When I think of cartoons, I think of silly characters and a weak or non existent plot line. Most of the time their is no story and either jokes, silly behavior or even both are present. The animation doesn't always suck but its usually basic and very bright at times. Background rendering is usually basic or sometimes non existent. Loony Toons, Tiny Toons and any cartoon series that caters to this gets my label as a cartoon. I don't hate cartoons as I grew up watching them along with anime but I don't see them as the same thing.

Anime to me is solidly drawn with detailed characters, almost true to life background rendering be it drawn or even partly cgi. Decent or better story line and plots and above average or better music/sound effects and semi-decent to totally awesome voice overs. To me comparing anime to cartoons is like comparing finely aged wine to some kids grape juice box!

Well, tell me what you think! Is Anime Far More Then Just Cartoons?

Yes, I do agree. I mean...I have watched Cartoons, yay. A very dull yay.

But Anime is much more than that. They put a lot more into Anime, than they do cartoons. More action. More detail. More lovey dovey stuff. They hit what cartoons won't.

I look at cartoons as a conservative way of keeping kids entertained. I mean look at what the cartoons are. Just little things, that make kids laugh, and giggle. They make kids drawn to the TV, with singing and dancing. With some crude humour, that older people get. But kids don't, and they just laugh at the remarks. There is nothing else in the cartoon, but that. Lets hit someone with a pie. Lets hit someone with a frying pan, and watch their faces shape to whatever they were hit by. But do they show other things? No. Not really. Surely, there might be a few cartoons that do. But not a lot. Everything in a cartoon is so very dull to me.

Were as an Anime. The drawings are more detailed. There is action, and sometimes drama. But unlike cartoons, most anime is generated towards the older audience. They even put Yuri/Yaoi in there ((You won't see that in Cartoons. Even though some cartoons hint at it. Older people get those hints, but the kids, no.)) There are more bloody action scenes, and even that is detailed. Its not like getting hit by a frying pan. Is it sad, that I like the drama that is also put in Anime? Also there are scenes in some Animes that make me cry. The difference in my eyes, is that Anime is a lot better than Cartoons. Like I said, cartoons can be funny, but Anime just is much more amazing. And I have a lot of Anime.

I actually have more Anime movies than actually movies. But then again, the movies that are coming out now, are just knock offs from old movies, tv shows, or foreign films

So, with that said. I have more Anime and Japanese movies.

ANIME ROCKS!

Not at all. I am the exact same way.

I am so the drama in Anime. It adds that extra something that I don't see in everything else. Yes, I also have more Anime movies and television series box sets then anything else. If given a choice, I would have nothing but anime channels and nothing and you know what, I wouldn't mind it one bit. As I mentioned before only a few animated tv series have managed to keep some resemblance of a story line. Only down side with these is usually they go cheap on the animation. Only anime manages to nail both the animation and story telling down at the same time. I often find myself having a hard time watching movies and regular tv because alot of the time I am like "oh this anime told that story so much better" or "no that story line is a little too obvious" or "really is that the best american style animation can do?"

I will continue to emphasize that DC Comics and Marvel Animation are one of the few exceptions to the rule and have cranked out some serious contestants in the past few years as of late. Aside from them and a few golden oldies from some select studios I have set the expectation bar for non-anime rather low as I don't expect a whole lot from it.

Glad to see I am not the only one who thinks so. Now with over 80 people who looked at this topic surely some of you also have an opinion to share. I am giving you the opportunity to voice your say. Cast in your two cents. Tell us what you think.

Yes! Anime is so much more than a cartoon. Cartoons are poorly drawn shows with no real plot, aiming to make kids laugh. They often aren't believable (just because something fell on your head, a bump two feet high shouldn't instantly appear), and fall flat after seeing the same bit 20 times. Anime, however, has detailed drawings for starters. They normally have amazing plots that carry on throughout the entire show, not a single episode. You never cry during cartoons, because there's nothing to cry about! You can't get emotionally attached to characters, and nothing terribly bad will happen to them anyways. I admit to crying during anime. I get emotionally attached to a well-developed character, and if anything happens, it will carry on for the rest of the show.
Plus, I don't ever think I saw even the slightest bit of romance in any cartoon ever. EVER. However, there's always a possibility for a really nice, sweet romance in an anime. Or maybe not such a nice, sweet romance. You wait entire seasons for characters to get together, and you get upset when they break up.
You are never on the edge of your seat with cartoons. There's never any surprises, and as I said before, its the same show with slight variations. Every. Single. Episode. Anime is the kind of thing where you stay up late to see if they get together, if somebody dies, or if that really just happened. I've already held my breath while watching anime, because I was so surprised!
Please, if you STILL think anime is simply a cartoon, go and watch Fruits Basket. I dare you not to get upset when Momiji tells his depressing story about his mother, and to not be on the edge of your seat during the last episode. It'll be a lot harder than it sounds. *deep breath* Okay. I'm done ranting. But, really. Anime rocks.

Yes I believe anime is definitely far more than just silly cartoons. Sometimes they even teach important life lessons. They even get me motivated to exercise or for sports.
Example: Kuroko no Baske, after I watched that I felt like just going out and playing basketball and I did for a whole two months. It motivated me.
Anime's like Fairy Tail teach you the value of friends and family.

Anime is indeed far more than just silly cartoons. I have found that in all my years of watching the genre, that most of the characters are complex, and often burdened or tormented with some great task or ordeal. The character development and dynamic between various characters at times can make you grow to care about them as of they were indeed real....if that makes any sense to anyone.