The Four Color Media Monitor

The Hollywood Reporter talks about why they think the new TV series based on the Penguin crook from Batman's rogues gallery is so great:

Dubbed one of the best comic book shows — a claim this writer will support — the series has been compared to The Sopranos for the way it lends its crime drama tropes to prestige television and to The Watchmen for its character-driven perspective and exploration of themes dealing with class, respect and disability. Though, as with anything, there is a demographic of viewers who, since the first episode, have claimed the series is embarrassed of the comic book material, with the change of Oswald Cobblepot’s name to Oz Cobb in the series being a major sticking point, along with the character’s lack of top hat, monocle, arsenal of trick umbrellas and bird puns.

There’s an interesting discussion to be had about why this series soars, not because it undermines the Penguin’s source material and prior adaptations, but because it utilizes and consolidates them to create a unified vision of the character that is grounded in emotional logic but never forgets it’s dealing with larger-than-life characters.

Considering these are villains the series is focusing on, wow, isn't that rich. Crooks are larger than life? Please. But I won't be shocked if they'd say the same thing about Doctor Doom, a far more technology and science-based villain. Why are crooks larger than life but not heroes? But if anybody believes the show is ashamed of its source material, that's certainly something to ponder. Indeed, if they believe outlandish costumes are that much of an embarrassment in live action, then by the same logic, they're bound to be ashamed of Superman's costume too. What good does that do? The article goes on to say:

The Batman took this same approach to comic books. While Batman: Year One and Batman: The Long Halloween are obvious influences, previously cited in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Trilogy, Batman: Ego was a fresh comic book reference that dove into the psyche of Bruce Wayne/Batman and arguably had more influence on the film and characterization than anything else. I’d argue that Oz’s rejection of aesthetics associated with the Penguin of the comics has nothing to do with an embarrassment of source material, but the need for there to be an emotional justification behind it. In the same way we understand the emotional reasoning behind why a wealthy man would dress up like a bat and call himself Batman, there must be a emotional reasoning why a man which a physical disability would submit to calling himself the Penguin and wear a tuxedo and top hat. And by the end of The Penguin, we see the reasoning behind Oz moving closer to his comic book counterpart.

And why is it such a big deal we care, emotionally or otherwise, about a criminal? All that aside, it's funny the hoops and hurdles they're jumping through to justify trying not to build a surreal world where odd costumes could be worn by heroes and villains in live action. In that case, why don't they make this an animated series instead, if they really can't do emotion with surrealism simultaneously? And then, what's this:

Rather than utilizing the post-Crisis comic book origin in which Oswald is a member of one Gotham’s wealthiest and oldest families, here he is impoverished — hence the more common sounding surname Cobb rather than Cobblepot — and left to fight for scraps, whereas Bruce has everything at his disposal. Where Bruce would have likely been healthier and happier if he had siblings to rely on, Oz rejects and kills his. Bruce is a recluse who hates the public spotlight, whereas Oz loves the attention, driving around in a flashy purple sports car and drawing attention to himself. And while Batman has yet to find a Robin in this universe, Penguin finds his own equivalent in Victor Aguilar (Rhenzy Feliz) whose origin not only echoes that of second Robin Jason Todd, he’s also beaten with a crowbar later in series.

Over the course of the series, Oz brings Vic up like his would-be successor, further mirroring the role of Robin, only to brutally strangle him in the final episode, out of a fear of both loving someone else and someone else being more loved than he. Oz even has his own femme fatal in show-stealer Sofia Falcone (Christin Milioti), Selina Kyle’s half-sister who, while not drawn to Oz in a sexual way, proves to be his equal in the same way that Catwoman serves as Batman’s. What Bruce and Oz have in common is their inability to let go of their mothers, with the tragedy Martha Wayne nee Arkham defining Bruce’s quest for vengeance, and Francis Cobb (Deirdre O’Connell) being left in a vegetative state after a stroke at the end of the series, who is kept alive in a living state of hell by Oz who refuses to let her go. Even in Batman’s absence in the series, his presence is there and the series ends teasing a showdown between two boys who long for their mothers, caught in a cycle of playing dress-up.

I don't know whether scenes like the above occur in comics stories old and/or new, but if we're supposed to be sympathetic to a man who murders his brothers and sisters, to say nothing of his buddies, that's revolting. I'm sorry, but even the Godfather trilogy is no excuse for making something like this. And seriously, even if the 1988 storyline where Jason Todd perished at the hands of the Joker isn't the worst of mandates that here relied on unreliable voting measures by phone, what's so great about that either? Exploring villains' psyches has definitely gone way too far, and above all, note the telling reliance in TV shows and films like these on jarringly violent acts, as though adults literally cannot enjoy such a show without them.

And what next? Will we be seeing a TV show focused on Lex Luthor? Sorry, but even that's no substitute for focus on the lives heroes could live with family and friends. I think this Penguin show is drawing out the already overused trope that risks glamorizing villainy. At least they may not depict Cobb as a totally rich gangster. But it still doesn't compensate for the overuse of some of the most unpleasant tropes that have become far too common in modern entertainment.

Labels: Batman, dc comics, golden calf of villainy, history, msm propaganda, violence

As anyone familiar with veteran mangaka Rumiko Takahashi's writings may know, the anime adaptation of Ranma 1/2 was recently remade, and specially for broadcast on notorious Netflix, no less. It's now the subject of this recent Answerman column at Anime News Network, which, most unfortunately lurches into lecturing as to why, in contrast to the original 1989-96 anime productions (there was also at least one more entry in 2008), the nudity is toned down most peculiarly:

So! Why have they chosen not to include the boobs, the nipples, and the butt cracks that were freely on display in the original Ranma ½ series, which first aired in Japan in April 1989?

