Forum - View topicAnime popularity and additional seasons.
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Precisionist
 Posts: 21 |
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Although I've been watching anime here in America since the 80s, I haven't really put a lot of time into it until the last decade. The more I get into it, the more perplexed I am on how what I perceive as the "good" anime seems to get shelved, while my perception of the "crappy" anime plays on and on.
I realize that comparing American-born entertainment to anime is comparing apples to oranges. Still, when I look at the movie franchises I like, they are generally popular and have lots of sequels. Same with TV shows, with a few exceptions (like Firefly, Jericho, Sarah Connor Chronicles, Dollhouse). Now, anime I consider the superior form of visual media because: A. They can do more with less (budget) B. They are not restricted by "Hollywood" formulas C. With a combination of A and B, they can put out a lot more to the masses, thus producing some truly great stories. But what I just dont get is why the great animes dont get the run they deserve. I'm not going to name the titles of those "crappy" animes, but they are easy to figure out, those are the ones you are seeing all the time on American stations like Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, or those with 4+ seasons going on. I will however mention my top 3 franchises, Gunslinger Girl, Claymore, Code Geass. I consider myself a fan of depth...deep plots, deep character development, and complex emotional content. Code Geass had 2 great seasons. Gunslinger Girl had a 2nd season but with a severely handicapped budget (still liked it). Claymore no 2nd season planned (are you f'ing kidding me???). Others I liked, Last Exile (1 season), Trinity Blood (1 season), Moribito (1 season), Elfen Lied (1 season). I'm not trying to be on a soap box here, but I am wondering if I am just in a minority demographic here, or is the anime industry just not picking up on (or caring about) the American fan? The anime I tend to like does get listed in the sticky'd "Top 10, 5 worst" posts occasionally, and they do tend to have high ratings on a site like this, but it's damn frustrating that almost all of my favorite franchises dont hit that epic level of popularity that so many other animes do (about the only exception would be the Ghost in the Shell franchise). |
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Aylinn
 Posts: 1684 |
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Wait… isn’t Code Geass very popular? 0_o I wouldn’t be so afraid of Code Geass, somehow I’m convinced that one day Sunrise is going to milk this franchise for all it’s worth.
And Last Exile is getting a new season. It seems that it is going to be an awful loli fest, but still. |
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egoist
 Posts: 7762 |
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Trinity Blood's creator died. The Japanese are really sensible whenever death is the topic so that's no surprise. Somehow funny coming from the people who created tentacle rape. Oh my god, there's an octopus invading my privacy. Moribito, Code Geass and Elfen Lied wrapped up, and I can't remember about Last Exile but it's getting a remake/retelling anyway. Claymore is a mystery to me. People keep saying that the anime industry is reliant on overseas market, but even though the franchise did quite well overseas there's no second season in the works. Heck, look at Berserk. That thing is massively popular overseas but it took them one and a half decades to even touch it again. In other words, whatever makes money here seems to be pocket change over there unless it's Yugioh etc. But how the hell can you even eat octopus or squid after watching hentai anime? Man, you people worry me. Mataku... |
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Kelly
Posts: 868 Location: New York City |
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You also get situations where the anime is boxed into a corner because it can't be shelved until the manga on which it is based provides more material, so an ending is cobbled together (sometimes well, more often not so well) that diverges so much from what eventually happens in the manga that it can't be continued. One of the better known examples of this is Fruits Basket, which is incredibly popular but probably can't be continued in part because of alterations to the character of Akito in the final episodes (and to a lesser extent Shigure, who is actually a pretty reprehensible character in the manga, through the whole series) which turned out to be drastic considering eventual events of the manga.
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EireformContinent
 Posts: 977 Location: Łódź/Poland (The Promised Land) |
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If we compare the quality and manga we stop wonder why. |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 19136 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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How anyone can eat octopus or squid period escapes me, but to each his own. . . |
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EricDent
 Posts: 997 Location: Georgetown, TX |
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Like some other people said usually when the manga gets popular is when they start making the anime. Sometimes it takes a while, while others it is pretty quick.
So they the anime makers have a choice, either wait until the manga finishes (and make a bunch of filler, like for example Bleach), or just end the show (and make up an ending, for example Negima(first series)). Sometimes they decide to do another season much later (for example Inuyasha Final Act), or maybe even re-do a series (for example Fullmetal Alchemist). Obviously lots of people would like to get a second (or more) season of certain shows, however I doubt it will ever happen. I know I would really like another season of these shows: Bamboo Blade, Kamichu, Lucky Star, and several others I can't remember right now. |
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ninjapet
 Posts: 1517 |
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In order for an anime to get more seasons they have to met certain well sales figures for one and it has to be liked / watched.
