Smells like little girl spirit in raunchy manga

[Messanic]

Tokyo housewife Yoshimi says she got the fright of her life when she had a look at the type of manga her 12-year-old daughter was reading.

"I started shaking in terror from the moment I turned the page. I never dreamed my daughter was reading such a shocking manga," the 40-year-old mom tells Sunday Mainichi (12/19).

What Yoshimi saw on those pages of that manga was a young schoolgirl, her uniform ripped open to bare her breasts and cords binding her to all limbs were extended. Behind the girl stood a boy of about the same age who was rubbing between her legs and inducing a look of sheer ecstasy on her face. The boy turned to the girl and said, "You still haven't come yet, right?" and sent his probing fingers driving even deeper into the girl's welcoming recesses.

Steamy stuff even for adult magazines for grown men or women, but totally startling considering they were actually found in a shojo manga, one that deliberately targets girls in their early teen years.

"They're selling in ordinary bookstores and my daughter buys them with her pocket money," Yoshimi says. "I liked manga, too, when I was a kid and I wasn't worried at all when my daughter first started reading them."

Yoshimi's worried now...and so are others.

"Manga for teenage girls are becoming increasingly raunchy. There're about 30 shojo manga on the market. Those following a particular storyline for several issues are still in the majority, the number of manga dealing with sex themes started to grow rapidly about three years ago," shojo manga expert Yayoi Kobayashi tells Sunday Mainichi, adding that topics once even taboo among adults, think of incest and pack rape, pop up in little' girl's comics. "You've got to think that theses comics are being read by girls who perhaps a year earlier hadn't even begun budding breasts and they're now reading stuff like, in one manga for instance, finding a young boy to 'train' and turn into a sex toy. It even made me feel sick."

A popular shojo manga editor explains why he thinks little girls like the raunchy materials.

"Manga editors and artists do nothing more than reflect the world around them and provide fiction that the times are calling for," the editor says.

Kids don't seem too perturbed by their reading matter.

"Of course I'm interested in sexy stuff and it's a bit exciting to read it," a sixth grader from Tokyo tells Sunday Mainichi. "But I know there's a difference between manga and reality and I don't pay much attention to what I read."

A third-year junior high school pupil is dismissive of the attacks on shojo manga.

"Before adults get stuck in to attacking comics, they should thing about all the dirty sites on the Internet and all the sex-related spam we get. They're much bigger problems," she says. "You can see people getting down to the real thing in those places. At least with manga it's clearly a fantasy world."

Some schoolgirls say raunchy shojo manga are no threat at all.

"Cool girls are already out with their boyfriends having sex and couldn't give a damn about manga," a third-year junior high schoolgirl from Kanagawa Prefecture says. "Just sitting there reading a manga is proof that the girl is not cool, which naturally means she hasn't got a boyfriend and isn't having sex. Rather than being worried (by shojo manga), parents should feel at ease."

Some girls, like another in her final year at a Tokyo middle school, find sexy shojo manga educational.

"I'm less worried about when I lose my virginity, but how it's going to happen. I want it to feel good and I suppose I've got to satisfy my boyfriend, too. I don't want to have uncool sex, but, to be honest, I haven't got a clue about how to do it," she tells Sunday Mainichi. "When I look at the girls in the shojo manga who are doing 'love play,' I'm amazed at how much they know, I feel really jealous."

Psychiatrist Tamaki Saito says shojo manga pose no threats.

"Manga, or any other media for that matter, are hardly likely to influence girls' sexual behavior," he tells Sunday Mainichi. "Girls have already learned about sex from their friends or amongst themselves. Information they learn that way is going to have a far greater influence over what they do."

Wow, I've always wondered why some shoujo manga's were so perverse.

Source: http://mdn.mainichi.co.jp/waiwai/0412/1211manga.html

[Icarus4578]

Because the Japanese tend to work a lot, they find raunchy stuff even more gratifying. But aiming this stuff at 13-year old kids is pretty disturbing. So is Japan trying to become a huge whorehouse? They should be watching relationship dramas like Maison Ikkoku instead of manga-porn. Why isn't the Japanese government doing anything about it? Don't they care if kids are reading mangas with tentacle rape? Are they sick?

