We've all watched cartoons. Most of us still do, regardless of our age, but what is it about Anime and Manga that has so many so captivated? The stories are endless, the characters unique and the effect that it has on us is one of heartbreaking romance, nail-biting adventure and non-stop, deeply satisfying violence. We have laughed, we have cried and we have begged for more with our favorite animes and mangas and it is something that has cultures and people all around the world captivated.
While the art and story writing is often far and above with most animes and mangas, it's not that particular beauty aspect that I want to discuss this week. This week we focus on actual attraction. As in, attraction to any given male or female anime/manga character. Oh yes, I'm going there, people! I'm exploring the attraction between the average anime lover and their character crushes.
Now, is it just that these characters are specifically designed to be aesthetically pleasing to us or is it something more that draws in our hearts and mind? The first layer to this attraction does start on the surface. Anime and manga characters, even video game characters are designed to catch our attention. Girls have slender waists, large breasts and wide, expressive eyes. Boys have girlish, slender hands, thin bodies that are lined with the faintest of muscle and smoldering looks. I'm not saying that this is the case with every single anime character, but a lot of them. And of course, there are characters such as those in Dragon Ball Z that are nothing but rippling muscles that people still find quite attractive. We also cannot forget the pure cuteness factor of the catboy or the adorable draw of characters in uniform, such as in Tokyo Mew Mew, Sailor Moon and Full Metal Alchemist.
The second layer to this intrigue, this attraction is the personality. The dashing, stoic hero of the tale, the wilting flower of a princess in trouble, the snarky talk of some jaded rebel, the dripping sex appeal of the power-chick of the story all captivate us and attract us to the character as it would if they were completely real people. We take the physical surface attraction, combine it with this personality and we have the makings of what draws us into loving that character so much.
The last aspect is the back story or personal growth of a character. No matter if it is a real person or a character in story or movie, we are drawn to where they come from, what motivates them, what series of events have compiled them into the person they are and this final component mixed with the surface attraction and personality is the gist of where our attraction to these beautiful characters comes from.
These characters weasel their way into our hearts and have a happy spot there. Whether you've got a huge crush on the character or just really, really like them, they're there to stay. You're just never too old or too above falling in love or like with a cartoon. Cartoons are an innocent joy, whether it's mainstream American or Anime, and they're a guilty pleasure we never quite grow out of.Links:
Dragon Ball Wiki
Gundam Wing Wiki
Tokyo Mew Mew Wiki
Sailor Moon Wiki
Full Metal Alchemist Wiki
Angel Sanctuary Wiki
This link is to the wiki search page of all the articles on Anime and aesthetics.
All photos are copyright to their respective users and companies.
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