Tokyo's Youth Ordinance Bill

[Midonin]

That's a mite disturbing. There's enough kneejerk reactions and hyperbole in this thread as it is. Adding death wishes into it does not help.

[Roloko vi Britannia]

Originally Posted by Yui Is My Wife

So, on a lighter and happier note.

Who else thinks that an Otaku who's more obsessed (than usual) will get mad enough (in every sense of the word) to plunge a knife into Ishihara's evil heart on One Fine and Happy Day?

Well seeing as how they sent out death threats to mangakas, seiyuus, etc... and burning down their house because their parents threw out their Gundam models I wouldn't be surprised if something bad happened to Ishihara.

[Hypernova]

Originally Posted by Roloko vi Britannia

Well seeing as how they sent out death threats to mangakas, seiyuus, etc... and burning down their house because their parents threw out their Gundam models I wouldn't be surprised if something bad happened to Ishihara.

Not just threats, considering that actual murders having been committed this year.

And having such things happens doesn't actually help our argument.

[Decagon]

The last thing we need is an otaku committing a crime for them to justify a more draconian bill. That someone like Ishihara can remain in power for so many terms perhaps speaks volumes about the majority of people in Tokyo, or perhaps the majority that can be bothered to vote.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Dist

This is pretty much what I was wondering about .. Most people seem concerned about the fanservice type of things, yuri/yaoi etc. banned ...

Well, it could effect the fanservice side of things, including yuri/yaoi, that are in shounen and shoujo.

But doesn't the bill talk about things that are illegal in real life in general .. Would that mean that if we had shonen anime where a guy was killed, the anime would be banned cause well, obviously you can't kill people in real life ?

That's how I interpret it as well...

I don't know if there will be exceptions here for violence with no real world equivalent (i.e. such as a battle in Soul Society between Ichigo and Byakuya), or criminal acts done by villains. I mean, that kind of is a big part of what makes many of them villains after all.

However, something like Death Note... a shounen (IIRC) where the main protagonist kills policemen and intelligence agents just trying to do their jobs... that may very well not pass muster as far as this bill is concerned.

I'm not sure off-hand what age groups Higurashi, Elfen Lied, and Umineko were aimed at, but I'm pretty sure that they wouldn't pass muster for similar reasons.

This could very negatively impact a lot of animes and mangas.

Originally Posted by Hypernova

Not just threats, considering that actual murders having been committed this year.

And having such things happens doesn't actually help our argument.

Agreed. That's the last thing we should want. If a politician is killed by an otaku because of this bill, it's just going to make otakus look very, very bad in the eyes of the general Japanese public. Don't believe me? Well, just watch Episodes 4 and 5 of Ore no Imouto, and keep in mind that Ayase is probably pretty close to your average Japanese person in her viewpoints.

[Guardian Enzo]

I'm the last person who would claim to be an expert on Japanese politics, so I'll defer to more experiences hands on the specifics of the bill. For example, I see reference to the bill having "passed" but as I understand it, it's only gone through committee and not a full vote - which in the US would be the "real" vote.

That said, I did want to refute a couple of arguments I've seen that this is not a serious threat. First, the "It's only in Tokyo so publishers will just move" idea. The issue is not merely where a company's offices and studios are located. Tokyo is the economic and population center of Japan, and there is no close second. Without access to the Tokyo market, it wouldn't be financially viable to try and produce an anime or manga.

Second, the "Just slap an "18" rating on it and it'll be fine". Well, as anyone in the movie business in the US can tell you, it's not that easy. When you have to label a work as 18+ you deny yourself access to a huge segment of the market. That might not be a huge problem for a true hentai, but for something like "ToLoveRU" or any of the Shounen Jump titles it would be pure death. As with the first argument its all about market access, and in an industry where sales and profit are already in decline, there's no margin for error.

As I said I'm no expert in Japanese law, but I'm not reassured that this isn't a huge threat to the industry. If indeed this is so unenforceable that it's basically intended as political grandstanding and "playing to the base" then perhaps the sky isn't falling - but early reports seem to indicate that publishers are taking it seriously. I think our best hope is that once business leaders all over Japan realize the devestating economic impact this could have on what is still a huge and vital industry, pressue will be brought to bear to repeal and/or gut the measure and save the industry.