1.) Global anime audiences have moved on from traditional anime fan service. The audience mix is younger and more diverse both gender-wise, culturally, and ethnically than ever before, and with that comes different perspectives and standards as well as expectations. In 1989, anime creators wanted to make a hit anime that as many people as possible would enjoy, but that prism of success was very local and very specific: Japanese audiences watching the early evening anime slot on FujiTV (one of the original co-producers);

2.) The global audience for strong female leads in a long-running anime series no longer sees fan services as a necessary ingredient in their enjoyment of the aforementioned program. Fan service is a niche interest for a small segment of the audience and a mild distraction for the majority of the audience at best;

3.) A lot more women and girls watch anime these days. I would like to think that most anime creators welcome this development and want to make programming that is as attractive to this growing segment of the audience as it is to the male segment;

4.) As anime becomes more accessible and more popular around the world, the average age of anime audiences continues to fall, with some surveys claiming that as much as half the audience is aged between 10-18. It is understandable, then, that some shows created for mass appeal globally may tone down or remove fan service entirely;

Now I honestly find the whole shape-shifting between male/female premise of Ranma 1/2 icky, but, let's put that aside and comment, if anything, upon number 3. It's laughable to say women and girls literally have a problem with nudity in all instances, especially considering the manga was originally created by a woman, who, if I'm correct, even ran a studio at the height of her career with at least a few more female employees. Maybe women would have an issue with making a joke out of nudity, but to say virtually all women think the same is supremely silly as it's lecturing, to say nothing short of insulting to the intellect. A better question would be: if it's Ranma we're talking about, why would a boy want to see Ranma's female form nude knowing this is actually a boy who's been cursed with a bizarre magic that turns him into a female form when doused with cold water, and back to male when doused with hot? (Or is it the other way around regarding temperatures?) Seriously, that's awfully icky, IMHO.

But putting that aside, the columnist does little to explain how the "majority" of the alleged audience finds fanservice distracting, depending what exactly it is we're talking about. I suppose the question is whether most audiences today are even interested in romantic tales of a heterosexual nature. Nor does he explain why the producers of Ranma 1/2 are obligated to market this specific story to whoever the audience is he's talking about. Why must they brew up a remake instead of develop a new, separate story unrelated to Ranma 1/2? And curious how any discussion of violent content isn't raised here, because valid queries can be brought up as to whether most women and girls enjoy that any more than nudity. That's another serious double-standard in this mishmash.

Some valid questions could also be raised as to whether children really do read manga if they're not reading much of USA comics, and simultaneously, doesn't the columnist's claim contradict what I thought was the main goal of Japanimation, to convince people the medium can be for adults as much as children? Such hypocrisy right there.

I took a look at the accompanying forum thread, and found some more worth pondering. For example:

I understand why the decision was made, but I don't have to like it.

In this specific instance, as opposed to other shows, I think the nudity served an purpose. Even if Rumiko Takahashi isn't going to say it outright (she certainly hasn't said anything about the numerous trans reads that have been made regarding Ranma 1/2 - such as Susan J. Napier's analysis of the narrative in Anime from Akira to Howl's Moving Castle: Experiencing Contemporary Japanese Animation), I think the use of nudity in Ranma 1/2 served to create a not only subtextual but textual discussion of how we look at bodies based on gender, and what is or is not considered acceptable based on societal norms, and the ways that they can be somewhat hypocritical (such as the scene with Female-Presenting-Ranma walking from the bath with his shirt off, Akane calling him out, and Female-Presenting-Ranma being indignant because he's a guy).

Like, by comparison, 2.5D Seduction (which is also currently airing), also has some cheesecake elements in the source material, and (I haven't had the opportunity to read the manga yet - but I have seen some page-to-screen comparisons) has some incidental nudity. I don't have a problem with ommission of the nudity there, because there it is (generally) gratuitous, and doesn't serve a thematic purpose in quite the same way. Whereas here - I think it served a purpose, especially compared to Urusei Yatsura and Maison Ikkoku. Rumiko Takahashi was in a position at this point in her career where she didn't need to put nudity in a work to get published or keep it from being cancelled, and nor were her editors really in a position to pressure her to include nudity. This was a conscious artistic choice on her part at the time of publication.

Now, is this an instance here where changes in societal mores in Japan to go in a more sexually repressive and conservative direction may have caused pressure to tone down the nudity? Possibly. Was there pressure to Kewpie-fy the characters to ensure they get those Saudi Investment Fund dollars (or other countries where there's more restrictive content? Possibly.

I just wish there was still a place on the spectrum for "Narratively significant but non-sexual nudity" between "Generally Chaste nudity-free fanservice" (i.e. what I described in 2.5D Seduction) and "Literally Porn (i.e. the various Rance-influenced Isekai series)"

I thought Takahashi did address the subject of "trans reads" in some sense? In any event, I wish these people would ask whether the whole premise was in good taste to begin with. A character who shape-shifts isn't what I consider the best way to convey "fanservice".

