Oh for the love of Mike!!
So, one merry day while I was doing my routine fan girl duty of scavenging on YouTube for videos of my favorite geeky/nerdy things, I bump into one particular parody video where they are clearly making fun of Ariana Grande and her one look hairdo.
I honestly got a chuckle or two for the reference of Anime and Ariana's infamous hairdo.
Nevertheless, I usually do look at the comments (mainly to see other peoples' opinions and what not, sometimes witty comments to the videos I have just seen) and couldn't help but notice that not only this particular video had garner a lot of anger from fans of this singer and also fans Anime.
What struck me in particular was that many Anime fans were up in arms about the reference that was made of Anime being equated to "cartoons."
And this is when all hell broke lose!!
There were abundant comments stating many many reasons why it was an insult to call Anime "cartoons." To the point where some of these commentators suggested that "cartoons: were mainly to be seen as "for very young children" as to Anime, was to be seen for older, mature, and sophisticated audiences.
This struck a chord with me in a particular way.
Why were all these Anime fans so upset?!
I understand that being in a fandom, one feels at times the need to explain and protect said fandom, because for us, it's like breathing air.
But why were they so upset that a simple parody video that equated Anime as cartoons would be so offensive to some?
I myself like to think about it in this way....
Animation to me, whether it is traditional hand drawn to CGI is and should be enjoyed by many. Especially there should be not age limitation but mainly an age minimum to certain story lines.
Some animation can be specifically directed to younger viewers (Pre-school, kindergartners) but by no means does this mean adults cannot partake and enjoy these types of animation geared toward target audiences.
Now, there are animations that due to the content (story line, humor, etc) their main target audiences are adults. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that!
Nevertheless, it is still "animation," and it is an artistic form of bringing the stories to life in a different format (aside from live action).
Anime is a specific genre within animation, each company (Disney, Warner Bros., DreamWorks,, etc.) have a distinct style of drawing their animation.
Mainly because they want to distinguish from each other and create a uniqueness of all their own.
Anime, although it doesn't pertain to a certain animation company, it is a style.
Now for me (personally) calling it a "cartoon" isn't offensive, and quite frankly those who get muffled by it, really bothers me.
So, what if other people call it a "cartoon," instead of getting angry and lashing out at other people who may not be aware of what to properly call it, let them know. Explain to them why in your point of view it they should refer it as is.
It's understandable that the term cartoon has a somewhat "kiddie" connotation to it and hence fans of Anime are so quick to defend this difference.
But, if you really think about it, Betty Boop "cartoons" were originally not meant to be for children. It was a way for animators to comment covertly on everyday social/political problems without 1.) Being offensive 2.) Not getting in trouble with authorities.
Ahem, I am aware that Betty Boop and Anime are very different styles, but that isn't my point.
Perhaps in later years, with "cartoons" like Tom & Jerry, Looney Tunes, etc. the word "cartoons" were more to be understood mainly for children and their enjoyment.
Nevertheless, for those who have an appreciation for incredible story telling and art, animation is a wonderful mixture of both.
I know I grew up watching Gargoyles, Black Cauldron and those quite frankly weren't specifically for younger children.
Even now, I still enjoy them!
I guess, part of this is (and I just realized this while typing) is that a long the way this happened:
cartoons= childish/for children
animation= adult/for adults
To me it doesn't make sense, animation (whether they are called cartoons or not) can convey social, economic, political discussions within their story line that adult viewers can enjoy; just as well they can be innocent, fun, whimsical for children.
That being said, I've come to the conclusion that I personally don't get offended if someone (who is an outsider of the fandom) gets things "wrong" or mentions things that are not quite right, but this in no way means that I am going to insult them. Most likely I will let them know my preference and a simple explanation to my reasoning.
I honestly think that is what bothered me the most about this entire ordeal, it was the attack the video was getting for this word.
Completely unnecessary in my point of view and to those who felt the need to be insulting, it quite frankly just made us (fandom community)look like jerks.
Which to that I may add: I'm not a jerk!
PS: I know I might be chewed from this, but oh well, it is what it is!
P.S. II: Leave me a comment letting me know what you think!!
