EP. 19 Anime’s Meta Sexualization

0:00 Hey everyone :) Welcome back! <3 I'm Reese, and this is Reese Grey Analyzes. And I am SO excited that you guys decided to Adventure with me today. Here on Reese Grey Analyzes we look at creations and experiences in art, media, music, and even video games, to explore exactly why we think the way we think, question what we believe, and learn something new!

0:22 And critiquing the way anime sexualizes characters, (mostly women) albeit--- very YOUNG women, isn't something that is new to the video essay or critical analysis space... What we don't see talked about much very often is the use of "meta-sexualization" in anime, or when an anime is perceived to be sexualizing a character to subvert the viewers expectations. Usually to make light of or make fun of a situation. For example, in Danganronpa 3 when there was a gratuitous upskirt meant to be...funny, I guess? But meta-sexualization doesn't always work to be comedic. Some people even give fan service a pass saying "Oh, well if it wasn't there... maybe people would be less inclined to watch it..."or "Fan service has got to be there for the people who do want it, and those who don't can just ignore it." But meta-sexualization used for comedy isn't what we're going to be talking about here. We're going to be talking about depictions of sexual abuse. Which can be legitimate plot points and outline character motivations and lend to help those who suffered from abuse and outlet to empathize and heal from their past experiences and for non-survivors to then sympathize. And this leads to the conversation of when is the depiction of sexual abusey, rape, or manipulation appropriate and respectful for the narrative basis, and in what ways is it disrespectful or unneeded or in some cases--- just fetishization.

1:55 And though we will be talking about the infamous Evangelion scene, you don't need to be familiar with the whole series to understand what's going on. So before we get into this, I think it's fair to give out a content warning. This is the first video of this channel's kind where we're kind of going to be talking about sexual abuse, so if you're not in the right head space for that--- I just want to let you know that the themes of this video are pretty heavy, and the scenes I will be referencing in Evangelion are to be fair, pretty graphic. And it also includes minors, so take care of yourselves, and I'll see you next week if this video isn't for you, and as always that's okay :) and I love you! bye~

2:33 Also, I'm moving right now, so this video will be a voiceover. And you won't get to see my uggo face, so if you're on the podcast, you're probably like yeah... that's why I'm here. But for my YouTube people, let me know how much of an uggo I am in the comments, and how glad you are this is a voiceover :) So before we get into the Evangelion example, I want to talk about the politicization of anime. And how media does affect reality, and if you're still here, let's freaking jump into it! Firstly, having conversations about sexualization of characters in anime can be very contentious in themselves. And people get easily offended saying "it's a show" "it's art" "the creators can do whatever they want", especially in a drawn or computer-generated medium. Or to believe that no actual people or actors bodies are being sexualized and these drawn bodies and people and personalities are but representations of abstract concepts of thought. While these drawn bodies are the medium... no one gets hurt right?

3:35 And though I appreciate that consideration of attempting to honor real people, I do believe that these concepts, although not actual people, are still being put to life by real people themselves, who through art are expressing ideas, themes, and narratives, that have real life influence for the individual who watches them--- and even communal influence if the series is popular and part of pop-culture. I'm a huge advocate for appreciating the real life influences of art, media, and music, as we do here on Reese Grey Analyzes,

4:08 And analyzing anime specifically--- anime has not only merely satisfied people's needs for entertainment, but has been used as a type of soft power in Japan post-world War II. Soft power is a form of diplomacy that acknowledges that media has an effect on people's perceptions of a country and of its people. So these cute chibi style themes, Kawaii themes, were used to soften the rough image of Japan's post-world War II prior war crimes and helped repair their image from being on the "losing-side" of a war. Being so successful in their charge towards other countries--- seeing Japan as "preferable:, even with this "place Japan" meme, it makes soft power make sense. We see it, we're like huh-- I get it. That's how good Japan's soft power politics are. And knowing that sentiment exists says enough that art affects sentiment or how we feel. So art can be consciously created to affect real life decisions and emotions.

5:11 Being the old lady I am, anime in general---which was once considered a nerdy alternative community is now much more mainstream. For example, popular Shonen anime, a genre that is marketed primarily to teenage boys in Japan, can be seen just plastered around fast fashion brands: H&M, Urban Outfitters (etc.) to be worn by even adults as casual wear. And of course, Classics like Naruto and one piece, and even Studio Ghibli films are now popular household names. So we can see that within a very short time frame say 10 or 15 years ago, these attitudes of negative visceral reactions of anime being for losers in a subculture when I was a kid, then it becoming mainstream off of virtue of people just accepting it on a wider scale is something that can happen seemingly out of nowhere. And the perception of art changes us and what we do, and yet there's still this assumption among certain people who are fans of Japanese popular media that will strongly defend that critiquing anime and art or making it quote unquote "political" means inserting a personal belief into a work of art where they don't belong. But critiquing art and making it political simply means that there's something in it that we can relate to the real world and something that we can learn from.

