What determines how long our anime fandom lasts?

It always puzzles me when I hear someone say “I’m not into anime anymore. I got tired of it,” especially when I knew that person used to be what I’d call an anime fan. I’m not talking about people who simply don’t watch anime as much as they used to due to time or other constraints – I’m talking about people who loved anime and then, either suddenly or gradually, it was completely pushed out of their life. Although it’s difficult for a die-hard fan like me to understand someone “getting tired of” anime when there’s such a variety of genres and so many thousands of titles to watch, it happens all the time just like any other hobby. So today I’m going to see what things could determine the staying power of someone’s fandom…

I think the best way for me to discuss this topic is to give real life examples using the many anime-loving and ex-anime-loving friends I’ve known during my eleven years as a fan. In my experiences, one viable reason for losing interest in anime has to do with a person’s environment and home-life situation. A couple of female ex-fans I used to be good friends with in high school had parents who were very discouraging towards their hobby. They’d never buy them anime stuff (while my mom was always buying me anime stuff in high school) and they were constantly putting them down about their hobby. One of the two friends had it worse in that all her parents wanted her to do was study and hardly let her get together with friends. So many of our plans to hang out were canceled because of some flimsy excuse like her mom wanted to take her to the mall to buy an SAT book. One time after we had just gotten our badges at a local anime convention, my friend got a call from her parents saying that they were coming to pick her up because they wanted her home for some reason XP

Eventually, when I last saw both friends, their love for anime had been reduced to a very dwindling interest in just one series. The aforementioned friend with the controlling parents has since become a completely different person than the one I used to know – she drinks a lot, goes to parties and raves, drives fast, and all that typical college-kid stuff I can’t stand. And the last I heard of the other friend, she was supposedly engaged already (I think she had just turned 18). But the main point is that I believe constant discouragement from their environment (their parents in this case) put a damper on them being long-lasting fans, especially at their age when they were trying to be individuals but were still dependent on their parents. Their anime hobby wasn’t allowed to last. Instead, I feel they had to compensate for years of suppression by going the extreme route as soon as they became adults.

But anime interest can cease due to less negative reasons too. One of my high school friends that I still see often was only into a few anime series for a very short time. She loved these few series very much for a while, and then anime fandom was over for her. She’s an artist, so I think anime was simply a new medium in that field for her to experiment with before her passion took her elsewhere. And since she was only into a few certain anime, her fandom was never that major to begin with. So in this case, another reason anime fandom might not last is if the person was only casually interested in anime from the get-go.

Then there are people who experience anime burn-out but come back to the fandom later. I don’t have much personal experience with these fans so I can’t comment on it much. Chances are, some more interesting or important life matter took them away from anime for a while, but since they were able to be brought back to it mean that they might always have the “heart of a fan,” as corny as that sounds. Determining the length of a fandom in this situation is highly dependent on the person. I think it may increase if the person has always had “geeky” hobbies that they’re really passionate about.

Which leads me to this; I’ve discussed my experiences with why people lose interest in anime, but is there a kind of person that will always be a fan? The friends that I’ve known for years that have been consistent anime fans all that time have something in common – that is, always being passionate about a hobby. Another high school friend that I still see today has always loved cartoons and video games and still loves them since I’ve known her ten years later. Anime isn’t her #1 but she’s always loved it too. So again, she’s someone who’s passionate about a (“nerdy”) hobby, and if anime’s among it, chances are it’ll stay. Another friend that I’ve known for years was really into “collectible” type hobbies before discovering anime. I think anime has since become his main hobby though he still has his other ones. Once again, he’s a person who’s passionate about his hobbies, so his anime hobby has lasted. Yet another friend was really into music, then anime and video games. Anime hasn’t always been his favorite amongst his other hobbies, but since he’s a hobby-driven person, anime will probably always be among them at this point.

To conclude, if someone’s never gone beyond being a casual anime fan, or if they’re constantly faced with discouragement towards their hobby over a long period of time, chances are their fandom won’t last long. On the other hand, if someone has the right personality and enough luxury to center their life around their hobbies, I believe they’ll always hold at least some of that passion for anime, as opposed to someone who doesn’t have that personality trait or lifestyle.

