Forum - View topicHey, Answerman! - Schanswerfreude
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leafy sea dragon
 Posts: 7163 Location: Another Kingdom |
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I do think that Flake was a joke, and that is because it's so long. It's one of those jokes, I suppose, that derives its humor from being absurdy long, like what Family Guy seems to run on.
Of course, crafting a joke is way different than hearing one, and I'm going to venture a guess that this Flake finds it funnier if a great deal of time is taken with it.
Well, it's not always out of introversion...American school culture is brutal. (Other western countries, perhaps not as much.) If all those high school shows with bullies and snobby rich girls are any indication, American fiction tends to portray high school as a time of public humiliation out of sheer spite. That being said, stories set in school get good ratings. This is true in both eastern and western works. I'm guessing it's because schools tend to provide a lot of rich and interesting moments, even if they're not always pleasant. I forgot whom it concerns, but I remember reading about a pitch for a show on Nickelodeon that got cancelled; the executive told him the network is looking specifically for school shows. So if the executive was after those kinds of programs, then a school setting must be a real ratings boost. Another possibility: If what I hear is true, the adult working world in Japan is soul-crushing. You wake up, go to work, return home, do what you need to do with your family, go to bed, and wake up four hours later to repeat the process. College seems to exist mainly to get the students into such jobs. Thus, it must be that high school is the last time in a Japanese person's life that they are free to socialize and have time for themselves. In other words, that's when a Japanese person would truly feel alive. Thus, there are a lot of stories set in high schools because that was when the spirit of adventure and fun was at its apex. |
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YotaruVegeta
 Posts: 1061 Location: New York |
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One of the many reasons I love Tiger and Bunny is that you actually have heroes above the age of 17.
I don't know who that flake is trying to impress, because I'd be surprised if he had any friends. |
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vanfanel
 Posts: 1242 |
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First, I liked Brian's comments on the Flake. Lord willing, I'll be getting something into print next year, and I've wondered about the pros and cons of using a pen name. His thoughts on the matter, and the, um, fascinating Exhibit A that accompanied them gave me more to think about.
Secondly, about high school in anime. Like some others in this thread, I can also feel my interest wane at the sight of the words "high school." However, this is not because I dislike the setting; I would totally be up for a high school show that was a convincing drama with realistic characters and an interesting story. But in anime terms, "high school" seems to automatically mean the same cliche-ridden, unrealistic things done over and over over -- wimpy guys slamming into squeaky-voiced girls every time they turn a corner and then getting punched through the walls...a gaggle of girls falling for the same guy (who will never, ever just pick one, because it's apparently better to disappoint the whole audience than just half of it). *That's* what I'm sick to death of, and what comes to mind when I see the words "high school anime" -- nothing that has anything to do with the reality of the place. |
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SalarymanJoe
 Posts: 468 Location: Atlanta, GA, USA |
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I agree with Leafy here - there's so much effort put into the length of the Flake that it goes from funny to frighteningly serious back to funny. It is a classical example of Internet Trolling; blending the lines between a realistic disagreement and disagreeing for the sake of humor. Kudos to the writer of the Flake of the Week.
High School settings don't bother me much either; only my perspective on them has changed. As I've gotten older, I can reflect on high school protagonists with a bit of nostalgia and a bit of wisdom that life experience brings. The prevalence of high school stories is probably because it is one of the last near-universal experiences people have in Japan (though high school is not required by law, there's still like a 96% attendance rate or something to that effect). Arguably, the very nature of it being voluntary (outside of societal or family pressure) probably makes it more enjoyable to many pupils, especially when American viewers contrast it with their own high school experiences. That said, a setting is a setting. Depending on the story, it will either work or it doesn't. I also like Seinen stuff too. I don't know very well what Seinen and Josei manga are published in North America (or wherever they are located) but my exposure to Seinen demographic manga have been diverse in settings and not primarily high school settings.
