Anime and Adult


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QUOTE (snowpsyche @ Feb 18 2008, 01:32 PM) I think a lot of adults "stay in the closet" because a good portion of the kids who love anime look at us like we're the ones who are abnormal. And make fun of us.
And because an adult liking Miyazaki or some more adult-oriented animes (Monster, Mushishi, GitS...) won't have a lot to say to a child liking Naruto (It's one of the reasons why I post rarely on the anime part of the forum : people will have different tastes, opinions, expectations about animes, none are more or less relevant than another and most often I can't bother to change theirs or change mine).
 
QUOTE Are countless fights between giant space robots a mature subject. biggrin.gif
Because Gundam is no more than that, hidden behind some commonplaces (I'm enjoying Gundam! But I'm still looking for the mature content)

I used to think like that until I watched Eureka 7 when there was a scene of a mobile suit's cockpit full of blood and the pilot's torn arms and limbs.
That was a big deal...cuz I just realized that PEOPLE are dying. Especially after
gundam 00 that shows the story of two civilian couples got involved in a war.

Then about watching anime as a hobby...Well, it is a hobby, but then someone stated that we can get nothing from it except enjoyment as its only a hobby; I completely disagree.
Turning 18 now, I can say that I understand anime more than ever before. I got a lot of life lessons from watching them ( lessons you will never get watching dramas, soap opera, bla bla bla) even from a shounen anime like Doraemon which teaches me about friendships and be more independent.
And there are still more animes that change my point of view in life about war, relationships, family problems, etc.

Back to the topic of adult and anime, I remember in Indonesia (southeast Asia), Crayon Shinchan was aired between Doraemon and Chibi Maruko chan time slot at 9am in the morning on Sundays (tv hours intended for kids).
LOL, shows how ignorant the adults are towards anime.

My mom read about Shinchan being a seinen category and banned my brother from watching it. Then later, there was Naruto, then she asked me agin, "Is it like that Shinchan ?"
I said, "Narutos's fine, its not as bad as shinchan"
then she asked agin, "u watch it too?"
I said, "no, i dont like that show. I watch Monster, Gantz, RahXephon,etc."
"its more adultish mom, lots of blood and some sex" (how stupid I AM!!)
she's like,"stop wasting ur time and study!!"
( yea..so anime that's too adultish are bad too guys!!)

I am still on the anime fans side.
Finally, I just wanna say that anime are created because it's too difficult for the authors to make their point using real life examples. eg. Denno Coil,s philosophy, or the absurdism in Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, or even the weird philosophy in Tekkonkinkreet and Paprika.

So yea..anime are for all ages!!
 
Of course it's for all ages, but how many would be shocked to find one or even both of your parents watching anime. I don't me the after thought but the first initial thought. This thread can be described as a double edged sword.

To throw an wrench in the works so to say anime could so to say be a younger persons turf or at least they could believe that. I could be their only escape, and this single thought alone could be what keeps some adult away.

For me I could understand that (I don't believe that about anime), but their are some experiences that I don't want my parents to experience because it is my escape from them and their generation.
 
Anime is like everything else in life, it's what you make of it. I am 26yo and have two kids of my own. I love anime and watch it on a regular basis. When I was married I didnt really watch it because my wife had the notion that all anime was just perverted hentai. It is annoying when people are closed minded about things.
I am certainly not ashamed to talk about anime around friends. I know alot of guys at work who watch it as well. Its only when Im around my friends I play sports with when I get razzed about it, but thats fine. They know if they call me on a saturday for some basketball Ill be there.
I tell people one thing. "I garauntee I could show you an anime that you would absolutely love. No matter what you are into."
Worrying about what "adults" think is a waste of time (when it comes to your hobbies). At least your not out doing drugs and stealing stuff.
 
QUOTE (achan29 @ Feb 24 2008, 12:17 PM)Then about watching anime as a hobby...Well, it is a hobby, but then someone stated that we can get nothing from it except enjoyment as its only a hobby; I completely disagree.
Turning 18 now, I can say that I understand anime more than ever before. I got a lot of life lessons from watching them ( lessons you will never get watching dramas, soap opera, bla bla bla) even from a shounen anime like Doraemon which teaches me about friendships and be more independent.
And there are still more animes that change my point of view in life about war, relationships, family problems, etc.


