What Writers Can Learn From Anime
Basic storytelling with wild coats of paint
Anime has grown in popularity in the west over the last couple of decades. At first, it was seen as some strange, foreign cartoon style that always had weird ideas and concepts. Now, people look at you funny when you tell them you’ve never seen anime. I used to shock my friends when they found out I had never seen anything. Then I got into it, and I kind of ruined it for myself by starting at the top and being disappointed that no other show is as good as Attack on Titan. At least, none that I’ve found so far. (I’m reading the Fullmetal Alchemist manga before watching the show, and this one is shaping up to be a big challenger.)
But why has anime grown in popularity? What makes it so different? Why do people enjoy anime so much? We have streaming services now dedicated to bringing anime to western viewers. Crunchyroll even has the budget to create its own original shows. Netflix has had an interest in anime for a long time, now. They’ve also begun creating their own anime.
There’s clearly a lot of money to be found here. There’s a massive viewership for this style of storytelling. How can we as authors use what anime is doing to make our stories better? How can we create something energetic yet deeply thematic? How can we write stories that are irresistible to readers and nonreaders alike?
Back to the basics
When we take a step back, we can see that most anime have a very simple and basic premise: Main Character wants something and will stop at nothing to get that thing. Eren Jeager wants to destroy all Titans. Kafka Hibino wants to rise through the ranks of the Kaiju Defense Force to fight side-by-side with his childhood friend like he promised all those years ago. Edward and Alphonse Elric want to find a way to bring their mother back using their talents in alchemy.
I find that one of the biggest differences between anime and western storytelling is how the writers treat their main character. Over in the west, we want to see our character achieve their goal. We want them to reach the top. This typically leads to us being a bit more relaxed when it comes to opposition. We let our characters off easy. They collect win after win. Sometimes they fail, but it’s usually without any consequences. They keep moving forward and progressing until they have what they want.
In anime, I often see the opposite. The story is as hard as possible on the main character. The main character might become stronger and learn more about how to reach his goal as he moves through the story, but the opposition also becomes stronger. Everything is perfectly scaled.
But not only do the heroes fail a lot, but their failures have consequences. Eren gets eaten by a Titan which leads to him learning that he can transform himself into one of the monsters. Kafka Hibino reveals that he is Kaiju No. 8 and saves his friends which leads to him getting captured by the Defense Force that he works for. In Fullmetal Alchemist… well, the girl and her dog. If you know, you know.
The characters make choices, and they’re not always the right choices. They fail, they’re punished (brutally), and learn from their mistakes. But in the end, after all these choices, punishments, and a long, long road, the characters have their goal in sight. But it’s not always what we expect. In Attack on Titan, Eren and his friends are technically successful in delivering their promise from the beginning. By the end of the story, all the Titans are destroyed. But it’s done in a way no one could have predicted at the beginning of the story, and the cost almost feels too high.
Energy
Anime is an incredibly energetic storytelling medium. Every shot is filled with energy. The stories always feel like they’re moving (unless it’s an older anime, where characters take 10 years to punch something). Each shot has a purpose. Each scene drives the character through their journey. Each character has a reason for being there, whether it’s to help or hinder the main character.
But what about the scenes where things slow down? What about the scenes where there is no action? No monster to fight, no enemy to battle, no test to get through. How do those still feel energetic?
Your audience will need to rest from time to time, of course. All action all the time is exhausting, and very few readers will enjoy that. But how do we keep that energy going? How do we give the audience a breather without slowing down the momentum of the story?
Treat everything like an action scene.
Seriously. This works.
Just as your character has monsters to battle and tests to endure, he has choices to make, arguments to win, and relationships he must maintain. These are obstacles in your characters journey. He might not face these obstacles with a sword, but he still must work hard to get through them.
Going back to Attack on Titan as an example, most of the show is spent on the character making decisions and setting up the big action scenes everyone remembers. It’s the anticipation of the action that gets the audience excited, but it’s the energy in the scenes where all characters do is sit around and talk that keeps them invested. Even when there weren’t any Titans to fight, I always found myself engaged in the story. The characters worked hard to achieve their short-term goals that would help them in the long-run, but they worked hard with their words and brains instead of their weapons, which I always found interesting.
Even if you’re writing an action story, there are going to be times where your main character can’t solve their problem with fighting. They’ll have to outsmart and outmaneuver the enemy. They’ll have to think things through, but keep fighting for what they want. The action never stops. It just looks different from time to time.
Colorful coats of paint
While the stories are similar in premise, anime often has strange and unique concepts that set every show apart. There are a lot of tropes and commonalities found across most of the shows, but it’s the flavor each show provides that adds something unique and personal from the creator. Attack on Titan is filled with loss, the horrors of war, and has a brilliant setting with tons of mysteries to unravel. Fullmetal Alchemist has tons of interesting characters and a very well-crafted magic system that’s fun and engaging. Kaiju No. 8 has a fun sci-fi premise, lovable characters, and a lot of fun humor that I can’t get enough of.
Most stories are similar. It’s very, very difficult to create something original. In fact, I’m of the belief that it’s impossible to write a story that is 100% original. Every story has been told before. But it hasn’t been told by you. You’re unique. You have your own voice. You see the world differently. You have a vision no one else has. The flavor you add to your stories cannot be replicated by anyone else.
Western stories do their best to be like each other. They don’t just take inspiration from one another. They try to copy each other. We try so hard to be like our favorite authors and write stories like our favorite movies, books, or shows. We don’t try to be ourselves. We try to get others to like us. We sacrifice our uniqueness because we want to give others what they want instead of creating what we want.
Anime doesn’t hold back. The writers get weird, but they don’t apologize for it. They do whatever they want. They don’t try to please their audience. They try to write the best story they can and have fun doing it. Instead of replicating what others have done before, they surge forward and try new things, paving the way for the future.
Writing is its own reward, and the creators of manga and anime certainly act like it.
These are some of the things I’ve learned from this storytelling medium. What do you think? Are there more that can be added to the list? Are there ideas here you disagree with? Let me know!
I've been an Anime fan since the mid-80's, when we held monthly meetings in a rented hall to watch 15th generation VHS copies of Gundam taped off the air, with no subtitles but half a translation someone downloaded off a BBS. What makes it so different from western animation is that Anime is a Medium, not a Genre. Same goes for Manga.
Sounds like a lot of what you're seeing now are Shonen, or boys adventures. But there's also Seinen which is a bit more grown up. (And Shojo and Josei for women). In the west we're afflicted with the idea that Cartoons/Comics are for kids, and that the rare animation targeted for adults was scandalous and inappropriate (Heavy Metal, Wizards, Fritz the Cat). In anime, anything is possible because it doesn't have to be limited to one age group. Thus what is ostensibly a Shonen program like Macross can also have serious scenes like Roy Focker's death.
Damn! Who knew my obsessive anime watching days could be so helpful. I never really thought of them like this, but you're right, anime is full of energy and excitement, even when scenes are slow and informative. They really have the formula for keeping readers and watchers engaged. There's a lot to learn from them.
I would love to see your response to the FMA Manga. I've never read it myself, but it's been on my list ever since Brotherhood became (and still remains) my all time favorite anime. And I agree, anime really isn't afraid to venture in the the strange and unordinary. No idea is too bizarre (ie. Chainsawman... I mean, who thought it was a good idea to write an anime about a guy who has chainsaws for hands? But it works, somehow).
Honestly, this has me feeling a bit more confident in the weird shit I write. It's time to let loose. Let those bizarre, out-of-the-box, crazy ideas flow!