<p>Cosplaying is dressing up as an anime character and acting like a complete total $*%#ing retard.</p>
<p>rahulnirmal2000,</p>
<p>Is dressing up as an anime character any worse than dressing up for Halloween, other than one is "socially acceptable?"</p>
<p>Most dressing up for Halloween still have a grip on reality.</p>
<p>Yup, thats exactly right Knavish.</p>
<p>Wait, so someone dressing up for a holiday where we carve faces into big squash and run around knocking on people's doors for candy is more "sane" than someone who goes to a conference with like-minded people to have fun and learn about goings-on in a particular industry?</p>
<p>Okay. Sure. Makes sense to me.</p>
<p>It makes sense to me as well, UCLAri. Obsession is a killer.</p>
<p>Okay, but I know people who've dressed up for cons who are perfectly sane and normal people. I just don't see why it is a sign of any sort of deviancy.</p>
<p>What about people who do BDSM? Are they also risking losing their grip on reality?</p>
<p>i agree MOST shoujo and shounen anime are pretty retarded - esp. sailor moon etc. but there ARE some that has truly gorgeous art and meaningful storylines, that doesn't have weepy little girls in sailor suits (sailor moon, pretear, marmalade boy) or machines or a ton of hot girls chasing after a really blah guy (ah my goddess, love hina, sister princess).</p>
<p>personally i'm a fan of sci-fi/fantasy without those annoying elements. Recently I've begun "Fantastic Children" - it's really quite good so far. Utena is also a (much) more mature version of Sailor Moon, and interesting in a bizzare way. 12 Kingdoms (juuni kokuki) i smuch acclaimed and has phenomenal art and music, but I haven't watched beyond episode 7 yet, as the story is a bit slow. Hmm. Though most of them are stupid and I never get pass one episode, there ARE some good ones out there.</p>
<p>I loved sailor moon in middle school</p>
<p>i never got into the anime thing other than that. i like to draw the art though, even though nothing is original anymore</p>
<p>The problem here UCLAri, is that these kids dress up every day for school. They run around thinking they are actually the characters. I have had a "spell" cast on me because I laughed at one of them....she came in looking like a goth who got shat on by a dragon fed through a lawnmower then get her face slammed into wet paint.</p>
<p>All the anime's that I had the misfortune of seeing were so bloody boring. The drawings all look the same and have the same corny storylines - kind of like many other things produced by the Japanese.</p>
<p>If I had time to look at or read anime, I'd rather watch real movies or real books.</p>
<p>Anime is so boring and stupid. I tried watching Dragon Ball Z when I was in Grade 7, but it was that dumb that I didnt bother with it again.</p>
<p>The Simpsons is top class though, but I guess that isnt anime.</p>
<p><em>sighs</em> You know, it's people like you anime haters that really **** me off. First off, this is on a college discussion board. And you guys are treating such a subject as small as this as the biggest debate ever. To you anime haters who are posting on this forum: What the **** are you guys, 12 years old?! You guys are flaming anime or cartoons in general (which I don't know HOW cartoons in general got thrown into this since this says 'anime' in the topic itself) sound like you're in high school again. GROW UP.</p>
<p>In order to defend myself against all you anime haters, I will start by saying that I,myself, love BOTH anime and the US cartoons we have created. And if you have time to read all of this carefully and seriously, please do so because I have A LOT to say about this. Our society has a huge misconception about anime, and it's losers like you anime haters here that are a fine example of it. First off, someone might say something like "Grow up" when one is known to watch anime because of the shows shown on TV. The generalized thought is that it's for children, overexaggerated, not-anatomically-correct, and is a waste of time. Well let's see.....aren't there a lot of american cartoons that at least have SOME exaggeration visually or logically in them? Of course they do; that's why it's a cartoon! Creators of things such as these should be able to freely express what they want to create and display without restrictions, and it seems from looking at this forum thread that not many of you people here seem to realize that. Nobody seems to shake a stick at you if you tell that you and your family gather around to watch a Disney flick. Shouldn't it be THAT audience being told to "grow up" instead? Well NOW you may say that is true, but then again, you didn't think that at first did you? Consider this my friend; at the same time period that Disney was animating "The Lion King", kids in Japan were trying to figure out "Serial Experiment Lain" or start to learn how people really do debate about war and lifestyles in "Gundam The 08th MS Team". </p>