[Dr. Bombay]

Hey, They have the lowest crime rate in the world. Let them read their H-comics if they want. It's the parent's fault for not knowing what she was into.

::Chuckles:: See how stupid that sounds?

Anyway, I don't care. This happens in america too, only difference is Comic books aren't that popular anymore. So let them have their sex books. In the end, unless she goes around raping little boys, it doesn't matter.

And as we've seen on this little subsection of our message board, it doesn't take sex books to cause things like that to happen.

[1337haxxor]

Bombay does have a point. You don't have to read books about rape to rape some one, rape is a complicated issue with far far to many angles to it than to just have one cause or one solution. To simply tkae away the book and say that the issue has been delt with would be reactionary and naive.

The largest cause of rape is sexism actully, so turn MTV off!

[Nindalf]

The largest cause of rape is sexism actully, so turn MTV off!

The largest cause of rape is sad pathetic people who can't get laid without raping someone. Or just crazy people.

[1337haxxor]

sad pathetic people who can't get laid and because they are sexist rationalize rape as being ok.

[Nindalf]

sad pathetic people who can't get laid and because they are sexist rationalize rape as being ok.

No, because they're also stupid they rationalize that they won't get caught. They just use those excuses of being confused or not know right from wrong to try to avoid jail time.

[Joe Redifer]

The title to this thread does not make sense. Please explain.

[Nindalf]

Wild guess would be it has something to do with the Nirvana song "Smells Like Teen Spirit", although I have never understood the lyrics of that song, since Kurt Cobain sounds like he has just swallowed a cat and is trying to cough it out, so I wouldn't know what it has to do with girls watching cartoon porn.

[1337haxxor]

1st chord, 4th, 3rd, 5th. rock and roll baby

[Joe Redifer]

I got the Nirvana connection, but what does that have to do with the subject? Does teen spirit smell? Or what it just Kurt sniffing the dried vomit on whatever he was wearing at the time? What is little girl spirit? Isn't "spirit" the "soul"? It doesn't make sense. If I don't get a logical explanation soon, this thread will be locked and all of its participants BANNED!

[Alucard]

What are you lot dense? Girls reading porn. Girls get excited. Girls get wet. Ohnoes it is a play on words. Its still amusing how the parents are like ohnononon its BAD, and the kids are like, duh its fantasy and I dont take it seriously HELLO!

[Icarus4578]

Yes, but then any kid who wanted to defend themselves would try and say the same thing or similar. This has nothing to do with whether or not the mangas influence rape. It has to do with ethics.

[Reivenlocke]

FYI - Japan does have the lowest crime rate in the world, but in that low crime rate, a high incidence of those crimes are sex crimes. On top of that, only about 1% of sex crimes are ever reported to the police.

[Icarus4578]

How come only 1%? And how d'ya know this?

[Reivenlocke]

I remember reading that figure in the Japan Times one time last year. Also, some things that can be considered sex crimes in the West (i.e. date rape) aren't considered crimes here. Some things concerning sex are kinda backwards here. There was a Waseda University rape club that as an organized whole would stalk and gangrape young women. When caught, former Japanese P.M. Yoshihiro Mori called for leiniency on the young men, stating "They're just at a very virilous age."

[Joe Redifer]

If the sex crimes are unreported, then how do they know that they are happening?

[Icarus4578]

That's interesting to hear. But that's also very bad behavior. Where is the discipline that the Japanese are so renowned for the world over? Don't the parents instill any set of common values over their young? Not to make it look like a Japanese-exclusive problem; there's more than enough of this sort of stuff occurring all over the place. But, rape clubs? "They're just at a very virilous age"? Is the Japanese PM implying that similar situations don't play themselves out within the adult population? Nonsense.

[Reivenlocke]

If the sex crimes are unreported, then how do they know that they are happening?

One word: Chikans. Maybe you've heard of these subway gropers, but sometimes they do a lot more than grab ass.

