Astro's Lack of Popularity in America- A Good Thing?
Posted: Sat Feb 18, 2012 3:47 pm
This is something I've had on my mind for quite some time, so I'm kind of curious to see what you guys think about this.
Basically I want to ask a specific question;
Is AStro Boy's lack of American popularity a good thing?
Now before I say anything else, let me make this perfectly clear; I'm very mixed in this response.
On teh one hand, I think it would be a good thing for the character's image as an icon. After all, Astro Boy (and by extension, Tezuka in general) has done A LOT for the medium. And who knows where it (the medium) would be if it weren't for those factors. Now, I'm not saying that Astro Boy or Tezuka should be so exposed to teh point of it being puke-inducing. I do think, however, that Astro Boy and Tezuka should at least be better known and respected. Especially in today's medium, where Tezuka is barely touched upon.
I mean really; people know who Hayao Miyazaki is. People know who Hideaki Anno is. People know who Satoshi Kon is. And yet very few are even aware of Tezuka nowadays. Noe yes, thsi does apply to me as well, because...well quite frankly, I actually didn't know of Tezuka either until JO's review of Phoenix. But I was interested enough that I began doing research on him, and that's what lead me to Astro Boy.
And I think that's ultimately what both legacies need; just a little bit more attention, if not just a little bit more exposure. No shoving in your face required.
On the other hand, I do feel that popularity for Astro Boy over here would bring about three specific problems;
1. Overexposure- I won't touch on this too much, since everyone knows where I'm going with this. But yeah...I feel that overexposure would not be a good thing for Astro Boy, or Tezuka in general. Overexposure can sometimes be a good thing, but I don't think it would bode well for Astro. Sure it might be fun at first, but then people start to get sick of seeing teh same thing after awhile, which may or may not result in a "Hype Backlash" of sorts. Besides, Tezuka stories really aren't glamorous enough to overexpose. What I mean is that most products that are overexposed usually have some type of "wow" or cool factor to them. Withe Tezuka, the stories really aren't glamorous inn that aspect, you get teh sense that he wanted to tell these stories. And because he covered so many genres throughout his life as a manga-ka, there's at least one story he's written that everyone can invest in. That is the appeal of Tezuka, and any attempts to overexpose that would backfire miserably.
2. Fanbrats; Now I don't mean normal fanboys and fangirls who express their love, but are sane about it. They're okay. I'm referring to the kidn who won't shut up about it, and act like crazies when people have a different opinion than them. Let's face it; when anything becomes popular nowadays, it seems to be followed by HOARDS of screaming fanboys and fangirls, who overexpose every aspect of a series they love to the point where people just don't want to hear about it anymore. And in all honesty, I would prefer for this to not happen to the Astro Boy fan community. And yes, I know that there are crazies every fandom. But having only been here a few months, I seem to get teh impression that you guys are a really intelligent, really nice, really open group who get along well in sharing your love for Astro's various adaptations. To see it devolve to a bunch of annoying fangirls who won't shut up, or attempt to break Rule 34 (LORD knows I've seen some really dsiturbed KND fans try to get away with that).
3. Detractors- Now Detractors is sort of a mixed concept for me. On teh one hand, Detractors are not evil; if something isn't your thing, and you have valid reasons for why, then fine. Heck, JO has explained in great length why she doesn't like Evangelion and I am okay with that. Why? Because her reasoning is sound and makes sense. On the other hand; you got snobby detractors, and those guys irritate me to no end. Why? Beacuse they're so overly cynical about something that it hurts.
What does this have to do with Astro Boy? Well, let's face it, we live in a very cynical society. And while Astro tended to get pretty dark at times, there was always still that ray of hope. That even if things didn't always turn out right, that all life is sacred, and that violence is not always the first solution to the problem. In short, it signifies that Astro is a symbol of hope rather just being a superhero doing what's right. Unfortunately, our society has become so cynical nowadays, that I think many people woudl reject that message, saying that it's outdated and so forth.
Now I don't think all cynics would be like that. After all, I myself am very cynical, and even I am touched by a different resolve other than to fight. Therefore, we must examine the following.
Do I like dark stories like Puella Magi and Princess Tutu? Yes.
Do I like dark, psychologically distraught characters like Asuka Soryu, Anthy Himemiya, and Tenma? Yes.
Do I also like pacifistic do gooders like Vash the Stampede, Astro Boy, Utena, or even Princess Tutu and Sailor Moon? Yes.
Why? Because I can admire their nobility, and/or resolve to BE pacifistic.
Basically, theoint I'm trying to make is that I don't think ALL detractors would be that way. It's just that I'm afraid that SOME detractors will not look past Astro's message, either because of their cynisism, or because they're just too stubborn to admit it.
Anyway, that's really all I have to say on this matter. So feel free to post a comment, and let know what you think.
