Taking on a new hobby is easy, but leaving another is harder than you can possibly imagine. This has become a long film to watch as my interest in anime has died over the course of the last three to four months. Every day for the last few months, I have begun to question and contemplate what type of future I will have with anime and the answer has been clear. It did not hit me until earlier this past week that I simply do not care for anime anymore. There are still a few select series and films I will buy, but otherwise my interest no longer exists in the bigger picture.
This has begun to show in my monetary budgets for the month. I find that my monthly anime DVD/Blu-ray budget is slowly withering away bit by bit. That is coupled by the fact that nothing I really want is coming out on DVD or Blu-ray. My tastes have become so, for the lack of a better term, sophisticated. I am not seeing much for the next several months that are "gotta have'ems" and that in and of itself is troubling to see. It appears that will be an average of one to two anime releases a month I will be buying. That is down radically from five to six last year. That is a considerable and problematic drop in percentage.
It has also begun to show as lack of interest of watching newer shows and supporting them legally or watching them through not as legal means. I find myself simply not caring to watch shows I was once excited and ecstatic for, such as Fractale, Hourou Musuko/Wandering Son and Puella Magi Madoka Magica. It has gotten to the point that I do not care. Troubling but nothing particularly new actually as I have always been partial to waiting for DVD or now Blu-ray releases of anime. I am going to experiment with the Spring season by not trying any shows and just wait to see what gets good reviews or press and all that jazz. In retrospect, I do not really need legal streaming or fansubs and fully intend to implement this experiment for the coming season ahead.
My interest in anime has been declining for the last year for another reason too. That reason is, as I hinted at in the second paragraph, lack of anime that appeals to me coming out here domestically and in Japan. I am averaging one to three shows a season which comes to four to 12 shows a year. That is not a good sign at all but I think you get the picture. Perhaps my standards are ridiculously high, but so be it. Japan has once appealed to my tastes before (2000-2003 are good places to look) so why not again? Those years were fantastic with 15-20 shows each I want to own or already own.
My interest in anime is fading and bleeding out without much to help it stop. Will 2011 be the year that my interest in anime dies? People do change as they grow older and perhaps this is a case of that. I just never imagined my time would come so soon. I thought I had a good ten more years. Ah well, I will try my experiment to see how it helps. Sure it means I will not be current with things, but if it can save my interest and fandom, it is worth a shot. I have tried just about everything else.
What say you? Chime in!
Ever since I've been following what's been currently airing in Japan (Spring 2010), I've only followed about 3 shows every season. I've do have a sizable backlog of shows that I've yet to watch, so that also keeps me occupied otherwise.
ReplyDeleteBut I don't see anything wrong with having higher standards. I could never be the kind of fan who was willing to watch 10-12 shows every season just to see if they got better. I think you're just experiencing a burnout, so maybe it'll be a good idea to not stay current.