[Icarus4578]

If you turn on the TV is Japan, you're often assaulted with panty shots and stuff of that nature. Therefore, how can the population be suprised at the amount of perverts roaming about? A lot of the girls, including younger ones, dress up in hyper-mini skirts.

[Reivenlocke]

Micro-minis, knee high boots (FMPs in the summer), and wearing "Eau D'comoveurhere" perfume....and I'm talking about the high school girls on weekends. :8):

[Icarus4578]

And then they act all suprised when something happens. Question: If I were to sit outside somewhere in a heavily populated place and start counting $100 dollar bills, what are the chances that somebody would be eyeing the cash, let alone try to make a grab for it? The parallel is thus: if you tempt, there will be people who will act.

[Reivenlocke]

Here's a little more on that "Rape Club" scandal. And part of it gives you some insight into why rape crimes aren't reported.
Rape Club report transcript (http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2004/s1120012.htm)

Australian Broadcasting Corporation

TV PROGRAM TRANSCRIPT

LOCATION: http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2004/s1120012.htm

Broadcast: 31/05/2004
Top Japanese university battles rape allegations

Reporter: Mark Simkin

KERRY O'BRIEN: In recent years, Australia has been shocked by a string of high-profile gang rape cases. Some of the allegations, such as those involving high-profile footballers, haven't made it to court. Japan, traditionally one of the world's safest countries, is also confronting a similar issue. But it's not a football culture they're dealing with, but the heart of high learning. Today, a 22-year-old was found guilty of helping arrange the gang rape of a young university student. The man belonged to Super Free, an organisation now known as the 'rape club'. The issue usually gets limited attention in Japan. Last year, a 17-year-old schoolboy admitted raping 31 women, but the case hardly rated a mention in most newspapers. The Super Free case, though, has been receiving heavy coverage, turning a spotlight on the way women are treated and depicted by Japanese society. And as the ABC's Tokyo correspondent Mark Simkin reports, shocking details and video footage are beginning to emerge of the rape club's inner workings.

MARK SIMKIN: For more than 120 years, Waseda University has been a place of higher learning, a finishing school for Japan's elite. It's produced six prime ministers, hundreds of company presidents, but now Waseda has also produced a scandal that has shocked Japan and terrified the university's female students. Dozens of Waseda students, some seen here, formed a social club called 'Super Free', an organisation that revolved around meticulously planning and regularly executing gang rape.

KYOKO OGURA, LAWYER: I wasn't surprised. I think these things occur very often. But it's just that many people are not aware of it because the victim don't report.

MARK SIMKIN: Super Free would organise massive parties. Glossy brochures encouraged young women to come along. The flyers targeted students from smaller out-of-town universities, urging them to meet men from an elite one. Ryuichi Daigo has been investigating the rape club story since it broke, and what he's discovered is shocking.

RYUICHI DAIGO, JOURNALIST (TRANSLATION): Because those girls longed for the city life, they were willing to believe anything. They thought skolling drinks was the Tokyo style. It's come out in court that some of the women actually consented to be gang raped. They voluntarily submitted their bodies. Some later became girlfriends of Super Free members.

MARK SIMKIN: The ABC has obtained extraordinary video footage that shows what happened after the parties began. The women outnumber the men 20 to 1. Proceedings are carefully orchestrated. Some of the techniques are similar to those used by cults. The charismatic Super Free members certainly behave like gods, whipping the crowds into a frenzy.

RYUICHI DAIGO (TRANSLATION): It's often said that Japanese people cannot do anything alone but, instead, have a group mentality. This is an extreme example of that. The parties are like some kind of cult or new religion.

MARK SIMKIN: The rape club made huge profits, which were distributed to the members. It had a pyramid structure and this was the man at the top - Shinichiro Wada, the alleged mastermind.

SHINICHIRO WADA, 'SUPER FREE' LEADER (TRANSLATION): Super Free's dream campus is hot and terrific - it's true!

MARK SIMKIN: After the party had been going for a few hours, selected women would be invited to a separate VIP function at a nearby restaurant. The aim here was to get the potential victims as drunk as possible.

