Do people usually 'grow out' of Anime?

[RickOShay]

Originally Posted by GoNative

Don't quite understand this. What sort of angst is associated with anime in the US?

Geekdom, Nerdism, Dorkology.

[JohnBraden]

Originally Posted by WingsToDiscovery

I'm the same way. Even here in Japan where it's obviously much more accepted, I still have the angst from back in the US that prevents me from getting into it.

Is it because it may be a stigma, that if one likes anime people will think they are geeks or losers? Or perhaps it's supposed to be for kids only and not for adults?

That was the trend with videogames in the past-that it was meant for kids, but statistics show that the average age of a gamer is much higher than people thought in the past. Gaming is much more mainstream than before.

Anime is animation and animation here usually means cartoons. People here mostly associate cartoons with children, but things are changing. Many adults like The Simpsons, Family Guy, etc. Perhaps because it is not American, wide dissemination is a bit more difficult thus not getting the wide attention it could.

[Umihito]

Originally Posted by MMM

Actually, anime is a story telling medium, not a style. The same is true of manga. There may be rules and codes, but every artist has his or her own style, unless she is borrowing someone else's style.

Agree with that too, I guess it could be a little bit of both. You could consider it a style because how it's done is unique to Japan.

But I get what you mean with individual styles. But I also think that you could look at it on a larger scale and say the whole medium of anime is a style.

[Umihito]

Originally Posted by SCIFFIX

Seinen Anime are really getting rare nowadays. I think "Shiki" is a seinen anime, have you watched?


Shonen style are more easy to win popularity I mean, in that reason they are more numerous. Resuming It's more easy make some money with Shonen Anime.

But there are some old Seinen manga, I recommend Sanctuary.

Yeah I agree. That can be used as evidence to show that people really DO grow out of anime, seems as Seinen anime is getting rarer, and Shonen is the form being most relied upon and making most money.

Thanks for the recommendations, I'll be sure to keep an eye out for them.

[Umihito]

Originally Posted by Eunice

I think I'm the opposite. No matter how hard I try, I can never get in to anime.

Well there's nothing wrong with that, anime isn't everyones thing.

I know quite a few foreigners who actually live in Japan but have NO interest in anime or manga whatsoever!

[Umihito]

Originally Posted by File0

I think you're not, but I'm the opposite, as I never watched anime series or read manga before I got my degree x) ... but I really enjoy it now as I'm getting older.

Hehe, so you're someone whos grown INTO anime! XD

Don't see many people taking that route these days

[Umihito]

Originally Posted by WingsToDiscovery

I'm the same way. Even here in Japan where it's obviously much more accepted, I still have the angst from back in the US that prevents me from getting into it.

Ahh now that's interesting. With the huge anime market in the US, I would have thought that angst would have been really rare. But I can see how any intolerance in the US would put someone off enjoying something.

How long ago are you talking? If it's recent I'd be surprised. But it it was in like... the 80s/90s then It'd be understandable.

[Umihito]

Originally Posted by JohnBraden

Is it because it may be a stigma, that if one likes anime people will think they are geeks or losers? Or perhaps it's supposed to be for kids only and not for adults?

That was the trend with videogames in the past-that it was meant for kids, but statistics show that the average age of a gamer is much higher than people thought in the past. Gaming is much more mainstream than before.

Anime is animation and animation here usually means cartoons. People here mostly associate cartoons with children, but things are changing. Many adults like The Simpsons, Family Guy, etc. Perhaps because it is not American, wide dissemination is a bit more difficult thus not getting the wide attention it could.

Yeah, from what I've experienced that's generally what people think of anime fans in the US. They're usually grouped as geeks and losers by others who don't like anime. And the thing about it being for kids or adults is the point of this thread I guess.

I wonder if anime will follow the same trend as gaming in regards to average ages being higher...
I don't think so because of cultural differences that people may not be comfortable with. Like you said, the fact that it's not American will probably put people off.
And as mentioned earlier in the thread, younger anime seems to be the majority these days with anime for older people taking a back seat.

[RealJames]

I grew out of my 5hrs a day of anime phase ...

I love mature anime (i don't mean porn ... ) and I still love fun anime like cowboy beebop or samurai champloo.

I guess I'll watch a new anime once every 2 or 3 months now, but it used to be way more, and a lot more avid.

The 24hr a day anime channels make it hard to do work lol...

[SSJup81]

I'm not sure if I 'outgrew it', but I don't watch it as much as I used to. There are some series I may keep up with (like Detective Conan, as I can just turn on the TV to see it on Saturdays), but not too much. I wouldn't say that I've outgrown animated shows in general, they just don't appeal to me as much anymore, unless I come across maybe something older. I'm even starting to get bored of shows like Family Guy.