could AS go less robot more fantasy?

[dilandu samma]

The ruling anime on Toonami as well as Adult Swim are robot mecha etc. animes. NOT that that's a bad thing, but after a while do you think AS will have more fantasy anime on thier show for a new refreshing kick?
You know just to get a brake from all the robots.

[Animation Otaku]

Big O, Kikaider, Blue Gender, FLCL(to a lesser extent)....that's not that many robot shows. Seriously.

[Mynd Hed]

Unfortunately I think the problem is that there just plain aren't as many fantasy anime to choose from as there are robot / sci-fi anime. We've got one in Inuyasha... what else is there? Well, there's Escaflowne, but the rights to that are currently tied up by the bastards at Fox and anyway there's a lot of debate about whether that would be a good fit for Adult Swim in the first place. (My personal feeling being that it would be best on SVES, but that's another topic....)
There's Record of the Lodoss Wars, which, in my opinion, is a very good anime but would NOT fit on AS at all.
There's Berserk, which would fit right in at Adult Swim but would be VERY difficult (although probably not impossible) to air on American television due to a large amount of very extreme content.And really, that's all that I can think of when it comes to fantasy anime, unless you count Hellsing, which would have trouble airing on AS for the reason as Berserk.
Oh, yeah, and there's Kenshin, but that's currently on Toonami.
I remember reading in the booklet to the Escaflowne movie that fantasy just isn't as popular as sci-fi in Japan, and that the Escaflowne TV series was originally conceived as a sci-fi because it was believed that they wouldn't be able to get funding for the kind of budget they wanted unless they made that concession to try and make it more marketable. (I'm very glad that they turned out to be wrong, however, as it's a fantastic show as a fantasy and the preliminary ideas for making it a sci-fi series made it look like a bad Robotech ripoff to me.)

I agree that, while the sci-fi is sure fun, some more fantasy would be a nice change of pace for AS. But unfortunately, when it comes down to specifics I'd be hard-pressed to think of a good fantasy show that could conceivably come to AS. Unless WS decided to make an original series....

[True Noir]

i hope there will be more fantasy anime's for instance i wish they could show Star Ocean EX or Tokyo Underground or Read or Die or Flame of Recca.

When i watched Flame of Recca i thought it was a lot like Yu Yu Hakusho. Guys check it out and same with the others i talked about above. They are worth your time i promise.

[bassist]

Technically, being a major tight-ass with a 7 foot stick up there Journalism and Creative Writing major, Sci Fi and Mecha shows fall under the category of Fantasy.

From www.Dictionary.com
Fantasy
4. a) Fiction characterized by highly fanciful or supernatural elements. b) An example of such fiction.

Science Fiction
A literary or cinematic genre in which fantasy, typically based on speculative scientific discoveries or developments, environmental changes, space travel, or life on other planets, forms part of the plot or background.

Ignoring my lame ass useless knowledge and responding to the question, Mynd Head is right. There's simply more robot and space based anime. Partly, this is due to the fact that the first stuff was sci fi, but more so this is due to the fact that fantasy just doesn't hit as broad an audience. It's true of books, video games, and American TV too. There are far more trekkies and fans of Xena. Basically, this is because people see sci fi as plausible, generally, while fantasy can't happen because it's in the past (though that's using the incorrect definition of fantasy). Hell, even Bugs Bunny focused more on the future than on the past. Sure there were his Robin Hood and Jack and Beanstalk episodes, and the Sam as an evil Knight episodes, but there were a lot more Duck Dodgers, Marvin the Martian, and space episodes. But that's an issue of what captures imagination more rather than the actual genre differences.

Of course, there's also genre cross-over. The entire Shanara book series by Terry Brooks is technically Sci Fi because it's set in the future. Shadowrun, the role playing game, also broders between fantasy and sci fi, being set in the near future, but requiring a belief in magic. Personally, I'd love to see a Cartoon based on Shadowrun. But that's besides the point.

It's also a matter of art. It's easier to draw a robot than it is a dragon. Fantasy art in general is more detailed due to it's fanciful nature, while Sci Fi can generally be simplified and still get the point across.

[SSJPabs]

Have to agree with bassist here. Fantasy will never be as popular as Sci-Fi
because it just doesn't seem as respectable. But can someone explain to me why Lodos would be a bad fit on AS? Is it more of a teen demo than adult?

PS: Give me Star Ocean EX, and especially R.o.D. or DIE!!!!! (yes yes, horrible wordplay I know)

[Aurochs]

Big O and Blue Gender, unless you're counting Kikaider and Fooly Cooly (which aren't really part of the "mecha" genre. Kikaider is mostly based off of the drama, and it's not really "mecha", it's more sentai/android, and FLCL is an surreal comedy with sci-fi themes that features a lot of robots, but they're so abstract looking I wouldn't really call it a "mecha" show) are really the only mecha shows.

I think Adult Swim obtains shows based off of the quality of the show, not the setting. The majority of the shows happen to be science fiction because that's a common theme. None of the shows on Adult Swim really revolve around the ships or robots they're using. I know I don't watch Cowboy Bebop because there's a cool spaceship. I'd have to disagree with Bassist and Myned Hed, there are a large portion of fantasy animes, at least that I've noticed. Fantasy seems to be a common theme as well They just coincidentally haven't been picked up by Adult Swim.

