Hetalia

[Rosedamai]

well, i can. mabye it's different for you and all the other people who don't like hetalia. but for me and my friends it's just a fun anime to watch. like all animes.

 

i also hate how women are portrayed in media, but it's their life. if they want to be like that and stereotype all girls for that then yes, i am hurt but it's their life. they can do what they want it's not up to anyone else to direct it for them. that'd be like telling an artist what they should draw, and how they should draw because not all X act like that. but some do. that's their veiw on whatever they draw.

 

how do you know he won't make an episode of asian history? he needs an idea on how to show it. trying to make it least offensive as possible, but people will never be fully satisfied.

As I told you, just because you don't find it offensive/isn't controversial doesn't mean that it does have world-wide impacts on other people. I'm not saying, stop watching this anime or stop making it or whatever, because that'd be way over the line of what I can and cannot do. What I AM saying is that "oh, I hate it because of these and these historical reasons and their continued influence on today's world." That's just about everything I said. Why are you so touchy on this?

 

About the women in the media thing-there are studies done to show that they actually hurt women, that they actually hurt girls growing up. You're blaming the victims, saying that they need to get over that, when actually it forces a society-wide pressure on the girls. They're pre-conditioned to think about something. Same thing with racism, stereotypes, etc. Of course you won't think that a British person automatically makes bad cooking or whatever, but the thing is, it reinforces an image of them as incompetent/super-competent, which actually does hurt people. Ever get why "whitewashing" a character is bad? Because it reinforces a stereotype.

 

And yes, he won't make an episode of Asian history, because if he needs to do that he needs to devote a whole season or at least 5 episodes to it. And because his source material for the original manga and thus anime is 2chan, where people gave out offensive stereotypes and undertones of racism, I hardly think that Japan's past colonial history, not to mention atrocities during WWII, would be dealt with.

[NightLovesFantasies]

As I told you, just because you don't find it offensive/isn't controversial doesn't mean that it does have world-wide impacts on other people. I'm not saying, stop watching this anime or stop making it or whatever, because that'd be way over the line of what I can and cannot do. What I AM saying is that "oh, I hate it because of these and these historical reasons and their continued influence on today's world." That's just about everything I said. Why are you so touchy on this?

 

About the women in the media thing-there are studies done to show that they actually hurt women, that they actually hurt girls growing up. You're blaming the victims, saying that they need to get over that, when actually it forces a society-wide pressure on the girls. They're pre-conditioned to think about something. Same thing with racism, stereotypes, etc. Of course you won't think that a British person automatically makes bad cooking or whatever, but the thing is, it reinforces an image of them as incompetent/super-competent, which actually does hurt people. Ever get why "whitewashing" a character is bad? Because it reinforces a stereotype.

 

And yes, he won't make an episode of Asian history, because if he needs to do that he needs to devote a whole season or at least 5 episodes to it. And because his source material for the original manga and thus anime is 2chan, where people gave out offensive stereotypes and undertones of racism, I hardly think that Japan's past colonial history, not to mention atrocities during WWII, would be dealt with.

i'm not touchy, i just want to sort this out. i came here to happily discuss hetalia, which i enjoy.

 

i'm not saying to get over it, but it's not fair just because you don't like what someone does you have the right to attack them. girls shouldn't be watching that stuff in the first place, it's not solely the fault of the person who's doing it. the person being affected has to see it. i do not like being stereotyped for being a girl, and i do get touchy about that.

 

 

why can't i just enjoy something without someone make it seem so wrong? i just like the anime, i really don't enjoy argueing like this. if you hate it, fine. that's your right to choose what you like or hate. i like it, and that's my right. i do wish schools would tell us more about other nations rather than just our own.

 

i understand people hate it, but i don't hear them coming up to me and saying "THAT ANIME IS SOOO WRONG! IT'S SO STEREOTYPICAL!" they ignore me and talk about to people who also don't like it. while i talk about it to people who do like it. it's just a matter of opinion. i don't like to be stereootyped, so i don't stereotype other people. i don't stereotype anyone.

[Rosedamai]

i'm not touchy, i just want to sort this out. i came here to happily discuss hetalia, which i enjoy.