All rights reserved for Candy Candy, Disney Gargoyles, Attack on Titan, affiliates, logos, characters, etc.
So, one merry day while I was doing my routine fan girl duty of scavenging on YouTube for videos of my favorite geeky/nerdy things, I bump into one particular parody video where they are clearly making fun of Ariana Grande and her one look hairdo.
I honestly got a chuckle or two for the reference of Anime and Ariana's infamous hairdo.
Nevertheless, I usually do look at the comments (mainly to see other peoples' opinions and what not, sometimes witty comments to the videos I have just seen) and couldn't help but notice that not only this particular video had garner a lot of anger from fans of this singer and also fans Anime.
What struck me in particular was that many Anime fans were up in arms about the reference that was made of Anime being equated to "cartoons."
And this is when all hell broke lose!!
There were abundant comments stating many many reasons why it was an insult to call Anime "cartoons." To the point where some of these commentators suggested that "cartoons: were mainly to be seen as "for very young children" as to Anime, was to be seen for older, mature, and sophisticated audiences.
This struck a chord with me in a particular way.
Why were all these Anime fans so upset?!
I understand that being in a fandom, one feels at times the need to explain and protect said fandom, because for us, it's like breathing air.
But why were they so upset that a simple parody video that equated Anime as cartoons would be so offensive to some?
I myself like to think about it in this way....
Animation to me, whether it is traditional hand drawn to CGI is and should be enjoyed by many. Especially there should be not age limitation but mainly an age minimum to certain story lines.
Some animation can be specifically directed to younger viewers (Pre-school, kindergartners) but by no means does this mean adults cannot partake and enjoy these types of animation geared toward target audiences.
Now, there are animations that due to the content (story line, humor, etc) their main target audiences are adults. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that!
Nevertheless, it is still "animation," and it is an artistic form of bringing the stories to life in a different format (aside from live action).
Anime is a specific genre within animation, each company (Disney, Warner Bros., DreamWorks,, etc.) have a distinct style of drawing their animation.
Mainly because they want to distinguish from each other and create a uniqueness of all their own.
Anime, although it doesn't pertain to a certain animation company, it is a style.
Now for me (personally) calling it a "cartoon" isn't offensive, and quite frankly those who get muffled by it, really bothers me.
So, what if other people call it a "cartoon," instead of getting angry and lashing out at other people who may not be aware of what to properly call it, let them know. Explain to them why in your point of view it they should refer it as is.
It's understandable that the term cartoon has a somewhat "kiddie" connotation to it and hence fans of Anime are so quick to defend this difference.
But, if you really think about it, Betty Boop "cartoons" were originally not meant to be for children. It was a way for animators to comment covertly on everyday social/political problems without 1.) Being offensive 2.) Not getting in trouble with authorities.
Ahem, I am aware that Betty Boop and Anime are very different styles, but that isn't my point.
Perhaps in later years, with "cartoons" like Tom & Jerry, Looney Tunes, etc. the word "cartoons" were more to be understood mainly for children and their enjoyment.
Nevertheless, for those who have an appreciation for incredible story telling and art, animation is a wonderful mixture of both.
I know I grew up watching Gargoyles, Black Cauldron and those quite frankly weren't specifically for younger children.
Even now, I still enjoy them!
I guess, part of this is (and I just realized this while typing) is that a long the way this happened:
cartoons= childish/for children
animation= adult/for adults
To me it doesn't make sense, animation (whether they are called cartoons or not) can convey social, economic, political discussions within their story line that adult viewers can enjoy; just as well they can be innocent, fun, whimsical for children.
I honestly think that is what bothered me the most about this entire ordeal, it was the attack the video was getting for this word.
Completely unnecessary in my point of view and to those who felt the need to be insulting, it quite frankly just made us (fandom community)look like jerks.
Which to that I may add: I'm not a jerk!
PS: I know I might be chewed from this, but oh well, it is what it is!
P.S. II: Leave me a comment letting me know what you think!!
All rights reserved for Candy Candy, Disney Gargoyles, Attack on Titan, affiliates, logos, characters, etc.
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