Anime is a global phenomenon. That’s why it’s very hard for me to believe that there are teenagers or young adults that refuse to watch anime because of reasons such as it is for children, it is childish, it is just cartoons and it’s not real or they think it’s just a waste of time. I seriously think that these are people that are missing out on a big portion of their life.
If by chance you are skeptical about watching anime, I am here to convince you because, I swear, it will change your life, just like how it did with mine (I’m just helping a fellow human out.)
1. Well-written storyline
Are you tired of watching the same storyline over and over again? Or are you the type that is constantly on search for something new and refreshing to watch? If you decide to watch anime, you’re in for a ride. Animes vary from one genre to another. Do you want your typical romance-comedy, full of fluff? Pack with intense and action scenes? Science fiction, magic and superpowers? Or do you want to watch a mixture of all of these? Well, good news. Anime has all of these.
It is well known that those in the film industry have ideas and concepts regularly popping in their heads. The creators from the anime and manga (Japanese comics) industry are in no way different from them. I think the most advantageous thing about being an overly creative person in this industry is that the possibilities are endless. There’s no limit to what your characters can do or where you want the setting of your story to be. If you’re in for all that fun stuff, then this should be more than enough for you to start watching anime now.
2. Relatable Characters
For me, as an avid anime/manga fan, the plot is more than enough to hook me up. But if you need more reasons, then let me introduce to you the dynamics of the characters in animes. First, anime characters are relatable. Even if the setting of the story is in a place somewhere out there in the galaxy, you can expect one or two (even more) characters that you will relate to or at least, resemble you or someone you know. So you’ll often find yourself agreeing and sympathizing because of how similar characters are to real-life humans.
Second, anime characters, especially the main characters, also have flaws. They have faults, they make mistakes and they are not perfect. And the most realistic, is that they also die (Yes, even if they are the main characters and the whole story revolves around them.)
Third, they have development. You will notice this if you start watching (which you definitely should) and see that as the episodes or season goes, each character will develop on their way. If you love seeing a character grow, then anime might be perfect for you.
Fourth, they give empowerment to women. Some animes/mangas will serve strong, cool and independent female characters that sometimes outwins over male main leads. If you’ve been seeing less and less of that, anime has a lot of it.
3. Stunning Visuals
If the storyline and the characters haven’t convinced you yet, let me give to you the very factor that gives life to these. Anime animations are in a different world from the animation that you might have seen from the others. It’s really just awe-inspiring, it’s visually stunning and high quality. They capture backgrounds and facial emotions and expressions very well and can portray real-life locations beautifully and accurately.
You might have thought, “Well, how about action scenes?” One word: Best. I’m telling you, once that fight of the century in an anime begins, you cannot take your eyes off it. Once again, visually stunning and an excellent work of art.
4. For everyone
Anime caters to everyone of different age groups. You might be a young adolescent girl who is interested in light romantic-comedy genres, anime has it. In fact tons of tons of them. Or you might be in your mid-twenties and is interested in more dark and cooler concepts, yup anime has that as well. Or you might be someone who easily gets bored if a movie drags on for a few more seasons but there are anime which has shorter episodes (12-24 episodes) or you might want something for the long run, there are anime seasons that stretch on for a few years, even decades (Pokemon, Naruto, One Piece, just to name a few)
There are also instances where a running anime might unexpectedly halt production due to some reasons and usually these animes are adapted from their respective mangas. So if that does happen, you still have a safety net to fall into and try picking up from where you left from the anime to the manga.
5. Showcases the Japanese culture
If you are interested in Japanese culture and don’t know where to start, animes are a good starting point. Every bit of an anime will teach you a thing or two about Japanese culture. And even if you’re not interested in learning, you will still be picking up and will notice a few Japanese manners, etiquette and language as well.
If you ever get to visit Japan or interact with a Japanese person, the learnings and the things you noticed while watching anime will help you communicate with them better.
6. Deep, meaningful lines
The animation gives life to the characters, true, but you know what else gives them that sense of humanism? The script. I can’t count how many times I’ve watched an anime or read a manga and they have a certain line that made me pause the episode and just think about it. Or even wrote it down for future uses, inspirations and references.
Anime scripts are more than just lines that these characters say. They are very well-written, excellent in quality and relatable even. There are some lines that just hit home, you know those lines that you feel that as if it’s written for you? Anime has hundreds of those. Scripts also contain deep life lessons and quotes that makes you feel as if you’re strolling through those poems on Instagram.
7. There’s something new everyday
Have you heard scroll down to your movie collection and thought, “I’ve watched all of these.” With anime, I’m not exaggerating, once again, there will never be a moment like that. There is always something new to watch and a new genre to explore. If you don’t want the new releases, note that there are an estimated 10,000 animes produced (maybe even more!) and you have all that at your disposal.
The best thing about that ~10,000 animes is that they are all different in their own way. If you decided to make it a life-long mission to watch all of that, you will never ever get bored because of their unique and variety of storylines.
8. Catchy Music
Like how people got into the Korean culture because of their music, some also got into the anime world because of its music. Anime all have intros and outros music and sometimes, they are what hook a watcher to stay. Even better, these intros and outros are accompanied with a very cool video showcasing the characters and little features about them. If you’re watching a jam packed action anime, expect an intense action head on from the first minute.
9. A whole different world
Sometimes, the reality can be really exhausting. You got home from work or school, the activities of the day dragging your mood and emotions down. The one thing that I really liked about anime is that it helps me forget all the weariness of the day. It’s an entirely different world and can be an escape from reality. True, that it is temporary. But at least for that moment, you are relaxed and your mood has lifted enough to continue your tasks for the rest of the night.
I actually cannot stress how much anime has helped me from the stress of both work and school. I’ve made it a routine to watch one (Okay, maybe not one) episode just to lift up my mood ang kept me going to do my additional tasks .
10. The community
The anime community is one of the largest fandom ever. So you can expect forums of different topics educating and guiding you, members discussing about new releases or theorizing about incoming episodes or seasons. This fandom is also popular for being creative, with their talents showing in the realm of arts and even fashion, giving birth to the famous costume play where they create outfits and personify their favorite characters.
