I am a Proud Watcher of Anime!…or, why the rest of society thinks I'm a freak
1 August 2007
the reason why I live
In response to THAT Animeblog’s post.
Alright, I’ll come out of the closet. I’ll admit that yes, I am proud of my hobby and I don’t give a damn if the rest of the world thinks I’m a sick, immature and gay social recluse who escapes reality by watching cartoon porn targeted at kids!
…So what? So what if the rest of the world thinks I’m a weirdo? Does it honestly really matter how the person down the line from you in Starbucks looks at you funny for saying Death Note was a good manga and Yagami Light was hot? I’d look at him funny if he started raving about a Mets game (Yankees rule!). I’d immediately assume he has no brains and spends his adult life addicted to a mundane and pointless game where you whack a ball with a stick as far as you can.
Society spurns everyone. As contradictory as it sounds, equality exists only under the scrutinizing eyes of our fellow peers. There is no one, no one, who can hide from the stereotypes and the preconceptions of others. The world runs on three things: coffee, money and ignorance. It’s easy to judge something you don’t understand, easy to make sweeping generalizations and scoff. It’s harder to actually take a stand, even if you’re stoned to death.
If you can’t stand up and defend your hobby, your favorite sport, favorite novel, movie, band or music, maybe you should stop considering yourself a real fan. If your loyalty to a hobby goes only as far as it’s accepted by society, then it’s not there. If you’re not proud of what you’re doing, then why are you doing it in the first place?
“But that isn’t what anime and the community is like! You’re making sweeping generalisations!” Well, yes, but what you think doesn’t matter, and society’s values are all based on sweeping generalisations. A bum might think his lifestyle is the swellest on the face of the earth, but you’re still going to look down on him when you walk past, because you perceive them in a certain light, based on sweeping generalisations. It certainly doesn’t help that not enough people in the anime community try to make a difference.
If the bum likes his corner, what the hell am I going to do about it?! Tell him to move over and get a job? Go piece together his life? Why in the name of the non-existent God will he listen to me? Why should he even care!? Moreover, why should I care? What I think doesn’t matter? Sure, it doesn’t and by that same token, none of what society has to say matters either! Hooray!
You say “I proudly express my love of anime, it’s not like how you put it!”, but then you go and hang up the newest Megami posters in your room and download a few more doujins. All it shows is your shamelessness. Unless we change as a community and change people’s perceptions, people will forever spurn us.
But then I say, “What is wrong with that? What is wrong with the way I express my love for anime?” I can’t see the shame in hanging up the newest Megami posters and downloading a few more doujins. I can’t see any shame in it, at all. I like the posters, I like the doujins, what am I afraid of? Becoming the social reject of the world, being spurned forever by the ‘normal’ people? The only problem I have with all of it is that the quoted statement came from a person who runs an anime blog.
I understand that people should make an effort to educate the rest of the world about “cartoon porn targeted at kids”, but why should it interfere with what I love to do? It’s not so easy to change the world, hence the reason why racism still exists. In all honestly, I don’t think it’s possible change people’s perceptions. Everything, apparently, works in endless cycles and so does this.
However I do have something against people who think that “I watch anime thus I’m awesome, I’m proud of it”, because, for the reason I stated above, anime isn’t as awesome as you’d like to think it is and there are reasons why you ought to be ashamed of it. It’s okay to not be ashamed of your hobby, to hold your head high and say “I chose this path, even if society spurns me I’m not backing down”, but to say “I’m proud of this because I think it’s amazing and makes me awesome etc.” shows that you’re living in a fantasy realm, and what are you smoking and where might I get some?
Why is anime not as awesome as I think it is? Because it’s meant for children? Because there’s hentai? Because people cosplay? Because it can be shallow? Because of fanservice? What is there to be ashamed of? I need to be ashamed of something I love because people think cosplayers are losers and animated porn is just messed up? That’s the one thing I failed to understand: what is there to be ashamed about? It’s like love. If you really love someone, no matter who or what they are, you’re not going to give a damn what anyone thinks.