> Did it sell past 3k copies? - Was the mech for the series selling fairly ok? - Did the ratings show that people were watching it in the time slot? You have to meet all most all of those and a few other things in order to break even on sales. Once a show does that than that more seasons follow. |
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TitanXL
 Posts: 4036 |
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Bingo. Japanese animation's main market is Japan, naturally. The American market is inconsequential. I think the problem is you might have the mentality that shows should go on for hundreds of seasons like the American shows you mentioned until they're cancelled. Anime tends to be made with an ending in mind, or a limited run of 13/26 episodes with maybe more if they feel like it. |
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DuelLadyS
 Posts: 1705 Location: WA state |
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I'd ask this question instead... let's take your example of Moribito. What would the second season be about? So much of that show had to do with the character's interaction... which is done. It's going to be stretch to get the original cast back together, and there's no real guarantee a new cast would be nearly as compelling.
Personally, I LIKE that good anime actually ends. You don't name any of the long-running Hollywood series you like, but can you really say that all of the multiple sequels and spinoffs all added to the total package, equaling or surpassing the original work? I'm guessing no. Anime tells its story and stops. There seems to be a better understanding that a really good series doesn't run on forever. The reason 'bad' anime seems to go on forever is becuase a lot of them rely on a gimmick more than a plot- big chested girls getting their clothes ripped off? We can milk at least 3 seasons out of that. Big muscley guys fighting on exploding planet? We can do half a season worth of episodes in the last 5 minutes of the planet if we stretch it right! Wandering bodyguard protects and raises boy with a spirit growing in him? Well, once the threat is gone, that story's over. Why risk ruining a good story by dragging it out or trying to tack on a bad sequel? More is not always better. |
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Aylinn
Posts: 1684 |
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It would be about whatever is in the novels.  Moribito series
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lilredphoenix
Posts: 156 Location: Honolulu, Hawaii |
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I am also a fan who has been watching & collecting anime since the mid '80's and have noticed as the decades pass so does the quality as far as genre categories are concerned, it seemed like in the '80's the anime was very dark, gritty and a bit on the wild side (if you know what I mean) Hentai - tentacle anything seemed to be the rage, this was a period of time for adults to ruled but not for children.
Then the mid '90's happened upon us and for anime fans came the explosion of magical school girls and or being whisked away to a another world, to infact save that world. It was during this time DVD's were coming into play and the VHS tapes became obsolete I was right in the middle of collecting Card Captor Sakura half in HVS tapes, half in DVD volumes, not good for me...sigh Who remembers older series such as: Bubblegum Crisis, AD Police, Crying Freeman, Golgo 13, Sanctuary, Please Save My Earth and Earthian? These series had meat to them, bit more violence and [b]uhemmm you know what was going on between the sheets but these were really the heart of what was available back then. Now days it doesn't necessarily mean a good story line and an excellent well thought out plot but all about the $$$$ I do understand that licencensors/distributors are businesses and need to keep the cash flow going to keep their company/business/empire going. |
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Aoi_Sakaraba
 Posts: 312 Location: Des Moines, Iowa |
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True anime does a lot of things with less budget then american tv shows. Although anime also has it's common generic themes. for example tentacles, ecchi fan-service, and other common themes. Every media has its common idea though, so its nothing to bring anime down with. If everything were original you wouldn't have music. |
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JaffaOrange
 Posts: 260 |
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While it's natural to want more of what you like, in the case of things like anime or movies always hoping for a sequel for something you like is a good way to set yourself up to be disappointed. A lot of the time, shows are better off by ending rather than promising an indeterminate number of sequels and spin-offs.
Oh and yes, and the Japanese don't really care about the overseas market. |
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Jen526
 Posts: 124 |
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I think you *are* comparing apples & oranges, as the definition of a run a show "deserves" is simply very different between the American and Japanese television industries. Aside from those mammoth 4+ season monsters, shows are *designed* to be finite, with only rare special cases getting life beyond that. I think it's as mostly as simple as that. That said, on the topic of the 4+ season guys, I personally tend to compare those not to the sort of prime-time tv and movies you're talking about, but to the "soap opera" genre in the U.S. With soap operas, you have "series" that have been running for 20/30/40 years, but no one is crying foul that those get to run so long while Lost only lasted six seasons... because they're not on the same playing field, and fill a different entertainment niche completely. Those long-running shonen series are the same way. They're designed to be open-ended and run until their creators or the audience gets sick of them, and the longer they run, the more they become an institution that keeps going just because it's always been there. |
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