Of course, even more worth considering is whether sexual molestation played for cheap sensationalism should be considered "fanservice". That's something Japan has to reevaluate, because such notions give sex and the medium itself a bad name. Why, did it ever occur to them that when you make sex look that ugly, it might've contributed to the plummeting birthrate over past decades, as some people may have been embarrassed and discouraged from practicing it, because of how repellent it ran the gauntlet of making sexual issues look? If animators could write sexuality in ways that make it look in better taste, maybe we could see some improvement in how even the USA looks at these subjects. And let's not forget graphic violence must also be reevaluated, recalling there's a miniseries from a few years ago called Eminence in Shadow that featured decapitations, if memory serves. If western broadcasters have no issue with such ingredients, it says all you need to know what's going wrong. Here's another comment:

The frank discussion of sexuality in a media environment that is almost clinically sanitized is what attracted many to anime in the first place. The motivation to censor is no mystery, but adopting it is destroying one of anime's many unique appeals. I don't know anyone watching this remake, & I suspect that is because the work was popular for its raw directness, whereas the remake appears embarassed about what it is. In the increasingly samey corporate media ecosystem, most people are hungry for a unique perspective. Decisions like this are definitely just more of the same.

Well if anything, like I said, I thought most Japanimators wanted to prove the medium's worth employment for exploring mature issues just as much as live action. All that aside, did this really need to be remade? I'm certainly not surprised a woke channel like Netflix would seek to broadcast a concept like Ranma 1/2, and they quite possibly did it just so they could have something that'd pander to an LGBT segment. Oddly enough, muted nudity may not be that new. In the 1970s, I think there were some TV-based anime where nipples were not seen on naked breasts. However, I vaguely recall seeing 2 or 3 series (Galaxy Express 999 and Candy Candy) where frontal male nudity was seen on youngsters, and if that's what they thought acceptable then, it speaks volumes of hypocrisy for the times. These examples may be few and far between, but IIRC, the anime of Konjiki no Gash featured a sick joke with male nudity too in its premiere nearly 2 decades ago. That's why more astute observers have lamented how Japan unfortunately embarrassed animation as much as they made it more sophisticated. Now, here's another comment:

Nudity fades away in the actual manga over time but the last chapter has a boob shot of Akana and the first half of Inuyasha also included nudity to keep the boys engaged before Takahashi basically up on that for good so it´s all a bit complicated.

Anyway. If the show featured nudity, and it is sexual in the end, as a core feature then it would get TV-MA or high teen ratings all over the world and the anime wouldn´t even be able to air on most Japanese stations even at night. Ad the 16-year-old characters and you are only looking at trouble in the end. Can´t wait till the US Culture War fully discovers animanga... This is supposed to be a show for teens so the barbification was a foregone concussion even 2 decades ago. The Inuyasha anime had no nudity either for example. Why was nudity removed from adult-rated Seinen shows like Vinland Saga or Parasyte in 2014? Same reason as here. Not worth the hassle for the producers so 17+ Netflix shows and uncensored releases of softcore porn are the exclusive domain of anime nudity now.

The brief nudity in the original Urusei Yatsura anime was controversial in the 80s but it wasn´t the first TV anime with boob shots. Lupin Part 1 is an early example from 1971. Even Gundam. The last Gundam product with nudity was the very beginning of Turn A in 1999 and Urusei Yatsura´s readaptation was also nudity-free. The global market and Japan becoming more buttoned up killed the money shot. No magical Blu-rays are bringing it back. Especially if we consider that even Japan is giving up on discs these days. It´s Netflix or nothing and Netflix has spoken.

PAL versions of video games used to have a similar problem back in the day. The anti-gore and Nazi imagery German market sometimes lead to full EU releases being censored. The German market was too lucrative to skip and only making one version saved money and time in too many cases. (Both problems solved themselves in the end.)

Streamers couldn´t be more cheap these days so they won´t waste money on alternative scenes being made. Especially if they don´t even get to stream that version. They can´t even pay real humans to make subs anymore and what is cheaper than that?

Regarding Urusei Yatsura, I have seen the original franchise from 1981-91 (along with another special produced in 2008) in past years, and while I can't recall if there was outright nudity in that, there were 2 episodes set at a bathhouse. I recently got to see the remake as well, which even remakes at least one OVA (the story that's a variation on Alice in Wonderland with bunny suits), and some of "the final chapter" film from 1988 to serve as a finale, but it's worth noting that probably less than half of what the original consisted of was bound to have been remade, even if some of the newer take's episodes were split between 2 stories condensed into shorter format. From what I could tell, David Production remade what were considered the most popular stories from the original run produced by Studio Pierrot/Deen. I've also seen the adaptation of Takahashi's Maison Ikkoku, and thought it even more engaging, which is why I hope it's not remade as the other 2 adaptations have been to date, because the original from the late 80s reflected the time it was made, and worked well within those boundaries. Also, the animation from the time holds up very well too. There's no need to keep doing all these remakes just so a bunch of hypocrites who may not hold similar standards when it comes to violent content can have something to serve their own questionable agenda. Let's take a look at another comment:

I have a theory that the subtle distinction between sexual nudity and non-sexual nudity is lost on more people these days. In the old series and manga I think Ranma's nudity was akin to nude portraits(anatomy art), included simply because it was a natural component of the female form.

Or maybe it's just me because I never got a sexual thrill out of seeing Ranma's female form.

I think Happosai is the character who primarily makes the display of sexual characteristics in Ranma ½ problematic and even he was less interested in the female form than the underclothes covering it.

That certainly sums up how I would feel if I ever do watch Ranma 1/2. Again, how can I find this appealing when the protagonist is actually a man undergoing magic spells? Now another:

It's funny that even a Netflix anime like BASTARD!! has nipple-less bare breasts, even though it's rated 18+ for violence, nudity, and sex. I get that the rating is mostly for the violence and IIRC the manga didn't show nipples either. My preference is that if you won't show nipples, be a little more creative with blocking instead of giving us Barbie doll anatomy.

