Year after year, the anime that Americans can't seem to stop watching are the ones that feature action, adventure, conflict, and no small amount of dramatic tension. Because anime is produced in Japan, many Western fans assume that the Japanese anime fan community has similar tastes in their animated content. Interestingly, however, The anime trilogy shows that Japanese audiences traditionally prefer stories with a bit more wholesome content.. Just looking at the longest running anime series, it's clear that this show has more than just action.
The series in question are – Sazae-san, Chibi Maruko-chan and Crayon Shin-chan. Sazae-san, based on the manga of the same name by Machiko Hasegawa, has been a part of Japan’s Sunday television entertainment schedule for decades. Likewise, Yumiko Sato and Tsutomu Shibayama’s Chibi Maruko-Chan and Crayon Shin-chan – an anime series based on the manga by Yoshito Usui, have both been airing since the 1990s.
Even though the three series tell completely different stories, there is still a strong common thread between them. Furthermore, this common bond is why all three are beloved by the Japanese anime viewing community and why They have been entertaining Japanese audiences with their antics for decades. The only thing all the films have in common is that they focus on family relationships.
Sazae, Maruko, and Crayon-Shin share an extraordinary bond.
Their focus on family makes them timeless classics and ever-popular.
Sazae-san focuses on the small and large aspects of the daily life of Sazae Fuguta. In the series, Fuguta is a married woman with children in post-World War II Japan. In doing so, the series delves into the personal dynamics of the modern Japanese family. Shifting the perspective from wife and mother to daughter, Chibi Maruko-chan details the joys and sorrows of nine-year-old Momoko “Maruko” Sakura as she deals with a variety of circumstances, from her parents’ wishes to school rules.
Continuing the family anime style created by Sazae and Chibi Maruko, the third installment – Crayon Shin-chan, explores the story of five-year-old Shinnosuke “Shin” Nohara as he tries to do everything he can to avoid the demands of elementary school life while still giving his parents a hard time.
Airing continuously since 1969, Sazae-san holds the record for the longest-running animated series of all time.
Each episode focuses on the everyday challenges and topical situations that arise within a family. However, rather than treating these situations from a realistic perspective, each episode refracts the environment through its own unique comedic filter. Furthermore, each series has devoted a great deal of effort to depict the unique perspectives of different generations within a family. As a result, the episodes can be relatable to all age groups in Japanese society.
Despite their age – Sazae, Maruko and Crayon-Shin are still fan favorites
The elements of these anime series that have made them popular with generations of Japanese fans are not entirely absent from non-Japanese anime-loving cultures like the United States. The United States also has a rich and diverse pop culture that also emphasizes family-oriented anime stories. However, the promotion of anime in the United States has focused more on action films than the family comedies that these three shows represent.
The Japanese interest in the three films may strike some readers as similar to the burgeoning interest in classic anime in the United States, but there is a big difference. While American nostalgia for the old animated series stems from a desire to “relive” the style, themes, and feel of long-gone series, the Japanese interest stems from the continued entertainment that the three films have been able to provide over decades.
The retro anime trend in America can best be described as a niche movement, with fans rewatching old episodes of their favorite classic series and catching up on their current favorite series. Their interest in the traditional series is not mutually exclusive. In Japan, on the other hand, the interest is in the current episodes of the traditional series. If Japanese fans are watching any of the three series, they are not watching the newer, contemporary series. According to a recent survey published on Anime News Network, Sazae-san, Chibi Maruko-chan, and Crayon Shin-chan all ranked in the top ten most popular series currently airing, with the first two even beating out One Piece.
Sazae, Maruko and Crayon Shin prove the importance of the domestic anime market
In the United States, the retro-anime movement has played little role in determining which series is currently the most popular. In Japan, on the other hand, these three series compete head-to-head every year, month, and week to determine which series will hold the title of the most popular anime series. The popularity of these three anime series does not mean that Japanese anime viewers want to eliminate action and adventure from their viewing choices. On the contrary, it indicates that domestic consumption is not as dependent on action, adventure, and tension as it is globally.
While anime’s origins and essential “lifeblood” are Japanese, its growth over the past few decades as a global cultural phenomenon has meant that, as an industry, it has had to broaden its appeal to take into account international – and in particular Western – tastes and traditions. Although the anime industry has proven to be a model for the idea of “think globally, act locally”; there are still some cartoon The content is not easily accepted internationally – which is okay, because domestic support is huge.
Source: Anime Network News
