Ask John: Why Do Comics Get More Respect than Anime?

Question:
Do American comic book fans have an elitist double standard when it comes to anime/manga? For example, I can’t even count how many times the latter genres have been equated with pedophilia, misogyny, and delayed adolescent development, but those same individuals give a pass to, and even praise movies like A History of Violence, Kick-Ass, and Spider-Man, even though those types of films cater to those same immature tendencies.

Answer:
I think that citing a “double standard” is a bit aggressive because the term suggests a conscious decision to grade similar things on a different scale. But there’s no doubt that comics are perceived differently than animation, although the differences between the two are minimal in many respects. Countless American comic fans respect and adore Spider-man, Superman, and The X-Men while decrying anime as childish or tawdry. Mainstream Hollywood movies including Iron Man and The Dark Knight are critical and commercially successful while anime remains a niche commodity in America. However, the discrimination between print and animation isn’t limited to conflicting nationalities, nor is it strictly an American perception. Even in Japan, where comics and cartoons are more prolific and popular than anywhere else in the world, there’s still a chasm between the popular respect for comics compared to animation. The root of the conflict lies partially in cultural perspective, and even more so in the origin of the mediums themselves.

The respect for original American comics and aspersion directed toward Japanese manga and particularly anime prevalent in America is partially attributable to culture shock. Americans are indoctrinated to expect that comic books star muscle-bound heroes that defend justice and the American way. Stories about average school kids, giant robots, and social/sexual dysfunction reflexively contradict the normal American expectation for comic book subject matter. So manga and anime are automatically suspect even though they’re actually just the Japanese equivalent of American comics. Japanese observers are just as likely to perceive comics about muscle-bound heroes of justice as odd and uncharacteristic. The American comic book fan’s disdain for Japanese comic art can be called a defensive reaction, but I don’t think that’s a realistic explanation. The American comic fan simply perceives a degree of cultural establishment, cultural familiarity in American comics that’s not present in imported Japanese comics or comics that exhibit Japanese cultural influence or sensibilities. That which is familiar, comfortable, and “natural” is better. However, the institutionalized regard for comics and aversion to animation, in particular, isn’t limited to just America. Even modern Japanese citizens regard manga as a common element of life while largely considering anime a cultish and childish niche. So there must be something more universal than cultural perspective to explain why comics are held in higher esteem than cartoons.

Print comics, both in America and Japan, developed as an evolution from political and other newspaper cartoons and comic strips. Because of their very nature as printed material, comics enjoy a subconscious regard as literature and serious media. Modern anime, on the other hand, arose as a Japanese answer to American children’s cartoons. Serious Japanese animation did exist in the first half of the 20th century, but the first modern anime – productions including Hakujaden and Tetsuwan Atom – were cartoons aimed at children. Unlike printed comic books, filmed animation has no obvious ancestry in respectable academia or intelligentsia. Certainly anime may be the modern evolution of ancient Japanese ukiyo-e artwork, but that lineage is indistinct, especially in comparison to the timely and distinct path of political cartoons to newspaper funnies to comic books. Americans and Japanese both unconsciously grant printed comics a degree of literary credibility because comics are similar to books and have roots in newspaper. Regardless of their juvenility, printed comics have always had less distance to travel to earn respectability as legitimate art and literature than animation, which has always been perceived as a second-class cinematic medium primarily appropriate only for children. Regardless of how juvenile they may be, comics have always been more acceptable and respectable than animation because the competition is between book and children’s cartoon.