What raises eyebrows here is the part about violence. But, valid questions can also be raised as to why all the worry about a cartoon, if live action films by contrast have nudity unrestricted, even with body doubles in place. Next:

What an incredibly strange way to answer questions, it's almost condescending. Plus, how can one say that it wasn't censored and then literally say in the next couple of sentences how much the fan service elements were in the original manga and anime, therefore making it censored.

It is a real shame that they had to with such an incredibly hard cut to the point that a butt crack can't even be drawn, that's either laziness or a level of censorship beyond what even Disney would do nowadays. Heck, just use the standard magical light beams or steam at that point, at least it'd look better than that.

I'm really curious about how they are going to factor in various story elements going forward this way if that's the case, because Happosai is going to either have to be removed completely or fundamentally changed. Plus, if I remember correctly, didn't Ranma end up flashing an opponent accidentally or on purpose a few times?

I think there's valid grounds on which to reprimand the columnist for talking down to the readership, to the point where he almost makes it sound like manga is literally a children's medium in almost every sense, which contradicts how past mangakas and animators tried to prove it worthy for adult subjects, as noted before. Seriously, does ANN really want to employ somebody that unintelligible? That said, if you want something else eyebrow raising:

Censorship is pretty common in most anime adaptions from manga as manga are allowed to show more things than TV networks can. It's nothing new especially for shounen anime which tend to get the worst of it which also includes violence and blood. Fairy Tail's anime adaption was pretty infamous for the complete lack of blood in it compared to other shounen anime and the original manga. Speaking of which, the nudity and sexual humor is not the only thing they changed. I noticed they also removed the word CHINA from Ranma's overalls and changed it to SMILE. Also the red Communist star on Ranma's hat in one scene was removed. A lot of references to China seem to be cut from the reboot. I don't know if it's due to Sinophobia on the Japanese side or the Chinese market asking them to remove it. Chinese stuff seems to get altered a lot in Japanese media these days, especially re-releases of older series and video games. As Japanese media became more global they had to censor things to not offend other countries. Perhaps the nudity was in the same category since a lot of countries would not allow it: especially the ones that label drawings of naked minors as child pornography.

Wow. If this was done not to offend China, that actually figures, what with the way they do things according to communism for many years already. And, reacting to the columnist's 3rd "point":

This in particular just seems like a weird take to me. Is it really a concern that the ladyfolk might be so offended by the sight of a cartoon nipple in a bath scene that they'd immediately drop the series and run screaming from the room, never to watch anime again? Do you really think female viewers would be genuinely offended at the sight of a butt crack?

And:

I agree with this. It feels like its talking down to women, or even upholdingg a regressive idea that women would find attractive women offensive.

Watch any major Woman Vtuber that plays any of the major Fanservicey Gacha game and how they thirst over them. I don't think even relatively nonsexualized Nudity like in Ranma 1/2's bathing scenes would be offensive to women especially teens and adults.

If they're used to seeing live action nudity in a movie, and even cable TV, then animated nudity is not going to worry them by a long shot. Also, if there happens to be an R-rating, doesn't that prepare the viewer for what to expect if they know the given rating? Now, here's one more comment that could be worth pondering:

While I find the omission of female nipples in Ranma to be a thing that's par for the course for most TV anime targeted to a broad age group nowadays, the crack being filled in so to speak ( Laughing ) is a trend I've noticed across gender lines in anime for a bit now and while I "understand" the nipples being omitted the solid butts epidemic is one i just cannot wrap my head around. End of the day anime is animation, it is created from scratch visually meaning animators have the option to not draw the butt at all in the first place and put steam, objects and etc in the way or just choose a cropped framing of any given scene and yet they continue to draw the butts out but with a missing crack. It's just truly a bizarre production choice cause while there could be arguments toward a desire for nip-less chests I have never heard of anyone desiring a crackless tush as an alternative to just hiding the butt in full or displaying a full caboose.

On the opposite gender side of things, the anime that really highlighted this new trend for me was Yuuki Bakuhatsu Bang Bravern when it had Isami crouched with no crack in one of the first few episodes and it took me out of the watching experience cause I was confused if Bravern had sealed him up while he was inside him and THAT'S why he was so traumatized cause I know I was. Bravern was an even weirder example cause while Ranma is a shonen manga targeting a younger audience, I got the impression Bravern (an original series) was targeted towards older anime and mecha fans so the need to omit buttcrack is again a strange choice since this was one of the few modern anime where male nipples were also present and its not like the show wasn't full of sexual innuendos to boot. Like I said in my last paragraph: why did they have to show his uni-cheek at all in this case? Its not like there was manga panels this was tracing as reference, it was its own thing. I've noticed a general shift over the years away from naked men gags in anime across the board but why when there IS a butt are we hiding what we all have and all know is there? The posterior is not a secret to literally anyone and again if we're worried about people seeing butts I fail to see how a missing crack is a welcome alternative to a scandal-free, all ages friendly, social media outrage dodging No-Butt-At-All.

