Dismissing it will not Make You More “Grown-Up” – People’s Odd Prejudice Against Animated Media
By Sümeyye Aydin
Picture this: a person from the Middle Ages somehow ends up in our era, and it is up to you to show them all the luxuries and indulgences of the twenty-first century. You, of course, take your duty seriously and at one point get around to showing them the wide array of media, such as series, movies, etc., that we have at our disposal. And whilst you might be excited to show them whatever you have picked out, they are unfortunately not aware that, with you as their guide, they got the short end of the stick. They do not know that they were saddled with someone whose intolerance towards some media forms makes them miss out on a lot of qualitative stuff. Of course, that time traveller does not exist, but someone else (that being yourself) still misses out on a lot of great things, with one of them being the greatness of animated media.
Admittedly, I can almost feel some of you scrunching your noses whilst reading this. You feel it is odd that I go out of my way to make such an allegory, just for my point to be that something childish and inane (according to you, of course) such as animation is great. But you also have to understand that people such as yourselves have driven me to the point of writing this.
I do not think I am making any false assumptions that, unless you are a centenarian, it is nearly impossible for you to have grown up without exposure to animated media. And unless you are someone insisting on marking yourself as a distinguished elite, you have really enjoyed watching some of the animated media. Yet somewhere down the road, you started falling for the “Animated media is only for children” propaganda. Frankly, I have spent a lot of time thinking about why that is, and I have arrived at the halfway conclusion that it is due to some sort of convention that deems animation as something solely reserved for children. I can also sense some of you taking exception to this statement, quoting personal preferences as a reason for not watching it. And I do acknowledge and respect the fact that individual preferences exist and that some of you out there genuinely do not enjoy watching animated media. What I do not respect, however, is the fact that people succumb to some kind of peer pressure and deprive themselves of things that they know are great. This is because, as I said, nearly everyone watched something animated throughout their childhood, which is why they know it can be used to tell compelling stories.
One argument that I have frequently encountered is the assertion that animation is mostly used for children’s media, as if that is some kind of proof that this is the only possible way of utilising it. Because if you only take a glance at some of the many more mature animated series and movies out there, you will know that it is now true. Invincible, Arcane, Legend of Vox Machina and the entire DC Animated Movie Universe. You will see that it is very much possible to tell serious and compelling stories with a lot of mature themes via animation. Yet some of you still hesitate when I tell you that, or even when you see it with your own eyes, for which Invincible can serve as proof.
Invincible is a popular and critically acclaimed series, which is why many clips from the newest episodes went viral across multiple social media platforms. Most of those clips, in turn, efficiently showcase the high stakes, great writing and violent fights that are part of the series’ make-up. Yet, in the same breath with which non-watchers (a group of which some of you might very much be part as well) praise the series for appearing interesting and entrapping, many commentators still are firm in their decision not to watch it. Their reasons, then, are something along the lines of “It looks really interesting, but I do not watch cartoons”. I find this especially ironic when considering that some of Invincible’s viral clips are quite bloody and gory, firmly demonstrating that the series is clearly not intended for children. And whilst this, of course, frustrates me to no end, it also shows me something that I find quite profound. I believe it is truly astounding that this prejudice can actually hold some of you back from enjoying something in which you clearly seem interested.
I also believe that this is the same prejudice that hinders people from viewing animation as what it actually is, an art form and rather than a medium solely reserved for children. I believe that if some of you genuinely try to take in what I am saying, then you might realise that you are being held back by this misconception as well. I do not expect anybody to start becoming fans of animated media, or even to defend it online. What I, and many other fans, wish is actually for us and for the medium of animation to be taken seriously. We want to not be scoffed at when we talk about how animation can be used to tell stories in beautifully crafted art styles and how it is capable of depicting things that CGI often try and fails to, such as magic or futuristic technology. Concerning the last point, I want you to think of any fantastical series that you might have been fond of during your childhood, and how many, if not all, of its scenes would be impossible to translate into real-life stories. And then I want you to consider that it is possible to tell fantastical stories for adults as well, and how some of these are better off being drawn by an animator, rather than unconvincingly told with CGI. Ultimately, we want people to see that everything is within the realms of possibilities thanks to animation, and how infinite imagination should not be something only children should have.
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