John Ledford, CEO of AD Vision, recalls a story when a crazed American “otaku” (hardcore anime comics fan) came to his door at 2 am, demanding that he change the ending of a Japanese TV show called “Neon Genesis Evangelion.” As the largest importer and distributor of anime in America, Ledford wielded the power of the purse but little by way of creative control. Even so, the late-night visit unnerved him. “The hard-core fan base is very rabid,” Ledford explains. “They will get behind you as a company. You don’t have to spend a dollar in marketing; you just have to be friends with them.”
The DC and Marvel Comic fans sometimes view anime fans as the ultimate nerds, the plot lines as “cheesy” and the characters as “daft” or “annoying.” Older Americans often scratch their heads and ask, “Why are anime comics so popular among today’s youth?” Some could argue it was a massive advertising campaign that came over from Japan, who saw America and Europe as large, untapped markets. The challenge was to rework their material into exportable goods with English sub-titles and over-dubs.
They farmed enthusiasm with several different products, with movies like “Ghost in the Shell” or “Akira” and cartoon series like “Dragonball Z,” “Pokemon” and “Sailor Moon.” The basic business model was to keep costs low, try a little of everything and see what works. Once their endeavors showed great success, the merchandise, the manga comics and the graphic novels made their way over as well. It was the basic economic edict of supply and demand. Give the fans what they want in every capacity, such as with figurines, costumes, backpacks, t-shirts, manga comics, DVDs, downloads and comic book series.
Moreover, anime comics distributors and manga comics creators are more intuitively connected with their audiences, directly involved in the technological movement and demands of their loyal fan base. “Companies in this space live and die by their ability not only to produce quality product but to retain street credence with the audience,” says Mike Kiley, editor-in-chief and co-founder of the popular Tokyopop manga comics. “We’re always adopting new technology, and we get in front of 250,000 to a half-million fans at trade shows every year all over the country. It’s retail politics. It’s working the crowd.” John Ledford of AD Vision distributing says he’s willing to deliver the content to fans anyway they want it. “That’s video-on-demand, that’s mobile, that’s going to our website and being able to buy an episode from us for four bucks. Instead of a DVD costing you 30 bucks, we’ll sell you an episode,” Ledford explains. “You can access our entire 500-terabyte library.” Episodes can be viewed on iPods and iPhones, Xbox 360s and Playstation 3s, video-on-demand and through peer-to-peer networks.
Some of the most-viewed anime comics today include Fullmetal Alchemist, Cowboy Bebop, Bleach, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Naruto, Death Note, FLCL, Princess Mononoke (movie), Trigun, Inyuasha and The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. The most critically acclaimed anime film of 2007 was “Paprika,” where researchers developed a device that allowed them to go inside people’s dreams for psychotherapeutic treatment purposes. Often the subject matter of anime graphic novels and series looks at science-fiction type materials or include evolved species, monsters and zombies in their series. The adult topics of sex and violence mature and grow with viewers, keeping them life-long fans.
