How Japan became a pop culture superpower

http://www.spectator.co.uk/arts/arts-feature/9425771/how-japan-became-a-pop-culture-superpower/

by Thevet • 11 years ago

22 12 11 years ago

spectator.co.uk

a8da6b0c91d• 11 years ago

The article is dumb. This was a global #1 in the 60s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJ91ikAhJ5Q

Only weird nerds know about japanese cartoons and comic books.

Veratyr• 11 years ago

Iunno, I'm pretty sure most people know what Pokémon is and a large portion of those know it had a TV show. Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball Z, Digimon, Yu-Gi-Oh and Cardcaptor Sakura all seem to be pretty well known among the younger generations and by extension the older generations who raise and take care of them.

And anime/manga is becoming more and more mainstream. Sure it's not like you'll walk in on your boss catching up on the latest episode of Attack on Titan but it's getting there.

Gurkenmaster2• 11 years ago

When I was still in school there were quite a few people watching anime or reading manga but they rarely talked about it in school.

squozzer• 11 years ago

Cartoon girls with big eyes and short skirts. Like, duh.

blndcat• 11 years ago

but the big eyes can be traced back to Donald Duck of all characters

ANTSANTS• 11 years ago

I think you mean Bettie Boop.

Gurkenmaster2• 11 years ago

Don't forget the giant robots. Either powered by courage or applied phlebotinum.

jpatokal• 11 years ago

Uhh, did it? Japan had its heyday back when Super Mario and Pokemon ruled the world, but it's in decline now. Top search keyword in Japan itself in 2014: "Frozen" (yup, the Disney flick). #2: "Yokai Watch" (heard of it? didn't think so).

I'd say Korea has a much better claim to that title these days, although aside from Gangnam Style, the hallyu hasn't made that much of a dent on the United States.

http://www.economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21611039-how-re...

kiyoto• 11 years ago

It depends on where you look. If anything, anime/manga (or anything that is categorized/miscategorized under the Otaku category) are gaining wider adoption in the West by the day, and for music, "Baby Metal" is gaining traction: babymetal.net

hga• 11 years ago

Indeed. Echoing the comments that it's being normalized in the US, look at this bog standard argument against incremental gun control, unremarkable except for the penultimate panel: http://hsgca.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/compromise_v21.p...

Where in a closeup of the girl'a head she's shown with tareme eyes and ahoge hair, the latter a clue that she's foolish in some way (so is Belldandy). The artist DK clearly understood and used this visual language.

That the Japanese also like Disney flicks, or echoing jmole, stuff from Korea, is hardly remarkable.

Torgo• 11 years ago

Anime and manga and Japanese video games are now completely mainstreamed into American culture, to the point where often releases are done almost simultaneously in both countries. And the popularity of Frozen is not a surprise, Disney movies were popular in the 80's and 90's too. Korea is having success worldwide, but haven't really dented Japan's media presence in the USA specifically. Gangnam Style is funny because Korea has dumped tons of money and effort into penetrating the USA and mostly failed, and then a funny video by a guy with no presumed capacity for international success literally became a household name.

jmole• 11 years ago

It seems to me that what we're seeing now is the normalization of Japanese cultural output, rather than the dominance of it. Set against the background of Korean cultural ascendancy mentioned by jpatokal (prevalent moreso in Japan than America it seems), and the widespread derision of Chinese culture, America is more familiar with Japanese tropes, norms, and media, and integrating them into mainstream pop culture.

It's a big step forward from the Otaku subculture that is generally associated with anime, and I think that's a good thing; my biggest impression upon visiting Japan was not the overwhelming craziness usually associated with it, but the fact that they're a society that's already encountered its population peak, and (for the past two decades) a corresponding slide into recession and deflation.

The US and other first world countries would be wise to look at Japan for both a model to follow, and a series of pitfalls to avoid, because we'll all face the same issue in due time. Culture (pop or otherwise) is an important messenger of the values a society holds dear.

Perhaps the most enlightening aspect of Japanese culture is our media's obsession with some of the certain "odd qualities" that it espouses. The morbid fascination we collectively seem to have with the weirder parts of Japanese culture certainly seem to point fingers at weaknesses within our own. Hentai is almost glorified, while the tiny 8 oz beverage cans in almost any vending machine are ignored.

While absolutely not a perfect society in a multitude of ways, the Japanese do get a lot of things right. I think the normalization we're seeing is a good step toward learning more valuable lessons, and more importantly, being receptive toward those lessons.

How Japan became a pop culture superpower

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