Japanese vs. American Animation

[apr118]

I have nothing against the Japanese or American way of animating drawings but for me, I prefer the Japanese's way because they look more "pleasing" in my eyes

[Kamskun]

Ofc Anime Pwns and that goes without saying but the thing is american cartoons have so much nostalgic value and theyre more like preschool education in most cases than not and ofc i have so much memories about some epic cartoons back in the day like swat kats , dexters , PPG etc etc but i think anime is the NEXT level of animated story telling due to its mature plots , vast genres , better characterization to name a few

[Bobotheclown]

Any time they make a decent American animated series with more depth than a puddle, it gets cancelled. The studios seem to like their formulas and stick to them. I just watch anime instead. So does my whole family.

[Takatomoaki]

The first anime that I saw was "MAZINGER Z", and I immediately fall in love with the science fiction animated series. The episodes were quite ripetitive, but the actions gave me happiness and still today I remember this show. The spirit of sacrifice in some episodes reflects the value of fighting inside japanese culture.

American animation mostly is humorous, but in more recent times we find some mature contents. Cartoons like "THE SIMPSON" are not for children

Sadly, I think that japanese animation -in the true meanings- ended in the late '80s

[ragnawind]

The first anime that I saw was "MAZINGER Z", and I immediately fall in love with the science fiction animated series. The episodes were quite ripetitive, but the actions gave me happiness and still today I remember this show. The spirit of sacrifice in some episodes reflects the value of fighting inside japanese culture.

American animation mostly is humorous, but in more recent times we find some mature contents. Cartoons like "THE SIMPSON" are not for children

Sadly, I think that japanese animation -in the true meanings- ended in the late '80s

I wouldn't say true Japanese animation ended in the late 80's. In my opinion, the best ended in the late 90's instead. Some of the newer shows after the new millennium have been good, though, as well.

[Luminate]

I was raise in Canada. I enjoyed both western and Japanese anime but when it come down to it Japanese really takes the lead in Animation.

[Lelouch1199]

9 times outta 10 I prefer Japanese animation but there are some good American animations, Avatar the last airbender was done in berkley California, in the same studio with the guys that do spongebob

[realmzmaster]

Which is better? To me it depends. What are you looking for in your anime or cartoon?

If I want laughs then Family Guy, Simpsons, and American Dad are good. If I am looking for social commentary and laughs I watch the Boondocks. All of these cartoons are not for children.

Many people miss a lot of the cultural references embedded in Family Guy. I am old enough to get a lot of the references and that alone causes me to chuckle.

I like anime because of the continuation of the story/plot. Anime deals with more mature themes.

Saturday and early morning cartoons (throw in child specific channels like Nick and Disney channel also) in U.S. are aimed at a particular age group. This age group helps fuel the buying of product from cereal to action figures. The group does it by bugging parents and relatives to buy the product.

Anime has it age groups also. Most of the mature anime is finding its way to Adult Swim like FMAB, Bleach etc.

Some of the anime from Japan aimed at children such as Pokemon, YUGIOH etc is still butchered to Americanize it and remove objectionable material. Which is why I prefer watching YUGIOH in its subbed or uncut dual audio version.

I still like the early American cartoons such as the Road runner, Bugs Bunny. Tom and Jerry etc. Disney is the (IMHO) still the masters of animation.

I will not forgive Japan for inflicting Speed Racer on America.

[Pan]

just like many of you I was raised watching american cartoons... (powerpuff girls and such? lol) but I believe japanese anime have more deep stories... well I'm not sure but as an asian descendent I like anime better for cultural reasons. I did watch dexter's lab/powerpuff girls/etc but Totoro was my childhood pal!

