The Frustrating Views on Anime - Why Cowboy Bebop is Awesome

I'm not going to pretend that I don't know why anime gets such a bad reputation from some people in the United States. I'm not going to pretend that I don't notice the perverted fan boys who spam the boards with unadulterated glee on MAL (MyAnimeList.com) whenever their favorite female character bends over. Anime seems to fall under the "you watch that?" category when brought up to people. I also can't pretend to act like I can't relate to those people because when I see things like the incestual vampire twins from Black Lagoon I simply say "yea...thats why people don't like anime." Of course, those twins are just one of many reasons why anime sometimes gets such a bad rep in the states. I understand that anime can be nonsensical, with over the top storylines and characters with unrealistic amounts of hair. I just believe that there are some misconceptions about anime and it's fandom.

Let the debauchery commence...

So what kind of misconceptions am I talking about here? I suppose the best place to start is with harem anime. Ok...so if you couldn't tell by the picture a harem anime is this...basically we've got one guy...and a cavalcade of females who all want him. This leads to catfights and fanservice galore. Meanwhile the male lead remains either aloof to all that is going on around him or is portrayed as a lecherous sex fiend. All in all it lends itself to the misconception that most anime revolves around fanservice featuring big eyed girls dressed in ridiculously revealing clothing. Meanwhile, this leads people to think that anime fans are nerds who sit in their mother's basement lusting over said animated girls. It just seems like people think that because you're an anime fan (or otaku, whichever you prefer)...you're like...this guy...

Or this guy...

It's a bit of a stretch to say that everyone thinks this about every anime fan, but the fact that when I flip through the blogs on MAL even on animes that aren't even harems I seem to find the same kind of stuff. It seems rare that contrary evidence that not every otaku is like this is found. Even a serious anime such as Code Geass, which features a well done plot and excellent character development, can fall into this fanservice trap. Naturally, I go to MAL boards to go discuss themes and what I like about each episode, connecting plot points and at least trying to have an intelligent conversation. The anime I'm currently watching, Steins Gate, doesn't help either since the main cast features two male main characters who are surrounded by 4-5 beautiful female main characters. So when I go to the MAL boards to discuss the how good the plot and series are, all I get are the typical MAL freaks going "that was sooooo cuuuute when Makise and Kyouma almost kissed on the bridge...THIS EPISODE NEEDS MORE MOEKA, that outfit makes her soooo cyyuuuutte" (keep in mind these are males saying this...) Which is really a shame because both Code Geass and Steins Gate are animes that feature female characters who are all more than something just to look at (with a few exceptions...) and it feels almost insulting to their well written characters to ogle them in such a way. It's fans like this that give the fans who are watching for other reasons than to get themselves off a bad name. Not only that but like I said before these otaku's give off the impression that anime is little Japanese schoolgirls with unrealistically huge breasts having competitions as to who can be the biggest ditz. There are some really great works out there that extremely well done and it seems like this misconception is doing them a disservice. Seriously, go check out Steins Gate if you want an epic and gripping story involving some pretty cool theories on time travel. Check out Neon Genesis Evangelion if you want a story that makes you really think introspectively. Those are just two of the many animes out there that have loads and loads of substance. 

Sure, it looks like a harem but theres so much more here...

But it's not just these lecherous otakus that help cement these misconceptions. There seems to be this belief in the United States that anime is meant for kids. That being said, it's not as if theres no precedent for such a belief to have taken hold. In the early 2000's my generation was treated to Pokemon, Digimon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Sailor Moon, Cardcaptors, among other animes. As Americans we associate anime as being childish because we watched anime as children and thus believe it to be childish. However, in Japan these shows are hardly childish. For example, the Yu-Gi-Oh! that aired in Japan was actually super dark. The anime was filled with several references to the occult, people actually died on screen, and many of the characters were downright scary. 4Kids Entertainment owned the rights to the english dubs of Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh! and as a result all "inappropriate" material was filtered out. This led to such campy things like guards pointing invisible guns at people, verbal acrobatics to avoid saying words that imply death, and in Yu-Gi-Oh!''s case the invention of the term "Shadow Realm" as a replacement for hell. Many of these shows, which in Japan were aimed at mature audiences were "kiddie-fied" when they debuted in the states, with the possible exception of Pokemon (worst Pokemon ever had was guns and an episode that hospitalized over 100 Japanese children because it gave them seizures) The third season of Digimon featured a 12 year old girl get mind raped (Fridge Horror when you find out that in Japan her character was 10 years old...like 12 is really that much better) All of these shows featured mature content that was way over the heads of the audience that folks in the west were targeting. The key themes of the shows (good triumphing over evil, the values of friendship) could be kept intact while the mature themes could be filtered out. Didn't stop Digimon Tamers from being any less scary (see below).

Yeah...totally was not scarred for life after this...

So whats the overarching point that I'm trying to get across here? There seems to be this misconception that anime is meant for kids and lecherous nymphomaniacs who live in their mother's basements. Both of these claims are justified on many levels but it also must be said that anime can be enjoyed by anyone really. The best proof is Cowboy Bebop, an anime that debuted in the late 1990's and is considered the first anime that was made with a western audience in mind. The show was about a group of bounty hunters and their adventures in space. To appeal to a western audience it alluded to several genres of western cinema such as cowboy westerns, pulp detective stories, and film noir. The show always had a sense of lawlessness about it and it's main character, Spike Spiegel glided through it with a sense of cool that was unmatched. 

Bebop has always struck me as the one anime that I could show anyone and they'd fall in love with it. Theres no harems to speak of, the fanservice, while present, is not a focus, and the series was clearly meant for an older audience. Bebop even flipped the script when it came to storytelling. Each episode's plot is self contained, each story and episode crafted beautifully. Think of it as 26 animated shorts, each telling it's own story and yet all still managing to flow together almost seamlessly. Despite taking place in the future, the show had a realistic feel as did the characters. Take a look...

Seriously, this scene stacks up to pretty much any other live-action film I've ever seen. It just feels so real; you could close your eyes and it would sound like real people are talking. Cowboy Bebop had an english dub that was so good that almost 15 years after it's release it still remains the gold standard. It featured stars like Steve Blum and Wendee Lee, who are now two of the most recognizable names in voice acting today. But most importantly it has an appeal that reaches far beyond kids or otaku's. These are characters that feel real, they don't fall into the typical anime stereotypes that a lot of anime nowadays has. If anything, Cowboy Bebop set a standard that every anime today has tried to reach. All in all, Cowboy Bebop is an anime that anyone can enjoy. It's not the only one either, it's merely one example of an how an anime can accessible to anyone really as long as they have an open mind. 

So thats it, I'm not sure how much I really altered anyone's perception of anime or it's following today. I just hope I could clear up some misconceptions anyone had about us otaku's as a following. Sure, theres a large contingent among us that strikes many as strange but isn't that just like any following? I'm not going to come out and make grand claim that anime is for everyone, all I'm saying is that anyone can enjoy anime as long as they go into it with an open mind. It's such a big world to explore and I'd hate to see people who have the potential to enjoy it just get scared off by any misconception. We otakus (the majority of us anyway) are just like any cinephile or a connoisseur of TV shows. We enjoy good plots and interesting characters, we just want to see something that will stimulate us upstairs. Ignore the guys that watch to get stimulated downstairs and theres a lot to enjoy here.