The anime industry was built for the entertainment of everyone. It is one of the most prominent forms of entertainment capable of catering to all the preferences of its audience due to the wide category and genres to choose from. Although it was a space built for everyone, sadly, the anime industry is no longer a safe space for kids. Read on to find out why!
Many anime fans grew up with their favourite series or characters. There are so many otakus around the globe wherein it is suspected that most of them range from 20 to 30 years old. However, it cannot be avoided that the younger sector, aged 11-19 or even younger, have also watched animes.
Many non-anime fans tend to assume that cartoons and animes are quite similar, if not the same. This makes a lot of otakus come to their defence, saying these shows are more than what they seem to be. However, there are still plenty of kids who watch anime without any parental supervision.
The rise of anime in the past years resulted in it being available on various streaming sites. Today everyone can watch them via Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, Disney Plus, HBO Max, and other local streaming sites. Hence, kids can definitely access different series and movie that captures their interest. However, not all animes are like Doraemon, and there is a possibility that kids will encounter a show not suitable for their age. To justify why anime is no longer for everyone, here are five reasons that will help you in guiding younger anime fans:
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5. The Exposure of Too Much Nudity
Although not every anime exposes a bit of nudity or fanservice, many popular shows today are embracing the powerful impact it brings to a particular show.
There are numerous animes today that incorporate fanservice. This refers to gratuitous or sexualized depictions of characters or situations. This can include revealing clothing, provocative poses, or scenes with a strong emphasis on sexual content. Such content is not suitable for young audiences.
As we discussed in a previous article, fanservice does not only refer to sexual shots or angles featuring a character’s body part closely. However, in most cases, fanservice is the term that refers to such scenes. Many animes available on different streaming sites have mature contents that kids will not be able to understand.
For instance, the cooking anime series Food Wars is PG-13 rated and has a lot of qualities that make it one of the best and uniquely written anime shows today. But, no matter how harmless it can be, the fanservice the series provides is still not for everyone.
The term foodgasm that the series features, wherein people who find the food delicious get underdressed and produce org*sm-like tones, is certainly not suitable for kids. What is more scary is if kids where to encounter animes like Highschool DxD which can confuse and traumatise them.
4. Some Jokes/Actions Are Not Child-Friendly
In connection to the extreme to mild explicit content in some anime shows, the jokes or actions written for the characters are again not child-friendly. One thing that makes the anime industry popular with its target audience is the comedy it offers.
Strong languages, such as swearing or offensive words or expressions, can be found in anime. Specific speech may include adult comedy that parents may deem inappropriate for their children’s age range or that children may not completely understand.
Almost all anime shows never forget to incorporate jokes in each scene that would make the viewers laugh out loud. However, these jokes are sometimes too much for the younger generation. Therefore, instead of laughing, they may end up more confused than they already are.
Comedies or jokes in the anime industry are subjective. What is funny to the older generation may not be funny to the younger ones. For instance, many jokes in the anime series are actually dirty jokes or are dark humour. Fan-favourite isekai series, namely Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation, Seven Deadly Sins and KonoSuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! frequently make dirty jokes/actions that can be uncomfortable for kids.
KonoSuba‘s main character. Kazuma Satou, steals girls’ underwear for fun, and Rudeus from Mushoku Tensei is believed to be a 100% pervert due to his actions and words. In addition, Melodias unintentionally and intentionally gets too physical with Elizabeth.
3. Animes Can Put the Kids Social Life in Danger
Anime is one of the most fantastic forms of entertainment today. They can be the perfect escape for people who wants to forget all of their problems even for a short time. With the wide variety of choices, surely, fans will have a hard time choosing a series they want to watch. Therefore, it is not so surprising to know that plenty of fans still have a long list of animes to watch. However, the escapism it provides can sometimes lead to addiction. The words shut-in and NEET are commonly mentioned in anime shows, particularly in the isekai genre.
NEET refers to young people who are not committing themselves to their education, employment, or training. The scary thing about being too passionate about anime is that becoming a NEET can also happen in real life. Be it because of escapism, boredom, social connection, or even the fear of missing out. We cannot deny that too much anime can ruin the social life of an individual. Hence, adults who have kids fond of watching them should strictly monitor the time they spend and must always put in their mind that education should be their top priority.
Read More: Fan Service in Anime: The Bad and the Good
2. Bloody Gore Animes May Hunt Kids In Their Sleep
It must be emphasized that gore animes are not horror animes. Thus, even when a kid tries to avoid scary anime shows, he or she may still encounter anime from other genres that are gore. The details in most action series are exceptionally excellent, and sometimes absolutely gruesome. Heads get cut off, body parts are torn into pieces, and characters get their eyes plucked out while they are conscious. While this may seem cool for adult viewers, especially when it happens to a hated character, children may find these scenes disturbing.
Death Note is a dark psychological series almost available to all anime streaming sites. It is also one of the most popular series fans still talk about offline and online. In 2005, a scandal involving a middle school student from China was reported to be imitating the series’ protagonist, Light Yagami.
