Akane No Kill and possible misogyny: a follow up to Anime and Female Charcters

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

In the vein of my Anime and Female Characters [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.859014-Anime-and-Female-characters-yes-this-topic-again?page=1] topic, I found a comment on Anime News Network by one of the reviewers, Hope Chapman, about Akane no Kill and how she sees it as misogynistic here [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/bbs/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=4343696#4343696]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal and that there is a rape joke that goes too far.

I haven't seen the show so I can only reiterate what was posted so please read and comment as you please.

Edit: I edited the wording a bit to make it obvious that it's her opinion as a reviewer and not a general consensus about the show.

 

[Wraith]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal...

Sooooo almost all anime? What makes this one so special.

 

[CaptainCoxwaggle]

All females in Japanese anime are created to have sex appeal, with the exception of old women and ugly girls used as jokes and villains. Akane no Kill isn't any more misogynistic then any other anime, and possibly less so as it has women fighting and dying in quite a visually horrible manner (going by the manga at least). If you do think fanservice and fetishism is misogyny then so be it, all anime is misogynistic, the Japanese don't really care they aren't marketing it to a western audience but rather their own domestic male populace of which I include myself.

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal...

Sooooo almost all anime? What makes this one so special.

To repeat what was stated in the older topic, you can have a sexy character that is acutally developed with a personality

Also, do you have anything to mention about the comment or the show?

 

[CaptainCoxwaggle]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal...

Sooooo almost all anime? What makes this one so special.

I only read the manga in Japanese so I don't know if the anime is as gruesome, but it has female characters being tortured and murdered quite brutally along with the men.

Being a chauvinist I find mutilated women far more disturbing then mutilated men, however I would think this is the kind of equal representation feminists would want, as reprehensible as it is. It at least serves as a good reminder why women ideally shouldn't be in combat.

 

[Wraith]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal...

Sooooo almost all anime? What makes this one so special.

To repeat what was stated in the older topic, you can have a sexy character that is acutally developed with a personality

Also, do you have anything to mention about the comment or the show?

Not at all. Never heard of it. But I googled some pictures from the title alone and I could tell that this is an ecchi anime. So why should people be upset that their is sexy shit inside when they can easily discern from that if it's for them?

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal...

Sooooo almost all anime? What makes this one so special.

To repeat what was stated in the older topic, you can have a sexy character that is acutally developed with a personality

Also, do you have anything to mention about the comment or the show?

Not at all. Never heard of it. But I googled some pictures from the title alone and I could tell that this is an ecchi anime. So why should people be upset that their is sexy shit inside when they can easily discern from that if it's for them?

It's not exactly ecchi, it's more indulgent. It's the type of show that throws around a lot of dismemberment and sex all while promoting a nihilistic worldview

regardless, Just because we can tell that there is sexy crap out there doesn't mean we can't say that it's stupid or problematic that there is so much of it.

 

[Wraith]

regardless, Just because we can tell that there is sexy crap out there doesn't mean we can't say that it's stupid or problematic that there is so much of it.

Sure. But what is REALLY stupid and problematic is going into a show that you know will have tits and ass on display and complain that it does so. It's like going into a strip club and being upset that their are naked women inside.

 

[generals3]

In the vein of my Anime and Female Characters [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.859014-Anime-and-Female-characters-yes-this-topic-again?page=1] topic, I found a comment on Anime News Network by one of the reviewers, Hope Chapman, about Akane no Kill and why it is actually misogynistic here [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/bbs/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=4343696#4343696]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal and that there is a rape joke that goes too far.

I haven't seen the show so I can only reiterate what was posted so please read and comment as you please.

It's utter nonsense. First of all "misogyny": The moment someone uses that word i assume a load of bollocks is coming and I was right. That poster just threw a load of random waffle with some feminist key words here and there and hopes people will fall for it.

Now why is it a load of bollocks? Firstly because the female characters in Akame Ga Kill come in all shapes. You have the stupid one, the cold one, the evil one, the balanced one, the spoiled one, etc. And as the story develops you also realize there is more about them than just those "obvious" traits. It's not like the show has decided to stereotype all women as "spoiled brats" or whatever. And I find the idea that just because some of the female cast shows interest in the male lead it makes the show misogynistic rather weird... So women showing interest (and mind you not all that interest is romantic/sexual interest, a lot of it is interest in some of his unique personality traits, he's after all "The Hero") in a man is misogyny nowadays?

Really, from all the animes out there that poster choose the wrong.

Now sure there is some fan service (it's an anime after all...) but whoever thinks sexualization = misogyny should just go to Saudi Arabia.

