Forum - View topicWhy are some anime hits and others "under the radar?
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dennou_san
 Posts: 14 Location: Manila |
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I don't understand why some anime get to be largely overlooked. Let's just say, for example, it was obvious that Full Metal Alchemist would readily achieve its acclaim and popularity, but what about the likes of....Fantastic Children? Okay, so there's the art to blame---Kaiji and Akagi were good...and there goes the same notion.
."Not all popular anime are good, not all good anime are popular"...but why is that so? >  <
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siken
Posts: 56 Location: Henrico |
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I think its because of a "Word of Mouth" type of deal. The more that people talk about one anime the quicker it spreads around. Also might be because of who is sponsering the anime. Sometimes I only look for certain sponsers. Also, picky people maybe? I have a few friends that won't watch Vampire Knight just because of Yuuki's eyes.. I mean come on.. sure it bugs me a little too but the storyline is really great. The same thing happens to games sometimes as well. A lot of atlus' games are great yet rarely anyone plays it. But when you say Metal Gear Solid its like you get a whole damn crowd. |
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DuelLadyS
 Posts: 1705 Location: WA state |
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Advertising folks have built an entire industry around answering this question. No one really knows why certain things are popular and others aren't, and why quality doesn't always seem to factor into that equation. It's a matter of enough of the right people, getting the right exposure, at the right time- whatever that may be.
As far as anime goes, I think exposure is a much bigger factor than it is with other things. Anime companies have much more limited promo funds, so only a handful of shows that seem to have 'mass potential' really get advertised. And if they can get it on TV, it's almost guaranteed to be one of their bigger shows. (On Demand doesn't really count.) Anything that doesn't get the backing is left to fend for itself, failing around in hopes that pure word of mouth and/or a really good sale will help it do well. (I honesly attribute Princess Tutu's semi-success to added attention brought by a TRSI 10/25 sale.) Fanatastic Children, while good, is not marketable- coupled with its non-standard look, it was pretty much doomed to go straight to 'hidden gem' status. |
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Vuwazy
Posts: 208 |
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Maybe some anime are overlooked probably because not that many people heard about them or something. Along with other factors. Such as the amount of viewership and what has been mentioned being exposure and marketing. Popular doesn't always mean good and good doesn't always mean popular. They can be interchangable.
There are series that people find exciting and others people find boring. How we would know that is gonna be what reception we see and what experience we have. This kind of stuff is how I can also find how well known something is. |
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fighterholic
Posts: 9193 |
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Reminds me of wondering why Desperate Housewives can stay on the air for so long with the kind of content that it has in it. It's just a hit and go situation, where some anime can just be totally random and they'll develop an unnaturally large following, like Haruhi. And then there might be series that you think is great, but nobody else really pays attention to it. That's how things work.
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Cyan Bloodbane
 Posts: 117 |
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Sometimes, you just have to blame the current mindset of this generation of anime fans.
Sounds elitist I'm sure, but the new gen of fans nowadays just doesn't seem to know what a good show is anymore. Case in point: Why the hell is Bleach Popular when it's the same thing we've seen repackaged a million times? I can't name a single thing this show does that is "new" or "better" but it's damn popular. I'm assuming it's mostly liked by the new gen of fans who haven't been around to see many shonen titles. It's all anime, but anime is not created equal. The argument of "taste" was always just a mask for people to hide behind when they try to explain certain shows popularity. Yes, there is taste. Good taste, and bad taste. Anyone who thinks otherwise is living in a fantasy world. A person's taste in shows is refined the more anime they watch. People who go ape-shit excited for a run of the mill shonen show scream "Newbie" to me. I wouldn't mind as much, except that these new fans have a disdain for classic series that knows no bounds. They can't be bothered to learn anime's history. They don't want to see where anime has been in order to get an understanding of anime's present. This new generation of fans is so unlike the fans from the 60's, 70's, 80's, and early 90's that it's startling. Almost 4 decades of anime fandom, almost all with the same feeling of camaraderie and love for the artform, has turned into so much naff. Years ago at a convention, there were people who all felt the same about anime. There were cosplayers who did it out of love of the fandom, not just because it was popular or to start internet drama. People would actually turn their backs on a specific show if it was trash, and uphold the quality titles. I believe my grandpa-esque rant (though I'm only 24) has gone on long enough. TLDR: This generation of fans is different from the fans of the last 4 decades, and not for the better. The under the radar shows you mentioned would have been lauded as big name hits about 10 years ago or so in both media and popularity. Shows that get over the top popularity today would have been laughed at back then as trash that you only watched when you were bored and were in-between series. Not series to be taken seriously, but they were enjoyed. We didn't treat the trash like "srs bizns" This generation i set in reverse, where trash or "throwaway rehash" shows get the biggest slice of the popularity pie, and "under the radar" quality titles are basically just ignored. Basically, the newer fans would turn down a Picasso in favor of a Ctrl + Alt + Dlt comic strip. that is my feelings on the anime fandom of today. My views will be a bit jaded by the fact that I've been in the fandom since the early 90's and have watched some of the greater fans before me come and go. |
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Zin5ki
 Posts: 6680 Location: London, UK |
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By this, do you mean that there exists 'taste which is similar to your own and taste which is not'? If you don't, then this argument requires one to define, wholly independently of any appeal to one's own preferences, the property of goodness. If you only mean to use the word 'good' to refer to your personal views, as is the common denotation of such a word, or if you only mean to equate the goodness of one's taste with how knowledgeable one is of anime in an historical context, then I shall accept you arguments and apologise for misinterpreting them. As for the topic at hand, I share the view that initial exposure plays the largest role. If a show is marketed and/or televised then more people will at least become aware of it. Word-of-mouth suffices to do the rest; those who do not know what everybody else is talking about are more likely to find out first hand through seeing the broadcasts. The resulting fanbase is thus far greater than ones for shows which only became known to a few people when released, for in such cases only those who actively search for the title become aware of it first-hand. |
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animeboy12
Posts: 160 |
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that's because the mgs series has innovated and taken risks while atlus games have pretty much stayed the same. Don't get me wrong I love atlus' game but they're very conservative. Anyway to the question, I think most of what's more entertaining. I don't know about you but it is far entertaining to watch an epic 3 episode battle in Bleach or Naruto than it is to have some depressed kid talk about the meaning of life |
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Westlo
 Posts: 1684 |
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I really think you just lack some common sense if you don't know why FMA and Metal Gear Solid are popular and stuff like Fantastic Children and Atlus games aren't. I'll give you some clues, genre and target audience...