I feel one can't learn anything from anime. If you want to learn about politics watch the news, read the paper/book or even find about a parties policies. Using anime for such things is a poor substitute. The situations used in most series are often unrealistic or simplified to make the villains more obvious. It also fails to tackle many issues in sufficient depth as the story moves on to the next arc. As for family/relationship problems I find one learns more from real life situations, in many anime series they have personalities that would seem unreal and like the previous example many of the scenario placed seem too outlandish to have applicable applications in real life. As for about learning morals...

If you take the adult population as a whole I am sure the vast majority don't give a flying monkeys about the animation industry let alone anime. They will simply label anime as cartoons as they don't care about the distinctions between western cartoons or Japanese cartoons. That said just because most adults don't like doesn't mean there are no adults that like anime, like they say their are always exceptions to the rule!

Also for the younger people out there don't develop a siege mentally where you think "its us against them" saying things like adults are stupid have closed minds and don't know anything. Just keep in mind there are ALOT of adults out using these blanket expressions is a gross misjudgement. It would be equivalent to me saying all children can't short attention spans or they all hate books as they are boring. Keep a open mind and avoid making big generalisations or blanket expressions e.g all adults hate anime.
 
QUOTE
I feel one can't learn anything from anime. If you want to learn about politics watch the news, read the paper/book or even find about a parties policies. Using anime for such things is a poor substitute. The situations used in most series are often unrealistic or simplified to make the villains more obvious. It also fails to tackle many issues in sufficient depth as the story moves on to the next arc. As for family/relationship problems I find one learns more from real life situations, in many anime series they have personalities that would seem unreal and like the previous example many of the scenario placed seem too outlandish to have applicable applications in real life. As for about learning morals...

Some would say that if someone needs animes to learn about friendship, he should watch less animes and go out more often.
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Anyway, I'd like to add to your point that it's not specific to animes.
Watching Armageddon (The movie with Bruce Willis) won't teach you anything about astronomy, watching 24 won't teach you anything about counter-terrorism, Beverly Hills 90210 won't teach you about the typical life of teenagers.
Even watching some specialized animes, like Hikaru no Go, won't teach you a lot about go (it will teach you maybe some basis, the kind of things you discover during the first hour).

Mainly because they are not here to teach something. They're here to entertain, to tell a story, sometimes to create some feelings, sometimes to challenge the watcher.


QUOTE Also for the younger people out there don't develop a siege mentally where you think "its us against them" saying things like adults are stupid have closed minds and don't know anything. Just keep in mind there are ALOT of adults out using these blanket expressions is a gross misjudgement. It would be equivalent to me saying all children can't short attention spans or they all hate books as they are boring. Keep a open mind and avoid making big generalisations or blanket expressions e.g all adults hate anime.

A good comparaison to people confusing animes and cartoons (which is not surprising, since the borders are very blurry, if they exists at all) would be people calling Bach, Mozart and Berlioz 'classical music'.
No!
Bach is baroque, Mozart is classical and Berlioz is romantic. And yet, a lot of people would make the confusion.

By the way, there's also a lot of young people who don't care about the alleged fundamental difference between animes and cartoons. Of course, they don't go on anime-related website, so there's less chance to encounter them.
 
Haha, what do you want me to say? They live in a different era from us, to them anime is just like a cartoon. I experienced the same thing first with my parents. I always be mocked by my parents, that I will always be a kid by watching animes.

Well, I don't want to argue so I just let them be and keep watching animes. Then when I'm 20 years old, one day I was discussing about the war in Iraq. They asked me what was my opinion about the war and I response, "The war is nothing but selfish belief of one-side is the right one. But in the end, it is the civil people who suffered the most".

My parents gazed at me and asked me how did I came up with that answered. I replied, "I just watched, A Grave of Fireflies. You should watch it sometime. By the way, it's an anime".

I think at that time, I have been considered as an adult.
 
Grave of the Fireflies was nothing more than one persons perspective put to visualization to someone else's point of view it could have looked completely different.

The only things that could have been learned from Grave of the Fireflies is that war sucks. Anime at most can at most can put a situation in perspective through one or a small group (in reference to the worlds population) view.
 
QUOTE (KittenEatCorpse @ Mar 13 2008, 04:11 PM) Grave of the Fireflies was nothing more than one persons perspective put to visualization to someone else's point of view it could have looked completely different.

The only things that could have been learned from Grave of the Fireflies is that war sucks. Anime at most can at most can put a situation in perspective through one or a small group (in reference to the worlds population) view.
Yes2, I realize that it's only from one persons perspective. But it this one person perspective also represent a whole mass of other perspective, which are the civil people.
 
