Why is anime so popular with Escapist readers?

[The87Italians]

I used to hate anime, but then a friend of mine forced me to watch Elfen Lied. Now I can't stop watching it.

I try to convince people that while some anime is aimed specifically at children, there is a lot of more mature and adult anime just waiting to be watched. Most of the time they say that since it's animated it must be for children, and then move on. I'm just waiting for the day someone hijacks Cartoon Networks studio and broadcasts something like Baccano or Gurren Lagann.

 

[Composer]

because it looks nicer then most western cartoons
IE: flapjack
*proceeds to vomit*

 

[RaNDM G]

I have no clue. 90% of Japanese anime isn't even good.

Not that I'm saying it's all bad though. Samurai Champloo, Cowboy Bebop, Ghost in the Shell, Afro Samurai, Yu Yu Hakusho, Trigun, Lupin, and the original Gundam series are all great in my opinion. Everyone knows Transformers was freakin' awesome. Dragonball and DBZ were okay, but most of DBZ felt like filler between fights.

Nothing really tops the Miyazaki films. Those are huge achievements in story-telling.

I can't stand watching anything else though. The stories in most anime are simply bogged down in melodrama. Watching shows like Naruto or Death Note feel like a chore because nothing ever happens. Naruto is just about a kid who wants to become a "NINJA, NINJA, NINJA!" And once he finally becomes a "NINJA, NINJA, NINJA!" he spends most of the time watching other people fight. And Death Note is just the story of a private detective who tracks down a book that kills people when you write their names down, and then starts threatening to kill people with it. Whoopty freakin' doo.

I can see how some people can enjoy shows for the melodrama, but I can't stand watching twenty minutes of exposition without five or ten minutes of action to break up the monotony. Blame it on my short attention span.

 

[LCP]

*puts stupid face*

Well, I don't, I would never look down on anyone who does, but it simply doesn't interest me.

 

[AntonicKnight]

Japanese cartoons...they're popular cuz they ad a new flavor to the animation world that the western world seems to like (even though anime has been around since the 80'S.)
This is just my wild guess.

 

[MercurySteam]

The Escapist is full of nerds.

Nerds like anime.

Duh.

Basically this. Animation is quite appealing to us, hence my avatar which is a cartoon but not an anime.

 

[Coldster]

I think America Texas Murphy said it best. So go look up the thread: What is so great about anime? You will find your answer there.

 

[Swifteye]

I'm not crazy about anime as a genre.

Thats because anime is a MEDIUM that has genres. Anime is not a genre.

I know this. But medium was not on the tongue at the time. You know what I mean though so please don't sweat me.

 

[Kyogissun]

Anime is popular in young, libiral communities.

Wh... What? O... OW! Oh god, reading this statement really makes my brain hurt...

I like anime for the same reason I like american television... It's entertaining.

I mean seriously, why is the concept of 'I enjoy it, therefore I like it' such a foreign thing on here?

EDIT: There are about 3/4 really pretentious/elitist statements on here concerning people's thoughts about anime and/or why they think anime is popular.

Again, they're all wrong. You enjoy anime because it's entertaining. Saying anything like 'It has better plots than american television' or 'it's better animated than western cartoons' or 'all anime are the same and suck' is just about as general and biased you can get when making a statement against or about an entertainment medium.

As for why it's enteraining, IT'S ENTERTAINING, I AIN'T GOTTA EXPLAIN SHIT. DIFFERENT STROKES FOR DIFFERENT FOLKS.

Please, let's stop this thread now before this devolves into what it typically is in the past.

 

[Genixma]

One might watch anime and go. "He's a ninja how does no one notice an orange ninja hiding in the dark?" Well then you watch another anime and realize it's innuendo about a pre-pubestant boy meeting an alien who destroys stuff with a guitar while everything else goes to hell once the alien appears and you pause and go. "I'm done trying to figure this out...Next Episode."

So let me answer your question with another question.

"Why is anime so popular with Escapist Readers?"

Why not?

 

[Zacharious-khan]

its a correlation thing, people who like video games tend to also like anime. People who like Escapist like video games. thus there must be some people who like both.

plus most people like anime if they give it a try, there are as many types of anime as there are [something varied and diverse]

 

[4RM3D]

*looks at avatar*

I see a resemblance.

PS.

I'm not crazy about anime as a genre.

Thats because anime is a MEDIUM that has genres. Anime is not a genre.

A common mistake made by people not familiar with anime. It doesn't help that about every general DVD store in the US and Europe classifies anime as a genre to put all anime together. With the exception of specialized anime stores.

 

[UnderCoverGuest]

Hrum. I thought it was all there in the title; "Escapist". Cause only an escapist would enjoy anime. Troll-olololol! Don't mind me, I'm just trollololloling. Troll troll troll, whoo. Whoop whoop.

 

[Krinku]

Don't worry you get used to it. Dokuro-chan though lulzz

 

[DethKid]

you dont have to be a nerd to like anime...

there is a stigma that anime is inherently nerdy...

the truth is...anime is for the most part....good

high quality animation, characters, narrative and all round content.

MY gripe is the obsessionpeople have with dubbing anime...it ruins it

the voice actors in asia have been perfecting the art for decades, and just because you get some hollywod actor to talk over the top...doesnt make...it ruins the flow and feel of the animation

thats my rant anyway...subs win

anime isnt for nerds...its just awesome tv

peace.

 

[Eri]

I'm not crazy about anime as a genre.

Thats because anime is a MEDIUM that has genres. Anime is not a genre.

I know this. But medium was not on the tongue at the time. You know what I mean though so please don't sweat me.

Well actually, I didn't know that. I've come across many people who mistakenly think anime is all the same and its some "genre" of animation or whatever.

But now I know what you meant

 

[iDoom46]

The Escapist is full of nerds.

Nerds like anime.

Duh.

Damn ninjas!

Also, this is the internet. Anime is huge here.
Seriously, I can't think of a place on the internet that hasn't been graced (or sullied, depending on your opinion) by an anime avatar at some point.

And that's pretty much all there is to it.

 

[Swifteye]

I'm not crazy about anime as a genre.

Thats because anime is a MEDIUM that has genres. Anime is not a genre.

I know this. But medium was not on the tongue at the time. You know what I mean though so please don't sweat me.

Well actually, I didn't know that. I've come across many people who mistakenly think anime is all the same and its some "genre" of animation or whatever.

But now I know what you meant

That does happen alot doesn't it? Exact definitions can be fleeting to people if they don't care enough to truly understand them. For me though. I just forget things like there's a hole in my head.