Not to sound too existential, but everything changes, and the anime industry and fandoms are no exception. And it’s always interesting to see how things progressed with time.
1. Popularity
This is the best thing that’s happened to anime over time. We all know that anime used to be a niche interest, and a lot of otaku used to be frowned upon whenever they mentioned they’re into those “weird Japanese cartoons.”
But people have become more accepting of this media, and this is incredible. More and more animation studios appear, there are dozens of new projects each season, and anime fandoms are huge. We can’t even imagine people discussing something with the passion they have now every time there are new Jujutsu Kaisen chapter leaks.
2. Fandom discourse
The way online discourse has changed might be both a good thing and a bad one. On the one hand, it’s much more interesting to be part of fandoms now because there are more people who are into anime.
However, more people means more opinions and heated (and sometimes even outraged) debates. Remember how only few people cared about the problematic aspects of Sebaciel from Black Butler (Kuroshitsuji) back in the day? And now you can’t even say this pairing’s name without getting a side-eye.
3. Availability
Back in the day you had to try hard to watch your favorite anime. Streaming services weren’t this popular, and you had to watch series on a shady website in terrible quality.
Now such giants as Netflix and Crunchyroll provide tons of opportunities for people to enjoy anime easily and comfortably. Want to watch something short? Here it is. Interested in an underrated series? Netflix has got your back.
4. Seasonal anime
About 20 years ago we didn’t even know what it meant. We just watched anime that were brave enough to be dubbed and broadcast on TV.
Now we have to stay relevant and keep up with new anime each season. It’s awesome because it means more content, but it’s also worrisome because a lot of people just watch seasonal anime to be trendy and understand what all the hype is about without actually liking the anime.
5. Conventions
Since anime has become immensely popular, numerous fan conventions have appeared. If you’ve ever visited Comic Con and seen all these awesome people wearing Naruto or Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) costumes, then you know what we’re talking about.
There’s no feeling like it, when you are surrounded by people who share your interests without being afraid of looking weird.
We’ve come a long way.
Not to sound too existential, but everything changes, and the anime industry and fandoms are no exception. And it’s always interesting to see how things progressed with time.
1. Popularity
This is the best thing that’s happened to anime over time. We all know that anime used to be a niche interest, and a lot of otaku used to be frowned upon whenever they mentioned they’re into those “weird Japanese cartoons.”
But people have become more accepting of this media, and this is incredible. More and more animation studios appear, there are dozens of new projects each season, and anime fandoms are huge. We can’t even imagine people discussing something with the passion they have now every time there are new Jujutsu Kaisen chapter leaks.
2. Fandom discourse
The way online discourse has changed might be both a good thing and a bad one. On the one hand, it’s much more interesting to be part of fandoms now because there are more people who are into anime.
However, more people means more opinions and heated (and sometimes even outraged) debates. Remember how only few people cared about the problematic aspects of Sebaciel from Black Butler (Kuroshitsuji) back in the day? And now you can’t even say this pairing’s name without getting a side-eye.
3. Availability
Back in the day you had to try hard to watch your favorite anime. Streaming services weren’t this popular, and you had to watch series on a shady website in terrible quality.
Now such giants as Netflix and Crunchyroll provide tons of opportunities for people to enjoy anime easily and comfortably. Want to watch something short? Here it is. Interested in an underrated series? Netflix has got your back.
4. Seasonal anime
About 20 years ago we didn’t even know what it meant. We just watched anime that were brave enough to be dubbed and broadcast on TV.
Now we have to stay relevant and keep up with new anime each season. It’s awesome because it means more content, but it’s also worrisome because a lot of people just watch seasonal anime to be trendy and understand what all the hype is about without actually liking the anime.
5. Conventions
Since anime has become immensely popular, numerous fan conventions have appeared. If you’ve ever visited Comic Con and seen all these awesome people wearing Naruto or Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) costumes, then you know what we’re talking about.
There’s no feeling like it, when you are surrounded by people who share your interests without being afraid of looking weird.
