video games aren’t strangers to the topic of controversy, with games like Mortal Kombat and Grand Theft Auto still a largely debated topic. Anime has proven time and time again it has been able to tell an incredible story. From the Studio Ghibli films, to shows like Gurren Lagann, and Clannad, and Akira, and so on. Heck, modern media is slowly noticing without realising it. Movies like Pacific Rim, which is heavily Evangelion inspired, to Edge of Tomorrow, a movie based in a popular manga. There’s been a plan of Warner Bro’s making a future Death Note movie, there’s plans for an Akira live-action movie, Hollywood is starting to notice. And pretty soon, modern media will also notice.
The only thing stopping otakus for being respected and acknowledged is the people that hate otakus, that abuse them simply for the things they enjoy. While I do agree, the anime fandom does need to grow up and improve its image, at the same time, people should try to research anime more, find out about the different shows, and then judge for themselves. And modern media should also do this. Anime isn’t just a thing viewed by only kids and immature people, it’s just another form of media that doesn’t get enough coverage and respect. Let us otakus join the table of geeks. We also want to be with the cool kids.
____________________________________________________________
Until the next blog...
This is AnimeFanFTW, over and out!
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I wouldn't go so far as to say the guy in the picture above with the anime posters and figurines is wrong. It's not wrong. He's not hurting anyone. Although I will agree it is weird. And as I pointed out, there is alot of anime out there that are not weird. But overall, it's fine to hate anime. Anime is hard to like.
This blog isn't really wanting the western media to approve anime. It's more of a brainstorm. While I do want anime to be popular in the west, at the same time, I don't mind if it isn't.
Attack on Titan got some media coverage. It was popular enough to be enjoyed by non anime fans. How about that?
Besides, I think the issue here is how the anime fans present themselves to the rest of the world. Like you said in your third? point, its all about the fanbase. Most of them don't care about criticism so much that it's becoming a bad thing. The stuff we do sometimes... its irrational, its immature and its stupid. Again, like you said, we look like weirdos to the rest of the world, and thats why people igonre us. And its going to stay that way until we act like proper civilized intelligent beings
Also, kinda disagree about anime fans being ignored unless they act like civilized people. It's slowly being noticed.
Maybe in the west anime doesnt get much attention in the same way Marvel/DC doesnt get much attention in Japan (plus the fact that theyre xenophobic) but either way it really depends where you are in the world. Where im from, anime is slightly more accepted, conventions are plentiful, we even have our own TV channel with anime dubs of our language
I wouldn't say it's at an all time low, since anime is doing better then other industries.
And yeah, you make a great point, it's really all about location.
im not allowed to watch anime but i wanna c:, AoT makes me want to get up and kick some butts
How come you're not allowed to watch anime?
im 11, i can handle the content though, my mom wont let me
Ah, that sucks. As I said in the blog, there is alot of family friendly animes out there.