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Top 5 Studio Ghibli films Japanese viewers are tired of watching

Oona McGee Jul 10, 2017
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These responses prove that when you’re spoiled with the best anime in the world, you really can have too much of a good thing.

It’s a sad day when anime fans start listing off Studio Ghibli films they’ve grown tired of watching. Still, given that Ghibli films air on Japanese television throughout the year, most recently in a weekly “Friday Roadshow” segment, it’s a timely topic that Japanese survey site Sirabee sought to investigate, asking 986 men and women from the ages of 20 to 60, “Which Ghibli movies do you think you’re tired of watching?”

Let’s take a look at the top five results below.

5. Castle in the Sky (known as Laputa: Castle in the Sky in Australia and the U.K.) – 89 votes

This 1986 animated adventure film follows a young girl and boy who search for a legendary floating castle whilst protecting a magic crystal from military agents.

【天空の城　ラピュタ】
パズーとシータとロボット兵♡
✨ pic.twitter.com/qnPycTtCq1

— ジブリの森♡大好き (@ziburi_daishuki) June 28, 2017

Written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, this was the first film produced and released by Studio Ghibli. It remains popular with television audiences, particularly in recent years when social media users unite at a pivotal moment of the film to send out the word “barusu” (or “balse“) online, at the same time the characters do on-screen when they initiate the Spell of Destruction.

Despite the interactive element of the film, which many people love taking part in, the fact that it’s been shown on television a total of 15 times means there are a lot of TV watchers who prefer to switch channels once they come across the movie on their television screens.

4. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind – 104 votes

An epic science-fiction fantasy film released in 1984, this is often considered to be one of Studio Ghibli’s most well-known masterpieces.

みな自分だけは誤ちをしないと信じながら、業が業を生み、悲しみが悲しみを作る輪から脱け出せない。

【風の谷のナウシカ】 pic.twitter.com/dWV3eXQQPu

— 心に響くジブリ名言 (@jibu_hibiku) July 9, 2017

Adapted and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, based on his own manga of the same name which was released two years earlier, this film has a lot of fans, but having aired a total of 17 times on Japanese television means that for many viewers, it’s a movie that’s lost some of its charm simply through overexposure.

3. The Castle of Cagliostro – 105 votes

Narrowly beating Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind by just one vote, it appears that the third and fourth entries on the list have left a very similar impression on Japanese audiences.

「ルパン三世カリオストロの城（ＭＸ４Ｄ版）」が、イオンシネマ徳島で6月17日(土）～30日（金）2週間限定上映されます。四国方面の方は是非お越し下さい！pic.twitter.com/2WQEe2os19

— ルパン3世画像集 (@5624Mabo) June 29, 2017

First released in 1979, this comedy-drama adventure was co-written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki as his feature film debut, making it an important work for the acclaimed director and his legion of fans.

Though the film has aired 15 times on local television, respondents indicated that it’s the relatively outdated nature of the film that leads many to classify it as an anime they’ve grown tired of watching.

2. Grave of the Fireflies – 108 votes

A story about a young boy and his little sister struggling to survive in Japan at the end of the Second World War is a stark contrast to many of Studio Ghibli’s fantastical magical films.

▼ This movie will cause rivers of tears to stream down your face.

火垂るの墓を見てむせび泣くムスカ
★ pic.twitter.com/Hd8yU0STO1

— ☆ジブリをもっと面白く☆ (@ghibli_fan_) June 27, 2017

The animated war drama, first released in 1988, is one of the animation studio’s most tear-jerking, heart-wrenching, hard-to-watch films, so it’s not surprising that this movie ranks highly on the list. Though it’s been aired 12 times on Japanese television, for many viewers, the heavy subject matter and sad storyline makes more than one viewing too much to handle.

Finally, coming in at number 1 on the list of Ghibli movies that Japanese people have grown tired of watching is…

1. My Neighbour Totoro – 155 votes

This 1988 fantasy anime is one of Studio Ghibli’s most famous films. Loved by adults and children alike, the story follows the adventures of two young sisters who move to the countryside, where they encounter friendly magical beasts like Totoro and the giant Catbus.

Grow, seeds! Grow! #MyNeighborTotoro #となりのトトロ pic.twitter.com/ij5Dgu4qTO

— Joshua Chiu (@JoshuaChiu1993) June 29, 2017

While the movie is a classic, with a huge legion of fans from around the world, its enormous popularity means that children in Japan have watched the film with their parents numerous times on television and on DVD. Just as too much chocolate will leave you with a stomachache, too many viewings of your favourite film can wind up with you wanting to call time-out on it as well.

So there you have it, the top 5 Studio Ghibli films that people say they’ve grown tired of watching. Personally, we like to savour our viewings of Ghibli films, keeping them hidden away like fine wines until the time is right for a tasting, so if we were asked to give our answer to this survey, there’s not one movie we’d pass up seeing!

Source: News Post Seven via Otakomu
Featured image: Twitter/@ziburi_daishuki