where is the lie though?

It’s a lie of omission.

You’re comparing highly polished mainstream examples of iconic Japanese media to low budget, indie, and amateur american works. If you wanted to be fair the second image should look more like this:

The cultural exchange between American and Japanese art, particularly in animation, is hardly a one way streak.

Here we have Panty and Stocking, which boasts an artistic style that draws heavily upon modern western animation with it’s hard outlines and comical proportions. Shows like Dexter’s Laboratory barrow dynamic posses, dramatic framing, and highly expressive faces form anime and manga. Early anime and manga developed it’s distinct big eyes and childlike features by taking cues from western animation of the 20′s and 30′s

Betty Boop, in particular, was immensely popular in Japan. Her creators even made this short in appreciation of her Japanese fan-base.

the only thing I can say is that it was Drawn Together that influenced Panty and Stocking, and it was Disney’s Bambi that Osamu Tesuka (The Mighty Atom/Astro Boy, Black Jack, Kimba The White Lion, Princess Sapphire) went on record saying influenced his art career… I get what was being shown, but I just wanted to share some facts

Panty and Stocking was also inspired by the cartoons made by Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon. In fact the character of Chuck was a homage to Gir from Invader Zim.

I would also like to note that one of Osamu Tezuka’s main inspirations was Disney comic artist and writer Carl Barks, who’s probably most famous for his Donald Duck comics and creating the character of Scrooge McDuck. Osamu Tezuka even sent a holiday fan letter to Carl Barks once.

Oh, almost forgot. On the American side Teen Titans was heavily inspired by Japanese animation.