The world of anime is changing. A story is becoming less important, while characters are gaining significance. Even some of the biggest anime creators see it this way.
While anime series used to often be action series aimed primarily at children or young men, the world of anime has become significantly more colorful and diverse over the last few decades. Nowadays, even niche genres like Yuri are getting more series, and in the isekai genre, there are now so many representatives that even hardcore fans can barely keep up with the series.
However, there is another change noticeable in the anime sector: The story of a series is increasingly taking a backseat, while something else takes its place: waifus.
It is much more common for the focal point of an anime to not be the progression of the story or the plot, but simply the depiction of an attractive young woman who is practically the perfect “waifu material.” This is not just an observation from fans but is also seen that way by well-known producers in the anime sector.
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Who is claiming this? This observation was made by Toshio Suzuki (former CEO of Studio Ghibli), Gen Urobuchi (screenwriter of Psycho-Pass and Maho Shojo Madoka Magica), and director Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell, Avalon – Play for Your Life) during a conversation (via yaraon-blog.com).
Oshii said: “In the last 15 years, the ‘story’ has disappeared from fantasy. Nowadays, no one wants to write a story anymore. No one needs that. Neither in anime nor in film.”
Urobuchi confirms this perception: “I suddenly had to focus more on the characters than on the story.”
Oshii says something more drastic about this:
Nowadays, I feel like I’m watching anime, but where is the story? There is a plot, but there is no story with a beginning and an end. (…)
Recently, anime fans have been attracted to the characters and want to stay connected with them.”
According to Oshii’s perception, this is also a wish of the fans. The longing for a coherent story with a beginning and an end is decreasing; many prefer to spend time with beloved characters they enjoy. This, in turn, also leads to creators of these series (both manga and anime) developing their characters less frequently or even parting with them. Everything basically has to stand still to ensure that the beloved character remains just that.
An example of this is the character “Hatsune Miku.” She “took the world by storm without a story behind her.” When this happened, Oshii felt a “professional fear as a screenwriter.”
Meanwhile, this is even influencing how he has to write stories:
I would like to end stories by making characters happy, making them suffer or letting them die. But that is increasingly being denied to me. Everyone is starting to be afraid of it. (…)
In the past, I was afraid that things couldn’t end. Now, I am afraid that things could end.
Can this be substantiated? If you look at the anime of recent months and years, it can definitely be observed that more and more series are appearing that put an attractive and lovable lady at the focus of the plot as their “selling point”. Some prominent examples from the last seasons:
- My Dress-Up Darling
- Don’t Toy with Me, Miss Nagatoro
- Komi Can’t Communicate
- Tomo-Chan Is a Girl!
- A Couple of Cuckoos
- Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie
- My One-Hit Kill Sister
- And You Thought There Never Is a Girl Online?
None of the above series is inherently bad because of this. After all, even series that primarily revolve around a “waifu” can still be very successful and appealing – especially “My Dress-Up Darling” was quite popular and had many beautiful moments.
However, a departure from a clear story, with a beginning and an end, can be observed in more and more works.
What do you think about this development? Do you share these observations? Or do you find it acceptable as long as there are at least a few series with a good story and a beginning and an end?
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