My issue is that people who defend Toei point at it's success of the studio rather than their talent of the studio to prove that they are good/amazing.
There are two parts on the problem.
1st - Your Radical position on the subject. Restricting any conversation of value. "If you so certain that the sky is red, and all your pals agree. It will be hard to explain and/or convince you that in fact due to chemist reaction, in fact it isn't red by blue"
2nd- The analysis is pretty limited. In a Multimedia and storytelling platform like animation, is pretty upsetting that what you define as good or bad is pretty shortsighted. You know anime is not made in a vacuum, or is not made just for your sole satisfaction. Storytelling main objective is its diffusion and getting experiences to its audience. A product, an piece of Art, a Story, an Anime is mainly done for others.
That you can't see the importance on how a series affect the populace in general and what types of experience it brings to them makes part of describing a series "quality", shows how little "analysis" is really placed on the subject.
From the problems many people have in critiquing and analyzing a series we have:
- Treating part as the all. (A specific scene or specific scene segments, defines the entire episode/arc/series/studio)
- Impressionable Animation is synonymous of Animation quality.
- Some aspects are valued so high, obviously wrong, that they basically make or break the analysis.
- Wrongly or not all taking in account the context of the series.
- Not understanding the subject matter. And so over valuing some techniques and under valuing others.
The defining of quality is a way more complex and interesting subject matter.
One major defining of anime and of every storytelling article and of any product, its raison d'etre basically, is ... the effect on people..
Because the effect on the audience and the "technical" characteristics of a series are related. Because while you can react off to something, nothing doesn't bring reaction. So is of interest to know about the wide reaction of viewers and by Retro-Engineering try to understand what brought that reaction.
A situation where supposedly One Piece Art, Pace and Animation is bad and/or Horrible. Is relevant that is still highly popular, and it brings good reactions from its audience. This is specially true for Toei Animation.
Instead of being incredulous, not understanding how this is possible and treating it like a singularity just happened. A true analyst/Critic knows there is a reason, and looks for it. And more important keeps an Open Mind.
