„I Don't Allow Myself to Be Influenced by So-Called Political Correctness.” Vinland Saga Editor Believes That Manga and Anime Shouldn't Be Influenced by West
The editor of Vinland Saga shared his thoughts on the influence of the West on anime and manga, and why he doesn't let political correctness reflect on the titles he works on.
Anime and manga have already entered global pop culture and have definitely settled in it for good. TV series and comics created in Japan no longer reach only local audiences, but fans from other parts of the world also have a chance to get acquainted with many titles. Of course, expanding the reach of anime and manga may lead to questions about whether their writers are adjusting their titles in any way to appeal to Western audiences.
Akira Kanai, editor of Kodansha's Weekly Afternoon, who works on Vinland Saga, among others, discussed this issue during an interview for Manga Passion. He confessed that he himself doesn't allow Western influences to take away the quintessence of anime and manga, so instead of adapting to their scenarios, he focuses on what will intrigue everyone.
I don't allow myself to be influenced by so-called political correctness abroad and design the works accordingly. I think that if it's interesting, it will usually be understood, regardless of whether you come from Africa, Chile, or Greenland. I've never made a big deal of it so far. But even if a work takes up a very Japanese theme, for example, or a German work a German theme, a Chinese work a Chinese theme – in the end the root is the same, I think.
Stopping a work because it deals with a problem that is too Japanese, or specifying to do something – that hardly ever happens. More specifically, I wonder if there is a difference in Japanese entertainment content between works that are internationally successful. Is it the works that focus more on the Japanese market or a global market?
Akira Kanai believes that some experiences are universally understandable, so there is no need to modify them to be more specific to a particular audience from around the world.
I don't think it's possible to create works that are exactly in the middle, nor would such works really appeal anywhere. Take Skip and Loafer, for example, which is about a girl who comes from the Japanese countryside and moves to the Japanese city of Tokyo alone to study at a good high school. I think people all over the world will certainly understand her feeling of insecurity in the same way. That's why such works tend to appeal to an international audience.
In this respect, I really don't think that works need to be adapted for audiences outside Japan. Although I'm not sure how it is for people from countries where there are no rural areas or no cities. I have no idea what it's like in Dubai. Maybe I'm biased.
According to Akira Kanai, he believes that for fans of anime and manga, it doesn't matter who it represents or the influences it revolves around. So he doesn't see the need for manga and anime creators to make decisions strictly for specific audiences. He thinks that instead, it's best to concentrate on making their works appealing to everyone and having something interesting to convey.
