Drama and Melodrama?
Let’s look it up: Melodramatic, “….characterized by exaggerated emotions, stereotypical characters, and interpersonal conflicts.” – Answers.com. Basically similar to the definition for drama except with the added word “exaggerated” and some other negative adjectives. Of course, where we cross from “natural” to “exaggerated” is going to differ for everyone. My take on it can be gleaned from this:
About high schoolers:
Dramatic: Touch , His and Her Circumstances
Melodramatic: Bokura Ga Ita
About young adults:
Dramatic: Honey and Clover
Melodramatic: NANA
With darker subject matter:
Dramatic: Grave of the Fireflies , Now and Then – Here and There
Melodramatic: Saikano (Although I think this is a decent anime)
As I say that, I know there are lots of people who don’t see a distinction between some of the series I’m listing here. It has a lot to do with the characters as well. I found the characters in Bokura Ga Ita and Nana, for example, to be more superficial than the ones from Honey and Clover or Touch, and so I found their emotional troubles to be less meaningful, which likely caused them to come off as exaggerated.
One response so far
Theowine on (melo)drama…
When I saw the title of the post, I thought he’s trying to discuss Toradora. I wonder if he permits a series to be both dramatic and melodramatic simultaneously, possible in different aspects.
……