anime fandom – Page 3

When attachment to anime characters goes too far

May 24, 2013 by Yumeka 25 Comments

It’s no secret that one of anime’s biggest appeals is how it can make viewers very attached to its characters, thanks to a great emphasis on character development, attractive character designs, and employing beloved character archetypes that fans enjoy seeing. But is it possible for fans to take their love of a character too far, so far that it blinds them to the overall quality of the anime the character hails from? I’m not talking about the stereotypical otaku who’s so obsessed with a particular character that he carries around dakimakuras of her or even acts like he’s married her. I’m talking about fans who are more in touch with reality, but still may be going a bit overboard…

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Mixing drama and comedy in anime

March 22, 2013 by Yumeka 20 Comments

A common element of anime – or any TV show or movie for that matter – is the mixing of comedy in an otherwise dramatic story. Usually the overall story and themes are serious, but the show also has its share of comic relief and slapsticks to break up the tension. For me, the mixing of drama and comedy can either greatly hinder my enjoyment of a show if done poorly, or can greatly raise my enjoyment if done well…

How to keep the hobby going

March 15, 2013 by Yumeka 22 Comments

In numerous past posts I’ve discussed topics about keeping our anime hobby going even when the social pressures and time constraints of real life kick in. I’ve talked about what things could determine how long our fandom lasts, citing examples of friends of mine who once loved anime but eventually lost interest in favor of other things. I’ve talked about what it could be like when we become the first large wave of senior citizen anime fans and whether we could even remain fans for that long. I’ve even talked about how I budget my time to make room for anime activities like watching and blogging among real life obligations. But one related thing that’s been on my mind recently is, when we become full-time workers, parents, or gain other kinds of real-world responsibilities, how do we still find time to partake in all of our favorite anime and other “nerd” activities, like blogging, video games, reading manga or novels, going to conventions or other fan meetups, and of course, just plain old watching a lot of anime…

What makes an anime memorable?

February 22, 2013 by Yumeka 20 Comments

Last month, hoshiko wrote a post discussing certain qualities of anime she feels make them memorable. While I’m sure we can all think of things that make an anime “good,” I think the traits that make an anime “memorable” are different…

The “true” otaku

February 1, 2013 by Yumeka 15 Comments

A recent Ask John article on AnimeNation brought up a very interesting idea of what some people believe defines a so-called “true” otaku. The thought is that such a person is one who revels in great anime series that have narrative depth, notably good writing, and are all in all good shows with a good story and cast of characters. While that sounds like a perfectly reasonable definition, the article brings up the possibility that this is in fact not the fundamental meaning of what an otaku is…

What determines our favorite anime?

November 30, 2012 by Yumeka 15 Comments

I know there are some people who have trouble picking favorite anime, but as for me, I’ve always been particular to favorites and enjoy thinking about what it is that makes me like one anime over another even if I can sincerely say I like both. Most of the anime among what I’d consider favorites have been the same for years actually. So today I’d like to discuss factors common to anime I consider favorites that distinguish them from others I like…

The significance of the second viewing

November 24, 2012 by Yumeka 27 Comments

I’ve always believed that any great work of fiction that you enjoyed the first time should definitely be watched at least a second time – the first time it’s new to you and a lot of the value comes from surprises and novelty, while the second viewing allows you to focus on things like thoroughly examining the story, characters, and writing, and seeing how well its entertainment value holds up when you already know what’s going to happen. Anime is no different in this respect and there are many titles I’ve watched over the years where my opinion did change for worse or for better upon a second viewing…

The appeal of trading card games

November 4, 2012 by Yumeka 19 Comments

Lucky Star Weiss Schwarz cards

I know trading cards have been around for a while, but if you were a kid growing up in the 90s or later, you’ve most likely indulged in them somewhat, whether it was Magic the Gathering, Pokemon cards, or just regular cards to collect such as baseball cards. Every major anime and other media franchise, especially those aimed at a younger audience, usually has some kind of trading cards fans can buy. Today I want to share my experiences with trading cards and discuss why they have such appeal, especially in our world that’s vastly becoming more digitized…

Our expectations for anime

October 11, 2012 by Yumeka 25 Comments

kevo’ over on Desu ex Machina recently wrote a post about an upcoming anime he can’t help but highly anticipate, while simultaneously realizing that it doesn’t always pay for us to set our expectations for an unknown anime too high. As someone who rarely hypes up an anime I haven’t yet seen, it got me thinking about how our expectations can make or break our opinion about an anime…

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Posted in Editorials and Ramblings
Tagged anime fandom, editorials

My favorite and least favorite anime cliches

October 4, 2012 by Yumeka 24 Comments

As much as we love anime, there’s no denying that the medium is, for better or worse, full of cliches. But as I’ve mentioned in past posts, this isn’t always a bad thing; I’m of the opinion that a cliche doesn’t necessarily equal poor writing if it carries out an appealing cliche well or adds something memorable to it. Not only does anime have its own set of unique cliches not found in other mediums, but because it caters to a lot of different genres, it naturally has cliches to match all kinds of tastes. We all have our anime cliches we like and don’t like, so today I’d like to look at my favorite and least favorite ones…