Compare, contrast, give history, information on influence and possibly rank famous mecha anime franchises. Ones of interest may be Voltron, Gundam, Patlabor, Macross, Neon Genesis Evangelion and Fullmetal Panic.
As an expansion, I think it'd be kind of cool to talk about which type of mecha would be most useful in real life today. – Tatijana9 years ago
Interesting idea Tatijana. Do you mean which weapon would be the most useful if mechas were real? – Jordan9 years ago
Of course there are already plans for the US and Japan to have a mech fight which can be thrown in as a part of this article or even to introduce it. Granted it may not be like what we see in anime it is still something that we are actually going to have a live giant robot fight happening soon. – Kmo9 years ago
The majority of anime are aimed toward teenagers to young adults, so high schools appear time and time again as a setting. How is the experience of high school portrayed in anime? Is it optimistic, pessimistic or somewhere in between? Does it depend on the genre? Are there any particular titles that break the mold or explore aspects of Japanese high school life in a different way? As a background, some mention of how Japanese schools differ from the West would be useful. A title of interest might be Flowers of Evil.
I've often seen Japanese high-schools in anime as being a rather cordial and pleasant environment compared to how American schools are often portrayed. Japanese schools seem more bright, more airy, more inviting. Usually they only get presented in a negative light when the main character we follow is having a strong negative response to their environment. They believe that their lives are a cage wrapped around them and they want to escape. Or they think that their fellow students and teachers are all beneath them, are idiots, and this is a waste of their time. But besides that, the schools seem pretty enjoyable, especially in the lighthearted, comedic, slice-of-life shows like "Azumanga-Daioh," "Lucky Star," "Genshiken" (although that's technically a college I think), and "Pani-Poni Dash." – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
In Japanese and Korean culture, high school is considered more of a pivotal moment in one's life, both socially and educationally. Because of this, compared to Western culture, school life is actually riddled with studying for grades and club activities as students have the intent of getting into a prestigious university to further their lives. It could be said that anime depicts much of its settings in high school to give the essence of the lighter side to a busier lifestyle. You could also say that since high school is a pivotal moment in a person's life, the anime takes place in high school since the story is a turning point in the lives of the protagonists as well. – Baek9 years ago
That's a really good point, Baek! The cultural implications of high school ought to be mentioned in the article as well. Thanks for your feedback. – Jordan9 years ago
High School life series have become a common theme in most anime. Many people question as to the reason why. In my opinion, the reason is because they are attempting to appeal to that type of demographic. People try to find the legitimacy within a high school life anime, but isn't it possible that the theme is done that way specifically for the point of having a "get-away" type of feel to it, making people wish that their high school life were actually like that or creating some form of fantasy within the viewers life about what high school could be like. Whats more, there are even some series that take an interesting twist and instead focus on college lifestyle like "Golden Time" which definitely got a lot of people's interest. – Kmo9 years ago
Bleach, One Piece, Naruto and Fairy Tail are often referred to as the anime 'Big Four'. They are often seen as gateway titles. Many anime fans discovered the medium by watching one of these series. As much as humanely possible, compare and contrast each series. Look at the history, production, manga, movies and common themes. What makes each series different or unique – are there animation, music, character or story elements that set them apart? It is highly recommended to look at 'filler guides' for each series and research significant episodes or story arcs. Inuyasha and Dragon Ball/Z/Kai may be useful to add to the list, but they are often not grouped together in this way. The ultimate goal is to try and decipher which series may appeal to what audience and the best way to approach the material.
Why aren't "Pokemon" and "Yu-gi-oh" part of this bunch. One Piece is slightly older than the others and would have been enjoyed around the same time as Pokemon and "Yu-gi-oh," while "Bleach" and "Naruto" are contemporaries of each other, and Fairy Tale came out after all of them. I'm also pretty sure "Dragonball-Z" is still a big part of most anime fans around the 20-25 year old range. I'm not really very versed in the trends of late, so maybe the four you state are the current highest ranking shows in the West. But it'd be a shame to leave off the two card-trading shows which likely got as popular as they were "because" of the card trading and card battling/gaming aspect. – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
I think because Pokemon is aimed toward children and so it hasn't caught on in the same way the others have. Yu gi oh has it's dedicated fans, but I wouldn't say it's popular enough to be part of the "Big Four". I think this 'list' is derived of what got teens into anime in the early 2000s rather than the 90s, which is why I think Inuyasha should still be part of the list. I hope this answers your question. – Jordan9 years ago
Yeah, I would kind of argue about those being the big four. But then again, it might be an age difference in my case. I would maybe change it to compare and contrast and also why those are good introductory animes. As far as I'm concerned my intros were Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball. I'd also point out that I think most people just get one intro. I think once you've dedicated your time to something as big as Naruto or One Piece, you are well on your way to researching "intermediate" animes. – Tatijana9 years ago
I see what you mean, but at least in the anime community the "Big four" is a key buzzword which is why I put it in the title. Maybe the person can explore the points you mentioned as part of the article? – Jordan9 years ago
Some anime fans are apathetic to live action tv. Explore some of the live action or animated (not Japanese) series that appeal to anime fans. Some of these are Adventure Time, Supernatural, Sherlock, Doctor Who, Game of Thrones, RWBY and Rick and Morty. What do they have in common? What features make these series appeal to those who generally prefer to watch anime?