But like I said, the setting is irrelevant. I’d rather have Adult Swim go out of It’s way to acquire “good” shows as apposed to “fantasy” or "sci-fi" shows

[Mynd Hed]

Technically, being a major tight-ass with a 7 foot stick up there Journalism and Creative Writing major, Sci Fi and Mecha shows fall under the category of Fantasy.

...

Of course, there's also genre cross-over. The entire Shanara book series by Terry Brooks is technically Sci Fi because it's set in the future. Shadowrun, the role playing game, also broders between fantasy and sci fi, being set in the near future, but requiring a belief in magic. Personally, I'd love to see a Cartoon based on Shadowrun. But that's besides the point.

Orson Scott Card, after writing a lengthy essay on the difference between sci-fi and fantasy, said, "...but the REAL difference is this: if a character does something completely impossible and silly by praying to a tree or reciting an arcane spell, it's fantasy. If the character does the exact same thing by pressing a button or giving a command to a computer, it's science fiction."

Of course there's plenty of overlap between sci-fi and fantasy. One could also argue that the majority of the horror genre really should fall in the category of fantasy, but they're still separate categories in the bookstore. (-: Ultimately, all genre designations are arbitrary, but as long as everybody knows what everybody else is talking about when they use terms like "sci-fi" and "fantasy," does it really matter?

[True Noir]

Adult Swim is only 2 years old. Of course9hopefully) it will grow into liking stuff liike sci fi and fantasy

[ClockStomper]

There's been more non-mecha anime on AS than mecha anime.

[dilandu samma]

As specifically said so earlier, sci-fi anime is computers, giant robot suits and technology.
Fantasy is basically any anime character that carries a sword! Everyone here knows that there are so many animes that have swords or the main character has some special magical power. Record of Loddoss war is by far the best fantasy anime out there (meaning it contains dwarfs, elves, and the young hero with a sword) It reminds me so much of Lord of the Rings its' not funny.

Being that Inuyasha is on air, I feel, as a fantasy lover, that AS should go a little more fantasy. It's only fair for us.

Escaflowne, Berserk, Flame of Recca, Record of Loddos War, DNAngel. Jungle wa Itsumo, and Naruto are all fantastic choices.

I think Naruto and Escaflowne are the ones most likely to be chosen. But if they all play with some mecha like Generator Gawl it will all work out for everyone.

[ohmrbill]

Escaflowne is robot AND fantasy.

[SirLemming]

As Mynd Hed pointed out, there's a LOT of robot-based anime. However, I think Adult Swim has done a very good job of avoiding having too many robot shows -- evidence that they're really doing their homework. I mean, really, their most robot-oriented show so far has been Pilot Candidate, which was supposed to be on Toonami anyway. And the robot shows they've had -- Kikaider, Big O -- haven't focused much on the robots themselves anyway. They've never really had anything the likes of Gundam (except for those first few "Adult Toonami" months).

[Aurochs]

Fantasy is basically any anime character that carries a sword!

So Lupin III and Cowboy Bebop are fantasy?

And Alice in Wonderland wouldn't be fantasy because there isn't a character with a sword. Neither would The Chronicles of Narnia, Alice in Wonderland, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and The Hobbit.

Trust me, I know about fantasy. I'm an official Dungeons and Dragons nerd.

[Nin-Nin69]

Isn't mecha considerd to be fantasy?

[Nimbleness]

I don't really mind what they're giving us, as long as it's still good.

[dilandu samma]

WELL, I didn't mean EVERY fantasy had a sword I was just broadening the majority.

And dont get me wrong either, I love Mecha's and robots all the same. I guess since I'm a woman I go for pretty boys. i.e (Gundam Wing) I just fell that Fantasy needs to be heard more. And yes I know mecha is fantasy as well, but it falls under fiction more easily. AS will need some new fresh things in awhile. I think WS will see it my way and bend a little.

[Mynd Hed]

Neither would The Chronicles of Narnia, Alice in Wonderland, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and The Hobbit.

The Chronicles of Narnia had plenty of swords, beginning with the one the eldest brother (forget the name at the moment-- Peter maybe?) received from Santa Clause in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. I'm pretty sure Prince Charming had a sword in Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. And not only did The Hobbit have characters with swords, it contained the secret origin of Gandalf's favorite orcs' bane, Glamdring.

...and you call yourself a D&D nerd. For shame.

(-:

Just joshing with you, I totally agree with your point. I just have a size twelve stick where the sun don't shine which compels me to point out minutia like that. (-:

[bassist]

And Alice in Wonderland wouldn't be fantasy because there isn't a character with a sword.

The card soldier had swords, and the macabre continuation in video game form, American Megee's Alice, also had alice wielding a "vorpal blade."

Wow, I'm an ass...

[herbkir]

The fact that AS has the first 2 seasons of Inuyasha and is said to have acquired a third season for future airing shows AS isn't afraid to run a magic-based fantasy. (And IY has been one of their successes.) But it's got to be the right show with a blend of action and character interrelationships that'll appeal to male and female young adults. That's a much harder requirement to fill. The same requirement holds for the sci fi/mecha type of anime, but there is a much larger pool of dubbed possibilities to choose from. At some point, though, AS might venture into "real life" anime genres for shows like Kare Kano that have strong, character-driven storylines but no fantasy or sci fi elements. And I'd like them to do more with anime movies. (^_*)