By observing the birthday thread the latest posts shows there are 199 birthdays (one date was discounted). Do adults not like anime? By looking at the birthday thread I find this is not the case. If anything it is kids that do not like anime!
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I admit the sample is a bit limited and biased but it is interesting nonetheless:

Before 1950: 2
1950-59: 1
1960-69: 3
1970-79: 8
1980-89: 135
1990-99: 50
2000-present: 0

Kids (under 18): 43 (22% of FansubTV)
Adults (18 or over): 156 (78% of FansubTV)

In doing this made I made the assumption everyone gave the correct birthday (I dispute the dates before 1950). One thing that is apparent though is the vast majority of users (93%) are born on 1980 or later. This suggests that if a person could not follow anime as a child they are unlikely to like anime going into adulthood.
 
though this isn;t so much an indication of what age group likes anime in alrger numbers, but rather a what age groups frequents fansub.tv's forum.
 
QUOTE I admit the sample is a bit limited but it is interesting nonetheless:


The sample is not only limited, but also potentially biased.
-Younger people may be more prone to post on the thread than older people (for a lot of reasons).
-FansubTV deals mainly with recent animes (with exceptions of course). Older people may be more fond of older animes (Hell, I find than animes from the 80's or even 90's are easily as good, if not better, than those of 00's. Apart the technical considerations of course).
-FansubTV allow us to illegally (I don't want to start another debate on fansubbing here, so those who might disagree, read 'in a shady legal area' if you prefer) download animes for free. Older people, with a job, an income and less free time may be on average more likely to buy stuff legally once they're released on DVD/DVD Box. It also works for young kids, who have less often access to a computer to download.

I'm not claiming that those hypothesises are true or false. Just that we need to check them before using the birthday thread for statistical purposes (moreover, as you said, the sample is really small ^^).
 
QUOTE (mamori @ Mar 17 2008, 01:02 PM)though this isn;t so much an indication of what age group likes anime in alrger numbers, but rather a what age groups frequents fansub.tv's forum.
Considering FansubTV is a site pretty much dedicated to anime (there is a manga section) it is pretty safe to assume that people who frequent this site like anime. It's like saying a person who frequently visits Gamespot is not a gaming fan.

Okay there is some bias as not all people who like anime use anime forums. This could explain why there are no very young users. Notice there are no users born in 2000 or later? Despite these flaws I think the findings will not be hugely different. You might get 40% of viewers being kids in a more balanced study. It should also be noted that children are getting more composure to computers at an earlier age. Imagine how much more biased this study would have been only 10 years ago? This means in 10 years time this bias could become a moot point.


QUOTE (Dalriada @ Mar 17 2008, 01:11 PM)
-FansubTV deals mainly with recent animes (with exceptions of course). Older people may be more fond of older animes (Hell, I find than animes from the 80's or even 90's are easily as good, if not better, than those of 00's. Apart the technical considerations of course).
- Older people, with a job, an income and less free time may be on average more likely to buy stuff legally once they're released on DVD/DVD Box. It also works for young kids, who have less often access to a computer to download.
It is definitely quite telling how so many people who like anime are born in 1980 or later (93%). Perhaps this bias can be explained by the stuff you mention Dalriada but will it overturn such a huge majority (it borders on near universal). I don't think simple reasons like more income or lack of free time will explain this. After all adults make the time to go to the cinema, eat out and a whole host of other activities so why can't they find the time to watch anime?

In any case its not like I'm publishing an official study or even making a claim in wikipedia. I just did a little research that should provide a little food for thought.
 
QUOTE (monsta666 @ Mar 17 2008, 01:17 PM) It is definitely quite telling how so many people who like anime are born in 1980 or later.

Well, at least 185 people.
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Edit :


QUOTE
Perhaps this bias can be explained by the stuff you mention Dalriada but will it overturn such a huge majority (it borders on near universal).

Yes, it can overtun it.
It's really like saying "All anime lovers speak English. Just look at this forum, everybody speak english (well... with a lot of mistakes in my case, but it's still English)".
It's objectively wrong, and yet it's what the forum would told us, because of a biased sample.

Moreover, twisting a bit the rigour of the study and saying that it's not harmful because it comfort your previous opinion defeats the purpose of doing the study, doesn't it ? ><
 
QUOTE (Dalriada @ Mar 17 2008, 01:20 PM)Yes, it can overtun it.
It's really like saying "All anime lovers speak English. Just look at this forum, everybody speak english (well... with a lot of mistakes in my case, but it's still English)".
It's objectively wrong, and yet it's what the forum would told us, because of a biased sample.

