Why do people believe anime is superior?

Question

I'm curious to know why people believe Japanese animation is "superior" to American animation when it clearly isn't. (Both are equal, animation-wise)
Please, serious answers.

Take into consideration this before answering: If you're basing your opinion on daily television for American cartoons versus your intrest (DVDs and the like) then don't answer "it's more diverse/broad".

Answer 1

Anime is just very popular right now. People tend to look at these things with very short attention spans.

In comic books in the early 90's the uber-popular art style was over detail lines (a million lines per character so you could see every muscle tick, every hair fiber) then in the mid-late 90's the uber-popular art style was the manga (anime like) with very few lines, and the fans would often make fun of the over detail of only a few years past. Today in comic books the uber-popular art style is this photo-realism style where it is almost just paint on top of a photograph, and now fans make fun of the manga art they all were crazy about just a few years ago.

Anime is the exact same thing. People love it in the US today, but Anime wasn't just invented last year, it has been around at least since the 70's and America has had access to it since at least the 80's, it has always been a cult hit in America but it really only in the last few years that it has become a mainstream thing. And people again with their short attention spans think it is the greatest thing since sliced bread, wait 10 - 15 years they will be making fun of it and saying how animation from Iceland or Bangladesh is the best thing ever.

Also I must add that the Anime people see today, is heavily influenced by American style animation.

Answer 2

you're right, both Japanese and American cartoons are the same.

People (mostly teens) think that Japanese cartoons (or anime) are more superior because it has more genres, (romance, drama, etc.), it's more detailed and teens believe it is i more towards them (because of the violence and language and appearance in some) and also because of the story lines how most of the characters are teens, instead of little kids.

Cartoons in America have shows for all ages, to name a few, King of the Hill (mostly for adults), Aqua Teen Hunger Force (mostly for teens +) and My Gym Partners a Monkey (mostly for children)

Truthfully, there is no difference between them ('anime' is short term for animation which means cartoons, and because cartoons are animated or drawn it's all the same and looked up in a Japanese dictionary, "anime" means "animation" and "cartoon") the only difference is where they are made, thus the term Japanese cartoons and American cartoons.

Answer 3

Because Japanese animation is not automatically geared for children. There are some very serious series done with japanese animation. In american animation, the adult cartoons are automatically comedies.

American animation has been getting better at targetting varied audience but american animation is not as broad as anime.


However, there is also an illusion caused by the fact that the only anime seen in North America is the one that is worth importing or the one that you hear about even out here. There are crappy animes as well, we just dont see as much in NA.

Answer 4

Because a lot of American cartoons are kiddish, the characters are borning, and I could care less if they all died off. I'm not to fond of the art style, and a lot of the times the story is just so lame,I'm tired of cartoons with talking animals or just about some kids school life.

Anime is amazing, so many types to choose from,I love Death Note,which is a horror mystery type Anime..the artwork is awesome and the characters seem so real.

I love the story and characters in FullMetal Alchemist, I even cried watching it, I could just feel for the characters, they werein't borning or 2 dimensional.

I just love everything about Anime that American cartoons lack, great artwork,amazing stories,they arin't all for kids,life like characters.


Americans cartoons are just getting lame, even the
American-Anime ripoffs are lame.

Answer 5

Maybe because of the way anime 'is': unique, distinct and targets a wider audience (not just at kids). Also, most animes can have very complex and mature themes and storylines, just like what the other guy said: it spans different genres. And most of all, anime is easily recognized from the way the characters are drawn, which has become a trademark: large round eyes, flowing hairstyles, battle sequences of epic proportions (humungous explosions, fireballs, spell casting complete with dramatic cinematics, giant robots, cherry blossoms, etc.). Of course, being an anime fan myself I speak from experience. :)

Answer 6

Japanese animators don't have their hands tied behind their back like those in the US when it comes to content. Censorship and conservative pressure water down most US animation attempts. At least those that want to produce and air their product. If you're going to eat ice cream why settle for just vanilla. Fortunately other flavors are available.

Answer 7

Plot-wise, Japanese animation is better because it covers a lot of genres - as the above person has said. Animation-wise, it pays a lot more attention to the details, and I personally prefer that. I love looking at things in detail. ^__^

Answer 8

I believe Japaneses animation is superior. :-)

Answer 9

Themes and approach.

You will never see women as plush and lush in US cartoons as with anime, also, they are not afraid to tackle some hard ideas

Answer 10

2 words Hayao Miyazaki