6:35 And as Trent Cannon and his editor Pete say in the rice digital article linked on ReeseGrey.com, they say that "political is not a scary word, it's not a dangerous word, and it's most certainly doesn't mean that your favorite works are being overrun by what some perceive to be an obtrusive Western value." "Political content isn't scary." It's not about shoving in feminism and political correctness where it doesn't belong. It is instead about being able to use the media that we enjoy to understand our own world better. And themes of intimacy and sex are something that are still even Taboo in the Western World to discuss, so there's this need and desire to want to ingest this media as it is, and discard the rest. Instead of talking about it... because it's uncomfortable. But I think that people should value their own thoughts much better than that.

7:27 And there exists a discussion on if these themes of sexual abuse and sexuality in anime are represented in a way that are appropriate in the culture and world that we exist in today. Where it's statistically evident that Japan has a rising issue in child sexual abuse. Evangelion--- this work of fiction, usually cannot override strongly held beliefs, but if you have a gap in knowledge or unfamiliar with themes it's much easier for them to then be filled with misinformation by the media you consume. And because sex is such a taboo subject, and emotional intimacy is not taught, however there's an abundance of sexual content. And I believe that video essays like this can be a really healthy springboard for discussion on topics that would otherwise people wouldn't really bother to discuss.

8:18 They frame bodies of 14 year olds in a way that is both in Western and Eastern standards clearly objectified. It is a choice to frame crotches right in the viewer's eye line, characters and Skin Tight clothing or underwear, and here's where we must be conscious of our visceral reactions. Where we can see nearly naked teen bodies and think "yikes" that is a child who is being depicted in a sexual manner as film critic crit Hulk wrote in his 2021 article. Or we can think "I identify with what this represents and I have also tossed and turned in my sleep" as Nick Irving did in his 2022 article. Both of these sentiments are valid, and neither are objectively correct in looking at things. So let's get into it!

9:09 Okay, I want to get this out of the way, pretty much all of the viewers of Evangelion can agree that Shinji the main male character is pretty insufferable. Even if you can relate to a struggle, and you see yourself in Shinji, he's hard to watch as a character. Your heart breaks for him. And it's also agreed that the series has problematic attitudes towards women and girls because of its sexualized framing. Where people are divided is the morality of the sexual depictions of minors. You probably knew I was going to talk about this scene and Evangelion. Well one because I told you, and two, because it's just everywhere. Everyone is talking about it. Where Shinji masturbates over Asuka while she's in a coma in the hospital. Everybody knows that sexual violence is wrong, again--- this is done without consent, thus this is sexual assault. And everyone is also familiar with shinji's motivation to do this, Shinji is lonely and he wants some kind of connection to someone and to be acknowledged, so he acts out in this inappropriate way as a desperate attempt to feel something. It's Shinji at his lowest, and nobody is saying it's okay ---or that his intentions make it any better. Very rarely are people trying to justify his actions.

10:22 But it is the very existence of this scene that bothers people. So let's look at why. One, they are minors. And there are people who argue that minors in sexual situations cannot morally coexist. And this argument has nuance. A body--- a naked body even, is not inherently sexual. It is just a body. However, although that can be a lens in which you view a piece of art, it is not saying that nudity can exist in art and be value neutral. When we look at the scene asuka's body is being objectified by the way the artists have decided to frame this scene. Objectification is the action of degrading someone to the status of a mere object, and Shinji is then sexualizing asuka's body. Now why did the artist choose this? This is where the problem lies. The scene was meant to depict Shinji at his lowest point. The viewer is supposed to feel disgusted by shinji's actions. No doubt. Then why does asuka's body need to then be objectified? The viewer isn't an idiot, we would understand what is happening if asuka's body was not objectified and the primary visual for this scene. If we are supposed to be disgusted by Shinji, make him disgusting.

11:37 Here are some suggestions. Have him seem ridiculously pathetic as we understand is the intended feeling. Show shinji's body instead. Shinji's face isn't even in this scene. Do you know how much more hard-hitting this scene would have been instead of lazily objectifying Asuka, instead we just saw shinji's face. Eyes glazed over. Desperate longing. Sweat Beads. This is just lazy. And that's why I believe it is unneeded, and we should expect more.

12:06 The theme of a 14 year old literally having to fight a war and this being his response because of his immaturity, trauma, and need for closeness is valid. But the intention does not excuse the artistry why are viewers so accustomed to an accepting of viewing assault and violence from the aggressor's perspective, and not the victim or survivor of the act. To see the animalistic face of the abuser is what needs to be normalized.

12:37 And this is done well in some other mediums, such as the woman King, where there's a literal rape scene with no objectification or sexualization of the victim. Her assault is a huge part of her reasoning of Revenge and confrontation of this man in the movie, and it is done completely tastefully. So we can see that these themes in itself of assault and terror shouldn't be censored, but we do need to talk about how we talk about them, and view them, and depict them. People give Evangelion a pass on the fan service saying that "there's a point to it" and Shinji talks to asuka's torso because he "has issues seeing people as people" and it's "part of his character".

