Chinese Otaku's Anime Situation: October's new anime in China popular for its solidity, and beside that, a backlash against Chinese stories.

My name is Baiyuan Kagoyamo, and I am here to introduce you to all things related to the otaku situation in China.
This time, I would like to introduce the popularity of the new Japanese anime of October distributed on Chinese video sites and the recent backlash in China against the depiction of Chinese relations in Japanese works.

October's new animations were easily watchable and popular.

In terms of October's new anime releases, it seems that sequels that already have a stable reputation in China and solid works that can be watched casually and talked about with excitement were the most popular.
Among these new anime in October, "Umaru-chan R" stood out in terms of the number of views and the range of topics! Umaru-chan R".
Umaru-chan" has been gaining popularity among a wide range of people, including the general public, since its first season was distributed in China in July of the year before last, and the number of views of the second season in October seems to be growing at a considerable pace.

In the past, there have been many works distributed in China whose popularity in China cooled down between the first and second seasons and did not gain momentum even after the second season started, but "Umaru-chan" has not been buried despite a two-year gap, and in fact, it seems to be gaining popularity as a standard series. However, "Umaru-chan" has not been buried despite a two-year gap.

I have heard that this is because the Umaru-chan character has stuck with the Chinese "home" style and can be seen in a familiar way.
The word "宅" comes from the Japanese words "otaku" and "御宅," but in the current Chinese language, in addition to the meaning of "otaku," it now has the additional meanings of "indoor person," "shut-in," and "not going outside but staying in front of the screen playing games and on the Internet.

Many people in China today recognize themselves as people who live in this "home" style, and the character of "Umaru-chan" who tries to lead a lazy life at home, immersing herself in her indoor hobbies, which is different from her crisp exterior, and the relationships with the characters surrounding her, etc., have created sympathy for the character. The character's relationship with the characters who surround him and the characters who try to lead a lazy life and indulge in indoor hobbies at home, etc., have been evaluated by some as "sticking" and generating sympathy. ......

Other popular works include " The Land of Jewels" and"Shoujo Saikyutsu Ryoko" (Travel to the End of the World for Girls).
Neither of these two works attracted any attention before they started airing, and their popularity and reputation skyrocketed after the start of airing, so they are being treated as dark horse slots in the October new anime lineup.

At first, "Jewel Land" attracted a lot of attention from Chinese otaku enthusiasts mainly for its artwork, but later, the characters, storyline, and worldview also attracted attention. In particular, many people seem to be into the characters, who "look like both a boy and a girl" and "seem to have a feminine design, but are not female.

As for "Shoujo Saikyoku Ryoko" (Girls' End of Journey), some people say it is "easy to watch" as a daily life series and "easy to talk about" due to its military and post-apocalyptic worldview.
In China, military-related themes are actively covered in various media, and defense education is provided in schools, and military training is a major event in school life from elementary school to university. Because of this background, it seems that works that combine military and something else are more "speakable" than those in Japan.

In the area of works based on novels, " If Only I Had a Younger Sister" is a notable work. seems to be a notable work.
If Only I Had an Imouto..." which is based on the same author's work, had been popular in China in the past, but it did not seem to be very active before the start of the broadcast, and its popularity seems to have increased after the anime started airing.
In addition to a variety of otaku topics, this work also includes elements familiar to Chinese otaku, such as romantic comedies, characters from the novels that are becoming easier to imagine in China these days, and even some undertones that are more easily penetrated than in Japan, making it a topic of conversation for Chinese otaku. In addition to the works mentioned above, there are also other works that are science fiction-oriented, such as the "Ranobetsu" series.

In addition to the above works, "Inuyashiki," which has a sci-fi development and is considered to make viewers think about various issues in modern society and human relations, and "Sake wa matoba ni natta kara no kara" which is a short animation that can be easily watched and commented on as a gourmet work have also attracted attention and become topics of conversation. Although it is difficult to become a hot topic, "Bokuno Kanojo ga Majime Toshi Shobich na Koto" (My Girlfriend is Too Serious) and others are steadily gaining viewer numbers.

Recent Backlash Against Chinese Material in China

Japanese anime and manga have long featured a variety of Chinese settings and characters, including history, cuisine, and martial arts, and there has been a lot of talk in Chinese otaku circles about these Chinese-related elements.
Recently, however, there has been a noticeable increase in harsh reactions to Chinese culture-related elements and depictions of Chinese or Chinese characters, not only in Japanese works but also in foreign works.

For example, "Shokugeki no Soma: Sansan-no-Sara," one of the new animations in October, attracted some attention and criticism right from the start of its airing because the subject of the first cooking competition was a Chinese food competition.
In the Fate series, where the "Fate/Grand Order" service is currently being developed in China, negative reactions have been more noticeable with regard to Chinese Servants and Chinese elements that have been newly introduced or appeared in the Gaiden works over the past year or so.

According to a Chinese geek I spoke with, even today, Chinese elements in the settings and characters of "masterpieces" from long ago are accepted, even if they are a little too "ton-demo," perhaps due to the already established reputation and memories that compensate. However, new Chinese elements or new additions to a popular series are given a very harsh evaluation.
This is true even in the case of "the treatment in the play is not bad" or "they are playing an active role" in the Japanese sense, but there are negative comments such as "the portrayal is not correct," "they do not understand Chinese culture," or "they should be treated better.

The reasons for this backlash include the growing difference between the current image of China and Chinese culture as perceived by young Chinese and the way Chinese-related issues are treated overseas, and the fact that Chinese-related depictions are familiar and easy to talk about, making it easy to find things to nitpick about. In addition, it is said that the current environment with the development of the Internet has also had a strong influence on negative opinions.

In any case, in today's China, it is quite difficult for Chinese depictions of Japanese content that are based on Japanese knowledge and sensibilities to be accepted positively,
In any case, it is quite difficult to gain positive acceptance of Chinese-related depictions in Japanese content in China today, and they are often labeled negatively as "depicting China badly" or "not understanding anything about Chinese culture (or history).
There is also a risk of being labeled negatively, such as "the depiction of China is terrible" or "you don't understand anything about Chinese culture (or history)," or even being burned if the depiction is not good enough.

Some people, perhaps fed up with such complaints and the stormy atmosphere, say, "The elements of China-related issues that Japan puts out are not very good.
The only thing that comes out of Japan's China-related elements is dissatisfaction, so it would be better if they weren't there.
I don't want China-related elements in my favorite works.
I don't want China-related elements in my favorite works," and "I don't want China-related elements in my favorite works.

Of course, there is no problem with the same approach as before if the content is targeted only at the Japanese market, but it seems that Chinese elements in works that are also developed in China are much more difficult to deal with than they were a decade ago.

The trends in the Chinese market have changed over the years, and the sensibilities of the Chinese otaku who receive content seem to be constantly changing as well, so there are cases where things that would have been accepted without problems a few years ago are the cause of opposition.
Looking at the reactions to the Japanese anime-related movies released in China in the second half of this year and the new anime in October, we can see such changes in the Chinese people's sensibilities, and we are reminded of the difficulty of the content business in China.

(Text by Hundred Yuan Kagoyo)
(c) 2017 Sankaku Head/Shueisha, "Dried-up Girl! Umaru-chan R" Production Committee