<p>Second, you may THEN argue with us anime fans saying that it's because american cartoons and animation are more mature, more varied, and more realistically depict things worth watching. Sure...I'll remember that the next time "12 oz. Mouse" shows on Adult Swim. You HAVE to remember that both the US and Japan have their share of animation that is mature for the serious viewers, and randomly comical for those looking for a laugh. I mean, have you even bothered to actually LOOK in the Graphic Novel/Manga section of a bookstore and read some of the Japanese manga there? Some of that material is so explicit the animators can't even show it on TV EVEN IN JAPAN! Reason why I emphasized that last part with caps is because in Japan, they have no censorship laws whatsoever. Sure, now we have cartoons like Family Guy, The Boondocks, King of the Hill or still the famous South Park that go where no other american animator goes before. But most of the time you find these cartoons picking fun at real issues that we often go through with in our lifetime; not really focusing on them. We laugh at the joking that our US Congress and Bush suck, or even things like Homosexuality and Religion. Name one recent famous cartoon that handles all these subjects SERIOUSLY without trying to poke fun at it.</p>
<p>Sure there's some anime that suck and others that are mindblowing; flat out awesome. Did you forget we,too, also have the same things too? Some cartoons we have rock and are those that are often spoken of and highly regarded as being the best, and we have those that are also very low on the ladder of quality. "Krypto The Super Dog" is an example. </p>
<p>I quote from an article on <a href="http://www.theotaku.com:%5B/url%5D">www.theotaku.com:</a>
~~~~
While Dexter, from Dexters Laboratory, is concocting new ways to annoy his younger sister, Kira Yamato, from Gundam SEED, is attempting to figure out if war truly is human nature. That is just one example. The plot of most anime, despite the often appearance of psychic powers, giant robots and magical beings, is about what most people would really do. It is much more realistic than an American show. The characters love, cry and actually grow. Characters are also allowed to die, be injured and suffer psychological trauma. </p>
<p>The episodes will progress. In Kim Possible, a new Disney creation, the heroine fights the same villains over and over again. There is no beginning or ending to the series. In anime, there will be both; even if there is a different plot for each episode, it will eventually bring itself to a close. It never ends the way it begins, however. The main character will always go through some kind of change before this happens. </p>
<p>Character development is a must in an anime, whether its Shinji (Neon Genesis Evangelion) who learns not to run from his fears or Yzak Joule (Gundam SEED) who becomes more mature in his views about what it means to be human. There is always a lesson to be learned. However, sometimes the character doesnt learn it. There is no strict line between good and evil. Often there are no villains: just people who think theyre doing the right thing. When those views clash with other people, thats when the real conflict of the plot comes out.
~~~ <a href="http://articles.theotaku.com/view.php?action=retrieve&id=1474%7E%7E%7E%5B/url%5D">http://articles.theotaku.com/view.php?action=retrieve&id=1474~~~</a></p>
<p>I hope that answered some questions and silenced other ones.<br>
Where else do you find subjects like these being selected as themes for production? Usually it's in the original series shows that are on certain channels like CSI or Stargate SG-1, or movies for that matter. It ****es me off greatly when people like you haters use mainstream examples like Yu-Gi-Oh!, Pokemon, Dragon Ball Z or SailorMoon to defend your right to say anime is stupid without even going into further detail or research on what you claim.</p>
<p>Third: Putting emphasis on the fact of what American cartoons will never fully go into detail with: Homosexuality/Bisexuality. Sure you got cartoons that once again, poke fun at it, and it's sad really because whether you're gay or straight (like me) you can really learn something maybe about yourself if you watched/read something like say, "Gravitation" for example. Or maybe you find yourself not brave enough and become ignorant to shiled yourself from such thoughts being provoked or explored. It's the entertainment genre of today with animation that's created such a mental 'barrier to some of us. The entire show is about a homosexual coupling that constantly go through very realistic woes and disappointments through one period while going through the time of their lives at another. </p>