On top of that we also notice the exact same characterization among the male characters with maybe as an exception the protagonist... but that's because he's the protagonist and gets a lot more attention (duh). So yeah, it's all pretty damn bullshit.

Oh and if you look down in that thread you'll see the OP make genius statements like:
"A) You don't get to decide that. You don't get to tell a member of the group being mistreated which words they get to use for that mistreatment. "

Clearly you can assume whatever that poster says is going to be some comedy level nonsense.

 

[Fappy]

I've been watching the anime and haven't noticed anything that stands out as strictly misogynistic. Sure, there's the occasional senseless fan service (cue eye-roll), but that's about it. The show's fairly equal opportunity beyond that. Lots of murder, torture and all sorts of dark shit that doesn't discriminate between sexes.

The only thing that really irks me about the show is that the bleak themes tend to clash pretty obnoxiously with its shonen silliness. It's kind of like a GRIMDARK JoJo's Bizarre Adventure or something...

Then again, the next episode looks like it's going to be treading some potentially dangerous territory, so I'll have to get back to you on that.

 

[Username Redacted]

In the vein of my Anime and Female Characters [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.859014-Anime-and-Female-characters-yes-this-topic-again?page=1] topic, I found a comment on Anime News Network by one of the reviewers, Hope Chapman, about Akane no Kill and why it is actually misogynistic here [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/bbs/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=4343696#4343696]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal and that there is a rape joke that goes too far.

I haven't seen the show so I can only reiterate what was posted so please read and comment as you please.

It's utter nonsense. First of all "misogyny": The moment someone uses that word i assume a load of bollocks is coming and I was right. That poster just threw a load of random waffle with some feminist key words here and there and hopes people will fall for it.

Really? My bollocks-sense started tingling when the OP couldn't be assed to actually get the title of the show right. The tingling hit Defcon 1 levels once OP admits to not having ever seen the material that they're looking to discuss. Which IMO is quit obvious as he is pretty much completely off in his assessment of the show. Having actually seen the show my two main complaints about it are very different in nature than the allegations of misogyny. These would be the fact that it seems to have a very juvenile approach to violence/gore and that the interaction between the straight and gay characters in a couple of instances are equally juvenile (and even then one of these interactions leads to a moderately adorable bromance).

Also looking (briefly) at the thread that the OP linked to I really want to go full Inigo Montoya on the (likely) poster in question regarding what the word misogyny actually (per an actual dictionary) means:

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

 

[SacremPyrobolum]

I haven't seen the show so I can only reiterate what was posted so please read and comment as you please.

Oh, well as someone who also hasn't watched the show I am going to say that you are wrong on all accounts and that Akane No Kill is the best thing to happen to women since the invention of the personal massager.

EDIT: Isn't this the anime with the Koko Hekmatyar ripoff? /a/ has been going nuts over that girl. Looks like a fun time regardless. Should see it at some point.

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

In the vein of my Anime and Female Characters [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.859014-Anime-and-Female-characters-yes-this-topic-again?page=1] topic, I found a comment on Anime News Network by one of the reviewers, Hope Chapman, about Akane no Kill and why it is actually misogynistic here [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/bbs/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=4343696#4343696]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal and that there is a rape joke that goes too far.

I haven't seen the show so I can only reiterate what was posted so please read and comment as you please.

It's utter nonsense. First of all "misogyny": The moment someone uses that word i assume a load of bollocks is coming and I was right. That poster just threw a load of random waffle with some feminist key words here and there and hopes people will fall for it.

Really? My bollocks-sense started tingling when the OP couldn't be assed to actually get the title of the show right. The tingling hit Defcon 1 levels once OP admits to not having ever seen the material that they're looking to discuss. Which IMO is quit obvious as he is pretty much completely off in his assessment of the show. Having actually seen the show my two main complaints about it are very different in nature than the allegations of misogyny. These would be the fact that it seems to have a very juvenile approach to violence/gore and that the interaction between the straight and gay characters in a couple of instances are equally juvenile (and even then one of these interactions leads to a moderately adorable bromance).

Also looking (briefly) at the thread that the OP linked to I really want to go full Inigo Montoya on the (likely) poster in question regarding what the word misogyny actually (per an actual dictionary) means:

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

To address the point of the title, sorry, it was a stupid misstep and I really should have checked my work. In addition, the comment made by the person was what sparked my interest; I tried to remain neutral by just conveying what was said without adding my own point to it. Again, sorry if I failed to present the comment without putting my views in but I heard the show had issues so I thought it would be interesting to talk about it.

