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Japanese Animation and its Influences on American Culture

Introductionstories like Dracula or Frankenstein,
On a Friday night after a long week ofstories in the anime world are also
diligent work, Mrs. Thompson, a motherwritten with a sense of fantasy in mind.
of two young boys, decided to go to theDuring the 18th and 19th centrury,
video store to rent some cartoons so thewooden mechanized dolls called Karakuri
family can spend some quality timewere used to carry tea to guests. The
together. She does not know exactly whatword 'Karakuri' means a "mechanical
they like, but she does have a generaldevice to tease, trick, or take a person
idea of their tastes. Ninjas, cars,by surprise". It implies that these
robots and monsters right? How hard candolls are driven by hidden magic,
it be? As she walked down the longoffering an element of mystery. Voltron,
aisles of movies, she stumbled upon aTrigun, and Macross 7 are shows that
cartoon called Ninja Scroll. "Ohdisplay Japan's fascinating imagination
perfect!" she thought, "the kids willwith science-fiction and machines, and
love this!" Without thinking twiceis not surprising to see that they have
regarding what the movie is actuallygained a lot of attention from American
about, she paid at the front desk andfans. Besides this science-fiction
rushed back home to prepare dinner.genre, there are also stories that deals
After having a filling meal, everyonewith things closer to home like school,
gathered in front of their 50" plasma TVbaseball, and or swimming, but also with
and Mrs. Johnson popped in the DVD.a twist. A boy lives an ordinary life
Little did she know, this animatedwhen one day he meets a female alien,
feature was the most violent, gory andchanging his life forever FLCL, Onegai
sexually explicit film she has everTeacher, Shingetsutan Tsukihime. With
seen. She had to stop the movie half wayplot lines like this one and many
because her two sons were shocked inothers, anime makes a connection from
fear. She felt that this quality familythe familiar to the unfamiliar, the norm
time she had planned for was ruined .to the supernatural.
"Who would make such a disgusting andOther common plot lines might revolve
horrific cartoon?!" she yelled.around historic references, adding depth
This "disgusting" and "horrific" cartoonand intellect to the anime. On August 6
that Mrs. Thompson has a grudge againstand 9, 1945, the cities of Hiroshima and
falls under a genre of imported mediaNagasaki were annihilated by the first
called Japanese Animation, or moreatomic bombs ever used in warfare
commonly known as "anime" (sometimeshistory. With such dark history written
also written as "animé" as a Frenchdown in Japanse history, many anime
word). Anime is a sophisticated form oftitles depicted the horrific use of such
animated art that originate from Japanweapons of mass destruction. It is a
during the world war eras. Anime is asubconsciously embedded in the japanese
whole new world of televised media. Somemind-set. An magnanimous semi circle
titles are specifically made for kids,engulfs the city of neo-Tokyo in Akira ,
but there is also a vast selection forhouse and trees are torn from its roots
the more sophisticated and mature minds.from the shockwave of the blast in FLCL,
The misconception of anime being simplyand the ever so infamous mushroom cloud
another kind of cartoon targeted at theappears in the distant horizon in the
younger audience, who wakes up everyfirst episode of Neon Genesis
Saturday morning and turns on Kids WB,Evangelion. To the Japanese, anime is a
is very common among Americans, butgood way to remind themselves and the
during the past ten years, Japaneseworld how deadly these weapons really
Animation and other forms of modernare should never be used. A major
Japanese art have greatly influenced thedifference in story telling between
American culture and is becoming moreAmerican cartoons and anime is
and more accepted into the mainstreamcharacterization. An anime expert on
media. It is a genre that is alwaysAnimeNation explains:
pushing the standards and boundaries and"American cartoons will place characters
will never cease to amaze its fans.in the situation. Anime places
The Historysituations around characters. Many anime
Motions pictures and animated featuresshows have a continuing story, while
began to appear during the early 20thvery nearly all American cartoons are
century. Japanese artists and animatorsepisodic, created specifically to be a
did not however start experimenting withseries of individual, stand -alone
animation until 1914, primarily due tostories rather than small pieces of a
the fact that western studios dominatedwhole. Even in the case of anime series'
the cartoon field. Walt Disney, creatorthat are episodic, the characters
of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, and thedevelop and change from episode to
Fleischer Brothers, creators of Popeyeepisode. Anime, therefore, engenders
the Sailor and Superman, have broughtmore personal involvement between the
some of the most well known charactersshow and the viewer than typical
to life with their masterful works thatAmerican cartoons do".
