Animation gets no respect - Dr. Joyce Brothers

[Mr. Toad]

Stole this from Jerry Beck's Cartoon Research

Emru Townsend makes an excellent point today on his blog In-Betweens:



In her syndicated column, Dr. Joyce Brothers responds to a 40-something legal professional, exasperated that her 40-something legal professional boyfriend likes to watch cartoons. Even after "F.T." says that her errant beau likes to watch the "'adult' ones at night"—presumably Cartoon Network's Adult Swim—Brothers leads off her response: "It is certainly reasonable to be puzzled by seeing a grown man—a professional, no less—howling at cartoons meant for a 6-year-old."

I find it interesting to note that despite the fact that a grown man—a professional, no less—might like cartoons, and that there are cartoons being aired for adults, there's no thought that maybe—just maybe—they aren't all made for six-year-olds.

Ya all, I think we should find Ms. Brothers email and tell her what we think.

[Jack]

Not that suprising of a viewpoint, really. It's typical of Americans to think this way - its ashame they can't view animation the way much of the Asian culture does.

[RJKD23]

There's nothing wrong with cartoons!
In fact, I think many adults watch it for its ideas of imagination, entertainment, and comedy!
(well, I'm barely an adult [I'm thinking 21 is adult] so yea...)

"Dr." Brothers should just find a new boyfriend.

[orestes.]

What? Aren't cartoons and comic books made for kids?

I always seem to defend my love for animation. Many people I know whoa re over 20 love cartoons but then there are some who can't believe I enjoy them. My family is like this. They are to conservative/uppity/boring, whatever you want to call it and they don't understand these things that well. They can't comprehend that animation isn't just for kids.

I remember when I first rented 'Princess Mononke' from the video store, in the children's section. The video store owner looked at me if I was weird and she even asked why I want to see a cartoon.

Blah! I would say it's only the older generation but it's not.

[Jayden]

What does "Dr." (as her credentials are suspect from what I understand) Brothers know anyways? I'm 21, and enjoy animated movies immensly. And the thing is, there are many jokes in these films that you would not get as a child, only when you're an adult. There's humour in there for everyone, and if she doesn't see that, well I'm afraid she's looking at these movies WAY too superficially

[singerguy04]

Even beyond the fact that they are fun to watch, animated films are works of art. since when did art become a 6-year-old thing?

[Prince Eric]

Not that suprising of a viewpoint, really. It's typical of Americans to think this way - its ashame they can't view animation the way much of the Asian culture does.

Japanese culture really.

[Key]

Most anime is seen as being for children, even in Japan (except for hentai, obviously). Of course they also have a lot of family films (Studio Ghibli stuff) but things like "Sailor Moon," "Full Metal Alchemist," etc. are meant for grade schoolers to middle schoolers.

Now manga (comics) on the other hand... that is mainstream.

[Leonia]

Not that suprising of a viewpoint, really. It's typical of Americans to think this way - its ashame they can't view animation the way much of the Asian culture does.

Heh, not with my folks. I still remember my mom and my uncle yelling at me and my sister for watching cartoons when we were 13 and 14 respectively. (I try to keep my love of animation a secret, my sister openly flaunts her appreciation for anime...something I'm not so fond of.)

I enjoy cartoons for the same reason Jayden posted: because there are jokes that only adults (or really mature kids) would understand.

[PatrickvD]

I agree, animation is for little kids... Sleeping Beauty, Spirited Away, that is serious kiddy stuff.

Meet the Fockers, now that's adult entertainment!


geez, in the eternal words of Professor Trelawny: "Broaden Your Minds!"

[Maerj]

They did say not too long ago that among 18-35 year old males, the number one thing to watch on tv is Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. Dr. Joyce Brothers needs to understand that Aqua Teen Hunger Force in number one in da hood, G.

[enjoy]

Animation is for everyone. Saying that, "Oh, I dont watch cartoons cause they are for kids," to me is being close-minded and too uptight. Some people need to just grow-down and stop acting so stuck up!

[orestes.]

They did say not too long ago that among 18-35 year old males, the number one thing to watch on tv is Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. Dr. Joyce Brothers needs to understand that Aqua Teen Hunger Force in number one in da hood, G.

that reminds me, I always see Aqua Teen Hnger Force in the kids section of DVDs at Wal-Mart.

[AwallaceUNC]

AquaTeen Hunger Force isn't a really good example, though, nor would be South Park or even The Simpsons. They may be popular with older audiences, but that implies that only mature/adult animation is suitable for older audiences, still leaving perfectly legitimate but family-friendly fare (which comprises the bulk of animation) in the realm of shame for teens and up. That's a shame.

-Aaron

[2099net]

AquaTeen Hunger Force isn't a really good example, though, nor would be South Park or even The Simpsons. They may be popular with older audiences, but that implies that only mature/adult animation is suitable for older audiences, still leaving perfectly legitimate but family-friendly fare (which comprises the bulk of animation) in the realm of shame for teens and up. That's a shame.