American football fans are in the same boat. The Super Bowl is like the second coming of Jesus, it’s religious, sacred. They must watch the Super Bowl. If the world entered into a nuclear war, people are going to extremely upset, to put it euphemistically, about the cancellation of the Super Bowl. Middle aged, borderline obese males will walk around half-naked with letters painted across their stomachs, cheering for their favorite team like no tomorrow. I doubt these people are ashamed of football, knowing full and well the corruption and flaws of their sacred sport. I don’t live in England, but I can only assume it’s the same over there, even if it’s a different type of football. Try telling them football isn’t as awesome as they think it is.
I’m proud of the fact that I watch anime. There’s nothing wrong with watching somewhat shallow cartoons, nothing wrong with any of it. I’m being incredibly and stupidly stubborn about this because it’s one of a half a dozen things I’m honestly passionate about. I’m am proud of the collective body of people to which I belong! I love everything about anime, you can’t convince me otherwise. When I was eight, I went to bed wishing to wake up with magical powers, and I still do. The world needs to show some respect for my frickin’ hobby! If I can make deal with my annoying baseball obsessed friends, then they’ll need to make deal with my anime. If football fans can get away with exposing their belly fat in public, I can dress up as a damn character from my favorite show. If the world isn’t willing to accept me, then hell with the world because I don’t want any part of ‘reality’. I prefer my fantasy land, where under-aged girls have magical powers, where life is as complex as a lego, where everything panders to my ‘needs’, where everything is about hot guys, guns and mecha! And I’m not smoking anything, I just have excessive zeal and love for anime and also the need to enjoy my unfortunate life not living for other people.
Anime is the best thing since sliced bread, and sliced bread wasn’t even that good. To those who are ashamed of their hobby, grow a back bone and watch Gurren Lagann, learn the ways of manliness (even if you’re female) and herald your hobby as the best damn thing in the world. To those who don’t watch anime, stop living under a rock and watch Gurren Lagann, just because it’s so damn good. And to borrow some lyrics from AC/DC, “To those about to rock I salute you.” (To those about to watch anime didn’t sound that catchy…)
I love anime. It’s somewhere between the future love of my life, the internet and first person shooters on Xbox. You can laugh, you can call me a loser, you can look down at with pure disdain, disgust and pity, you can think whatever you want. And you know what? “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn.”
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gurren lagann sux lol
Exactly! There’s nothing wrong with watching anime and being proud of it. If it’s something you enjoy then there should be no reason for you to feel bad about it unless there’s some other reason behind that.
If people classify the fantasy world (anime or otherwise) as shallow and shameful, then I would in turn tell them that they have no dreams.
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Fuck yes. Also a big Thank You for defending ur love of anime.
@Marmot – Well, you’re entitled to your opinion. But! Gurren Lagann rocks! XD
@Nekonron – “If people classify the fantasy world (anime or otherwise) as shallow and shameful, then I would in turn tell them that they have no dreams.” My sentiments exactly.
@wicked_liz – I’ll spend the rest of my life defending anime! Anytime, anywhere, ;P!
I have to say, that I could not agree with you in 100% regarding , but it’s just my opinion, which could be wrong
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Well said. As a middle-aged borderline obese male who loves football, I’ve made many converts to anime (most are much younger than I am) while watching it during my breaks at work.
There are still plenty of people who wonder how I could root for the Volunteers or the Broncos (sometimes I wonder myself) and then thoroughly enjoy something as obtuse as Holic or FLCL.
Anime never ceases to amaze me in the scope of its ability to tell a story in ways that live action can’t. That’s not to say I think anime is superior to live action (Hayate’s “I only like 2D girls”), it’s just different.
I still love Hitchcock, Ford, and good American T.V., but Kon, Watanabe, and the NHK are on my short list,too.
Hi there! Nice blog posting about m a freak. I would have to agree with you on this one. I am going to look more into adult anime. This Friday I have time.