Having binge-watched Modern Family and Criminal Minds multiple times, many people were desperate for new content during quarantine. Joe Exotic was a hot topic and we were just getting over the urge to go for a second grocery run and Supaloney was stuck in our heads. Then, Tiktok offered up a vast library of shows to veg out on the couch for hours; anime.
This Youtube compilation of anime Tiktoks from January 2021 has over seven million views, proving how prevalent the genre was at the time, as most of the comments are from around that time. In 2021, over 50% of viewers watched anime on Netflix. Netflix has also funded several anime programs, like Beastars, Blue Period, Way of the Househusband, and several more. The cost of animation is fairly cheap, in the style of traditional anime, compared to live-action. Spider-Man: No Way Home cost $200 million to make and grossed almost $2 billion globally, as it is a mainstream Marvel/Disney movie. Demon Slayer: Mugen Train cost $15.8 million to animate and grossed $503 million USD globally.
As for anime movies, they do exceptionally well at the U.S. box office, for a film from overseas. The third My Hero Academia movie grossed more than $10 million. As of March 22, JJK 0 was second, with The Batman at first, grossing $17.6 million in its opening weekend. Mugen Train, released at the tail end of quarantine, grossed $21.2 million. Pre-Covid, anime movies had not been released to global audiences at this scale or had grossed as much as a domestic box office movie would make in the U.S.
Clearly, Western audiences were consuming anime content, fan-made as well as from the source, encouraging new fans to rapidly become experts. However, longtime anime fans put up some resistance to the mainstreaming of their genre. As someone who was criticized for enjoying the genre in middle school, I supported gatekeeping at first. I rarely use Tiktok, so I’m spared from cringy anime content, for the most part. Sometimes, lines or rap songs with verses based on anime will have viral sounds on Tiktok, which I now think is amazing! Having people be more open to watching anime is a good thing, not only in a capitalistic sense that the mall has more of my favorite characters on t-shirts, but that sharing the stories with your friends and fangirling over Gojo has never been easier to access, or more fun.
Funimation is now being absorbed by Crunchyroll, bringing more English dub content to audiences who are newer to anime, or just prefer to listen in English, as some people don’t like reading subtitles. With most mainstream anime on Netflix and Hulu, there are several series that remain on the platforms for newcomers to experience. There are so many types of shows, as the genre is essentially just Japanese animation, so viewers who skew more towards romance can find several titles, but those who like action can find even more. If you still haven’t given anime a try, go ahead and take the plunge!