Interesting. If so, it's probably in contrast to USA live action movies, where jokes involving male nudity may still be prevalent. I recently watched Anyone But You, starring Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell, and that had a joke scene featuring implied male nudity. It may not have been graphic or explicit, but it was there. Also note that, while it may not have been shy about sex, it did feature one annoying scene featuring LGBT-originating pronoun nonsense on a computer screen (and the story features a lesbian wedding as a backdrop). It may be one of the better comedy films of recent (and the genre's practically been dwarfed by the horror genre, tragically enough), but depending how you see things, it still relies on stuff that's come to be viewed as in questionable taste, and if the Japanese are moving away from male nudity jokes, that's certainly showing some common sense by contrast. Something to consider is that years before, it wasn't considered funny to make jokes out of female nudity in places like a changing room if a man barged in (one must wonder if the left still understands this after all the transsexual damage that's come this past decade), and if that's not funny or respectable, then it should be excruciatingly obvious it's not funny to makes jokes at men's expense either. So maybe it'd do some good for live action movies to move away from such crude jokes as well.

Earlier, there was also a review of this on The Game of Nerds, and the following sounds like absurd PC pandering:

Improved Representation and Censorship

Amongst all the ones mentioned thus far, there were a few changes that were necessary to make. One of the biggest examples is included in the original’s first episode, where the unnamed Chinese Jusenkyo tour guide speaks in a stereotypical accent with broken english. Fans of the show have always recognized this as one of the anime’s biggest flaws as it very clearly misrepresents Chinese individuals. This is especially true since, later on, this stereotype remained consistent with all the other Chinese characters that show up in the anime such as the fan-favorite Shampoo and her sisters.

Naturally, everyone was very much expecting the new Ranma 1/2 remake to resolve such an issue to achieve more Chinese inclusivity. Thankfully, this is what we get to see as the Chinese Jusenkyo guide in the remake is stripped of such a stereotypical dialect. This change essentially ensures the same treatment for Shampoo, which fans have been very eager to see ever since hearing about the remake.

Aside from all that, there was also a lot less nudity shown in the first episode compared to the original – which makes sense for a modern day release. While it showed up a lot more, I personally never thought nudity was a crucial aspect of the original anime. The remake seemed to have found other ways to accomplish what many of those scenes were trying to do without it. So, I was left genuinely curious as to why they cut it down to specifically only one scene where Ranma is getting ready to take a second bath in his female form instead of just scrapping nudity altogether. It leaves me curious as to how they’ll cut them down for future episodes.

Interesting how the argument here isn't about whether the whole premise was gross to begin with, but rather, whether there should be any nudity at all. This particular item may be written by a woman, but again, it's supremely silly to think all women think like a hive, and if women in the 80s and 90s didn't have an issue with seeing Michelle Pfeiffer doing nude scenes in R-rated movies, then it's not like all today are that different. And what's this about Chinese and stereotypical dialects? If this is the English-language dubs we're talking about, surely that wouldn't apply to the original Japanese per se. There's something strange about the talk of a need for Chinese inclusivity too - there's been only so many items in past decades where Chinese descendants were present; it's not an issue at all, not even for Japan. I get this weird feeling this has something to do with China's communism. Could that be the reason for this silly argument? I may not find the premise of Ranma 1/2 appealing, but it's certainly telling when somebody blatantly comes out in favor of censorship, as the writer of this insult to the intellect did.

The whole subject also led to me to do some research on something I'd noticed at Niche Gamer more than a year ago, about the removal of a lewd scene that was possibly intended as a "joke" in the adaptation of Bleach: Thousand Year Blood War:

Bleach creator Tite Kubo has expressed dismay over a lewd scene with Orihime getting removed from the Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War anime.

It is not unusual for certain scenes in a manga to get left out or changed, and Bleach creator Tite Kubo recently explained why the scene with Yoruichi placing her hand between Orihime’s breasts was removed from the anime.

Kubo replied to a fan on their official blog Klub Outside (via Reddit), the mangaka noted that the anime was airing in a late-night time slot, meaning the show could get away with increased violence and gore.

“The sequence after Yoruichi’s appearance was too lewd so it was a no-go,” Kubo said. “[Shame, as] I really liked the look on Yoruichi’s face when she scorns Ichigo.”

The news site later posted screencaps of leftist social media posters who were celebrating this. Now, I don't doubt many of these anonymous creeps weren't being altruistic, and it wouldn't be the least bit shocking if it turned out they sided with the Islamofascists who committed the horrors of October 7, 2023. But what exactly is such a big deal about a scene that plays sexual assault for laughs and shock tactics? (I think the character who performs the lewd act is a man, by the way.) I vaguely recall a commentor on Bounding Into Comics arguing right-wingers have to be careful about defending content like this, because it risks giving leftists ammunition to use against conservatives, and while I don't know if Niche Gamer's staff are really conservatives, I do know they shouldn't be letting the politics of certain social media posters cloud their own judgement, moral or otherwise. Seriously, how did it get to a point where lewdness is discussed so casually by these news sites, as if it were inherently acceptable in animation in all instances? It's true there are Japanese cartoons and manga where sexual violence is depicted negatively, but even if it's committed by villains, that doesn't make it instantly acceptable if it's being depicted sensationalistically simultaneously. Could that be the reason why the posts about the Bleach sequel were erased from the main website in the year since they were written? Is it possible Niche Gamer received complaints from more sensible folks who recognize why it's not healthy to give sex a bad name?

I don't know the clear answer to this, but if Japan can think of how to give sex a good name, it could serve as a good defense against moral hypocrites who quite possibly couldn't give a damn even today about lewdness in live action, not to mention real life. And it might even restore some esteem to the Japanese public they could be in serious need of too. Let's be clear. If gross acts aren't acceptable in USA entertainment, then it's stupid to act as though it's more acceptable in foreign entertainment, animated or live action. So if Japan can persuade anybody dealing with sexual issues to take a better tack, they could have a better advantage that's currently lacking. There is all sorts of adult subject matter in Japanese entertainment that's bound to remain for years. Even in the USA, there's plenty of the same. But creatives would do well to consider that by giving sex a bad name, they could doom their creative freedom, and that's why some improvement could be made to the whole approach.

