What is this... Anime? 二番ラウンド (Second Round)!

     Back in February, I did a blurb about anime. As I read it now, it comes across as somewhat fanboyish, and more heavily opinionated than I had originally intended. Many of my original opinions still stand, but I've had more time to mold them into a better argument. "No one's arguing with you, Goongala." SILENCE! I mean... Yeah, it is kind of one sided in here. *Sigh* Anyhoo, time to try this again...

So listen up...

     One: Yes, anime is a cartoon. However, anime (short for animation... duh) is, more often than not, meant for more mature audiences. When I think of an American cartoon, I immediately think of something like Spongebob Squarepants. Such cartoons are utterly mindless and meant to satisfy a young child's need for short-attention-span-capturing entertainment. When I was younger, I found this sort of thing enjoyable, but now it only occasionally produces laughable material. Anime is not like this.

Okay, bad example...

     There are anime shows that are meant for younger audiences, but (I would think that) most of them are meant to transcend the age barrier that we as Americans have put on cartoons. For example: Naruto has been labeled by many to be a kids show. If you think this, I must ask: have you watched any Naruto? Sure, the first series may have leaned more towards a kids show, but the newest series, Naruto Shippuuden, has a much more mature vibe to its plot and themes. The characters are forced to deal with pain and sorrow; and many have to deal with death, whether it be their own or someone they cherished.

     Some of the anime I've watched I would never show to a child. Death Note, for instance, has a magnificently complex story, but I wouldn't show it to kids for fear they would wet themselves. And I don't want to have to clean that up.

Oh, hello there Ryuk...

      Then there's the blood. The Japanese have almost no reservations for showing blood and violence in a cartoon. Almost all of the anime I've watched, with only a few exceptions, have had blood in them at one point or another. Anime characters have copious amounts of it. I've said before that the average human body has around five quarts of blood in it, whereas any given anime character has several gallons. Botched realism aside, having blood in a cartoon makes it feel more realistic. Yeah, I know, "That's a contradiction, Goongala." My point is, having lots of blood is better than having no blood at all. Take Thundercats, for instance:

Swinging a sword around like that, you'd think you'd get lucky and hit something at least once, right?

     Even though a majority of the show is about Lion-O and company swinging around sharp weapons, there was no blood. I only remember one character actually dying on screen (Lion-O's father, Claudus), and when he did it was spectacularly bloodless. Out of all the arrows loosed and bullets fired, not a single one hit their mark. While I was very disappointed, I had to remind myself that Thundercats is still an American cartoon. Without blood the action seems fake, even more unrealistic than when someone gets a nosebleed and a gallon of blood shoots out within a matter of seconds. Just to be clear, I'm not a blood-thirsty psychopath, I just wish American cartoons could loosen up a bit.

Umm... OUCH.

      Back on topic, anime is more story driven than American cartoons. Thundercats would be a good example of an American cartoon that has a definitive storyline; it's not just a bunch of one-off episodes like most American cartoons. It's exceedingly rare for American cartoons to leave off at a cliffhanger, whereas it's all too common in Japanese anime. Anime episodes are regularly ended with cliffhangers, leaving the audience wondering what's going to happen next. There were parts in Naruto which forced me to read the manga so I wouldn't have to wait for the conclusion (the manga is usually released several months before the anime catches up). Yes, this has led to unfortunate spoilers being revealed early, but sometimes you just have to know.

Sometimes you just have to... Spoilers or not, it must be done.

      There are also various genres of anime. American cartoons usually stick to comedy, but in Japan there are a multitude of choices. For example: every week I watch Naruto (action), Sacred Seven (action), Nekogami Yaoyorozu (comedy), Hanasaku Iroha (drama), and Usagi Drop (drama). Of these, Sacred Seven, Naruto, and Usagi Drop are my favorites. Sacred Seven and Naruto are both action anime, lots of fast paced fights and supernatural abilities. Usagi Drop is a drama: the story of a man, Daikichi, who is left to care for his deceased grandfather's 6 year-old, illegitimate daughter. Yes, a bit strange, I know; but the story is, dare I say it, heart-warming (that's my "Man Card" in jeopardy right there). I'm sure that if anyone were to look around a bit, they would find at least one anime that they enjoy watching. There are so many to choose from after all...

See? Something for everyone...

     Two: anime is drawn better. If you were to compare just about any anime to an American cartoon, I'm almost positive that anime would win, hands down, every time. Well, almost every time. There are a few that look like the drawings of a five year-old whose parents, too ashamed to hang it on the fridge, threw it in the trash, where animators found it and used it in their anime. Yeah, there are a few bad ones. However, most anime is drawn very well, and puts our American cartoons to shame. Enter, Thundercats (again? *Sigh*). Thundercats is being drawn by a Japanese animation company, and it shows. While several things are missing (e.g. blood), the animation is very Japanese.

