Anime tropes that really grind your gears

[Pinkie-Dawn]

Would the slice of life genre count as a trope? The fact that these are the type of anime that scare non-anime fans away and despise the whole industry and anything that looks anime worries me, as this genre is the home of J-Idols and waifu/husbando wars from anime fans.

 

[twocows]

wonderful thread about the semantics of loli, truly a subject of incredible depth and meaning

as a general rule, i don't like fanservice unless it serves a purpose, which it rarely does. there's nothing wrong with cute or sexual things being present, but unless it's moege or eroge respectively (or whatever the anime equivalents of those are), it's not the reason i'm watching/reading/playing and it shouldn't ever be the sole focus.

 

[HiddenEL]

For me, I avoid anime based on genres...so there's not much of a trope that I dislike...since I'm already used to/don't mind them.
From the past, it'd be fanservice scenes (ecchi ones, such guilty...but I digress) and violent Tsundere...nonsense violence in slice of life setting in general...unless that character develops/stops becoming violent.

 

[Satoshi Ookami]

I disagree. As do various anime.

Examples? =)

Plus...isn't it hypocritical to say not to categorize when you're doing exactly that?

My bad here, I meant to say generalize. Yes, I want to categorize them to empathize they are indeed different.

And you still insist on calling them both "lolis", meaning they are both lolis. "Loli" is a purely aesthetic thing, and if you're saying they're legal because they're forced to be made into adults for legal reasons, then that means they're lolis, because if they didn't have features that would make them lolis (legal or otherwise), then they'd just be considered cute adults. But you yourself admit that they are indeed lolis, which means the term must be synonymous. We're not talking about real kids here; if you want to talk about true lolis, those are them.

Yes, they are lolis, but not true lolis. The term loli should be synonymous to True Lolis because that's what most people think about when you say it.
Lolita is a more valid term to describe legal lolis.

Jesus Christ, we're still talking about lolis.

What else would you expect from me?
You started loli discussion.

 

[ORegan]

All of the screaming. Can we please get rid of all of the needless screaming. From dropping a plate of food to throwing a punch at Super Evil Hitler with your magic power of love fist, can we please tone down the screaming. I've been in or watched enough fights to know that even the most heated brawls don't have as much high pitched vocalization.

 

[Vengeful One]

From dropping a plate of food to throwing a punch at Super Evil Hitler with your magic power of love fist,

woah, woah, woah. There is an anime that has someone fighting Hitler with magic powers?

My most hated trope is the unnecessary episodes that do not further the storyline at all, and therefore serve no purpose.

 

[ORegan]

woah, woah, woah. There is an anime that has someone fighting Hitler with magic powers?

My most hated trope is the unnecessary episodes that do not further the storyline at all, and therefore serve no purpose.

There's got to be at least one out there. :P

One thing that bothers me that really isn't a trope is the generic portrayal of meat. You know, that giant bone with a perfect ring of meat around it? Where the hell does it come from and why have I never seen it at any deli or Japanese restaurant in my life?

Spoiler:

 

[Satoshi Ookami]

woah, woah, woah. There is an anime that has someone fighting Hitler with magic powers?

I'm pretty sure it's only in manga. Japan is "we can do everything and not give a damn" but not that much =D

 

[Chikara]

There's got to be at least one out there. :P

One thing that bothers me that really isn't a trope is the generic portrayal of meat. You know, that giant bone with a perfect ring of meat around it? Where the hell does it come from and why have I never seen it at any deli or Japanese restaurant in my life?

Spoiler:

Ohhh yeah, I guess that's never come to mind for me! Why IS the meat always perfect.

All I can think of is to save on animation costs, a running joke, or a lazy mangaka.

 

[machomuu]

Ohhh yeah, I guess that's never come to mind for me! Why IS the meat always perfect.

All I can think of is to save on animation costs, a running joke, or a lazy mangaka.

I don't really think it's any of those things, I think it's more that it's become a symbol, just like a lot of objects and techniques in media, and is generally associated with a certain type of world and character archetype.

