Is the Anime Industry on Decline?

Jun 26, 2014 8:42 AM

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Apr 2008

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Before the Great Recession of 2007 that hit the global economy, there was an abundance of anime from various genres. With the industry taking due to weak financial state of the Japanese economy, losing almost 20% of it's entire economic output in the 2008, a stunning realization can be made. Japanese animation studios wary of the tenuous economic conditions aren't investing as much in projects that might not meet the bottom line. Therefore, we're seeing less shows that push boundaries of animation and as a result less award winning manga's and novels being adapted. With that mind, the vast majority of anime shows are being adapted from light novels, which are cheaper to adapt due to their shorter length than mangas. The content of light novels for the most part is a bevy of over the top fan service, incest, harems, school settings and deranged fetishes. What happened to award winning manga being adapted into anime such as Monster and Planetes? They're manga series that are award winning and are considered to be literary works such as Vinland Saga and Pluto, but none of those mangas are being adapted into anime series. In summation, the anime industry is taking short cut to reach profit margins as any business does as oppose to artistic integriy. Unless we see a renaissance in award winning and seinen anime being adapted, because the industry's bottom line is more secure, I'm afraid anime will solely become a hobby for the extreme maligned otaku.

Sorry for the long post, but my question to you fellow club member is has the Anime Industry declined and if so what can the industry to replenish its creative juices?

Jun 27, 2014 1:33 PM

Dunky

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Dec 2007

1042

That was quite the informative post. I knew Japan had gone into a recession recently, but I wasn't sure when exactly it occurred or how severe it was. That would explain why there has been a noticeable decrease in shows with original premises, and an increase in sequels/prequels/remakes/spin-offs. It does feel to me like the anime industry has been on a slight decline in the past 5 or so years. But maybe it's more accurate to say that it has become increasingly more otaku-pandering and now caters to a much narrower target audience.

Though while the creative shows may be fewer in number than they used to be, I do think the industry has enough brilliant minds to never lose its creative juices (they have just been lying dormant for a while). This year, 2014, may mark the beginning of the rise of the anime industry, or at least I hope so. I said the same thing in 2012, a very strong year for anime, but then came 2013...one of the worst years in anime history. I will have to revisit this question in a year and see how I feel then.

Jun 28, 2014 10:28 AM

Aeonic

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Apr 2008

1137

Dunky said:
That was quite the informative post. I knew Japan had gone into a recession recently, but I wasn't sure when exactly it occurred or how severe it was. That would explain why there has been a noticeable decrease in shows with original premises, and an increase in sequels/prequels/remakes/spin-offs. It does feel to me like the anime industry has been on a slight decline in the past 5 or so years. But maybe it's more accurate to say that it has become increasingly more otaku-pandering and now caters to a much narrower target audience.

Though while the creative shows may be fewer in number than they used to be, I do think the industry has enough brilliant minds to never lose its creative juices (they have just been lying dormant for a while). This year, 2014, may mark the beginning of the rise of the anime industry, or at least I hope so. I said the same thing in 2012, a very strong year for anime, but then came 2013...one of the worst years in anime history. I will have to revisit this question in a year and see how I feel then.

The creative minds are waning with the deaths of Satoski kon and the director of Serial experiments Lain. Miyazaki is also retiring after the Kaze tachinu film that came out last year. The creative minds of gainax have also retired or aren't as active as they were decades ago. The only brilliant mind left with a consistent resume is Yuasa Maaki, who took a mediocre sounding premise in Ping pong animation and made it a very good show. Thereafter, Shinichiro watanabe has been inconsistent with the production of Space dandy being an impromptu comedy wihout any direction, plot or point; ill-humoured and vulgar to the say least. Comedy's don't necessarily need a plot, but they need a formula or scheme to deliver the joke where it by in a situational format, stand up or as a parody of other shows.