It's the eyes... and the face... and... the whole thing....

     TANGENT: Remember the "Golden Age" of Disney? I do. Movies like Aladdin, The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Mulan... Yeah, those were great. Then we entered the new millennium and Disney started losing steam. The Emperor's New Groove was good, but it didn't quite match up with the others. The same goes for Atlantis: the Lost Empire. Now, were stuck with Cars and Tinkerbell movies. So, where did Disney turn for traditional animated movies? Of course, they turned to Japan. Disney owns the international rights to many films made by Hayao Miyazaki (of Studio Ghibli). Movies such as Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, and Ponyo have all been dubbed (somewhat adequately) and released by Disney. In 2002, Spirited Away won the academy award for best animated picture, outshining a bunch of Disney movies (Lilo & Stitch and Treasure Planet). I've seen Spirited Away, and it's a lot better than anything Disney has released recently. Then again, most Miyazaki films are...

I know it looks weird, but, trust me, it's good. If you don't think so, well... YOU HAVE NO TASTE IN MOVIES!

     Finally: the Japanese know how to voice their characters. This was all covered in the original post, but now I have something concrete to complain about: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Don't get me wrong, I love Fullmetal Alchemist, but even something as fantastic as FMA:B is bound to have a few blemishes. In a recent post, I wrote about finding some FMA:B DVD's and impulsively buying them. I watched the first episode in Japanese, enjoyed the nastalgia, then switched over to English. *HORK!* It was barely tolerable until Edward Elric (one of the main protagonists) opened his mouth. He barely finished a sentece and the next thing you know the DVD was out of the player and back in the case. I had expected it to be bad, but this... This was like wrapping sandpaper around a drill bit, inserting it into my ears, and pulling the trigger on the highest setting. I've watched decent dubs like Cowboy Bebop, Dragon Ball Z, Ghost in the Shell, and Ah! My Goddess. There are good ones, but not many. Bleach's dub was pretty bad (in my opinion), and Naruto is barely tolerable. We Americans just can't seem to get it right. Perhaps it's the same way in Japan when they dub something. Do they have this same problem? Hrm...

The failure of this dub... IT'S OVER 9000!

     My love for anime hasn't changed, I still enjoy it just as much as I did back in February. However, I've refined my opinions about how I feel about them. I used to think, "anime is awesome because it's anime", a very fanboyish opinion (like a gamer who likes Halo because it's Halo). I've watched enough anime over the past few months, from all sorts of genres, and now I can see past the "Ooooh! It's anime!" and see the substance behind them (like a gamer who likes Halo because of the story and gameplay, not just because it has Halo on the cover).  These shows can draw out emotions just like any movie or television show, and more than once I've shed a tear while watching anime. Just like at the end of Lord of the Rings... *Sniff*

      Most things I get into are dropped shortly thereafter, a sort of "passing fancy" if you will. It starts out, "Oh! This is awesome! I love this!", and in a few weeks (or days even) it turns into, "Ugh, this is boring." Anime consistently continues to deliver, and so it's hard to be sick of it. As I said before, given enough time everyone could probably find an anime they like to watch.

Something for everyone...

     There are hundreds of choices when it comes to anime. I used to think, "Oh, I'll just stick to action anime like Naruto, Fullmetal Alchemist, or Bleach." Then I ended up watching The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Lucky Star. Then Fullmetal Panic and Neon Genesis Evangelion. Then Kimi ni Todoke and Ah! My Goddess. And now I'm watching Usagi Drop and Nekogami Yaoyoruzo. I've watched almost fifty different shows: action, drama, comedy, mecha, "slice-of-life", etc... I've stepped past the boundaries that I set when I first started watching anime, regardless of what people think about my hobby. Certain friends would probably threaten to burn my "Man Card" if they knew that I had watched stuff like Usagi Drop, Ah! My Goddess, and Lucky Star. "Well, Goongala, if they didn't know before, they certainly know now." Oh, really? I wrote something like, "regardless of what people think about my hobby" earlier, didn't I?

If I have to hand over my "Man Card" for this... SO BE IT.

     Well, I've rambled on long enough. I think you get the idea that I love anime. So, what do you think? Are you a person who likes anime because it's anime, or someone who likes it for the way it makes you feel? Or, do you not like it at all? Have you given it a try? Are you a purist (like me) who only watches anime in Japanese (with English subtitles), or will you settle for anything just to get your anime fix? "Stop asking all these questions, Goongala!" Whoa, no need to get all bent out of shape. I was just trying to initiate a conversation... Seriously, the comment section told me he was feeling lonely and threatened to leave permanently if I didn't generate some sort of dialogue.

     Until next time, またね!

(Most pics courtesy of several hours blundering around different anime looking for a good pic, others pulled from teh internets!)