Poll: Do You Like Anime?

[AngloDoom]

Depends. It's a bit of a wide genre to generalise. I've found very few anime I actually enjoy following, such as the remake of the Full-Metal Alchemist anime, and Death Note. The majority, like any genre, are just trashy.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

It really depends on the series. Some anime shorts are amazing and some shows are pretty interesting and cool looking. I think anime movies are rubbish though.

 

[Tomany2]

Yes, I love anime.
It has been a part of my life for the majority of the time I have been alive.
I enjoy it far more than any cartoon...

Same here, I learnt alot of my vocabulary through Subbed anime!
and nice Profile Pic! Hirugashi... Loved it

 

[[Kira Must Die]]

Yes, I love anime. Since I was younger, then I stopped for a bit, then I watched Death Note, and suddenly I was back in.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

There have been a few series that I've enjoyed, the Dragon Ball mythos (duh), Code Geass, Death Note, among others. There's also a number I just don't get like those "harem animes", I really don't get those at all.

 

[OtherSideofSky]

Several of my friends absolutely love it. I personally cannot stand it. The wacky hairstyles, the giant swords, the men that look like women, the way people suddenly get giant heads when they yell at people....my reasons for hating it go on and on. Anyway, I was curious about how many people like it.

That is a terrible generalization of anime.

If you are to judge something then you must experience it first, try an anime series like Death Note or Code Geass or Darker Than Black.

If you still hate it then go away and hate it quietly.

Do not take this advice.

If you want to see an anime which is not like the things you described, I suggest you begin with a movie, or at the very least a short OAV, not a full length TV series like those just suggested (which also all happen to be targeted primarily at high school students).

I suggest you try a film by someone like Satoshi Kon (Paprika, Tokyo Godfathers, Perfect Blue) or Mamoru Oshii (Patlabor 1 and 2, Jin Roh, Ghost in the Shell), although they can be a bit off-putting if you aren't okay with more cerebral or experimental films (especially some of Oshii's slower work). If you were to watch a television series, it should be Monster (a realistically drawn, well written mystery/thriller often enjoyed by people who like no other anime).

The stylistic elements you mentioned are generally found primarily (I would even say almost exclusively) in series designed to appeal to a 12-14 age range, like the things that run in Shonen Jump.

I honestly can't blame anyone for disliking anime if all they see are the big, ultra-mainstream shows, generally for a younger audience, which tend to be popular on the internet, but there is a lot of unique and interesting animation from Japan (and elsewhere) if you feel like looking for it.

 

[Gigano]

I'm somewhat of a newcomer to the genre, having seen and loved Death Note, then discovering Spice & Wolf and Higurashi years after to sway me completely.

So yes, now I love certain animé. As I've yet to see anyone love or hate an entire media regardless of content though (except Jack Thompson & pals...), I can't vouch for the entire genre, as little as I can vouch for everything that's ever come out of Hollywood. There's plenty of stuff I dislike or don't care about, probably even the majority of what's been released in total, but isn't it like that with any media?

 

[For.I.Am.Mad]

I like the opening cinematics of the animes and that's about it. I could watch Naruto openings all day, just don't ask me to actually watch the show.

 

[OtherSideofSky]

I like it, well some of it. This question is like asking, "do you like movies" or "do you like music". There are bits that you like and bits you don't like. I recomend everybody to try anime at least, espesialy studio chibli movies.

It's nothing like "movies" or "music". That is a seriously flawed analogy.

A more apt analogy would be "sci-fi movies" or "rap music".

In example, with rap music, there are different songs with different messages, some is well done, other parts of it suck, good lyrics, bad lyrics, but at the end of the day, it's still just rap music, a specific type of music.

If you don't like rap music, then odds are, you won't like the best of it, or the worst of it.

This applies to anime.

Personally, I'd rather wash my eyes out with bleach than watch an anime. This is why I mention your flawed analogy. See, I've been told to watch "good" anime, like Ghost in the Shell, or whatever the hell it was called. And I did watch it, and while it wasn't the seizure-inducing screen-vomit that most anime is, it was still anime . I wasn't impressed.

Some people like it, others don't, it's not generalizing a style, it's simply not liking that particular style .

but it goes way broader than that doesnt it, if you dont like movies or music, you wont like the best or worst of that either would you.

personally i like story, don't care how it is drawn or written, but some people think that stories with people with bigger eyeballs are better ... ok for them i guess

Movies and music are mediums of entertainment, anime is a style of entertainment. It's not a broad medium, it a specific style, sure it can be varied, but it's all done in the same style.

It's like saying that someone who doesn't like paintings wouldn't like Van Gogh. While that's true, most people like at least some paintings, and if the person in question does like Van Gogh, but dislikes cubism, then it's not really fair to say they don't like paintings in general, based on the idea that because they don't like a certain style, they must not like the whole medium. It's a flawed analogy, and it doesn't work.

in general they wouldnt like the medium and most people would atleast like 1 anime movie/series, possibly more than paintings even. and you are starting to cross into some kind of weird grey area (hah grey, like the avatar), where you say the van gogh -> cubism thing yet also said the opposite about rap music

but really, this is so totally beside the point now and i now hate anime cause i can't box it properly, there !

