Forum - View topicAnswerman - Why Are Anime Age Ratings So Inconsistent?
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Compelled to Reply
 Posts: 358 |
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The last part about the internet pretty much sums up the futility of all these arbitrary ratings. I recall around the early 2000s, there was a local news story warning parents about hentai on the internet, which was usually low-res stolen fan artwork and ripped OVAs from the 80s and 90s. Indeed, it all was pretty easy to come by, before ad and pop-up blockers, and on already dodgy websites which kids would visit for stuff like vidya emulation and downloading music.
We've certainly become a lot less desensitized about stuff that shouldn't be censored, but also what frankly should. Every now and then you get a moral panic attack, even in Japan, when parent's organizations protest over some anime being on too early, or a historic anime like Kaze Tachinu accurately depicting smoking next to a terminally ill woman when nobody knew the risks at the time. A poet once said, "It seems today, that all you see, is violence in movies, and sex on TV." |
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IanC
Posts: 685 Location: Essex, England |
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Despite the snarling, the BBFC are fairly constant at rating anime releases. Most Shonen Jump stuff gets PGs or 12s, while stuff like Attack on Titan or most fanservice shows get a 15.
Recently they've started putting the reasons in more detail for all releases, not just films. Which can be quite funny, like the reasoning for an 18 rating for Monster Musume. http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/monster-musume-everyday-life-monster-girls-video |
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MoonPhase1
Posts: 493 |
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I used to have a Suncoast and a Sam's Goody in the same mall with a Best Buy right across the street. Their biggest problem was that they liked to charge full MSRP. Of course back then, online purchases were mostly more for people who are to busy to go shopping or buying a product that is sold out at your location. What many people fail to realize is that Best Buy price matches Amazon even though now Best Buy is like a YMMV on if it even has an Anime section anymore or not and if it does have it, it's nothing compared to how it used to look back in the day. As for age ratings, I still see plenty of releases saying like Not Rated on the DVD and Blu-ray release including even on live action TV shows which is technically false. Then are times with anime when like Adult Swim's rating doesn't match the Blu-ray rating despite no editing or at least not enough for an age rating change. Attack On Titan TV-14 on Toonami but Blu-ray is TV-MA. |
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Codeanime93
Posts: 599 |
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harminia
 Posts: 2020 Location: australia |
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Yep. A show could be G level for 99%, and have one episode where there's high level impact scenes and that means the whole show gets it. I did the classification for a somewhat recent anime, and most of the episodes were like, PG, but one episode had threats of rape/sexual violence and that bumped the entire rating up. It can be kind of sad, because it means people that might've watched the show won't because of the higher rating, but alternatively it's there to warn people, so I guess it's better than them watching something and then getting shocked and offended when that one higher rated scene happens. And yes, the collection has to reflect the entire rating. So if something gathers up multiple collections, even if a couple of volumes have, say, M rated nudity, if there's one that has say MA level violence, that's what the rating is. The lesser elements don't matter, only the highest one. |
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katscradle
Posts: 469 |
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Ah, the era of the video nasties.
I never lobbied my parents I just had older friends rent videos for me that had the stickers. Probably not the best decision but, if a minor wants something they’ll figure out a way. Course I got sent things via the internet I never asked for too. The internet for good and bad has broken down some of the traditional gatekeeping. I always point parents to resources with info on content and age suggestions since individual kids have different needs and levels of sophistication. At some point too parents need to let their children have room to explore even if there is disturbing stuff out there. |
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Usagi-kun
 Posts: 877 Location: Nashville, TN |
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Media Play collapsed first from shady business tactics, Tower Records folded here not long after Kazaa and Limewire became a go-to for pirated music, and the last Hastings closed a year ago. The first existed before I had started my own collection, the second had a limited selection of anime but I never had a problem with buying TVMA releases alone while I was still a young tyke, and the third actually had a rental and used section, but all new releases were kept in the locked case and I had to have a parent present for those. It either was specifically for blanket ratings, or theft, but managed to succeed at both. MSRP was worse at Hastings, Media Play was organized chaos, but Hastings was at least easier to pick up full series or rare volumes rather than just single new discs. |
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Shar Aznabull
 Posts: 236 |
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I remember when Cashern Sins aired on Toonami virtually uncut with a mostly consistent TV-PG rating... even though the Blu-ray release is rocking a TV-MA
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Lynx Raven Raide
 Posts: 412 Location: Central Coast, AU |
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I think this isnt just a comment on inconsistent ratings across anime, but across the globe. They use AU as an example, but here is another, non-anime example that I will throw out. Both the Deadpool and Logan movies were rated R States-side, but across the big pond here in AU both were given MA15+. Depending on who is running it at the time and such, and the era (there are quite a few R movies from yesteryear that would have an M rating today here in AU) there are differences in how individual countries rate their medium.