[Paradox295]

You can't compare them. I'm british so I'm not biased towards either, but if I wanted something with a epic storyline and drama, I'd watch FMA. If I wanted to lol, I'd watch Home Movies. Simples

[griffinheart]

Well, after reading that entire article and all 11 pages of posts, I've decided to put in my opinion as well~

Both Japanese anime and American cartoons have their ups and downs and highs and lows~ I prefer anime to cartoons mainly because anime makes you want to keep watching and not miss anything in the plot. Sure, there are some American cartoons that have a continuous plot line, but they tend to get overly predictable and boring. I'm not saying that anime isn't predictable (which it most certainly is at times), it's just a bit harder to predict~ Lets say there was ominous music and the sound of footsteps in both anime and cartoons. What do you expect in a cartoon? Some villain who will attack~ Anime? A random protagonist who disappeared a long time ago could suddenly appear for the better or worse!

Along with the animes and cartoons that actually have story lines, there are some animes that don't that could be on par with some plot-less cartoons. Comparing Hetalia to the Simpsons, I would have to say that Hetalia wins~ Both are for a mature audience and have crude humor etc., but what's more creative? World history where every country is a crazy human to the highest stereotype or a family of yellow people living a normal crazy life in a world with regular stereotypical people?

And as for American cartoons being fore kids, that's true with most. I say most because there are some shows such as Spongebob Squarepants that hold many hidden messages and themes that many kids wouldn't even notice. Some animes do have 'hidden' meanings, but they're usually just for plot elements and not for a 'real' reason. Yep, in anime the borderline between "good" and "evil" is very slim and it's easy to side with either side. Some cartoons also have a thin line between the two~ Tom and Jerry? Both cat and mouse hurt the other and are both at fault in the overall scheme of things. Spongebob Squarepants? Plankton and Mr. Krabs were friends and probably still are! Plankton isn't necessarily a "bad guy" or "villain"- he's the same as Krabs.

Okay o.o I think I should stop now... oh well for hoping to keep it short xD Sorry for cutting off abruptly... I just though my head was rambling on too long ^-^" I could still go on... and about how most Japanese animes has some Japanese history and themes involved... Imagine American history in cartoons o_o"

Well anyways for my short answer-

Japan ftw <3

[nickash]

well... my opinion on all this is that i most definitely prefer anime, i'm obsessed with it especially the art, story line and the character expressions. My reason for this is simply because it has WAY better graphics, more intense story lines and more realistic expressions of the characters.

[Twitchy8]

I enjoy the japanese cartoons way more, But i take my hat off to the americans for Avatar: The last Airbender although it has very similar artwork to an anime its different enough to be noticed as an american work. Though overall JAPS FTW

[runebandit89]

I would have to go with American animation. Don't get me wrong, I love anime, in fact, I enjoy good anime ( like Cowboy Bebop, or Ergo Proxy or even the really awesome (if you understand the parodies and the subtle humor in it) Excel Saga). However, how can most of you dismiss american animation so easily?

There are alot of good American animated films/series out there that is easily missed by everyone.

I mean, Don Bluth's movies like Titan A.E., Anastasia, All dogs go to heaven, An American Tail.

Then you have Disney who had Beauty and the Beast (the first ever animated film to use 3D animation in it, remember the ballroom dancing scene between Belle and the Beast?) There's the new "Frog Princess" movie, and "Tangled". There's all the Pixar stuff, and the Dreamworks animations (though they, in my opinion, rely too much on pop culture for their humor).

There's also the Iron Giant. Superb script, voice acting and very good animation.

As for TV series, there was Batman: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond, X-Men (the one from the 90s), Wolverine and the X-Men, Justice League, Avatar the Last Airbender (though this one is hugely influenced by Japanese style animation). And dont' forget The Adventures of Johnny Quest (which was really good story wise and clever in their use of 3d animation and 2d animation before such a thing became really popular) and Disney's own Gargoyles.

American Animations do have good scripts, good story, drama, romance, character development, moral complexities, character depth, detail. And technically, American animation is better than japanese animation in some aspects (and vice versa).

As for those who dismiss Family Guy, South Park, Spongebob Squarepants, and Simpsons as stupid cartoons which require no intelligence, these actually require intelligence to understand the humor behind the obvious jokes that they give. I mean, they are parodies and satires of things that go on in American Society.