Anime is not a "style" or a "genre". Hating anime means hating all animated works produced in the nation of Japan, and nothing else. It not as broad as saying you hate movies, but also not as narrow as hating science-fiction or romance. It's roughly equivalent to saying you hate live-action French films.

 

[JayJayinMay]

Ive only ever watched one true anime series,Elfen Lied.i found it awesome.But i dont find any others intresting enough to watch.I havent watched any others,that is,if Shin chan and Pokemon dont count.

 

[GundamSentinel]

Anime isn't a very major part of my life, but yeah, I enjoy many. Haven't watched anything new in the past months though. Should start again.

Though i think that Side pic your Hosting is From Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn isent it?,

theres only a few Series i actually like, and some i hate immensely

It most certainly is. That's because I'm a Gundam freak. For irrational reasons I just can't dislike Gundam. Don't judge me... *goes and cries in a corner*

 

[For.I.Am.Mad]

Anime for older audiences is still pretty bad. Usually if it isn't one of the mainstreams you can count on a much lower budget, meaning lower animation quality which is pretty bad considering animation for the big guys is already horrid.

Ponyo was amazing though. And Fooly Cooly was a goddamn masterpiece, really, it is. K-ON has all these little animation touches that are really nice and the art is fantastic but I can't watch the thing because they spend a whole episode 'getting ready' to shop for a guitar, seriously those girls are in their teens why do they talk like 3 year olds? Because I know it isn't intended for little kids.

'It's cold'

'Cold is bad, that's why I wear a scarf.'

'Playing guitar in the cold is hard.'

'Why?'

'Because fingers get cold.'

What?! You can find more compelling stuff on Blue's Clues? And I know why they talk like this, which infuriates me more.

 

[Grey_Focks]

Anime itself, mixed feelings. The art style is a major turnoff for me, plain and simple, but I still enjoyed Cowboy Bebop and Fullmetal Alchemist for their great stories.

On the otherhand, and no offense, I HATE the anime-fan community as a whole. The insistence that anime is simply miles above any other countries form of animation (PIXAR/DISNEY disagrees) the constant out-of-context quoting, the insistence that subs are ALWAYS better than dubs, the fetish-like behavior people seem to have with EVERY female character to ever appear in ANY anime, ever. I just can't stand it.

Now, I know not all anime fans are like this, but the ones that are just annoy to me no end. I know there are perfectly logical anime fans, but they are either in the silent majority, or are the minority. The Escapists' anime fans, on the otherhand, I like. Most of you are fine people who don't insult the opinions of others are suck up to everything Japanese, and I love you for it.

At the next anime-fan world wide meeting, could you do me a favor, and address these issues with your kin? Thanks.

EDIT- One other thing that annoys me. Now, I've never watched the anime, but it seems like "Naruto" gets a lot of hate. I have to ask, why? The characters seem well developed, sure Naruto starts off as a naive rather annoying little brat, but as the series goes on we, the audience, watch him mature, and it works. The plot is also, while I won't say "great", I will say it's pretty interesting. Is it because the first part of it was more directed towards the younger crowd? I can kinda understand that, but even then I wouldn't say the first part was bad. Is it because they are called ninjas, despite the fact that they don't act or dress like ninjas? I can understand this, but I should hope an issue as small as that isn't the reason why it's so hated.

I admit, I've never watched the anime, but I have read the manga, and I won't say it's great, but it's certainly good. Is the anime that much different than the original source?

 

[Rewold]

Anime is great! Though I haven't found too many animes to watch. I've only watched Bleach, D.Gray-Man and Full Metal Alchemist but always keep an I out for new great series.

I've always wondered that can Naruto really be good? I find it kinda weird that the characters are like 10 years old atleast in the start?

 

[TheFacelessOne]

No. No, no, no no. I hate the art style and the animations.

Frankly, I really don't like most of what Japanese pukes out anyways. Their culture just doesn't appeal to me.

 

[goodwithwords08]

I am very much addicted to anime, luckly my girlfriend is too hahaha

 

[mb16]

i have always preferred "western" (think district-9, mech assault, chromehounds) mechs to gundams, etc... where they are just big 'people'

 

[Skeleton Jelly]

-snip-
Ermmm...it is a cartoon, whether you believe it or not. Its just a cartoon with a differnet art style.

As far as I am concerned anime does not equal cartoon.
There is a clear difference. They are two different kinds of animation.
Say, if you like cars. Compare your favourite car with a piece of crap that is barely road-worthy. They are both cars, but they are both different. Same with anime and cartoons.

That sounds more like an opinion.

And yes, there are just different types of cartoons. Hell I see CG cartoons now. As far as I'm concered anime is just cartoons with realistic colors, weird chins, and big eyes.

Of course I'm not generalizing anime. I probably find a good series for me, but theres just so much shit I already waded though (opinion),and I don't think its worth going on just to find a good show to watch for a bit.