There are those who are against modern anime because they perceive its too fetishizing. In their eyes, anime has become less about the stories and the brilliant visuals and everything that made anime special and has become all about cute girls and panty shots and little sisters saying, “Onii-chaaaan.”
In other words, if you are one of these people, you dislike how something innocent like anime has been perverted and twisted to the sexual desire of others. You want to protect anime because it’s done so much for you, and you feel emotionally connected to it, and if there’s one thing you want to save, you want to save anime’s reputation, its purity.
In other words…
YOU ARE MOE FOR ANIME.
OGIUE MANIAX 
And because you want it to be devoted only to you, when there’s a threat to anime’s perceived virginity and pureness, you rip apart your YHS, laserdisc, and DVD collections in anger and post the pictures to the Internet.
LikeLike
To answer your question, no, I don’t hate what anime has become. I still enjoy a lot of shows just as much as shows from the 80’s and 90’s. With that said, if more modern anime become the likes of Kiss x Sis, I’m going to kill myself, or all the otaku who buy and support that kind of beyond brainless unmitigated crap. =\
LikeLike
I don’t think this is necessarily true. I actually favor most of the “modern” anime. I’ve seen my fair share of both old and newer anime. Older anime tends to be more simple, in terms of both storyline and characters. Nowadays, there is an over saturation of anime. I think it’s just simply a backlash from all the harem, cliche-ridden, and money pandering anime that is spawned every new season.
LikeLike
I hate what anime has become because it’s boring, not because it’s unpure.
When a medium recycles the same clichés over and over, it gets dull. They have to mix up their clichés a little more.
Well, they don’t have to, because I’m sure they’re still making plenty of money. But I’d like it if they did.
LikeLike
That made me laugh.
But yes, it is what you hate the most that reflects you the most. Or something like that. :P
LikeLike
Which makes Zetsubou Sensei an even better parody of anime for the reasons stated.
And I agree, anime of today is too embarassing. I wasn’t afraid to show friends of mine anime and keep their image of me healthy. Now, “KAWAIII NE SOWAIII NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE,” they just look at me as if I’m some kind of faggot. Even Code Geass, as cool as it was, submitted to MOE.
LikeLike
How ironic that the notion of keeping anime pure for its drama and art is being coined with another fetish of anime: MOE.
So, does this mean you’re loving Casshern Sins?
LikeLike
Don’t even get me started on how I’m tsundere for tsunderes… 0_o
I’ve never read this blog before but this post made me laugh. Long and hard. Good job. *adds to feedreader*
LikeLike
There are some things I hate about it but to be honest I really didn’t understand or was a part of the fandom or anything back in the 90s when I was first getting into anime. So even though I might like some of those shows more or the animation style, I would say I like where anime is going now and it really is an awesome time to be a fan of the stuff.
LikeLike
If old fogie anime fans are like dads and their favorite genres of anime are like daughters, this is merely a bunch of family drama playing out as their daughters turning more rebellious and sexually mature.
Dads are generally moe for their daughters, and it may be a healthy thing until they stop respecting them for what they are.
LikeLike
I dont hate it. I really like anime has become. But in some way, there is a negative effect. But I must say, the ‘hate’ is overshadowing the ‘like’
;_;
LikeLike
I don’t enjoy the fact that fanservice galore for the main sake of fanservice is becoming rampant lately. That said, I like to see myself as a tsundere for anime. Moe for anime is too mainstream.
LikeLike
I do hate how anime has become more “cutsy” and perverted. The onder anime was abuot action and surprises! But I’m not guna lie… I do like some of the modern art they have now. Though i do believe they have become lazy in their drawing styles. I’m all about graphics.
LikeLike
Hi my name is Andy, and I’m moe for anime!
There are some good things about newer anime like cleaner-looking visuals and, for the most part, a consistently good soundtrack.
Granted, we’ve had these with older anime, but the audio and visual quality of newer anime has been consistently good. As far as the storylines and characters, not so much.
I definitely agree that anime as of late has been too fetishy. Sure panty-shots and boob-rubs are all good, but if there’s no story behind it then what’s the point?
