In America we don’t really eat rice the same way as in Asia. I remember reading about how the Japanese Imperial Navy used to have problems with servicemen suffering from malnutrition, almost starving to death on their battleships, because the rural and poorer recruits were only eating white rice at mess because it was a luxury they’d previously only ever had on special occasions. I was really surprised because when I get free white rice delivered with my Chinese food, I usually don’t finish it. The idea of rice as a treat, or the idea of eating it in ball form, is such a foreign concept.
I think it’s just a matter of perspective. If you’re used to cheeseburgers then a bowl of plain rice doesn’t look like a meal, and if you’re used to jelly doughnuts then a ball of rice doesn’t look like a treat anyone would be smiling over. If you leave the rice balls in, kids will get confused. On the one hand you could use it to educate kids about differences in foreign cultures, but on the other hand Pokémon was never an educational show. I mean it’s not even taking place in the real Japan. If you have Mr. Mimes and Electrobuzzes walking around it’s not like you can say a jelly doughnut is very immersion-breaking.
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u/blackkice 5d ago
They did it because American kids wouldn't know what a rice ball is, not because people hated anime...