Sunday July 5, 2009
Unhealthy practice
XPRESSWAY
A reader has incidentally touched on a subject that is closely related to this week’s OtakuZone main feature.
I AM quite distraught over what has become of the Japanese anime industry. Its products have become less family-friendly of late.
The industry is increasingly skewed towards adult-oriented, late-night stuff with limited appeal. The anime are worked upon by meagrely-paid animators in a terribly fragmented industry of over 300 studios and production companies. I think it is unhealthy if an animation industry does not sustain itself with enough family-friendly fare like the ones we know from the 1990s.
Although Dragon Ball Z was kind of gory and Sailor Moon a bit suggestive at times, parents found the heroic values promoted by Goku, Usagi and their fellow warriors to be positive for their kids. These warriors remain unmatched by most recent anime fighters.
Worse, some regional anime licensees have resorted to airing adult-oriented anime in daytime cartoon slots (targeted at children) to expand the existing anime fanbase, not mindful of the relatively conservative mainstream mindset.
For example, in Gundam 00, aired on Saturday mornings on Ntv7, the protagonist’s outspoken atheism remained intact in the Bahasa Malaysia dub. And this in a country where people strive for their kids’ religious piety?
I understand that Japan’s aging demographic is a contributing factor to the increasingly mature content of today’s anime, but let’s look at Europe which is also experiencing a low birth rate but looks toward the world market to build a vibrant animation scene.
I am not against adult animation. Yet, I do remember that in most countries people think cartoons are for kids. However, I believe parents are becoming more aware of animated content which may be inappropriate, such as violence, suggestive scenes, etc. And they can check online to assess if the anime are appropriate for the young.
The folks in the Japanese animation industry will devour themselves gradually. So stop blaming illegal downloads all the time.
As for Malaysian TV, it’s time to make more local cartoons which suit our culture, such as Upin & Ipin. Majulah animasi untuk negara (Develop animation for the country).
TOMEI
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