set the bar for what "cartoons" shouldCartoons like Scooby Doo, Tom and Jerry,
be. Japan's involvement in creatingThundercats, and Powerpuff Girls all
animated films was rather slow. This wasshow individual episodes that have no
probably influenced by just having cameconnections with the previous or
out of its global isolationism that theproceeding one. All the characters are
country invoked upon itself (over 50to go on without change, throughout the
years ago). When Japan was in its postevery single episode. Characters in
WWII stage, a man by the name of OsamuAnime, on the other hand, change
Tezuka worked in a factory and wasdramatically as a result of the
heavily influenced by the early workssituation and their relationships with
Walt Disney and the Fleischer Brothers.others. A story is told through a length
As he tried to draw his own originalof many episodes, developing the
characters by trying to imitate the twocharacter and giving character depth as
western styles, he found greateach episode progresses. Alia, an anime
popularity and respect among hisenthusiast with her own website furthers
co-workers. In 1947, Tezuka gained muchthe point:
attention with his novel-length drawn"The best animes make their characters
stories. However, in 1963, the work thatreal, with real human emotions that
would define and give birth to the animenever seem out of place for the
medium was his internationallycharacter. Anime creators take great
successful animation series calledpains in making their characters fully
Testuwan Atom, or Astro Boy. His pursuitdeveloped and defined individuals, with
in animation crowned him the title oftheir own conflicts and flaws".
being the pioneer of anime and graphicSometimes, the characters can be
novels, known as manga.spontaneous and do unexpected things.
As Tezuka and his studio paved the roadThis is in direct correlation with their
for Japanese animation, the 1970s saw apersonalities, just like in real life.
change and growth in this form ofThus, many anime fans watch anime
entertainment. Trends started to appearbecause it lets them imagine the reality
in various works by various studios.of the characters and escape to their
These trends were passed down theworld , rather than seeing actors and
generations and are present in today'sactress in a live action movie acting
anime. One of the most influentialand pretending someone they are not.
trends is the "mecha" types of anime,Music is also very important to the
which has become a sub-genre itself.world of anime. Many times, it is a tool
Mecha is short of mechanical, or simplyto help further the characterization of
meaning giant robots and machines,the show. In Love Hina, a show about a
usually controlled or piloted by variouscollege-bound student living in a
human characters. This proved to be aall-girl resident, each character had
very attractive characteristic of anime,its own theme song, depicting their
because creating a live action mechapersonalities. The songs would vary in
movie would require very tedious workstyles, from slow to hard rock,
and demanded strong financing. Anotherclassical to jazz. Songs and music are
trend that began appear in anime duringalso used to emphasize a theme, whether
the 70's was modifying the conventionalit's the passing of time, the vastness
way of how a story was told in earlyof space, or humanity's lost dreams.
works of anime. Instead of having aThey are also used to display
cliché good vs. evil plot, storysituations: joyful, silly melodies for
writers began to apply interestinghumorous situations and suspenseful and
twists and fresh concepts that wouldserious tunes for troublesome events.
make the story more engaging. The animeUnlike most American cartoons where
Lupin III depicted "good" protagonisttheme songs are performed by anonymous
with somewhat of a mischievousmusicians, Japanese musicians take great
personality. Devilman was another showpride in performing for an anime title.
that had its protagonist possessed by aToday, many famous Japanese musicians
demon, giving him split personalitiessuch as Sowelu, L'arc~en~ciel, Yoko
and when a battle occurs, his demonicKanno, Do as Inifinity, and Nobuo
side would take control. Known as one ofUematsu write original songs for the
the most acclaimed anime series of allopening and ending theme of many shows.