Basically I want to ask a specific question;
Is AStro Boy's lack of American popularity a good thing?
Now before I say anything else, let me make this perfectly clear; I'm very mixed in this response.
On teh one hand, I think it would be a good thing for the character's image as an icon. After all, Astro Boy (and by extension, Tezuka in general) has done A LOT for the medium. And who knows where it (the medium) would be if it weren't for those factors. Now, I'm not saying that Astro Boy or Tezuka should be so exposed to teh point of it being puke-inducing. I do think, however, that Astro Boy and Tezuka should at least be better known and respected. Especially in today's medium, where Tezuka is barely touched upon.
I mean really; people know who Hayao Miyazaki is. People know who Hideaki Anno is. People know who Satoshi Kon is. And yet very few are even aware of Tezuka nowadays. Noe yes, thsi does apply to me as well, because...well quite frankly, I actually didn't know of Tezuka either until JO's review of Phoenix. But I was interested enough that I began doing research on him, and that's what lead me to Astro Boy.
And I think that's ultimately what both legacies need; just a little bit more attention, if not just a little bit more exposure. No shoving in your face required.
On the other hand, I do feel that popularity for Astro Boy over here would bring about three specific problems;
1. Overexposure- I won't touch on this too much, since everyone knows where I'm going with this. But yeah...I feel that overexposure would not be a good thing for Astro Boy, or Tezuka in general. Overexposure can sometimes be a good thing, but I don't think it would bode well for Astro. Sure it might be fun at first, but then people start to get sick of seeing teh same thing after awhile, which may or may not result in a "Hype Backlash" of sorts. Besides, Tezuka stories really aren't glamorous enough to overexpose. What I mean is that most products that are overexposed usually have some type of "wow" or cool factor to them. Withe Tezuka, the stories really aren't glamorous inn that aspect, you get teh sense that he wanted to tell these stories. And because he covered so many genres throughout his life as a manga-ka, there's at least one story he's written that everyone can invest in. That is the appeal of Tezuka, and any attempts to overexpose that would backfire miserably.
2. Fanbrats; Now I don't mean normal fanboys and fangirls who express their love, but are sane about it. They're okay. I'm referring to the kidn who won't shut up about it, and act like crazies when people have a different opinion than them. Let's face it; when anything becomes popular nowadays, it seems to be followed by HOARDS of screaming fanboys and fangirls, who overexpose every aspect of a series they love to the point where people just don't want to hear about it anymore. And in all honesty, I would prefer for this to not happen to the Astro Boy fan community. And yes, I know that there are crazies every fandom. But having only been here a few months, I seem to get teh impression that you guys are a really intelligent, really nice, really open group who get along well in sharing your love for Astro's various adaptations. To see it devolve to a bunch of annoying fangirls who won't shut up, or attempt to break Rule 34 (LORD knows I've seen some really dsiturbed KND fans try to get away with that).
3. Detractors- Now Detractors is sort of a mixed concept for me. On teh one hand, Detractors are not evil; if something isn't your thing, and you have valid reasons for why, then fine. Heck, JO has explained in great length why she doesn't like Evangelion and I am okay with that. Why? Because her reasoning is sound and makes sense. On the other hand; you got snobby detractors, and those guys irritate me to no end. Why? Beacuse they're so overly cynical about something that it hurts.
What does this have to do with Astro Boy? Well, let's face it, we live in a very cynical society. And while Astro tended to get pretty dark at times, there was always still that ray of hope. That even if things didn't always turn out right, that all life is sacred, and that violence is not always the first solution to the problem. In short, it signifies that Astro is a symbol of hope rather just being a superhero doing what's right. Unfortunately, our society has become so cynical nowadays, that I think many people woudl reject that message, saying that it's outdated and so forth.
Now I don't think all cynics would be like that. After all, I myself am very cynical, and even I am touched by a different resolve other than to fight. Therefore, we must examine the following.
Do I like dark stories like Puella Magi and Princess Tutu? Yes.
Do I like dark, psychologically distraught characters like Asuka Soryu, Anthy Himemiya, and Tenma? Yes.
Do I also like pacifistic do gooders like Vash the Stampede, Astro Boy, Utena, or even Princess Tutu and Sailor Moon? Yes.
Why? Because I can admire their nobility, and/or resolve to BE pacifistic.
Basically, theoint I'm trying to make is that I don't think ALL detractors would be that way. It's just that I'm afraid that SOME detractors will not look past Astro's message, either because of their cynisism, or because they're just too stubborn to admit it.
Anyway, that's really all I have to say on this matter. So feel free to post a comment, and let know what you think.
etleast there not on top of my mind but yeha people need to release that Tezuka's message behind his stories can be so much better than just fighting alone i may be a fan of history in general so that helps but i have been reading tezuka manga non-stop for over 10 mhonts now without to read something else except for the newest chapters of One Piece than 
.