I don’t really make new year’s resolutions, I just pick up things as they come along. I do really like the general idea though. There’s something commendable about a society choosing to make self-improvement into a celebrated tradition. It’s sweet if a little silly. I mean you don’t have to wait until January 1st… What if you decide you want to get in shape in March?
But you know, whatever the reason for you wanting to improve yourself or kick a bad habit, in the end, as long as it works for you, that’s all that matters. I am almost perfect in every way already, so improvement is challenging. I’m sure many of you are familiar with this problem. I share your pain. However, if I look real hard and stretch really really thin, I guess I have picked up certain attitudes towards anime that could be considered less than optimal in certain circumstances if you don’t know all the details.
I bring you the my top 5 tiny things I could improve as an anime fan.
5. Realize that genre is meaningless
I should really know this already. I’ve written about it enough…yet, like a lot of people, I still find myself taking a look at the cover, a glance at the synopsis and randomly categorising a series in my mind which will then help me decide if I want to watch it or not. Don’t get me wrong, you need to decide somehow, you can’t watch everything. Going by genre is a good way to go, just not for me. I have a horrible track record with that method.
For instance, I really enjoyed the three shows I did episode reviews for last season. I would have skipped them all based on genre. Tsurune looked like a pretty boy drama hiding behind a sports premise. I did not care much for Free! But Tsurune’s slow calm atmosphere won me over. Zombieland was a cgdct offering and I was a bit burned out on those. Turned into my favorite by far. As for Dakaichi, a romance with a lazy gimmick should have annoyed me to no end. It’s sweet though. In 2019, I’m going to try to base my watchlist decisions on something more substantial. Like how attractive the main character is!
4. Appreciate the business of Anime
I do look into what studios produced my favorite shows, but not much beyond that. I pay little to no attention to the others. I also have no clue when it comes to anime market trends or corporate investments in series. If I’m lucky a kind reader tells me about it. Yet these are the outside forces that shape my favorite medium. And it’s pretty interesting on top of that.
I find myself constantly baffled by (do not finish that sentence in your head) new anime tropes or shifting show popularity. I honestly enjoy trying to predict what I can expect from season to season. This would be the basic information I need. I’ve been blaming it on most sources being in Japanese but that’s cop out. I’m just lazy. I should be less lazy.
3. Learn more about the techniques
Personally, I have always enjoyed practical considerations. I can appreciate a piece of music that’s played with great precision and little feeling, for instance. Well crafted things bring me comfort. That’s why I try to mention production aspects of anime whenever anything at all strikes me about a show. But to truly appreciate all the effort and details it takes to create even a modest anime, I need to truly understand the inner workings or at least know about them. (I like how I instantly scaled back there!)
I once again have decided to pay special attention to production features and try to give them their proper place in the whole. Maybe I’ll learn a bit about video editing and that will help me out as well!
2. Stop reacting as if shows are my friends
It’s no secret that I form some type of emotional entanglement with the series I love. I think we all do. But on occasion, it’s been less than ideal. I have generally little issue with what other people love or hate and how loudly they do so. You do you boo. I also have fairly thick skin when it comes to criticism being directed at me or this blog. However, I feel strangely compelled to defend shows I love. Not all shows mind you, just certain ones. The ones that get the most undeserved flack in my opinion. And it goes to the point that I can get a little bummed out when everyone starts dumping on a series I loved. This does not seem like the most productive use of the few feelings I have.
I’m going to really try to remember that tastes are subjective and if that little Anime got an English release at all, it means someone out there liked it enough to invest. It’s not necessary that I mama bear shows. In fact it’s useless. If someone has already seen the series, what could anything I say change and would I even want that? The world would be super boring if we were all the same.
1. Share my hobby a bit more
You know how I whine all the time that I have no one in my daily life to chat about Anime with? Well to be completely honest, I don’t exactly go out of my way to do so. Whenever my friends take an interest and ask me about it, I sort of stay dismissive and vague. I feel like they’re just being polite and I don’t need to be humoured. But why???
I love anime. I think there’s a lot of interest there. It should follow that other people, especially my friends who are on some level similar to me, would think so as well. I tried so hard not to be that annoying guy who imposes their tastes on everyone else that I erred to far in the other direction! From now on. I’m letting my Otaku flag fly high!
Hmmmm…what do you think guys? Would these make me *too* perfect. Cause that could be a problem. Maybe I should play it safe and only do one to zero of these…
How about you guys? Any plans on becoming even awesomer this year? Is the world even ready for that? Lemme know!
