What's After Hours' favourite anime?

kneemos wrote: »

Don't get it.
Just looks like crappy cartoons.Is it because it's Japanese that it's cool,fashionable or ironic?

Anime is essentially just Japanese animation, so there's a huge variety of different types of films and series. It would be wrong to think of it as just one thing. Science-fiction and fantasy are the dominant genres, but you'll find everything from comedy and drama, to horror and psychological thrillers. Adult-orientated animation and comics are mainstream in Japan. It's normal there to tell a story in animation. You'll find them on prime time television right after the nightly news. It's just another type of story-telling. The term 'anime' is seen by some in the West to apply to particular genres or styles, but in fact it applies to Japanese animation in its entirety.

Japanese animation developed independently of what was happening around the world, so, much like Japanese cinema, it has its own internal 'language' and stylistic ticks. The Japanese are just a very unique people, and their cinema and animation is like nothing else. That's part of the appeal. Some of it is certainly 'cool', but it's not particularly trendy or fashionable. It's simply unique storytelling, which appeals to certain types of people. Generally speaking, those people are anorak types who enjoy digging for new shows and films, i.e. fans in the fullest sense of the word.

For anyone interested, Studio Ghilbi is essentially the Disney of Japan. Their films have won multiple Oscars and are a staple of art-house cinemas all over the world. For example, Grave of the Fireflies is widely considered to be one of the greatest Word World 2 dramas ever produced, and that includes 'regular' films. Also, their fantasy films have to be seen to be believed, and they're a perfect example of what I mean when I say Japan developed independently of the rest of the world. Fantasy means something completely different when you're talking about anime.

PizzamanIRL wrote: »

What's the big deal about anime? Cartoons for adults?

Yeah, pretty much.

Over here we're used to Pixar, Disney and other studios producing animation that 'adults can enjoy as well', i.e. with subtle references to sex, alcohol and gangster films. In Japan, many adults just like animation and they're catered for independently of children, rather than having the mature content they desire being carried on top of stories about lost zoo animals.

The Simpsons and Family Guy, while brilliant in their golden years, are far more immature than a lot of anime, yet anime fans are regularly thought of as childish. It seems to come down to humour. It's okay to laugh at a cartoon, no matter what age you are, but you mustn't take it seriously. True story: I once had a woman tell me that she was roaring crying at the end of Toy Story 3, but who laughed at me when I offered to loan her some Studio Ghilbi DVDs. Ignorance is bliss.