I’ve only scratched the surface of what could determine a long-lasting anime fan with just my own experiences. Feel free to share any of yours in the comments below =)

No Comments… read them or add your own.

  1. Myna says:

    I only know one person who used to be an anime fan but isn’t anymore.

    She liked Inuyasha, Black Cat, Gurren Lagann, and I think Nabari no Ou among others. Also, Kingdom Hearts. But she was always swamped in school work. So I asked her if she still liked anime and she replied that she does, but she’s just not into it like she used to be.

    I doubt she’ll get back into anime, considering she’s going off to college, but it doesn’t really matter.

    • Yumeka says:

      Yeah, in her case, lack of free time and having to focus her mind on other things is probably what pushed her away from anime. It’s a shame but perhaps she could be someone who comes back to anime years later when she’s done with college and has more freedom.

  2. Ritsuioko23 says:

    One of my friends was into anime. However he went on a trip and when he came back he would always say crap like ” I don’t like stuff like that anymore.” Being the otaku I am I couldn’t bear loving and talking about my hobbies around someone like him so I don’t talk to him anymore. Although it’s hard since we live in the same town. I just can’t be friends with someone who has a negative vew on anime. It’s either you are nuetral or you like it.

    • Yumeka says:

      What kind of trip did he go on? I’m just curious what kind of place would change his mind about anime so profoundly.

      I lost contact with the two female friends I mentioned in the post because they weren’t interested in anime anymore and that’s the only thing we had in common. I’ve never had a friend who suddenly started hating anime though. But like you, I couldn’t be good friends with anymore unless they were no less than neutral towards anime.

  3. Renchen says:

    If you have so many Friends then You’re Not a real otaku ;)
    Sorry, for my bad english

    • Yumeka says:

      How many friends would be considered “many”? I don’t think I have that many friends compared to the average person my age, but I pick my friends carefully and the ones I do have are true friends. I’d rather have a few good friends than many “fair weather” friends.

  4. Anonomyous says:

    I think there are 2 groups from what i have seen regarding people who quit anime completely. The people who watch for entertainment and are excited by this new experience called anime and the people who identify with a particular niche so strongly that they become partially obssessed.

    The newness of anime will wear off sooner or later for those looking at the medium as entertainment. Much like people who watch WWF/E wrestling. You get bored after a while, switch to something else then maybe after a period, find the fake wrestling fun again. Alternatively you may permanently blow off the previous entertainment medium but most times i find its more due to peer pressure (eg if your friends are all those who think fake wrestling is stupid <- many females fall under this category).

    Those who have the niche factor define a significant portion of their self image, will have their craving reduced if they are denied the item/medium/etc for a period of time. Some other thing will then become the area of obsession.

    • Yumeka says:

      Excellent points. I never thought about the “people who watch anime for entertainment” aspect but it’s certainly true. To them, anime is just another interesting fad to get into before moving onto the next thing, and only a few with the right personality will pursue it further than that. But if their peers aren’t into it, yeah, they’ll probably just pass it by right away.

      The niche factor applies well to one of the two female ex-fans I mentioned. She really loved all the hot-tempered, tough, female anime characters like Lina from Slayers and Ryoko from Tenchi. They provided major wish-fulfillment for her. She liked other things in anime but those kinds of characters was what she was really into. After a while of lack of encouragement for anime in her life, she simply moved onto something else fulfilling.

  5. I think you’re probably right that people who have always been into “geeky hobbies” of some sort are more likely to keep an interest in something like anime, even if life’s priorities lead them away from it for a while. It probably comes down to the person’s personality, really. If you get a sense of internal happiness/joy from partaking in these hobbies, then it’s natural that you’ll come back to it as often as you can. Even if you get some other interests that overtake anime in terms of priority, you could still enjoy anime if the time/show is right.

    I think there are some people who get into anime for “external” reasons, like because their friends are into it, or because it’s popular (especially early-2000s), or because they’re bored and go on a watching spree, or whatever. These sorts of fans are more likely to burn out because their enjoyment depends on something other than their own internal satisfaction. When that external factor is no longer influencing them, they’ll probably drift away and do something else instead. This is why, for example, a lot of people get into anime while they’re in school, but when they leave school they lose interest. Anime was something “to do”, but wasn’t really a deep passion. I suppose that some people are also not the type to be “deeply passionate” about things in the first place.

