Forum - View topicAnswerman - The Shape of Things
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invalidname
 Contributor Posts: 2455 Location: Grand Rapids, MI |
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To spin the question about musicals around a little bit, there was a great panel at Anime Central this year about stage adaptations of anime, mostly as musicals, some of which were godawful (the all-skating Air Gear will have you longing for the subtlety and grace of Starlight Express), but some of which looked pretty cool. I loved the fact that the Revolutionary Girl Utena musical, albeit inappropriately campy, managed to put music to the classic line "so impressed was she with the prince's gallantry / that she decided to become a prince herself / (CHORUS:) but was that really such a good idea?"
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One-Eye
 Posts: 2261 |
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Sleep. I've always had bad sleep and am a very light sleeper. When I was younger I could get away with 3-4 hours of sleep and still function adequately. Now that I'm older not so much. I've had some success combating it with exercise and controlling my caffeine intake. Caffeine tends to stay in your system for quite awhile even if the pick me up has worn off. I think I read at one point that it can stay in your body for up to eight hours. It also seems to depend on the level of caffeine in your chosen poison. I generally don't drink caffeine after 12-1pm. Anything later than that may mess with my sleep. Then there's exercise. Cardio tends to wake me up and get me going, so its fine in the morning whereas heavy weightlifting makes me want to take a nap so I used to lift around 9-10pm to knock me out (haven't done it in awhile do to rotator cuff injuries in both shoulders). Maintaining a regular schedule also helped.
Combo-packs. Put me in the camp that loves combo-packs as well. I was doing a lot of traveling at one point and would take my DVDs with me to watch on my laptop. I would also loan out DVDs to friends some of which have smaller HDTVs and never saw the need to upgrade to a BD player. So yea, the flexibility has worked for me. Burnout. I've come close, but I've managed to avoid full burnout mainly with moderation and making sure I have other things to do. I don't try to watch everything that's on every season nowadays. Its not the garbage that you have to worry about, but the stuff that's decent, but not necessarily very good. Some of the decent stuff will suck you in enough that you are like "I'll give it another episode" or "I've watched this much I might as well finish it." Its this filling, but not necessarily fully satisfying consumption that leads me to burnout. I find being pickier keeps me from burnout. I know what generally turns me off so I stay away from that stuff (like heavy fan service), some anime I give the 1-3 episode rule, and for other things I ask myself "sure there's something entertaining here, but would I buy this? Would I really re-watch this?" If I can't say yes, then most of the time I stop watching. At my high point I tended to watch 10-20 shows a season. Now its down to 3-4 and this has allowed me to tackle my backlog of DVDs and BDs on my shelf. Slowly but surely I'm whittling that down too. If I'm still getting close to burnout I stop watching anime for about 2 weeks and do something totally different like go camping or build some shelving. If I use my brain in a different way I find that I recharge faster. |
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Animegomaniac
Posts: 4101 |
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How is "anime burnout" a thing? It's a medium, not a genre. I can understand One Piece burnout or Naruto {any shonen long runner, naturally} but when you can switch from gory action thriller to period drama piece to outright horror to romantic comedy and still remain in a niche segment of the entertainment world then you should have no issues.
Maybe it's more a psychological issue; I watch and listen for what's different and what is the same and I have no problems in enjoying either of them {even if it's not done well. It's the same to me for B to Z grade genre movies}. It would explain why {and apparently "how"} I've been a fan of the much despised harem comedy genre for over ten years. Over 15 years? Really? As for new shows, I watch what's sounds good and keep watching what will pan out. Plus, it actually isn't that hard to figure out; "Light novel" adaptations of ongoing series are completely different from one that's being done in coordination with the final volume. There's "design" versus "premise", there's "follow the leader", there's a large bunch of telltale signs of what will work versus what will crash and burn, from casting additions to director indifference. One last thing: I advise staying away from Crunchyroll; Anything too easily obtained is too lightly esteemed. |
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BooktapC
 Posts: 80 |
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I really don't like this so-called lumping most anime fans as they types that love watching anime in the best possible video quality.
For me DVD is fine enough since with it getting pretty good quality if it is an official release. Getting a blu-ray upgrade just so you can watch it in supposed higher resolution it just sort of pretentious but I can see how that works. I say supposed because regardless the quality would only be a few top notches better. Probably the reason DVD keeps on being labeled King. When I get a dvd/blu-ray combo pack to be completely honest only get it for the DVD. When available would easily go for the DVD. Think it is great to bridge the middle ground for anime fans who seek either DVD or Blu-ray. I can hardly see how some anime fans would hate combo packs though since if it wasn't because of blu-ray player enthusiasts then this would't be an issue. It is a win-win to the best of the ability of anime companies. For fans also. Two options covered in one fell swoop. |
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whiskeyii
 Posts: 2250 |
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I've only had burnout for series. Dear Brother was a little heavy on the melodrama to watch for a long period of time, Utena was busy messing with my headspace (probably not a good choice to marathon regardless--all that SYMBOLISM!), and Detective Conan is just endless (though I did manage to catch up on 500+ episodes, so maybe I was just starved for mystery?). Monster is also kind of a doozy, but it's on my "I'm going to finish this for sure!" list.
