Are you open with this hobby?

Do you hide your power level?

For all those here interested in Anime and Manga, do you hide the fact that you enjoy it from those around you? i.e. close friends, family, classmates, coworkers, etc.?

For me, I personally don't care if people see me reading manga online, or if my family members see me watching anime on my computer. Unless there's something extremely ecchi. Then I'll minimize it. Don't care what they think, just don't want that talk.

Oh hey, posted in the good section now! I have 20 minutes before they kick me out of here...

In high school, I hid my interests so well that only two people in my school really knew me (and it was a very close school, where we all knew everyone's name, graduating class of less than 20, less than 200 people in HS, etc). North Dakota isn't exactly the place to love anime and manga... I could count the number of people like me on one hand. I didn't care that my mom and sister knew, but they didn't even know (or care) how big of role it played in my life.

I always only used to watch anime and read manga in privacy on my laptop. That's how it was when I got to college, too, until my laptop broke down. I've found that being forced with the decision of either giving up anime/manga for a month or watching it in public has changed my level of concealment quite a bit. I'm a little surprised by how openly I've been doing it, honestly. It makes me feel stupid for how I used to care about hiding it so much...

It doesn't make me a freak that I love them so much (I promise!). It sucks that I'm about the only one here that cares about it, but I don't mind others knowing I love it. It just sucks having no one to talk with about it, ever...

Fight the power, is what I say!

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Oh wow, and fellow anime/manga peoples, I've actually really turned into a bookworm without my computer. I've been reading in all my free time since Friday (already went through four novels since then). Before that, I read sometimes (and still got through 3). I've destroyed seven novels since this semester started... I don't know what's happening to me.

Ah, that bites having your laptop dead. I couldn't imaging going very long without any manga and anime. I mean, I already spend most of my time on my computer refreshing the BU Releases page, and TokyoTosho just so I have something to do. I have a friend or two that's interested in manga and anime. Not really much though to talk about. Just every now and then we'll talk about what we've been reading lately and watching. Would be nice to know some more though.

I've stopped being interested in books a long time ago. They take up a lot of time to read, and they don't always end up being too good. It's much more efficient to get a story out of a manga quickly. I'd read some JP light novels out there if I could find some English published versions. I'll have to go check Chapters next time I'm there since I have money now.

Actually during high school there was no need to hide it for me. Several kids in marching band watched anime (I actually borrowed the Cowboy Bebop DVDs from one of them. xD) and my best friend was always recommending stuff to me. There was even a Japanese club (Though I didn't go to it, they people in there were a little odd. I don't even know how to describe it.) so yeah, wasn't so bad then. Though, I did get some BS when I bought Manga, but that was pretty minor.

On the other hand now there's not a single person who even knows what it is. I'm also really annoyed by the fact that one of my main gateways into anime (Adult swim) has essentially given it up for absolutely terrible programming, so I'm watching a lot less of it now a days. I miss it...
Though, I did get to watch the entirety of .hack//roots over the break.

It doesn't really make a difference to me if people know I like anime and manga but I don't go around advertising it. If I hear someone I know talking about it I'll gladly join in the conversation. With that said, there is a decent number of people that like anime and manga at my school (hell, they even have an Anime Club but that is for nerds :< ) so there is usually someone I know that I can talk to about what I am watching or reading.

I read manga in class so Im not really hiding it, I guess? Its funny, I sat with a friend at the beginning of semester, then he stopped going to class, but by the end of the semester, there were like 3-4 people sitting right behind me. What they were doing? You figure that out. Yes, my prof was that boring. 20 people showed up in a 80 person class xD

I don't hide it, but I don't go around telling everyone and anyone about it, either. If it comes up, it comes up.

I'm not afraid to tell people that I do this, although it's only casual for me. I'm not very well versed in Animes and Mangas. Only know a few Mangas and as for the Animes I know, everybody else knows them too...

In fact, it's probably well known on my BL that my favourite Anime is Sailor Moon. I'm not afraid to tell people this.

since I've always lived in a college town, most of the people around here are really cool about things like anime & manga, so I've never had a problem with people knowing about it. the anime club in my HS was the biggest club in the school and they always had to make like half the people who showed up leave because the room was too crowded with everyone sitting on the desks lol. I think after I left the school they made a second club even..

all in all, anime & manga are both completely normal here haha.

Apparently, if you're Asian, thus, you like manga. Which, isn't always true. But when people see me on the computer, they know I'm either playing games, programming things, or reading manga. Which is all true. Stereotyping, but still true, so I'll admit to it.

I don't hide the fact that I read manga, watch anime, and play games either. Proud of the way I am, because when you're being open (but not TOO open), good things can happen to you. I've made great friends, got a great girlfriend, etc.

OMG I would've loved to go to a HS like that with a big anime and manga club >_>.

I have a few friends and cousins that enjoy manga and anime... but because they borrow it from me... ¬¬ but they're at least people that I can talk with about it

Anyway, in HS I hid it sometimes because people believed it only was hentai or porn-comics... That was irritating, mostly because I like shojo and ecchi manga.. ¬¬

Not really. I go to a school that's very relaxed and very tech-savvy - save the bottom 10% of the student body, everybody's probably seen at least half an episode of Naruto. Several teachers like graphic novels, a few play WoW, and one's a communist (but that's rather irrelevant). The student body is also 60% asian, which helps to set the atmosphere a bit.

It's not like I walk around with a ninja headband, but I'll read manga during class and stuff.

I go to an engineering/science college. A relatively large portion of the student body is into anime, and those that aren't at least know what it is. I'm a member of the anime club. I have no need to hide it.

I used to watch some FMA on Adult Swim. I watched a few episodes of Bleach as well. I was never big into anime. (Not counting at ~7, when I loved Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh).

Yep! ^^ Well...considering I'm already a walking stereotype, this fits in perfectly. Probably can't hide it anyway since half my notes are covered in doodles...

Ive been into anime/manga as long as ive been into videogames.
(course that was pokemon and yugioh)

but ive been mostly open to it, cept with some small ecchi things.

Eh. It honestly depends on the anime that I'm watching at the moment. I honestly don't care if its something like Mai-Hime or even more "girly" romance anime, but when it comes down to the more... perverse genres, then yes, generally I don't like to be especially open about watching them. For instance, things like Moetan, Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha, and Kodomo no Jikan.

I never look at manga or watch anime in public. I don't want to perpetuate a stereotype even further.

Because I've been learning the language and listening to Japanese music for the last several years, people already assumed I was into it before I even got interested. Doesn't bother me, they assume it anyways so I don't hide anything. If it's any bit ecchi, however, I'd rather keep it private... I don't really care if they know, or assume it, I just don't want to be viewing that around others.

I don't hide manga or maplestory hobbies. I feel bad for people that are embarrassed by either. It's what you enjoy, so what.