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BodaciousSpacePirate
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Joined: 17 Apr 2015
Posts: 3018
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 1:59 pm
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There was some ANNCast a few years back where they got basically the same question, and part of Zac's response was his description of some guy in a backwards baseball cap riding a skateboard down the street, before staring straight into the camera and saying,
"It's COOL to like anime!"
It's basically been my go-to mental image every time this issue has resurfaced.
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Surf_rock
Joined: 28 Jan 2017
Posts: 12
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:05 pm
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Yune Amagiri wrote: |
Stampeed Valkyrie wrote: | Sorry Answerman.. but TLDR
I guess to directly address the question.. who cares? I've never measured my self worth by what other people think of me.. or their opinions.. no real shock there. Cool to me was what all the other "sheep" are doing.. and sometimes that was my style and more often it was not. Using ANN terminology I am a "Beardy" at this point and with age comes reflection.. and the general answer of just be you.. cause your the one who ultimately matters.
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Exactly, let's be honest we, Otaku, was and will never be seen as decent people even more nowaday with all these recent incessantly feminazi talks and others who can't accept more than the mainstream stuff. But whatever others think it musn't obstruct the things we are fond of, as long that one is true with itself and DON'T DISTURB others life, then this one is living a wonderful life, meanwhile, those living while complaining about them are living a pitiful life ( even more if the thing they hate aren't real ) and could be seen as people with inferiority complex |
Thank you, this was one of the cringiest whiny otaku/weeb/nerd/whatever you call yourself comments i've seen in a while.
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Actar
Joined: 21 Nov 2010
Posts: 1074
Location: Singapore
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:09 pm
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Personally, as much as I want anime to become successful and mainstream, I think that much of the charm of anime is that it is at times at the fringes of what is considered normal. It is bizarre, it is wacky and it does not adhere to conventional wisdom. I like anime because it panders to a Japanese sensibility, it has its own tropes and it plays by its own rules. This is something that I cannot get anywhere else. I don't want anime to become globalized or sterilized to the point of not having that charm. Give me the fanservice, give me the cool robot action.
It's fun to be in the community precisely because it's a community. It means something to be a part of it. As fans, we define ourselves by the things that we consume and regardless of what you like anime for, it defines you. To hijack a quote from The Incredibles, "When everyone's an anime fan, no one will be".
Last edited by Actar on Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:11 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Cetais
Joined: 02 Feb 2012
Posts: 507
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:10 pm
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TOP NEWS: Celebrities are people who can enjoy diverse things.
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Zin5ki
Joined: 06 Jan 2008
Posts: 6680
Location: London, UK
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:20 pm
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Justin wrote: | But I do know that it's much harder to bully a high school kid for liking the same things as the star of the biggest superhero movie of the year. |
Au contraire, anyone may be bullied for their enjoyment of any cultural phenomenon, even that which is comfortably within the mainstream. Unless a school's catchment area is exceptionally large and representative, speaking in favour of something less than universal in its appeal could, by my humble experience, land one as a target of the pugnacious and the truculent. Indeed, my place in the playground pecking order was something from which I was happy to graduate.
In other words, no amount of cool can deter the cruel...
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WindNinjaDW
Joined: 10 Jan 2009
Posts: 13
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:41 pm
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Add John Boyega to the list. In a recent Reddit thread, he cited Bleach, Nanatsu no Taizai, AoT, Naruto, HxH, etc as favorites of his. All fairly mainstream, I know, but still a neat factoid all the same. I suppose it shouldn't be a surprise, considering he plays a major role in the recent Star Wars film. Though, much cooler and mainstream now, you have to be a nerd in some capacity to apart of such a classic and legendary franchise.
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Yune Amagiri
Joined: 28 Jul 2016
Posts: 1015
Location: France
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:52 pm
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Surf_rock wrote: | Thank you, this was one of the cringiest whiny otaku/weeb/nerd/whatever you call yourself comments i've seen in a while. |
sorry if I hit a nerve or if you feel targeted, that was just what i think as someone who was bullied during pretty much all my school years for loving 2D stuff, even thought i didn't bother them and i was far from being a rare case, seem like you live in a pretty kind place if it feel strange for you .
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Tsumikisan
Joined: 22 Mar 2016
Posts: 39
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:57 pm
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It's definitely a lot more accepted due to social media and availability, much like marvel comics became a huge thing once the movies became huge hits, or how gaming took off. People nowadays probably won't immediately think of hentai when you mention anime which is a good thing and some may even watch it themselves. That said, I still don't think it'll become something "cool" to do. Watching it may be fine and dandy, but I just don't think the "otaku culture" of buying figures, manga, listening to the music, covering every inch of your wall in posters and wallscrolls will ever not be weird to those who are just casually watching anime on Netflix and believe there really are 2 seasons of Fate Apocrypha.
Still, I don't mind it. The more money into the industry the better.
