The group additionally made the choice to capitalize the “C” in Crunchyroll, solidifying its standing as a one-word identify. “People sometimes looked at it as two words,” Rabinovich admitted. “What the process really came down to was looking at the pieces that made up Crunchyroll visually and exploring them while staying true to the core tenets of the brand.”
“It’s about grabbing onto something that’s inherently yours,” echoed Gerdemann. “Like Nike’s brand is inherently Nike—you can’t necessarily describe it, but you feel it. That’s our goal here.”
Crossing cultures
Whereas anime has developed into a worldwide popular culture pressure, the medium remains to be very a lot rooted in Japanese creative and narrative traditions. That’s mirrored in Crunchyroll’s new glyph system, which includes over 139 characters impressed by personalities that seem on tv screens and within the pages of manga. The distinct texture that defines these comics can also be on show within the new designs, and Rabinovich mentioned Japanese artists have been introduced on board as collaborators.
“It was very important for us to honor the craft that comes from Japan,” Gerdemann famous. “That was always a big discussion point.”
On the identical time, the streamer additionally wished to emphasise that anime is now not the sort of area of interest import that was consigned to specialty shops and small cabinets at Blockbuster Video within the Nineteen Eighties and Nineties. Properties like One Piece are actually producing live-action Netflix variations and in-person occasions like a live performance tour celebrating the anime’s twenty fifth anniversary. (Crunchyroll will stage a stay “symphonic voyage” throughout SDCC on the Rady Shell.)
“Everyone who defines pop culture these days is inspired by anime,” mentioned Gerdemann, pointing to artists like Megan Thee Stallion. “Anime is not niche anymore.”