The report stated that the students from Shenyang were starting to write their own death notes following the same rule in the series. One of the students revealed that plenty of his classmates do the same thing and write the name of their teachers whom they hate.
This resulted in Shenyang and other schools in China to banned the manga and other content related to the series. This implies that the coolness of gore animes should never overshadow the risks it carries, specifically for younger audiences.
1. The Target Audience Is Inconsistent
Many kids nowadays use social media; therefore, it is likely that they will see posts or videos regarding an anime not suitable for them. Animes do have some parental guidance that adults may use to guide the little anime fans in choosing what show is best and most appropriate for their age. However, this doesn’t mean that the target audience is already well-establish because it is not.
Although there are agencies or government offices that assign age ratings for these shows, sometimes this is not enough. There are series that appear to be PG-13 but feature scenes that are actually not suitable even for 13-year-old kids, even with their parent’s presence. The inconsistency of age ratings may take a long time and many processes to assign them to particular shows accurately. Hence, adults, mainly parents, must not solely rely on the fact that their kids are entertained by what they watch.
With the presence of technology, parents are advised never to hesitate to search for further information about the series their kids are currently binge-watching. It is advisable to see if these are recommended for the younger generation through age ratings and to read comments about their content. Yes, even if its features some spoilers.
Read More: The Representation of Demons in Anime and Why They Are Popular
Top 5 Animes Approved to Be Safe for Kids
The drawbacks that anime carry for kids can be easily avoided, aside from, putting passwords through parental controls on the streaming sites they used, such as Netflix. Parents or other adults can help guide growing anime fans by choosing what they watch or knowing what to recommend. Because of the wide variety of choices, anime can still be for everyone.
Aside from Pokemon or Doraemon, there have been a lot of animes that kids can watch and gain valuable lessons. Hence, to help lessen your time from browsing, we have compiled the five best animes that kids can safely watch:
5. Avatar: The Last Air Bender
This may not be a Japanese animated series like Doraemon or Pokemon. But, Avatar: The Last Air Bender is an American animated series influenced greatly by Japanese animation. The series will definitely entertain kids with the characters’ goofiness, at the same time, it will also teach them the importance of forgiveness, friendships, being responsible, and the significance of believing that there is always hope.
Avatar: The Last Air Bender follows the story of the 12-years old air nomad, Aang, who is the current Avatar and the last survivor of the Air Kingdom. Together with his friends, Katara, Sokka, and Toph, they all began their journey across the world to help Aang master the four elements and end the battle within the nations by putting an end to Fire Lord Ozai’s reign.
4. Haikyuu!!
For kids who are into sports, Haikyu!! can excellently inspire them to never stop pursuing their dreams. Even for kids who are not that into sports, this can be the anime that will spark the sports enthusiast within them or will simply provide them with good entertainment. The moral story of this series focuses on the importance of always having a good time with your friends, and always improving yourself for the better.
It revolves around the story of Shoyo Hinata who was inspired to enter the world of volleyball by the professional player Little Giant. Shoyo may be short, but this doesn’t mean that he cannot have big dreams. As he pursues his dream to become the world’s champion, he will meet his rival turned teammate, Kageyama Shigeo.
3. My Hero Academia
Another modern anime that adults can add to their kids’ watch lists is My Hero Academia. For kids who are fond of thrilling action scenes with a comedy on the side then My Hero Academia is definitely right off the bat. Since the release of this adventure-superhero series in 2016, its popularity has been unstoppable and immediately became one of the top-tier animes of this generation that everyone can enjoy.
My Hero Academia revolves around the story Midoriya Izuki who was born without a quirk and is obsessed with the ultimate superhero All-Might. After his encounter with his idol, All-Might saw the potential in him and made him his successor. Midoriya is then given the power allowing him to enter the most prestigious superhero academy and meet new friends.
2. Yo-Kai Watch
Yo-kai Watch is the anime considered to be the best series for kids. It centers on the story of Keita Amano, a curious kid like most, who encounters a capsule that led him to meet Whisper. As a gift for freeing him, Whisper gifted Keita a yokai watch which will allow the two of them to befriend all the Yokai’s that are haunting their city.
Yo-kai Watch is one hundred percent approved by parents. Out of all the animes that are currently being released or had been released, this series is no doubt one of the most harmless shows for kids. Since the series involve children, the series will also help them to learn empathy and adults who are willing to watch the series may learn how to approach kids like the main character better.
1. Naruto
This shounen series is a classic anime at its finest. Many anime fans today grew up together with Naruto Uzumaki. From when they were still kids to when they graduated or started working, Naruto is still in the heart and minds of plenty of anime fans. The anime follows the story of Naruto Uzumaki who suffered through loneliness as a child. However, this will not be a hindrance for him to become a strong ninja worthy of becoming the leader of his village.
This popular series is great and memorable as a first anime, particularly for kids. Naruto is anime that has great life lessons that kids can use as their guide in growing up. It teaches its viewers that changing for the better is possible. It also teaches them that no dreams are impossible or too big, hard work is your biggest strength, and that you’re never alone in life.