Forum - View topicChicks On Anime - Representation of Anime Fans
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lord_darkseid
 Posts: 57 |
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Maybe I'm weird but.... I just saw a commercial about fans being fans wanting to be excited about their con. Do I think it could've been funnier or more accurate somehow? Maybe, but it was an ok ad from what I saw. Nothing to get steamed over IMHO.
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CruzMissile
Posts: 76 |
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well, u're talking about it right? no matter how "bad" it is.... for sakuracon - mission accomplished. (I'll be going to sakuracon as well so i'll see if people show up)
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Iritscen
 Subscriber Posts: 801 |
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I definitely laughed hard at the ad; for some reason I didn't feel offended even though I knew it (a) wasn't satire and (b) made me look bad, as a member of anime fandom.
Perhaps it's because all the anime fans (that I'm seeing) are laughing at it too. Maybe this will turn out to be a good thing! Think of it like raising awareness for a mental disorder that has previously been under-reported. Who knows, it might put the damper on some Japanophile behavior, at least for a time. Rabid fans of anything can always use an injection of "forced perspective" from time to time -- seeing themselves depicted in a comical light tends to be an eye-opener. Btw, just out of curiosity, I'd like those of you who attend Sakuracon to count how many times someone shouts "Girugamesh!" in the middle of the convention hall, and report back to us. The interesting thing is, when they do it, you can be pretty sure it'll be tongue-in-cheek. |
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Rednal
Posts: 134 |
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I thought it was kind of funny, actually. Granted, it's probably not going to draw in any new people, because non-fans will probably just go "Ooooooookay..." and relegate anime and manga to the realm of 'weird'. But seriously, while it's not an example of a stellar commercial, it is kind of funny in its own way, just like last year's. (( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUMfz0vRc4Q ))
I don't see what the big deal is. You probably are being over-sensitive to the issue. Though, honestly speaking, sensitivity in anime fans at all isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's probably better than being totally insensitive. Side-note: I'll be attending Sakura-con, so I'll keep my ears open... |
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BleuVII
 Posts: 672 Location: Tokorozawa, Japan |
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Okay... I live in Japan, and I didn't get half of the references. Especially the drink the guy was holding. Is that supposed to be a Japanese drink? Because I've never seen it.
Anyway, I think the line that made the commercial so bad was, not "Girugamesh," but "I love Japan, period!" That's what turns this from random references to anime fans = Japanophiles. And I can't stand Japanophiles. Loving everything about another culture or country is simply escapism, and it has a negative effect on everybody. Japanese culture has some significant flaws, and mooning over it isn't going to help the Japanese people fix those flaws. So, as an anime fan, I really resent this commercial, which really does equate anime/manga fans and sakura-con goers with Japanophiles. |
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Patches
Posts: 36 |
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Whether the original was meant to be satire or not is debateable, but the Yu-Gi-Oh Abridged version leaves little doubt. :P
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Kenotic
 Posts: 167 |
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I guess I'm not offended, but still kind of feel like it's cheapening both American anime fans (who are all sitting around a Sushi bar, potentially annoying the owner and others), and the Japanese who are seeing their culture reduced to the mass media version. It's like realizing they might see Family Guy and The View in Japan and then scramble to cancel their US vacation plans and head off to Uruguay instead.
Of course, if we re-edited it to the point where the otaku are bringing up things like "I want to learn more about Shinto!" or "I want to understand how Korean and Chinese cultures have influenced art in Japan over the centuries!" and "I want to learn about Mono No Aware in traditional literature!" then maybe we'd all be happier 
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Quark
 Posts: 710 Location: British Columbia, Canada |
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Honestly, I think you guys are being over-sensitive about this.
I watched it, and while the commercial was mildly annoying, I didn't think there was anything offensive about it at all. Maybe it's because I'm slightly guilty of behaving the way the fans do, or maybe because I'm just not reading into it properly, but...it just doesn't seem to be that offensive. |
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hikaru004
 Posts: 2306 |
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I like the YuGiOh version better.
They do have a point though. Anime fans were white teens, some obese and couldn't pronounce the band's name correctly. It wasn't te most flattering representation of anime fans. No one is going to take it as satire when it airs on TV.
If you wanted to learn about a culture, you read about it, take courses, learn the language, travel to the country... Going to an anime convention is not one of those ways.
Last edited by hikaru004 on Tue Mar 24, 2009 8:57 am; edited 2 times in total |
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Goodpenguin
Posts: 457 Location: Hunt Valley, MD |
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It's a cheesy 'miss' of a commercial in that 'looking real amateurish while pretending to mock amateurish-ness' way, but at the same time the criticism in the article reads over-sensitive (or perhaps 'looking too hard' for certain things).