    Along the same lines, I think the older you are when you get into the hobby “seriously”, the more likely you are to keep it, because your life is more likely to be stable. That doesn’t by any means mean that people can’t be anime fans from childhood straight into old age — by all means! — but just that there are so many other changes that happen as you grow up that anime could easily be a “casualty”. Peer pressure is probably the biggest factor here — you basically have to survive the societal indoctrination that “cartoons are childish” and that “growing up means throwing away childish things”. Anime can be a bit childish, but it’s possible to enjoy it even as a mature adult, as long as you can keep an open mind.

    I suppose a number of people probably drop the hobby when they get into a romantic relationship because their partner isn’t into the hobby or accepting of it. Personally I think that’d be sort of sad — you shouldn’t have to throw away part of who you are to be accepted by someone who supposedly loves you — but I’ve known a number of people who’ve shied away from the hobby (or all sorts of other things they were previously passionate about) because they didn’t want their significant other to know about it or thought they’d judge them for it. Again, this probably applies less the older you get.

    I guess another possibility is that some people may not be “fans of anime” as a general term, but fans of a specific style/genre/”art period” of anime. This category tends to provide most of the “bitter” anime fans, who still like the anime they like, but don’t like the latest anime shows as much. These people sometimes complain loudly that “anime sucks these days”, which is obviously not “objectively true”, just that they long for the old days when the shows they liked were more popular/prevalent. I’d almost accuse some of these fans of having “external interests”, since some of them seem more annoyed at being excluded than anything else.

    So anyway, those are a few reasons I can think of. As an aside, one other thing I’ll say is that I’m grateful that my parents were always accepting and welcoming of my interests and hobbies. They never really totally understood it, but never really gave me a hard time about anything, and the older I get, the more I appreciate that. That may be one of the reasons that my own interest in these sorts of hobbies has stuck all this time.

    • Yumeka says:

      As always, great points, especially about the “internal” and “external” thing. Now that I think about it, all of my friends that have been long-lasting fans get vast amounts of internal satisfaction from “geeky” hobbies like anime, games, collecting things, and the like, whereas all my friends that eventually lost interest in anime were never like that.

      I also can’t understand someone denying something they love just to please a person who is supposed to love them for who they are. If/when I marry someone, liking anime is a prerequisite! XD

      Also like what you said about the “bitter” fans of just one genre. I could never put it into words but you said it perfectly. I can’t really consider them anime fans as opposed to fans of [name of genre].

      I’m also very grateful to my mom for always encouraging me in my hobbies ever since I was a kid. She’s not into anime but respects it since she’s liked most of the ones I’ve shown (of course I cherry pick those ones XD) It makes me sad when I see parents who want to mold their kids a certain way and are very discouraging towards their hobbies.

  6. Wingless says:

    One of my best friends used to love anime. We’d always get together and watch the newest fansubs on our various series. Within the last year, he started dating this girl who, at the risk of sounding mean, is absolutely boring. She has the very stereotypical view that video games are just for kids and a waste of time, reading fiction is not “adult” enough, and anime is just porn and kid’s cartoons made by Japan, who she believes (reading between the lines and asking particular questions), are all heathens.

    He doesn’t watch anime anymore, or play video games, or read fantasy books. I don’t know if it’s fair or not, but I hold it against both his girlfriend AND him.

    • Yumeka says:

      That really is a shame. You’re not wrong in putting some of the blame on him. After all, I would question how much dignity he has in himself if he’s willing to cast away all the things he loved for the sake of this seemingly ignorant, narrow-minded girl.

      How long have they been together? I wonder how long a relationship like that could last. I suppose it depends on whether his love for her is strong enough to take away his suppression of his old hobbies.

  7. Skorpigeist says:

    I know that my story falls into the lines of that I watched a lot of stuff when I was younger, and got out of the habit of watching shows [when watching a show wasn’t as easy as it is today] as I entered late high school and undergrad

    I still have to say that my “Anime Renaissance” came at the hands of Ultimatemegax. Watching shows with him reminded me of how much I really enjoyed anime.