Moreover, twisting a bit the rigour of the study and saying that it's not harmful because it comfort your previous opinion defeats the purpose of doing the study, doesn't it ? ><
Yes the site is essentially an English as result it WILL show bias. If anything however it will be biased against younger viewers. For example all the foreigners i.e. people who don't speak English as their mother tongue are more likely to be older than if the site was in their native language. It takes a certain level of proficiency and confidence for a person to post in a forum that is not their first language. Something I feel will be lacking in many younger people i.e. under 10. As a result these people will not post and the results will be biased against younger viewers. I believe the fact that more adults like anime than kids is a false one (I thought the laugh made this fact obvious). Again another example that sarcasm doesn't work in forums.
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That said I still believe that the main country that will see major differences in age categories is probably Japan as their attitude to animation is fundamentally different to most western countries.

I didn't expect my half hearted study to face this much scrutiny. I thought that was what school/university and work are for!
 
Well, as one of the oldest people using this site (thanks to the age stats, I know this now), I have to say the topic is interesting. I have always been a huge fantasy/supernatural/sci-fi fan, and due to recent lack of reading material, I've been watching anime. I understand it is difficult to put a lot of this into live action, but it has gotten better recently, i.e. Lord of the Rings. As an "adult", I am not your typical viewer. My friends know next to nothing about anime, but then again, I'm one of the few who also keeps up with current music, trends, and fads. This is partly due to the fact I want to keep a knowledgable eye on my teenager, but also because I've always enjoyed learning and discovering new things. I'm always amazed when I come across a new anime that gets me completely hooked (much like some of the books I've read). I guess what I'm trying to say is that, because of the particular genre of book I like to read and shows I like to watch, this leaves me very open to the idea of watching anime. I have always been in the minority in that respect anyway. It's called escapism, and as a teenager, I felt I could do this with my love of books and music. There is nothing better, in my opinion, then listening to a good song, reading a great book, or watching an awesome anime. It makes you feel better and that's sometimes all people need once in a while.
 
QUOTE (butterhex @ Mar 23 2008, 07:08 AM)Well, as one of the oldest people using this site (thanks to the age stats, I know this now), I have to say the topic is interesting. I have always been a huge fantasy/supernatural/sci-fi fan, and due to recent lack of reading material, I've been watching anime. I understand it is difficult to put a lot of this into live action, but it has gotten better recently, i.e. Lord of the Rings. As an "adult", I am not your typical viewer. My friends know next to nothing about anime, but then again, I'm one of the few who also keeps up with current music, trends, and fads. This is partly due to the fact I want to keep a knowledgable eye on my teenager, but also because I've always enjoyed learning and discovering new things. I'm always amazed when I come across a new anime that gets me completely hooked (much like some of the books I've read). I guess what I'm trying to say is that, because of the particular genre of book I like to read and shows I like to watch, this leaves me very open to the idea of watching anime. I have always been in the minority in that respect anyway. It's called escapism, and as a teenager, I felt I could do this with my love of books and music. There is nothing better, in my opinion, then listening to a good song, reading a great book, or watching an awesome anime. It makes you feel better and that's sometimes all people need once in a while.

I must say butterhex that you statement on your views is really well put. I particularly like your point that you owe it all to an open mind. That is all anyone really needs.
 
I think the reason alot of kids from the 1980's like anime is becuase of all the cartoons we saw growing up, I mean during most of school I woke up ate breakfast, in front of the TV watching cartoons. Then after school was back to watching cartoons. Effectively I think we are one of the first cartoon generations. Which would bring up the differences between the 2 types. honestly I'm drawn to the anime more because there seems to be more emotion involed. Well save DBZ at least, but that was a fun action anime anyway.
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BTW I'm 26 year old kid
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QUOTE (KittenEatCorpse @ Mar 24 2008, 05:52 PM)
I must say butterhex that you statement on your views is really well put. I particularly like your point that you owe it all to an open mind. That is all anyone really needs.
Thank you! I think I actually came across with what I wanted to say-sometimes it's hard on the computer when you can't see the people you're responding or commenting to.
 
Anybody can be a kid. Just beecause we like cartoons does not make us childish. We may even be more mature than most or just plain smarter and bored. One cannot be pigeonholed because of ones taste.
Me, i'm a 18 year old woman who loves anime. But i am still a child.
ALL OF YOU HAVE GREAT AND INSIGHTFULL OPINIONS. OTAKU ARE UNIQUE.
Okay now that was just way to many big words.
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