"Those Anime Dolls"- Does the connection bother you?

I have never been interested in anime, but people connecting it to my dolls doesn't bother me too much. I only get a little annoyed if someone thinks bjds must mean I'm an anime fan because I dislike having any assumptions made about me. Like the way that people assume constantly that because I'm vegan I must also be against vaccinations, which couldn't be more false. I try not to approach anyone with preconceived ideas about who they are, and I appreciate being treated the same way.

 

It doesn't really bother me, when I think about it. I'm an anime fan, I found out about BJD at conventions, and one of the big things that drew me into the hobby was, "I can cosplay them! ", mostly because I want to cosplay so badly myself but I don't have the patience, time, or equipment to make human-sized cosplays. I can work on a miniature scale, though, so BJDs allow me to fulfill my cosplay wants and dreams.

I can see why it would bother some, though.

 

It doesn't bug me at all; I encountered BJDs originally at conventions, and have a subset of my dolls that are based on anime (and other) characters. In going back to the original post of this discussion, though, something did occur to me:

There are often doll cons integrated into the regular anime cons, is this a reason for the connection, or simply a cause of it? What makes the dolls seem strictly 'anime' or 'Japanese', particularly to people who aren't acquainted with the hobby?

At an anime con I attended last year, I ended up at a panel about the history of anime conventions. One of the points the panelist spent time on was that today's anime cons were born from room parties, events, and "integrated cons" at Sci-Fi conventions; it's sort of like where the doll events at anime conventions are at current! They're housed at the same event, and often seen as a same subset of that event's fandom, but the connection isn't as strong as outsiders might initially think (though it's certainly not nonexistent, either). No real commentary, here, but an interesting thought about the nature of these events as each gives rise to another in turn.

 

It doesn't bother me. The only reason I found BJDs was because I was Google image searching an anime, and iplehouse storm came up. I like anime, but that's not why I like BJDs it just happened that I learned about BJDs because of anime. So the connection wouldn't bother me. Insisting that my doll is cosplaying a character from an anime when it's not might bug me a little.

 

I haven't heard that phrase from anyone yet but I doubt I would get mad about it. I would just tell them that my what my doll is and tell them that he's from Korea.

I wouldn't have learned about these dolls if I wasn't looking up anime stuff

 

I discovered BJDs through the anime Rozen Maiden. Rozen Maiden is one of the few animes that I genuinely like, and it isn't completely cliche like other animes.

I have loved anime and mangas, note: loved, past tense. I'm actually glad I grew out of it, otherwise I would've been a weabo my whole life. I was never a weabo, but who knows, maybe I would've evolved into one. Where I live, and within our culture, a lot of people who are into anime and manga (the hardcore otakus) are weird and consistently use Japanese/Korean phrases in their sentences. It's just annoying and I would hate for me to be associated with that because of my love for BJDs. BJDs for me are canvases for art, not anime-kawaii-Japan-rox.

It is also the reason why I despise Dollfie Dreams. No, just no. If anything they're the reason why some might associate BJDs with anime -_-

 

I Love BJDs, I love cosplay - I do not like anime

 

It never bugged or bothered me. I mean I've known anime and all the Japanese things first before BJDs. I think whats connecting the BJDs to Anime and Japanese things is the fact that Japan is one of the pioneer countries that started producing these dolls. Not only that, Anime always has unique characters that people like or idolizes because of what they look like and their personalities. Like BJD's one of the main reasons it really became famous is again the fact that they have these unique appearance and personality plus they can be fully customized to what ever character you want them to be, May it be a personality you have in mind or another one like your favorite character. Characters is always vital in almost everything may it be a character you have, a character in a story, characters in your life, characters you want to idolize. Both these BJD dolls and anime (even you) have a character inside.( It would be blank/incomplete if a doll doesn't have any personality right) I think that is the reason why people tend to connect these things.

 

Nope, doesn't bother me. I guess it's because lots of cosplayers/lolitas(?) in Japan do own BJDs, seems like the doll culture started from Japan. Also with BJDs such as certain ones from LUTS do display the typical 'anime' features (eyes, nose, mouth etc) means that there is a blurred line between BJDs and anime/Japan related stuff.

