General Anime Q&A (finding anime names)

[Eternal.]

I made this thread because I realized there was a lot of "What does anime mean?" and "What does OVA mean?" and other threads like that. It usually takes only ONE reply to a thread like that to answer the question. Made me think it was rather pointless to waste the time making the thread in the first place.

So that's where this thread comes in. This is the place to ask questions like "what does anime mean?" and all the other general questions about anime.

Anime newbies unite! You know have a place to talk about these things!

ALSO: This thread is also now the place to ask about those old animes you can't remember the names of as well as characters. The "Find Anime Series Names" thread has been deleted and this one will take it's place.

REMEMBER: NO discussion about how or where to download anime on the net! Such talk is forbidden on A4.


Also, here are some quick Anime FAQs written by Aiodaisei:

108 - This number is lucky.
801 - This number is unlucky.
Animé (also: "anime") - If you don't know, why are you here? ^_~
B.G.M. - Background music.
Baka - "Idiot."
Bishojo (also: bishoujo) - A pretty girl (usually a schoolgirl). Vide: "shoujo."
Bishonen (also: bishounen) - A pretty-boy. Vide: "shounen."
Blue Suits (burusera) - These are the uniforms for girls in Japanese high schools. They are almost identical to serafuku (q.v.), but are blue with a yellow or white bandana, instead of white with a red bandana. Similar uniforms are used by some Japanese colleges. The Japanese word is "berusera."
Chan - Vide: "suffixes."
Cherry Blossoms - Symbolize love, nostalgia, or "spring fever." The Japanese word is "sakura."
Chibi - "Small." Type of animation/drawing in which characters look extremely juvenile. Also called "super-deformed" or "S.D."
Cosplay - Dressing up as animé characters.
Cyberpunk - Sci-fi animé that has a prominent high-tech element.
Dokidoki (also: "doki doki") - Japanese onomatopoeia for the sound of a rapidly beating heart.
Dub - Animé with English dialog recorded over the original Japanese dialog. The translation used for the dub generally originates from sources other than the original animation company, and the intent of dialog is often changed (sometimes very dramatically).
Ecchi (H) - "Naughty." Euphemism for hentai (q.v.).
Falling Down (Takahashi Falldown) - Animé characters fall down rigidly when someone does or says something unbelievable or ridiculous. This is called "the Takahashi Falldown," after Rumiko Takahashi, an animé creator who used it a lot.
Fan-Service (also: "fanservice") - Things in animé or manga which are included to please fans but do not advance the plot. Fan-service is often ecchi (q.v.).
Fansub - Animé with subtitles keyed in by non-professional translators unaffiliated with the makers or distributors of the series or movie. Vide: "sub."
Gainax Bounce - Slang for bouncing busts of female animé characters, after Gainax, an animation company that uses this a lot.
Gynoid (also: "cyberdoll") - A robot made to look like a woman or girl. Opposite of an android. These are extremely popular in animé and manga.
Hentai - Pornographic animé or manga.
Hong Kong - Don't buy any animé D.V.D.s that come from here. ^_~
J-Pop - Japanese pop music. Usually used to describe any music from Japan, pop or otherwise.
Kawaii - "Cute."
Kun - Vide: "suffixes."
L and R - These two sounds are basically interchangeable in Japanese, hence many alternate spellings of animé titles, characters etc. (and more than a few mistranslations).
Manga - Vide: "animé."
Mech - A giant robot, which usually flies and is piloted by an angsty teenager.
Mecha - A robotic weapon.
N - Under certain circumstances this letter is replaced with "M" in English transliterations of Japanese words and names. Hence "sempai" vs. "senpai" and "Yojimbo" vs. "Youjinbo." Vide: "ou."
Neko - "Cat." If you combine a neko with a girl, you have something a lot of animé fans enjoy.
Nosebleeds - Male animé characters get nosebleeds in sexual situations. It is a visual depiction of the agitation their brain is undergoing.
O.S.T. - Original soundtrack. Animé series often have several "original" soundtracks.
O.V.A. (also: "O.A.V.") - Original video animation (or original animated video). Made-for-video animé, which can take the form of a movie, special, series, or miniseries.
Otaku - A devoted fan of animé and/or manga. This word has other meanings which will not be discussed here.
Ou - This diphthong in Japanese can be written "ou" or "o" with equal accuracy. That is why there are alternate spellings like "shoujo" vs. "shojo" and "rounin" vs. "ronin." Pronounced like a long "o."
Panties - In animé and manga, exposed panties can symbolize girlish innocence as well as eroticism.
Purple Eyes - Symbolize magical or otherworldly nature.
Sailor Suits (serafuku) - These are the uniforms for girls in Japanese public primary and middle schools. The Japanese word is "serafuku" or just "fuku."
Seiyuu - A voice actor or actress in animé.
Senpai - Vide: "suffixes."
Sensei - Vide: "suffixes."
Shoujo (also: shojo) - Animé or manga aimed at female audiences. Means "girl."
Shounen (also: shonen) - Animé or manga aimed at male audiences. Means "boy."
Steampunk - Sci-fi or fantasy animé with retro-looking machinery and design. Vide: "cyberpunk."
Sub - Animé with English (or other) subtitles appearing at the bottom of the screen in Animé with Japanese dialog. Most animé fans prefer sub to dub (q.v.). Vide: "fansub."
Suffixes - "Chan" is used for a female friend, "kun" is used for a male friend, "sama" is used as a term of respect (for both sexes), "senpai" (also spelled "sempai") is used as a term of respect for upperclassmen or superiors in rank (like "Mr." or "Mrs."), and "sensei" is used for a teacher. There are also other, less common suffixes affixed to names, and these are only the general rules for their use. Examples: Su-chan, Kei-kun, Seta-san, Urashima-senpai, Akamatsu-sensei.
Sugoi - "Awesome."
Sweatdrop - Giant stylized drop of sweat used in animé to symbolize acute anxiety.
Yaoi - Homoerotic animé or manga.
Yuri - Sapphoerotic animé or manga.
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OVA - or OAV, this means Original Video Animation , this basically means the anime was directly converted into a Video format and not released on TV first. Good Example of this is, Furi Kuri

Anime - Japanese Cartoons, you should really know what this is. Example: Almost anything, like Pokemon

Manga - Japanese Comic Books. Example: Again, almost anything, like Love Hina Manga

Hentai - Anime porn

Ecchi - 'Softer Hentai', usually anime which shows some nudity or lots of panties e.g. Najica Blitz Tactics

Otaku - Hardcore anime fan.

Shonen - Anime strictly for boys

Shojo - Anime strictly for girls

[g3tsushi]

wow... this is good info cuz sometimes I would get lost on Japanese culture related funny stuff Ex: sneezing = other ppl talking about you

[donald]

this is a great guide ill try to use it. since i newbie B)

[GDragon]

Thanks for the info, there was some things i didn't know :o