![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
scalyshoujoI can't assure that any of this is accurate since I'm no furry historian, but I kinda feel like "furry" used to be less of a vague concept.
In the 90's being furry seemed primarily to imply that you not only were interested anthropomorphic animals, but specifically "toons" in the western animation sense of the word. The science fiction, otherkin, and anime influence on furry was still there, but there seemed to be this unspoken understanding that furry culture was built on Disney, Warner Bros, and animation similar to the products of those companies. In theory the furry ideal was some kind of Roger Rabbit utopia.
The anime boom and decline of western "funny animal" cartoons, for better or worse, seems to have changed that. There really doesn't seem to be a grand unifying theme to furry anymore beyond the basics of just being anthro. That doesn't have to be an entirely negative thing, since there's something to be said for all facets of a fandom being seen as equal, but at the same time it feels like something was lost somehow.
Things might be turning around though. I'm seeing more toon/ink transformations lately, not sure if they're just nostalgic oldbies or newer fans finding out about the old stuff but it's interesting.
In the 90's being furry seemed primarily to imply that you not only were interested anthropomorphic animals, but specifically "toons" in the western animation sense of the word. The science fiction, otherkin, and anime influence on furry was still there, but there seemed to be this unspoken understanding that furry culture was built on Disney, Warner Bros, and animation similar to the products of those companies. In theory the furry ideal was some kind of Roger Rabbit utopia.
The anime boom and decline of western "funny animal" cartoons, for better or worse, seems to have changed that. There really doesn't seem to be a grand unifying theme to furry anymore beyond the basics of just being anthro. That doesn't have to be an entirely negative thing, since there's something to be said for all facets of a fandom being seen as equal, but at the same time it feels like something was lost somehow.
Things might be turning around though. I'm seeing more toon/ink transformations lately, not sure if they're just nostalgic oldbies or newer fans finding out about the old stuff but it's interesting.