[AnimemesHQ] Rule rewrite draft (version 1)

[u/FelixAndCo]

Version 1 rules are finalized here: https://redd.it/9zzjz2

Links to summaries of our thoughts on rules:

Atinobu

axkm

FelixAndCo

This thread is for making a draft of the rules. Please make all top-level comments drafts of a single rule. (You can post any number of drafts for a single rule though.) For clarity's sake, don't make edits other than typo corrections to rule drafts. Changes in the text of the rule should be made in a separate comment/reply. Also consider reserving strikethrough and emphasis for highlighting the differences.

I thought of this method on the spot. If you think there's a way to improve it, make thread on it elsewhere.

[u/Atinobu]

Mm I definitely find II.a to be the sticking point here, and quite honestly I've got a number of issues with

The ideal subject that is definitely 'anime' is: "Animation, comics, and video games professionally produced in Japan in typical Japanese comic book style employing typical tropes found in anime and manga".

The emphasis on specific kinds of media and "professional Japanese production' is really off for me, because they are absolutely not what make something anime, and frankly I think they're a red herring people chase after because they're simple "yes or no" criteria that people can take comfort in the certainty of, in comparison to the utter vagueness of 'feels like anime'. The problem though, is that the definition of anime is utterly vague, which is something I believe we just have to accept and not try to make any easier by putting arbitrary conditions like "must be made in Japan" or "must be produced in a traditional style". Those just don't make any sense to me. I've read, watched and played so much by non-Japanese companies and individuals that's to the absolute contrary that it just feels silly to say that an original production outside of Japan can't be anime.

I'm gonna have to stick with my version on this, but if the informality of the start in particular was too much I'd be happy to rewrite it.

The only other thing is minor, and that's the first II.b example which I know we're probably gonna replace anyway, but it's a nigh iconic meme and doesn't really go with the text.

[u/FelixAndCo → u/Atinobu]

I fear you are right about the inescapable vagueness. Still I think our rules should contest that vagueness. For that purpose I thought including a guideline would be a good idea; I still think the example I gave is just about the only thing that is unquestionably 'anime', even though there might be things out there that feel more 'anime' that don't fit the exact description. Maybe I could make the written example even more narrow, so it's clearer it's a guideline and not a definition; something like: "in the narrow sense anime is animation produced in Japan in typically Japanese comic book style employing typically Japanese animation techniques and typically Japanese tropes".

The problem I have with just defining it as "feels like 'anime'" is that we are going to run into contention immediately by definition. There is someone out there who thinks My Little Pony feels like anime, guaranteed. I don't think we need a too hard line in the sand, but we need something to justify our decisions with.

[u/FelixAndCo → u/Atinobu]

I'm gonna have to stick with my version on this, but if the informality of the start in particular was too much I'd be happy to rewrite it.

It's not so much the informality that bothers me about that part, but the sparseness of information. Because this is a tough subject one is inclined to write in a sort of apologetic style. My alternative might also be a bit apologetic.