| Anime Elite: To start off I'd like to say that I believe everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but with the recent threads that have been going through the anime community I feel the society itself is losing a lot of its apeal. I regularly scan through anime chats, forums, etc. and I find a more and more common topic regarding newbies and anime. Everyone's aware of who the newbies are, of course, viewers of DBZ, Sailor Moon, Digimon, Pokemon, Yuugioh(sp) the list goes on and on. Many people critisize these people because unlike "veterans" they have yet to experience "real anime" and are less valid fans in some way. Some veterans say that these newbies are too cocky, and brag about how much they know about these false animes. They often critique business officials and magazines for saying things like, "Japanimation's popularity has been on the rise. Why the markets are teeming with it, just turn on your TV and you'll see Sailor Moon, Digimon and DBZ." Just to share my opinion, get over yourselves. I know that's mean, and I'm certain that there are tons of REALLY good, nice people out there who believe that newbies ought to either go to what ever anime sorce they can and buy all the decent anime seriese they can or shut up about their little shows, but veterans are just consumers exactly like newbies. Anime for a long time now has become a culture, very similar to the Trekker/Trekkie culture, but more wide spread. And because it's a culture people take it very seriously. Now, anime has become a marketable economy to the general public; "normal" people can flip on their tubes and watch this holy stuff too, and they tend to adorn themselves and talk about this new item that they like. The problem arises when normal people start making general statements about anime and those people who choose to worship it (many do, I boarder on the worship scale) get upset. Okay, my opinion time! Those newbies are what commerse calls passive consumers. They're those folks that will go get ice cream if the have change in their pockets and the truck's right outside, not the people that'll destroy their house for change and chase that bastard down the street for 4 city blocks cause the sadistic jerk wants to see how far you can make it at 10mph before you founder (see that'd be me). Anywho^_^ Passive consumers aren't into the idea of worshiping the product. If it's available they'll take it, but if it involves work they'll go pursue something they want to do. In short, those newbies don't give a damn if they only know .4% of the anime universe, it's just good TV to them. To make another point those newbies are making a lot of money for Japan. Anime is one of Japan's top three exports and the channels that buy anime (cartoon network, Kids WB, International channel, Action Channel and Fox kids) help support Japan's economy and encourages much more anime to be made, so the "hardcore" fans can have their Lain and Evangelion. Another argument against newbie anime is the idea that if a cable station dubs something they're gonna butcher it beyong all recognition. Okay first of all a little centurship didn't hurt anyone. I don't really care if they painted bathing suits over Melfina and Ryoko, no matter how horribly the did it. As for the cutting out the blood thing. If you're watching something for the blood then go buy Primal Rage or something. Of course there are cases of extreme destruction of content (ie FOX KIDS) every person who has seen Digimon or Escaflowne on their network KNOWS how awful Fox Kids does stuff. Yet, even if they did dub Slayers and put it up for the world to see, who cares? If you're a fan you probably have access to it, and if not well then you're not gonna care are you? To be quite frank, americanized anime doesn't have to be watched if you're so against it, and if you're poor (like me) you can watch the hainous stuff and enjoy it. My final little moral thingy: anime, though awesome, is just television, and if our society has decended to a point where you can hate a group of people based on their taste or ignorance relating to TV, then what a sickening little society we've made. It's just TV people! It's not important! Turn off your damn screen and read 1984! or Dragon Riders of Pern or SOMETHING! Write something, paint something DO POETRY! Get away from your TV it will destroy you!! but still go to my site because the internet's good. Internet Good!! |