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Kruszer
 Posts: 7995 Location: Minnesota, USA |
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I don't know, but that's one of primary reasons I went on messge boards like there in the first place. Information is power. If you don't try and see what's out there you end up missing things, which can cause something to go under your radar. I personally think it's more like sonar where it can be either passive or active.
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18571 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Cyan Bloodbane, I think you're looking at things too much through rose-colored glasses. "Run-of-the-mill" anime that become immensely popular is hardly a new phenomenon, and to claim that past major hits were higher-quality is silly. Consider a series like Gatchaman from the '70s, for instance; hardly a quality production, yet it was arguably the most popular and trend-setting series of its day. Even if you're referring to series popular in American fandom, plenty of examples can be had of series that were popular without being high-quality productions; Urusei Yatsura and Ranma 1/2 are both good examples.
I've watched all of this show that has aired on American TV so far, and it's not hard to see why it's popular. It's slick, has lots of high-powered fighting, good humor, a likable core cast, and a vast supporting cast of colorful characters with colorful abilities. A good musical score doesn't hurt. Sure, it's hardly high-quality stuff but it has all the right elements to be entertaining, and shows which emphasize that quality tend to be more popular than shows which purely emphasize quality.
What fans generally refer to as "under the radar quality titles" tend to be more artsy in focus than entertaining. Those will (almost) always be lesser in popularity than blockbusters, but that's no different in American movies, either. Last edited by Key on Sat Feb 07, 2009 7:53 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Mushi-Man
 Posts: 1537 Location: KCMO |
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I think there is a variety of reasons as to why this happens. A big one, I think, is air time. It seems that when anime gets aired on American TV, then it has a boost of popularity. Just look at anime like Death Note, Full Metal Alchemist, Gurren Lagann, Bleach, Naruto, Gundam Wing, ext. These are all quite successful anime and all had American air time. Another key to success would be advertisement. With out these adds for the newest dvd releases and what not, the anime wont do as good. Another reason, although some don't want to hear this, is the success of the fansub. It's no secret that licensing companies will look at fan subs to see if they are becoming popular, and if they are then the anime will (most likely) get licensed. Another reason might be how western friendly it is. Looking at how anime like Detective Conan are big in Japan, while in the U.S. market it didn't do to good. But in the end I don't think that there is one simple answer. It might all be luck, who knows?
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walw6pK4Alo
 Posts: 9322 |
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American air time would certainly increase popularity, but at least Death Note and Gurren Lagann were already huge before then. Things like Big O and others were big once they debuted on TV, but I doubt that's going to happen anymore.
Anyway, some shows just have more mass appeal than others. |
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ryuzaki11
 Posts: 67 Location: Kanbal,Sagu. |
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It could be advertisement which someone has said. Sometimes it just won't appeal to some people, or it's not just the type that the masses of a certain group would grasp. |
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Craeyst Raygal
 Posts: 1383 Location: In the garage, beneath a 1970 MGB GT. |
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It should probably be mentioned that not all anime can be all things to all people.
When you look at something like Cowboy Bebop, it has a little of everything. There's humor, drama, action, suspense, and a variety of settings that give a little something for everyone. It's a great gateway series because it's hard not to find something to like about it. On the other hand, you have series that are always going to be pinpoint on their respective audiences. Generally, either you're going to be a fan of Leiji Matsumoto space operas or you're not. Those of us who like this niche within the niche get exactly what we want out of it because it contains exactly what we want and isn't geared towards anyone else. The same can be said for many other more narrowly focused shows, movies, or OAV's. Simply put, some shows reach for a wide audience and some don't. |
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