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Ashton Griffith

Professor Sam

ENC 1102

31 March 2024

Literature Review

It’s the beginning of the year 2024 in the U.S. and it’s hard to imagine meeting anyone

who has not experienced the world of anime or at least become familiar with the term. It seems

no matter what an individual's interest is, they have been exposed to anime whether they

consider themselves die-hard fans or just acquaintances of the most popular series. That is

because anime has become so engrossed in our Pop Culture it’s hard to ignore it any longer.

Anime has become more mainstream in the U.S. than at any other time due to celebrity

influence, collaborations with designer brands, and collaborations with sports organizations that

expand from economic to cultural to societal shifts.

The true audience of anime no longer fits into the stereotype of the young, but all ages

and genders. It's no longer considered simply animation or cartoons. This is a huge change from

when the first Manga Anime, Astro Boy, was introduced to the U.S. back in the 60s. Astro Boy is

one of the most successful manga and anime franchises in the world; it was one of the first

milestones for anime to reach where it is now in popularity. As Daniel Baird points out in his

work “Introduction of Anime in US Pop Culture” majority of the earlier anime’s popularity was

impacted by censorship due to the recategorization of anime to be simply cartoons for children.

This greatly diminished as the world entered the early 2000s. It’s important to note that also

occurring in the turn of the century is the wave of streaming platforms such as Crunchyroll,

Funimation, Amazon Prime, and Netflix giving more access to anime and to a wider audience.
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People have always connected with one another over television shows, so since anime is a story,

with each episode building off the previous, people became more connected to the themes.

Themes and concepts such as ethnicity, gender roles, animation style, and narratives draw

in viewers which develops into a larger conversation of what everything means. Dana Fennell, a

Professor of Sociology at the University of Southern Mississippi, describes how race and gender

role concepts in anime entertain consumers with their diverse characters. The variety of

characters from vast amounts of anime is immense. Characters of races and gender are present,

and each role they have can be unique. Not only do the characters excite viewers, but the

animation itself ropes in new watchers. Research gathered by Nor Afian Yusof and others

compiled data to show a sample of people who watch anime and who do not. A finding of theirs

is that many people simply began to watch anime due to the art and animation style of the anime.

There are many anime out there ranging from vibrant and detailed art styles to more plain and

mellow styles.

My last three scholarly sources all pertain to how anime has made itself an economic

influencer in the market of the world. Anime has made itself much more than just something to

watch or binge. Anime has a role in the economy because of its cross cultural acceptance around

the world. “The Implementation of Japanese Animation (Anime) In Advertising” by Aziz

Munafsin and Susy Ong, researchers at Universitas Indonesia explore how anime has grown

internationally, and how anime based commercials can increase viewer engagement and create a

sentimental connection between brands. Various advertisements, products, and collaborations of

anime are constantly in motion. Products are imported and exported through countries everyday

pertaining to anime. It is hard to deny or to overlook the impact anime has had on the economy.

Consumers are buying things from clothes, to figurines, to collectibles, and even water bottles
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that are associated with anime. Anne Cooper-Chen, a Professor of Journalism at Ohio University,

discusses in her article, "Cartoon planet: the cross-cultural acceptance of Japanese animation.",

why anime has become so dominant in the US and in the global market. Movies and new

episodes of anime are in demand and are heavily consumed. People are subscribing to networks

to watch the latest episodes of their favorite anime or buying tickets to the movies to see their

anime’s new movie. Anything and everything pertaining to anime will continue to prosper due to

the freedom that anime provides. Creators of anime are allowed to freely express their creativity

and talents inevitably getting official support. Through their animators' efforts, they generate

gradual influence with their customs and culture. Naruetape Patipimpakom, author of

“Anime–Not Just for Entertainment", dives deeper into how and why anime is still expanding

and still continues to grow through economic troubles such as COVID-19.

The plethora of reasons why anime is becoming more and more consumed and desired is

becoming known. Its relevance is exponentially increasing from the worldwide attention it is

getting and will continue to grow. My scholarly sources help give me great insight for my

research of how anime has become more mainstream and it being a part of pop culture. They will

help me explain how anime has come to be and the continuing effect it will have.
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Works Cited

Aziz, Munafsin, and Susy Ong. “The Implementation of Japanese Animation (Anime) In

Advertising.” View of the Implementation of Japanese Animation (Anime) in

Advertising, Journal of Indonesian Social Science, 5 May 2023,

jiss.publikasiindonesia.id/index.php/jiss/article/view/810/1524.

Baird, Daniel. “Introduction to Anime in US Pop Culture.” Literary Studies SLCC, Salt

Lake Community College, 21 Aug. 2023,

https://slcc.pressbooks.pub/literarystudiesatslcc/chapter/introduction-to-anime/
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Cooper-Chen, Anne. "Cartoon planet: the cross-cultural acceptance of Japanese

animation." Asian Journal of Communication 22.1 (2012): 44-57, Full article:

Cartoon planet: the cross-cultural acceptance of Japanese animation

(tandfonline.com)

Fennell, Dana, et al. “Consuming Anime.” Sage Journals, 2 Mar. 2012,

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1527476412436986

Patipimpakom, Naruetape. "Anime–Not Just for Entertainment." The 15th NPRU National

Academic Conference Nakhon Pathom Rajabhat University, 2023,

https://publication.npru.ac.th/bitstream/123456789/2066/1/192.pdf

Yusof, Nor Afian, et al. “The Influence of Anime as Japanese Popular Culture among Art

and Design Students.” Nurture, 27 July 2023,

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/372845388_The_influence_of_anime_a

s_Japanese_popular_culture_among_art_and_design_students