The underused anime debate....

OtakuOutpost · Post by **OtakuOutpost** » Wed Sep 08, 2004 6:48 pm

Time and time again these forums are graced with similar topics of debate. One of the most common is the overuse of anime or music.

I'd like to spin that debate a bit into an area that I've never seen it taken...

Generally speaking the "overused" anime complained about are DBZ, EVA, Trigun, Cowboy Bebop, etc...

But there's a common theme to this... all are action anime's. I think the real issue is not the overuse of these anime's but instead the proliferation of the action genre of music videos.

The action genre is so limiting. The objective is to make a video look cool by blowing sh*t up or killing people timed with music. Now... how many anime's fit that genre and are widely popular to people who watch anime and think to themselves "Wow.... what a bad ass explosion!" or "That was so cool!" when someone's head is chopped off and blood squirts everywhere? Look at the list of overused anime.

AMV contents typically are segmented into 3 to 4 categories. Almost all have some form of Action, Drama, and Comedy category, implying the extremely limited concept of an Action video comprises 25 to 33% of all videos made.

The same can be said for Comedy - certain animes lend themselves more to slapstick humor which makes them ripe for using and overusing (like Goldenboy). On the other hand, the Comedy concept can also be done in subtle implication, whit, parody, and about 5000 other ways.

So overuse/underuse comes down more to limited imagination in concept combined with wide popularity of particular animes.

Ever notice that most of the overused AMV animes are widely televised series? Exposure is also an issue.

So rather than talk about which anime is overused and which isn't, it would be nice if the topic turned to what's proliferating the spread of such videos.

Agree? Disagree? Add to? Rebuke?

Beowulf · Post by **Beowulf** » Wed Sep 08, 2004 7:20 pm

The action genre is so limiting. The objective is to make a video look cool by blowing sh*t up or killing people timed with music. Now... how many anime's fit that genre and are widely popular to people who watch anime and think to themselves "Wow.... what a bad ass explosion!" or "That was so cool!" when someone's head is chopped off and blood squirts everywhere? Look at the list of overused anime.

You've never made an action video so you really have no idea what your talking about. What you are describing is a bad action video. A good action video tells a story. Take a look at Fluxmeister's entire catalog. I'm not going to bother trying to justify my point any further as your post is quite ridiculous.

I will add that the worst action video is lesser a crime against humanity than the worst drama video. Action videos generally don't try to maniuplate the viewers emotions as their primary way of entertainment.

OtakuOutpost · Post by **OtakuOutpost** » Wed Sep 08, 2004 7:33 pm

I have made action videos but none are published here.

In my opinion, the best action videos don't tell a story so to speak, but rather focus on a topic from the anime they are from and typically highlight a lesser character - more of a character profile video much in the way a drama video works.

I however was making generalizations, and the vast and overwhelming majority of action videos are limited to well timed explosions/killings/effects to some heavy metal music. That's not to say that some people have taken it to creative lengths, but that typically means moving the action video into a more dramatic posture.

Fluxmeister is a great example. Souls of Rage and Sorrow (as an example) is a great action video - but it's actually great for it's dramatic qualities.

You almost contradict yourself by saying that a video that manipulates the viewers emotions is less a crime against humanity than an action video, since the best action videos are the ones that draw on emotion rather than just blowing sh*t up.

OtakuOutpost · Post by **OtakuOutpost** » Wed Sep 08, 2004 7:35 pm

*edit*
Sorry... More of a crime against humanity.

Where's my edit button?
*/edit*

godix · Post by **godix** » Wed Sep 08, 2004 8:33 pm

Beowulf wrote:What you are describing is a bad action video. A good action video tells a story.

x2. Any action video that requires me to have seen the series in order to even have a clue why those people are fighting sucks. Most songs have a prelude. People need to start using it to setup the video.

devilmaykickass · Post by **devilmaykickass** » Thu Sep 09, 2004 2:19 pm

Beowulf wrote:A good action video tells a story.

Errr...I thought those were drama videos. O_o

SSJVegita0609 · Post by **SSJVegita0609** » Thu Sep 09, 2004 2:32 pm

See people? This is why every one of my vids is action/drama.

Bote · Post by **Bote** » Thu Sep 09, 2004 2:44 pm

devilmaykickass wrote:
Beowulf wrote:A good action video tells a story.
Errr...I thought those were drama videos. O_o

It's not drama if it doesn't have emotion and there are emotionless videos, believe me.

SnhKnives · Post by **SnhKnives** » Thu Sep 09, 2004 4:34 pm

SSJVegita0609 wrote:See people? This is why every one of my vids is action/drama.

or total/suck

OH BURN!!

*hides*

badmartialarts · Post by **badmartialarts** » Thu Sep 09, 2004 4:54 pm

I think another aspect of the proliferation of action videos is their ease of production and ease of viewing. By this, I'm not trying to belittle the creators of fine action videos, because heck, I'm not a solid action vieo creator. But timing beats just seems on it's face to be easier than trying to build moods or generate comedy. Also, look at it from the point of view of the viewer. It's far easier to see that each beat is synced well with something than to see what moods the creator was trying to convey, or whatever joke the creator was convinced was hilarious but just leaves you scratching your head. An excellent action video can do more than sync beats, but the mere act of making something happen to every one of those beats is still usually enough to impress me as a viewer, though as I've learned how to edit that impression has diminished a bit....