The state of the fantasy genre in anime in the 2010s/20s

Do you want to see more detailed worldbuilidng in fantasy anime?

Mar 18, 2023 4:24 PM

Offline

Oct 2020

543

This is purely about world building and writing. Animation isn’t what I’m talking about. I’ve already tried defending the animation and it didn’t really convince that many.

I’ve noticed that this (and Kaina of the great snow sea) is a pretty rare thing to see these days. I feel like the Fantasy genre, when it comes to anime, has been in a bit of a stale and boring routine. It’s not really had any stories that have good world building at all. It’s the most standard shit imaginable. I have to wonder if some of these writers even like fantasy at all. I’m not saying the other fantasy series in anime in the last 13 years haven’t got good writing, some of them do, but they’re really lacking with world building. Rezero, again, being a good example of this.

The Fire Hunter/Hikari no Ou has been a treat for a world building fan like me, the world building isn’t even anything that complex, but it’s enough for me to say that the author of the novels put a lot of thought into it. Same with Kaina, as I mentioned before.

What I am wondering is if we’re heading in the right direction with this series. Will we get more fantasy series with good world building? Or will it be generic isekai and cliche fantasy hell for the rest of time. Is this just a one time thing? I hope not.

This lack of world building really only started to become a big problem in the 2010s. Will we see some changes to that this decade?

Sorry if this sounds a bit joyless, I’m just passionate about word building in fantasy.

There’s a poll that I hope people will answer.

Mar 19, 2023 2:44 AM

Luthandorius

Offline

Dec 2015

3202

There is world building in other anime as well. Just depends on where the focus is - one might give details about the world as side information while focusing on a main plot and other stuff. (Since big info dumps get the viewer bored.)

For Kaina it already feels like the plot is getting boring. A lot worse than Hikari no Ou. (Must because it is an original work while Hikari no Ou afaik is based on novels.) In anime it is not too unuusal to have weird turns in the plot near the end. And the authors trying for "too much" ... bringing out new enemies, gods or super sci-fi hidden weapons that have not really been hinted at before. And when it comes to adaptions with a huge world and lots of explanations ... it needs a good studio to adapt not exactly linear according to the source. (Then it might get boring info dumps and lengthy scenes in the anime.) Studios need to not be afraid to change stuff: Keeping the things similar and not making changes to the plot/setting but mainly to the author and pacing and the times when info is given.

(Like ... adding a flashback later or giving it earlier. And spending less or more time than the source used.)
We also need as much world as is needed for the plot. I do not have a problem if there is a big continend and the details are only explained for the area the anime is set in. If the anime is about trading and/or adventuring - then more info if course is needed. (If people travel through a lot of places.)

The isekai problem usually - imo - is becaues of the main chars (self-insert main that is overpowered) and the rpg-like additions they force into it. For "that type of fanbase".
Though in the recent one from MAPPA ... I like it. Cause it is about cooking and more leisurely travelling around + also showing something of the world. (While they have a ton of rpg elements - stats screen and stuff - and not really explaining some major things about the world.)

Mar 19, 2023 6:48 AM

DonniedaCultured

Offline

May 2021

220

EmmyMoomin said:
This is purely about world building and writing. Animation isn’t what I’m talking about. I’ve already tried defending the animation and it didn’t really convince that many.

I’ve noticed that this (and Kaina of the great snow sea) is a pretty rare thing to see these days. I feel like the Fantasy genre, when it comes to anime, has been in a bit of a stale and boring routine. It’s not really had any stories that have good world building at all. It’s the most standard shit imaginable. I have to wonder if some of these writers even like fantasy at all. I’m not saying the other fantasy series in anime in the last 13 years haven’t got good writing, some of them do, but they’re really lacking with world building. Rezero, again, being a good example of this.

The Fire Hunter/Hikari no Ou has been a treat for a world building fan like me, the world building isn’t even anything that complex, but it’s enough for me to say that the author of the novels put a lot of thought into it. Same with Kaina, as I mentioned before.

What I am wondering is if we’re heading in the right direction with this series. Will we get more fantasy series with good world building? Or will it be generic isekai and cliche fantasy hell for the rest of time. Is this just a one time thing? I hope not.

This lack of world building really only started to become a big problem in the 2010s. Will we see some changes to that this decade?

Sorry if this sounds a bit joyless, I’m just passionate about word building in fantasy.

There’s a poll that I hope people will answer.

re zero has very good world building, its a bit standard in some aspects but it's very well done in my opinion. you have 3 different types if magic systems. the first being the standard magic with the classic elemental aspects, the second being divine protections and the third being spirit arts. a fourth wild card is then introduced in the form of witch factors. these systems create a variety of action sequences and make the matchups in fights interesting. there is deep history that plays comes into play later in the story, with the witch nearly destroying the world, the frozen forest of elior, the other witches who died from said witch, pandora the witch of vanity, flugel, the other sin arch bishops, the seal, the dragon all of it is involved with each other and creates a mysterious yet rich past in the world of re zero that we see play importance to the current story as all well developed world histories should do. next you got the locations, the capital of lagunica, roswalls mansion, the sanctuary, the watergate city of pristella, the pleiades watch tower, the empire, i understand not all of these have been shwon in the anime yet but they are each unique locations with their own historys and importance to the story. at the end of the day i agree that many fantasy stories are generic with their world building but re zero is not one of those stories. fantasy currently also has worlds like made in abyss, mushoku tensei and this show the fire hunter all with cool deep worlds. i do agree that i want to see more of these however because who wouldn't want deep well developed worlds in their story?