One of the things that I love about anime is that it uses character development to push the story instead of always an assigned plot (beat all the baddies, find the mystical item, etc).
I have a very hard time trying to keep track of everybody in a series, but if they stand out by design and/or by character, then it’s easier to figure out who’s who. Lately, anime characters have been so cookie-cutter and it annoys the crap out of me!
/rant
LikeLike
I really don’t mind at all. In fact, I like that there is sexual content sprinkled on most anime. Stuff like One Outs, Kaiji and Genshiken could definitely use some eye candy.
Philosophically speaking, the concept of perversion doesn’t hold much water IMO. Stuff ’em with all the moe/fetish you like.
LikeLike
>>Genshiken
OHNO
OHNO
OHNO
OHNO
>>Kaiji
There was a girl in that for about one episode.
Most of these comments fail. Why hasn’t Steve Harrison showed up yet?
LikeLike
also both yamato and gundam had pantyshots
LikeLike
L-Gaim’s first shot is a pantyshot.
LikeLike
I’m like Kenshiro, matters have to reach a specific level before my manly power blows the shirt off my body, revealing…wait…
anyway.
I’m MOE for what anime used to be, I guess. I miss the *potential* that used to be. The promise of the OAV was the ability to tell a story without the constraints or limits of the TV series or the walls of the feature film, where if you wanted to tell a tale that was 47 minutes long, well, you could do it. Or a series of episodes, all with different run times dictated by the needs of the story, not fitting within set commercial break patterns.
But I think the various companies figured out pretty quick that the OAV could be the ‘also ran’ place for TV projects that they couldn’t find mainstream sponsers for, and suddenly it was all 25 minute episodes, 13 episode runs, 26 if they dared, and look, not long after THAT the ‘year long’ anime series died out, and TV began imitating the OAVs, 13 episodes, 26 was now a LONG show. No more 52 episode shows (except for the Shonen Jump monsters which may be more a sign of how much money Toei and ShoPro are willing to spend on buying air timeslots, blah blah blah).
the problem is, as I see it, Japan has become as infected with the ‘middle management MBA beancounter’ virus as the USA, where only numbers matter, and the idea of ‘how can we make ONE MORE PENNY TODAY?’ no matter what the effect, the COST of that penny is down the line.
This thinking makes studios unwilling to take risks, they want that ‘sure bet’ money, and with the current 13 week lifespan of many shows there’s no real buildup, no real curve. The money (audience, ratings) you make on the first two weeks is about the level you’re going to do thru the entire run, so why rock the boat? Just crap out product that will satisfy that narrow market.
And that’s the failing. Chara designs used to be an organic function of the storytelling. Now it’s artificially generated to cater to narrow, specific fetishes, because it’s now about marketing hug pillows and figures, which can exist outside of the actual show, much like the early days of anime on the internet and people just ganking porn pics from H-games and the like- sex without context.
And Gundam not only had panty shots, it had it’s own ‘hot springs’ mini-episode with nekkid Sayla and Frau…
Our Host here did a nice little review of Macross F, and boy, you know, I WANT to embrace it but dammit, look, LOOK at the chara list. MOE and MOE. I’d like to believe it was the staff poking fun at the MOE explosion in the same way the original Macross staff were poking fun at Yamato and Gundam, but no, I think it’s all cynical calculation and packaging to maximize sales to the fetish types (and yes, I include AWESOME BATTLES as mecha porn).
I hope to god Nishizaki’s new Yamato project actually works out and knocks some sense into the industry.
LikeLike
Re: Steve
While I’m keen on the idea of the OVA and its ability to not conform to any preset rules for how long a show should be, and the wild west style of being able to just make whatever the hell anime you want, I’m not sure the OVA era is all that magical or mystical. I associate with the OVA era a certain emphasis and passion for flash and panache, I also think it’s generally lacking in some of the Post-Evangelion strengths of anime such as strong internal characterization. Legend of the Galactic Heroes is, of course, an exception, as it is an exception for so many “rules” of anime.