While a single series comparison (SEED to Zeta or Victory or Unicorn) I would disagree as well, though looking at how SEED went from below average to above average by the end and then where SEED DESTINY went in a matter of months, I'd say that's pretty depressing. As far as special features go - I like the original Japanese trailers or production work features, etc. If a release doesn't have those, eh, I can't say I really care. I am, probably, the only person who hates commentary tracks with a hot-blooded passion. I don't care what the actor or director was thinking during the filming of a scene and I don't like people talking over movies. I can tolerate it if I am at a theatre or a viewing because I can't really control others' behavior but there is no way I am going to tolerate that in my own home. |
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Charred Knight
 Posts: 3085 |
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That's obviously not what he meant, he stated that Gundam Seed was a depressing story while promoting U.C Gundam which makes no sense. |
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Mohawk52
 Posts: 8202 Location: England, UK |
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I don't mind high school settings either, but the one theme, or plot trope that keeps tinting high school settings is social inhibition. Now it's been, what, 40 years since I was in secondary school,(the British equivalent of high school), but I can't ever remember being that socially inept, to the point of not being able to even look at a girl in the eye, let alone strike up a conversation, and perhaps asking her out on a date. I mean sure I got turned down lots, but I also got accepted too and those were worth the let downs of rejection. That's life. If you don't play, you can't win. if you don't take the risk, you can't succeed. But in Japan it seems they are so socially anal that they are scared shitless of failing, or getting rejected to the point that if they do take the risk, but get rejected some commit suicide. I hope those situations are only for dramatic effect and it's really not like that in Japanese schools.
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vifam
Posts: 4 |
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I'd like to agree with that, but it's hard. I hear the staff writers talk on ANNCast, and they seem like reasonable, affable individuals. A lot like people I've known. I'd probably get along with them fine. And then they write a column spewing bile at "lonely nerds" and "man-children," or they make it clear they have no use for the first amendment, and I wonder if I'm in the Twilight Zone. I've seen a lot of contempt for the audience on this site (not in Brian's case, it has to be said, but he's relatively new at this gig.) As for manwha, the English-speaking market got flooded with a bunch of poorly-made examples during the manga boom, much like the OEL boondoggle. There's no reason they couldn't have been good, in principle, but the desire to make a quick buck meant that most of what we got was third-rate crap nobody wanted, since it was cheaper to license. The publishers messed their own nest, but we still hear more about the snobbishness of fans. Which is a factor, to be sure, but let's not rewrite history. |
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YotaruVegeta
Posts: 1061 Location: New York |
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I find it laughable that you believe that a website dedicated to entertainment and opinion is against the right to free expression-- especially since I am reading a diversity of impressions being expressed in this forum thread alone.
As or ANNCast, I guess you skip over the disclaimer made in every episode. More people work for ANN than appear on the podcast, and not of them re old grumps. |
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Charred Knight
Posts: 3085 |
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At times do I think that some people try to pretend that they are separate from the anime fandom as a whole? Yeah, but I never really equated that line of thinking with the staff of ANN. In particular Justin, Zac, Erin, and Theron (Key) have been shown to be fairly easy to talk too. From what I have seen Rebecca is the same.
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Ted_the_bear2001
 Posts: 37 |
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I feel bad for you Brian. I've been reading "Answerman" for over 5 years and never have I head so vile, so sickening before. Hopefully the man who wrote that will be found.
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maaya
Posts: 976 |
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Of course it's not. This is simply where you see what kind of audience these animes are aimed at (apart from the fact that it makes it much easier to drag out the story without having to write about the couple life). There are indeed very few animes that show a different kind of relationship (True Tears and Paradise Kiss, and the few series set at university or just after high school like Nana, Honey & Clover...), but there are a lot of mangas (mainly shojo and josei) that do. They just don't get animated. |
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Imperial_Commander
 Posts: 44 |
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I'd like to see more manwha too, but a lot of it has to do with how they can break into the US. It takes dedicated fans, and engaging storylines just like it did when manga was new.
I would just give it time.
Woah easy there! It's just a stupid troll letter! *cough* maybe you're him? 
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Cecilthedarkknight_234
 Posts: 3820 Location: Louisville, KY |
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I don't really mind high school kid anime it's how the series is handled, something like clannad, toradora or even angel beats puts it's own genuine and nice touch on the subject. Also steins gate this season proves for even being an 18 year old character it's still a good show. No I haven't bothered to read other post due in part the of the trolling i know that's already posted and eh.. I am just to damn lazy.
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asimpson2006
 Posts: 3151 Location: USA |
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I do not mind the high school or really any school setting for that matter in anime. I guess because I did not like my time in school and I always wanted it to be better. That being said I do not want to see it all the time, I like having some change up now and then.
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Youkai Warrior
 Posts: 505 Location: Sarayashiki |
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I know the ANN staffers can get nerveracking, but that flake was unnecessary. I pity the poor sap who had too much time to write all that.
On high school anime: There are plenty of anime out there that do not take place in high school or star a teenage lead. However, there are some really good anime that take place in high school and star a teenage lead. The story is what counts. And though this is not related to manga or anime, Harry Potter proved that you don't have to be the same age as the characters to enjoy it. While there are young people who have grown up with the characters, there are plenty of adults who got into the series when it first got published. |
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