Forum - View topicNEWS: Tokyopop Manga Draw Negative Attention
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BuffaloStyle
 Posts: 274 Location: Colorado |
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crescendoll
 Posts: 60 |
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Alright, for one, it's obvious that these people didn't bother to read all of Marmalade Boy or they would, a) know there is reason behind what appears to them to be 'swinging', and b) would probably be more upset at the spoiler[incest scare] towards the end.
That aside, I wonder if the parents would have been as upset if their kid brought home a trashy Harlequin or like-themed novel. For that matter, what if the book had not been manga but an American comic--would the parents have been indignant? What I'd have liked to have been addressed in this article is: was the book shelved among children's books, bunched together with other manga and graphic novels, or was it put in the young adults section as per the +13 rating on it? I also want to know if the parents were at the library with the child and approved of the books before check-out. The library can shelve books according to intended audience to help readers make good decisions about their choices, but the library has no right to restrict anyone of reading anything. If the girl took the book to the counter and asked to check it out, it is none of the librarians' affair to say 'no, not for you'. (At least, as long as the library isn't keeping porn in stock.) One of the great things about manga is that it doesn't condescend for young readers; I'd hate to see one of manga's greatest virtues turn into something for (overly?)cautious 'rents to villify. |
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Mohawk52
 Posts: 8202 Location: England, UK |
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Don't blame the parents. If they were irresponsible they wouldn't be ranting to the media about it. Blame the Librarian who allowed this girl to take out that kind of book in the firstplace. That book was stated to be in the "Young Adults section" An 11-year-old is not a young adult. I'd be just as upset, but I'd be asking the head librarian WTF? not burning the book.
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BuffaloStyle
Posts: 274 Location: Colorado |
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Mohawk52
Posts: 8202 Location: England, UK |
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BuffaloStyle
Posts: 274 Location: Colorado |
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Sure, it is understanding that parents would be upset if their child was reading something that they believed to be inappropriate. The problem is getting the press involved since they tend to overexaggerate non-issues. All while real issues get ignored.
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Cosmic Kath
 Posts: 17 Location: Australia |
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Welcome to the real world, miss 11 year old!
Of course, there are other types of manga you could read; there's a whole "magical girl" genre out there with cute boppy girls casting spells and stuff. ^____^ Oh wait... your parents would probably scream "witchcraft!" and get that banned too. |
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Mohawk52
Posts: 8202 Location: England, UK |
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Miaka chan
Posts: 11 Location: UK |
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I trust my daughter to only take manga out of our library that is suitable for her. She's 14 and read Peach Girl when she was 12.
I think a lot of the problem is parents over reacting to the issues covered in the stories and I bet most of the parents who complain about things like this would be shocked to discover just how much of this stuff their kids already knew about! They learn it from their friends and as many pointed out, the TV. I doubt very much they are discovering any of this for the first time in a manga book 
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Mohawk52
Posts: 8202 Location: England, UK |
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wildarmsheero
 Posts: 55 |
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The only thing I'm worried about is if more manga comes over here, it will be edited to avoid things like this (like TenTen, I"s, etc).
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Anthony P
Posts: 227 Location: Phoenix, Arizona, US |
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Fox 4 News here in the Kansas City area has a team of "Problem Solvers", too; a more fitting title for them would be Problem Causers (har har).
Yeah, no one batted an eye when I started reading Stephen King novels in fourth grade. |
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Cowpunk
Posts: 168 Location: Oakland - near the Newtype Lab |
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It is not the job of a library to deny access to books. It is the responsibility of parents to decide what is appropriate for their child to read. According to the story the manga were in the Young Adult section not the kids section. If mom is upset she should tell her daughter to not read books from that section. When I do anime and manga panels or workshops for parents I always tell them that problematic material in a story has to be understood in context. I also point out that they should consider such story elements as an opportunity to discuss touchy issues with their kids. |
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TheHTRO
Posts: 328 |
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First of all, to both Cowpunk and Mohawk52, the thing is, you're both right. It's the both the parent's AND library's responsibility.
In any case, we definitely have a case of American morals being applied to something that's not American. I didn't know that Peach Girl addresses these issues, but I'm sure that from the manga-ka's standpoint, it addresses these issues in the most honest way possible without condescending the readers. However, I agree that many non-Japanese take such things out of context and assume that they were done purely for "shock value". As such, I agree that it was definitely an overreaction as well as "irresponsible reporting" (especially considering that this particular manga came from the young adult section, which makes sense considering that in Japan the manga appears in "Bessatsu Friend"). I also agree that sooner or later we all learn that the world isn't always a friendly place, and that (every once in a while) these things need to be talked about sooner or later (i'm sure that's why the manga-ka addressed these issues in the first place). In short, I agree that they are making a big deal over nothing However, I'm confident that this will subside after a while, so I don't think we should jump the gun just yet. As such, I'm also confident that this won't result in future manga aquisitions being edited in such a way. One thing's for sure, though. I wouldn't like something to be R-rated (or similar) just because a certain issue is addressed (it depends on the context of it). |
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Vantos
 Posts: 102 |
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Here is my e-mail to the Local6 "problem solvers" team. All of us should send one.
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