time, Mobile Suit Gundam was a story ofAnime is also a good way for debut
a inter-stellar war between Earth andartists to gain popularity and
its first space colonies, using bothrecognition.
mechas, unique characterization andHow influential is it?
never-before-seen battles. This seriesAfter having explained all the
became highly marketable and captivatedtechniques and the genesis of anime, One
a huge number of audiences. Thesecould not help but ask the question: in
concepts and many others spawned morewhat ways is it influencing the American
ideas and added more ingredients to theculture? When Princess Mononoke from
anime soup.Studio Ghibli came out in the states, it
During the 1980s, a Japanese artist bystunned movie goers and gained a large
the name of Go Nagai began to createnumber of fans. Some, however, judged a
anime for adults, breaking the conceptbook by its cover, thinking that the
that animated features are only fortitle suggests it would be a fairy tale
kids. From clever satires to full blownwith a happy ending. They were
nudity and sexual engagements, Goultimately proven wrong and were
Nagai's ingenious idea helped to attractdisturbed by its violent nature. The
even more fans to the medium. In 1988,director, Hayao Miyazaki, contends:
one major milestone was created and is"One of the things that I wanted to
still thought to be ahead of its time,portray in my film is that violence is,
even by today's standards. The movieindeed, a part of human essence. The
Akira is set in the futuristic andissue is how to manage it and how to
apocalyptic Tokyo, where a motorcyclecontrol it…I think it's foolish to say
gang faces numerous obstacles after theythat presence of violence in a film
find out that a member acquired ominousmakes it a bad picture for children. The
psychic abilities that can potentiallytruth is that, in their daily lives,
destroy the world. With an intriguingthey encounter violence inside
and engaging plot, packed withthemselves and around them. The issue is
incredible nail-biting suspense and goryto try to help them address what to do
action, Akira gained tremendous fame allwith it, not to ignore it".
over the world. It was, for many fans,Today, high schools and colleges around
an eye opener to the true potential ofthe country are creating anime clubs,
animated films. In 1995 came morewhere members share anime, watch them
milestone quality works. Masamuneand have thoughtful discussions. These
Shirow's Ghost in the Shell explored theclubs make effort to spread awareness to
depth the human mind, depicting elementsthe public that anime is indeed not a
of psychological manipulation andmedium targeted just at kids. Mrs.
throwing in a life vs. machine conflictWolfson, Honors physics teacher and
where humans are enhanced withanime club advisor at Shrewsbury High
cybernetic parts and have the ability toSchool said:
travel through a vast sea of"I gained interested in anime during my
information, into another realm (verycollege years, when they ran an Akira
much like the Internet).Marathon at the club and it opened my
In the same year, two studios joinedeyes to this medium. I think anime is
forces to created one of the most talkedaffecting to the American culture by
about and well known anime series of allincreasing the diversity awareness and
time. Gainax and Production I.G. workedacceptance of Americans. The mass media
around the clock to create Neon Genesisloves it because it is something fairly
Evangelion. This epic 26-episode showfresh and new to this country. It is far
takes place in the year 2015, wheremore attractive than the mundane
"Angels" from a parallel universecartoons that are so overly used".
appeared on Earth and started attackingThe MIT Anime Club, one of the top anime
the human race. As an act of selfclubs in the country gives public
defense, biological and mechanicalviewings every week. Due to its
fighting machines called "Evangelions"prestigious and well-established name,
were created and are piloted by threemany anime works have incorporated
candidates to confront them. The showaspects of the university as part the
itself incorporates everything itsshow! Ben, the club president of Cal
predecessors have, and at the same timeAnimage in UC Berkeley described that it
involves an immense amount of characterused to be only 20 guys that would show
depth, plot twists, breath takingup at one showing. Now the number
action, historical, scientific andincreased to 200, mostly dominated by
biblical references. This one-of a-kindmales with a majority of 18 to 24 years
anime spawned the Eva Phenomenon inof age, and a minority of 25 to 30 years
Japan and is regarded very highly byof age. Officers also sponsored free
anime critics. Today, anime continues toweekly showings of anime to the public
grow. More and more studios are makingon campus. Among the audience, Asians
bigger and better shows to air on TV.and Caucasians where dominant and were
Among all the fascination, one questionin almost equal proportions.