Over-sensitive (somewhat) in the way that fans get when it's made to seem that anime/manga isn't exactly graduate-level literary material, and is more for having fun; and I believe to a greater degree criticism that looks awfully hard to bring in more over-arching social pet-peeves (race, culture, etc.) that are being shoe-horned in a bit. Similar to the round-about's on gender, Japan and anime/manga, are pretty far from a cautions, respectful norm when it comes to social issues like race and culture. If those types of issues are someone's 'hot button', this seems like it would be a touchy hobby area. To let oft-crude (in terms of modern, progressive values) material fly without comment in anime/manga, yet bring out the big (and moldy) circa-70's Said 'Orientalism' gun's over a hammy commercial trying to poke fun at fandom's fetishism of 'Exotic' can come across as a little hypocritical. I'm sure that's not the intent, but like the soap-box stuff on gender, criticism often seems a one way street and occasionally more grounded in outside social concerns rather than the material. |
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The Ramblin' Wreck
 Posts: 924 Location: Teaching Robot Women How To Love |
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Comedy gold. Can't we just say it's kind of humorously lame and not use it as tea leaves for the entire anime community? |
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DuelLadyS
 Posts: 1705 Location: WA state |
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As someone who's attending Sakura Con for the 8th time this year... I honestly don't think it was that bad.
When you look at Sakura Con itself... it's sponsored by the Asian Northwest Cultural Education Association, but has such minimal cultural events you can miss 'em if you blink. It says 'anime convention' right in the name, but most of the events and guests are music- related... and Penny Arcade's been a guest several years running (not knockin' them, but they ain't 'anime'.) They tout their family friendliness but don't kick out the guys who display the adult gachapon freely or hang the hug pillows on the wall with 'Falcon PUNCH!' post-its over the girl's no-no bits. The con, like the commerical, really seems to struggle for its identity, grasping onto lame stereotypes in a desperate attempt to explain who it appeals to. It also spits out the 'big' attractions for this con (jrock, manga reading room, specific bands attending- including one that isn't Japanese.) It's definitely not a good take on the attendees- yes, there's annoying yippy 'wee, Japan!' types there, but most folks are pretty composed- but it does bring up what you have to like to find something worth seeing there. |
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doctordoom85
 Posts: 2094 |
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Now see, I actually find THAT funny, as opposed to the original which feels like a big "middle finger". Maybe it's because it's the Abridged gang, maybe it''s because it's animated so it feels less "real", but it just seems less offensive to me. And yeah, about the ethnicity thing that was brought up, it did annoy me that EVERY person in that commercial save the chef was white. Now maybe I'm the sole exception (I doubt it though), but out of the 11 friends I know who watch anime, 2 are black, 1 is Japanese, and 1 is Hispanic. I'm not saying the commercial had to throw in every race they could think of, but good grief, I felt like I was watching a commercial from "the CW on crack". DuelLadyS: Thanks for the heads-up, sounds unappealing to me. I can only go to the mid-sized cons myself, and I've found public behavior to be much more under control there, so maybe that's why I get annoyed at the stereotype, because I've seen large gatherings where it's almost non-existent. |
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Viga_of_stars
 Posts: 1240 Location: Washington D.C. in the Anime Atelier |
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I think the commercial is going for hilarity albeit they do it in a lame way. They had good intentions and they probably think at least half of the attendees are like that. Think about it. Cons are filled with teenagers that somewhat act that way. In some cases worse.
I do wish they did a commercial that didn't just show these types of fans and that there was more diversity of fandom and ethnic groups in the commercial. The Yugi-TAS version was awesome as well. GUROOOGMESH! |
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nekedo
 Posts: 94 |
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I for one was very offended by all the stereotypes. I don't do half those things. I don't eat sushi or pocky (it wasn't mentioned, but I'm so tired of people looking at me like I have three heads when I tell them that I think pocky is gross), I didn't know what Gilgamesh was, I don't care about tea ceremonies, nor Smile.dk, and I very rarely play DDR. I'd rather immerse myself in Calpico, Kanon Wakeshima, and Ainu culture. Does this mean I'm not welcome at Sakuracon?
To be frank, these are the people that I stare at for a moment, then roll my eyes. Yeah, I cosplay, but every time a fangirl glomps me, I regret not making the weapon that my character usually carries, if only to fend them off with a foamy sword. I go to conventions to cosplay and pose for photos, to get some loot from the dealer's room, then go watch the AMV contest and attend panels. I tell you, if someone in that commercial had said something to the extent of, "Sakuracon is kawaii/tanoshii/suteki desu ne!!" I would have been even more pissed. That's the one thing the commercial was lacking. Directed by Vic Miggy? Why am I not surprised? |
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