WHY. DO. YOU. EXIST!?
Frequent readers of my blog would be well acquainted with my unbridled hatred of moe. In fact, I have written several posts on how I believe we can best combat this phenomenon known as moe. However, those posts have generally been snarky and less then serious. This time however, I must ask with utmost sobriety; exactly what the fuck is so goddamned fucking appealing about moe???
Before the inevitable rant, I figured I'd introduce some context to this post; lately, I've been trying to get into Nogizaka Haruka no Himitsu. And whilst the anime has been generally enjoyable, I just can't get over how incredibly moe the titular main character, Haruka is. And it pisses the shits out of me!
For every joke or amusing anime reference Nogizaku Haruka throws at me (the GaoGaiGar and Shana ones in ep 4 being particularly funny), I must subsequently endure Haruka's annoying moe tendencies such as her crippling shyness or her airheadedness. Please tell me, why the fuck do people find social or mental retardation appealing?
And this is not just Haruka, pretty much every goddamned moe character have traits that if a person possessed in real life, would compel me to punch them.
What the fuck is appealing about clumsiness? What the fuck is appealing about stupidity?? What the fuck is appealing about incompetence??? WHY THE FUCK DOES EVERY GODDAMNED ANIME FEEL THE NEED TO PUT A FUCKING MOE CHARACTER IN THE CAST!?
Now I know I sound angry, and trust me, I am; I am sick to fucking death with having good shows spoiled for me simply because I can no longer suppress my gag reflex everytime the goddamned moeblob pops on the screen. Nogizaka Haruka for one, will forever languish in the depths of my harddrive as the main character simply disgusts me too much.
Nonetheless, I must ask this most pertinent of questions; what is it about moe that is so fucking appealing? I make it no secret that I hold nothing but contempt for it, but I still want to know why other people like it. I will probably never agree with them, but at least I might come out with some understanding of how people could love that which I loathe most.
Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go watch some porn; rather then making me what to kill someone, the women in those merely make me want to masturbate.
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I think it's fairly obvious why a lot of anime feels the need to include moe: it sells DVDs and it sells merchandise.
ReplyDeleteBut I don't think I'm really qualified to comment on what makes it appealing. I've also been told that it's one of those words whose meanings among English-speaking fans have diverged a bit from their meanings in Japan. (And, at the end of the day, which group, if any, is allowed to tell us what these things mean?) With all that hedging out of the way, however, my theory is that it's not that viewers are enjoying stupidity, clumsiness or incompetence directly, but that they're enjoying the protective urge that those qualities inspire in themselves. I don't know if that really covers it, though: all sorts of things seem to provoke a moe reaction from people.
People find it a rather attractive and/or cute characteristic I guess? If you check out some videos on youtube related to moe stuff, they all go 'omg cute :3' or somewhere along those lines.
ReplyDeleteI won't deny it. I enjoy moe. But overdose is just killer, and for good shows, moe just ruins it. The show you mentioned, for one, is one good example. My god, I can't imagine Phantom, Eden of the East or FMA being moe.
Well, this is the stuff u don't see in RL. While some want to see it ( I personally don't ) many would think these girls are clumsy and retarded where they won't survive if their life depends on it.
ReplyDeleteOne of the reasons I enjoy moe is because their overdose cuteness and clumesiness gives me the comedy I need. I always enjoy a laugh and that's what they give me. :)
I'm fine with some moe and every Anime will need to have that now and then. That what make Anime an Anime as the advantage of Anime can bring about characters with extreme not possible in everyday life. It's pure entertainment and not to be taken to heart.
ReplyDeleteOf course with long dosage, one can be develop immunity and worst getting sick and tired of it. Take a break sometime, it will help. :)
Just in case I wasn't clear, I meant 'good shows' as in those with plot/storyline that doesn't really fit well with moe.
ReplyDeleteI kind of agree with what Iknight mentioned...we can blame the perversion of the real meaning of moe as it got out Japan (and unfortunately, social/mental retardation is one of those perversions).
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question on why many find retardation appealing, it's probably because we're most likely not going to see one in real life; hence making it a fantasy, which in turn will make it no more than a tool of entertainment. Optic did say moe (or retardation, whiever you prefer to call it) makes him laugh. Does the same thing to me...
Oooooooooookay.
ReplyDeleteI think I'm the most idiotic/clueless here.
WTF IS MOE??!!
Is it about cuteness? I didn't know it relates to being a dork - feminine way?? Or is it about the pity feelings from a fragile entertaining feminine charac?
Holy.
What I meant to say is that am I the only one not exposed to moe...I know I'm not indulged in it. LOL
ReplyDeleteAaaaaaaaand OMFG Snark, you actually linked to my new blog? T___T Sankyuu, brother.
Now this would be the reason I stopped watching anime and instead started doing manga scanlation about two years ago..When the big moe shit wave started hitting hard.
ReplyDeleteI hope people soon get tired of watching the same fucking moe moe show over and over again every season.
DEATH TO MOE.
Somehow I don't really notice moe much. I just see the same stereotypical characterization. I don't like some of them, but if the whole series is interesting enough to watch, I'd still watch it.
ReplyDeleteMoar moe or gtfo!
ReplyDeleteOk, you got me here. I really can't pinpoint what it is that keeps me coming back to moe shows, perhaps I'm just that ignorant to the comparison between real life and anime that I don't even try to picture them as real airheaded women. I do admit too much is too much at times, but for some reason I don't really think about it much. If I've had an overdose of moe there's plenty of shows out there without moe, and real movies too. In most cases the characters I love most aren't the overly moe ones, but the quiet ones who in the end really kick ass, like Yuki Nagato, Fate T. Harlaown, and well, I like girls who can beat the shit out of people like Yoko, Makina and Subaru as well. I guess I'm evading the question with an answer that isn't really relevant, maybe part of my brain has been warped by the moeness. I think having a son perhaps softened me to liking things that are just happy and funny? After all, there's only so much I think is right for him to see and try and understand at 5. Though he's seen parts of Code Geass and the likes. You know what. Some day I'll just make a post about it I think. This is making me really question things, and well Riiana wants to watch anime now XD
ReplyDeleteMoe is fine, but too much isn't.
ReplyDeleteI guess it just depends on one's preference. Some of my collector friends go for an all-moe collection, while others detest it.
well i get that your angry at moe... but what did moe ever do to you??
ReplyDeletei think you should aim this anger at gainax instead :)
A moe main character will oftentimes ruin a show for me. For example I couldn't muscle past my dislike of Index from Magical Index. But I don't hate all moe, I love cute Sakura of Cardcaptor Sakura. But the differences in their type of moe is distinctly different, for example Sakura's clothes never exploded off of her the way they did to Index in the first episode...just as one minor difference of what the creators of Cardcaptor Sakura were going for as opposed to those of Magical Index.
ReplyDeleteIt's simple: Passive, inept, immature, socially-stunted males enjoy and prefer passive, inept, immature, socially-stunted females. Mystery solved!
ReplyDelete"...why the fuck do people find social or mental retardation appealing?"
ReplyDeleteWhy do people find violent girls appealing?
Neither of the two types above would be an appealing trait for real life partners, so why so popular?
It's just the kind of thing people wanna bury themselves in to hide from the harsh realities of life. Or something like that. Unrealistic stuff comforts folks I guess. Mushy romcoms n moe girls keep folks from throwing in the towel of life(lol).
Moe characters annoy me due to their weakness and pointlessness. They are cardboard cut-outs, often only there for fanservice.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of why they are enjoyed? The idea that men want to protect women. Moe characters certainly need protecting; they're too retarded to survive on their own.