13:19 But fan service by its definition specifically means it is "sexual imagery that is not important to the narrative", and fan service refers to scenes specifically designed to "excite or titillate the viewer" which is again subjective. But when we're left with the question of is this imagery purposeful--- can we get The narrative of Shinji sexualizing asuka without gratuitous depictions of her body, is this imagery here of asuka's comatose naked body truly the best way the artist can depict The Narrative of representing Shinji at his lowest point? Because he stooped to sexual assault of someone he cares about. And as anime and manga is a visual medium, artists should be accountable for their Visual depictions and critiqued for how they could do it better.

14:09 Moving past that scene into another, we have asuka's insomnia. Writer Nick Irving brought that up too, so as we can see a person sleeping in their underwear is a normal thing, and not inherently sexual at all. It's something that like we all do. But look at the imagery of this scene and its positioning. Although the act of sleeping in your underwear is not erotic, it can be argued that her framing frames her as an erotic object. She's slowly writhing around on the bed and her underwear shot from an angle that accentuates said underwear and she's also saying "I'm tired of pretending to sleep, will I ever be able to sleep again". Again, there's reasoning. Asuka's world has been pushed into a permanent summer, and she's suffering from insomnia in this intensely humid climate where you're damp and uncomfortable, and thrashing around for Sleep. Desperate because you have to fight in a war the next day.

15:04 When you see this image, do you see a girl suffering in a war zone in unbearable humidity? Or is it a cheap shot of a young girl in her underwear from a vantage point that makes no sense. Nick Irving in this article interpreted this scene as profoundly intimate rather than erotic and acknowledges that the film is definitely trying to position the viewer to oggle her, but the result for Nick at least, is identification with the character, knowing that he has two suffered Sleepless uncomfortable nights. And I think that's beautiful that he's able to feel and understand that, and I'd never want to take away that from someone who gets that from the scene. And I commend him for interpreting the scene in a way which gives her absolute agency and honors her complexity.

15:53 But for me, subjectively, in a space where it's even scary to go out at night and put gas in your car because even in sweatpants and a hoodie you can be approached for your number, and even as young as 13 in a mall in my pink jeans and Hello Kitty sweater I've had a man take pictures of me and not even tried to hide the fact that he was doing so. And so, in seeing this framing where I as a young woman in non-sexual situations have been objectified and then in an anime a 14 year old girl in a compromising explicitly sexual situation is framed this way well... the point is that she's having trouble sleeping because she's being tormented in this absolute war zone, the framing seems cheap to me it cheapens the narrative. It's unneeded and could be done better by not objectifying her. And then again you're going to view these depictions of characters and art in a way subjectively where you can empathize with the characters experiences. So I think it has to do a lot with hearing each other out, and what makes us feel the way we feel when we see characters depicted the ways that they are.

17:06 And Nick Irving states that reading texts as a man can be difficult, especially when you want to be part of a change to a culture and that the text might objectify its characters but you don't have to sexualize the characters yourselves. And in the end, its perspectives like these that give me hope that these visualizations of overly gratuitously sexualized young girls exists in a space where educated empathetic people can still thrive despite this barrage of sexual content. And that's why holding a moral position on the topic of sexualization is totally fine, and it'll differ from person to person based on your personal experiences. Like Nick Irving said, I agree on the basis of the imagery existing--- and not being okay, yet he can appreciate the narrative in ways that I can not. And I think that that's a beautiful thing to be acknowledged, because enforcing a moral position with no tolerance for discussion alienates people from discussions, so no positive change can come from it. And that's the issue that I have with cancel culture, because if you were to think "oh the sexualization of minors... of course that isn't okay you're not allowed to watch, enjoy, or analyze Evangelion, this piece of art". And that would be a mistake, because this is going to exist whether we like it or not. It was created. And it will have the value that we give it. And Nick Irving's identification with Asuka as a character is wonderful just as my critique of the imagery is valid, and those realities coexist in this complicated and nuanced world. And with that I invite you in the comments to truly discuss these themes and share your views. p>

18:52 I'm curious, do you believe that the depictions of Asuka was some sort of conscious or our subconscious act of adding extreme sexualization to possibly be a commentary on the sexualization of anime girls in itself? Is it truly meta? Or is it explicit for explicit's sake. Simply testing the boundaries because anime is a medium from where boundaries of sexual exploitation are most easily tested---on not real people. For example, how Danganronpa picks fun at tropes and we're supposed to laugh at the sexualization of an accident happening. Uh oh, she tripped. And now we see her underwear. How embarrassing for her. How funny. Or should we expect more from our art? So let me know what you think, and I appreciate you guys so much! Okay, love you, bye :)<3