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RestLessone
 Posts: 1426 Location: New York |
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I think it's worth noting that classifications can change who can get into the films, and that ratings in one nation often don't correspond to others. In the US, a rated R movie can still be seen by anyone -- just that you have to be with an adult if you're under 17. NC-17 is the only rating where a real age restriction is in place. Something like Deadpool isn't PG-13 level, particularly when you consider that the rating doesn't actually require an adult present; anyone can see it, although perhaps individual theaters enforce it on their own. The next jump is R. The Australian rating of MA15+ is more in the middle, though does prevent people under 15 from seeing it even with an adult. So there's a combination of factors going on with different movie ratings. R movies have been doing well lately, but teens are also allowed to see them, and many films that don't really deserve a hard R rating definitely aren't PG-13. We don't have anything in the middle. But really, the goal for studios is to avoid NC-17, where the restrictions really come into play. Still, there are obviously odd rating choices, like giving The King's Speech an R based on language. It follows the set guidelines, of course, but the film itself is fairly tame outside a single scene. |
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KH91
Posts: 6176 |
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I remember Funimation giving Code Geass Season 1 a TV-14 rating. Season 2 I would understand (they did do it) since the BS changes in that season led it to be aired at 5 pm in Japan rather than late night like in the 1st season.
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Sakagami Tomoyo
 Posts: 941 Location: Melbourne, VIC, Australia |
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While it can seem odd that a single scene can drastically increase a film's rating, there's really no other way around it, save for having an edited version that costs time and money, needlessly confuses and fragments the market, and possibly drastically alters the film as a whole. I mean, can you imagine trying to explain to a hypothetical angry parent that took their kid to a hypothetical PG movie "well yes, but apart from that one scene with the brutal rape and murder, it's perfectly suitable for children"? |
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RestLessone
Posts: 1426 Location: New York |
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To be clear, I totally understand why they did it, and I don't think it's odd when violent content is the concern. It's more weird to me that profanity can push a film to an R rating when everything else is basically PG. PG-13 films can get away with a decent amount of violence and blood, but the addition of one too many profanities breaks the R threshold. Granted, I don't think this is often a real issue, since films that utilize a lot of harsh language tend to be altogether more appropriate for older audience. My main point though was that there are differences between ratings across countries, but a lot of them make sense when taking into consideration what ratings are even available and if one ratings prevents access to a group of people -- particularly when that group is part of the target audience. |
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Chiibi
 Posts: 4829 |
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Funny stories in here....how does one not love the stupidity of ignorant parents?
Back when video rental stores were still a thing, I was constantly going to the children's section to find the anime and put it in its rightful place. People would move it and on my next visit, I'd move it again.  Then I got tired of the game and just went to the manager about it.
"IT'S ANIMATED. MUST BE FOR KIDDIES!!" HERPA DERP DERP. |
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Cardcaptor Takato
 Posts: 4975 |
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To be honest, other than the inconsistencies mentioned above between TV ratings and the home video ratings, I don't really think the anime industry ratings are all that inconsistent since they started using the American TV rating system. The only really weird arbitrary rating I can think of in recent times was when Viz initially gave the final episode of Sailor Moon a TVMA rating on Hulu because of the nudity in the last episode but they eventually changed it to TV14. But other than that and one episode of SuperS that also got a higher rating for nudity, they've been fairly consistent in giving all the episodes a TVPG rating. I still remember when anime was still using the old rating system and ADV weirdly gave the uncut sub release of the first two seasons of Sailor Moon a 15+ rating. The uncut version might be a little more mature than the original edited dub but it's definitely not that mature.
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Today's tales are all about what happens when clueless parents handle anime, age-labeled or not...
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