Fanservice – ファンサービス
Fanservice, whether you know it or not, a majority of the anime series now have them. So what is a fanservice? Keep reading to find out!
▍Definition
A fanservice is an episode or a moment in an anime series which is dedicated to pleasing a certain type of fans, usually the key demographic of the series. To fans outside the targetted group, these fanservice moments/episodes are little more than just fillers, they serve no great purpose to the actual story.
This effect can be achieved through a variety of different approaches, but perhaps the most typical one is one-off ecchi moments. With that said, there are also non-ecchi fanservice moments that emphasize the characters dere archetypes to highlight their moe levels.
▍Examples
There are a few examples that have been used quite a lot, typical examples of fanservice are beach episodes and onsen episodes. For Otaku, these episodes give them an opportunity to see their waifu in swimsuits. However, as mentioned before, the target of fanservice depends on the genre and nature of the series. Alternatively, for Fujoshi, beach episodes will show male characters in summer swimsuits being provocatively close to one another to create BL moments.
Non-ecchi fanservice usually features specific moments which highlights a specific character in an unrelated incident that would bring more depth to the character’s personality in hopes to trigger a moe reaction. Remember all those “summer Festival Episodes” from your favorite series that doesn’t really contribute to the main story? Fanservice. They’re the perfect way to have characters appear in yukata.
▍Ecchi Fanservice vs. Ecchi as a Genre
Whilst what you see on screen is essentially the same, the difference between ecchi fanservice and ecchi as a genre is simply the purpose and the use. Ecchi as a genre revolves around ecchi scenes, though each individual incident could still be pointless on its own, they are each integrated to the main set up of the story. Fanservice on the other hand, as mentioned before, is simply there just to please a certain type of fans, they serve no purpose or greater meaning to audiences outside of the interest group, which is what makes them a fan service.
▍Fanservice vs Omake
Whilst Omake is like bonus content, fanservice is something that is built into the main series, so if you’re making comparisons, they’re more like fillers.
▍Why is it a thing?
Fanservice is pretty much just something to please fans so they would invest more in the series and its related merch. So really, its there to make fans spend more money.
So there it is, Fanservice in a nutshell! Is there anything else you want us to explain? let us know in the comments!