I feel like this one would be kind of hard to do unless you are that said anime watcher. For example, where do I find data on how many people exclusively watch data and don't like other types of tv? And as far as exceptions to the rule, I feel that they'd be pretty standard. I think there are a lot of people out there who love anime but aren't opposed to watching other tv/movies. Because of this, I'd think you should reword you topic to be more like "Why people love anime." Or maybe leave the title, but remove saying that there are a lot of people out there who exclusively watch anime and nothing else. That said, I fear that this subject might be pretty closely related to other articles/topics already posted. – Tatijana9 years ago
I'm sure you're right that there are some anime fans who are so stuck on the aesthetics and the types of characters and stories that they prefer nothing else. Although that may speak to a deeper personal issue of disliking reality and preferring idealized fantasy, if that's all they choose to watch. In any case, I doubt if there are sufficient poles or sufficient studies on just how many people fall into that category, or really any direct information as to why. You'd do well to at least state where you got the idea for this topic in the first place. You must have seen a few specific people express that they don't like live-action tv, somewhere online. Otherwise you wouldn't have offered this up. – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
Sorry, I am talking about one of my friends and myself who have this issue. Of course, it might be difficult to find the information except on forums. I think there is a topic on US cartoons versus anime so this might be rehashing already covered ground. How about changing it to - "Live Action TV shows that appeal to anime fans"? – Jordan9 years ago
I think you'd actually do well to write a personal blog entry about your experience with this particular preference with media. I'd be rather curious to hear about why this is so in your case. As for an alternate topic, I might even be interested in looking into Live-Action shows that could appeal to anime fans, so feel free to change the topic. It's not really something I've seen fully covered before. I'm not sure if my exact experience with anime would be quite the same as others, though, since I haven't quite watched some of the more recent popular series. Then again, I'd still be willing to give it a shot with my unique perspective. =) – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
No worries, Jonathon. I'll change the title. For myself I have little patience with live action television shows since the amount of planning in regard to episode numbers and scripting seems different to anime? When an anime comes out it is already clear how many episodes it has, with live action it is ambiguous... a series could easily be made three or more seasons too long. I watched How I Met Your Mother all the way through and it could have been 4 seasons shorter. This still happens with anime but generally it is less common. I could go on, but that's the one major difference. – Jordan9 years ago
So, do you want someone to discuss those specific shows, or do you want someone to discuss what makes Western shows in general (be they live-action or animated) appeal to an anime watching audience? – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
Both? General might be better. – Jordan9 years ago
This is a hard topic, although I know exactly what you're talking about. Me and many of my friends fall into this circle -- lovers of Sherlock and Dr Who who nevertheless feel right at home at an anime convention. Perhaps its the nerdiness of said shows? Perhaps its the community that builds around these shows (on tumblr, for example) that draws people in? – sophiacatherine9 years ago
Yes exactly, there's something about the 'nerdiness' about these series, but it would be interesting to define exactly what this encompasses. – Jordan9 years ago
It can sometimes be difficult for reviewers to be objective because nostalgia clouds their perception, so it would be worthwhile to look at anime from the 70's and 80's that still stand up in time. This would include doing research on popular titles from those time periods and watching them. The ANN Cast "Top 80's anime' podcast might be useful to refer to. To anyone who wants to write this particular piece, since the project is enormous, I would like to collaborate. I will likely send a PM as I have seen quite a number of series from this time period (Urusei Yatsura, Maison Ikkoku, Ranma, the Mobile Suit Gundam film compilation trilogy, Dimension Fortress Macross…) and it could make the process easier.
