Occidentalism in Isekai and how efforts are being made to diversify the genre

[Nymene]

So I noticed that Japanese people in general have quite the stereotyped image of "the West", especially concerning Medieval Europe, and one of their stereotypes is the myth of a purely "All-White Medieval Europe" which is not the case at all in real life history.

For you see, in Isekai there are indeed dark-skin characters, but 90% of the time they're demihumans or beastmen.

This is something that even Japanese people are starting to discuss themselves as you see here on a JP site that talks about elements of the "Swords and Fantasy World setting inspired by Medieval European background" here :

https://w.atwiki.jp/aniwotawiki/pages/51595.html

For those of you who can read Japanese please read to the end. If not, just use Google Translate.

I'd like to quote this excerpt here :

・人種が違う
中世ヨーロッパには白人だけでなく黒人やアジア人が少数派として住んでいたはずだが剣と魔法の世界には存在 せず、出る場合は「異国からやってきた」という設定になることが多い。
特に主人公が黒人である作品はほぼない。

I can translate myself but since I'm particularly lazy now I will use Google Translate :

"In medieval Europe, not only whites but also blacks and Asians should have lived as minorities, but they don't exist in the world of swords and sorcery, and when they appear, they are set as "coming from a foreign country". There are many things.
In particular, there are almost no works where the main character is black."


So there you go. I really think minority representation is extremely important, because minorities deserve their chance to star as Main Characters too, even in the realm of fantasy.

Besides, having minorities be Protagonists in opposite of the mainstream race or color of the local population is something that has been done many times in fiction.

1. Superman
Is a minority on Earth because he's the only Kryptonian there in a sea of local humans and yet he is the story's MC.

2. DBZ.
Similar. DBZ's Earth only as has an extreme minority of Saiyans and yet a Saiyan like Goku is the MC and not a native human like Krillin.

3. Isekai
The setting is European-like with many European named-characters and architecture, but the MC is an ultra-rare Japanese/Asian MC in a sea of white people.

So I think it'd be cool if Western creators could make an Isekai Visual Novel or something but with an African-American or African-French MC teleported to another world similar to Mushoku Tensei or something.

Minority Representation Matters.

[Obelisk ze Tormentor]

Originally Posted by Nymene

So I think it'd be cool if Western creators could make an Isekai Visual Novel or something but with an African-American or African-French MC teleported to another world similar to Mushoku Tensei or something.

If the line above is the point of your thread then:

A) You put this thread in the wrong subforum since a visual novel is basically a game, not anime. And if it's made by the West, it's not anime either.

B) They already made a game that mostly fits your criteria above:

YouTube

https://youtu.be/AdZUrXCqUck

Sorry; dynamic content not loaded. Reload?

[Kanon]

I'm not sure why you're singling out Isekai. Name five anime with a Black main character. Good luck.

[Laevatein]

Originally Posted by Nymene

2. DBZ.
Similar. DBZ's Earth only as has an extreme minority of Saiyans and yet a Saiyan like Goku is the MC and not a native human like Krillin.

I should note that the whole Saiyan thing is a retcon, and Dragon Ball started out as a pastiche of "Journey to the West".

[scififan]

Originally Posted by Nymene

So I think it'd be cool if Western creators could make an Isekai Visual Novel or something but with an African-American or African-French MC teleported to another world similar to Mushoku Tensei or something.

Minority Representation Matters.

Washington Post: “Why don’t Argentina have more black players at the World Cup?”
Argentina: Because we are a country, not a Disney movie.

Online discussion:
By the end of Medieval Europe, European human trafficked African to America. Argentina made the exception by decreeing all people born in the country are free. This policy reduces the incentive of human traffiicking. The result is that Argentina has less African population ratio than other South American countries.

Woke advocates: We should have diversity in Army.
People of said diversity: Don't join Army for the sake of diversity.
Military strategists: When you are part of Army, you are beyond diversity.

Online discussion:
Greeks from classical period learned that cohesion is the key of winning. So, they built one goal and one team, regardless of soldiers' background.


Shakespeare's Othello first came into mind. The author of Three Musketeer is African-French, but the Medieval Europe period is over.

Isekai novels are written by Japanese, so they are catering the interest of Japanese. Japan is a stressful society, and its suicide rate is among the highest. Japanese people who have to work hard and face stress daily. The foreign fantasy worlds of Isekai novels is one of the get away. The exception is one Iskeai novel focuses on the losing loved one. In the novel, the mother dreams her son is teleported to isekai and becomes yuusha.

Since Isekai novels are written by Japanese, Japanese elements are often introduced into Isekai. Cat ear girl ambassadors wearing kimono is not uncommon.

People in Isekai speaks Japanese. It is as common as Jesus looks like African in African countries. The exception of African look is Musk. Talking about Christmas time. In West, people celebrate Christmas by having family reunion. In Japan, couples celebrate Christmas by checking into love hotels.

[Tatsumi]

I'm guessing it would have to be good on the level of the Blade movie franchise to make money. As an example, when ghost stories didn't sell in Japan they sent it here to the US and said do whatever you want with it but recover the production costs. I am guessing plot/character decisions are made to a price in a boardroom filled with bean counters more than anything else. That said, I am no insider, just an observer since the pencil shaded version of Astro Boy was new.

[serenade_beta]

I remember when I saw people say that since dark elves are fallen elves, that this negatively portrays black people.

Also, BTW, I watch and enjoy some fanservice anime, but I don't think negatively of females in real life.

Originally Posted by scififan

The foreign fantasy worlds of Isekai novels is one of the get away.

No nono no, that's Narou. It just happens that using a convenient other world with rules the author can make up is useful for people that can only copy-paste "stories"