Ask John: What Defines a Hardcore Anime Fan?

Question:
What makes an anime fan hardcore? Most of the fans I talk with don’t even buy merchandise or DVDs and say they’re hardcore otaku.?

Answer:
Monikers like “hardcore fan” and “otaku” are highly subjective and also culturally relevant. Japanese scholars including Hiroki Azuma and Kaichiro Morikawa define typically Japanese otaku, ultra-hardcore fans, as individuals obsessed with collecting and knowing every available trivial detail and fact about a particular subject. Azuma defines otaku as “database animals,” instinctive beings who minutely obsess over specific, detailed trivia and fetishize precisely specific attributes like glasses or personality types.

America’s most diehard “otaku” in a strict Japanese sense are actually probably collectors and specialists in fields outside of Japanese animation, including cars & motorcycles, coins & currency, and comics. In a strictly Japanese sense, someone who knows what type of engines the Chrysler motor company commonly used in 1958, for example, would be considered an “otaku.” America’s anime fan community can primarily be divided between casual and “die hard” fans. Individuals that exclusively watch anime in passing, only when with or encouraged by friends, who only watch select shows broadcast on Cartoon Network, who only infrequently see films released in theaters really can’t be called “anime fans” at all. These individuals may have a receptivity toward anime, but they have only mild interest in actually watching anime. They feel no or minimal compulsion to watch anime. Such people themselves are very likely to personally not self-identify as “anime aficionados,” which is what the term “anime fan” is an abbreviation of.

Casual anime fans are those with a conscious, focused interest in anime that lacks the strength of habit or compulsion. Typically casual American anime fans are those who enjoy the superficial visceral pleasures of anime but don’t feel compelled to seek out an increasing range of anime. Fans that have fun watching Dragon Ball Z, Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Ninja Scroll, Naruto, and Attack on Titan, or fans of Sailor Moon and Fruits Basket that appreciate the exhilerating excitement and action or the “girl power” and romantic aspects of anime and possibly even purchase occasional DVDs or manga have a more dedicated interest in anime than mainstream non-fanatic casual viewers. But these casual fans don’t feel a compulsion to routinely watch anime. It’s not actually the art form of Japanese animation itself that interests these fans. Casual fans are attracted to the visual aesthetic and the attributes of specific, select series and usually have very little interest in anime outside of specific genres, anime with unconventional art design, and older anime.

Hardcore devotion to anime is a psychological obsession independent of financial investment. Truly hardcore fans do often manifest their obsessive devotion by purchasing DVDs, Blu-rays, and merchandise, but an individual that coldly and objectively purchases a mountain of anime goods isn’t automatically a hardcore fan. Likewise, someone that loves to cosplay but doesn’t actually feel a irresistable desire to routinely watch anime is actaully someone that enjoys exhibitionism and attention, someone that enjoys acting and role-playing rather than a diehard anime fan.

The hardcore fan is, by definition, a “fanatic” or “aficionado,” “an ardent devotee.” The American hardcore anime otaku is an individual fascinated by the unique artistry of Japanese animation; someone irrepressibly compelled to seek out and watch an ever increasing amount of anime including an increasing number of titles and even genres and styles. The diehard otaku is, by definition, someone whose devotion to anime will “die hard,” someone whose interest in anime will not wane with passing trends or maturing age. The true “hardcore” anime fans are those with an active lifelong interest and affection for anime (emphasis on “active”). Exactly how that “active” engagement with anime manifests, whether through purchasing anime goods or only aggressively watching anime, varies by individual. Otaku or hardcore fan status is dictated by mental and emotional attachment to anime, not by physical behaviors, purchases, or collections of merchandise. Obvious visual signals of hardcore fandom, such as cosplaying and obsessive collecting, are results of hardcore obsession, not triggers for hardcore obsession.