HENTAI!
Posted by Omega on February 12, 2007
A couple of days ago while I was browsing an Anime forum, there was a post that asked “Is Hentai an embarrasment to Anime?” The responses in there that caught my eye was something along the lines of “It IS an embarassment to anime, it’s nothing more than something for people to masturbate to, and everyone who watches it are perverts.”
Hentai, Japanese for ‘perverted,’ is generally used as a term for pornographic animation. It’s an artistic expression of pornography in Japan, portraying sexual images that are not possible to depict in live-action.
I don’t really like watching hentai, but I felt obligated to argue this statement, as I’m on a mission to break down the walls built into people’s minds that prevent people from seeing the beauty in all things.
Plus I figure using the word ‘Hentai’ would get me a few more hits on this site. HENTAI XXX HENTAI XXX
The forum post was intriguing enough for me to feel like I should make a post about it on this blog here. Here is the forum post I wrote in response to that thread on that forum.
For the most part, it’s been unedited, so it retains much of the ugly tone that forum posts usually contain.
The images below are from Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien (Rumbling Hearts in the US). Though the anime is not hentai, the original source material was a hentai game. Plus the artwork rocks, so it’ll still help support my point.
So here is…my official endorsement… for HENTAI!!
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- Awesomely stunning artwork from this hentai game turned non-hentai anime
Seeing hentai as simply porn is a view of narrow-mindedness. It has its place in the anime industry just as much as shows like Full Metal Alchemist and Naruto does.
Let’s consider for a second why people watch porn.
Think outside the box for a minute. Pornography portrays near-realistic, however unlikely, situations of pure sexual pleasure. To the viewer, there are no emotions involved, no complicated ’strings attached’ per se. It removes all fear of getting hurt or pain like the real world. All that is presented is the sex, and unconditional intimacy; even if they’re portrayed graphically and explicitily.
Are we so shallow as to call anyone who watches pornography perverts? Consider for a moment the psychological and sociological elements behind a person’s desires, unconscious it may be, to watch sexual content.
Now use that mindset into thinking why people watch hentai. Afterall, anime as an art form is beautiful to begin with.
Considering the origins, the Japanese people themselves are extremely conservative and insecure. Young Japanese kids have literally killed, others and themselves, because of sexual sadism. Is there anything really wrong about escaping from the harsh realities of the real world for awhile and into a world where there is no pain; just an emotional high and the feeding of sexual frustrations and desires?
As far as the animated portion goes; animated or not, the very portrayal and idea of sex is still there. Not so different from animated and live action characters both equally being able to make us cry and care for them.
Plus, I know plenty of people who watch hentai simply for the artwork. And I do admit, a lot of good hentai has some great artwork and character designs. No joke.
All that is portrayed is the sex. It’s what feeds our libido, our unconscious sexual desires, and what helps most people’s sexual frustrations. Hentai simply depicts all that in ways that live action is unable to do
An insult to anime? Hell no. It helps diversify the industry. Calling someone a pervert for watching hentai or saying that hentai is an insult to anime, is no different than calling someone a terrorist for thinking the Quran is beautiful.
Believe it or not, there are actually hentai titles that have good, adult stories and even character development, with sex being a key element to the overall plot and characters. Two stand out titles are Koihime and Urotsukidoji. Click the below links to learn more. No explicit images or anything here. Just text and non-sexual images in these articles. Rated G!
So not all hentai are solely about “SEX SEX HARDCORE SEX YES!” They’re just as capable of giving good plot and characters as non-hentai anime. And you guys like anime with good plot and characters. So saying hentai is an embarrassment to anime when compared to shows like Full Metal Alchemist, is just a bit hypocritical
And finally, it can be fun mindless entertainment. They presented a hentai at Otakon once among a huge audience, and it was absolutely hilarious, if not for the fact that it was so disgusting and ridiculous. But mainly, it was fun for the audience and groups of friends who wonder among themselves if they all have their zippers down.
Bottom-line, don’t be trapped behind the ignorance of your own narrow-mindedness. Just consider these points for a moment, and please think about them for all it’s worth. Do some research on your own even.
I’m not trying to convert anyone to watch hentai by any means. I’m just presenting arguements defending hentai against comments like “It’s only for perverts” and “it’s an insult to anime.”
It’s entertainment. Just another form of entertainment. Not so different from other genres of anime
Some people like watching animated tentacles and animated anything-that-ends-with-philia. It’s entertaining to them, why stop them =P.
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So that’s what I posted in a nutshell. Very general, bare-bones, unbiased look at hentai and its defense. And I’m not even much of a hentai watcher. Maybe one of these days I’ll actually write a real article on it……..maybe.
Images above were taken from the Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien memorial art book. The anime is currently released in the states under the english title ‘Rumbling Hearts.’ The Hentai game which the anime was based off of has no plans to reach the states.
- Omega