With all that told, I'll say again that I don't find Ranma 1/2's premise appealing, and it's decidedly the kind of fantasy better left in the past. To remake it as they have now is silly and insulting, and it wouldn't be surprising if Netflix took up broadcasting rights for the new take out of wokeism. One more reason why it's better not to subscribe to their services.

Labels: censorship issues, Europe and Asia, golden calf of LGBT, history, licensed products, manga and anime, misogyny and racism, msm propaganda, politics, violence

The Harrogate Advertiser wrote about the latest Thought Bubble convention in the area, since it moved locations:

Since Thought Bubble Comic Convention swapped Leeds for Harrogate in 2019, it has gone from strength to strength.

A week long celebration of comics, illustration and more spread across the whole of Yorkshire, it’s just seven days until the whole shebang culminates in a huge two day comic convention at Harrogate Convention Centre.

But Amy Bellwood, one of the directors of this legendary comic con, said the magic of Harrogate was built more than on just its excellent convention facilities. "Our international guest artists absolutely love coming to Harrogate,” she said.

No doubt, those international guests also include the "writers" who've effectively ruined mainstream comicdom in the USA. If Frank Miller loved coming to Thought Bubble, the Orwellian crowd there sure ruined it for him too, though if he never opposed their banishing in any way, he's obviously responsible for enabling their censorship to happen. That said, somebody tells here:

"Everyone can get together under one roof. [...]

Except anybody who's right wing, or even anybody who opposed Islam, as Miller did in Holy Terror, and then he made a farce of it all by retracting his earlier standings. As a result, I've found it hard to support him any further. Here's a bit more about what people are in attendance:

DSTLRY Presents: The Art of The Cover in which trailblazing international comic artists Emma Rios, Jock, Sweeney Boo, Becky Cloonan, Tula Lotay and Dani.

[...] Not only does it boast a huge array of big names from comic books but its ethos of representing that world in the all its many iterations shines through.

This "Boo" also worked on some pretty woke stuff at least 5 years ago, and again, let's consider that most of the creators in attendance are more or less leftists. I wouldn't be shocked if Chuck Dixon weren't invited, nor Mike Baron, and who knows if any leftists today still cherish his work on Nexus, for example? All the Thought Bubble convention's done is gone from strength to weakness.

Labels: conventions, Europe and Asia, islam and jihad, moonbat artists, moonbat writers, msm propaganda, politics

The Yale Daily News wrote about a convention held in New Haven, CT:

New Haven Comic and Collectible Spectacular descended again upon New Haven, organized by comic aficionado Tom Fiore at the Annex YMA Club bingo hall. Collectible vendors, visiting artists and professional comic collectors manned booths from wall to wall, selling posters, Funko Pops, eclectic mementos, vintage comic books and signed artwork.

“I’ve been doing shows since 1985 [and the New Haven] show for the past eight years,” said comic seller Jonathan Scungio over his bins of rare comics, some prices marked in the thousands.

The Spectacular began in 2006, shortly before the birth of Tom Fiore’s daughter, who helped behind the ticket booth at the entrance on Sunday. Fiore’s family wasn’t the only one present. Droves of parents and children milled between the booths of the Spectacular, poking through action figures and plush cartoon characters.

Fiore was inspired by comic book fairs he attended as a kid to create the Spectacular. The children weaving between the stands on Sunday reminded Fiore of the joy events like these brought him.

Beneath the unused bingo scoreboard and among rows of comic books from his childhood, Fiore remarked on the legacy of his passion for collecting comic books and the Spectacular.

“It’s liberating. I do hope that this catches on and people continue it. People have gone off and run their own shows that started by coming here and setting up,” said Fiore.

Well it's great to know children are attending this particular convention. But it's to be hoped the comics marketed at the convention actually are suitable for children, and don't emphasize LGBT propaganda like certain items today do. And when it comes to collecting, again, it should be for the reading value, not the monetary. If convention organizers would emphasize those points, they could make things a lot easier.

Labels: animation, conventions, history, msm propaganda, sales

Recently, a columnist for Villages News of Florida wondered if it's time to bring back comics heroes, following the recent USA election:

I haven’t written one of these musings for some time. I guess all the various political information missiles got me down wondering how people could write such misleading “facts” and expect the voters to buy the comments as clearly true? Unfortunately, we will now listen to similar after the election comments. I just hope that those unfortunate college students and faculty recover from their disappointment so that the students can graduate and the faculty grow up! The whole mess makes me wonder sometimes why I learned to read. Of course, when I was young you had to essentially learn to read as back then that’s how you got most of your information. Alas, there was no TV or social media available. It took longer for news to get around then, which was good in many ways as it stopped copycats from shooting more people – which is a very good example.

I decided this morning that I needed to go back to my early days of reading to calm my ancient mind. I taught myself to read by perusing the daily comic strips. I would then inform my parents of what was occurring in the strips at dinnertime. Finally, my mother asked my dad how I knew all about what was happening in the strips. He naturally replied that even though I was only five, I was reading them. That’s how I knew I had become a reader. With that information in my still developing brain, I branched out to comic books which were becoming very popular. Back then comic books were sixty-four pages for a dime. Naturally, others saw an advantage in a book that was thirty-two pages for a nickel. In fact, one of them was called “Nickel Comics,” Its main hero was Strongman. He was pretty indestructible, but he couldn’t fly. Therefore, to get places he would hop on cannon shells and ride them to where he wanted to go. Luckily the cannons were always pointed in the right direction.