RYUICHI DAIGO (TRANSLATION): They would play drinking games that were rigged to ensure the girl had to skol. The drinks would be spiked with a type of vodka that's 96 per cent alcohol, but tasteless and odourless. Wada once said whoever invented the drink would be given a Nobel Prize.

MARK SIMKIN: As the women got drunk, one would be chosen and taken to a toilet. Members of Super Free would stand in line to rape her. Often, one club member would take a photo to embarrass the student into staying silent, while another would be given the task of stopping her from going to the police.

RYUICHI DAIGO (TRANSLATION): The member who was particularly good at calming down women was Mr Kishimoto, the number two man in the club. He was called 'Kisi The Bomb De-fuser'. Altogether, about 100 women were raped. Around 50 men were involved. Some of the men prosecuted have said they only raped once or twice. One said he did it 15 times.

MARK SIMKIN: 14 men have been put on trial. Today, the Tokyo District Court found one of the club members guilty of helping arrange the gang rape of a 20-year-old. Toshiyuki Numazaki was sentenced to two years and 10 months in jail. Prosecutors believe it's very difficult to get a rape conviction in Japan and, when there is one, the jail term is usually relatively short. In fact, according to the law, the maximum sentence for rape is 15 years - the minimum, just two years. The minimum term for burglary is more than double that. Kyoko Ogura is a lawyer who represented scores of rape victims.

KYOKO OGURA: Our law says protection of personal property is more important than protection of women's sexual freedom. I think it's absurd.

MARK SIMKIN: A growing number of people want the law changed. These men and women are all students of Waseda, members of a very different organisation to Super Free -- the Gender Studies Club. As far as they are concerned, the rape scandal is not just about a few men behaving very badly, but reflects the way women are treated and depicted.

ASAMI SAWADA, WASEDA UNIVERSITY STUDENT (TRANSLATION): Since the old days, Japanese men have had a traditional role. If he dominates women, he's regarded as a real man. The Super Free case is the tip of the iceberg.

REIKO SAIGO, WASEDA UNIVERSITY STUDENT (TRANSLATION): Indecent Manga comics and adult videos are influencing sex crimes. There is very little sex education in Japanese school, so people get a lot of information from popular culture. It dulls their awareness of what constitutes a crime.

MARK SIMKIN: Around 1.5 billion Manga comics are sold each year. Many are sexually explicit. Quite a few feature heroes who have forced sex with women. This movie, 'Rapeman', is based on a comic created in the '90s that's still popular today. Keisuke Uasake is a schoolteacher by day, Japanese superhero by night. He rapes women who have wronged, broken up with boyfriends, or swindled someone out of money. Often the woman ends up falling in love with the Rapeman. She's certainly not presented as a victim.

FEMALE CHARACTER TO RAPE VICTIM IN 'RAPEMAN' (TRANSLATION): I'm not giving you any sympathy. You can't go on as a woman if you get discouraged by this sort of thing.

SHINTARO MIYAWAKI, ARTIST (TRANSLATION): Ever since we were defeated in World War II, Japanese men have not been able to recover. They have got weaker, while women have become stronger. Men have developed an inferiority complex. That's why they like to read 'Rapeman'.

MARK SIMKIN: Other members of Super Free are yet to receive a verdict, including the alleged ringleader. Their cases will only further the debate about Japan's treatment of women, rape and sexuality.

KERRY O'BRIEN: Mark Simkin reporting from Tokyo.

[Dr. Bombay]

There was also an anti-rape group of girls who's name alludes me. They would get on the train in provacative clothing, wait for one of the chikan to attack them, then threaten him with a civil suit. The down side, it basically became everse blackmail. I think they said one girl got an upwards of 30,000 dollars in order to keep quiet.

[Dr. Bombay]

Interesting. Tonight's Law and Order: SVU deals with the Rapeman mangas.

[Reivenlocke]

You haven't heard The Rapeman's motto, have you? "Righting wrongs through penetration". Now *that* is inspiration for scorned 17 year olds. :rolleyes:

[xblood]

strange...