As for Macross Frontier’s character designs, yeah the characters are more colorful than the designs of the 80s, but I think once you get to know their stories and their personalities you’ll find yourself eating it up like you did Robotech (I’m assuming you watched Robotech before Macross). Even if you’re not a fan of the designs, don’t let that stop you.
LikeLike
Yes, there was a LOT of crap OAVs in the ’80s. Not a doubt about it. Stunning, shocking, “how did this get funded?!” crap.
But there was a decent amount of generally quality titles. Megazone 23, the first (and really, only REAL one) Gal Force, Project A-Ko, the first Dominion, and leading up to such gems as The Cockpit and the star of the format, Giant Robo.
But that’s the thing, actual characterization is put aside for the various MOE tropes, and with (generally) 13 episodes in a modern series, there’s no ROOM to really develop chara past those baseline stereotypes.
I’ll get around to Macross Frontier at some point, but not due to any desire caused by Robotech. I’m anti-Robotech, having watched Macross when it was coming out in ’82….
LikeLike
I view anime like I would a boyfriend. Sure he has flaws that get on my nerves. He could do with less niche fan service shows. He could have less wimpy lead characters and more strong female characters. He could make a few less moe shows. He could take me out to dinner to a nice place a little more often.
But over all I am still happy with my relationship with anime. He still provides me with quality entertainment. He still make me laugh. He still makes me cry. I accept his flaws even if I bitch about them.
I am not moe for anime. I am in love with anime.
LikeLike
@Steve: There have been several series that accomplished fairly complex characterizations in 13 episodes. Crest of the Stars accomplished quite a lot in just the first season; Banner of the Stars I and II built on that base but still had far more character development than they did flashy space battles. Maria-sama ga Miteru, too–the entire first series was characterization. true tears–aired earlier this year, and, in terms of design style, highly “moe”–was 13 episodes and had gut-wrenchingly realistic characters. It’s true, many of the 13 episode series I’ve seen don’t often go highly in-depth into characters, but there’s enough that do a good job with the time they have that it’s hard to make a giant sweeping statement that the 13-episode format makes for poor characterization–and OVA series are often much, much shorter in episode count, and relatively equal in run-time: Giant Robo ran for 14-15 24-minute episodes, compressed into 7. And had planning and budget problems.
If an hour and a half movie can develop a realistic, complex character and/or emotionally affect the audience during its short runtime, then I see no reason why a 13-episode series can’t do the same. “They can’t” and “They don’t” are two different things, and grand sweeping statements about the former or the latter can’t hold weight because generalizations always have more exceptions than they’re really worth.
Also, in your list of amazing OAVs, you forgot Top o Nerae!/Gunbuster, and for that, I will never forgive you. Unless it was a memory lapse. Right? Right?
LikeLike
I make sweeping generalizations because were I to break things down into “except for” examples, I’d end up writing even more boring blather. I trust people to generally ‘get’ what I mean because they will use logic, experience, knowledge, context and history to flesh out what I say in their own minds. And they may come to different conclusions and thus disagree.
To wit: I consider Gunbuster to be just as flawed as Gainax’s other works, suffering from lack of focus, placing style and flash above all and calling it substance when it is not. I feel the last pure, honest work that Gainax did was the Daicon III film, and MAYBE Royal Space Force. I have felt for years now that if one wants to see everything wrong with Gainax, the Daicon IV film says it all, all right there in a few short minutes. Which of course flies in the face of many who feel that’s THE MOST AWESOME ANIMATED SHORT EVER, right?
Saying that, I’m not saying Gunbuster isn’t ENTERTAINING, it is, it’s very pretty and shiny and for a tech nerd those first couple of episodes are great fun. But it’s not anything earthshaking or groundbreaking or revolutionary, it’s just a show.
I’m…not sure where you’re getting your ideas about Giant Robo…AFAIR it WAS meant to be a 12 episode thing but the length was always assumed to be dependent on what the story was doing as long as it fit on a single LD disc, and it wasn’t budget issues that were the problem (that was what was happening with Nishizaki and Yamato 2520, same time, same Bandai Visual) it was the death of Imagawa’s father that screwed production up.
but whatever. What exists is what we have and it’s damn cool. Sure would be nice to see more, but oh well.
