Grotesque Anatomy
Friday, March 19, 2004
  Manga Fans Not Immune To Shitstorm Season Either
This thread over on Anime News Network starts out discussing where Raijin Comics went wrong but quickly devolves into an argument over which is stupider, shoujo or shonen manga:
GATSU:  Raijin just doesn't appeal to shallow and vapid girls, like whatever Viz and TP churn out by the dozen, but it does appeal to girls. I guess it's a cultural thing, though, cus girls over here eat up whatever's pretty, and girls in Japan, well, they end up doing videos for J-list. But all kidding aside, I'd tap into that market, but I really wouldn't rely on it for the long term, because girls are as likely to change manga as they change boyfriends(and occasionally girlfriends) and clothes.

Schunoko:  I find that insulting! How dare you generalize me as shallow and vapid because I don't like watching big beefy guys beat each other up or a very blah romantic comedy whose premise reminds me too much of Ah! My Goddess?

I'm one of the girls who Raijin didn't appeal to. Hopefully they'll retool something so that they have a title that will stand out more than "Oooh, prequel to Fist of the North Star" Nothing stood out as horribly original. Nothing made me want to read it. They just need to get something that will appeal to everyone. Not just visually stimulated guys (you really can be just as shallow and vapid as some of the girls you were insulting), not just bishonen obsessed girls, but to as many as possible.

GATSU:  In a market where every other comic has some blonde anorexic schoolgirl/schoolboy on the cover, or some tart with a short skirt, how exactly doesn't Blue Sky stand out?

littlegreenwolf:  Hmm... so girls who don't like the shonen manga that Rajin had to offer are automatically "shallow and vapid"?  Eheheh... isn't that a bit... out there? I am also a female who reads manga every single day across many genres, but Rajin also didn't appeal to me. I one of those who go with what Schunoko said; I don't know seeing those big muscled guys go at it, or reading romance that is crap compared to other manga written by female manga-ka who make a living off romance manga.

Replace "shonen" vs. "shoujo" with "new characters" vs. "old characters" or "corporate-owned" vs. "creator-owned" and it's just like wandering into a DC Comics forum or the comics blogosphere lately.  Why is it comic fans have such a hard time liking one thing without putting something else down?
 
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by John Jakala

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