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Jonny Mendes
Joined: 17 Oct 2014
Posts: 997
Location: Europe
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 3:00 pm
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Actar wrote: | Personally, as much as I want anime to become successful and mainstream, I think that much of the charm of anime is that it is at times at the fringes of what is considered normal. It is bizarre, it is wacky and it does not adhere to conventional wisdom. I like anime because it panders to a Japanese sensibility, it has its own tropes and it plays by its own rules. This is something that I cannot get anywhere else. I don't want anime to become globalized or sterilized to the point of not having that charm. Give me the fanservice, give me the cool robot action.
It's fun to be in the community precisely because it's a community. It means something to be a part of it. As fans, we define ourselves by the things that we consume and regardless of what you like anime for, it defines you. To hijack a quote from The Incredibles, "When everyone's an anime fan, no one will be". |
I also don't mind anime been successful and mainstream. And I don't mind that celebrities think that anime is cool, even if celebrities opinions mean nothing in reality.
Like you say, the only thing that can be a problem if they try to change anime to become more mainstream. If people don't like some anime troupes or fan-service or are offended by some anime, then go watch something else. Japanese anime is and should be animation made in Japan for the Japanese audience.
If they want something different, they should do like Netflx and pay for animation made in Japanese studios for global audiences.
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Kadmos1
Joined: 08 May 2014
Posts: 13589
Location: In Phoenix but has an 85308 ZIP
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 3:04 pm
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A Disney historian named Jim Korkis wrote a 5/31/2017 article called "Spring Cleaning Disney-Style" for Mouse Planet. This is a fan site for Disney vacations/traveling but has no official ties to the companies of the Disney Empire. Korkis mentions the following
in a section called "Tezuka Meets Mr. Disney" (italicized sections are my doing):
Quote: | Most of us know that famed Japanese animator Osamu Tezuka, creator of Astro Boy, among other things, briefly met Walt Disney at the 1964 New York's World Fair. I recently stumbled across Tezuka's own remembrance of that encounter:
"I admire Walt Disney. I am charmed by Walt Disney, and my career was inspired by Walt Disney. And I met him in New York, or, I should say, I just walked past him. On the opening day of New York World's Fair, was lucky enough to get a chance to talk to him. I came across him leaving the stage just after delivering a speech. I got nervous but somehow introduced myself to him.
Osamu Tezuka: 'I am a head of a Japanese animation studio.'
Walt Disney: 'Nice to have you here.'
Tezuka: 'I am the one who made Astro Boy.'
Disney: 'Really? I know Astro Boy. I saw the work in Los Angeles. It's a great work."
Tezuka: 'Thank you very much. My staff would be honored. Well, may I have your comment about the work?'
Disney: 'It's a very interesting Sci-Fi story. Future children are looking toward space. So I, myself, think about making Sci-Fi, too. If you have time, visit me in Burbank.' |
"
The following is from an article called "Tezuka’s Life (1958 – 1964)" that you can find on the TezukaInEnglish site. It mentions Even Stanley Kubrick was a fan of the original Astro Boy. Heck, Tezuka even got a letter from Kubrick 53 years ago (I lessened the spacing between the sentences):
Quote: | In early 1965 he received a letter from the famed film director, Stanley Kubrick, inviting him to join his production crew as a visual set designer. Kubrick has seen Astro Boy (1963-66) and been impressed by it enough to offer Tezuka the opportunity to help design the look of Kubrick’s upcoming film, 2001. Although Tezuka was flattered and incredibly interested, it would mean taking a year off work and moving to London for the duration – something he felt he couldn’t do at the time – so he turned Kubrick down |
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Yune Amagiri
Joined: 28 Jul 2016
Posts: 1015
Location: France
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 3:08 pm
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Jonny Mendes wrote: | I also don't mind anime been successful and mainstream. And I don't mind that celebrities think that anime is cool, even if celebrities opinions mean nothing in reality.
Like you say, the only thing that can be a problem if they try to change anime to become more mainstream. If people don't like some anime troupes or fan-service or are offended by some anime, then go watch something else. Japanese anime is and should be animation made in Japan for the Japanese audience.
If they want something different, they should do like Netflx and pay for animation made in Japanese studios for global audiences. |
Exactly, it's a fact the more anime became maintream outsite Japan, the more complain these kind of serie get. There is a good saying " When in Rome, do as the Romans. "
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DerekL1963
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Joined: 14 Jan 2015
Posts: 1119
Location: Puget Sound
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 3:12 pm
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Yune Amagiri wrote: |
Surf_rock wrote: | Thank you, this was one of the cringiest whiny otaku/weeb/nerd/whatever you call yourself comments i've seen in a while. |
sorry if I hit a nerve or if you feel targeted, that was just what i think as someone who was bullied during pretty much all my school years for loving 2D stuff, even thought i didn't bother them and i was far from being a rare case, seem like you live in a pretty kind place if it feel strange for you . |
Followed by an even more cringy and insulting "apology".
