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When did the community stopped being writing-pilled and started animation-maxxing?

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Dec 8, 6:47 AM

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Dec 2024
1111
Man I don't care about the animation it's all in the writing for me. I'd watch an anime from the 60's if it had good plot, I'm plot-maxxing man
Dec 8, 8:35 AM

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Oct 2017
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Reply to ColourWheel
BilboBaggins365 said:
People always had shallow takes on media, the internet just brings more of those people to the fold. Plus I am pretty sure hours long videos on pop culture is a contributor to a loss of attention span...at least a loss from what actually matters in someone's life.


This shit actually reminds me of something I caught while randomly scrolling YouTube on the in-dash touchscreen in my Lexus LS sedan while parked in a downtown parking garage, right after getting out of an appointment. I was just killing time because I didn’t feel like driving during the most chaotic part of rush hour traffic. So I stayed parked for another hour, pulled a Red Bull out of the built-in cooler in the back seat, and grabbed a snack pack of random potato chips kept next to it, then just started watching the 1st random videos that showed up in the search.

This one video in particular caught my attention because it made me laugh my ass off, to the point where I lightly spilled my drink on the sleeve of my blazer and almost had it shoot out of my nose. As the video started wrapping up... narration over clips, screenshots, and some extremely selective examples... it finally showed who had been speaking the whole time.

That’s when it got fucking hilarious for me. The fucking guy looked like a straight-up kid. I mean, he didn’t even look half my age. lol

The way the little fucker was narrating everything made it sound like he personally lived through shit in the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s... even though he probably wasn’t even a shit stain in his daddy's ball sack when "Agent AIka" dropped in Japan. lol

I mean, their take on anime history was not only hilariously shallow, even from a Western perspective, but mostly fucking wrong too... perfect example of the shallow takes you mentioned.

Thankfully I keep a shit ton of Wet-naps in the glove compartment to clean up accidental messes like that in my car. lol

So yeah, hours-long video shit can totally suck up someone's attention, even if the shit is just harmless, exactly like you said. lol
ColourWheel said:

So yeah, hours-long video shit can totally suck up someone's attention, even if the shit is just harmless, exactly like you said. lol
I don't mind listening to them, when I am doing something else like exercise or sketching. I just can't imagine paying attention to some of these insanely long videos on pop culture stuff. It's good for background noise, which I do need sometimes.
Dec 8, 10:14 AM

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Feb 2014
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Reply to plebrepel
@Stanis150
Part of the waste for solo leveling was that it had uncensored guro for once. While it is not a feat of animation that Dandy technically is it is a wasted opportunity to do something grand. The other part is that even though used a lot of cuts it was easy to follow the action. The worst thing about giving animators free reign is what happens over at MAPPA which did not happen in solo leveling.

@thewiru don't be a fruit waving around reports scares away anything of interest that may otherwise get posted and getting a ban on something fickle like that is pathetic. Seeing all the posts of deleted users is lonely.
plebrepel said:
@thewiru don't be a fruit waving around reports scares away anything of interest that may otherwise get posted and getting a ban on something fickle like that is pathetic. Seeing all the posts of deleted users is lonely.

The user in question once kamikaze'd herself into making both of us get a 5-day ban.
Dec 8, 10:17 AM

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Reply to Spast1c
Man I don't care about the animation it's all in the writing for me. I'd watch an anime from the 60's if it had good plot, I'm plot-maxxing man
@Spast1c well, the animation is already good enough, the only reason anyone would watch anime is for the plot anyways.
Dec 8, 10:40 AM

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Feb 2016
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Criticism against writing still exists, the situation you're describing is very specific with the likes of One Punch Man Season 3. Everyone already knows what to expect of something like One Punch Man writing wise, it's not something groundbreaking and it will never be, the true reason people were watching One Punch Man was the amazing fights showcased in Season 1 (and partially some of the good ones in Season 2), when you give people a show that is about fighting, which is known for having great animation, terrible animation, you'll start seeing a LOT of people complaining about the animation, because is the most important thing for these kind of shows, specially considering how well beloved Murata's work is with One Punch Man Manga's art and style. It's basically a show where the animation makes it stand out. S1 set standards that are constantly not being met, of course you'll see al ot of people complaining about it.