    To this day I am much better about watching things with the ease of streaming and large fanbases out on the internet.. though I do sometimes wish there were more people where I am from that enjoyed this sort of thing.

    • Yumeka says:

      I’m glad you were able to enter an “Anime Renaissance” despite having to be away from the medium due to other things. You’re right that streaming now makes it easier than ever for people to get introduced to, or in your case, return to, anime =) I look forward to seeing what other shows you decide to watch (*hint, hint* Noir)

  8. Frootytooty says:

    I know a few people who stopped liking anime, though they were usually childhood fans of shows like CCS, Digimon or DBZ that aired on TV and hence never really got into anime as a whole. My best friend falls into that category too but in the past year or so I’ve gotten her to watch some of the better stuff that most non-anime fans don’t know about – stuff like Madoka, DRRR!, FMA, etc. Success! :D

    So yeah, I agree with what you said about the environment the person is brought up in. If the person has no friends who also like anime, then unless they’re a dedicated fan they’ll probably stop liking it too. Sometimes all a casual fan needs is a gentle push in the right direction and they’ll find that anime is more than just after-school TV dubs and the shounen trio.

    • Yumeka says:

      Yeah, the people who just watched Pokemon and DBZ when they were younger probably just thought of these shows as regular cartoons that you don’t watch anymore when you grow up. But you’re right that some of them, especially those who have fond nostalgic memories of dubbed kids anime, have potential to be anime fans if they’re enlightened about anime being much more than what they used to watch on TV. I’m glad you’ve managed to enlighten people =D

  9. Inushinde says:

    My girlfriend hasn’t watched as much anime as she used to. She’s still open to new series, likes most of what I recommend her, but just won’t put in the time to watch a series. Of course she’s invested in series for different reasons than I am, so that could explain it. She’s the kind who gets attached to a few shows and doesn’t really move on.

    • Yumeka says:

      It’s hard for most people in this busy day and age to find time for anime. But it sounds like your girlfriend is making an effort and keeping an open mind about it, which is great. Being attached to just a few shows can be a good thing too ^^

  10. f0calizer says:

    Re: your question “but is there a kind of person that will always be a fan?”, if a person finds something or a few things that anime offers, and which cannot be found in other media, chances are that person will keep coming back to anime even after a break of several years. I happened to watch the first two episodes of the 2nd season of Baka to Test, and I laughed my heart out at the wonderfully slapstick humor that only a gag-driven anime can achieve. I find that I avoid anime “burn-out” by not watching so many things at once (hence I don’t follow the newest seasonal shows) but by cherry-picking stuff to sample or follow. That keeps things fresh, since I won’t feel I’m saturated by too much of a good thing.

    • Yumeka says:

      That’s a great point that people may always like anime if it provides them with some fulfillment they can’t find elsewhere – pretty bishonen, cute moe girls, shonen action, cool mecha, detailed animation that takes itself seriously, unique slapstick humor like in Baka Test – all these things can pretty much only be found in anime. So if someone really likes one of these things, they’ll keep coming back to anime. They may become more of a fan of one genre than a general anime fan, but at least they’ll still be part of the fandom =)

  11. Kal says:

    I guess it happens the same as with any hobby. If people find something better to do, or that provides them more satisfaction than anime, then they’ll go to that. And I guess it’s perfectly normal and can happen to any of us.

    We all like anime for different reasons, and I’m sure it provides certain satisfaction that we cannot get anywhere else. I personally like anime because of the emotions it can portray. Being able to “hear” the characters inner thoughts can help me get attuned and feel what the character feels (that was another of your discussion topics as well). That is also pretty unique to anime, only a few books and very few western series/movies can provide that.

    But going back to the main question, its just a simple matter of whether anime provides what we are looking for, or if we can get that satisfaction anywhere else. Social aspects like you mentioned with your friends also affect it, or more important things taking up their precious time, like kids/work/study (I think that was another of your discussion topics). But if anime could still fill a little empty spot in their heart, then they would probably come back… Unless it is already filled with something else that can provide them what they need.

