2012-05-08, 14:10 | Link #641 | |
Banned
Join Date: Dec 2006
Age: 38
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I once theorized that every show has its audience, whether it be boring or ironic or poorly executed. But the way fans react en masse, for example preordering a show like Hyouka after the first few episodes, is just ridiculous. If the show cannot show its worth, because it hasn't even finished airing, what are the criteria these shows get preordered by fans? I'm genuinely interested in this. Looking over KyoAni's shows alone, Munto TV had a very nice story, but the animation in the first few episodes botched the whole experience. I am not too familiar with Nichijou to know why it wasn't such a big hit in the traditional Blu-ray sales sense--certainly, animation alone isn't the sole reason for sales successes, but it's a very influential one. To think back of all the moe moe shows from 00's, most of them struggled with tight budgets. And yes, everybody likes nice looking animation, but not on a boring show. Or maybe they do. EDIT: I realize this looks like I'm giving stalker points too much credit, who knows what actual sales will be. |
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2012-05-08, 14:42 | Link #642 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2009
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As for animation, I'm not convinced that quality is a dominating factor. Ugly art/animation can certainly be a deterrent, but other than that, fans haven't proven to be particularly picky or discerning. I'd say that good animation is a potential hype factor (that gets fans speaking positively about a show), but it takes multiple hype factors to light a fire. |
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2012-05-08, 15:17 | Link #643 | |
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Sparking a meme is a big part in this whole community thing as far as I've been able to tell. Now in Kyoani's case, while I haven't watched every show they've done to completion (god forbid I know) I've managed to catch every first couple episodes of everything they've done since Haruhi and honest to god it looks like they are trying to spark a meme to get them cred and posts with the 2ch crowd right out of the gate with every show. Just a few examples: K-On: Moe Moe Kyun Hyouka: "Dem Eyes" as people call it Haruhi: Too many to name, but the Bunny Suit, Mikuru Beam, Endless Eight, Out of order airing gimmick, and God Knows come to mind Lucky Star: The whole show practically centers around doing this Clannad After Story: "Dozo have a Star Fish", Hit counters for Tomoyo beating up Sunohara Usually you can tell when they're trying to do that because there's a certain sparkly background they use for a lot of them and the animation goes sky high during these scenes as if to tell the audience, "Look this is the scene you're supposed to pay attention to, this is where the new hit meme is!" You can sort of see the community experience in play a little bit on AS too for certain shows that are also a hit in Japan. Nisemonogatari comes to mind as does recently Hyouka where you can see people discussing the specifics of girls getting toothbrushes crammed into their mouths and "Dem Eyes" in the most serious business manner such things can possibly be discussed, but when you ask someone to point out the specific qualities they like about the shows typically the response is silence or an admission that they don't really know and that to me is very telling of a lot of things. |
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2012-05-08, 15:49 | Link #644 | |||
Pretentious moe scholar
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Vancouver, Canada
Age: 37
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A pumped up base if far, far more likely to buy something as a "token of participation". Quote:
Does it have the most interesting plot among current moe shows? No, I'd say Sankarea beats it and possibly a few others too. But there's nothing I can see stealing KyoAni's thunder - the competition is competent, not exciting. This is not like Nichijou going up against Hanasaku Iroha, AnoHana, and Stein;Gate last spring. Quote:
I'd be the first to argue that KyoAni's ability to pump up its base is a key factor in it's success but that's only part of it. "Nice boat" didn't propel a single volume of School Days past 5K. Meanwhile, you have a show like AnoHana which borrows liberally from the Key-KyoAni playbook doing extremely well, and I'm not aware of it being a bit meme generator. And frankly, I know too many people who like their stuff who aren't part of the meme crowd. That doesn't surprise me. As a moe fan, I seldom consider KyoAni's shows best in category, but they've ranked highly on many, many occassions.
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2012-05-08, 16:40 | Link #645 | ||
Administrator
Join Date: Dec 2003
Age: 41
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And I'm not sure what insight you think you've gained from people not being able to enumerate the qualities they like about a show, but I would suggest that enjoyment isn't purely logical. Being able provide a list of objective qualities that explain why you enjoy something doesn't make your enjoyment any more real or legitimate than anyone else, nor does it mean that person is stupid or unsophisticated for ostensibly not having thought it through. Sometimes people also don't feel they need to justify their enjoyment to others, and that nothing good will come of having their enjoyment questioned. Anyway, I'm not sure how this thread turned into "questioning the tastes of anime fans based on sales predictions", but it's pretty pointless. People buy what they like and -- go figure -- sometimes they don't like what you like. That's opinions for you...