<p>Now we all know anime has porn of it called hentai. Big whoop. IT's also got things such as yaoi (guy and guy) and yuri (girl and girl). You point fingers and flame such abominable things as if they were disgraceful to the entire race; as if the idea was never mentioned before. Uh...have you surfed the internet lately? Have you ever bumped into sites promoting adult cartoons? You find hentai in the mix, but you find A LOT of american-drawn porn in styles that we're used to. If you haven't, then think twice now about criticising this genre so freely now that I told you this. I say all these things because I actually know all of this. I have watched american cartoons and anime and have studied both forms of art; which it should be viewed as that. If it's viewed as a way of life for some people, then good for them! They've found their own passion in life! They've found their interests! Quit bashing them for something they love! As a matter of fact, if you haven't guessed, there is a lot to learn about life in general from watching anime! I can suggest titles (anime or manga) such as these to learn a bit from watching or reading:
~~
Akira(movie and manga)
Naruto(anime,movie(s),manga)
Neon Genesis Evangelion(anime,movie(s),manga)
AppleSeed(anime,movie)
Initial D(anime,movie(s),manga)
Gravitation(anime,manga)
Bleach(anime,manga)
Hellsing(anime(s),manga)
Tsukuyomi Moon Phase(manga)
Tarot Cafe'(manga)
Planetes(anime)
Gankutsuou(anime)
Cowboy Bebop(anime,manga)
XXXHolic(manga)
Petite Cossette(manga)
Read or Die(anime)
Ghost in the Shell(anime,movie)
Gundam Wing(anime,manga(s),movie)
FAKE (manga)
Descendants of Darkness (anime,manga)
Millenium Actress(movie)
Grave of the Fireflies(movie)
~~
You look up a few of these titles and find that anime can be mature, reasonable material to get interested in and that it indeed does live up to its fandom. Hopefully by supplying you with such great titles you'll become informed greatly on the titles and the culture it came from. </p>
<p>I will use one final quote from the same website I used earlier to close, with a final statement paragraph:
~~
Sometimes the plot will reflect events that have happened in todays world. The mushroom shaped cloud is a classic examplewhenever there is huge devastation one seems to appear. This is not surprising; Japan was forever marked by the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. American shows wouldnt dare question the decision made to drop those bombs. In Millennium Actress and Grave of the Fireflies, both movies reflect realistically what it would have been like live in Japan during the Second World War. Fu kuda Mitsuo admitted to using the events of September 11th to inspire some of Gundam SEED, the series he recently directed. On the other hand, would American animation explore these events?
~~~
So there you have it...my 2-cents worth on the subject. If you're still not convinced after reading this, then get up and go buy one of the titles I suggested because you would seriously mature a bit by just watching or reading even a little bit of them. Trust me. I close by saying: I love watching both American and Japanese made cartoons, and I'm sticking to it.</p>
<p>Hey, I love both too, but I'm slowly but surely gravitating towards American animation. At least they don't cause you to go act like a total idiot dressing up as some character and sprinking Japanese words into your conversation dancing around eating Pocky.</p>
<p>true, but then again you have those Comic/Sci Fi conventions. Eh? Think about those...><em>> <</em><</p>
<p>True true.
I do constantly wonder what makes it about Japanese cartoons that make some people act really crazy such as wanting to travel/live in Japan, eat pocky as the only snack and candy, always say "baka", "kawaii", marry a Japanese man/woman, learn Japanese, be reincarnated as a Japanese person, etc.</p>
<p>Has anyone also noticed when you go to anime clubs and conventions and where these disgusting otaku gather, that most of them seem to be either white or east asian as in vietnamese, chinese, philipino, etc? Thats what I've mostly noticed. </p>
<p>I don't wish to offend anyone, but the most psycho otakus I've seen seem to be white americans. I guess its because anime is so foreign and exotic to them that they lap the stuff up like chocolate syrup.</p>
<p>I've watched anime since I was 8, so its been a little over a decade of watching anime and I've fallen in love with it, I've watched countless number of shows but am now starting to get really sick of it. I realize that American cartoons don't have the complex characters, storylines and plots of Japanese cartoons but in my opinion, they have soul and passion. I mainly watch animation to laugh and be entertained and American cartoons do that very well. I would much rather watch Disney's The Emperors New Groove or Lilo and Stich rather than Evangelion or Inuyasha, but thats just me. You guys should read this really good article about anime vs american animation,
<a href="http://www.toondoctor.com/anime.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.toondoctor.com/anime.htm</a></p>
<p>I also feel that todays anime is just not as good as the anime from the 90's.
