2all... 2?sWHY do you collect

Hi everybody,
Hi Madoka..hmm...er.. did I take it too far? :(

I feel kinda bad that I went sorta of "overboard" on Momo's comments, sorry Momo.

Actually Madoka, I feel very passionate about many things. Cel collecting is a passion or else I wouldn't do it, but it is not an all encompassing affair. And passion had nothing to do with my comments.

Sorry to hear about your uncle's passing, but in all due respect, there is no way do I equate such matters of great importance in life to collecting things.

In response to Momo's comments I didn't take anything that she said personally at all, especially since my collection in no way represents what she was talking about, nor my motivations.

I took offense to the "genre bashing" comments, as slight as they were.

Perhaps I went a bit over-board on voicing my opinion on that, I'd have to agree with you if that is what you meant.
I personally don't get into "bishie" or pretty boys cels, and that genre, however I don't have any gripes or criticisms of others that do so.
I also don't snipe at their reasons or motivations for collecting them likewise. It is none of my business.
I stand by these comments and think that I am correct on that point. Actually, this is the only point that I wish to have had made---"Stop Genre Bashing" (*period*)

Bashing:
I see it so often, bashing bishie collectors, bashing DBZ collectors, bashing collectors that spend more than "x" amount of dollars, etc. I just don't like it.

E.

I shared the situation about my family, to encourage others to refocus and analyze collecting cels in context with living life and the people we hold dear. Naturally, people collect for a wide variety of reasons, personal or otherwise; but often people lose sight of what really is important to them, unless the unexpected happens. E, you mentioned, "...there is no way do I equate such matters of great importance in life to collecting things."; however not everyone understands this and views cels in the same fashion and that is partly why I shared and agreed with the legitimacy of the issues raised in momo’s questions. For some collecting takes on a larger than life importance. There is nothing wrong with it, but it never hurts to step back for a moment and pause.

The average age of a new collector is young, early college and/or even high school. However, on the same token, the drop out rate is high for this hobby and there are significant reasons why. Also, IMO the reasons why people quit are often ignored and people acknowledge them. While some of the older collectors do not quit collecting entirely, they do turn their attention and energies on other priorities, some of which are the product of growing older and shouldering more responsibility. Also, the actual supply of cels from various series are dwindling considerably. Someone touched on this aspect of cels on Animanga’s forum recently. And I’d add, I agree that it is true, collections get consolidated and the actual selection available does not improve with time.

IMO it is only natural for collectors to move on whatever their reasons may be. I too will quit collecting in the near future, and while I am young there are other aspirations and endeavors I need to focus on, and cels cannot help me to accomplish them. Moreover, I know cels will not mean as much to me in the future, in comparison to my health or family. However, cels will always have a special place for me. Cels are magnificent creations by extremely talented groups of people. I respect all animators wholeheartedly and their contributions using the cel medium. Nevertheless, I also recognize cels are merely things, regardless of their beauty and emotional attachment. They can never replace a living being or creature.

This forum is a wonderful place for discourse between collectors regardless of age and the type of anime they enjoy. I do not expect others to agree or to understand my perspective, nor do I expect them to agree, but I do wish to share. Hmm, as for genre bashing, it comes with the territory, l don’t expect people to agree or share the same perspectives. IMO it really doesn’t matter at all. I think we’re here to communicate, not to change others thinking or beliefs.

Finally, as someone who has been in this hobby for quite sometime 20 years plus and helped the industry reach the mainstream audience, I think I know where these people (both new and older) collectors and are coming from. IMO we are all here to enjoying the same hobby for this brief time we have together and it helps if we are receptive to other perspectives differing from our own. Free flowing communication is essential if we are to have a remote hope of understanding one another. It is not necessary of us to agree on everything or anything for that matter, but we can disagree without being disagreeable.

Smile and have a nice day.

Right before i found out about collecting cels my dad became deathly sick and i had taken care of him from his diagnosis til death. That was 5 months. Me and my dad always had watched cartoons and just about anything animated all through my life. When i collect cels it makes me feel closer to him, like i have a piece of him with me. Although he didnt like anime at all, especially DBZ, he still liked cartoons. He even had a saying he would tell me, "you can never outgrow your need for cartoons". And even now to this day, i take it to heart. Everytime i watch a cartoon, or a i get a cel i have that bond with him again. I dont collect just because of that, but it is part of it. So i can truly understand about collecting for personal reasons. I to realized about life and the importance of people rather than things. I seem to buy things since his death just to make me happy,..... temporarily. It never soothes me as much as a person does but its something i cherish. Also if you look at my wishlist the one true cel i would sell my soul for is in there. The main reason, well 2 main reasons, one is we(me and my dad) used to watch the show ALL THE TIME, and second he always reminded me of my dad. A strong character, a good heart, and a young stud that shows his age in his hair. :)

I'll try to finish this up as quick as possible, one thing ive learned from when seeing my best friend and father die in front of me is that life is short. Everyone says this. But it is, make your life happy and joy filled. If you want to buy a $500 cel and can afford it but feel guilty about the pricetag, if you feel its worth it BUY IT. Dont let anyone tell you what to like and not to. Thanks for reading.


TiM


PS: That was a great idea to add a forum jason!!

What fueld my desire to collect cels...? Well lets see.......

I one day came across a few sites looking for Ronin Warrior and Rurouni Kenshin pictures. I noticed a few of them had sketches behind them. I wondered why this was then I remembered about how most cartoon and anime series were made. I at the time was REALLY into these two animes alot, I still am, So I decided to look around for cels of my favorite charcters. When I found the Ronin Warrior ones I was really excited because of how Cheap they were. So I bought a few of them..plus a cel of Tsunan Tsukioka from Kenshin. Basically what fuels me to collect is the feeling I get from collecting them! I only buy from the series that I really really like alot and of my favorite characters. It gives me this wonderful feeling of knowing that I have a piece of what was used to make my Favorite shows and characters come to life...That I'll always have a piece of it with me.

Other then that..All I could say is that I am an Artist and I love collecting artwork, shiny things and many many other things like cards and stuff.

~Chelle, Shinigamis Cels

As an amateur artist, I appreciate visuals. Which means that I'll be SOL if I ever go blind :/ But mostly it's the visuals.

Most of my cels are "cute" or "pretty," but I have one I really like, Prince Ferio with a big ol' gash over his eye and smoke pouring in the background... that one's just cool :) My first cel, of Abel and... an extra (from Dragon Quest) wasn't really anything spectacular--however, it was the first and only cel at the time that I found from DQ, so I had to own it, particularly since the actual episodes from DQ are impossible to find except bootlegged :( (which I eventually got anyway) ...or maybe I just don't look hard enough because I can't communicate well with Japan -_-; but mostly it was the ability to own a piece of the first anime I ever loved, especially in lieu of owning much of anything else from the series...