The initial draw to me was that you had a much deeper story with a higher care in its presentation.
Cartoons are normally geared towards children, and unfortunately this means that any kind of animated medium a) has shoddy production values, and b) will seldomly ever be as stimulating as a live show. Now, there are, of course, exceptions to the rule (some Disney cartoons have been gorgeous to look at, The Simpsons in its heyday was some damned good satire that WAS NOT kiddie fare), but in general American animation was not something to spend a lot of money on, and not something for an engrossing story with deep characters.
The anime I was introduced to was completely different than what I'd seen. You had complex characters, mindfuck stories, and some beautiful animation. Several of the science-fiction shows, in particular, were engaging and deep. The look was unique and a breath of fresh air to what I'd been exposed to, which reeked of cutting corners.
But, cartoons were not originally geared exclusively toward children. If you view the old Warner Brothers cartoons, there were more adult references. They were also shown before movies for adults (as opposed to adult movies).
Cartoons that tend to have the longest staying power are those that appeal to children and adults - Old Warner Brothers, some Disney, Simpsons, etc.
I'll agree, they weren't originally FOR children; that's what makes a number of these old toons so great, and why new versions were such a pale imitation. They instantly became sillier and talked down to their audience (children). Anything that made the original endearing was hence lost, and unfortunately that is what was duplicated when HB started making cartoons.
A general appeal is good, so long as it doesn't require reins to be put on the storytellers, or for narration to be pitched out the window altogether.
It seems to me that there was a bit of a rennaissance in the mixed (kids/adult) style of US cartoons driven by the Simpsons. Tiny Toons and Animaniacs played homage to their predecessors quite well, and sophisticated silliness like The Family Guy, Futurama, South Park and the like became quite popular with adults and will have lots of staying power. It even seems that 'mainstream' cartoons have in recent years sprung up with 'hidden' themes and messages for the adults who inevitably stuck around their kids while they watch the tube. I mean, what kid nowadays would appreciate an episode of the Powerpuff Girls where the entire dialog consited of snippets of Beatle lyrics? Gone seem to be the horrid days of tripe like 'My Little Pony'.
I guess I have not yet been exposed to the gems of the genre.
I guess I am bombarded by Pokemon-type nonsense, and other things geared towards children, as well as hentai strangeness that seems to be popular with hormone-charged internet-bound teenagers. What is with the tenticle rape stuff? Yeesh.
What I seem to notice is that the backgrounds are usually very lush and detailed, while the characters end up being misproportionate (for human forms) and the animation robot-like. And the thing with the mouths. lol
I guess it would take someone who knows the good stuff to show me the best of what the genre has to offer.
Oh, great things are out there, they're just not going to run in most easy-to-find venues, and they're mainly going to be fansubs right now -- Jungle Hale Guu (or some such name) is hysterical, for example, and my cub and I also enjoy Loki Ragnarok Detective, Haibane Renmei, Snow Fairy Sugar, and many, many more. But again, these aren't going to show up on most US venues. Most of what the average person knows about is, alas, horrible and crappy, and watered down to boot! But JAPAN is making great stuff, still. :)
Still, no kuma yaoi series. YET... pressure Go to make one! ;)
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For someone who appreciated (appreciated?) it ...
Date: 2004-08-18 12:50 pm (UTC)Cartoons are normally geared towards children, and unfortunately this means that any kind of animated medium a) has shoddy production values, and b) will seldomly ever be as stimulating as a live show. Now, there are, of course, exceptions to the rule (some Disney cartoons have been gorgeous to look at, The Simpsons in its heyday was some damned good satire that WAS NOT kiddie fare), but in general American animation was not something to spend a lot of money on, and not something for an engrossing story with deep characters.
The anime I was introduced to was completely different than what I'd seen. You had complex characters, mindfuck stories, and some beautiful animation. Several of the science-fiction shows, in particular, were engaging and deep. The look was unique and a breath of fresh air to what I'd been exposed to, which reeked of cutting corners.
Nowadays, unfortunately, there seems to be less of a focus on production values, and I don't feel that a lot of what's produced today is as strong as it once was. Also the genre has become cliché when it comes to exposure in the US, so EVERYTHING has to be a corny giant robot cartoon, super-deformed nonsense, or women with unrealistically large boobs getting attacked by tentacles. The look has also been standardized, it seems, and that look is increasingly going stale ...
Re: For someone who appreciated (appreciated?) it ...
Date: 2004-08-18 01:45 pm (UTC)Cartoons that tend to have the longest staying power are those that appeal to children and adults - Old Warner Brothers, some Disney, Simpsons, etc.
Re: For someone who appreciated (appreciated?) it ...
Date: 2004-08-18 02:48 pm (UTC)A general appeal is good, so long as it doesn't require reins to be put on the storytellers, or for narration to be pitched out the window altogether.
Re: For someone who appreciated (appreciated?) it ...
Date: 2004-08-18 02:58 pm (UTC)Re: For someone who appreciated (appreciated?) it ...
Date: 2004-08-18 02:50 pm (UTC)I guess I am bombarded by Pokemon-type nonsense, and other things geared towards children, as well as hentai strangeness that seems to be popular with hormone-charged internet-bound teenagers. What is with the tenticle rape stuff? Yeesh.
What I seem to notice is that the backgrounds are usually very lush and detailed, while the characters end up being misproportionate (for human forms) and the animation robot-like. And the thing with the mouths. lol
I guess it would take someone who knows the good stuff to show me the best of what the genre has to offer.
Re: For someone who appreciated (appreciated?) it ...
Date: 2004-08-19 06:40 am (UTC)*hint*
*hint*
*hint*
I'm this screen name at yahoo dot com if you'd like to e-mail me...
Re: For someone who appreciated (appreciated?) it ...
Date: 2004-08-19 06:38 am (UTC)Still, no kuma yaoi series. YET... pressure Go to make one! ;)