Recently (as in over the past few months) I’ve noticed a lot of anime blogs discussing the quality of anime in general, and how most shows are in fact quite terrible. But rather then a critique on the current quality of the recent seasons, isn’t this more of a maturation of taste? You’ve been there, seen that, and aren’t as willing to put up with some crap just for the sake of experiencing it. Just as with regular televised programming, few would expose themselves to the full gamut of what is available and instead concentrate on what they enjoy. Also, with increasing age, and less free time, this maturation is often forced as well (in my case anyways).
Opinions may differ.
Of course, anime bloggers usually are put into the position where they feel the need to view as many series as possible so that they might give to the community an insight into how the current season is faring and what shows to look out for. I’m sure this can make one jaded very, very quickly.
And then there is the whole issue of target audience. When looking at your favorite shows, which ones could you recommend to someone who knows little about anime or Japanese culture? What about someone who just got into anime? Now, what about another anime fan… this last one is tricky because they would have seen most of the “popular” series, and you would have to recommend to them something novel and delightful, but easily overlooked. To be completely honest, I can’t think of many shows good enough in all respects (ignoring cultural knowledge limitations) to be recommendable to the first proposed audience. The second however, is much easier – while I could not see myself recommending a 75 episode long series on playing Go to any random passerby, I could easily do it to someone who just got into anime and thus has a more open mind to what the medium can accomplish. And recommending something to a jaded anime fan is much too relative a task (one would have to take into account their tastes and fancies, etc.)
Now, of the series you could recommend, which ones are your favorites? Enjoying a series does not mean the series has to be good, it simply means it has to entertain you and capture your attention… or optionally your imagination.
I feel that anime in generally is very good for the fan, but not very good for someone who has never seen it before. Most of the series I feel that are solid in all respects were made years ago, while more recent shows are so full of crude, sexual fanservice and trite plot that I could not watch many of them with friends (and definitely not family!!)
Lastly, of your favorite shows which ones would you actually go through the trouble of buying? Looking at my anime list, only 6 out of 136 (4%) finished/unfinished/currently watching series have created enough of an emotional attachment through their quality of presentation, plot, development, etc. that I would purchase them. And sadly, most are pre-2004.
Who are you talking to? Your current readership of 1 knows anime like Zhao knows geography. However, qualifying as “someone who knows little about anime or Japanese culture”, I’d suppose I’d enjoy watching popular animes that have made it into North American TV/theatres as a start (ie. Ghost in the Shell, Spirited Away, Inuyasha, etc.) Everyone enjoys a compelling, well-paced plot, strong characters and decent animation.
As a kid I watched chinese cartoons, as well as some cantonese-dubbed anime/chinese-translated manga (Sailormoon, Doraemon, Dr. Slump, possibly other old-school stuff i have forgotten the names of). Other series that have managed to capture my anime-unenlightened attention are Bleach, Azumanga Daioh, Naruto, and One Piece (but only because there are pirates). I have also watched Elfen Lied under Zhao’s recommendation, but it was unenjoyable except for the gore and ridiculously hackneyed sexual content.
As for anime that I would purchase… well, let’s just say I would not buy anything that Jon/Sam already has, or can get.