    • Yumeka says:

      F0calizer above also brought up this idea that if anime provides us with something we desire but can’t get elsewhere, we’ll probably always stick with it. For you it would be emotions and character inner thoughts. For me…I’m just an overall animation fan and anime provides me with everything I’d like to see in animation to be satisfied XD

      It’s hard for me to imagine that something could come along that would push anime out of my life since it’s been my focus for eleven years. But I won’t say it’s impossible. It’s less likely to happen for me than someone less passionate but you never know what life could bring you =P

  12. Tara says:

    I can’t really understand losing interest in anime. Reading used to be my main and almost only hobby until anime, now they’re both sort of together my main ones. I spend less time than I’d like on both of them but I still love both far too much to ever quit, at least I feel like I won’t ever be able to.
    I probably fit your categories for long term fan, since the reading I do is mostly of fantasy books I’ve always had a ‘nerdy’ hobby and my family has been supportive of my anime love. They thought it was a bit odd at first but quickly got used to it as just another thing I like, I even turned one of my sisters into a semi-fan and the rest of them I made watch a movie or two that they liked.
    I’ve never had a friend who stopped liking anime, but then again I don’t have that many irl ones XP And the ones I do have and who like anime all started watching because of me, I have a way of spreading my hobbies it seems ^^
    I do know one guy I only met once but we kept contact online who said he stopped watching anime because he didn’t have time for it. I don’t really know if there was more behind it but I do know that his mom didn’t like it at all. We met on a trip they were taking here (I was helping out the tour guides) and when his mom found out I liked anime she asked “What, you like that shit too?” With an obvious dislike for the subject. Which was actually how we got to talking more, we both immediately jumped to defend our hobby. It makes me sad to think that he stopped watching something I know he really loved, but at least he still reads mangas.
    I guess we can’t all be fans forever.

    • Yumeka says:

      Thanks for sharing your thoughts~

      That was rather rude of your friend’s mom to say that when she knew you like anime. Criticizing her own son at home is one thing but saying something like that to her son’s friend upon first meeting, especially one who’s helping her by being a tour guide, is just plain uncalled for.

      It’s good he still reads manga though. Reading manga chapters takes up less time than anime episodes, so at least he found a compromise so he can still stay in the fandom.

  13. Bryce says:

    I also find that this post applies to more than just anime. I’m an author and one of the things that I do to keep my imagination good is read various stories and watch various shows and movies, but I tend to view anime much more these days. I think that this is due to the fact that hardly anything here has a story anymore, even movies focus more on sex, car chases, explosions, and gun fights more than a story. Out of all my friends, I do not really have any in real life that enjoy anime too, only online friends.

    • Yumeka says:

      I agree with you about movies nowadays being mostly just “eye candy” with no truly unique stories. One of the reasons it makes me mad when those interested in anime claim that there’s too many cliche series in recent years when other forms of media are no different. Compared to regular TV series and movies, anime stories are much more imaginative and “out there” in my opinion even if some are cliche.

      • Bryce says:

        that makes me frustrated too. I’ll take FMA (both 2003 and 2009) over any regular TV series and movie.

  14. xueqir says:

    I was really into anime when I was in junior high…(at least I deemed myself to be). When I talked to friends, all I wanted to talk about was anime characters. I would go on the internet and serf for anime websites or forums to comment on (that’s when I discovered animeyume.com :) ). When I found out that a fellow classmate was an anime fan or liked a certain series, it felt like an instant connection and we could chat away about the funny moments in Ouran or the heroic actions in Gundam Seed. I had a lot of spare time and I would commit my time to watching series non-stop. My record was 26 episodes of Peach Girl in a day…but highschool came around and I enrolled in an honours program and didn’t have as much time to commit to anime the way that I’m use to (non-stop watching and daydreaming…) so I had to stop and didn’t begin any new series. I just kept up with the new series of Naruto and Bleach.