Mar 19, 2023 11:06 AM

UltimateKai

Offline

Oct 2020

715

I always found actual fantasy based on the fantasy world works way better but authors are too lazy or dumb to write that. The ones that do either get a lucky popularity spike that helps more seasons come out and gives the time to develop the world or in other cases, the industry just straight up stops making seasons so we never get the time to see actual world building and great development which leads back to the author industry pressure of writing whatever they can to atleast stand for one season where they get their money and fan service and gtfo. That’s why the majority of fantasy genre is clowned on The industry had choices and went to fund the trashy isekai and more generic route where every fantasy world is essentially interchangeable (obviously not the well written one but 95% of isekai are trash) instead of actual high fantasy with good worldbuilding or even isekai high fantasy with good world building.

Like logically Anime should be the medium for concepts like GOT (a high fantasy epic with many characters setting and action ONLY BASED IN FANTASY with worldbuilding and the scale of it) and there are plenty of manga at the same scale. This could cause anime to
completely blow up but nah we fund vending machine isekai and endless harem bs instead of looking to actual well written plot.

Mar 19, 2023 1:39 PM

HaarWyvern

Offline

Mar 2012

756

Yep totally, nowadays fantasy animes does have atrocious world building.
If you compare an Isekai from 2002 like Juuni Kokuki to more recent ones they're not at the same level, not even the same universe.

But it also because interests have change, now it's more about waifus and overpowered (or underpowered who will grow) main characters. We have now to try other mediums to find something similar than more old school fantasy animes.
I'm currently reading fantasy books because I miss goog worldbuilding and I know I can't find it on modern animangas. Or you have to test some manhuas about old chinese culture to find it.

Mar 19, 2023 10:20 PM

WeeabooFish

Offline

Apr 2013

I wouldn't say world building in fantasy got worse. Since its such a big trend to adapt Narou novels atm we just get a lot more fantasy than before, some good many mediocre. Shows like mushoku tensei, ascendance of a bookworm, made in abyss, and ranking of kings to name a few recent shows. It's easy to look back at older shows with rose tinted glasses but for every amazing show from the 90s and 2000s there was tons of stinkers that nobody remembers or cares about and in 10 or 20 years people will have the same conversations about how much better anime was in the 2010's compared to now.

Apr 13, 2023 12:21 PM

Neostorm-X

Offline

Oct 2015

1164

The fact that lots of people on this site like re:shit is enough for me to not take most anime scores seriously,

However i do take obscure manga scores seriously since they have a smaller readership and those that read them are usually not the mainstream audience

Apr 13, 2023 12:28 PM

Neostorm-X

Offline

Oct 2015

1164

This is also why i almost completely ignore every fantasy series or isekai, its literally not worth watching 99% i can literally make a fantasy bingo and almost every anime will follow it.

Nowdays i almost exclusively read and watch sci fi or post apocalyptic series. Sci fi takes a lot more skill to write, and this is excluding mecha, mecha has the same problem as isekai where they all copy each other and nothing new. The only mecha ive seen that does things differently is probably like sidonia no kishi all the other mechas just look and playout exactly the same.
I wish we get more sci fi like outlaw star, space dandy or kanata no astra, even stuff like agravity boys, sci fi without mecha etc .

The easiest way to know for me if to instantly drop the anime these days, is when they dont even consider basic things like “language barrier”, i used to also take in account stuff like architecture or transportation but those are forgotten by practically every isekai author nowdays.

Like for example if your retarded protagonist, walks out of a gas station and goes to the new world in the most stupidest fashion and some how everyone instantly understands you and somehow the author couldnt even be bothered to do something like “ OH BTW I HAVE THE POWER TO UNDERSTAND ALL LANGUAGES THANKS TO THE GOD/REINCARNATION POWERS OF THIS WORLD”
Bad writers completely forget what language barriers are, since they dont even know what world building is

Apr 1, 4:33 AM

0063873192871

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Feb 2024

This is just generic slop coated in a nice art style. The premise of becoming weak to fire is plain nonsensical and stupid. I also wonder why the fuck are the women so ugly in here. In any case, if you were drawn by one aspect or another of this, give Kuutei Dragons a try. OP mentioned Kaina, which does indeed feel similar to this show. That said, it is also bad (weirdly so considering the great record of Tsutomu Nihei CGI anime adaptations), and I feel like Kuutei Dragons also resembles it.

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The state of the fantasy genre in anime in the 2010s/20s

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