Strongman shouldn’t have been too upset as Superman could not fly either back then. He could leap tall buildings in a single bound, but no flying. The flying came later, so maybe if Strongman’s creators had persisted, he might have learned to fly too. However, there were too many comic book heroes to follow to worry about Strongman. There were heroes galore and copycats of heroes. Everyone knows of Batman and Robin. There were many copy cats of them which failed for one reason or another. One of the oddest was Mr. Scarlet and Pinky. They caught villains too, most of whom were probably doubling over in laughter at the costumes worn by the good guys. I was never sure how the creators’ expected boys who read most of the comic books to relate to superheroes in scarlet and pink. I guess as I mused above, some writers believe that people will accept anything.

Unfortunately, these last folks are perhaps correct. The last few years obviously shows that. I would expect that the same tendency will continue for many years into the future. That is not really a good situation, so it might be good if more expressions could be made in comic book form. Who knows, Strongman might make a comeback. Strongman, the superhero that is – not a socialist dictator!

On that note, I hope he's not alluding to Donald Trump, though if the columnist is a leftist, it sure would be weird if he really does believe socialism's a bad ideology, considering how much the left sold out to communism over the past decade or so.

But if the guy really thinks superheroes should make a comeback, it'll only happen if positive values are respected, and it sure won't happen so long as DC/Marvel are under corporate ownership as things stand now. Maybe the columnist would do well to look at the situation under a magnifying glass, and actually write about what's gone wrong with superhero fare in the mainstream. Then, we'd actually be getting somewhere.

And as for pink outfits, well I am aware that in addition to Mr. Scarlet's adopted son Pinky, Lee Falk's Phantom was created wearing a purple leotard during the Golden Age, and yes, that too is outdated, but I can't seem to recall many examples of male heroes other than them wearing pink and purple. What I do recall is Saturn Girl from Legion of Super-Heroes wearing the color pink in the Bronze Age, and for heroines, such a color shade is a lot more suited, if that matters.

Labels: comic strips, history, msm propaganda, politics

The AV Club's talking about rising prices of floppies, and how it affects independent creators and publishers, something I may have wondered about earlier myself:

For the past 12 years, standard 32-page comic titles were priced at $3.99, with some titles (mainly for kids) still at $2.99. But prices have been steadily rising; more than half of all new comics in 2024 cost $4.99, with some going up a dollar or two more with variant and stock card covers, or in some cases, extra story pages. It might seem like a small difference, but it has big implications, Image Comics co-founder and Spawn creator Todd McFarlane explained. “…For 20 or 25 bucks when we were younger, you used to be able to walk out [of a comic book store] with a pretty thick bag full of comic books. Now you can count them on your fingers.”

McFarlane raises an important point: With inflation hitting people hard, can the comic book market sustain a 25-percent price increase? How does this affect the indies? While journeying through New York Comic Con 2024 (and after), The A.V. Club sat down with several comic book publishers, including McFarlane, to discuss this shift.

There are a few key reasons for the recent industry changes. “Cost factors have gone up for everybody,” explains Damian Wassel, CEO and publisher at Vault Comics, whose recent series include Deathstalker and Godfather Of Hell. He noted that in the three years prior to the COVID pandemic, “the U.S. went through this massive run of paper plant consolidation and shutdowns. Then COVID happened, and comics sales skyrocketed in 2021, but nobody could get paper for them so costs went up. You’ve got some printers charging close to or more than 100% more than they charged in 2018—not because they have to, necessarily, but because that’s what they’re doing. Then inflation has gone up, so creators need to make more.”?

As a result, the two comics behemoths, Marvel and DC, raised prices on many of their books to $4.99. A number of indies also followed suit. However, Marvel and DC have the advantage over indies in that they can do considerably larger print runs which can reduce printing costs. Indies generally have smaller print runs and therefore tighter profit margins. They also don’t have the greater corporate profit edicts of the Big Two. Further, some licensed properties can require higher cover prices to recoup an investment.

“Pricing has been an issue in comics for a while because of this collector mentality that’s become the mindset of everyone,” notes James B. Emmett, senior editor of creator-owned projects at Mad Cave Studios, home to Gatchaman, The Hexiles, and others. “But also to make sales make sense in terms of printer costs, shipping, paying our artists, paying our writers, and just making sure we’re breaking even on the floppies.”

The company settled on the $4.99 price with $6.99 for books with slightly longer stories or alternate covers, which is comparable to other indies’ pricing. “Variants are more expensive because they’re lower print runs so their markups are higher and they’re more exclusive,” Emmett said. “We’re still playing in the world of comics in that way because people want to collect those things.”

Well I think a serious clue's been provided that even the independent scene's not immune to the obsession with pandering to the speculator market. I'm sure not all publishing specialists and writers/artists agree with that, but anybody who lets this go without comment can't be surprised if the independent industry's ultimate damaged by the whole notion they must do favors for a certain segment that's not in the game for reading, but for collecting out of a flawed notion these items will ever be worth huge money in their lifetime. Even independents have a huge opportunity ahead of them to publish wall paintings, and instead, they opt for a hilariously silly format that could end up locked away in a vault for ages to come, and nobody gets to see it, because it's "collectible".

