
Early Japanese Animations: The Origins of Anime (1917-1931) - jonbaer
http://www.openculture.com/2014/06/early-japanese-animations-the-origins-of-anime-1917-1931.html
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emsy
> but it often shows a level of daring, complexity and creativity not
> typically found in American mainstream animation.

I would even argue that some anime easily top non-animated TV shows. It
baffles me that so many TV shows are critically acclaimed for things anime has
done a decade ago.

Another aspect is that Ghibli accomplishes what Disney/Pixar seems to have
forgotten: Creating a story that is entertaining (and enlightening) to both
adults and children. So I think it's very, very unfortunate that these movies
are not better known in the west.

~~~
JohnBooty

      > I would even argue that some anime easily top non-animated 
      > TV shows. It baffles me that so many TV shows are critically 
      > acclaimed for things anime has done a decade ago.
    

From one fan to another, I'm curious: what things are you specifically
thinking of?

For me, one of anime's most engrossing qualities was the multi-episode
stories. Back in the 90s there weren't a lot of American TV shows (outside of
soap operas) that had the multi-episode story arcs that were common in anime;
typically everything was always wrapped up in a single episode.

Today, the American TV shows with the most rabid followings (like Game of
Thrones) have latched on to exactly that addictive quality. I'm not entirely
sure we can give anime credit for innovating here, though - after all,
American soap operas were doing multi-episode stories since literally the dawn
of television.

    
    
      > Ghibli accomplishes what Disney/Pixar seems to have forgotten: 
      > Creating a story that is entertaining (and enlightening) to both adults and children
    

I'm surprised you named Pixar here. I think their movies have almost all been
great for both kids and adults.

~~~
emsy
I wasn't referring to the format (episodic) but the content. Shows like Game
of Thrones or Breaking Bad are not only addictive because they're episodic,
but because they're well written and have something to take with after
watching. The characters are extremely elaborate. Those shows feature stories
that don't rely on exhausted tropes or even deconstruct existing tropes. I
think TV shows are better produced and their bigger budget is a plus which
makes it more accessible to a broad audience. But when I read how avant-garde
and never-seen-before the next hot TV show is, I can probably name an anime
that did it before. Lately though, I'd say I probably like TV shows more and
it almost seems as if animes are in a generational change, which is for the
worse.

I may be a tad harsh about Pixar, but I think they're merely "good" for
adults. There are some exceptions to this rule (Wall-E and Up for instance)
but overall they are more or less Lion King or Ariel with a different setting
e.g.: you know what will happen. Ghibli movies have this sense of mystery and
uncertainty that'll keep an adult watcher hooked. I also like that they are a
bit more merciless, even though that makes them unsuitable for a very young
audience. Pixar movies can be watched 6+ with certainty whereas you'd better
check if the Ghibli movie is suitable for your child.

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MrBuddyCasino
Am I the only one to prefer the early, detailed style? It looks much better
than the chaeply produced stuff that I have become to associate with snimé.

