because they are the ones vetting what you could or could not watch.
> At the time animation was always for kids
I am not saying that they were made for the parents to watch them, but for the parents to accept them.
I bet American kids never watched shows that slightly hinted at communism or socialism in the 80s.
> I think it’s just that Link’s behaviour in the show was socially acceptable at the time, but it isn’t anymore.
I wouldn't bet on that.
This is the one of the most popular anime in USA right now
https://i.redd.it/u3i0ue892i251.jpg
I mean, only the slang has changed, not the actual content.
I also believe those characterization were imitating this kind of comedic effect
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ1UdYOrR3E
They made people smile because they were exaggerated, not because they were polite.
I'm quite convinced that people understood that Link was being a moron and was not a role model, he had to learn how to behave.
having said that, socially acceptable does not necessarily means better.
also having cartoons specifically made for kids, especially very small children, made things worse, not better.
FWIW I remember disliking the Zelda series at the time, went back and watched it when I was in my early 20s and remember liking it ironically (so-bad-it's-good), and watching scenes from it again now, I think maybe I was too generous in my 20s
Yeah, that's what growing up is usually like, there are a lot of products that I've re-watched over the years and completely changed my mind on them.
Take as one example "The Wizard" or "Thrashin'" were the good guy was a young Josh Brolin (LOL)
https://editorial01.shutterstock.com/preview-440/5871775c/6e...
but the real skater heroes (Caballero, Tony Hawk, Hosoi) were depicted as the bad guys
It is unconceivable today because that idea of the white blonde guy from a good family that gets all the girls is a Republican parents of Reagan era's dream and luckily died with him, people who actually loved skate culture and made it popular hated that life style.
Skateboarding is now pretty normal, my t-shirt from the early 90s "skateboarding is not a crime" would make people laugh today.
that's why I believe we should not judge the things of the past with today's standards, because we are totally different people and live in a totally different society.
We know what was back then, but we couldn't possibly imagine what would be like in the future.
And there are also many things kids of today don't even consider because they are not pop, they are not fresh, they don't talk about them at school.
I've watched a lot of stuff only because it was what other kids constantly talked about, but did not really like them, but didn't say.
In 20 years times most of what kids look at today will be considered "trash that did not age very well".
So, to conclude, thanks god many things from the 80s did not live up to their past fortunes, because they were really bad and reflected an US-centric culture that wasn't so not-to-be-missed after all.
I was suggesting Link’s behaviour is no longer socially acceptable. Not sure if that anime has a character similar to Link. Does it? If it does and it’s very popular I’d be amazed it’s not being called off more often.
That howling wolf cartoon is also a bit dated. It objectifies women. Regarding Link’s behaviour, I’m not sure people really thought he was a moron at the time. Maybe a bit of a loser at times, but his behaviour was not really frowned upon at the time. Growing up I’ve met plenty of men that would make the same kind of jokes and behave in very similar fashion and everyone thought it was funny.
There was adult animation from well known authors way before the Simpsons[1], even if you just consider the USA[2].
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Thousand_and_One_Nights_(196...
Yes, I know. I don’t see how that’s relevant (other countries do exist and matter) but it’s because I thought you might nitpick that I added a USA example.
> and the second is an independent production.
I don’t see how that’s relevant. It was a worldwide hit and is an important piece of movie history, it’s not an obscure college movie.
> Sure, it was not unheard of.
It’s considerably more than “not unheard of”, I specifically chose well-known authors with well-known works. Ralph Bakshi alone directed eight adult-oriented feature film animations before the Simpsons was a thing. Those are far from the only examples.
The Simpsons are important in the history of animation, but however you look at it they were definitely not the first to explore animation for adults. They weren’t the first in their own country, nor were they first on a regular non-kids schedule on TV, nor were they the first successful case.
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_adult_animated_televis...
R Rated 1981 Heavy Metal says hello.
Sleeping Beauty is a cartoon adaptation of an opera. Its extremely boring for kids to watch, but its pretty great for adults. Arguably its "kid friendly", but only in the same way that the Nutcracker is kid-friendly. Its not really the kind of entertainment aimed at children though (like say, Peter Pan was).
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Fantasia is also for adults IMO, though kid-friendly (no excessive violence/gore/sex... but a relatively dry musical performance though highly imaginative)
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And Looney Tunes is also filled to the brim with opera / stage references that no child could possibly understand. It was clearly aimed at adults. It does leverage lowbrow humor just in case the audience doesn't "get" the musical / stage references... so I guess its more kid friendly than these other examples.
I liked Beauty and the Beast. I was not bored. Even watched on VHS multiple times.