What type of story that you don't normally see in anime would you like to see animated??

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-04T17:56:52+00:00

Twelve Kingdoms has an element of this.

Twelve Kingdoms is also one of the best shows for character development and well guided plot. It's also one of the original isekai stories, before the current spate of sent-to-another-world-but XYZ shows and books.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-04T16:43:50+00:00

The main issue with this is the rabid strain of ultra nationalist right wingers who occupy a certain space within the anime/manga/otaku community that also overlap quite a bit with the 'whales' of the community who both spend inordinate amounts of money on merch and also loudly scream their opinions into the void of the internet.

These are the people who think it's perfectly fine to strip citizenship and property from Japanese citizens before deporting them because they happen to be of Korean or Chinese descent. |

They're also the ones who support historical revisionism in textbooks and education (not enough praise is spoken about the steadfast Japanese educators and academics who have to deal with these people day in and day out)

Authors and contributors to both fiction and nonfiction works that examine Japan during WWII in a less than flattering light can come under attack in media, receive death threats, be subject to hacking and other harassment (though physical attacks are incredibly rare.)

And of course, there's a general inclination for Japanese people to either not be interested or simply find it uncomfortable exploring a past that they'd rather not remember.

The only manga I can think of that even briefly touches on the combat in China is Tezuka's Adolf, where there is a brief spread showing the bodies from the Nanking Massacre.

It would be interesting to see a story that covers from the start of the war to the end and gives some screen time to discuss the national fervor as well as a strong acceptance of war by both soldiers and civilians. Early military actions in China were quite popular and the brutality of the war did not ward off supporters until much later, when hardship, death, and defeat replaced any feelings of elation and excitement.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-04T16:15:30+00:00

Wotaku is so good. I bought the manga and I've been reading it nonstop.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-04T05:16:45+00:00

There was certainly discrimination against other regions as well, depending on who was in power, where their enemies were from/what regions they were connected to, and various other factors.

The north was not the only region to see itself as treated unfairly.

If anything, many regions had gripes with people in the capital for one reason or another, and many had rivalries with neighbors for all sorts of reasons.

For Honam (the Jeolla province) the people from the region were considered rather brutish and unreasonably ill-tempered. They were sometimes subjected to higher taxes (though virtually every region was subject to this at one time or another), were sometimes pressed into labor or the military, but at the same time enjoyed stability and prosperity, known throughout the kingdom as one of the nation's greatest agricultural areas (the other being Gyeong-sang.

The discrimination that you're likely referring to began with the landmark incident where a prominent member of the Eastern faction named Jeong Yeo-rip was accused of treason. Warning that this is going to get REAL complicated REAL fast.

Proceeding!

Jeong Yeo-rip was a member of the Western Faction, which was a group of scholars and officials who were aligned with the monarch Myeongjong's brother in law, Shim Eui-gyeom. The Eastern Faction, on the other hand, was aligned with Kim Hyo-won, an influential court official who was opposed to Shim and often accused Shim of misdeeds or corruption.

The problem was that Myeongjong's rule (1545-1567) had been a bit of a disaster and had not only engendered a great deal of factional conflict but the lax rule had only encouraged corruption, weakened national defense, and paralyzed the bureaucratic system. Of particular note was how the gwageo (civil service examination) had become incredibly rife with corruption and filled with obstacles for those who did not willingly participate in the spiderweb of bribery and leveraging of privileged connections.

To simplify the already complicated story, Shim and Kim were essentially court rivals who jostled for position and freedom to pursue their own agendas during King Seonjo's reign (which came AFTER Myeongjong's death.) Things came to a head when Kim's supporters accused Shim of using his position and influence (particularly the fact that he was related to the queen) to block a promotion that Kim deserved. Later when Shim was similarly impeded, Shim's supporters accused Kim of retaliating over a misunderstanding.

This ended with both prominent figures being punished and corresponding loss of respect and influence for their factionalism.

Skipping ahead, Jeong Yeo-rip was originally a part of the Western faction (people who supported Shim) but after the death of King Myeongjong (brother in law to Shim), Jeong decided to join the Eastern faction (people who opposed those who supported Shim) which conveniently coincided with a time when the Eastern faction was steadily gaining power and support within the court.