[raduccio]

You guys are scaring me! I wouldn't mind it if eechi or very violent shows were only 18+ but the from what I read even shows like Haruhi, Index & FMP are in danger.

But I wonder... how many anime dvds do teenagers actually buy for this to be a problem?

[Decagon]

The problem isn't only about anime... wherein lies the problem. This legislation affects a number of mass media (except novels) from light novels to games to manga to anime that are directed at "youth". Many intellectual properties that are made into anime or shuffled among the other types of media come from those other sources. So things from run of the mill weekly manga that kids read and the publishers that they support can be severely affected. The bill has the potential to cut the head off the snake, crush it's tail, pull out its entrails, and make a tastes-like-chicken barbecue for many past, current, and future series. That is the worry.

[Fnights]

So they want ruin my series and my enterntainment for please some bigots, sooooo, Ishihara, komeito and all these nazi-fascist racist moralfags that vote yes please die in pain and burn forever in the hell of despair, hypocrites puritans. This is not over, hope something bad happen to you all and your families. Pathetic stupid people.

[Dist]

Originally Posted by raduccio

You guys are scaring me! I wouldn't mind it if eechi or very violent shows were only 18+ but the from what I read even shows like Haruhi, Index & FMP are in danger.

But I wonder... how many anime dvds do teenagers actually buy for this to be a problem?

DVD ? Surely this effects late night anime shows too. I'm worried as to what kind of anime season we're going to have next fall ... Maybe 5 shows at most that are deemed suitable with this bill, while everything else... Well, I've honestly no idea what would happen to the anime that they wouldn't be able to air on TV cause of this bill.

[synaesthetic]

This is just the Japanese government telling kids they should read more books.

Edit: I suspect that the only real result of this bill will be a lot more 18+ stamps on manga and anime, which kids will still get, just like they do here. Pointless law of pointlessness.

[Yui Is My Wife]

Next, Ishihara will be shouting "Hey, Yankess, we have space on our airwaves for your stupid crap now!! Feel free to flood our market with Disney, Simpsons and Spongebob Squarepants!"

Somebody please murder him slowly and painfully.

[Midonin]

The dissonance in your last sentence is disturbing and, I fear, not meant sarcastically. Which only makes it worse.

[bhl88]

I'll say 45% relies on Akihabara tourism, anime, manga, games and Comiket. If those are touched....

[raduccio]

I really hope we're overreacting and this bill won't ban every show that has anything that might arrouse somebody or where something illegal happens.

That would be too stupid.

[Decagon]

Originally Posted by Yui Is My Wife

Next, Ishihara will be shouting "Hey, Yankess, we have space on our airwaves for your stupid crap now!! Feel free to flood our market with Disney, Simpsons and Spongebob Squarepants!"

Somebody please murder him slowly and painfully.

That's absolutely stupid. Disney already has several of their shows dubbed in Japanese on their Japanese channel, Simpsons already has a cultural equivalent which is arguably still the most watched anime in Japan, and Spongebob is already in Japan.

And again, if someone did kill him for championing this bill, it does not help anyone except the people who are hoping for the bill to pass!

[Guardian Enzo]

What justifiably offends many industry people is that the restrictions imposed in this crap bill apply only to manga, anime, games, etc - mainstream live-action films, TV and novels are exempt. How is this not a gross abuse of the public trust and a vendetta-driven attack on a specific industry?

[Vexx]

I keep saying the way to derail Ishihara (the Tokyo Governor busybody behind this idiocy) is to make an *anime adaptation* of one of his rape-murder stories set in high school. Make sure his name is all over it.

And yes, given the careful side-stepping of actual serious problems in real-child-porn and avoiding stepping on the toes of several factions - it is nothing but a gross abuse of public trust and a vendetta. Ishihara and his little gang of ultra-nationalist thugs are a stain on today's Japan. The law actually works against the federal activities in promoting the economic growth of their pop culture.

[Tyabann]

This bill would basically kill Sony's international gaming industry. Fun.

[Vexx]

We can certainly hope Ishihara steps on the toes of the Sony clan... but no, this law is intended to be very selectively enforced (i.e. anyone Ishihara doesn't like). It isn't clear to me what the general business factions or even the police enforcement factions think about this yet. Japanese politics can be harder to read sometimes. This is a country where the "ages to drink" and the "age of consent" laws are routinely ignored/unenforced - mainly only invoked if the right people complain loud enough.