Wait? So if you post a topic here, you CAN take it for yourself? I thought the point was to offer topics for others to pick from. And then if you want to write something you yourself came up with, you just go and start writing it. – Jonathan Leiter9 years ago
Yes, I think that is still the case. I just thought I'd put this one because I'd like to collaborate with other writers on it. I think I'm allowed to do that? – Jordan9 years ago
I'd love to contribute to this article. I'd have to say Rumiko Takahashi's and Osamu Tezuka's works definitely have to be up in the list. – coriandres9 years ago
That's awesome to hear, Coriandres. Thanks for volunteering. I can't seem to find the button to PM you. Are you able to PM me and we can figure out what shows we should divide between us and that sort of thing? You can snag the topic and I can message you through what I've written as I go. – Jordan9 years ago
Every genre and medium has character archetypes associated with it, but few have as many and ones which appear with as much frequency as anime does. Tsunderes, Kuuderes, Yanderes; not only are many of these staples of almost every airing show nowadays, but the formulas used to create them are nearly identical. Most of the time, characters from different shows could be switched around without anyone noticing. The reason why these characters are so popular in the first place is fairly straight-forward: they play into power fantasies by implying that exterior behavior does not accurately reflect interior feelings. However, after so many reiterations of the same exact thing, the market should start to be frustrated. Anime is a very financially-driven medium, so why is it not considered profitable to put new and creative spin on the tried-and-true archetypes when doing so would almost certainly enhance viewer enjoyment and yield capital return? Shows like the Monogatari series have done exactly this and gotten massively positive results, so why do so many animation studios vie away from any sort of enhancement to the formula?
While I'm not a big anime fan, this article would catch my attention. The only thing I would say, would be whoever writes the article should be sure to explain the archetypes so a casual viewer like myself would know which is which. – Austin Bender9 years ago
Since a new series of Full Metal Panic got announced, I thought it is timely to look at this topic as Sousuke is a popular character and has been subjected to a lot of opinion about whether he is realistic or not. The writer could look at the light novels and anime for how to back up their argument, as well as literature and criteria for PTSD. I would be willing to collaborate with someone on this title (I am busy) I am studying Psychology and have read all of the light novels and seen the anime.
If anyone would like to collaborate with me on this please PM me. Thanks for support so far! – Jordan9 years ago
It would see to me like an obvious no. While I'm certainly no authority, from what I understand PTSD involves nightmares, flashbacks of the traumatic event, and anxiety. Also depression, insomnia, fear, anger, jumpiness, difficulty trusting others... but Sosuke is calm, methodically rational, and trusts his allies with his life (though I haven't read the light novels, so I may be wrong). The only symptom he exhibits regularly is Hyper-vigilance, which is really just a normal part of his character.
Most of the time when he pulls his gun too eagerly, it's not because he's paranoid, but because he doesn't understand normal social protocol, and misinterprets people and situations. You can see this when he changes environments. At a high school he's out of place, and his nature would appear to be overly aggressive or paranoid. But on the battle field, his natural environment, his actions are right on point.
From what I understand, a PTSD victim would not make a good soldier because they may cave to stress, and cannot accurately assess risks. But Sosuke is the perfect soldier. His quirkiness at a high school isn't a symptom of PTSD, but a symptom of just not knowing any better. – LangsEnd9 years ago
Yes Langsend, I think you may be correct, although Hypervigilence also comes under high anxiety, jumpiness and difficulty trusting others. Being overly rational could be a defense mechanism (intellectualizing), and since the story doesn't happen from Sousuke's point of view, he may very well have nightmares and flashbacks but we do not see them happen. PTSD affects everyone differently and to my knowledge a lot of soldiers have PTSD but don't seek treatment because they risk loosing their job (I don't think this risk is as bad now but it may depend).
Anyway, I think to some extent it becomes a grey area which is why it would be interesting to explore it. Thanks for your feedback! – Jordan9 years ago
With the enormous success of Love Live!! both in Japan and in the rest of the world, it would be interesting to give a definition of what idols are, what they do, what is the history of this Japanese phenomenon. Then, what is the representation of idols in anime (Love Live, The idolm@ster, Shonen Hollywood)?
I could write this BUT I don't know if I'd give the best material. My previous blog had me coming across all the horror stories that came form J-idol culture. Such as the guy who spent over 100,000 in idol CDs for the voting cards to vote for his favorite idol. – ajester9 years ago
While I definitely see a lot of relevance in this topic, one of the reasons I feel like actual idol culture isn't touched on as much is because it is often thoroughly disturbing. From the few news reports and articles I've seen on it, the people that fuel this industry aren't exactly a reasonable bunch (much like anime fans) but the difference is that the objects of their affection this time are actual people. Any article addressing this head-on would probably come off as a condemnation of anything that supported idol culture, not that that's a bad thing. – ChristopherKay9 years ago
I think it can be done so long as the horror stories are balanced out with stories of normal fans. I want to write this topic. I am just waiting for my 3 day waiting period to be over. Calling it now so no one steals it. Thanks! – Jordan9 years ago