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IchiroFox
Joined: 06 Jul 2011
Posts: 34
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 3:17 pm
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Quote: | Recently Kim Kardashian came clean about liking anime (even calling out DARLING in the FRANXX) |
No, she didn't. She said anime was her "inspo" and put a picture of ZeroTwo on her instagram account. As far as I know, she never explicitly mentioned the name of any anime, nor did she even say that she watches it. As others have pointed out, it's not hard to find an image on Google and throw it on your social media.
Jonny Mendes wrote: | Japanese anime is and should be animation made in Japan for the Japanese audience. If they want something different, they should do like Netflx and pay for animation made in Japanese studios for global audiences. |
Totally agree. I very much hope that the influence of Netlix and others doesn't reduce the quantity or impact the content of anime produced for the domestic market.
Cetais wrote: | TOP NEWS: Celebrities are people who can enjoy diverse things. |
My thoughts exactly.
I find it strange that a very reputable and widely-known anime news website published two articles about Kim Kardashian because she tweeted that anime was her "inspo". Now we have a third article discussing that idea around anime being "cool" or not. Is anime cool now because this massive celebrity mentioned it a couple of times?
I'm not a fan of Kim or her family, far from it. I wouldn't be surprised if she made it up to get some attention. After all, she has made career out of doing exactly that. She's a genius at marketing herself and getting as much exposure as possible -- uh... "exposure" in all senses of the term. She's an encapsulation of everything I hate about celebrity culture--egoism; vanity; obsession with material gains and status.
However, she has a right to enjoy whatever she wants, of course. I'm not saying that she or anyone else isn't allowed to be an anime fan. Anime is an incredibly diverse medium and I believe there's an anime out there for everyone. It isn't, nor should it be, restricted to any subset of people. But I find this notion that anime is now "mainstream" and "cool", only after several A-list Hollywood celebrities publicly expressing their interest in it, incomprehensible and somewhat irritating.
We are all unique, we all have our interests and happy places. Sometimes, for some reason, humans will make fun of others because of their differences, some even start fights over it. We all know that kid in school being bullied for liking cartoons...or we were that kid.
Anime may always have a certain stigma attached with it, but does that matter? Nothing is universally socially acceptable, or "cool". "Trends", as in "fashion trends", are fabricated. Enjoying anime, just like liking pizza, animals or having religious beliefs, is a personal thing. If you like it, that's all that matters. If you like it, it's cool. It's cool, because you like it. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. It doesn't matter what any person--be they world-famous or a "nobody"--likes or doesn't like. Especially someone as odious as Kim sodding Kardashian.
In my opinion, the fact that a celebrity says they like something should never, ever be news. Unless, perhaps, that thing is likely to cause tangible harm.
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bleachj0j
Joined: 22 Nov 2008
Posts: 926
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 3:53 pm
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WindNinjaDW wrote: | Add John Boyega to the list. In a recent Reddit thread, he cited Bleach, Nanatsu no Taizai, AoT, Naruto, HxH, etc as favorites of his. All fairly mainstream, I know, but still a neat factoid all the same. I suppose it shouldn't be a surprise, considering he plays a major role in the recent Star Wars film. Though, much cooler and mainstream now, you have to be a nerd in some capacity to apart of such a classic and legendary franchise. |
No, you don't. John didn't have to be a nerd to be cast in Star Wars.
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GriffithDidNothingWrong
Joined: 02 Dec 2017
Posts: 16
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Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2018 4:08 pm
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CatSword wrote: | Is Kim Kardashian really an anime fan, or did she just see an anime girl with pretty hair in Akihabara on her visit to Tokyo? |
Nailed it. Kim does not watch Darling in the Franxx. She probably just saw the pic on Twitter or something. What is changing most about perception of anime culture is not that more people are becoming fans, but they simply are aware it exists.
When people saw anime before:
"What is this cartoon? Looks kinda weird"
And now it's:
"Oh, that must be anime"
Especially on social media you are gonna see a lot of anime avatars and profile pictures, and places like VRchat are filled with anime girls. So don't whip out your "Hey I like anime like X celeb too" cards yet folks.
Edit: I just wanted to add, as far as if anime is "cool?" I don't think something will ever be "cool" again, or at least, not the same as it used to. With a more liberal social fabric and the internet able to spread information rapidly, the mainstream media/mass culture is in it's first stages of waning. I can only judge so much from my own experience, but if there is something that people don't like, there is so much more out there for people to enjoy otherwise that we no longer need a "cool" thing or trend to look out for. So, just as people will stick to anime if other media loses their interest, there will be others who will never turn to anime, even if anime itself gets more fans.
Last edited by GriffithDidNothingWrong on Wed Mar 07, 2018 4:33 pm; edited 1 time in total
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