are dark themes on anime becoming more popular? especially those involving a lot of character deaths or just main character deaths?
| According to the president of MAPPA, it's just that now the popularity of dark fantasy, including edgy dark fantasy shonen, is at its peak, so they are especially investing in adaptations of such manga. |
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| afaik they have always been popular, the only difference is that anime in general for better or for worse have been getting more mainstream. The generation that came from watching basic shows like Demon Slayer have finally stranded away from Shounen and finally got their taste on Fake Seinen (Shows that are still Shounen as fuck but tries to be Seinen, just like Attack on Titan and Oshi no Ko) However, said generation is still not ready for actual mature shows with dark themes like Vinland Saga Season 2 or Perfect Blue for that matter. |
| "We could make the world better, but it's easier to just shut our eyes." ~Blackwall |
| I'm a mystery fan who is used to seeing characters dying so this isn't new to me.. What's new is that they are happening to the main characters and then they are brought back to life in a new world.. it should tell you how a lot of people are sick of living in this current state of the world.. and so anime has picked up on that and giving these people a chance to experience it through anime k.. But revenge plot of oshinoko is nothing new... If you have watched and read mystery Manga like Kindaichi, death of idol and her young son/daughter or brother seeking revenge 15 years later killing those who are responsible until the great detective who lets it all play out before catching him is very old.. The only difference being the supernatural aspect of being reincarnated as a different person but with all the memories of the past life.. So they even did a parody Japanese drama about people reliving life and getting reincarnated over and over again called brush up life... So that's what selling in the anime market |
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| Perhaps, but I prefer cute and fluffy shows instead of dark ones. |
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| Maybe that's why it finally got added to MAL... |
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| It's actually nice to see character can actually die when they do something reckless or taking a fatal blow. It makes me actually care about the character, because next eps they could perish. |
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| It is difficult to say for certain, but it does seem like darker themes and plotlines have become more prevalent in anime over the past few years |
| not, really? as far as i know darker shows have always been super popular. i think its a bit more accurate to say battle shounen shows are getting darker. which in hindsight makes your question make sense, since those are the most popular shows. |
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| yamato and gundam aired in the 70s, this shit ain't new and it was always popular, people wanna see death. |
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| There's a little egelord inside all of us, waiting for those little moments in life where you get validated. AOT is one of them pero~ Tokyo ghoul is another and even better EDIT: deg-dono being naughty today, naisu trolling. |
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| It's nothing new. Dark and edgy themes tend to wander in and out of the mainstream periodically. This time around it's a bit more visible simply because it's the mainstay shounen power fantasy anime that have adopted the trend. The last time darker stuff was popular was back in the 90s and early 2000s. |
| No, 10 years ago there were dark anime being popular, 20 years ago there were dark anime being popular, this isn't something new. |
| Always has been. This thread is stupid. |
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| I miss the good old cold pragmatic point of view of old Seinen. |
| I'd say they are more popular. Because it's been maybe 10 or so years, since the gory/sexual OVA period anime went through, in the 70s and 80s, or maybe 80s and 90s. Back then anime was being experimental and for it's time it was new and exciting. In recent years, in my opinion since "Goblin Slayer", anime has been leaning more towards reliving that faze it was in. Hopefully it lasts, but the novelty will wear off eventually. So all those who aren't fans, don't have to worry to much. |
AdolZeppeli said: Fake Seinen (Shows that are still Shounen as fuck but tries to be Seinen, just like Attack on Titan and Oshi no Ko) What is a "Fake" seinen? Attack On Titan is a shonen published in a shonen magazine. Oshi no Ko is a seinen because it was published in a seinen magazine. What criteria do you use for determining weather a seinen is fake or not? |