-Aaron

Well AquaTeen Hunger Force isn't a good example, because it's hardly animated.

Only joking. I love ATHF (though I prefer Sealab 2021).

I think the examples you quote, especially the Simpsons, are good examples. Because the bulk of animation (in America anyway) is done for family audiences. And the bulk of family films, be they animated or live-action are a source of shame for teens and young adults. How many would admit to wanting to watch Annie, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang or even Harry Potter?

Of course, there are exceptions like The Princess Bride (live action) or The Incredibles (animation) which are just so brilliant and work on so many levels (see my comments on the Roger Rabbit genre) that they appeal to all ages, but on the whole teens are more into the violence and horror (boys) or love and romance (girls) of 'adult' films to admit to watching family films.

The examples quoted (plus others like King of the Hill, Futurama, Family Guy etc) show that animation is not restriced to one genre. Its only through animation like this that wider acceptance of the artform as a whole will grow. Its just a shame most are cheap TV animations (not that I want to critisise something like the Simpsons too much - the animation on that show is incredible for the turnaround time and budget).

[Prince Eric]

I think some good examples of great animated films for adults would be:

Waking Life
Spirited Away (I love this movie. I thought I was in a museum and was watching frames of art pass by my eyes.)
Princess Monoke
The Shrek Series
The Incredibles
Finding Nemo
The Triplets of Belleville
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence

Those are just some from this decade. I know some of you are like, no, those are kids titles, but some of them have really crossed genres. Finding Nemo and The Incredibles are actually in the top five critically reviewed movies of their respective years.

[Mushu2083]

Does anyone actually LISTEN to anything Dr. Brothers has to say? Sometimes I think that she doesn't even know what she's talking about. When I hear her show on the radio I listen for about four or five seconds until she starts sounding like the adults in Peanuts cartoons! You know "wah wah wah wah wah wah wah wah." My mom would HATE it when I'd buy a cartoon on DVD or if I went to see an animated film at the movies. Now she doesn't really care. She's getting into Disney though. She begged to watch Sleeping Beauty for like the fifth time today.

[Teen Artist]

I hate when people think like this. Lots of good points in this thread about why anyone can enjoy animation. I have something to add. I say, if adults make it, why can't adults enjoy it? Sure, just because you do something for a job doesn't mean it has to be good, but we know our Disney animators take pride in their work. Society should be less close-minded.

I'm not even an adult (I'll be 16 on Thursday), but I don't like people saying animation is only for kids.

[STASHONE]

But as we learn more about the brain and where our sense of humor fits in, you might be able to see your boyfriend in a more charitable light. It seems that humorous stimulation can act sort of the same way that drugs such as cocaine and amphetamines do on the part of the brain that has been linked to happiness. According to Dr. Allan Reiss of Stanford University, writing in the professional journal Neuron, there are "reward centers" in the brain that are awakened by things perceived as funny. Reiss had a group of people look at funny and unfunny cartoons, and watched their brain activity for pleasurable reactions. Humor has been the basis of relationships and is a great coping mechanism for stress, Reiss reminds us


Genius analysis.. this woman is a doctor?

I wanna slap her.

I don't think the word "humor" exists in her vocabulary.

[Sunset Girl]

Oh, good lord. It never ends.

Let us not forget that cartoons are created by very talented and professional adults, and much of it is created for themselves to enjoy moreso than the so-called target audience of children. The classic Looney Tunes and MGM shorts are an obvious example; they openly admitted that they never gave much thought to the audience; they worked on stuff that they enjoyed themselves. Disney is an even more obvious example. You could say the same for the less "family-friendly" fare like the late-night Adult Swim material found on Cartoon Network.

I mean, I would love to produce a cartoon, more for my own satisfaction than, "oh, I don't give a crap about what I'm doing, I'm just trying to make a living." Animation is a very difficult, complex, collaborative, and expensive artform to create, and a career in it is highly sought after by legitimate artists from all over the world.

I am not ashamed to show my love for animation, and I turn 29 this week. I'll never outgrow it, and I managed to get my fiance interested as well after he had stopped watching them around the age of twelve. It's really too bad that some people think that it's only for six-year-olds when it can work on so many levels.

It reminds me of a set of interviews conducted by Disney back in the 80's. One teenage boy said that he couldn't wait until he had kids so he'd have an excuse to go see Disney movies again, since he wouldn't be caught dead seeing one. I think some of America got over that stigmata back in the early 90's (Aladdin was a popular "date movie," for example) but we still have a long way to go. Such closed-minded attitudes given by so-called doctors need to be thrown out the window. Even though Dr. Joyce Brothers doesn't seem to understand that cartoons are for everyone, at the very least she should have pointed out that the boyfriend isn't harming anything by enjoying them and to let him be.