Through his Outtatime Comics imprint, writer Mike Spring has released his series Red, White And Broke: Confessions Of An American Superhero and The 8-Bit Slasher. His initial print runs are about 300 to 500 copies. His books are 24 pages of story at $5 each, his collected trade paperbacks are $20, and his two recent releases were 48-page square bound one-shots priced at $10 each.

Spring says fans are fine with his pricing “because I mostly sell them at conventions and on Kickstarter, and I think they’re very commensurate with what most indie books are selling for at conventions and on Kickstarter. The thing for me is my profit margin gets a little bit less every time the paper costs go up. I find that most people can see the value of the book.”

But is there a difference between how much you're paying for paperbacks as opposed to floppies? If a trade contains 6 or more chapters originally printed in pamphlets, and it's just $20 in contrast to the $30-plus you could end up paying for the pamphlets, then obviously, the paperback makes the better choice for purchase. Hardcovers can be much more expensive, but some could reasonably argue that too makes a better choice for buying.

We are currently living in another golden age of comics because of the sheer diversity of titles available to readers and collectors today. A majority of that comes at the indie level which is vital for keeping the medium moving forward artistically. But like the current streaming television boom, a plethora of selections can also overwhelm consumers.

“Choice profusion also affects the economics of the business,” Wassel noted. “It’s great to have options as a reader, but when you have a lot of options it can get harder to pick anything. You see a little bit of that happening in consumer behavior, but it also just means that it’s harder for any one thing to break out.”

Umm, you could easily say that about ordinary books, whose own industry is even huger. As for artistic merit, if indies count, why not the corporate-owned comics? Since Marvel/DC threw it away long ago, is it any wonder they've been abandoned? That's why they no longer have breakout successes.

“The key is producing comics that readers actually want and knowing your market,” says John Dziewiatkowski, publishing director for U.K.-based Titan Books which also releases titles in the U.S. including the Gun Honey and Minky Woodcock series. “Is your brand known? Is your story engaging? Strong brands with great stories and great art continue to sell well. Indie comics with unknown titles can be challenging. Publishers need to get creative with their sales and marketing efforts to get the product in front of their target audience. Unfortunately, there is not a magic formula for comic book success.”

While the market may be able to bear $4.99 comics for now, it should be noted that a majority of traditional comic buyers are middle-aged adults, whereas younger readers tend to like manga and graphic novels. Trying to build a strong fanbase of younger readers may be more challenging when some may perceive larger collections as better value for money. And single digital issues are usually not cheaper than print.

Well at least a UK publisher's willing to make a point USA publishers don't seem capable of doing anymore, though I decidedly take issue with "brand". Even that's disputable, since merit for anything, regardless of recognizability, is what counts. And why must brand new stories from Marvel/DC matter as starting points, but not old? You can learn from past publishing history how to turn out the best possible story, and instead all that seems to matter is the newer stuff lacking in merit. Maybe if indie publishers would have the guts to call out Marvel/DC on all the mistakes they're still making, we'd be getting somewhere. Nobody should be sticking to PC standings regarding the issue of merit. That's what allowed Marvel/DC to get away with some of the worst directions for years already.

And even indies aren't immune to PC. We can only hope, therefore, that independents will consider that, if there's anything they need to tidy up for now, it's the laughable notion they're required to pander to speculators. If they'll turn to the wall-portrait business instead of relying heavily on variant covers, then we'll be getting somewhere, ditto if they leave pamphlets behind in favor of paperbacks. Unfortunately, no chance the AV Club will ever make the suggestion themselves.

Labels: conventions, Europe and Asia, history, indie publishers, licensed products, msm propaganda, sales

Digital Trends wrote about Disney's animated production, Big Hero 6, from the past decade, probably one of the last cartoons they produced worth seeing to date:

The superhero genre has become remarkably overcrowded over the last 15 years. The Marvel Cinematic Universe and Christopher Nolan-led redefining of the genre in the late 2000s and early 2010s paved the way for an era of Hollywood dominated by movie characters in capes and villains with world-ending plans. Whether that era is still going is up for debate, but it led to a few years there — roughly 2014-2023 — where superhero movies and TV shows genuinely felt like they were everywhere, and sometimes to a suffocating degree. That doesn’t mean, however, that certain superhero films haven’t fallen through the cracks here and there over the past 10 years.

That seems, at least, to be the fate that has befallen Big Hero 6. Loosely inspired by the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name, the animated Disney film received largely positive reactions from both critics and casual viewers alike when it hit theaters in 2014 and it grossed over $650 million at the worldwide box office. On top of all of that, it went on to win the Oscar for Best Animated Feature in 2015. Big Hero 6 nonetheless ranks as the most underrated superhero film of the modern era — a vibrant piece of comic-book-inspired storytelling that is oft-forgotten by fans of its genre and which strangely hasn’t received the big-screen sequel it deserves.

This'd have to be saying something, considering how far the mighty at Disney have fallen in the decade since, and the comics adaptations have too. Maybe the reason it won't see a sequel is because it wasn't PC enough in its time, and ever since, the PC situation's gotten much worse. Or, if a sequel were made, it'd be forced to incorporate wokeness, and that would only make a long-awaited sequel into a huge disappointment that didn't have to be.

Maybe that's why it's worth considering there's some movies that are good enough to stand on their own without resorting to only so many sequels. Even family fare doesn't have to see a whole lot of them, because if the sequels turns out to be bad, it can diminish what the 1st film accomplished, and that's why animators have to realize it can always pay to just produce one entry, without trying to build up whole franchises that ultimately could lose their edge. Let's home someday, the animation industry and even the whole entertainment industry in general will understand that.

Labels: animation, history