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2012-05-08, 16:45 | Link #646 |
Gamilas Falls
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Republic of California
Age: 46
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With the new Region A Blu-Disc market, there might (might) more more overseas sales.
I fully intend to buy the Space Battleship Yamato 2199 series on BD and I know someone who plans to hold out for a potenal box set because it might be cheaper than getting seven discs plus shipping over time.
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2012-05-08, 16:49 | Link #647 |
You're Hot, Cupcake
Join Date: Aug 2008
Age: 42
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Sales only indicate one thing. That it was popular and marketed well if it sold high. If you spend too much time reading into sales and let them dictate/control what you watch or how you feel about anime, you are doomed to misery because the opinions of others are something you can't control and will always be bewildered by. Personally, the shows I like this season aren't even pushing 500 pre-orders yet. Think I care? No. It's not going to stop me from liking what I like. Remember, it does require a certain amount of fanaticism and ego to buy the product at its heavily inflated (but out of necessity) price.
Still need reasons? Pre-existing fanbases, fanaticism for the sake of ego and style. Don't think deeply about it, there are far better things one can do with their time.
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2012-05-08, 18:29 | Link #648 |
Senior Member
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I think that people might be reading a bit too much into Hyouka's level of success so far.
Coming 4th place in stalker points amongst new, non-BoxSet TV anime series is good, but it's not like setting the world on fire. Considering that Hyouka is made by the famous KyoAni, I'm surprised that anybody would be surprised by Hyouka's level of success. If Hyouka was coming tops that would be a bit surprising, but it's more or less exactly where I'd expect a post-E8/post-Nichijou extremely well-animated/drawn KyoAni show to be. In other words, KyoAni's brand strength has declined a bit, to the degree that they don't automatically dominate the top of the charts any more, but they still have some brand name strength left.
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2012-05-08, 19:08 | Link #649 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2009
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Much like animation quality, brand is a significant hype factor, but it isn't enough to produce a megahit. I'd guess that Hyouka has managed to hook more fans than Nichijou, but the content still doesn't have the mass appeal of Haruhi, Lucky Star, or K-ON! I think SHAFT provides a great example of variable success in spite of immense brand power. |
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2012-05-08, 19:49 | Link #650 | |
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I think there was a time when KyoAni was the undisputed King of Moe, or at least widely perceived as such. For anime fans that go for moe (which is to say, most of us), KyoAni was as close to a "sure bet" as you could get amongst animation studios.
Due to various factors, I think that "King of Moe" position has weakened a bit (some of this is simply P.A. Works and other studios rising in prominence), but there's still some brand name strength there for KyoAni. 0utf0xZer0 also raised a good point that relates a bit to my own - For people looking first and foremost for moe (and I'm not knocking those people at all, as I'm one of them myself sometimes), there's not as much competition this Spring as there was last. There's nothing quite like AnoHana or Hanasaku Iroha airing right now. So Nichijou faced stiffer competition than Hyouka is facing, at least when it comes to a certain type of show. I have a theory that a large chunk of anime DVD/Blu-Ray customers go for what can probably best be described as brightly colored, anatomically-correct moe done in top-notch animation. KyoAni developed this particular style to utter perfection, hence earning themselves a dedicated fanbase, insofar as they were loyal to that art style (it may be that Nichijou was perceived as veering too far off from that style). P.A. Works tapped into that same fanbase with Angel Beats! and Hanasaku Iroha. Hyouka has this same brightly colored, anatomically-correct moe done in top-notch animation. This particular overall visual style (reminiscent of a well-produced visual novel) tends to sell very well, in my opinion. I think it might help to explain Guilty Crown's sales as well. Quote:
The key for SHAFT is producing shows where Shinbo's style suits the content that he's working with. Madoka Magica, for example, was a perfect fit here because its more magical aspects allowed Shinbo to go totally wild in some scenes (in witch's barriers, primarily), making it easier for him to go with more conventional artwork for other scenes. So the overall visual style feels more "cool and distinctive" than "weird and perplexing".
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2012-05-08, 20:42 | Link #651 |
AS Oji-kun
Join Date: Nov 2006
Age: 74
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I think it's far more interesting that Space Brothers was holding its own on that list considering it has about zero features that might appeal to anime otaku. No kids in school, no cute girls, just a guy in his thirties who wants to become an astronaut and a potential love interest in her twenties. Once again we see that a show that targets a broad family audience and is shown in a reasonably accessible time slot (7 am on Sundays in this case) can have decent sales. Space Brothers actually has some good jokes aimed at adults, too, like the events at the beginning of episode three. Being family-oriented doesn't mean being boring; I'm glad there are people in Japan who also see that can be the case.
