Rifujin na Magonotethe renowned author of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnationfinds himself in the middle of a controversy after sharing his views on slavery in relation to the series’ protagonist, Rudeus. In a series of tweets, Magonote expressed his personal position and how it is reflected in his work.
The author began by saying:I wish to explain my position, since I personally do not approve of slavery. However, it is true that in my writing I presented Rudeus as someone who is not actively opposed to slavery.». This apparent contradiction between the author’s beliefs and his characterization has generated intense debate online.
Magonote further explained his narrative approach to it: “The original story is set in a context where it is accepted that slavery is commonplace in this world. It is an undeniable reality». He argued that this setting conditions the actions and perceptions of the characters in their fictional world. «Because of thishe continued, “I see no point in justifying my actions (as a writer)».
This controversy was intensified by a recent event in the anime. In the sixth episode of the second season of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation, the protagonist Rudeus buys a child slave named Julie to perform certain tasks. This plot twist reignited discussions about the narrative approach of the series, especially after the previous season was also the subject of controversy due to its treatment of sensitive topics when Rudeus (a reincarnated adult) had sex with a girl his “new” age.
In response to this episode, the author wrote on Twitter last weekend: “About Rudeus: He doesn’t really have any feelings of hatred towards slavery. He believes that not all slaves are universally more unhappy as slaves than before they were. So while kidnapping is wrong, he can’t say for sure that slavery itself is wrong, and he doesn’t want to impose his own sense of justice on a culture he’s unfamiliar with.».
The online reaction was swift and polarizing. Social networks were filled with comments that oscillated between fierce criticism and passionate defense. Some followers flatly rejected the author’s justification, considering that this perspective trivializes a subject as sensitive as slavery. Others, for their part, argued that the author’s decisions are consistent with the world he has created and should not be judged from a contemporary perspective.
This controversy surrounding the author’s views and their impact on the series highlights the complexity of creating narratives in fictional settings where values can differ significantly from those in the real world. Let’s review some of the comments from the West:
- «Rudeus comes from our world, so he knows that slavery is wrong. Gross».
- «I have no idea what this series is about but the muscular catwoman looks hot».
- «It’s okay to go out and say “Hey, you know, slavery is pretty bad.” Easily one of the worst aspects of many modern isekai».
- «But what the hell Of course the authors don’t necessarily have the same points of view as their characters, but that’s a very strange position.».
- «I’m not sure if I got it twice because I thought since I was born into the modern world, I would have assumed that thinking “slavery is bad” at the very least was easy. Or simply because of the idea that the author directly said “yes, my protagonist does not care about slavery”».
- «I disagree. Rudeus was sent to another world and slavery is normal in that world. He may have seen it as immoral at first, but now he’s almost an adult (by our standards) in terms of living in that world and experiencing how life works there. It is a normal thing in that world, and it is shown that he sympathizes with the slaves, but cannot change the inner workings of the world. Magonote took a pretty bold stance on the issue, and that takes guts. It is clear that Rudeus does not agree, but he is rather the lesser evil in a world that he does not forgive even the slightest suspicion.».
- «Considering that the series uses the body of a slave for sale in the market as a convenient excuse for a joke about the size of the harem and the penis, I am not exactly surprised to hear that this is the thoughtless way in which the author imagines that Rudy sees slavery. Man, there’s a lot to like about this show – it was one of the best shows in recent years for the ten episodes where it moved away from sex and slavery and focused on world building and towering terrors and mysteries of his world. I hate that at his lowest moments he falls so low».
- «I understand that this is a product of a country that does not have the same history of slavery as North America. I also understand that part of the appeal of anime is that American standards and practices don’t exist in Japan and therefore we get stories and characters that we would never otherwise see here, which is why Mushoku Tensei is such a hit. But everyone has their limits. The underrepresentation of slavery is one of mine, and it’s all too widespread in the fantasy genre. I can’t force writers to adhere to my personal tastes, but I can express my disapproval. I can also state that my fantasies don’t include bondage and even if they did, I sure as hell wouldn’t be fetishized.».
- «I am infinitely grateful to the author for these publications. Now the sensitive prudes will stop watching this series and we will finally stop reading stupid reviews after each new episode airs.».
- «I think this is a narrative excuse. I don’t see it, but since Rudy is an isekai protagonist I guess he’s strong enough to try to change the world, this would take a long time and the author couldn’t write what he wants. Therefore, he NEEDS to state that he is apathetic about it, or else he would have to send Rudy on a long road to try and succeed or fail in the endeavor. Of course, the REAL answer would be not to add slavery to his plot, so he wouldn’t need to make this excuse.».
- «People have to grow up and accept that bad things happen in a fictional story. It’s not real, it can’t hurt you».
- «It’s always stupid when authors try to justify slavery in their works with some half-hearted “oh, it’s normal in that world” or “their lives are totally, totally better”. I would respect more without irony an author who directly says “this shit is my fetish”».
- «The obvious problem here, first of all, is that the writer claims that he “cannot impose his own ideals” on the fantasy world he created. My brother in Christ, you wrote the world in the first place. It turns my stomach to see the extent to which the isekai have allowed slavery for fun and profit in recent years.».
- «As if he needed another reason to hate isekai. This is the kind of gross shit you get when your “genre” exists almost entirely as wish fulfillment for pathetic otaku.».
- «I understand that a writer can write about whatever he wants and it doesn’t necessarily have to be a permanent support or reproach to anything, but this guy started saying “I think I haven’t shown my ass enough” and decided to tweet».
- «As a general matter, does anyone else think that sometimes an author might make a statement like this just to stir up controversy? Similarly, do they sometimes portray problematic content just to get attention and provoke negative reactions, even though the writer may not necessarily agree with the problematic content itself? I don’t follow Mushoku Tensei so I can’t apply these points to this author».
- «What are you talking about? It’s not something cultural, it’s something from real life. No one would meddle in something that does not concern them. Doing so only serves to complicate your life when you are already dealing with your own problems.».
- «I wish I could sit down all the Mushoku Tensei advocates and force them to watch Bojack Horseman so they would understand what it’s like for a series to allow its characters to wade through thorny moral minefields and make deeply misguided decisions. There is none of this shit in the series that they defend so much».
- «It’s fantasy, it’s a work of fiction. I’m not going to get mad because a fictional character agrees with slavery. Don’t let it ruin your day. If you don’t like the story look elsewhere. I am not going to defend it either, it is definitely not a series that I would recommend to everyone. It bothers me more that one of the main plot points is erectile dysfunction. I think the series could have been written much better, but at the end of the day it’s an Isekai, which is like fast food and junk anime. I try not to set my expectations too high.».
- «Even if you ignore the moral implications, saying that the protagonist of your story, who belongs to a modern first world society, has no opinion about whether it is okay for one human being to possess another, something that the vast majority of the Earth has known for decades at least, it’s a good way to make your hero look like a useless jerk. “Maybe some people are happier as slaves, so who’s to say if it’s bad” isn’t a thought anyone who isn’t a slack-jawed jerk or some kind of advanced hyperracist has ever had. The fact that the author thinks this is an acceptable character trait for the main character also reflects poorly on his ability to think critically, let alone write a story.».
- «Rudy is horrible, that’s the point of the story. He does not understand the world around him nor does he know how to relate to people. The goal of the story is for Rudy to gradually learn these things. He is a deeply flawed character. If you expect him to suddenly become a paragon of virtue, you haven’t been paying attention.».
