What's Anime?
According to my dictionary at home, they define anime as:
N. A style of animation developed in Japan, characterized by stylized colorful art, futuristic settings, violence, and sex.
This definition is probably the closest to what most people outside of Japan depict anime as. But, to those that actually know what it is, the definition is sort of right. Anime is a style of animation that is developed in Japan. However, not all anime has futuristic settings, violence, or sex.
Anime, as a whole, has many different genres that their storylines go under, so some may go into the sci-fi/fantasy genre, another could be a thriller, and yet another could be distributed as hentai. Of course, just like any work of fiction, there are going to be the typical overlapping of genres.
Thus far, anime is generally 2-D. While some is still hand drawn, the animation companies have begun to use computer assisted animation techniques to help install background settings and character movement. Some even integrate CG into the series - this is usually seen in futuristic genres of anime.
In this article, I'm going to go through and talk about the history of anime and some of its characteristics.
History
Anime began at the start of the 20th century. In the Western world, animation techniques were already being explored, and thus Japanese filmmakers wanted to give it a try. Though the West had established a successful movie-making business, Japanese filmmakers had it harder. With the lack of Western looking actors, they couldn't make believable movies based in Germany, England, France, etc. With anime, they found that they could create any type of character and locate them into any setting that they wished.
The first widely popular anime series was Astro Boy, based on the manga by Osamu Tezuka, in 1963. Most accept this as the "first" anime series, even though filmmakers had already experimented with animation earlier. During the 1970's, anime seperated itself from its Western roots, and began developing unique genres, such as the mecha (a genre, usually futuristic, involving large robots, such as that depicted in the Gundam series). This period saw the successes of Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away) and Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell movies).
By the 1980's, anime was accepted in mainstream Japan. During this time, it experienced a boom of production. Such works as Gundam began and Rumiko Takahashi's (InuYasha) career started and flourished during this decade.
During the 1990's and into the 2000's, anime has experienced a boom outside of Japan due to the internet. Before when people wanted anime, they'd have to wait for the post office to send it or to spread the news over the phone. With the internet, information on various anime has spread quicker and more efficiently than previous methods. With the aid of websites, fansubs, and places such as YouTube, people can watch anime whenever they want.
Even without the internet, anime has experienced a surge in the US. With the debut of Toonami in 1997, many viewers experienced quality anime for the first time. Such shows included popular series such as Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z, and Gundam Wing; and even the series that some may have never heard or experienced, such as Tenchi Muyo! and Outlaw Star. With the surge in Pokemon and Dragon Ball Z in 1999, anime began to slowly become more mainstream. With this in mind, the WB brought CardCaptors, a magical girl show that was different from other anime that's been shown in America since then. Around this time, AdultSwim made its debut with Action Saturdays, airing shows that were more mature and uncensored. For the first time, people experienced InuYasha, Cowboy Bebop, Yu-Yu Hakusho, Pilot Candidate, Big O, and Reign. Since then, anime has become more and more mainstream in America. The manga section in bookstores, at first hidden away and tiny, has become larger and more in front. The Anime Network debuted in 2004, furthur distributing anime, and FUNimation has also recently come out with their own network for anime. With the popularity of these channels, they have already confirmed that they will be distributing their channels in Canda soon.
Anime has come a long way since the start of the 20th century, and the growth and popularity of it will make it stay for years to come.
Characteristics
Not all anime follows the same artistic styles. There is quite a bit of difference in style between Ghost in the Shell, InuYasha, and Fruits Basket. Even CLAMP uses different styles for each of their manga, but some artists, like Rumiko Takahashi, tend to use the same style for each of their works. Though there are different styles particular to each anime, artist, and studio, there are some stylistic elements that are common and have become known to be "anime".
The most common feature in anime is the large eyes. Because anime was influenced by western animation, they have taken the exaggerated features from such cartoon characters as Mickey Mouse or Betty Boop. Before, Mickey Mouse had "pie" eyes, a feature that was used in earlier works of anime. Legendary mangaka and animator, Osamu Tezuka, greatly admired Disney's works and found that large eyes allowed his characters to show emotions distinctly. Tezuka also began using the chibi, or super deformed, style - a characteristic that features huge eyes, an enlarged head, and a tiny body.
Some anime also feature other characteristics that's usually seen only in anime. Some of the expressions used, mostly in comedic anime, will often be overly exaggerated. Angry characters may show a "vein" or "stressmark" on their forhead. Embarrassed character will produce a large sweat-drop, the most widely recognized stereotype motifs of anime. Other features include angry women producing a large mallet or paper fan from nowhere to strike someone with it and some men will develop bloody noses when they are aroused.
