The end of an otaku age

animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2016-09-10/cultural-critic-hiroki-azuma-shin-godzilla-your-name-signify-end-of-an-age/.106281

>I completely agree with Watanabe's analysis that the imaginative power of sekai-kei and bishōjo games earned a peculiar national popularity by providing protagonists with satisfying personal lives. But I am not optimistic about what comes next. your name. seemed less like the beginning of an era than the ending of another. To put it simply, watching Shin Godzilla and your name., I felt that the otaku (geek) era had ended. The imaginations of the first-generation Gainax otaku and the second-generation sekai-kei otaku have simultaneously matured and reached personal satisfaction, and that special otaku aimlessness and hopelessness vanished entirely. That might be good and it might be bad. In any case, as someone born in 1971 who's been watching otaku media all my life, I think this year will be looked back on as a turning point, and as I go through life my various emotions intensify.

(Sekai-kei meaning stories where the fate of the world or similar issue hangs on the fate of the main characters' relationship)

Is he right? Note that he's not saying otaku are evil and dead, he's saying that this generation may be over and we may be on the cusp of a new one, be that good or bad

Literally who

It's now the 3DCG age

>He is an associate of Takashi Murakami and the Superflat movement.
A lolicon.

Popular Japanese culture critic

>Azuma launched his career as a literary critic in 1993 with a postmodern style influenced by leading Japanese critics Kojin Karatani and Akira Asada. In the late 1990s, Azuma began examining various pop phenomena, especially the emerging otaku/Internet/video game culture, and became widely known as an advocate of the thoughts of a new generation of Japanese. He is interested in the transformation of the Japanese literary imagination under its current “otaku-ization.”

>Hiroki Azuma, a cultural critic and developer of the original story for Fractale
>developer of the original story for Fractale
>Fractale

And into the bin it goes.

i wish people who took anime seriously as some sort of evolving art form would die

it's fucking cartoons that are fun to watch and make money, get your fucking head out of your ass

absolute ideology

Is "your name" that revolutionary? I'm waiting for the BD so I haven't seen the chink leak.

>Both Azuma and Yamakan have commented on Kimi no na wa

It's more of the effect anime tends to have on the audience and it's culture than the anime itself. Though he's also talking about Shin Godzilla

>(Sekai-kei meaning stories where the fate of the world or similar issue hangs on the fate of the main characters' relationship)

That's something new. I always felt that having this factor made me care about and be more interested in the characters' interactions, as well as making them easier to write. On the other hand, when people like Shinkai try to make movies about character drama all I find myself thinking is "Why the fuck should I care about this dumb shit".

If we're truly moving into an era of anime which don't try to hide from the fact that all our lives are meaningless and boring I fear for the innovativeness and creativity of the new generation.

I just watched pic related recently and one of the reasons I liked it so much was because it combined so-called sekai-kei with the fast paced direction and animation studios can do these days. Same reason why anime like CG and TTGL are popular on Sup Forums whereas anime focusing on personal drama and NTR shit get a smaller viewerbase.

I really don't think it'll be. Judging from Shinkai's past record, it'll just be another masturbatory movie where he tries to force his inadequacies onto the viewer.

Professional critics are infected with the old man yelling at clouds syndrome. I am getting up there in age, and find myself doing the same shit.

Anime is entertainment at the end of the day, your post is 100% correct.

>Grew up in the first otaku age
>Started the second otaku age
>May be one of the originators of the third otaku age

IS THERE ANYBODY WHO CAN EVEN POSSIBLY CONTROL OUR BOY ANNO

>Superflat movement
This sounds awesome.

All hail

What Anno are we talking about ?

>Hiroki Azuma

People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.

The """master"""

He's not throwing stones though

Eh, but the industry is visibly evolving. Quite a number of long-running manga ending (including two of the Big 3), lowering BD sales, more exposure to the western market, Cool Japan finally kicking into high gear with 2020 Olympics coming. I'm personally excited.

what?
I can't hear him

>postmodern style

No, thanks.

I didn't actually read the post, I'm just here to pretend to be upset by nothing in order to get replies.

>"""

>Otaku don't have to be your audience anymore. Otaku are OVER

>lowering BD sales
Just because this year was shit for anime doesn't mean BD sales got lower

What the fuck happened, Sup Forums? The ANN forum thread has better discussion.

Then do so on a board that doesn't matter.

One of Fractale's creators.
He was Yamakan's friend.
Hates K-on!.

Boob push-ups?
I didn't know that was a thing.

nice

>>>/ann/

MANIME WINS AGAIN BABY

BOOYAH

Give the guy a break lads. He along with a number of other revolutionary individuals introduced the most important unit of measurement for anime BD/DVD sales.

>I felt that the otaku (geek) era had ended
How can one person be this deluded.

...

You mean a shitty forum likes talking seriously about unimportant and trivial topics?
What a shock.

>gojira in 3DPD
>your name.

