I've had to explain this a lot lately so I've decided to compile my logic in a single post both so that anyone who cares to can discuss my stance in its full context and so that I can link back to this for anyone who wants the long version so that I don't have to write it out every time. Note that the in the following when I say "fanservice" I am referring to sexual fanservice, not the broader definition.So I'll start off by saying that I believe fanservice to be inherently neutral. I primarily enjoy shows for the story and characters. While music or animation can enhance the presentation of the previous two and add flavor, sex appeal on its own does nothing for either (well, I guess it does something for the characters, but I was talking for the personality). Therefore the sex appeal of a given show will not enhance or harm my rating under most circumstances... except when said sex appeal has a positive or negative effect on the portrayal of the characters or narrative.This, I think, is really getting into why a lot of people view fanservice as an inherent negative. There are two pieces to this problem so I'll tackle the easiest one first. There are a lot of shows out there that are very low quality in terms of plot and characters, because said story elements are largely vehicles for fanservice. This leads to the assumption that fanservice is bad because of the connection that is has with other negative elements of the story. There is a direct causal effect here, so it would be wrong to dismiss this as correlation rather than causality, but it would also be wrong to classify it as an absolute. It is also important to note that often the characters and plot of a show are sacrificed to make an ideological or philosophical point (see Madoka Magica for characters that exist to make a point rather than for their own sake), which is often seen as having far greater inherent value than when the same features of a show are sacrificed for the sake of fanservice. I would make the argument that this is because a larger purpose or point to a show will have an inherent value. If this inherent value is positive, it can offset or even exceed the negative from sacrificing the characters or plot. Fanservice, by my definition being neutral, does nothing to offset these negatives and we are therefore left with a "bad" show by my (and many others') metric. So, with that in mind we can say that fanservice is inherently negative when other features of the show must be sacrificed for its sake, as it carries no positive factors of its own (this coming from someone who doesn't watch anime for fanservice, obviously someone considers fanservice to be another metric for enjoyment like characters or soundtrack would use a different metric).The second piece to the problem is now almost entirely solved by the first. This is the instance where fanservice exists in a show that exists for the sake of plot, characters, or other "positive" factors, but actively detracts from these elements. Take the sexualization of characters in Code Geass. The childish attempts at titilation contrast with the adult themes and give many scenes in the show a confused feel, as if it didn't know whether it was trying to get some boners out of teenagers or tell a legitimate story. It's easy to think of fanservice as inherently bad because it's so noticeable when it's doing this. It sticks out like a sore thumb. While other aspects (such as music or animation) stand out when they're bad, they also tend to stand out when they're good. Positive fanservice is much, much rarer. More common are the shows where fanservice coexists with the narrative and we forget about it the moment the show is done:Gurren LagannSakurasouMidori DaysShokugeki no SoumaActually I'm going to stop this list here because Souma is a great example of what I'm talking about. I know many people who wrote off the show because of the overt fanservice in the beginning. While some people I understand that it makes them legitimately uncomfortable (in which case you can't really deny that fanservice is an inherent negative from their perspective, just like for people who watch for it it is an inherent positive), a lot of people dropped this show early on because they associated the blatant fanservice with the glut of shows that have bad writing and characters along with their breasts. Souma does not have bad writing or characters. I don't think it's a great show just for the record, but it does do an excellent job accomplishing what it sets out to do. It's an enjoyable parody of the battle-shounen genre with likable characters and an awesome soundtrack. The fanservice never gets in the way of that goal except when it turns people off because of what they associate coming with said fanservice.So, I've made the argument that fanservice doesn't add or detract from shows outside of the realm of personal preference inherently, and that it all comes down to how it is presented... but what about the next step. So far I have only talked about how fanservice can coexist with a narrative and characters, but can it serve them? It's rare, but hell yes. I think everyone probably knew this was coming, but I'm going to talk about Monogatari and Kill la Kill now. Talking about the ways that the fanservice in Monogatari serves to frame the narrative is kind of beating a dead horse by now, but I'll go over it really quickly for those who don't know. Among many other things, the fanservice is used to color the audiences perception and put us in the head of the main character. Araragi, the lead character of the show most of the time, is a sexually frustrated highschool kid. The women in his life are heavily sexualized because that is how he perceives them. In the rare instances when the show exits his viewpoint, the characters are shown much differently (and for the most part much less sexually). For a rather enjoyable hour of rambling about these points with plenty of examples from the series, see the video that Digibro made analyzing it.So now onto the can of worms that is Kill la Kill. I have seen on multiple occasions people chastising fans of the series for looking to hard in order to find depth when they really want to justify their need for fanservice. This is a somewhat odd claim in the first place given that I don't really think of Kill la Kill as particularly sexy. Regardless of that, and even barring the idea that there's any kind of symbolism or allegory behind Kill la Kill, the fanservice serves the narrative and the progression of the characters. In the early section of the show Kill la Kill spoilers The show then moves on to use clothing constricting the body as a metaphor for oppression and nudity as a symbol of rebellion. Even the ways in which characters are sexualized speaks to their personality spoilersI'll also quickly mention Neon Genesis Evangelion here despite my general reluctance to analyze it in any context (I love it, it's just that everything that can be said about it has been said one too many times already and far more eloquently than I could put it). The brief sections of that show where Rei and Asuka are seen in a sexual light is meant to be a critique of the anime fanbase as a whole. I've seen some very interesting breakdowns of how this is likely Anno showing you how fucked up the archetypes you're into would actually be... Basically calling Otaku's a bunch of fucked up degenerates in classic Anno fashion, but it doesn't change the fact that the fanservice there serves his narrative purpose.... And that pretty much sums up my stance. There are other scenarios of course. It's always refreshing to see shows where there is no sexualization or where it's handled tastefully just because of the glut of fanservice that's out there. Shows like Psycho-Pass where the main character is not once portrayed in a sexual or romantic light despite being female are a breath of fresh air. Shows like Kara no Kyoukai that movie 3 spoilers are nice amidst the lighthearted nudity or near nudity that characterizes fanservice.I know that I've noticeably left out a piece of this argument, and that's the feminist standpoint. The short version of my argument there is that badly characterized women are the problem, not sexualised ones. Sexual features are something that is inherent in people and it's silly to conflate being seen as something sexual with not being seen as a person. Not actually being written as a person is far more egregious... But I'm not going to write all of that out right now as that would end up leading me into the completely unrelated can of worms that is stereotypes and representation in anime... A rant for another day. For now, thanks for reading.Edit: Much Requested TL;DR: Fanservice is neutral, neither positive nor negative inherently. It just happens that it is often either badly used or used in bad shows. http://ift.tt/1NcWTx3
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