    But when the filler episodes in the two popular animes got to be really tiring, I stopped following those series too. I turned to onemanga and began reading but it wasn’t doing my eyesight any justice so I stopped that too after reading FMA and catching up to the newest ouran chapters as well as reading Black Bird, Bitter Virgin and Vampire Knight. I watched Toaru Kagaku no Railgun in grade 12 (upon your recommendation ;) ) and that was the last anime series I finished…I tried watching Code Geass but age has made me to practical? It seemed way too far fetched for a 17 year old boy to try to over throw an empire and take over the world….(I know Lulu is an amazing character but I never got that far..) and I just haven’t found the incentive to keeping watching new series or rewathing series (I never rewatch…except for the DBZ series when I was muuuch younger LOL). Now my only connection to anime is visiting this blog and reading about anime topics here. So I’d say I’m a pretty faded fan. I still like anime, I just don’t watch it anymore. Maybe I’ll get bak to it someday…but I think when I do, it’ll be more of the slice-of-life anime series :)

    • Yumeka says:

      That’s interesting that you just fizzled out of anime without any real reason. It’s good that you still like and respect it though even if you don’t have the motivation to watch it like you used to. Perhaps it was just something fun to do at school and you no longer feel the same towards it now that you’re older?

      I think you have a good chance of getting back into it though. It sounds like you mostly watched shonen series, so yeah, you should give slice-of-life a try as its vastly different and may rekindle you’re interest.

      And I’m flattered that you found Anime Yume so long ago and still visit ^__^ I appreciate it!

  15. KyoHyon says:

    So first off: I really like all your posts. I wonder why I didn’t find your blog earlier. So keep up the good work :)!

    So about the post: Since I don’t have any anime-loving friends in real life I never thought about this topic. Still I think that you are right and it’s really sad it happens. There are, as you already said, many reasons, why people quit watching Anime. The main reason are parents, who dislike this “childish” stuff and just want their child to get “mature”. But I don’t really get it. For example in my childhood, when DBZ was broadcasted on TV my mother would always watch it with me. And we would always talk about what happenede afterwards. And it’s not like my mother is an immature or even childish person. Far from it! She is a typical asian mother: strict and always wants her daughter to get good grades.

    Then, there are/is my anime- liking friend(s). For example one male friend of mine watches only Shonen-Anime and we can always talk about what happened. But watching Anime is not a great hobby of him and he just doesn’t watch whole-heartedly. I know there will be a time, when he stops watching Anime. In contrast, I am nearly addicted to Anime. (I should concentrate on school more /cough/) I always wait impatiently for new episodes from Ao no Exorcist, Bleach, Hanasaku Iroha, etc.

    All in all I think it’s always the fault of others and of course of oneself for not watching, not loving or not liking Anime anymore. It’s really sad but that’s how live works, right?

    So I won’t disturb you any longer with my bad English and I am going to read the other posts now~

    • Yumeka says:

      First of all, thank you for the compliments about my site ^_^

      It is a shame about parents who put their children down for liking anime, especially if the hobby isn’t interfering with their grades or morality or anything. When I was majorly into Pokemon in middle school, which is what started my anime obsession, my mom would always watch it with me and try to share it with me even if she didn’t like it that much herself. Unfortunately many parents put too much pressure on their children and then they wonder why their children rebel against them when they get older.

      Your anime-liking friend sounds like he watches shonen anime because he likes action/fantasy and not necessarily because he’s an anime fan in general. But it’s all good since you can still be friends with him, and even if he loses interest, I’m sure you’ll find someone else =)

  16. Mike says:

    We often recall that we only watch things that catch our eye or pushed onto us by other ppl. If we don’t take something from it immediately (namely enjoyment) we won’t pursue that medium or interest anymore. Blame it on the culture of instant gratification.

  17. chikorita157 says:

    I have been very lucky that our parents allowed me and my sister to buy and even watch anime, as long our grades are good. Its pretty understandable that some parents won’t allow their children to get into it since it could affect their school work (especially the so called Tiger Moms that are extremely strict, especially when it comes to activities. No offense intended.). I feel that blocking any type of entertainment, including anime could potentially build up stress, which could impact a persons well being. Also, the lack of free time with college and jobs could also be an issue, but most people get around it through managing their time.

