I’ll admit it: when I started this blog I did a lot of things because everyone else was doing them. Big example is reviewing the first episodes from a new season of anime. Sure, it’s a great way to generate content, but it’s content that’s ultimately disposable and worthless.

Nowhere else is the tendency to generate content at the expense of value more apparent than in the practice of writing gift guides. I know a lot of the people reading this aren’t plugged into a million anime and manga blogs the way I am, but this is a thing that happens on a stupefying level.

Milo, you rude asshole, I can hear the objectors say, people have found these guides useful. They’ve said so on numerous occasions. They’re more than just Internet noise!

Yeah, but they shouldn’t be. That’s my whole point.

There was a stamp guy I used to know. He was really into stamps. Whenever it came time to get someone a gift, he would get them the stamp version of what they liked. Liked baseball? He got you baseball stamps. Liked cars? He got you car stamps. Liked Indigenous Australian sandpainting from the 19th century? He got you baseball stamps.

You know where I’m going with this, right?

Don’t be that guy. No one likes that guy. Even if they’re super polite to him with frozen smiles on their faces.

Milo, you impolite idiot, I can hear other objectors say, what about people who use these guides to buy gifts for their friends who already like anime and manga? Not everyone has time to know about the new releases in a given year.

Really? People have time to read blogs but not time to find an appropriate gift on their own?

The whole idea of gift-giving is busting your ass to show appreciation for someone. If you’re only giving on a superficial non-committed level, then get something generic that won’t go to waste, like a gift card. Or don’t waste your money on superficial bullshit at all, and donate to a needy charity.

That’s what this whole thing is supposed to be about, you know?