[Reckoner]

Originally Posted by Klashikari

Marketing isn't exactly almighty in that hobby, especially in Japan.
Note that buying merchandise and BD/DVD is otherworldly expensive over there: you really don't buy things because it is "popular". Most spend their money on what they really like, whether or not it is a masterpiece. Frankly, Japan would be the very last place for an otaku to buy "things because they are popular", considering the steep price tags for most things, but also other stuff such like accomodations etc.

I can see such stuff occuring in the western audience, but no way in hell simple popularity can drive japanese fans to buy things, especially as niche and frowned upon as Otaku stuff.
Bakemonogatari is a complete different genre, but it has its lionshare of traits that would bait a frenzy crowd as well. The fanbase is the main factor for such kind of response, and it leads to unexpected results times to times.

I could use this logic to actually say that marketing is an even bigger factor there. People are going to be careful on what to spend their money on because everything is pricey so what looks the shiniest and the loudest out there in the market, in this case K-ON!, is what's going to be purchased.

But keep in mind we're working within the framework of Akihabra culture here. Bringing in the idea that it's a frowned upon hobby is relevant to Japanese society as a whole only.

Originally Posted by Triple_R

Because it casts aspersions on why some people liked the show, and chose to buy it on DVD/Blu-Ray.

Edited it for accuracy. If you're not one of those people, it doesn't mean anything to you.

Originally Posted by Triple_R

For a person who hates a show, it's much easier to attribute its success to things like "brand names", "marketability", "hype", and everything but simple widespread viewer satisfaction with the show and fan assessment of its merits.

You don't want to accept the fact that a large number of viewers and purchasers may have simply considered K-On to be one of the best of its genre, and worth owning as such.

I don't understand you persistence on this idea that I can't accept that people like what they like . I never complained about the fanbase here.

Most criticisms I and others have of K-ON! have nothing to do with its marketability anyways, so I don't get why that matters.

Originally Posted by Triple_R

I never said that its success was all based on its own merits. However, I don't see any reason to think that its success was any less based on its merits than Clannad's success was based on its own merits or Kanon 2006's success was based on its own merits.

All three are KyoAni works. All three have source material fans (the Key fanbase, in fact, was probably larger than the K-On fanbase prior to K-On being adapted into an anime). All three are easy to market, and were well-marketed.

Like I said, I have my theory and you have yours. In either case, whether my theory is true or not, doesn't mean anything about the actual quality and merits of the show. All it does is help explain some of the humongous distance between it and other similar shows.

Originally Posted by Triple_R

IS and Bake both have a very strong harem anime element to them, and harem anime trope elements (particularly character types) are frequently easy to market and are popular.

IS had the added benefit of having mechas in it, at a time when new/recent mecha anime was very hard to find. That likely helped its cross-genre marketability.

Bake was helped by the Shinbo/SHAFT artistic style (which can be used in marketing), which is clearly quite popular (consider Madoka's success as well here).

Did either of those shows have something like the first ED? Did either show have the novelty of these moe girls with musical instruments? Did either of this shows exemplify the supposed pureness and harmlessness of K-ON!? I don't know, I just don't see them on the same level of marketability myself. But that could be just me.