That's pretty much it, really. Plus, meat on a stick is rarely seen alone, there are generally platters and bowls of other food about, so laziness and costs probably wouldn't enter into the equation.

 

[Chikara]

I don't really think it's any of those things, I think it's more that it's become a symbol, just like a lot of objects and techniques in media, and is generally associated with a certain type of world and character archetype.

That's pretty much it, really. Plus, meat on a stick is rarely seen alone, there are generally platters and bowls of other food about, so laziness and costs probably wouldn't enter into the equation.

So a running joke would fit that description. Obviously meat like that doesn't exist, so it's a style used often anyway.

 

[machomuu]

So a running joke would fit that description. Obviously meat like that doesn't exist, so it's a style used often anyway.

I don't really think I'd call it a "joke", exactly, because it isn't meant to be humorous. And as for it not being real...kinda. The clean-cut appearance of it, sure, but it's really just an animated adaptation of rotisserie caveman food. It makes logical sense, too; kill the animal, dislocate the joint, season it up and cook- that's actually a real thing.

So I wouldn't call it a "running joke" so much as a slightly tropical symbol.

 

[Chikara]

I don't really think I'd call it a "joke", exactly, because it isn't meant to be humorous. And as for it not being real...kinda. The clean-cut appearance of it, sure, but it's really just an animated adaptation of rotisserie caveman food. It makes logical sense, too; kill the animal, dislocate the joint, season it up and cook- that's actually a real thing.

So I wouldn't call it a "running joke" so much as a slightly tropical symbol.

Really? More often than not, when I see something like that show up, it's in a comical light. Especially going by the image supplied by OReagan:

I've never seen something like that appear in anything but a lighthearted anything-but-serious setting.

 

[machomuu]

Really? More often than not, when I see something like that show up, it's in a comical light. Especially going by the image supplied by OReagan:

I've never seen something like that appear in anything but a lighthearted anything-but-serious setting.

Well there's a big difference between something appearing in lighthearted settings and being a joke. For instance in One Piece, Luffy is often seen eating this, and if there's a joke in the scene, it's not the food itself nor is the food used as a comedic or humorous device from a conceptual or visual standpoint. In the case of Luffy, generally the meat-on-a-stick is an effective stretchy, rippable, one-handed food that lends itself to his character, and this goes back to what I was saying before about it being a symbol. The meat is a symbol used to indicate the character (generally the lighthearted heavy eaters like Goku and Luffy) and the world (specifically the era or the creatures that dwell within it). It also can be used to express a sense of barbarism should the author choose to do so.

But yeah. It's why you generally don't see it in darker-themed shows and certainly why you don't see it in shows/manga with modern settings. Generally. And as for why it's used across several shows and books, again, that's because it's a sub-tropical symbolic object. Look around, there are actually a lot of things like this.

 

[Chikara]

Well there's a big difference between something appearing in lighthearted settings and being a joke. For instance in One Piece, Luffy is often seen eating this, and if there's a joke in the scene, it's not the food itself nor is the food used as a comedic or humorous device from a conceptual or visual standpoint. In the case of Luffy, generally the meat-on-a-stick is an effective stretchy, rippable, one-handed food that lends itself to his character, and this goes back to what I was saying before about it being a symbol. The meat is a symbol used to indicate the character (generally the lighthearted heavy eaters like Goku and Luffy) and the world (specifically the era or the creatures that dwell within it). It also can be used to express a sense of barbarism should the author choose to do so.

But yeah. It's why you generally don't see it in darker-themed shows and certainly why you don't see it in shows/manga with modern settings. Generally. And as for why it's used across several shows and books, again, that's because it's a sub-tropical symbolic object. Look around, there are actually a lot of things like this.