 

i'm not saying to get over it, but it's not fair just because you don't like what someone does you have the right to attack them. girls shouldn't be watching that stuff in the first place, it's not solely the fault of the person who's doing it. the person being affected has to see it. i do not like being stereotyped for being a girl, and i do get touchy about that.

 

why can't i just enjoy something without someone make it seem so wrong? i just like the anime, i really don't enjoy argueing like this. if you hate it, fine. that's your right to choose what you like or hate. i like it, and that's my right. i do wish schools would tell us more about other nations rather than just our own.

Okay, fine, by your logic, why don't you just discuss the anime without paying any attention to my posts? If you don't like my posts, ignore them.

 

And by the way, you don't tell oppressed people what they can or cannot do. I spoke against something that oppresses me, my region, and trivialized very important historical backgrounds.

 

LOL it's not "solely the fault of the person who's doing it?" Sorry, so you think people who've experience racism in the past and so are speaking against it are wrong? Classic example of victim blaming right here, folks.

 

And maybe, it's because the anime IS wrong? I'm not saying that you should not enjoy it. I'm just saying, to me, as a person, it's offensive and wrong, I'd like it if you felt the same, but if you don't have enough empathy to understand why it's wrong instead of making up paltry, meager, illogical excuses to why it's "just enjoyable" then it's fine with me. I understand if you like something that has moral faults, that's okay, some people do and I bet everyone does it from time to time. I'm not here to convert anyone. I'm just here to illustrate why it's offensive to me. I'm not hating the anime, per se. I'm speaking out against it as I see it as a continuation of offensive behavior. Hating indicates that I dislike the anime based on no reason, and that's not true. Just know that you're enjoying something that offended a whole regionwide category of people.

 

By the way, your argument against me was that, basically when it boils down to it, making you face the fact that you're enjoying something that has real-life consequences of oppression and consequences such as denial of atrocities, I've hurt your feelings. I'd think that oppression and denial of atrocities has more dire consequences and importance than your feelings, but that's my take on things.

Edited August 11, 2012 by ylangylang

[NightLovesFantasies]

Okay, fine, by your logic, why don't you just discuss the anime without paying any attention to my posts? If you don't like my posts, ignore them.

 

And by the way, you don't tell oppressed people what they can or cannot do. I spoke against something that oppresses me, my region, and trivialized very important historical backgrounds.

 

LOL it's not "solely the fault of the person who's doing it?" Sorry, so you think people who've experience racism in the past and so are speaking against it are wrong? Classic example of victim blaming right here, folks.

 

And maybe, it's because the anime IS wrong? I'm not saying that you should not enjoy it. I'm just saying, to me, as a person, it's offensive and wrong, I'd like it if you felt the same, but if you don't have enough empathy to understand why it's wrong instead of making up paltry, meager, illogical excuses to why it's "just enjoyable" then it's fine with me. I understand if you like something that has moral faults, that's okay, some people do and I bet everyone does it from time to time. I'm not here to convert anyone. I'm just here to illustrate why it's offensive to me. I'm not hating the anime, per se. I'm speaking out against it as I see it as a continuation of offensive behavior. Hating indicates that I dislike the anime based on no reason, and that's not true. Just know that you're enjoying something that offended a whole regionwide category of people.

 

By the way, your argument against me was that, basically when it boils down to it, making you face the fact that you're enjoying something that has real-life consequences of oppression and consequences such as denial of atrocities, I've hurt your feelings. I'd think that oppression and denial of atrocities has more dire consequences and importance than your feelings, but that's my take on things.

i know how you feel about stereotyping and all of that stuff. i hate it as much as you do, but not the anime. i hate the fact that people stereotype anyone like that, and that their being serious. now that they've become jokes i fear it's even worse.

 

i'm not saying that "my feelings are more important than everything else!" and i'm not saying that your culture and relegion and nationality shouldn't matter and that you should laugh the stereotypes away.

 

it doesn't affect me as much as it affects other people, so i like the anime. if it really makes people angry about those stereotypes then they have every right to hate it.

 

everyone has their veiw on the world, and that's the creators. some people do not like it, while some people do. your veiw can't be the same as everyones. we're all different. my veiw isn't the same as his either. i just enjoy watching the anime. and i do like to hear other peoples opinions, it's just when they get so into it and can't hold back from attacking and ranting (which you are not doing, this is just an example of what does happen) the subject. i can see you can keep your cool when discussing this, and i like that.