Buuut, I'm pretty picky with my anime, so my "to-watch" list is pretty small as far as modern-day anime is concerned. Usually my college buddies (who watch way more, in many more genres than I) will let me know if I've let something slip through the cracks, like Madoka or Steins;Gate. EDIT: Correction, I've burned out on shoujo HARD. I was never really big on shoujo to begin with, at least ones that didn't involve some kind of adventure, but these days I find my patience and tolerance for shoujo stuff waning thinner and thinner.... I tend to find retro shoujo (Rose of Versailles, Aim for the Ace!) to be more up my alley. As for combo packs, I love 'em! I've got a Blu-ray player for my TV, but it's in storage now, and my desktop can only play DVDs, so I really like having multiple formats in one case. (I should also mention my monitor is a good 23" wide, and my TV is 36", so I like watching shows in high resolution when I can. I find the mild fuzziness of DVDs (or sometimes 720p) can be a little distracting to me.) Last edited by whiskeyii on Fri Jun 27, 2014 8:29 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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stararnold
 Posts: 227 Location: LaSalle, Quebec, Canada |
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Speaking of burnouts, it's always good to take a break from new shows if none appeals to you at the moment without needing to wear off anime all forever. Just be patient until something better launches late on. Try visiting old anime once in a while and all (as suggested by the Answerman), and last importantly, there's more to great TV entertainment than just made-for-television anime.
When it comes to finding thing to see on legal anime streaming sites, I try to set a limit on how many series to watch at a time. Plus, I have western shows I like to watch on TV at nights every week, and there is always the book/comic book stores to visit to find things to read so as to take breaks from TV and internet when desired. |
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Dfens
Posts: 459 |
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I don't think I'll ever experience Anime burnout, even though I tell myself I'm not going to watch as many shows each new season. What I do is only watch the shows I really like or can stomach, and if it bores me to the point I'm falling alseep I'll drop it which is really rare but happens.
If I'm really into a show I'll watch it week after week as soon as it's available since my other hobby doesn't take as much of my time. The fact I work so much more now I don't have the time to go out as much so watching Anime is pretty much all I watch since I don't watch much cable TV. Or what I'll do is if I fall behind on a show I'll marathon as much as I can to catch up. As for combo packs I hate them. If I could get a show cheaper I rather save some money since all the DVD copies sit collecting dust never to be used, and the collector in me won't let me sell them. Lend them out not to my friends or the people I know it will never be returned or damaged to hell and back. Another thing I hate it seems like on Ebay or whatever that people will sell the other half of the combo pack and basically get a 50 percent discount while the publisher gets stiffed on a sale. I don't see why that if most companies don't do combo packs unless your paying through the nose for a collectors edition and seem fine why Funimation wastes their time with the practice. Retail shelf space when do people actually buy Anime in stores? Hell a store that actually carries it at all and for a price under MSRP? |
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EyeOfPain
Posts: 312 |
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Says the person with the horribly skewed avatar...
Just... read the manga instead. |
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walw6pK4Alo
 Posts: 9322 |
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In some cases like I pointed out with Lodoss, good god does the BD make such a difference in viewing pleasure. It's not even just the larger image size, it's the entire changed appearance of the show with the proper cinematic and truer colors, the sharper details, and being able to finally appreciate the artistry where before it was bleached, desaturated, and coated in Vaseline. If it's pretentious then can call me Terrance Malick. (Sure, I supposed you could have that new remaster compressed down onto a DVD, but why downgrade when you don't need to?) |
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jymmy
 Posts: 1244 |
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Can't say I've ever "burned out" on anime. I'm only watching about a third as much new anime as I was this time last year, but that's due to life circumstances. If I had more time, I'd easily sink it into another twenty new shows. I do feel a little refreshed, somehow, having a higher proportion of good shows I haven't seen and favourite shows I rewatch an episode or two of in my intake, but there's still a special enjoyment in following a really good show as it airs.
The question about musicals reminded me of the second half of Kiniro Mosaic's last episode. The first episode had this sense of storybook whimsy to it and I loved how the show ended by recapturing some of that. It wasn't fantastic, exactly, but it was fun and I really enjoyed it. |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18238 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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I have been a fan for a bit longer than Justin and at least peripherally involved in anime for a job for closing in on 10 years now, and I can honestly say I've never had burn-out issues. Part of it, I think, is because I had a very gradual introduction into anime viewing and part of it is because when I find hobbies that I like, I tend to lock into them for the long haul. (I bought comics on a weekly basis for nearly 20 years, for instances, have played tabletop RPGs for more than 30.)
