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Answerman - Why Isn't There Political Anime?


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L'Imperatore



Joined: 24 Mar 2014
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:08 pm Reply with quote
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SaitoHajime101



Joined: 31 Mar 2013
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:13 pm Reply with quote
I find mangas are more likely to poke at foreign politics than their own (whether humorous in design or not). One of the more humorous pokes at American politics was Obama's inclusion in Air Gear. That one made me laugh.

Side Note: When I say poke, I literally mean that. The Air Gear example was a very superficial touch and mainly directed at Obama than US politics as a whole.
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Suena



Joined: 27 May 2012
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:17 pm Reply with quote
Even anime about fake politics makes me zone out. I remember there being long stretches in Story of Saiunkoku - which I really adored - where I just couldn't follow what was going on. I think you need to have a certain kind of socially-minded brain to be able to follow and enjoy purely political stories.
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Parsifal24





PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:21 pm Reply with quote
And than there's things like Gate where the source material is extremely political but the adaptation tone down the political content
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MajorZero



Joined: 29 Jul 2010
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:27 pm Reply with quote
While politically conscious works are great and important, after watching ZnT and Gate, which represent different sides of Japanese political spectrum, I really don't think anime is a well-suited medium for a serious debate. I mean, ZnT was too concerned with idiotic riddles to make any sort of substantial statement about society, and Gate is a fantasy about making Japan great again.
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DerekL1963
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:27 pm Reply with quote
Parsifal24 wrote:
And than there's things like Gate where the source material is extremely political but the adaptation tone down the political content


I was about to mention Gate. At least here in the US, I suspect most of the politics (other than the hawk/dove parts) will fly right past most watchers... The divides and issues are considerably different from ours, as is the political system itself.
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John Thacker



Joined: 28 Oct 2013
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:29 pm Reply with quote
Classroom Crisis actually had a fair amount of reasonably realistic political (and parliamentary) drama. A few riffs on incumbency, the importance of companies and labor cultivating relationships in both government and opposition (who may be government some day), how opposing forces of a corporation and its union might work together by each working their allied parties, the power of being a minister, party switching, etc.
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Valhern



Joined: 19 Jan 2015
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:31 pm Reply with quote
I haven't watched all of Gundam but I think that at least the three first series + Gundam Unicorn do have a lot of politics in it, despite the giant robots and all. I mean, in Gundam Unicorn there are at least two or three episodes dedicated about talking mostly about why the Spacenoids want freedom, about how Zeon goes about it, how Full Frontal wants to do it, how Audrey wants to do it, and it's basically all politic discussion. Perhaps less prominent in the first Gundam (which is more character-oriented, though they do name-drop Hitler) and Gundam ZZ (except for the particularly great Blue Team arc, go watch that), but definetely present in Zeta Gundam, there are a lot of episodes discussing about this.

Hunter x Hunter may be the only shounen manga I've read so far that thrives a lot in politics. At least 15 chapters of the Chimera Ant arc is politic discussion on how to procede, what to do, and part of the climax, aside of exploring characters, it also has a lot of politic message. Hell, the next arc is called the Election arc, and the following Dark Continent arc goes further into politic conflict of a royal sucession.

I believe fake politics is the best scenario for a writer so it can make the conflict believable and its relation to real world conflicts is just an inspiration (like in FMA), it feels way less complicated and it doesn't have to go through so many historical contrivances, which requires way much more research than one would expect.
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John Thacker



Joined: 28 Oct 2013
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:34 pm Reply with quote
DerekL1963 wrote:
Parsifal24 wrote:
And than there's things like Gate where the source material is extremely political but the adaptation tone down the political content


I was about to mention Gate. At least here in the US, I suspect most of the politics (other than the hawk/dove parts) will fly right past most watchers... The divides and issues are considerably different from ours, as is the political system itself.


Certainly the politics in Shin Godzilla escaped a lot of the US theater audience when my wife and I saw it.

A lot of Japanese political satire is more satire on bureaucracy, such as in GitS:SAC. Electoral politics are a bit rarer, though besides Classroom Crisis which I mentioned, there's a little bit in Parasyte. Concrete Revolutio is quite political as well, though mostly from an outside electoral politics '60s counterculture perspective (recall that the '60s protests in Japan lost.)

I suspect that has to do with the long running electoral domination by the LDP, where most changes have occurred in factional backroom deals and the fights between the deep state / institutionalized bureaucracy. (Or at least that's how it's portrayed.)
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Kougeru



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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:34 pm Reply with quote
Most Gundam (And a lot of mecha and space shows in general) have a lot of politics involved.
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SpacemanHardy



Joined: 03 Jan 2012
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:39 pm Reply with quote
Answerman wrote:
Frankly, the only way I could see anime going full-tilt political is if it was about a cute girl trying to get into politics, and she's cute and a little clumsy, and it's really hard but she has to do her best!



....I'd watch it. Neutral
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KutovoiAnton



Joined: 03 Mar 2013
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:41 pm Reply with quote
Well, Gintama made a parody of a politian once. Jump's entire editorial staff had a heart attack that day Laughing
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Moroboshi-san



Joined: 06 Apr 2015
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 2:51 pm Reply with quote
Watch Ginga Eiyū Densetsu for political anime.
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DerekL1963
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Joined: 14 Jan 2015
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 3:05 pm Reply with quote
John Thacker wrote:
I suspect that has to do with the long running electoral domination by the LDP, where most changes have occurred in factional backroom deals and the fights between the deep state / institutionalized bureaucracy. (Or at least that's how it's portrayed.)


Quite possibly... The LDP has basically (with two short exceptions) been in power (individually, or as a coalition, or a minority government) for over sixty years now. It's pretty rare for a single party to be so dominant for so long outside of quasi/non-democratic states.
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Topgunguy



Joined: 08 Dec 2015
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PostPosted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 3:16 pm Reply with quote
Gundam Wing and it's inferior counterpart, Gundam 00, also come to mind.
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