 

i know it offends people, but that doesn't mean i can't enjoy it. i don't stereotype, i don't look at someone and immediatly think of a hetalia character. again, i watch it because it makes me laugh. not because i expect to learn about other countries and how their people act.

[Rosedamai]

i know it offends  people, but that doesn't mean i can't enjoy it. i don't stereotype, i don't look at someone and immediatly think of a hetalia character. again, i watch it because it makes me laugh.

As I've said a million times, I don't care if you enjoy it or not. I really really don't. I just want you to know that there are real-life oppression and consequences at hand. Want to see example of atrocity-denying-politicians? Look up what Japanese prime ministers and politicians have said on the topic of their colonial history, Nanjing massacre, etc. Coupled with that and the fact that the anime-and much of Japanese culture-does not accept that these atrocities did happen, you can imagine how people feel over this. I'm not saying that you can't watch it or that you shouldn't watch it or whatever, just that it's oppressive and offensive.

 

ETA: Yes, Asians in Asia generally don't look favorably towards one another and yes, there are forms of discrimination (racism?) against each other.

Edited August 11, 2012 by ylangylang

[St. Jimmy]

Never was really a fan of it, but I never actually realized how offensive it was. Thank you, ylangylang, for educating us. I've actually read up on Unit 731 and I too find it disgusting that the Japanese government is trying to erase this from their past instead of owning up to it. And it's also pretty disgusting that an anime would joke about their past in WWII after doing such things. And I definitely don't like the completely idiotic stereotypes.

 

Night, this is getting a bit off topic, but maybe a little analogy will help here: Say you spill some milk on the floor. You didn't mean to spill it, but that doesn't change the fact that you spilled the milk and now there's a huge mess to clean up. In the same way, just because you didn't mean to offend someone doesn't change the fact that you did it, and should educate yourself on why it was so offensive.

[NightLovesFantasies]

Never was really a fan of it, but I never actually realized how offensive it was. Thank you, ylangylang, for educating us. I've actually read up on Unit 731 and I too find it disgusting that the Japanese government is trying to erase this from their past instead of owning up to it. And it's also pretty disgusting that an anime would joke about their past in WWII after doing such things. And I definitely don't like the completely idiotic stereotypes.

 

Night, this is getting a bit off topic, but maybe a little analogy will help here: Say you spill some milk on the floor. You didn't mean to spill it, but that doesn't change the fact that you spilled the milk and now there's a huge mess to clean up. In the same way, just because you didn't mean to offend someone doesn't change the fact that you did it, and should educate yourself on why it was so offensive.

again, i don't rely on it for history/how people from that nation act. yeah the history is fun to have visuals with, but it helps me understand history more.

 

that may sound nerdy, but i try to picture how the countries would feel during wars and so on. it helps me remember, because when you feel strongly about something you remember it. like hetalia haters who hate it because of the stereotypes they portray, they strongly hate it so they can't forget it.

 

i don't like all the stereotypes either, i do not like being stereotyped at that. the stereotypes do make me giggle sometimes, but that doesn't mean i see every italian native as someone who's cowardly and runs away from everything.

it's just how they act though, if these characters didn't represent countries and were just humans from that country would it be OK for them to act like that? because that's just how they are?

 

please don't take me as offensive, i'm just trying to prove a point. they don't represent everyone from that nation, just the countries. that does not mean everyone from said country acts like that. their characters with their own personalities, that's just how the creator made them.

 

i know about how offensive it can be to some people, but i don't think the creator was aiming to make it racist and mean and pick on anyones nationality...

 

 

[Rosedamai]

but i don't think the creator was aiming to make it racist and mean and pick on anyones nationality...

Night, unless you're specifically East Asian and have lived in that area, it's IMPOSSIBLE for you to know if it's racist or not, so I'll just start by saying-yes, its racist. Sorry. The original cartoon had sources from 2chan, which is the equivalent of 4chan, so there's a lot of racism and discrimination thrown in. And yes, this wouldn't be problematic unless we've had a history of discriminating each other, which coincidentally we do have. Oh, riiiight, so please explain to me why it got banned in Korea and China? Because it was found to be offensive and racist.