Most of the titles worth mentioning in 2012 were remakes or retro based shows, there wasn't a lot of neophytes producing animation shows, besides Shinsekai Yori. Jo jo bizarre adventures, Uchuu SenKan Yamato 2199 and Lupin Fujiko were basically remarks from older shows. Although, I thought Psycho pass and Fate zero S2 were decent shows from Gen Urobuchi( I'm not big fan of his works), they still failed to plateau as good shows in their respective premises. Fate Zero was suppose to be an engaging death tournament with vivid fight scenes, but we mostly got Rider and Saber philosophizing about what it means to be a king; not bad, but certainly not the apex of the death tournament premise. Psycho has a premise that could have made it commensurable to masterpieces like Ghost in the Shell, but instead of narrowing it's focus regarding how much liberty should we give up in order to be secure, without relinquishing individual freedom. The focus was more broadened at first on Kogami's back story and then why the main antagonist wanted to bring the system down( he had shallow motivations, instead of honing in why the systematic authoritarian political system is entrenched in the first place. That's my take though.....

For me 2014 has similar vibes with more remakes and sequels of all old shows such Mushishi, Jo jo bizarre adventure, Sailor Moon and a new gundam series in the fall. Although, it's nice to have good titles have sequels, but it's delaying the inevitable by continuing to use stop gap measures to prevent the patient( the anime industry) from dying of blood loss. There's also a few original series that look intriguing such as Parasyte, Sanzoke No Rusume( Hopefully it's not a 5 minute show like you said), Terra Formers( Modern Blue Gender), and Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso. Summer is a wild season as Aldnoah zero could be a train wreck analogous to Valvrave or a solid war drama similar to the original mobile suit gundam with aliens. I don't know what to think about Zankyou terror, unless the reason why they're bombing buildings is excused; maybe they feel disenfranchised or discontent from a repressive society or government?

Jun 28, 2014 1:12 PM

Dunky

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I always forget that most of the noteworthy titles in 2014 thus far are sequels, thank you for reminding me again lol. 2012 on the other hand, while made up of a few great sequels and remakes, still has more noteworthy new titles than any other year in recent memory. Even if you're not a big fan of the storytelling in Fate/Zero and Psycho-Pass, they were at least the type of anime willing to take risks and push the industry forward instead of backward. When you take into account Psycho-Pass, Shinsekai Yori, Kids on the Slope, and JoJo's (which I will consider mostly a new creation due to the old anime being so short and so forgotten) plus the Fate/Zero sequel, Lupin spin-off, and Yamato Remake, 2012 was one hell of a year for anime. Every other year since 2010 has had about half as many noteworthy titles I would say. Actually, sorting through my list by date, it's much more clear to me now that things took a sharp turn for the worse in 2010. 2007, 2008, and 2009 appear to all have been great years for anime.

I forgot about all these great directors the industry has been losing lately, it really is a shame. Satoshi Kon, Miyazaki, and Ryuutarou Nakamura. Plus Mamoru Oshii hasn't directed any major anime since 2008. Somebody surely needs to step up and fill the void. Gainax being inactive won't even be noticed if you ask me. They haven't produced many shows to begin with, and the ones they have produced are usually for a very niche audience. Eh, I'm kind of a Gainax hater, what can I say.

The most consistently good directors that are still active in my opinion are Shinichiro Watanabe, Yuasa Masaaki, Kenji Kamiyama (GITS SAC/2nd GIG, Moribito), and Hiroshi Hamasaki (Texhnolyze, Steins;Gate, Shigurui). Space Dandy may have been slight misstep for Watanabe, but certainly one weak anime isn't enough to change his amazing track record. Most directors have more than one poor anime under their belt after all. There are also a few up and coming directors that seem to gravitate towards working on more creative projects. Hiroshi Nagahama (Mushishi, Detroit Metal City), Kenji Nakamura (Mononoke, Kuuchuu Buranko), and Sayo Yamamoto (Michiko to Hatchin, Lupin III Mine Fujiko). I think the talent is still there, but that they just need to give them the right projects to work on in order for them to shine.