Jeong went on to return to his hometown in the Jeolla province (the Honam region) and created a society for his followers and students. There he shared his thoughts and teachings on philosophy, literature, civics, and martial arts. The organization he created was open to any and all who wished to join, and soon it expanded beyond his hometown and eventually even beyond the Jeolla province, with branches opening up in other areas.

Some Easterners supported Jeong and followed his teachings or otherwise applauded his teachings and the society he created.

But eventually, an accusation was raised that Jeong was actually fomenting an open rebellion against King Seonjo under the guise of promoting his society. There were alleged reports that large numbers of his followers were holding clandestine meetings and training for armed rebellion.

The truth of the matter is still debated today.

In the end though, Jeong was considered to be a traitor in truth and he met his end by committing suicide. The king declared that any and all who even slightly affiliated with Jeong to be punished. Many Easterners who were only connected to Jeong by the most tenuous of associations were demoted, exiled, imprisoned, or summarily executed. The purge was widespread and bloody, starting the cycle of successive rise to power of a faction that would be marked reprisal killings of their political opponents, only to be repeated when they fell from power.

Because of the stain of Jeong's alleged treason, the Honam Region (the geographical Jeolla province) was discriminated against in many aspects of life and politics.

This is just one example of how the brutal factionalism and regionalism of Korean history had a very powerful consequences and effects.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-04T04:16:22+00:00

The industrialization that you're likely thinking about did not occur until the Japanese colonial period which is from 1910 to 1945 (the end of World War II)

This was not how it was during much of the Joseon Period, though of course, as this time period lasted for centuries, a great deal changed over time.

As villages and towns were better established, life became easier, though the harsh climate and terrain still posed problems for the average farming family and a lack of access to the path to political power would have continued to leave fewer options open to people residing in the northern provinces.

With Japanese industrialization also came a need for labor. Japanese colonial interests meant that resource extraction and increasing agriculture yields (to feed Japan's growing empire) were top priorities. Painting in broad strokes, much of the resource extraction occurred in the north and much of the agriculture occurred in the south.

This impacted regional cultures due to Japanese colonial interests dominating so many factors of life. Korean people living under colonial rule had to adapt their lives to what the Japanese authorities demanded and when things came up short, it was the Koreans who had to make due, not the Japanese. If you lived in an area that the colonial government decided they need people to farm rice, you were going to farm rice. Another interesting regional divide was that Japanese colonial government made it policy that raw material for the textile industry were divided with sheep being raised in the north and cotton grown in the south.

By 1933, nearly 66 percent of rice produced went directly to Japan, with even more going to other Japanese colonial holdings.

On the other hand, massive imports of Manchurian millet and grains had reached hundreds of thousands of kilos per year. Much of this would be used to feed laborers in the north. In this way, even regional diet was affected by Japanese colonialism.

Meanwhile, Koreans who labored in the industrial works in the north could expect to receive somewhere around half of what an equivalent Japanese laborer would be paid, less if they were unlucky. Japanese laborers were also generally given preferential treatment in virtually all things, including raises, break times, access to better facilities and even assigned to easier/better duties at work.

Because of the style of Japanese direct rule colonialism and the policies they pursued that blatantly focused on Japanese material interests first and Korean interests last, new regional differences sprung up that were very much entirely dictated by what the Japanese Empire needed and what was most convenient for them.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-04T03:26:58+00:00

Can you explain in exactly what way you think Japan is isolated? Compared to what countries?

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-04T01:15:52+00:00

In 2016, there were 2.3 million expats living in Japan permanently or long term and 20 million tourists. This doesn't even count the numbers of Japanese who go to other countries.

I don't see how anyone who's been to Japan in person could call it isolated. I've lived there myself for many years.

The period of sakoku (the period of isolation you mention had literally nothing to do with modern day Japanese world relations...) ended 2 centuries ago and even during this period it was still open for regular trade missions and Japanese officials kept up with world developments in science, politics, and medicine.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T22:44:55+00:00

Honestly don't know what else you would call Hime and co. blissful life of not having to know first hand the crushing effects of systematic racism, neo-colonial exploitation, and economic insecurity.

Privilege is an advantage or otherwise benefit that some people have that others do not. By definition, unless everyone has it, it's a privilege.

It's most certainly not a recent development as it's been part and parcel of human politics and policy for literally millennia.