But the rest goes back to what One-Eye was saying a few posts ago. So let's summarize the main points: 1. Don't let anime be your only hobby. I love anime and during a typical week spend more time watching, writing, and talking about it than I do any other hobby, but it's not my only hobby. 2. Be willing to cut your losses on a series. Unless you're watching something for professional review purposes, never feel obligated to finish a series out just because you started it. That's one of the easiest ways to get mired in burnout. Sure, it's sometimes worthwhile to tough things out through boring stretches, but you can rely on reviews and Internet buzz to determine those occasions. 3. Periodically revisit old favorites. Justin and others have mentioned this, and I heartily support it. Doesn't necessarily have to be something that's widely-recognized as a quality title; just something that's a proven winner for you. 4. Don't try to follow too much at one. Frankly, I think trying to follow 20+ series a season is insane. Find a comfortable, practical maximum and stick to it, no matter how tempted you are. For me it seems to be 8 series (every time I've tried more, I have invariably fallen so far behind on one or more titles that I ended up dropping them), but that will definitely vary from person to person. If there are other series you're curious about then look at end-of-season reviews or marathon them once they're done. Above all else, the main trick to avoiding burn-out is moderation. But that's really true for burn-out in any hobby, isn't it? |
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whiskeyii
Posts: 2250 |
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Eh, I already got 1/3 (1/4?) through the series, so it's not like I'm staring down a 70-odd monstrosity. Just a...60-ish or so one. 
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agila61
 Posts: 3213 Location: NE Ohio |
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At the start of a new broadcast season, I add anything that strikes my fancy to the queue, which could be four, or could be ten ... and then drop quickly anything that doesn't get me interested in clicking on it around the time the next episode pops up, and by week three or four, I'm down to three to five new shows and five to eight a week. Half an hour to an hour watching anime most nights, and depending on the season maybe all caught up on the season and then watch something from the back catalog (I never watched One Piece, so that's always good if I'm caught up on the season shows).
For series that are for a particular mood (Polar Bear Cafe, Mushi-shi), if I'm not in the mood, I wait until I am. I may be a month and a half behind, and then a week will come when I watch two a night and I'm caught up again. The only time I ever felt like I was getting burnt out was back in my Netflix disk days when I would be watching a disk with one of the way back and one on the way, and I started acting like it was my job to have the one disk finished by the time the next one arrived. But one season I I forced myself to finish some turgid "conceptual fantasy" thing, probably based on a video game or graphic novel, which I kind of finished from some sense of duty to find out how it finished, when I realized at the finale that I knew by episode three that I didn't really care much how it finished. So I stopped acting like I was doing some kind of chore and started picking up new shows on a whim and dropping them just as easily and since then have always ended up by halfway through a season overall happy with the series I was watching. And if once in a while I drop a series that get a buzz or a review that suggests to me I may like it ... by halfway through the seasons there's enough space on my schedule to give three episodes of something another try to have another look. Not treating dropping a series like its a major decision also means that dropping it and picking it up again is not a major decision. |
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FLEABttn
 Posts: 106 Location: ABQ |
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Burnout: I had burnout that spiraled out of control and went on for about five and a half years until a nasty bout with tendinitis got me back into anime. I had semi-burnout earlier this year after watching a few series in a row that were mediocre at best or god awful at worst (Jormungand) but that didn't last terribly long. Haven't dove into much though because most of what I want to see hasn't seen a disc release yet, and the rest of it is Aniplex and expensive.
Justin's advice is dead on though. Nothing facilitates burnout better than trying to keep current on all the shows. While it makes it very difficult to discuss them, it does wonders for your sanity. And once you've gotten a graps of the themes and tropes, you will realize that each season really only has 1 or 2 standouts, which you're likely not even going to appreciate while trying to watch everything. Someone suggested looking for a blogger to follow and do the dirty work for you, but I find that their tastes aren't that much better. I need an Ivan Sulic of anime reviews. Combo Packs: Don't love them. Don't hate them. Packaging is overrated anyways. Sleep: You sound stressed. I say get away from screens an hour or two before you want to sleep, have a nightcap (a nice bourbon or something of the like), and give yourself some "me" time. |
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writerpatrick
 Posts: 672 Location: Canada |
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One of the best ways to deal with burnout is to ignore what other people recommend. What they enjoy isn't necessarily what you will enjoy. It also helps to pick a genre and stick to mainly those shows.
I also find that I'm watching anime mainly on one night of the week only, with one or two shows that I watch throughout the week when I feel like it. That way I save up the five or six shows I'm most interested in and watch them together. The rest of the week I'm watching broadcast TV shows. Anime is meant to be enjoyed and you're not less of a fan if you don't watch tons of it. And when TV stations here were running prime-time anime they mainly stuck to one night a week. |
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