Many people dimiss anime for being childish, weird and cheesy, I should know, I was one of them. And it's true, alot of anime, especially the better known shows are aimed at kids, badly translated and the end result is garbage.
I won't name any specific shows, because taste is a personal thing, but I think you all know what I'm talking about.
Cowboy Bebop was actually the series that changed my opinion, the animation is fantastic, the music is completely different to my usual style and yet I love it. The characters are interesting, the story engaging and the perfect mix of drama and comedy. Overall it's ultra-sleek, ultra-cool and timeless.
That said, it's not for everyone, nothing is. Don't expect older generations to enjoy it, animation in their eyes is probably WB, Hanna Barbera and Disney.
Animation for adults is a very specific audience, that's why you don't see it much anymore beyond basic cable comedy.
Also, there's the cultural difference, it would take alot of convincing to get my parents to watch anything from a foreign country, especially if it were in another language.
Generation Y is a melting pot of culture, so we're all more likely to broaden our cultural horizons.
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MrsSpooky
14 years ago
So much of it IS weird and cheesy, and there is SO much of it. You have to wade through quite a steaming pile to find nuggets of gold like Cowboy Bebop. I think the title prevents people from taking it seriously too. Of course, once one gets through the first five sessions, Ballad of Fallen Angels pretty much erases that perception.
My sister is one who doesn't like animation (unless it's computer animation, like Shreck). I was visiting her a couple years ago and we were trying to decide which movie to watch. I told her we were going to watch the Cowboy Bebop movie I brought with me. It took some convincing, but I told her to just watch the first half hour. If she didn't like it we could watch something else. She was on the edge of her seat, and about halfway through, she said "this isn't what I expected." She loved it. She'd appreciate it more if she watched the series, but she's not interested, and that's fine. She gave it a chance, which is the main thing.
And you're right about people not wanting to see anything from a foreign country. It's like they think that they won't understand it, even with a decent dub - that there will be so many in jokes and cultural references that would make it incomprehensible to anyone from outside that culture, or just afraid to be exposed to another culture's entertainment. That's just sad.
Spike! My precious
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop
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kill-the-boxtrolls
14 years ago
Hey, guys! Thanks for the tip:) I think I might choose one or more specific episode(s) for my friend's mother and her father to watch. This is going to be difficult. We were concerning on this for about a few months now and she said that her mother dislikes violence, language, guns and nudity so I don't think Ballad of Fallen Angels would work. Neither The Real Folk Blues. I'd think she'd LOVE BoFA if she hadn't had this problem with violence compared to her daughter. I wouldn't choose Stray Dog Strut for language. She also doesn't like horror flicks so Toys in the Attic wouldn't work. We promised that we might have her watch something like Brain Scratch or Asteriod Blues (to get a little warmed up.)
Her grandfather doesn't mind violence so he could probably watch ANYTHING from Bebop except for Jupiter Jazz Part I and II
Cowboy Bebop is not specifically aimed at children. It might be O.K. for them if they're comfortable violence or act very mature for their age.
Now, what MrsSpooky mentioned about the animated movie, she said that her and her sister LOVED it. I had to watch the movie with my friend since it was given R and she was too young to watch it. She liked it better than I did. I just thought it was so-so.
Oh and by the way, I don't really mind kiddie anime unless their girly, well, let's except that. I always HATED Hello Kitty and thought Sonic X and the movie it had were better (partly because I'm a major Sonic the Hedgehog fan.) The problem is my friend always dragged me to see these really childish anime such as Magical Meow Meow Taruto. I didn't like it. I thought it was a show for toddlers even if it IS for kids. However, I liked Cardcaptor Sakura and Princess Tutu so I guess educational anime are too tedious for me I guess.
"You're a cowardy custard. Cowardy cowardy custard. Cowardy cowardy custard." - Anne
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ffx2-1
14 years ago
I have meet people who called Cowboy Bebop "boring" which is understandable. I,however, never meet someone who called it "trash."
I guess some people just can't get into the story-telling. Bebop is very episodic and the plot doesn't unify until later episodes. This may be a turn-off for people who enjoy consistent plot-progression anime like Code Geass or Death Note. These types of anime are generally more exciting and keep audiences attentive.
I, however, enjoy Bebop's episodic story-telling. I find each episode very meaningful and they always leave some kind of message or emotion for the viewers. Sometimes irony, bitter-sweet, sad, and even relaxed kind of feeling and that is reason why I enjoy this show.
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MrsSpooky
14 years ago
Oh seriously! Same here. :)
Cowboy Bebop is episodic, but there is an overarching story/theme that is there for those who have patience to stick it out (if episodic is not their cup of tea and the characters don't grab them).
Cowboy Bebop is very much about life, struggle. It's about struggling with wounds of the past and moving on. It's about struggle with day to day life with its misfortunes and friendship and our too often failure to allow our friends to be there for us and trying to go it alone.
It's sad really. Those who won't give it a chance are missing out on a lot.
Spike! My precious
http://mrsspooky.net/bebop
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