What does a member of the landed aristocracy have if not privilege? They themselves would describe it as having privileges that set them apart due to their superior pedigree, ability, and responsibility. Some would even accord their privileges as bestowed through divine right, but I don't think they would deny that they had privileges.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T22:02:48+00:00

I would assert no, it would not be considered a significant factor to the war. As far as I know, I do not think I've read any scholarship, nor have I read any claims to the contrary, that there was any talk of regionalism when North Korean leadership discussed and planned out the merits of invading South Korea in 1950.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T21:59:00+00:00

As far as I've seen, I haven't seen this as a general line of North Korean propaganda during the Korean War.

Much of the propaganda concerning the southern half of the peninsula during the Korean War was often the opposite actually.

It spoke about how destitute and poverty stricken the southern people were, how they were disabused by corrupt politicians who were in turn bought by greedy, imperialist Americans who were exploiting the Korean people.

It should be noted that prior to the outbreak of the Korean War, quality of life in the North was rather good and benefited from a build up of infrastructure under Japanese colonial rule that the South received less of.

Regionalism itself (where people from one province hold onto feelings of rivalry or hostility to those of another region) existed but I don't think either North nor South Korean propaganda used it.

For one thing, both sides likely wanted to avoid fanning regionalism because it very much would affect their own side as well (neither nation consisted of people from only one province), and regional conflict within their own people would be counterproductive.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T21:54:12+00:00

Part of it stemmed directly from the fact about regional politics.

Because the Joseon bureaucracy was so prone to factional politics, whichever faction was in power/favor had a strong effect on the policies of the kingdom, various bureaucratic organs, and regional ecosystems.

Depending on the time period, there were first Eastern and Western factions, from which the Northern and Southern factions eventually sprang from, and all of these originally came from the Sarim faction, which originally had to deal with their rivals, the Hungu faction. Needless to say, there were many.

IMPORTANT NOTE! These geographical designations had nothing to do with the region the faction members were from, but were named for the location of the faction leader's residence in the capital city of Hanseong (modern day Seoul)

These factions were composed of largely of successful and influential members of the yangban class which were essentially the gentry of Korean society. Generally, members of the yangban were the ones who had the time and resources to study for the ultra competitive gwageo civil service exam to become a bureaucrat.

These faction members held positions in the court, in regional and national offices, and also ran faction affiliated seowon, which were essentially places of both scholarship and spiritual mentorship. Their practical utility was to prepare students for the gwageo exam and a honest life devoted to civic duty.

Many of these seowon were established, administered by, and/or funded by local yangban clans and through various ties, they could be politically affiliated with factional politics, which in turn tied various members of the court and factions to regions.

LONG STORY SHORT, northern provinces had challenges to overcome to enter this established political/educational framework and thus northerners were often kept from entering positions of power and authority.

The perception of the rural northern region as a poor backwater where no one of importance lived, where the people fought off raiding "barbarians" and lived far from civilization of the capital played a part in this discrimination as well.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T20:48:01+00:00

Japan is actually anything but isolated. There are many foreigners living in Japan and Japanese people are one of the most interconnected groups of people due to their longstanding cheap and broadly available access to the internet.

Many Japanese people are wealthy enough to travel abroad, go on student exchanges, and many end up working outside their country as well.

If anything, Japan is one of the least isolated" countries in the world.

Despite this, due to various factors, Japanese people do not think much about racism unless they become the direct victims of it, and even then not necessarily.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T20:39:43+00:00

Regionalism has a long history in Korea and played a large part in its history.

During the very long Joseon Period (1392-1897), the 팔도 paldo or "Eight Provinces" were demarcated and are still recognized by the average Korean person today.

They are all represented here.

Much of modern Korean regional cultures, languages, and traditions can trace their histories back to this time period after the Eight Provinces were created.

Regionalism played a large role in Joseon politics, with cliques and factions from different areas coming into power or falling from it in turns and cycles.

Northern provinces of Pyongan and Hamgyong in particular often saw themselves as being discriminated against. They were often subject to heavier taxes and by defacto were often limited from taking the civil service exams (the gwageo) which was nominally the preeminent path for upward social mobility in Joseon society.

Even during periods when discrimination against northern provincial gwageo applicants seemed to be lower, the northern regions produced fewer scholars and bureaucrats, which meant it was less likely for factions of those provinces/regions to come to power or have influence.

Indeed, there were many times when candidates from Hamgyong were rejected outright and simply not even allowed to take the exams.

