Chinese Otaku Anime Situation] What is the new October anime that became a hot topic in China?

My name is Baiguan Kagoyamo, and I am introducing various topics related to the otaku situation in China.

In the past year or two, local video sites have acquired distribution rights and have begun to distribute anime regularly, making it possible to watch a variety of new anime at almost the same pace as in Japan. As a result, the popularity of Japanese otaku content in the Chinese otaku community is also changing.

We would like to take this opportunity to introduce a new anime that has become a hot topic in the Chinese otaku community since its distribution in October.

Fate/stay night "Unlimited Blade Works
First of all, "Fate/stay night 'Unlimited Blade Works'" was regarded as a major new anime for October in the Chinese otaku community. It attracted attention even before it began broadcasting, and as soon as it started distribution, it attracted a large amount of access and became a very popular work. However, although the popularity of the series has lived up to its reputation, the reaction of fans seems to differ in some respects from that in Japan.

In fact, it was the "Fate/zero" (2011) anime that triggered the popularity of the Fate series in China, and the image of the Fate series is basically based on "Fate/zero. The original game "Fate/stay night" was also well known in the Chinese otaku community, but only a minority of people had experienced the game, and many people's knowledge and images of the game's content came from the community, databases, or the anime version broadcast in 2006. Many of them have only experienced the game. For this reason, there were many people who were experiencing "Fate/stay night" for the first time on ......, and there were also many people who were confused by the different style from "Fate/Zero".

Some people were especially confused by the depiction of the heroine character, and some even asked, "Was Fate such a moe-type work? And as for the differences in interpretation and depiction of Saber, a character shared with "Fate/Zero," some said, "Saber is such a moe character! Some people even said, "Saber is such a moe character!


■"Parasite: Say's Ratio"
Among the new October anime releases, "Parasite: Sei's Ratio" was the most popular, betraying the expectations of the Chinese otaku community in a good way. Although the original manga was well received in China, especially among the enthusiasts, there were many pessimistic views before the start of the broadcast, perhaps because many fans of the original were concerned about the arrangement of the anime version and the information about the development of the work. However, once it started, the popularity of the anime overturned their concerns, and it has become popular not only among the enthusiasts, but also among the light users.

In the Chinese otaku community, "Parasite" is a work that has succeeded in greatly expanding its fan base through its anime adaptation. In the past, "Parasite" was said in the Chinese otaku community that "even if you recommend it to people, they would be put off by the pictures" and that "it is difficult to get people to read it,

It is said to be "difficult to get people to read it" and "interesting if they read it.

However, the anime adaptation has lowered the hurdles for those parts of the original manga that were considered difficult to accept, such as the depiction and illustrations, and has made the work easier for Chinese otaku to understand and get their hands on.

People who have read the original manga thoroughly may be a little dissatisfied with the anime, but for the relatively younger generation who currently watch Japanese anime on video sites, the original manga is a work from a long time ago, and many of them have only a vague recollection of the contents or know the general setting and storyline, The anime has led many people to fall in love with "Parasite" all over again.

Since there has always been a tendency for Chinese otaku to prefer works with a strong storyline, it seems that many people are now able to enjoy and become addicted to "Parasites" because they no longer have to deal with the drawings and other problems.


The fact that the story is no longer so tricky to follow seems to have made it possible for many people to enjoy and get into "Parasites. Cockroach-san".
Among the new anime titles that were popular among female Chinese otaku in October were "Re-rique! Cockroach-san" and "The Wolf Girl and the Black Prince" were among the new October anime releases that were popular among female Chinese otaku. Cockroach-san" seems to be gaining popularity among men as well. In the Chinese otaku community, there has always been a certain demand for yokai-related works. Although occult in nature, the series is basically a comedy, and because it is littered with material that can be enjoyed by Chinese otaku, it seems to have become a good work to watch and to talk about.

The Chinese title of "Kurokure! Cockroach-san" in Chinese is titled "Ginsen,

Yin Xian" in Chinese.

This was also a good influence. As you can see, the meaning of the original title is almost completely lost, but according to Chinese otaku people, it has become a title that is easily accepted in the Chinese otaku community.

These days, the Chinese otaku community also places importance on whether a new anime can attract attention and become popular in the initial stage, and works that become interesting only in the middle tend to struggle in terms of access numbers, notwithstanding their reputation. And a good or bad Chinese title is one factor that cannot be ignored with regard to initial popularity. Some of the works that failed to gain popularity in the initial response may have been affected by subtle Chinese titles, and the local movement regarding "Carry on! Cockroach-san" makes us rethink the importance of Chinese titles.


Denki Machi no Honya-san" and "Ore, Twintail ni naru.
In October, "bilibili," which had been gaining popularity mainly for its Nico Nico Douga-like barrage of comments and fansub videos, entered the anime distribution market, and two new anime titles, "Denki Machi no Honya-san" and "Ore, Twintail ni naru naru. are two works that rode the tailwind of this change and became popular.

Unlike other major video sites, "bilibili" specializes in otaku videos, and has the advantage of a pseudo-synchronized viewing experience through comments and a strong community built around those comments. The fact that the official distribution of works for which the rights were acquired by the site was widely advertised on the site gave the works distributed on "bilibili" a significant advantage in terms of initial attention. Both of these two works were well liked by "bilibili" users, and they were successful in getting off to a quick start and steadily gaining popularity.

In China, where popularity and reputation of works are basically transmitted via the Internet, works that are recognized as "big productions" that are likely to be talked about locally and that have a lot of information available in China have a great advantage. There was little information on these two works before they started broadcasting, and based on past trends, it is undeniable that the competition may have been largely settled before they were seen outside of "bilibili". Although we do not know if this tailwind will continue, the popularity of these two works has reminded us of the importance of the compatibility between the works and the sites where they are distributed.

In addition to the works introduced in this report, there are other works with more than two courses, such as "Akame ga kiru! which started in July, and "The Seven Deadly Sins," which is gradually gaining popularity, are also works whose future trends are interesting.


(Text by Kagoyo Hyakumoto)


(C) TYPE-MOON, ufotable, FSNPC (C) TYPE-MOON
(C) Hitoshi Iwaki / Kodansha, VAP, NTV, 4cast
(C) Midori Endo/SQUARE ENIX, "Carry on! Kokkuri-san" Production Committee
(c) 2014 Asato Mizu / KADOKAWA Media Factory, Inc. / Comic Uma no Hone
(c) Yume Mizusawa/Shogakukan/Production Committee will be twin-tailed.