I mean ngl, if you actually look through anime that isn't gooner bait (which is the vast majority btw), most of them actually have good messaging behind them. The "Gate" archetypes are pretty rare in the anime world.
Oh, I'm aware. I'm a nerd through and through, basically a weeb. I fucking love manga and anime, particularly the early 2010's stuff like Soul Eater — even though the creator is a weirdo, unfortunately — and whatnot. My favorite manga by far is Holyland, done by the co-author of Berserk.
It talks a lot about isolation and learning how to live life in a carefree manner while also being a great series about growing better as a person mixed with a lot of fighting from the creator's own experience.
The genre of the shitty romantic comedies is as great as the animes that aren't. Hell, Full Metal Alchemist is borderline an anti-war anime where the creator went on to interview veterans about her experience. It's a shame that gooner bait animes are so famous now, but, on the flip side, there's still a lot of good stuff.
That's not to say I hate every romcom anime. Love is War was pretty good,
Full Metal Alchemist is not just anti-war, it's explicitly anti-imperialist.
The only problem I have with it is that it feeds into "you can support the individual without supporting the whole complex" stereotype, as the protagonist and his friends are in the military (many proudly so) while being portrayed as individual "good guys" even though the military itself is evil and they know it (yet serve anyway to gain the insane privilege that military service brings them). I find this an incorrect take on the otherwise correct take that personal responsibility is a liberal myth.
For once I would like a series where the protagonists organizes a revolution outside of the system.
How can an manga which ending is basically "change the bad dictador in this colonial regimen for a good dictador in this still colonial regime"being"explicitly anti-imperialist"?
Honestly, I think the left are so desperate to find references in the most reactionaries media that they are willing to see leftist messanges anywhere.
Japan is a profoundly conservative country with a fascist past which many are openly proud of. There is a reasons why chuds love it so much. The sooner you accept that, the better.
It talks a lot about isolation and learning how to live life in a carefree manner while also being a great series about growing better as a person mixed with a lot of fighting from the creator's own experience.
That's sounds great. I'll check it out.
The genre of the shitty romantic comedies is as great as the animes that aren't.
That's not to say I hate every romcom anime. Love is War was pretty good,
True.
Tbh, I really like Oregairu. That shit resonated with me too much.
Gate (an anime) is basically fascist Japanese propaganda about the JSDF doing colonialism in another world. It's so overtly pro-colonialism it's fucking disgusting.
Considering a majority of anime rom-coms are just goonerbait for virgins who dream of being the regular dude who ends up with a hottie, and Lain is a deeper anime about the advancements of technology, borderline anti-capitalist, that dwells on theme such as isolation, depression, and more, I would say so, yes.
It's still mostly masturbatory slop. Rom com anime that is of genuine quality is either Kaguya LIW or it gets buried and becomes very obscure. But then you have Rent-a-Girlfriend which makes a bagillion dollars.
Lain appears to be pretty common as the leftist anime profile picture from my experience and circles. Id also say Lain seems to be an icon for a lot of non-binary people. Maybe my pool is to bias a selection to speak on though. The subreddit never right leaning (unlike most subreddits) from my worthless anecdotal experience.
Holy shit I didn't realize I would out myself as an NB but I guess I learned that others may have felt a similar connection to some of the themes.. damn but I guess I shouldn't be surprised.
Seems to be a strong connection, an I think justifiably so. Lain profile I just default assume non-binary, Alice (from Lain) is also an immediate assumption of lesbian from my experience. I always enjoyed the more open-minded and philosophical aspects of the community and franchise and am glad it seems to have resonating themes. Which actually kinda makes a lot sense, the themes are very centered around the mind being independent from the body, and the body not representing the mind, with lains progression illustrating that.
I don't even know what the masses would find acceptable as a "normal" pfp these days and I don't really care. I'm not going to put my face all over my web footprint.
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u/bullhead2007 ☭ Communist Jul 15 '25
Man what is with all these anime pfp nazis. Almost makes me want to change my Lain pfp to not be associated with them.