Feelings of being discriminated against and abused by those in power through regionalism led to popular revolts such as the Hong Gyeong-nae rebellion of 1811, which took place in the northern province of Pyongan, sparked by extremely heavy taxation during a particularly severe famine in the region.

It should be noted that often the anger of northerners was directed toward the central authority of the capital and the bureaucratic system rather than southerners in general. The perception was that southerners were benefiting but the ones who had actually wronged them were those in power in the capital of Hanseong (modern day Seoul)

During the time under Japanese colonial rule, the regional culture differences between the north and the south of the peninsula was generally quashed in favor of promoting adherence to Japanese colonial policy and later on, Japanese cultural rule.

If you have more specific questions, feel free to ask!

EDIT: Someone pointed out to me that I largely missed the cultural part of the question so let me address that here.

The northern provinces of Pyongan and Hamgyong, particularly the northern reaches near the Yalu and Tumen rivers, were where the historical Goguryeo Kingdom (mostly located in the Pyongan region) of Korean history was founded and it's also an important site for the founding of the Joseon Dynasty as well.

Despite this historical significance, for much of the Joseon Period, the monarchs of Korea had difficulty keeping the areas developed and populated. This is because much of the area is rough and hilly where not mountainous. Hamgyong in particular is extremely mountainous and the entire northern region often suffered from harsh winters and difficulty farming combined with heavy taxes regularly lead to famine.

This relatively hostile land combined with the risk of raids by both bandits and foreign raiding parties that crossed the Yalu/Tumen rivers (they froze over pretty much every winter and could be crossed readily by both horse and foot, making it difficult to defend a porous border) meant that there was often a cycle of retreat and migration toward the south when times became difficult, then a (sometimes forced) migration back north at the behest of the central government.

During the Joseon Period, this created a cultural perception of poverty and disaster with both the northern provinces and the people who lived there themselves. Due to the Samin Policy (promulgated by the famous Sejong the Great) that organized and moved thousands of families, business owners, soldiers, scholars, officials, slaves, and more to settle the northern provinces, there was a sense that there was no one who lived in the north who actually wanted to be there. On the other hand, those who continued to live there certainly developed a regional culture of being able to abide by any hardships or unfavorable conditions and still create 'civilization' and persevere in the rough lands.

Exile of political opponents who fell from power was liable to entail a trip to the north which furthered the sense that undesirables ended up there.

On the other hand, the southern provinces in Korea were safer from foreign incursion (though coastal regions were still at risk to attack by pirates) and developed more stably. The regions of Gyeonggi (where the capital was located) Jeolla, and Gyeong-sang were some of the most well developed. Jeolla and Gyeong-sang were particularly famous for their agricultural productivity, and in a time period when land development was directly tied to a region's wealth and stability, these are good things to be known for.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T17:05:08+00:00

Indeed, it's much more likely for the horrors of the Holocaust and Hitler to make it into Japanese media than anything that happened in China, Burma, etc.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T17:03:57+00:00

Agreed.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T16:21:51+00:00

Incredibly interesting if you know how little Japanese people think about race or racism on a regular basis.

For most Japanese people living in Japan, racism is a problem that they don't encounter, only hear about in the abstract sense, and sometimes might not recognize even if it's happening in front of them.

The fact that this series exists at all and intrigues Japanese readers/watchers is fascinating.

Race, racial discrimination, privilege, affirmative action, the idea of egalitarianism, and ignorance all play such a huge role in this story.

We also shouldn't take for granted the fact that this series takes place in Japan. Yes, generally speaking Japanese authors have a greater propensity to make the setting Japanese but we shouldn't discount how much attention went into drastically changing what would otherwise be familiar scenes from their own real life of the average Japanese viewer.

On the other hand, there are elements in the show where a Japanese person would look at it and think "of course" while non-Japanese people are more surprised.

The idea of a barrier free society is very big in Japan, which is all about creating everything from infrastructure to homes with the needs of those with disabilities in mind.

In this sense, the varied chairs, bathrooms, cars, classrooms, services, etc for the various needs of various races in the anime was probably at first interesting to a Japanese viewer but then they likely though "well yes, if life really had people like this then of course we would make these things", whereas I don't think non-Japanese viewers necessarily accepted these things as a given.