surfaces: why is anime such of anApart from clubs at school, the
attraction to Americans and the westernso-called information superhighway (or
world? Why is it influencing thethe Internet) is an essential tool for
American culture?the spread of anime among Americans. As
The Techniquesmore and more shows are made in Japan,
The artistic techniques behind anime areAmerican distributors can not keep up
very sophisticated and is a major factorwith the pace. As the demand for newer
on why the genre is such an infuence onanimes rises, groups of people with a
western popular culture. One aspect ofrich understanding of the Japanese
anime that is very attention grabbing islanguage started recording raw shows
its attention to detail. Tezukaairing on Japanese Television via their
purposely made Astro Boy's eyes to becomputers and, to their best efforts,
round and big to show expressive faces.translate full episodes into a English
He noted that that these features cansubtitled features. These "fansub"
allow him to display a wide range ofgroups then upload them onto the
emotions. The display of differentInternet, within the reach of millions
emotions are quite distinctive in animeof anime fans. They usually have their
compared to American cartoons. Otherown websites, and have affiliates to
than showing facial expression, artistsother partners. "Subtitled by fans for
would draw outer-physical elements thatfans. Not for sale or rent" is usually
would exaggerate the emotion, makingwritten at the beginning of each subbed
anime more unique and spontaneous as aepisode. This way of distributing anime
genre. Elements such as a big cross-likeis also perfectly legal, since none of
vein would pop out on the left or rightthese new shows have been licensed by
side of a character's head when he orAmerican distributors. Fans are able to
she gets frustrated, or an abnormallyget their hands on the latest anime,
big sweat drop appears behind the headwithout having to wait for the long
when he or she gets in trouble. Theprocess of licensing. With this growing
characteristic of blushing is veryever so popular, anime internet forums
emphasized in anime as well. A roughare also flourishing. Anyone from any
light red patch drawn under theplace in the world can come to
character's eyes would appear when oneMinitokyo.net, one of the largest and
is in a romantic or embarassingdiverse anime fourms on the net, and
situation.exchange ideas, share knowledge, get
Unlike like Disney cartoons, wherenews, share artwork, and create their
lighting details on the characters areown custom pages.
almost none-existent, proper globalAnime has also influenced the way
lighting plays a big role in anime. AAmericans use their pass time. Each
character must have the proper shadingyear, anime conventions such as Otakon
and lighting on the apparels, the faceand Anime Expo are held around the
and most intricately, the hair, which isnation where just-released titles and
soemtimes one of the most difficult partmerchandise are advertised can be bought
to draw. Since it is almost impossiblewith a great bargain. Other than the
to hand draw every strand of hair (yetbuying and selling, one major attraction
possible with computer generatedat anime cons are the cosplayers.
models), artists draw hair as muchCosplaying is normally something kids do
thicker strands, allowing them to easilywhen they go trick-or treating on
maneuver them and apply proper lighting.Halloween, but anyone from teens to
Lighting on the eyes are also veryadults cosplay at anime cons. Costumes
vividly depicted. Reflections of lightfeatured on anime characters can be
on the Cornea is very bright and usuallyfound and bought in anime stores, but
very large. It tends to augment its sizemany hardcore cosplayers prefer to make
when one feels like crying or when onetheir own outfits. Cosplaying gives the
feels envy towards someone or something.cosplayers a chance to become the
Anime pioneered a technique called framecharacter they love, and allows them to
shifting. Akira used this technique anddisplay the personalities the characters
created a perspective of a motorcyclepossessed.