A joke doesn't have to be the center of attention to be silly. I think you've misunderstood what I was trying to get at, since you pretty much reiterated what I said before haha. I also think you're generalizing a bit. Sure it might imply a tropical setting, but that's certainly not the case in every instance it's used. I know it's not an anime, but take The Flintstones for example. It's meant to be ridiculous and comical. It's also shown up in scenes where the character is very, very hungry and swallows it whole(or whatever).

Maybe you're not necessarily laughing at the meat, but it sure is funnier that it looks the way it does than, I dunno, a T-Bone steak.

 

[machomuu]

A joke doesn't have to be the center of attention to be silly. I think you've misunderstood what I was trying to get at, since you pretty much reiterated what I said before haha. I also think you're generalizing a bit. Sure it might imply a tropical setting, but that's certainly not the case in every instance it's used. I know it's not an anime, but take The Flintstones for example. It's meant to be ridiculous and comical. It's also shown up in scenes where the character is very, very hungry and swallows it whole(or whatever).

Maybe you're not necessarily laughing at the meat, but it sure is funnier that it looks the way it does than, I dunno, a T-Bone steak.

I'm not really saying that it has to be the center of attention, but the difference between the Flinstones and anime, speaking completely generally, is that its environments are inherently comedic because its the Stone Age with a modern twist. The show's concept is joke in itself.

I think I'm being a bit misunderstood here, mainly because I'm completely twisting a word into another word (intentionally). When I say "Tropical", I mean "Like or having the properties of a trope", kind of lending to its nature as a symbol and its presence in various anime. 'Cause there's just no adjective version of "trope". But the Meat-on-the-Stick generally isn't used to make the scene more comedic. Because all things considered, the MotS is a means to an end. Oftentimes, to make the scene lighter and jokier, the character that's eating will be talking with their mouth full. But if I saw Luffy eating...I dunno, foie gras and doing it, it'd be less comical not because of what it looks like, but because it doesn't match the environment and setting. T-Bone Steak, too. You'd be wondering why it's there and even if you don't catch it, you'll notice something on the scene is out of place. It's not the what that makes it comedic, it's the goofy "mouth-full-of-food" face, but if the "what" is out of place than it will have a larger, probably unintentional presence.

But in the land of Fairy Tails and Pirates, MotS makes sense. It fits the environment, is easy to draw, and is recognizable without any need to explain what it is. Even if it can lend itself to making the scene lighter, it's because the viewer associates it as that more than anything else; it's pretty unlikely that if you got a non-anime fan to sit down and watch a single show with it that they'd make the same connection, and that's because its a symbol. If it seems comedic to you, it's not because it's inherent (after all, it's just meat on a stick, the only effect it inherently has is to possibly make you hungry or disgusted) but because you associate it with things that you've seen in the past.

Sidenote: This is a discussion. This is about as much as I hope to see in threads where you just list things that you do/n't like. It's certainly more fun than just listing things off and leaving it at that. After all, it's not everyday that I get to discuss the machinations behind lolis and Meat-on-a-stick deargoddon'ttakethatoutofcontext, and I mean c'mon, where else would we actually discuss this stuff? We don't even go to these places in the DCC.

 

[Dter ic]

A staple in any show that is 'fanservicy' (sexually) is when either the male or female characters falls downs and by the powers of the God of sexiness, somehow the male's hands are magnetically attached to the females breasts, optionally added with camera angles that show off the female characters panties. It's fairly common and whenever it happens I think it automatically makes the show no more than pandering to the male audience.

 

[Kenchiin]

A staple in any show that is 'fanservicy' (sexually) is when either the male or female characters falls downs and by the powers of the God of sexiness, somehow the male's hands are magnetically attached to the females breasts, optionally added with camera angles that show off the female characters panties. It's fairly common and whenever it happens I think it automatically makes the show no more than pandering to the male audience.

Watch Free

 

[Dter ic]

Watch Free

I watched the first season a while ago, so I don't remember much. Anything I was meant to look out for?

 

[Kenchiin]

LOL; actually I meant DO NOT watch Free, LOL!
I am sorry, I'm having a bad day xD