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How are you defining this thread?
Personally, although you do have a point about American comics, there were certain divergences that weren't mainstream.
Take the old Green Arrow and Green Lantern days, when they teamed up. Or how comics began delving into topics such as drug use, homosexuality, child abuse, alcoholism, etc.
Let alone the stir the original Watchman caused when it came out, also the Dark Knight returns. What followed were plenty of series that were dark, gritty, and where the good guy didn't always win.

But manga and anime definitely came from a different perspective. Although I have to admit, I hated the 'kill'em all' philosophy from the early Gundam and Go Nagai days. Or worse, the mikans (a storyline that ends early, with hardly any conclusions). Heck, ever try to stomach the Giant Robot anime's? Yeah...I sucked down wayyyyy too much Voltron, but those were the definitions of repeatativeness.

But some storylines, and more and more, are wonderfully convoluted which keeps my 'aged' mind interested. Character development has made a comeback (and unfortunately blantant shonen fanservice) which leads many series to be worthwhile (IMHO).

The irony of it is, for you youngins, is that even the Japanese market expected an implosion for anime and manga - based upon their dwindling birthrate (around 1.29 per child-bearing woman), and thus a shrinking child-age population. So where is the market?
Luckily the U.S. has taken up some of the slack, and using Korean resources (read: labor) has decreased costs...but it still amazes many that anime and manga is still going strong.