    Besides the environmental issues, there is a topic on AnimeSuki in particular that focus on similar issues like this. I feel that some of the self-induced loss of interest with Anime has to stem to watching a lot of titles that aren’t particularly good or doesn’t fit the viewers interest. For me, I only pick a few shows that I will enjoy and stick with them until the end of the season. Once its over, I’ll go back and watch some more if there is any more that catches my attention.

    Lastly, I think some people don’t explore outside the box that much and become too concentrated on a few titles, especially some of the most popular shouen shows like Naruto and Bleach. There is a lot of 1 and 2 cour that have a set amount of episodes that fits the person’s interest and might enjoy. Again, it’s mostly up to the person if they want to expand their horizon as an Anime fan. Of course, I will be sticking around well into the future.

  18. dietwarrior says:

    A very interesting post. I have never had any friends who like anime but I have (fairly recently) managed to get my younger sister into anime; in her case I believe it’s the true fandom because she not only likes certain shows but also “thinks” through anime, constantly makes references, emulates some of the characters (I only recommend her the good stuff like K-ON!, CLANNAD etc.) and really, really loves Japan. Through her I was able to recognize the breaking point which determines whether one is likely to stay a fan in the years to come or is just experimenting — she did watch Dragon Ball Z with me as a kid and also Haruhi but it was only after she’d seen Kanon and Mushishi that she really got into it. Prior to that I am sure she would continue her life never again thinking about anime unless I mentioned it.

    Anyways, I’m glad I’ve found your blog, your posts are well thought-out and like I’ve said, omoshiroi.

  19. Kez says:

    You know I often will simplify my feelings towards anime by saying I’m not really a fan anymore. It doesn’t mean that I don’t still love the series I used to watch, or that I won’t watch new series. But certainly as other responsibilities have moved into my life I am far more selective of what anime I watch. I am less likely to pick up a long-running series such as Naruto or Bleach and I am unlikely to re-watch the series multiple times in a year as I introduce my friends to it. These days I tend to watch series which help to contribute to my dissertation or have been raved about by people I know share my tastes.

  20. sheratan says:

    Some people simply grows up.

    Personally, I can’t stand anymore the moe and harem stuff which has been quite popular these recent years.

    There is also the fact that as you grow up, you no longer have an idealised view of the world and the shonen animes seems either childish or out of touch with reality.

    Your typical shonen hero- “I want to save everyone. Hate and war are bad.”

    Unfortunately, seinen animes and animes devoid of moe and harem stuffs are quite rare these days reason why people simply gives up.

  21. Detergent says:

    I still read a couple of manga, but I don’t bother interacting on a daily basis with people within the fandom, because of the lack intelligent discussion.

    Fans that I hate are those who deny certain events in manga like death or romance. Sometimes when a character dies there are people who vehemently deny that the character died. If you think that’s normal, fine! I just don’t want to waste my time on them. Same goes fans who either see romance between characters where there is not, or deny that it exists between characters.

    Another breed of manga fans that I hate are those who don’t know how the laws of the some fictional universe works, but want to discuss about it as if they know what they’re talking about. Don’t bother explaining these people with manga panels how something happened, because they just don’t pay attention to the story. But at the same time they want to be heard in every discussion.

    The last breed of manga fans are those who want to insert political and ideological topics into a discussion. Once I was participating on the internet in a thread that was about fanservice of a manga that was part of the big three. One of the female characters was eating an hot dog, and admittingly it was suggestive, but one of these fans was talking about how it was objectifying women. I think these kinds of things should be discussed on other forums, but that aside, it’s the hypocrticism that annoys me the most. The same fan had no trouble with objectifying men: six packs and suggestive homoerotic fan art (not to mention the unrealistic shojo) that littered the respective forum. I don’t bother pointing out to these people that they’re hypocrites, I just don’t bother wasting my time on them.

    And honestly, let’s face it, a lot of fans that have such a strong focus on manga and waste a lot of time on it use it as a substitute for having a social life. There is a reason why nerds/otakus make up a huge part of any fictional fandom, and not people who actually live their lives.

  22. Shadow says:

    I really enjoy anime but i believe one reason why people would lose interest is due to the short lifespan of a show, it dissapoints me greatly when i am very interested in a show and it ends with only 12 or 24 episodes.

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