So to the question "Is Anime / Manga Sexist."
That’s like asking.
Are Humans Sexist.
The answer really depends on who your asking what who your asking about.
Can anime/manga be sexist? Yes.
Is it a issue in some anime/manga? Yes.
But if your asking if Anime/Manga is sexist as a rule? My answer would be two fold.
#1: No more so then human society in general is.
#2: You can absolutely find Anime/Manga that is at the very least, less sexist then every day life.
Notes.
In a lot of ways Anime / Manga / Comic books so on and so forth. Are less sexist in a lot of ways.
In anime you can find stories where women fill pretty much every traditionally male role. (And one’s where guys fill female roles)
There is also a great discussion to be had about double direction sexism.
That is to say Anime/Manga that can be said to be sexist towards men.
It would be better to say.
Anime/Manga/Comics are Very TROPE HEAVY.
So you will almost always see at least one example of a character type in a anime.
Examples time.
My Hero Academia. Boku no Hīrō Akademia.
So let’s just address a few things right away. I love this show, so I’m a little defensive, that however wont stop me from strait up tearing into in places.
So right off the bat. Does this show have issues with women? I agrue no.
Does this show have issues with over sexulization? Yes… But..
The attractive female cast is also in a show with a cast of attractive males.
Watch the show for any amount of time and you tend to find something out.. There is a good bit of (Not actually sleazy) Fan Service in this show… for any sexual preference.
There is a lot of fan service of the male cast without shirts on. And all the guys are physical fit and mostly attractive.
- That is because the shows writer knew that (Like a lot of other shows/Manga) That female readers now out number male readers in Japan.
The show actually represent a pretty natural group of females by Japanese standards. That is to say they are not all built like Super Models. They don’t all have big boobs. There not all hyper sexulized. There uniforms are pretty standard.
Does the show have times where it Sexulized the females… oh ya. But it does it to the guys to.
Now if you wanted to make argument for it being some what sexist. You actually look at what the Females DO in the story.
#1: If you where to make a list of the “Main Characters” of the show. you would need to include at least FOUR characters to even have a chance to get a female in the list. Maybe five.
Midoria, Bakugo, Totaroki, Uraraka, Idia.
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Note about male/female ratio: There are 20 members of class 1A. There are 6 females. Which means 30% of the class is female. (Can might be able to make a argument that THIS is kind of sexist) But that would require ignoring the point that we simply don’t know what the male/female ratio on hero’s is. It may be a profession like Police, FireFighters. This maybe high for all we know. That is more discussion for society then the show.
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In the sports festival out of the 16 Finalists to make it into the First round. 5 Where female. 5 out of 16. So about 30% just like Class 1A. And 5 of the four girls win there rounds.
Meaning that 2 of the 8 Quarter Finalists are female. That’s 25% only slightly lower and within statistical probability.
but… Both females lose in the Quarter finals.
The Semi-Finals and Final are totally devoid of Females. Which brings us to the ultimate problem/point/argument.
Look at the Characters that are the most powerful in the show…
None of them are female.
If you look at the females in class A1/1B. And consider there powers. Then look at the Males in 1A/1B… The females never stood a chance.
That’s because the female readers are more into the story then the fights. The male readers are more into the fights then the female readers. So its better marketing to have the males in the final. Not Openly are meaningfully Sexist. But still kind of passively sexist.
But at the same time. There are great examples of anime that side step this in other ways.
There are anime that have great powerful and well written female characters. (And may or may not mess that up with fan service)
So the simple answer is.
Yes Anime/Manga Can be Sexist.
They can also be great examples of how to tell stories and not be Sexist.
Adding onto the answer two other examples that just hit me.
Number one.
The works of Hayao Miyazaki
Miyazaki is basically the poster child for the Feminist movement in Japan.
It’s actually hard to find a Miyazaki work that can even be argued on in this regard. (Lupin is about it, and even that… there is a real argument that Fujiko is almost a subversion of the sexulization of woman)
Almost every Miyazaki movie has a female lead.
There (with the exception of Fujiko Mine) Never Sexulized.
In the movies with romantic tones there always portrayed as equals in the relationship.
Seriously, the guy could be used as a example of how to make female lead movies.
To a lesser extent but still worth mentioning
Matsumoto is a interesting study.
The females in his works are not out and out sexulized, but they are much more stylized. There all tall, slender very feminine… But at the same time EVERYTHING In his works is stylized. This is a guy who makes space ships look like battleships, sailing ship and trains.
Being overly stylized IS his style.
And most of his leads are male.
But the female characters in his stories are always treated with a lot of respect. There just a likely to be used as narrative devices as men are.
Women in Refrigerators - TV Tropes Is not so much a thing in his works as “Loved one’s in refrigerators” are.
Even Akira Toriyama is worth mentioning in this list….
And some people actually argue he’s openly sexist.
This is a person who almost never puts a actual door mat female character in his story.
His first hit anime had a female lead who was the strongest character in the story and never sexulized at all. (She was a child robot to be fair)
But take Dragon ball.
There is a argument that the pervy humor in Dragonball is a issue.
There is a argument that Toriyama (Until resently) never put a really truly strong female into a story.
There is a argument that Toriyama (Until resently) never put a really truly strong female into a story.
There is a argument that when he does have a strong female (Not just physically) he makes them a wife/mother.
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But this ignores a lot of things and or imply a lot of things.
Bulma:
While it is 100% true that in Dragon ball (The first series) There where a lot of perv jokes at Bulma’s expense. They where.. how should I put it. Purposefully bad pervy jokes.
She never put up with them. The pervs never got what they wanted.
She’s the smartest person in the show.
She never puts up with anyone’s crap. And she demands respect from even the strongest beings in the Universe.
The concept that her getting married and having a child some how “Tames her” Or makes her weakens. I would argue is actually a deeply sexist concept. It’s basically saying “Mothers are useless for anything but mothering. they can’t possible contribute anymore.” Bulma even after getting married is one of the most useful people in the show.
And past the first show (And even later in that show) She’s basically never sexulized. And even in the first show it was normal one in a way that was actually poking fun at other Shonin Anime that did this. (Dragon Ball was after all first made as a joke anime/manga that makes fun of other Shonin)
ChiChi.
Ya… ChiChi Takes a LOT OF CRAP in DragonBall.
But She’s still actually one of the strongest people on earth.
She’s still a strong willed woman who takes little crap from anyone.
Never actually sexulized…
Videl:
Again being a mother does not take away that Videl is a strong women and puts up with no crap.
And the argument that she’s been “domesticated” can actually be leveld a Gohan as well. Both of them picked to live a more normal life and raise a child.
Never actually sexulized.
18
Oh boy where to start.
18 is not only massively strong when we first run into her. (Stronger then any male in the main cast) She delivers one of the most savage beatings in the shows history to one of the then two main characters.
And its never once mentioned that vegeta got beaten by a woman. The cast and show never pull the card of having some one down play or underestimate her because she is female.
Even later in the show she’s still strong then a lot of the main cast. She’s still useful and she is still one of the most competent people in the cast.
And again, Krillian is actually just as (If not more so) Domesticated by the act of having a child with 18 then she is.
And again.. Never Sexulized.
Some of Toriyama’s work can be questioned at times. (Dragon Ball more then DBZ/DBS)
Dragon Quest at times. (To be fair that’s his art, and you deliver what you are paid for)