 

It doesn't bug me, as I also collect anime figures... haha... But, I don't really see the connection between BJDs and anime!

 

Not really. I mean, they're anime-esque in the first place, although the newer ones have become more realistic.

 

it somewhat bugs me
i thinm they ar two different things
and the anime dolls often lost their shine in dolls form i think

 

What's wrong with anime? I sort of connect BJDs with anime myself, but only because many dolls do have the anime look. I don't think there is anything wrong with it. My niece is going to art school to become an anime artist and I think that is the coolest thing ever. Anime is a legitimate art form, and even though I don't go for it myself, I totally respect it.

My dolls don't look like anime characters, but there are a lot of dolls that do have the anime look. I don't care for them for myself, but I respect the people who own them.

 

Well, to answer the original question: most manga/anime comes from (correct me if I'm wrong) Japan. That's where the first dolls' aesthetics were drawn from. And still are. Just because Soom's been ripping off like half of Greek&Nordic mythology, Ringdoll - European Urban (and not only) Gothic, Iplehouse like western legends and prefer to create realistic dolls (often with caucasian features - consider their trademark Jessica), Chateau like this weird avant-garde stuff that is so popular among European sculptors, doesn't mean that the remaining 90% of bjds don't look indeed like inspired by manga/anime stuff. Consider immorality of soul's Ciel etc etc. (nope, I don't think any of the aforementioned is negative or any kind of cultural appropriation... I'm just stating facts without assessing it

I think it's cool that they're indeed inspired by it. I mean, westerners have created the spooky porcelain dolls (I'm sorry but I just find them terryfying.. :3) and barbies. Fine. But you know what draw me to the bjds at the beginning? *pretty*, cute, sweet, big-eyed and so on boys Nowehere before could I find this but I think that manga/anime has a lot to do with it.

The funniest thing though is that I never really liked manga/anime. Neither do I dislike it. I'm completely neutral. I mean, I like the aesthetics, but I never fell anyhow attracted to it (animated Moomins were an exception but I was 6 years old at that time...). So I'm often amused when I realise that I'm one of very few who have no idea about any basic manga/anime stuff and yet I still collect bjds. (especially when I find myself among yaoi fangirls... and then I have to explain that I like boy dolls bc of 80s sleaze rock and - likewise - I keep'em straight

*still I got to know such names/titles as Sailor Moon +Phantomv-something...(never know the ending) bc of being in the bjd hobby..

 

Doesn't bother me at all.
...I'd kinda need to change my avatar and signature if it did.

People will will see the two together and make a connection, sometimes it's true and sometimes its not. Some sculpts are clearly designed with the 2D aesthetic in mind, so I can't really get worked up if someone starts making the assumption based on that. It won't always be the case and that's alright. They (probably) don't know any better. Not saying it wouldn't be annoying after the hundredth time or anything but it can only get under your skin as far as you let it.

 

It's each to their own in this situation. It good to see a variety of people enjoying dolls, and some anime styled dolls can be used for anime cosplay and such, so it doesn't really bother me.

 

It doesn't really bother me.. what DOES bother me is people asking if they're sex dolls..

 

It never seemed to bother me that some people connect BJDs and anime together. It's better than someone connecting my dolls to Nicki Minaj which made no sense to me. That happened when I attended a matsuri festival in Washington D.C. and I was walking around with my dolls. The wig might have triggered the response.

 

Not much to be opposed to there. Many dolls are made with aesthetics borrowed/inspired by anime. To be bothered by that connection seems akin to denying their legacy. Not to mention, anime gives me a sort of inspiration for my own take on their aesthetics when it comes to imagining the composition of a doll.

 

Volks the first company who started this craze for BJD's are technically from Japan and the aesthetic on these dolls are based on anime or images of people with big eyes and head which are from the Japanese animation culture so I would be surprised by people put off in having these dolls connected to anime and its culture.