Anime culture and D&D

[Umbran]

GI Joe and Transformers were not anime. Both were made in America.

Not only that, but if you're going to lump those two in with, say, Ranma 1/2 and My Neighbor Totoro, I am pretty sure the term "anime" has then gotten so broad as to be meaningless. People are a bit too willing to slap the term on any animated form they happen to like.

That being said, I haven't taken any real influences out of anime for my games. And I don't know what "anime culture" is.

 

[D.Shaffer]

G1 Transformers might not have been anime, per se, but the toyline was based on previous Japanese toy releases. Additionally, once the G1 series ended in the US, several Japan only TV series showed up. You could probably consider it a middle ground.

In any case, anime is simply a term used (In the US anyways) to describe cartoons in Japan, or cartoons emulating certain stylistic traits. There is such a wide variety of types in anime that it seems a bit weird, to me, to consider it one simple genre and exclude anything remotely resembling anime.

 

[Aaron L]

Both GI Joe and Transformers were animated by Japanese studios. In fact, there was at least one whole season of Transformers that wasn't aired in the US, only in Japan.

 

[Desdichado]

Both GI Joe and Transformers were animated by Japanese studios. In fact, there was at least one whole season of Transformers that wasn't aired in the US, only in Japan.

Both GI Joe and Transformers were done by American studios according to my sources. Even if not, they certainly followed American styles and conventions of animation, not anime ones. They were imported to Japan and were popular enough to later spawn "native" sub-series, which I assume is what you mean by seasons that weren't aired in the US. But they in no way whatsoever are anime shows unless, as Umbran says, the term anime no longer has any meaningful definition.

 

[Sammael]

G1 Transformers were animated by (at least three different) Japanese animation studios, but produced by American companies and were drawn according to models that were designed in the US and according to the American animation style. Thus, G1 Transformers (the first 98 episodes + movie) were not "anime" in the usual sense of the word.

After the original series, there were three more animated series in Japan, each more anime-ish than the one before - Headmasters, Masterforce, and Victory, as well as an OVA called Zone. Most are rather juvenile and designed for a younger audience than the original series. After that came a brief hiatus, then Beast Wars/Machines, followed by a number of anime-ish Japanese series (some which were imported into the US and reaired under different names).

 

[Desdichado]

That makes sense.

I dunno--to me the distinction between anime and western animation is pretty clear. With the exception of a handful of shows that purposefully straddle the line stylewise, like Teen Titans or something.

 

[hexgrid]

Even if not, they certainly followed American styles and conventions of animation, not anime ones.

Yeah. Too bad "American styles and conventions" in this case can be summed up as "half-hour toy commercial."

 

[Desdichado]

Well, that's neither here nor there. I agree that many of the cartoons, shows, movies, and books that D&D geeks in general seem to have fond memories of are not really very good.

But that applies to anime as well.

 

[Teflon Billy]

...then Beast Wars/Machines...

Beast Wars was done here in Vancouver, not in Japan.

I knew a few folks who worked at the studio.

 

[Kaodi]

Beast Wars and Beast Machines... I liked those shows. I kind of liked some of the newer Transformers cartoons, but I think I would rather watch the original series, if I could get it. They say nostalgia and reality don't compare well, but I did see the Transformers movie not too long ago, and I dug it.

Speaking of computer animated series, however... when are we going to get our continuation of ReBoot?!