It rarely happens that an anime becomes a trend long after its original broadcast in Japan, attracting controversies and becoming relevant again. That was precisely what happened recently with the anime Skeleton Knight in Another World (Gaikotsu Kishi-sama, Tadaima Isekai and Odekakechuu), because a scene from its first episode caught attention on social networks.
The scene is taken from the first episode, and shows the moment in which Lauren Laraiya du Luvierte and her servant, Rita Farren, are captured by bandits and Lauren was about to be raped by one of them. This until the arrival of the protagonist, who certainly ends the lives of all the assailants.
A Twitter user shared this scene on Twitter and wrote: “From the first second of the first episode of this anime, it was suddenly so graphic that it wrecked my brain», although evidently it did not show the moment in which both are saved:
The snippet immediately went viral, attracting millions of views and, of course, tens of thousands of comments. Unfortunately, this account was evidently seeking controversy to go viral on Twitter, at the expense of lead many people to criticize the anime Skeleton Knight in Another World without having actually seen it. Evidently this attracted negative comments, especially from the feminist community, highlighting:
- «This is not content that should be broadcast on broadcast television, even during the night. Japan is finished».
- «Otakus seem to get turned on by seeing a sexual crime scene in an anime. The fact that the production team thinks that a scene like this in the first episode is effective in attracting people gives me pause.».
- «Women really are treated like animals in this community. Rape scenes like this are common, and I feel disgusted to see men smiling and dreaming of doing something like this. Know that most men who watch this feel ashamed, even though it is a social problem, sexual violence is a “comic device” in this anime».
- «Are the cheeks of a threatened and stabbed victim ever dyed red to portray a murder scene as evil? The “pleasant depiction of rape” as a male pastime highlights the importance/need to depict rape as a sexual crime. The “excuse” that “the attacker was defeated and rape was represented as something evil” also accompanies the representation of rape as something easy and pleasant.».
- «If I was looking to watch a new anime series and came across this in the first few minutes, it would truly be disgusting. Some people go into watching anime without having any experience, and some abused women might have bad memories because of it. How scary».
- «I know that after this the hero shows up and saves them both, but this is clearly a way to represent rape as “a comic element.”».
- «There’s something about a society where these depictions of men committing violent acts against women can be spread with impunity, and the visibility of men reveling in it on social media, that I think inevitably makes Japanese women hate more to the men. Of course, this is not the whole story, but I think it is at least one contributing factor to the declining birth rate. It is this type of culture that divides men and women».
- «You can’t criticize something like that because they immediately label you as a “feminist.” Let’s quickly see who the problem is then.».
- «I have always noticed it in these types of representations, but it disgusts me that they show her embarrassed while she is being raped, as if this were to please the men watching the scene. Real women who are being raped would never feel ashamed, she would be terrified and pale-faced.».
- «It is disastrous that an anime of this type is being broadcast on television. Japan is a disgusting country that promotes sexual crimes».
- «The real problem is that children in their early teens can see these images (from my experience as a high school otaku student 10 years ago). They are given the idea that rape can be consumed as erotic content. Unless the producers are aware of it, it is the end».
Fountain: Yaraon! // Skeleton Knight in Another World
