Poll: American, Japanese, or other?
Wednesday March 19, 2008
Another argument that rages among the animation and graphic novel industries regards the schism between American and Japanese animation. Some say that American animation is the only way to go, and criticize the shortcuts used in Japanese animation/anime; some prefer the style and detail of Japanese anime, and criticize those who adhere to old-school, squash-and-stretch "Tex Avery" styles. Others embrace both, create hybrid styles, and take the best of both worlds - while others still like to explore and take inspiration from every source they can find to develop what they consider to be the best, most effective animation style. 
I tend to be able to find some good in everything and I'm probably a hybrid animator and artist myself, with most of my anime influence coming less out of interest and more from exposure due to my part-Asian heritage; my art style tends to mix various sources from modern and historical art styles across many cultures, and I have to say that my favorite cartoon art style at the moment is from an Italian show called Winx Club, which mixes anime-themed art with stylized body types inspired by fashion and modeling sketches. Which style of animation do you prefer: American, Japanese, or other?
- American style animation is the only way to go.
- Japanese animation is superior to American animation.
- I can find merits and flaws in both American and Japanese animation, but still lean towards only one.
- I prefer hybrid styles mixing both.
- I don't care; I love it all.
- I prefer animation that seeks outside sources for inspiration.
- I honestly can't tell the difference between any of it.
- Other/will explain in comments.
Don't forget to go back and vote in the last poll: Do you consider rotoscoping and motion capture to be actual animation?
Comments
I can understand the criticism of Japanese animation cutting corners, but their production style is quite different than the American studios.
More importantly, if you’re going to talk about cutting corners, what about the looping backgrounds in every Hanna Barbera cartoon? What about Disney’s retraced animations? What about the blatant rip-offs of Japanese storylines and mythologies?
You can’t deny that Anime has has a massive imp[act on American cartoons, and that many series would not even exist (whether or not that’s a good thing) if it weren’t for Anime’s influence. Granted, Anime would not exist if not for American cartoonists, but in this case, the student has surpassed the master. American cartoons are in a terrible cheesy decline. If you need an example, look at the horrendous “Transformers: Animated”