It is also quite easier to complain about animation, as it is far more objective than writing (with the exception of those that when they think bad animation, they think of Naruto vs Pain, as it's mostly a case of bad art style than animation, or people getting to know of an animation style they were not expecting or simply don't like)

Also, complaining about writing in 2020s is literally being asked to be swarmed by a bunch of fanboys that will run to defend their show and call you slurs because of it, it is very understandable if you stop seeing people complaining about writing, I, for once, have decided to stop visiting forums regularly to complain about writing, because the only thing I'll get is people trying to tell me that "I don't understand the show". However, that doesn't mean that people won't complain about writing, it's just that defending the sorry ass excuse that is OPM S3 is nearly as futile as trying to argue with a Takopi Fanboy as to why the show is bad, it's simply not worth the effort.

I still have a couple of peers I comment anime about, and we continue to rant about writing, just not on MAL, because this place is not the greatest way to engage in conversation about bad writing in anime.
"We could make the world better, but it's easier to just shut our eyes."
~Blackwall
Dec 8, 10:48 AM

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Feb 2014
5790
Reply to ColourWheel
plebrepel said:
@thewiru don't be a fruit waving around reports scares away anything of interest that may otherwise get posted and getting a ban on something fickle like that is pathetic. Seeing all the posts of deleted users is lonely.


@plebrepel

LMFAO.

Reports should be a private fucking matter anyways. If someone’s butthurt enough to hit the report button, fine... that shit should be between them and the mods. There’s zero fucking reason for anyone to come into a conversation and start swinging that shit around like a laminated hall pass screaming, “I’m telling mommy on you.” lol

Anyways, mods would likely read that kind of behavior as less of a “concern” and more like someone trying to weaponize authority as a vibe check. That’s not fucking protection... it’s social chlorine. You dump it in the pool and suddenly everyone clears out, including the people who were actually swimming in the shit. lol

If someone wants moderation, let moderation happen. Turning reports into a public threat just sterilizes discussion, stacks up deleted user posts, and leaves the thread feeling like an abandoned mall food court at 9:47 PM. lol

Another way to put it... That's not keeping shit clean either... it just turns any thread into looking more like a retarded dyslexic stream of diarrhea than an actual organic conversation. lol
ColourWheel said:
If someone wants moderation, let moderation happen. Turning reports into a public threat just sterilizes discussion, stacks up deleted user posts, and leaves the thread feeling like an abandoned mall food court at 9:47 PM. lol

I don't even block people in most social media I use, so if I'm saying I'm reporting someone, it's because it's serious.
I could just silently report, yes, but I'm being generous because I know how bad losing access to an account is, so I'm giving a third chance to someone who still haven't reformed or repented and who engages in CONSTANT harassment.

I myself would much prefer to be warned that what I'm doing is reportable than being caught by surprise.
Dec 8, 11:08 AM
resident arbiter

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Oct 2015
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There's more emphasis on animation now because animation has improved significantly. Before it used to be only Ufotable stuff that blew me away, nowadays there are many more with feature film level of quality.

It still won't be a deciding factor for my enjoyment though, more like toppings that enhance the flavor that is already present.
Dec 8, 11:31 AM

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Mar 2021
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thewiru said:
ColourWheel said:


@plebrepel

LMFAO.

Reports should be a private fucking matter anyways. If someone’s butthurt enough to hit the report button, fine... that shit should be between them and the mods. There’s zero fucking reason for anyone to come into a conversation and start swinging that shit around like a laminated hall pass screaming, “I’m telling mommy on you.” lol

Anyways, mods would likely read that kind of behavior as less of a “concern” and more like someone trying to weaponize authority as a vibe check. That’s not fucking protection... it’s social chlorine. You dump it in the pool and suddenly everyone clears out, including the people who were actually swimming in the shit. lol

If someone wants moderation, let moderation happen. Turning reports into a public threat just sterilizes discussion, stacks up deleted user posts, and leaves the thread feeling like an abandoned mall food court at 9:47 PM. lol

Another way to put it... That's not keeping shit clean either... it just turns any thread into looking more like a retarded dyslexic stream of diarrhea than an actual organic conversation. lol

I don't even block people in most social media I use, so if I'm saying I'm reporting someone, it's because it's serious.
I could just silently report, yes, but I'm being generous because I know how bad losing access to an account is, so I'm giving a third chance to someone who still haven't reformed or repented and who engages in CONSTANT harassment.

I myself would much prefer to be warned that what I'm doing is reportable than being caught by surprise.