So, not all American animation are bad, and not all have a targeted demographic of 2-13 year old children.

Besides, you can't really compare Japanese Animation with American Animation. Both have different culture bases, fan bases, techniques, appeals, etc. It's like comparing watermelons with Avocados. They are both really good, but they are really different.

Theres good and bad in both camps, but as a whole, its simple: Japan cares about animation, America doesn't.

How can you say that America does not care about animation? Please back up your statements when you make them.

If America does not care about animations, then how do you explain shows like the new Young Justice, or Justice League. How about Disney. It is clearly an American company. Their animation department is going back to basics good animation and this is evident in the feature film The Princess and the Frog. The fact is that they do care, well, the big animation studios care alot lot more.

And you can't use shows like Chowder, or Spongebob and say "wow, the animations sucks" because it doesn't. The art style is not up to par with anime and it isn't detailed. But in a purely technical viewpoint, they are soundly animated. These type of shows don't have the same visual "bling" like anime because they are intended by the director, the producers, and the Studio execs to look like that to appeal to a certain kind of fanbase, or should we say, demographic, even though it can still be enjoyed by everyone. It is quite clear that American animation studios do care about animations or else, they wouldn't have bothered at all.

And please don't say these shows are just for kids. They are not, they are kid friendly, or done with kids in mind but they can be enjoyed by everyone (in fact, about 80% of the jokes in Spongebob can only be understood by adults since it is satire and parody)

[ARES_XIV]

well according to me i find american animation production the best like pixar and walt disney as they make the animated movies and shows very interesting and no doubt mind catching. so far iv never seen any animation from these producer to fail my interest. but for american shows well theyr OK and doesnt hurt to watch but i find japanese animes better. so technically animated movies hands down to america, shows like animes japan.

[NuLLm3riDiaN]

I think there is just a conflict due to say let's compare Anime with Animation or Japan with X-Your country here.

Different opinions may let you sink into the thought, that a anime is just better than an animation. But what about for example all the great batman series/episodes then?!, X-men, Spiderman, Sesamstrasse, Die Sendung mit der Maus, Das Sandmaennchen.

Some of them are quite essential for the youth, but also watchable for adults - but let's not suggest about that. The American for example just did well with movie Dante's Inferno i think. I don't put myself into the question of liking anime or animation more.

That would be too much offtopic from what we all want - and that is watching whatever we like or not!

[DrumRoll]

be vewwwwy quiet. Its wabbit season.

I prefer eastern anime over western cartoons, but that could easily change if the western animators were a little more daring in what they do.

A:TLA was a western product, and a very good one at that.

[archangel2012]

japanese is the best...no contest

better stories, character development, and it's more mature

american shows are forced to "censor" their shows because the american populace is so obssesed with sheltering our children

then we wonder why our kids are having sex...it's because they think "mommy and daddy say not to do it, so it must be the coolest thing EVER"

I'm not saying we should let kids strait-up watch porn, but they need to learn about it safley

the way the japanese do it almost desensitizes them to the point to where they look at it as just another part of life, that it's nothing special that they should get obsessed with

although, I'm sure they have their own problems with underage pregnancies, but what country doesn't

[visualkeifan1]

If only the west learned how to draw as intricately and beautifully as the east/Japanese do it, I'd have continue watching tv instead of going online and stuff. But there are some classic western artwork that are great, like the old looney tunes. But the modern cartoons are blech.

[lokisminion]

The Japanese animation style has been refined over many years, while American animation has stagnated. Shows like family guy, southpark, Bob's Burgers are making adult themed animation, but the art style is still lacking. If the American public would accept adult animation that wasn't a comedy like the aforementioned then the drawing level would improve to support it. After all you don't really need well drawn characters or scenery for gag story lines but a drama or love story would flop if it was done in a simplistic style like the Simpsons or southpark.