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ryo-san said: Japan has barely scratched the surface with its "MC reincarnation in the same world" type thing. Korean and Chinese works have been doing this for years, often with MCs mixing with regressing to their younger selves or possessing other people in stories. Especially in romantic fantasy stories. I'm a mystery fan who is used to seeing characters dying so this isn't new to me.. What's new is that they are happening to the main characters and then they are brought back to life in a new world.. it should tell you how a lot of people are sick of living in this current state of the world.. and so anime has picked up on that and giving these people a chance to experience it through anime k.. But revenge plot of oshinoko is nothing new... If you have watched and read mystery Manga like Kindaichi, death of idol and her young son/daughter or brother seeking revenge 15 years later killing those who are responsible until the great detective who lets it all play out before catching him is very old.. The only difference being the supernatural aspect of being reincarnated as a different person but with all the memories of the past life.. So they even did a parody Japanese drama about people reliving life and getting reincarnated over and over again called brush up life... So that's what selling in the anime market |
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| Not sure, I have the feeling that nowadays there are a lot more romance, comedy and the feel good type of show in general. Modern anime fans love what's cute and wholesome, dark and gritty has always been popular, but in this era I see the increase of the cute side of the industry. |
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| "are dark themes on anime becoming more popular? especially those involving a lot of character deaths or just main character deaths?" It's a direct consequence of authors getting out of ideas - they try to compensate with shock and trauma. |
Catalano said: That were my first thoughts as well. Gundam is still around and every show, that isn't Build, has still a somewhat high bodycount. Not to mention all these super-gory OVAs from the 80s. yamato and gundam aired in the 70s, this shit ain't new and it was always popular, people wanna see death. |
King_KK said: I'm using what'd you call an "urban" definition. If we go by demography only it's very questionable how some shows have the shounen/shoujo/seinen/josei demography tag on them but doesn't have a single trait of it's fellow magazine companions, like, Banana Fish is a Shoujo for example, which I'd consider more a Seinen because when I think of Shoujo, I think of romance, often sugarcoated, and usually with a female mc, or a mahou shoujo for that matter, like CCS or Sailor Moon, Non Non Biyori is also a Seinen, which is the last thing I'd think of being in a Seinen magazine (I love NNB a lot tho, regardless of where it was published)AdolZeppeli said: Fake Seinen (Shows that are still Shounen as fuck but tries to be Seinen, just like Attack on Titan and Oshi no Ko) What is a "Fake" seinen? Attack On Titan is a shonen published in a shonen magazine. Oshi no Ko is a seinen because it was published in a seinen magazine. What criteria do you use for determining weather a seinen is fake or not? Attack on Titan being labeled as "dark", and some people even called it a Seinen after the post basement reveal, but the truth is, it's a very dumbed down show about a main character worse than that of Rent a Girlfriend with a pathetic storyline filled with plotholes and rushed plot devices. Oshi no Ko sure is published in a Seinen magazine, labeled "dark" and "mature" unfortunately it plays it wrong by being absolutely brain dead shock factor, making characters die very stupidly and on top of that the show is literally being as awful as Demon Slayer when it comes to comedy because of how it uses it in the middle of a serious scene, adding comic relief for no reason several times. (second episode is the biggest offender of this) If you're still not convinced, I can always edit the post and change it do "fake dark themes" if you want. |
| "We could make the world better, but it's easier to just shut our eyes." ~Blackwall |
| In terms of character deaths it's always been about the same, dark themes and settings have always been popular, it's pretty hard to point to a time when they haven't been. The example about the first episode of Attack on Titan having character deaths, would also be true about the first episodes of Lupin III part 1 in 1971 and Mazinger Z in 1972. I guess someone already made this same point though, oh well. Edit* Maybe "Gekiga", would be a pretty good point of discussion as far as, the talking point of darker themes and "adult" narratives go. |
KumiveneellaApr 21, 2023 6:38 AM
| This is just old fashion which rise on the surface recently since show like this always become trendy show in every decade especially from mecha and space genre like gundam, macross, logh, evangelion, bebop in 1980s - 1990s include new millineum era after 2000s like code geass, ttgl, guilty crown, darling in the franxx, 86, and so on |
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