Avatar: The Last Airbender has been surrounded by a long-standing controversy: whether it should be called an anime since its release in 2005. Anime-inspired visuals, detailed world-building, and engaging storylines catapulted the show into many debates regarding whether or not the creators of such an exceptional show, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, treat it as an anime. So, in this article, we will explore whether Avatar is genuinely an anime, why it tends to be mistaken as one, and why it isn’t neatly a part of it.
Avatar: The Last Airbender Is (Not) an Anime
Avatar: The Last Airbender is a series many fans believe counts as anime due to its style of animation and storytelling style, which borrowed extremely heavily from all forms of Eastern influences. However, in very technical terms, Avatar is definitely not anime. The easiest definition to render in a sentence is that the term anime refers to Japanese-produced animation. Avatar was created by two American animators and produced through Nickelodeon Animation Studio. That distinction alone puts Avatar out of the running for being considered anime in the traditional definition.
Still, though, no one can deny the anime influence over Avatar. DiMartino & Konietzko are open and frank about their pro-Japanese animation leanings and even called Avatar “a love letter” to anime. Their aim wasn’t an imitation or appropriation of the genre but something to absorb its strengths and blend it with techniques from the other side of the globe: Western animation. Though not strictly an anime by any dictionary definition, it further muddles the distinct lines between what constitutes an anime and a Western cartoon.
Why People Think Avatar: The Last Airbender Is an Anime
Avatar: The Last Airbender is a show that is rather similar to anime, which can be the reason people confuse it as a type of the latter. Some reasons for the confusion are:
- Artwork: Avatar uses many of the visual aspects of anime, such as over-the-top facial expressions, intricate fight scenes, and complex camera movement.
- Cultural Inspirations: It is quite Asian, given its basis on Chinese martial arts, Japanese animation styles, and even Tibetan and Inuit touches for world-building. It feels almost a part of anime rather than the traditional Western cartoon.
- Storytelling Approach: Like most anime shows, Avatar presents a serialist approach to storytelling combined with depth characters, things that sometimes pop up like spirituality, honor, and war-mongering in anime.
These reasons have convinced most people that Avatar is more than just an anime from the West, but it still lacks the fundamental characteristics that can make it anime.
Why Avatar: The Last Airbender Isn’t Anime
There are so many reasons why Avatar: The Last Airbender is not anime, even though the outer layers were of an anime.
It Wasn’t Made & Released in Japan
One of the most obvious distinctions is that traditionally, anime has been understood to be animation created and distributed within Japan. Avatar: The Last Airbender was the product of Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, two American writers, and was produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio, located in Burbank, California. The show aired on Nickelodeon, a U.S.-based cable network, and was not a creation of the Japanese animation industry. This line of demarcation situates Avatar outside traditional anime.
It Doesn’t Have Japanese Roots
Anime comes from the Japanese culture and often works of anime draw things from their history, literature, folklores, and societal themes. Still, Avatar takes inspiration and relates elements from several Asian cultures, rather than being born out of Japan or its own traditions or history. It draws on a broader range of Asian influences. Its creators knew of their non-Asian status and set out to honor rather than plagiarize these cultures. This respect for diversity is there, but it makes Avatar not culturally specific like the original Japanese anime.
It Doesn’t Have Japanese Art & Animation Style
Although Avatar follows anime’s visual design, it has nothing close to Japanese animation techniques or conventions at heart. Character designs in Avatar appear much more Westerized than in ordinary anime. The artistic use of shading, proportions, and animation techniques is more in the American animation style, even though it can take some anime elements for inspiration, such as exaggerated emotional expressions or stylish scenes of action. It is a hybrid because of the blending of influences but remains distinctly different from the anime in terms of the execution.
It Wasn’t Based on a Manga
Anime is often taken from manga, which are Japanese graphic novels or comics. Some of the best known anime shows, such as Naruto, One Piece, and Attack on Titan, were originally created in manga then turned into an animation. Avatar, on the other hand is copied without any manga counterpart. It was directly produced for television by DiMartino and Konietzko, and it is therefore a purely American-made original with no Japan adaptation origin. This is another reason that makes Avatar not an anime.
Is Avatar: The Last Airbender a Cartoon?
While Avatar does not fit the criteria of an anime, is it indeed correct to think of it as a cartoon? In many ways, yes. Avatar is an American animated product and satisfies most the requirements that define cartoons in the West. However, in terms of story complexity, character creation, and thematic inconclusiveness, Avatar easily surpasses the material that audiences traditionally tune in for in a children’s cartoon.
In short, Avatar transcends the boundaries created by the “cartoon” category; it is a very much more mature, multi-layered story well-televised among the masses. However though it is indeed a cartoon by definition, it often gets treated with much respect because of its mature storyline and the emotional depth that its characters give.
Creators Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko Weigh In
Both DiMartino & Konietzko have admitted how the debate has continued to evolve and question the qualification of Avatar as an anime. DiMartino mentioned in a notable number of interviews that it wasn’t their intention to make an anime but to pay homage to the medium they loved. They called it a “love letter to anime” and have been open about the influences from several anime series, such as FLCL, and the works of Hayao Miyazaki as a filmmaker.
However, they also pointed out that Avatar is something conceived only and singly. DiMartino stated that even Japanese directors would probably have disagreed on whether Avatar is to be considered anime or not, referencing a 2024 podcast. Konietzko added that their objective never was to copy anime but rather to bring a little of its magic into American animation. They have consistently argued that although Avatar was deeply influenced by anime, it is something else and apart.
FAQs
Is Avatar: The Last Airbender an anime?
No, Avatar: The Last Airbender is not usually regarded as an anime. It was created in the U.S. and lacks many features of what would be deemed a typical anime: Japanese in birth and background.
Why do people mistake Avatar for an anime?
People may get confused and mix Avatar up for an anime because its visual style, its cultural influence, and themes are universally relevant-all common aspects of most anime.
Can Avatar be called “American anime”?
Indeed, while a lot of fans, and a couple of creators, refer to Avatar as “American anime,” I personally believe that “anime-inspired American cartoon” is the more accurate label.
In Summary
This is not to say that Avatar: The Last Airbender is somehow anime, but its influences are undeniably there. As the show picks up where East meets West concerning animation and uses many aspects of anime visually and story-wise, it is distinct from those aspects, so in the final analysis, though something an anime fan might enjoy, Avatar remains a Western animation cartoon tribute to the very medium it takes its inspiration from.