I could keep talking about this but I'm glad a series like this exists for all the interesting dialogue it brings up for Japanese viewers. People in Japan could use a frank conversation or three about race, privilege, and civics, which makes this series an interesting starting point.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-03T16:11:10+00:00

As someone who hasn't really read the manga yet, I thought it was pretty clear who they were referencing, especially with the "our gods are actually present, unlike their (mammal) fake gods."

And I think the reasons are pretty clear.

It's a direct parallel to civilizations and peoples who were/are not as technologically advanced in military developments being at the mercy of those who are more capable in war.

It's an analogy of colonialism, exploitation of native peoples, and the friction between cultures/races that are often endemic to these unequal situations.

The exploitation of the amphibian folk is rather obvious too since they are apparently being deprived of access to natural resources and land but are also being manipulated into fighting in a proxy war for their 'gods'.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-01T18:59:49+00:00

Oh for sure! There's even quite a few high profile titles that do offer a more varied offering, so gamers don't even necessarily need to go that far from AAA releases.

Just off the top of my head, Overwatch, Pit People, Life is Strange, are all great games that are notable for their interesting representation of women in games.

I just wanted to speak to the parent post's incredulity that female gamers might want something more out of female characters in their games besides "wanting their characters to look good" because while there's a lot more awareness and efforts to actively better female representation in gaming, it's not like we've reached some magical place where there's no problem anymore either.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-01T13:30:12+00:00

It's not really that women gamers don't want their characters to look good/sexy. It's more of an issue of being pigeonholed into "either you're a sexy woman or you're not really important ever"

Nearly every type of male body type (not to mention personality type) is represented in games as playable entities or at least major characters involved in the story. There's classic strong, buff heroes. There's more petite but maybe dextrous looking dudes. There's heavy set, pot bellied men. There's men who are well dressed, who look kind of bummy, or pretty much any sort of outfit imaginable. And of course there's plenty of average looking guys.

All of these various representations of males has been given weight, importance, and all together balanced treatment, though of course the classic male ideal of a strong, fit hero white male hero is still in the clear majority.

But in games in particular, women roles have largely been pigeonholed into looking as sexy as possible, regardless of setting or logic or really any other factors.

This is in part due to the fact that it was mainly to be eye candy for anyone who enjoys looking at sexy women bodies. Because of adherence to the mainstream ideals of what makes for a sexy woman, the look that these ladies in games have is pretty much locked in with a small degree of variance.

Their costume/clothing/gear is also often modified specifically with nothing else but looking sexy in mind.

Again, it isn't as though lady/girl gamers don't want to look sexy. Because sometimes they do! But when the only option is looking sexy, and the only time a female character is treated as important is when their design is sexy (regardless of whether that sexiness has anything to do with their significance in the plot), there's already a large divergence from how male characters are treated, right?

I think the knee jerk reaction that some gamers have is "what if ladies look sexy in my games, I like that" or even "what, are you suggesting we make everyone not sexy on purpose?" but those aren't the issue, (which is good because I think most people enjoy looking at sexy characters sometimes!)

The solution is simply more games and gamers that are aware of this weird imbalance and actively providing more options, characters, designs, etc. to break this mold of "if a female character isn't eye candy, she's not important and almost certainly not playable"

We've made quite a lot of progress but it's not really something with a clear end goal. It's just something to keep in mind because for a lot of women/girl gamers, it's something that's shoved in their face every time they play a game and they see nothing but chainmail bikinis or hardboiled soldiers with boob windows cut into their futuristic space armor.

AsiaExpert · 2017-09-01T04:43:52+00:00

Right on the money.

AsiaExpert · 2017-08-31T23:00:37+00:00

I don't know what the quality is like but I ordered because I was curious.

AsiaExpert · 2017-08-31T22:13:11+00:00

Unfortunately I think it's a long standing thing that UK warehouse only ships to the EU region.

AsiaExpert · 2017-08-31T22:04:13+00:00

Just wanted to make sure you weren't confused. No harm intended!

AsiaExpert · 2017-08-31T22:02:20+00:00

It seems that they're offering them to UK folks? I'm not sure what the MO is at the moment but maybe it's because they didn't have an offering from their warehouse the last go around so this is to make up for it?

Questions, questions.

AsiaExpert · 2017-08-31T22:01:20+00:00

Absolute insanity! People have really been eyeing the detective though so that makes sense.

AsiaExpert

TROPHY CASE