Jun 28, 2014 2:12 PM

Dunky

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Dec 2007

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I forgot also that Space Brothers was a 2012 anime. That was quite a major release based on an award winning manga.

Jun 29, 2014 12:31 AM

cidsa

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Nov 2007

It certainly makes a lot of sense as to why there are many, many "blah" shows out there right now but I'm sure it will recover economically. The anime industry took a big hit before when Japan's economic bubble burst in in '90-91 (the Tokyo Stock Exchange actually crashed) and it eventually recovered. I think it was even more noticeable at the time since there wasn't nearly the output there is now.

The deaths (and retirements) of many skilled members of the industry is a problem that is much harder to fix. With Japan's populace aging and negative birth rate this problem can only continue to increase as well...

Funny you mention the variety of shows prior to 2007; I remember there were numerous series around then that were targeted at Western audiences (Ergo Proxy and Desert Punk come to mind..) Perhaps that is something they need to start doing again? Or at least they should break out of just pandering to hardcore otaku. Sure they will buy your $800 box sets but that's real shortsighted...

Guess we will just have to wait and see what happens. All I can hope is that it doesn't decline like animation has in the West; that would be a crying shame :(

Jun 29, 2014 11:36 AM

Aeonic

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Apr 2008

1137

cidsa said:
It certainly makes a lot of sense as to why there are many, many "blah" shows out there right now but I'm sure it will recover economically. The anime industry took a big hit before when Japan's economic bubble burst in in '90-91 (the Tokyo Stock Exchange actually crashed) and it eventually recovered. I think it was even more noticeable at the time since there wasn't nearly the output there is now.

The deaths (and retirements) of many skilled members of the industry is a problem that is much harder to fix. With Japan's populace aging and negative birth rate this problem can only continue to increase as well...

Funny you mention the variety of shows prior to 2007; I remember there were numerous series around then that were targeted at Western audiences (Ergo Proxy and Desert Punk come to mind..) Perhaps that is something they need to start doing again? Or at least they should break out of just pandering to hardcore otaku. Sure they will buy your $800 box sets but that's real shortsighted...

Guess we will just have to wait and see what happens. All I can hope is that it doesn't decline like animation has in the West; that would be a crying shame :(

Yeah, after the bubble burst in the 90s, the resulting massive meltdown left the anime industry producing garbage ovas and recycling material from previous years. It wasn't only until the year 1995 whereby the anime industry rebounded with a few iconic titles.

I think the problem maybe less about talent, but more about the studios unwillingness to produce them. Look at the breadth of Madhouses resume in producing diverse works and compare that to what madhouse is producing now. Namely, Mahouka, NGNL, and some crappy high school loli show in the summer; it doesn't deserved to be named. It's clear that Madhouse is conforming to studios that produce light novel adaptions with their finances being on bad footing. Madhouse used to be experimental and wasn't afraid to try different shows from various genres and with Madhouse the biggest studio reluctant to experiment, then the end of anime pushing boundaries can't be years behind. The apocalypse occurred in the early 90 and might occur sooner rather than later this decade.

See All Discussions

Poll: » What is your favourite Genre? Aeonic - Jun 14, 2014	2	by Doaj »» Mar 3, 2015 10:41 AM
» Who are your favorite anime directors? Dunky - Jul 17, 2014	8	by Doaj »» Mar 3, 2015 10:31 AM
» The degradation of the anime industry Aeonic - Aug 16, 2014	0	by Aeonic »» Aug 16, 2014 2:46 PM
» Your criteria for judging anime? Dunky - Aug 7, 2014	6	by Aeonic »» Aug 13, 2014 8:13 AM
» Western Cinema companies collaborating with Japanese Companies Aeonic - Jul 18, 2014	0	by Aeonic »» Jul 18, 2014 9:54 AM

Is the Anime Industry on Decline?

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