Oh yeah, why do so many freaking otakus hate shows Dragonball, Pokemon and Yu-Gi-OH so much? Damn, I loved Dragonball Z and I still do. I really wish Toei would make a new series now even though its been almost a decade since it ended.</p>
<p>I do worry about how some anime fans can act, its really scary and creeps me out. I will never ever go to an anime convention, full of too many freaks and weirdos for my taste. Now, I'm gonna watch some Family Guy, American Dad, Futurama, Spongebob, Fairly Oddparents now, they kick ass.</p>
<p>"You know, it's people like you anime haters that really **** me off. First off, this is on a college discussion board. And you guys are treating such a subject as small as this as the biggest debate ever. To you anime haters who are posting on this forum: What the **** are you guys, 12 years old?! You guys are flaming anime or cartoons in general (which I don't know HOW cartoons in general got thrown into this since this says 'anime' in the topic itself) sound like you're in high school again. GROW UP."</p>
<p>I love how whenever somebody disgrees with a person, the person goes, "gosh, always argue, GROW UP." Such a classicly human thing.</p>
<p>I don't care about the plot/epiphanies/revelations/mind-blowing truths about why we wear underwear, because for the most part, I am first concerned with the visual, and the visual, for me, is anything but pleasing. </p>
<p>And no matter what any anime-lover says, there is not a single anime that is anatomically correct with perfect scientific linear point of perspective, perfect recession into depth, perfect contrapposto, perfect use of space.</p>
<p>I'm the sort that finds Pontormo and del Sarto much more interesting. I hate anime because, for me, it's such a waste of time and lacks the depth/trigger to think that I particularly love. Sure, it may reflect a lot about culture/news, but it goes without saying that nearly everything reflects it.</p>
<p>However, I do love certain thought abstractions, such as the abstraction portrayed in the movie "Stay."</p>
<p>I would kill to be a professional art historian, and therefore this is why I hate anime. If you have studied art, you will find that for every time we move away from realistic/perfection of the depiction of humans, society falls apart. And anime is just the most distinct reminder that there is much to hate about society. I could write you a novel on this, but that's the brief point of it all.</p>
<p>And, I always assumed it was an adult thing to argue about little things. What's wrong with debating? It brings your beliefs out, lays them out a table; and your beliefs get dissected. I think you should always be ready to defend your beliefs, whether literally, vocally, or to yourself.</p>
<p>why do i dislike anime?</p>
<p>because i generally don't like cartoons - US and Japanese ones. I watch Family Guy, simpsons, like once a month, I dont watch them every week. I dont like animated movies. I dont like the idea of watching Finding Nemo and Madagascar or whatever because I just dont like animationy stuff.</p>
<p>I grew up watching mainstream anime on tv - pokemon, yu gi oh, sailormoon, cardcaptorers or wahtever.
They were on TV. I certainly did not know at the age of 7,8,9 that there were sophisticated, grownup anime in Japan.</p>
<p>But now I know. And I don't really want to spend my time downloading and watching anime, to change my point of view. Because I have better things to do with that time. Now, I'm not saying you anime-lovers are wasting your time (because everyone has their own opinion on what 'wasting time' is). But to me, watching anime would be a waste of my precious time. Yes maybe if I'm 80 and retired, maybe I'll watch anime then.</p>
<p>Why don't you try to accept that everyone's different. We all have our own point of views on things. And if it sparks a debate, let there be a debate.</p>
<p>the only anime i like is Cowboy Bebop. God, the opening jazz sequence is amazing. and i've only watched 1 episode.</p>
<p>besides that, i hate anime. the otaku's at our school are loud, obnoxious, and frankly really weird. but amazingly, their club is the most active in our school, right next to Junior State of America (JSA), the debate club.</p>
<p>I (don't hate) dislike anime, even though all my friends like it, 'cuz it's a waste of time and pointless (unless you happen to become a drawer when you grow up:)) But, I dont hate it...</p>