A warning is dumping a private message like taking a nasty shit and saying, "Hey, this shit is crossing the fucking line, chill before it escalates to getting my mommy involved!". lol

What you’re doing is making a public spectacle of it. That’s like walking into a crowded mall, pointing at someone because you "think" they did something wrong and then yelling at them... "stop right there, or I will call the cops on you!", while a security camera films the shit, and then calling yourself generous because technically, you’ve given them a chance to run the fuck away. lol

That is basically the internet equivalent of social hostage-taking... where usually everyone else starts tiptoeing around eggshells, the conversation starts to go stale, and the other user either laughs at the theatrics or quietly shrinks away. Either way, it’s less "generous warning" and more "terrifying mall-cop wannabe". lol


Dec 8, 12:05 PM

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Oct 2016
3069
Those titles happen to be well animated though. I'd guess more people getting into the medium and being spoiled by the "best" visuals the medium had to offer at the time.
Dec 8, 12:44 PM
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thewiru, maybe you just happen to not find them recently? I'm all about watching anime and movies for the writing as much as I am for the visuals, as I'm sure many of us still are. Great animation direction can also complement the story too.

Something as recent as Hibike S3 was bombarded with debate on the writing. It didn't matter how beautiful the show looked from start to finish.
So many people dislike KanoKari not because any of the visuals are lacking, but because the characters are so confusing.

Another thing to note is that the popular Shonen manga genre nowadays isn't (maybe never was) designed to have really well-thought out characters and storylines, especially the long-running ones. You're bound to get plot holes, ret-cons, and inconsistent characters settings for the sake of keeping the momentum of the current arc going and maintaining interest to the young teenage audience. Think of it from a business model perspective. The Shonen genre likely publishes manga with the looks, the action, and the short-term story arcs more than overall consistency and fleshed out character personalities. And their readers are enjoying exactly that. Expecting realistic personalities and purely consistent settings in shonen manga is kind of like expecting a semi-truck to do a 0-60 in ten seconds. It's just not designed for that.

Granted, animation quality has upped its potential over the past several years, with popular anime showcasing sakuga flexes, like Kaguya-sama or Dress Up Darling. So maybe there is a higher standard for animation quality now compared to 2012, 2016, 2018. But people who watch anime for its writing haven't disappeared. I wouldn't be so concerned about the whole discourse shifting wholly to an animation-centric one.
Dec 9, 2:59 AM
Émilia Hoarfrost

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Dec 2015
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I do agree with this thread's idea that the manner anime was analyzed dominating used to be narrative-driven when I started circa 2015 and now in 2025 there has been a surge of animation-aware viewership, however I'd beg to say it may be because some animators are Twitter users and an active following perhaps? Though animation was always criticized. But like in the specialized press perhaps something on print and not online? Whereas the debate has switched for a more virtual platform?

But for me it's a matter of perception and my perception of anime greatly changed after attending college for an undergrad in theater, where some emphasis was put on acting and temporalities in character performances. That and things like the Sakuga Wiki and whatever Tonari Animation did with a YouTube channel to democratize in the English speaking community an awareness of the animation industrial process in Japan, like timesheets or genga entries in the Sakuga Wiki perhaps?



Dec 9, 6:10 AM

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Dec 2024
1111
Reply to DesuMaiden
@Spast1c well, the animation is already good enough, the only reason anyone would watch anime is for the plot anyways.
@DesuMaiden True that. If people care about the animation so much they can go to an art museum to get their fill
Yesterday, 5:48 AM

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Mar 2022
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Reply to ColourWheel
thewiru said:
Back in 2012, 2016, and 2018 I remember there being discussions of people being negative about certain anime I was liking (Sword Art Online, Boku dake ga Inai Machi and Darling in the FranXX respectively).
In those cases, however, all the discourse surrounded things like the writing and plot, and not once I remember hearing a comment about the animation in any of those.

Nowadays it seems to be the opposite: I don't see anyone talking about writing when criticizing something popular, just animation.
I can understand how bad writing can affect somebody's experiences, but I have trouble believing that anyone's experience was REALLY ruined by there not being a puff of dust next to Garou in OPM3.

What caused this change?


“When did the community stop being writing-pilled and start animation-maxxing?”

