This is supposedly the second part of "About me" section. I have already described - or at least my friends did - how/who am I in person. I am sure you are an intelligent person to read between the lines. The conclusion is: I'm awesome as fuck. Heh, problem?
That section doesn't actually describe me as an anime fan though. So here I am making an attempt to figure out exactly that.
So what kind of anime fan am I? I never really asked myself this question before although I did encounter it a few times at other blogs. It sure got me thinking. In order to figure it out, I have to ask myself a few questions. I don't know how this will help answering that question but let's just do it anyway.
 |
| (c) krnkr721 |
First of all, I know for certain that I am the kind of anime fan that is easily influenced by either the characters or the originality of the whole story/plot. I wasn't that picky about story line when I first started watching anime because at that time, all anime that I watched were new to me. However as years gone by, the lack of originality becomes quite apparent and we are served with one cliche shit after the other, especially when it involved moe, ecchi and shoujo; three of the least favorite genres of anime for me.
What drives me as a fan?
Nowadays I can say for certain that I am a character driven fan. Whether or not I will enjoy the show now depends heavily on the characters. If there is even one character that I fall for, be certain that I would probably continue watching the anime albeit the story. Please take note though that when I said fall, I mean me falling head over heels in love with that said character and not just merely liking them. They motivates me like no other, not even a 3D, can. Through this, I also find myself shipping the characters and will invest a lot of emotions into those shipping as well.
What kind of characters I am in to?
I guess it is because of my personality but I am always attracted to strong-will and feisty female characters. If you look at my banner up there, you see four of the fives female characters that I have such high regards for. The other one is of course Shiki. As for males, the range is quite expandable and flexible. I love characters like Sakata Gintoki to Ichimaru Gin and everything in between except for a wuss-good-for-nothing characters.
What kind of genre that gets me excited?
8 years ago I would say shounen in a heart beat since two of my gateway anime are shounen. Since then however I have watched and read all kind of genres, even those that I am not a fan of, from mecha anime to yaoi and everything in between. As I mature as a fan though, I found myself switching genres. Thanks to Gintama, I now appreciate wicked witty humor. Any other anime that has even an ounce of Gintama awesomeness is good enough for me. The recent example would be Nichibros. Uncharacteristically for me, maybe, but I also enjoyed slice-of-life more so than any other genres nowadays. They are often time that brought something different to the table, something that I have never seen before, or was executed differently and brilliantly that it moved me. They also contains somewhat real emotions that I can relate to and sometimes, even hit too close for comfort. But if there is one genre that always gets me excited, it would be yaoi. No explanation needed.
What am I looking for in an anime?
My ideal anime would have three things: bad-ass protagonists, original storyline, awesome visual. (1) When I said bad-ass, it doesn't have to be RAAAWWRRRR I AM GAR! but rather he or she is great at doing what she does. A touch of vulnerability as well to make them feels human. (2) originality is always good in my book but I understand how hard it is to come up with something original which is why I appreciate their effort even more if they managed to do just that. (3) So far there are few production studios that awe me with their ability to provide stunning visual and it's one of the reason why I mostly enjoyed their anime more so than other studios. In my opinion, that set them apart from other studios.
How many anime am I watching at the same time?
I used to watch more than 30 anime at the same time when I was a hikki back then. Nowadays, I would consider myself to be extremely lucky if I manage to follow 3 anime per season. That is just how drastic some changes in my life are. I am constantly feeling bad about this but I am well aware that there is nothing much I can do about it. With age comes responsibility. FUCK.
What kind of traits do I have as an anime fan?
Hmm let see... (1) I hate dub. I can't stand watching any dubbed anime. This does not mean that I think Japanese seiyuu is superior. I just think that anime should stay Japanese. (2) I used to be a figuretard but because I keeps getting busier by the day, I have stopped buying figures because what's the use if I don't have time to appreciate them? (3) YAOI FTW!! (4) I buy anime DVD that I love but I do download anime fansub because well... it's free. Call me a cheapskate and see if I give a fuck. (5) I guess that makes me a fansub elitist? (6) I often wish I am an anime character (7) I write fanfic
Do I have any fetishes resulted in watching anime?
Too many to count on both hands but the most prominent one is the development of megane (glasses) fetish. It even affecting my real life as I keep finding myself falling for the next guy I saw wearing a thick-rimmed megane. It just makes me heart goes doki-doki. HHHHHHHHHNNNNNNNGGH!
Does watching anime affecting my real life?
Yes, yes it does. It plays a big part that dictates my emotions in daily basis. It opens up endless possibilities in order for me to survive mundane everyday life.
And that's all folks. I can't think of any other questions that I should ask myself. Having answered the questions above, I am still unsure of what kind of anime fan I am. Having said that, I think I could draw a conclusion albeit not as accurately as I want it to be : I used to be an avid hardcore fan. Now I am in between casual and hardcore fan. To explain it in one sentence- I am a character driven fangirl who loves shipping and probably will get a bOnar at every single thing that excites me in anime.
Yep, that sounds about right ^_^
What about you?
6 comments:
With your preference for character development, do you favor animated features or do you feel that manga and light novels portray characters any better or worse?
pretty much the same I guess but I do prefer the animated version simply because it has voices. Somewhat that helps me identify with them as a human being.
30 anime at the same time! Do must have had bionic eyes lol
Haha! You know what I mean. Asshole XD
I really enjoyed this post!
I'm similar to you in that, these days especially, the characters are what grab me the most. I also enjoy a series considerably more if within it there are couples I enjoy shipping.
Shipping makes the characters come alive in a sense that we feel for them. People who don't give a shit about OTP won't get this. Thank you for the understanding :3
Post a Comment
Do it!