gang member going into through the cityOne aspect that is very influenced by
streets, by shifting edificesanime is the American media. Movies like
proportionally to the left and right.Akira, Princess Mononoke and Vampire
Another illusionary technique that isHunter D: Bloodlust required American
widely used thena nd today even isvoice actors and actresses for it be
western animation is calledshown in the states. After dubbing such
action-lines. During the midst of aa feature, many thespians were amazed by
heart-stopping battle, the protagonist'sthe ingenuity and the level of maturity
coup de grace is shown with him jumpingtheses films possesses. Major live
in the air, going straight for hisaction films are incorporating anime
enemy. Action-lines are the fast movingscenes to spice up the action (Kill
lines behind the character, filling theBill). Cartoon Network, perhaps the
entire background, suggesting to thebiggest cartoon distribution network in
audience that their hero is moving verythe world, devotes approximately 1/3 of
fast and very forcefully.its air time to anime or cartoons with
The quality of animation directlygreat anime influence: Teen Titans,
correlates with the animation budget,Totally Spies!, Hi Hi Puffy Amiyumi, the
which equals the time given to completewhole Miguzi line-up, Toonami line-up,
the project. Many animated series suchAdult Swim for those 14 years and older.
as Dragonball and Rurouni Kenshin mayMajor companies such as T-mobile, the
have over a hundred episodes but willpopular cell phone company from Deutsche
not have the quality of animationTelekom, teamed up with Production I.G.,
compared to a six episode show. Movementone of the top anime studios to created
of the characters will not be as smootha 9-short episoded commercial of a
due to a low frame rate. The greater andcharacter called Johnny Chase to promote
the number of cells an artist createsthe new T-Mobile SidekickÂ(R).
and the more detail he or she includes,Conclusion
the more time he or she will need, thusAnime is slowly being accepted by
requiring a bigger budget. This is whymainstream media and is slowly being
animated features always show a higherrespected as a completely separate genre
quality of animation compared toof animation. Yet when it comes down the
animated television series. Yet when abasics, it is only animation. Despite
comes to story development, a televisionall of its influences, many Americans
animated series would be at advantage.still see anime as a form of eye candy
Of all the techniques, anime alsoand entertainment for the younger
focuses on plenty of romanticism.generation. To the Japanese, however,
Romanticism is nothing new to Japan. Theanime is a medium in which a story can
world's first full novel Tale of Genshi,be told and glorified. The future of
written by Lady Murasaki, containedanime looks very promising. With the
elaborate imagery and poetic emotions.development computer generated graphics
Japanese folklore told tales of ghosts,and enhanced interfaces, characters and
monsters and the supernaturalThus, it isenvironments never looked so real. The
not surprising that anime would alsoadvancement in technology just might one
carry this tradition. Anime, like allday break away the generalizations made
forms of animation, relies primarily onby the public and give this remarkable
visual images. However, some frames ingenre a more respected status in the
anime provide an exquisite portrayal ofworld of films.
the romantic element. One might see, forReferences
example, a young girl starring out intoBaker, Neal. "Samurai from Outer Space:
a sky of glittering stars, or long silkyUnderstanding Japanese Animation."
hair being blown by a gust of cherryLibrary Journal. 14 Nov. 1996: Platinum
blossom petals, or even a giant robotPeriodical. Shrewsbury High School Lib.
slowly walking towards the audience,MA. 10 Feb. 2005 < >.
away from the ruins of a post-nuclear"Genshiken." 2004. Television Show,
war. The setting might seem far-fetched,CD-Rom. Media Factory. Palm Studio. 28
but these scenes convey a great deal, atFeb. 2005.12 x 24 minute episodes.
a glance, the sense of happiness,Izuwa, Eri. " The Romantic, Passionate
loneliness, defeat, victory, ambition,Japanese in Anime: A Look at the Hidden
and grandeur.Japanese Soul." 1997. 3 Mar. 2005 < >.
The attention given to plot and story inMIT Anime Club. Massachusetts Institute
an anime is just as, or maybe even moreof Technology. 15 Mar. 2005. 21 Mar.
complicated, than any live action movie.2005 < >.
Compared to many western romantic"Just What is Anime?" 21 Mar. 2005 < >.



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