Probably around the same time people decided shit like food quality should be judged by licking the plate instead of eating the actual fucking meal. lol

Back between 2012 and 2018, arguing about anime was like arguing about how one got the "Clap" last time they had sex... people would talked about shit like burning or pain when taking a piss, sometimes green discharge leaking out of their cock like slime leaking out of a "Garbage Pail kids" ass, or even their testicles fucking swollen to the point they outsized the actual length of their package making them look like they had a tiny dick. You know... instead of actually trying to figure out how they even got the shit to begin with. lol

Now discourse is just people trying to sniffing their cock and seeing how the "Clap" smells for half a second, zooming in on one deformity on their junk that looks slightly darker than the rest of their cock, and then declaring... “This is probably going to ruin the next time I have unprotected casual sex!” lol

Sorry man, if your enjoyment of One Punch Man collapses because Garou didn’t kick up enough imaginary dirt, you weren’t actually watching it for a story... you were loading animation ASMR into your eyeballs and Gooning to motion curves. lol

This isn’t “animation literacy”, it’s screen-cap taxidermy. Someone freezes a single frame, pokes at it like they just found something deeply wrong, where they weren’t even looking for the shit to begin with, and the entire internet nods solemnly as if an autopsy just fucking wrapped up. lol


Primary school level criticism, requires 3 basic fucking things:

  1. Watching the whole fucking show

  2. Remembering shit that actually happened even 3 episodes ago

  3. Explaining shit like motivations, themes, pacing, etc...

(This was shit told to me once by an actual professional who had shit published in multiple magazines in the 80s and 90s, reviewing Western sitcoms, before they retired.)


Brain dead online Animation criticism requires:

  1. Pausing at the worst fucking possible frame

  2. Bitching and whining, “OUTSOURCED!”

  3. Getting 500 likes for bravery clout

Where this shit is the intellectual equivalent of diagnosing a fucking heart failure because someone sneezed funny. lol


Also let’s be fucking real here... writing discourse didn’t ever fucking vanish either... it got mined to bedrock. SAO, Erased, DitF, etc... all had their plots beaten so flat the shit ended up thinner than someone stepping on a steaming pile of dogshit over and over again. There’s nothing left to say except “yeah, the ending still fucking sucked”. lol

So people moved to the fucking animation because it’s new real estate… fresh talking points, zero homework, maximum fucking engagement. A single jpeg now earns more Reddit karma than a full paragraph explaining narrative structure. Because most users wouldn’t even bother reading shit if it’s longer than a sentence. Welcome to the attention span of modern online social engagement. lol

Which is how we probably fucking got here... a community where a show can have coherent themes, solid character arcs, and emotional payoff... but if a fresh pile of animated shit is missing steam oozing out of it, it’s treated like someone took a literal shit in the Blu-ray case of a new seasonal slop release. lol

At that point the shit is not critiquing art. It's just aggressively dry-humping production values and calling it fucking taste. lol

If someone wants to say animation matters, fine... it does. But if animation is the only thing they notice, that's not evolving. They just found a louder, much lazier way, to fart online about shit. lol
@ColourWheel normies getting into anime is so annoying to watch lol. It's completely fine to appreciate beautiful animation, but its like thats the only thing that matters to them now. You rarely hear anything about the actual story of shows anymore, it's all about "SAKUGA!11" moments they can reupload onto their social medias, or do corny 60 FPS AI upscaling videos to. I hate to sound like a hipster (especially since i'm not exactly the most well seasoned anime fan out there.) but I miss when story was the most important thing to people and not how smooth a line on screen moves..
Yesterday, 5:52 AM

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Jul 2016
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Because most popular show depends on animation quality a lot ?
Yesterday, 2:52 PM

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Jul 2013
12877
Reply to Frans001
Because most popular show depends on animation quality a lot ?
@Frans001 and the writing quality doesn't also matter? It does matter, duh.....
Yesterday, 3:52 PM

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Jan 2020
1238
As a romance fan, I'd say the writing is usually more important than the animation. It's okay to have good animation, but that doesn't mean anything if the story and writing sucks ass. Romance anime is all about how it makes you feel and relate to the characters, not to appreciate its spectacles.

I know where all the flak is coming from like in the case of OPM - action anime like that does indeed demand a lot of outstanding animation to deliver, but that's just my assumption.


RaiYouYesterday, 4:19 PM
Yesterday, 10:29 PM

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Feb 2025
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When did the community stopped being writing-pilled and started animation-maxxing?

Sometime after Violet Evergarden (2018) and Demon Slayer (2019) when studios realized people would gobble anything up if it just looked good. Writing probably became a secondary concern
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