LikeLike
@Steve: Generalized statements make for weak arguments, sails ready for holes to be punched in them (see below); a nuanced argument will address exceptions to strengthen itself against criticism. Never expect your audience to magically understand your meaning without providing context.
You seem, though, to have missed (or agree with and fail to mention) the larger point of my comment, i.e. that being “moe” (or even just having aesthetically pleasing character visuals) needn’t preclude having fleshed-out characters. There are shows which sadly trade depth for cheap market-grabbing, but there are also shows which do not–and there’s ones that fall in the nebulous zone in between. Just like how there’s OVAs that showed the potential of the format, and then there’s the ones that squandered it–and the ones in the aforementioned nebulous zone.
Whenever a trend hits a market–any market–you get all kinds of people bundling up giant bags of grapeshot and loading them into cannons and firing them at that frigate on the horizon, in the hope that at least a few hit their target enough to make some kind of difference. Once the frigate’s closer, you can fire cannonballs, if you haven’t scared it off yet. And, eventually, you sink it, and it’s on to the next in a never-ending Trafalgar of market trends.
Or it could sink you, but there’s always another ship to take your place, flying the Union Jack and eager for some fresh blood. And they might actually have a competent gunnery crew. And a one-eyed admiral at the helm.
—
All I know about Giant Robo had major issues with things like Siege of Babel getting cancelled and throwing the buildup they’d done towards it all to pieces, in addition to taking a ridiculously long time to finish the last episode. And several people I know complained most vehemently about the fact that there wasn’t any sense of transition between the episodes, where it felt like you’d skipped an episode but went back to find out that you really hadn’t.
As for Gunbuster: that was a faux-offended throwaway comment meant to be taken lightly and with humor.
LikeLike
But the thing is, I’m not sure ANY previous trend has had as cold, cynical promotion as the MOE cycle, where you don’t even NEED a show, really, as long as you have something you can throw on hugpillows and pervy PVC statues, where everything you need to know about a chara can be encompassed by hair color, hair style, a signature pose and panties.
Allow me an example. Hasegawa is a plastic model kit company that makes very good kits, including some amazing ‘realistic’ Macross Valkyrie plamo (Fighters, Battlroids and other VF craft). Back in the ’70s they had released a line of ‘egg plane’ kits, fun comedy versions of famous aircraft, the idea being something silly and fun a ‘oh so serious’ aircraft otaku could whip together, or a child could build. There was no series, no manga, no storyline- just goofy looking airplane kits.
So in 2008 Hasegawa decided to reissue the kits, but they thought that maybe they needed a ‘push’, a ‘hook’ to get people to buy them. And that hook was MOE.
http://www.hlj.com/product/HSGTH12
They had a famous artist (I assume) design cute, sexy (but not TOO sexy) female pilots, in correct period uniforms to put on the box art, to grab the eye as the kit sits on the shelf.
Note, there is no figure actually made, no figure included with the kit! Hasegawa pins its hopes for sales based on MOE.
*brrrrrrr*
LikeLike
You can’t see the forest for the trees, can you?
LikeLike
I can see the forest, the tress, the birds, the flowers and the mushrooms.
LikeLike
Pingback: My Delusions As A Fanboy: If Moe Is A Cancer… « Drastic My Anime Blog
Also it must be remembered that the Japanese culture is much different from the West’s. Miniskirts, schoolgirl outfits are everyday wear, and nudity is not as ‘shocking’ as it is here.
LikeLike
Yeah, but that doesn’t mean that we have to like it.
LikeLike
I do hate what anime has become, but I have no moe feeling towards it. I only desire a return back to when anime used to be good back to the pre-moe days.
LikeLike
Anime is so embarrasing now. So hard to find a good anime with decent characters and an in depth storyline. I will find a good one now and then…but, not often. Yes, I hate what it has become and I think it;s weird, and kinda gross.
LikeLike