Also, I would like to actually hear why you believe what the commenter I linked to said got the term wrong. Given what she said (yes, the commenter is a she), if not misogynistic then it's very juvenile and would probably make someone pissed off.

 

[SUPA FRANKY]

See. THis is why we watch shows. If we don't know what we're talking about, we look foolish.


You realize that the strongest character in the entire series, who everyone fears, is a women right?

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

See. THis is why we watch shows. If we don't know what we're talking about, we look foolish.


You realize that the strongest character in the entire series, who everyone fears, is a women right?

I very well will accept the allegation of being a fool, I merely wished to hear from people if their thoughts were similar or divergent from the commenter's and for what reasons.

Edit: just because the strongest character in the series is female doesn't mean it's not problematic. If I had an entire show about a league of ninjas that every nation fears but I have the camera aimed on breasts and asses even in the fights, I doubt it would be considered progressive; Kill la Kill had this problem and I really can only say that its because the show tries to integrate fanservice into the plot with mostly successful results.

 

[SUPA FRANKY]

See. THis is why we watch shows. If we don't know what we're talking about, we look foolish.


You realize that the strongest character in the entire series, who everyone fears, is a women right?

I very well will accept the allegation of being a fool, I merely wished to hear from people if their thoughts were similar or divergent from the commenter's and for what reasons.

Aww... Now I feel bad.

Anyway, no, Akame ga Kill is far from sexist lol. Sure, there is fanservice, but come on! How is fanservice bad? ( Besides, there is male fanservice as well. Bulat wears muscle shirt, and there is a scene that shows his muscles flexing and jiggling and the camera zooms in on them.)

I mean, when the strongest character in your series is a women, who's mere mention of her name causes countries to shit their pants, how is it sexist/misogyny?

But IO guess a person can see sexism in everything if they try hard enough, which kinda makes the word loses it's meaning.

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

See. THis is why we watch shows. If we don't know what we're talking about, we look foolish.


You realize that the strongest character in the entire series, who everyone fears, is a women right?

I very well will accept the allegation of being a fool, I merely wished to hear from people if their thoughts were similar or divergent from the commenter's and for what reasons.

Aww... Now I feel bad.

Anyway, no, Akame ga Kill is far from sexist lol. Sure, there is fanservice, but come on! How is fanservice bad? ( Besides, there is male fanservice as well. Bulat wears muscle shirt, and there is a seen that shows his muscles flexing and jiggling and the camera zooms in on them.)

I mean, when the strongest character in your series is a women, who's mere mention of her name causes countries to shit their pants, how is it sexist/misogyny?

But IO guess a person can see sexism in everything if they try hard enough, which kinda makes the word loses it's meaning.

I would say read the edit but just because the writing says someone is powerful, if the actions or framing don't fit then there will be dissonance. Plus if it's true that the setup for next episode has the protagonist being dragged off by a person to be raped is true, then it could be really problematic to say the least.

as for the concept of fanservice, it's used so often with stupid reasons that I've kind of become cynical about it.

 

[Izanagi009_v1legacy]

In the vein of my Anime and Female Characters [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.859014-Anime-and-Female-characters-yes-this-topic-again?page=1] topic, I found a comment on Anime News Network by one of the reviewers, Hope Chapman, about Akane no Kill and why it is actually misogynistic here [http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/bbs/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=4343696#4343696]

The basic thrust is that all the woman are reduced down to their gender and sex appeal and that there is a rape joke that goes too far.

I haven't seen the show so I can only reiterate what was posted so please read and comment as you please.

So? Its proven to make more money then not doing it. Therefore, the majority vote agrees making sexual female characters is a good thing with the only vote that matters. The wallet.

And regardless, many women in many anime are well written, just because a bunch of anime have proven its a good business practice and the important majority agrees doesn't mean they all do. And since as I said, its proven to make money, they tend to add sex shots onto well written characters because doing so increases sales. Its a proven concept, and since the majority agrees its a good thing, (Because remember, the only voice that matters is the wallet) women sexualization is a good thing.

I guess that sexualization is as much a tool for stories as any other but you have to use it right or I and many other will be really pissed since all you are doing is just make a character for sex appeal. I really wish more of these sexy characters have a personality, character development, or are just good but we have to deal with so much waifu bait and TnA that it's really aggravating.

 

[Zakarath]

Eh, I saw a few eps of it. it really couldn't make up its mind about whether to be a lame fanservice fest or some edgy grimdark adventure, and ended up feeling awkward and inconsistent, so I decided not to bother with it. If it has a little disporportionate sexualization/fanservice of its female cast, well, that's par for the course for a lot of anime these days.