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2012-05-08, 22:06 | Link #652 | ||
Nyahahahaha♥
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Conversely, Nichijou wasn't lacking in entertainment so much as it lacked in characters that fans liked. Due to the nature of the show, it never focused enough time on one trio or combination of them, thus fans never got attached to them. Other shows in that season like Ano Hana, Iroha, Steins;Gate, and even Tiger and Bunny allowed for that connection with the characters, thus they sold well and Nichijou didn't. It's not about moe, but with enjoying the characters. From what I've seen, Hyouka started out hot due to the KyoAni hype, but has re-gained popularity due to fans enjoying those characters compared to the rest of the season. It's not necessarily the animation, though that helps, but it's the combination of emotion the show brings out and the characters inside it. As the first three episodes have gone by, people have gotten used to Houtarou, Eru, and Mayaka, and they like them. That's why it's starting to sell well. Moe might be a factor, but I'd argue that it's more connecting with the setting and the characters instead. There's still nearly two months before most of these shows go on sale, so things will likely change again. Edit: I'd also like to say that this is a theory of mine and isn't based on any facts. I'm merely disagreeing. I think you do have a valid point, but I feel it's not something that the Japanese fans think about when purchasing BD/DVDs. Quote:
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Last edited by ultimatemegax; 2012-05-08 at 23:33. |
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2012-05-08, 23:37 | Link #653 | ||
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I'm sure most, if not all, of us can think of anime shows that fit this description (had great characters but didn't sell well). In fact, I can think of many shows with great characters that didn't sell well. On the other hand... Brightly-colored, anatomically-correct moe done to top-notch animation: There's a consistent pattern of shows of this overall visual appeal/style selling well. So I think that visuals do matter. A lot. Quote:
But what is less subjective is a basic description of a particular artistic style, and high animation quality. "Brightly colored anatomically-correct moe done to top-notch animation" is pretty objective. If a show has that, people will be able to see it. It's mostly objective - A show either has this visual style or it doesn't. My observation is that shows with this visual style have a considerable tendency to sell well. That observation still stands as far as I can see. Now, no doubt having good/great characters can "top off" a show's sales, if it has other strengths going for it. That probably was a factor in at least some of the KyoAni shows you listed. But KyoAni really did develop and master a particular artistic/visual style, which other studios have been influenced by.
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Last edited by Triple_R; 2012-05-08 at 23:49. |
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2012-05-08, 23:51 | Link #654 | |
Administrator
Join Date: Dec 2003
Age: 41
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If there were a single combination of objective traits that tended towards repeatable success, the industry would have clued in long ago (considering it's their job to capitalize on such things). In fact, tastes are always changing and there are a ton of different factors that affect success. Because productions usually start almost a year before the first episode airs, it's a bit of a gamble to figure out what will be popular 12+ months down the road. Obviously looking good and being aware of market trends is part of the equation, but there's a lot more to it than that. I think any attempt to point to any one factor as the key will be easily thwarted.
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2012-05-09, 07:06 | Link #655 | |||||
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2012-05-09, 07:25 | Link #656 | ||
reading #hikaributts
Join Date: Feb 2009
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Fractale
Chihayafuru also hasn't been doing well. Quote:
Even the "cheaper animes" already costs alot to produce. So if the secret of selling more animes was the animation style, then everyone would have invested more money in their production if it guaranteed decent sales. But alas it isn't, because it was proven from the sales in the past that the animation style is not the only thing that makes people want to buy your DVD's or blu-rays. Quote:
http://forums.animesuki.com/showthread.php?t=109699 |
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2012-05-09, 07:40 | Link #658 | |
reading #hikaributts
Join Date: Feb 2009
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Akikan had terrible production values to the point that the characters weren't even anatomically correct at many times.
Relentlessflame was referring to this post Quote:
*26 *28,027 15 Hetalia Axis Powers Vol. 1 Limited Edition *95 *14,418 *5 Suzumiya Haruhi-chan no Yuuutsu/Nyoroon☆Churuya-san DVD Tsugi. High sales, simple animation, anatomically incorrect characters |
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2012-05-09, 08:08 | Link #659 | |||
Nyahahahaha♥
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The other problem is that purchasing a show is highly subjective. There are many shows that I like or that appeal to me, but that I won't purchase due to budgetary reasons. Thus I have to prioritize, like the fans in Japan, and people prioritize differently. That's the subjective nature of sales.
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