>manime

I don't have a reaction face smug enough for this post

There's nothing to discuss. Cultural critics are fucking worthless and should be ignored.

Wait, so this guy hates otaku?? Man fuck that, he got a twitter or something, I'd like to take this ass hole ON!

Fuck off.

Why would you respond to such low quality bait?

>culture critic
He should get a real job.

>some sort of evolving art form would die

Take cinema, music and painting for example, they are all forms of entertainment yet they are all regarded as form of art as well. Just because a media is for entertainment doesn't mean that it can't be art. Actually, it's because it is entertainment that it can become art.

I like it up the ass.

>ann takes this shit seriously and actually believes it might be the end of the otaku age
Yeah right, I'd rather stay here.

what sounds are those tits making?

Personally, I think that a show like Re:Zero would fit that bill.

oops meant to reply to

I bet you suck dick too

...

Are you me?

>special otaku aimlessness and hopelessness
Aren't they all still rather aimless and don't know what they really want?

>Take cinema,
Hollywood is functionally dead.

Sucking feminine dicks isn't gay.

Personally, I think that show's going to get forgotten 6 months after it ends

They're cussing in cute voices.

As expected of the master

That look on his face really pisses me off, for some reason.

I fucking hope so.

He looks like western millennials look.

He has the "I'm full of shit and you cannot debate me" look going on.

Yes I am projecting by the way before anyone calls me out on my shit

looks like shit to be honest

Just one of those alone would be enough to invalidate his opinions entirely. He went for the triple whammy.

Nice projecting.

KinoAni will usher in the next era of anime.

Thanks

>not MadokAni
opinion discAni

I would love for the current Otaku/Geek "culture" to die out. It being more main stream was kind of cool for a while but there is more money making decisions being made than creative ones, it needs balance out again.

I feel anime is already loosing major popularity in the west compared to the last 5 years. I could be wrong though. I am getting more out of touch with what is popular the older I get.

But they stop being entertaining once they stop evolving. There's a limited amount of same-shit you can stand before you get bored of it.

You underestimate my autism.

>Hates K-on!.
He's my enemy now
I woldn't mind if he hated any other moe show, but K-on is sacred.

I wish you and people like you would die right now. You are everything lowbrow and wrong with the industry. The otaku equivalent of a Bayformer fanboy.
Absolutely disgusting.

I am not you, I get entertained by the most inane shit, I will forever have entertainment to look forward to.

How much money did Anno give him again?

First Murakami and now him, this is getting ridiculous, his very comment is the proof that the Otaku culture is far from disappearing, especially when all the big names can't stop from chocking on Anno's dick every time he does something, after more than thirty years.

This repulsive show of deference and self wallowing is precisely the sign of the lowest of the low Otaku, fuck, Murakami himself has no problem realizing this, why can't you Azuma? Why can't you actually do something instead of just talking about it? I see hordes of old guard Otaku praise Anno and to a degree Shinkai for their recent stuff and yet all they do is talk about vague and nebulous ideas regarding movie direction and pretentious philosophical ideas and pop culture reference in the equivalent of b-movies, it's like if someone in the west woke up all of a sudden and began praising movies like Furio as the gift to cinema and visual media.

It's so utterly pathetic only purebred Otaku can fall this low without realizing how ridiculous they sound.

please find meaning in another facet of life and stop trying to make japanese cartoons more than they are

epic troll, lol

They are basically the SJW of the Japanese media industry; self-hating people who wanted to be adored by the masses, especially from the fairer sex and falsely believe that the state of industry is the one stopping that from happening.

To some extent I agree. I don't understand why people tend to seek "art value" of some sorts in anything they like. They also shouldn't always borrow from those that are considered art like movies to seek respect.

Any form of media would be better off evolving in direction that exploits what it can give to its audience in its own way, and yes, even it means overabundance of moe shit.

>VR maturing
>AI getting better by days

You mean the waifu age?

>losing major popularity in the west
good amerifats should stick to their own cartoons

>sekai-kei

I read that as isekai at first.

>(Sekai-kei meaning stories where the fate of the world or similar issue hangs on the fate of the main characters' relationship)

What? Like that Conception game?

I read it as keit-ai

>Hates K-on!
My opinion of him has slighly risen now.

What the fuck is this guy talking about?

>Hates K-on!
this guy is a enlightened one

>isekai wish fulfillment is thriving
>otaku era is over

Sure.

...

Any friend of Yamakan is a friend of mine.

Go back to saving anime, Mr 883.

I don't know but he sounds like a fag

What's a good example of Sekai-kei anime?

Sounds like your typical contrarian f/a/ggot. Into the trash he goes.

I'd guess something like Girl who Leapt through Time or Patema Inverted

battle harems

Iriya no Sora

Yes, you're wrong, because this is just the beginning of yet more increase in popularity. Netflix getting in on this shit and actually trying to introduce it to a more mainstream audience is the best prove of this.

I honestly do believe that Kyoani is leading a new era in anime