Find the Anime Challenge

[Zamkaizer]

- The eyes are too slanted, too wide and too close to each other to be considered "normal". Those are stylized eyes. Not every manga/anime character has the same Sakura Card Captor eyes.

- The weapon is straight out of an anime someone posted a while ago. And I do mean "straight out".

I could potentially counter both of these points by saying that the image depicts a Valenar Elf from Eberron. So, the eyes are explainable by it's race, and the double scimitar is explained by it's nationality.

EDIT: However, I agree that it does resemble anime.

Anyway, I love Vinod Rams' work, but many of his illustrations show clear Japanese influence.

"Tieflings" from Races of Faerun

 

[JiffyPopTart]

How is this teh anime?
- Eyes look normal
- It has a nose
- No visible "face faults"
- Head in proportion to body

Seriously, what stylistic elements are you talking about?

Cheers, -- N

Would you say this is anime? It has all 4 features you just quoted as indicating its NOT anime. Yet I took it from an anime series website.

DS

 

[Nifft]

Would you say this is anime? It has all 4 features you just quoted as indicating its NOT anime. Yet I took it from an anime series website.

The eyes in your picture are clearly bigger than the mouth. Maybe that's it -- if I could see the mouth in the martial artist picture, it might look "anime".

With your picture, the flat coloring is also an indicator, IMHO.

Cheers, -- N

 

[JiffyPopTart]

The eyes in your picture are clearly bigger than the mouth. Maybe that's it -- if I could see the mouth in the martial artist picture, it might look "anime".

With your picture, the flat coloring is also an indicator, IMHO.

Cheers, -- N

My picture is an animation cell, not a fully colored illustration. If you find any animation cell coloring jobs in a WoTC book thats a sign the art department is running low on budget.

INRE eyes: The eyes on the WoTC drawing are so large they are wrapping around to what SHOULD be the side of the characters head. I'd say its fairly certain thats not "normal proportion".

DS

 

[Scribble]

I can't see a chin in that picture. I don't know how you're able to tell the exact vertical extent of the head. Is it really out of proportion?

You can see the shape of the head through the clothing. Just because you can't see it 100% doesn't mean you can't get the idea of the shape. Otherwise the artist failed to do clothing properly...

Also I think he meant proportion of the body. It's 10 heads high. Artists tend to measure body length in "heads." Your body should be x times the length of th head.

Manga and Anime tend to use a higher head to body ratio... So taller lankier looking dudes and dudettes.

Martial arts? Yes. Agree 100% it's very much a martial arts pose. But that's Asian, rather than Anime, right?

I think it's more in the heavily stylized pose. The ones that look like they're in this super crazy movement pose that seems to slightly defy gravity and physics, serving to emphasize the awesome of the character.

To me, you can also add to that the sharpness of the character's body. Anime (at least to my admitedly untrained eye) eems to emphasize sharpness and angles rather then curves. (especially with the men.)

Again, though, I wouldn't call anything in D&D secifically Anime. Just that the artists are influnced by it. (as well as western comic art.)

 

[Nifft]

You can see the shape of the head through the clothing. Just because you can't see it 100% doesn't mean you can't get the idea of the shape. Otherwise the artist failed to do clothing properly...

I can see an indication of a chin, but I can't see the shape of the chin. Its pointyness in particular.

Also I think he meant proportion of the body. It's 10 heads high. Artists tend to measure body length in "heads." Your body should be x times the length of th head.

Manga and Anime tend to use a higher head to body ratio... So taller lankier looking dudes and dudettes.

Wait, really? I thought the classic anime head was disproportionately large relative to the body.

So how many heads is a normal body length?

Cheers, -- N

 

[Scribble]

I can see an indication of a chin, but I can't see the shape of the chin. Its pointyness in particular.

Wait, really? I thought the classic anime head was disproportionately large relative to the body.

So how many heads is a normal body length?

Cheers, -- N

Depends on what you're going for really. Having a longer character isn't Strichtly Manga... They just tend to emphasize it, specially in the legs. Which I think is why they always tend to have very pronounced "stances."

*incidentally I haven't actually measured that pic myself to see the proportions... I'm just going at his word that it is 10 heads.

Also to actually answer your question anything from 7-8ish is generally advised? But then again it changes depejnding on what you want your dude to look like...

 

[Raven Crowking]

Wait, really? I thought the classic anime head was disproportionately large relative to the body.

Depends on the character. Anime uses both long & lanky and short & childlike. Occasionally, it even uses normal proportions.


RC

 

[Gundark]

"Tieflings" from Races of Faerun

Definetly manga influence there...especially the guy on the left.

 

[TwinBahamut]

I would give the following as some examples in the change of flavor:
* The naming of special non-spell powers

So, it is okay to name spells, but not to name non-spells? Either way, the big "culprit" here is martial arts, which is hardly exclusive to anime, and is probably far more important in Hong Kong kung fu movies...

* Super-heroic combat effects, such as hitting multiple opponents with the same blow

Huh? Where is this in 4E? Nothing confirmed yet... Besdies, look above to "Hong Kong kung fu flick".

* The move away from anthropomorphic characters that have a folklore precedent

Wait, what? Either this is a gnome complaint, or a completley self-contradictory statement. Anime has more emphasis on anthropomorphic creatures taken from folklore than D&D does (look up the literary/mythical origins of Son Goku, Kitsune, and Nekomata if you disbelieve me). Besides, all signs point towards a greater influence of follore on 4E D&D. Also, folklore tends to have more of the "fighters are powerful" stuff you complain about above than even anime, so what is the source of your complaint?

* The limitation of character death, the inclusion of balanced encounters vs. player estimation of danger

I think you actually forgot you were supposed to be talking about anime here... How on earth does this relate to anime?

* The focus on high-level play (and, as such, “superpowers”) over the traditional sweet spot of levels 4-9

Also, how on earth does this relate at all to anime?

* The rapidity of leveling (akin to an RPG videogame)

Again, how does this relate to anime? And how does rapidity of levelling equte to videogames anyway? It is comparing appels to oranges, since a level means completely different things in D&D and the average videogame RPG.

* Character customization moving the focus to the “uniquely stylized dramatic loner,” rather than the archetype

Prove it. I don't buy this claim at all. If anything, the new class roles push it towards teamwork and archetypes even further. Besides, "dramatic loners" are about as common in anime as they are anywhere else (certainly no more common than in old westerns), and most anime is fueled by excessive doses of "the power of love and friendship!!!" anyways.

At this point, I have to conclude that your idea of "anime" means "differences between 3E and 4E that I don't like". I can't say that this is a remotely useful definition. At least, it is a definition that I can't agree with or relate to.

Ok, on to the pictures.

I don't think the Valenar elf picture is very anime inspired. The artist is the same comic-group that has shown up earlier in this thread, and I say it is not an anime style. The weapon is official Eberron, and the character and pose is a classic asian martial artist depiction, which is the deliberate image the artist is striving for. The eyes and face don't lean one way or the other. If you ask me, it is like saying Ember from the PHB is too anime because she is a monk... Depiction of an asian themed character is not the same thing as anime.

On the other hand, I really see the influence of anime in the Vinod Rams tiefling picture. Especially in the crazy guy. The particular manic look in his eyes, the way his eyes are seen through the hair falling over his face, his pose, and his silver hair all scream out "anime" to me. The other guy also has a classic anime look to him. I like this picture.