 

And yes, it IS possible for every character to represent a country and not act stereotypical and still act out an accurate representation of what the country's relationship were. And yes, if they were just nationals from said country it would still be ****ing offensive. I would also argue that if someone hates something because they don't like stereotypes, they'd have a genuine reason to hate something.

 

You know you're contradicting yourself when you're saying "I don't watch it for the history" but "it makes me enjoy history more." Not to mention, you're making a gross generalization over here. You said you'd try to feel how each country felt during that period and so on. First of all, not all people in said nation felt the same way towards what their government did. Next, wars are made up as "relationships" at the anime. WTF is that. You think Koreans felt happy when Japanese colonialists made their country a colony? Because if you did, sorry, think again. I'd argue that that's hardly a good representation of what nations went through.

 

And I'm sorry, but you keep saying that in essence that "the anime is good because I enjoy it and it's given me these benefits." Again, if you think those benefits outweigh the suffering of many other people, then go on defending the show. I don't care if you watch it or not. Just know that there are issues, ongoing issues at hand with this and that it causes harm to many more people whose lives are just as important as yours. Seriously I don't see the logic behind you keep defending it. You're invalidating the experiences of most people living in East Asia because you, an outsider who's never had the experience of going through this, just doesn't think so. Don't you think that's a bit dismissive?

 

@St.Jimmy-thank you. It's sometimes hard to debate about East Asian regional politics and discrimination towards people who've never even thought about it.

 

Edited August 12, 2012 by ylangylang

[NightLovesFantasies]

im not wording any of this right... i do not support racism (excuse my spelling), yeah it's racist i know.

 

it just gives me visuals, i don't watch it because i want to how someone from a certain nationality acts. and i'm not saying that everyone has to like this, and no one can hate it because of X just so i can be happy!

 

i do agree though, it could be less stereotypical...i'm not thinking of every single person, just the nation. again it's visuals. i know people had mix feelings because of historical events, and i try not to think of terrible history moments. i have mixed nationality, and it makes me unsettled about what my ancestors did.

 

i wish it didn't have those issues though. but even if it didn't people would still hate it for whatever reason. and no one can please everyone. mabye that's the reason i don't hate it, it always depends on the person and, if it has to come down to this, where they live. i'm only defending it because i like it, i know this stuff happens, and i don't enjoy having a discussion about every little thing. this doesn't apply to just hetalia either. it's anything. sometimes i just wanna discuss it with other fans, rather than an arguement with someone who hates it. happens everywhere.

[Rosedamai]

i wish it didn't have those issues though. but even if it didn't people would still hate it for whatever reason. and no one can please everyone. mabye that's the reason i don't hate it, it always depends on the person and, if it has to come down to this, where they live. i'm only defending it because i like it, i know this stuff happens, and i don't enjoy having a discussion about every little thing. this doesn't apply to just hetalia either. it's anything. sometimes i just wanna discuss it with other fans, rather than an arguement with someone who hates it.

It's making you unsettled? Good. Because that's what history should be teaching you. That no nation is exempt from historical wrongs and that you should be sincerely apologetic for what your nation did-which coincidentally still affects a lot of people around the world. That's why I'm always careful when I talk to a Vietnamese person.

 

And I'm sorry, but you still don't get it don't you. It's not every little thing. Racism, discrimination, and covering up historical wrongs is something that's deeply skewed in this world. If you don't want a discussion, then don't get into a discussion defending the anime, as you've done. You could have just talked to other people, who've posted both above and below my posts, about the anime and so on. Why you needed to jump in and start defending the thing I don't understand. If you do like the show, you should actually be critical of it so that the bad parts will be gone and we can all enjoy a fully balanced, not-racist show.

[NightLovesFantasies]

And I'm sorry, but you still don't get it don't you. It's not every little thing. Racism, discrimination, and covering up historical wrongs is something that's deeply skewed in this world. If you don't want a discussion, then don't get into a discussion defending the anime, as you've done. You could have just talked to other people, who've posted both above and below my posts, about the anime and so on. Why you needed to jump in and start defending the thing I don't understand. If you do like the show, you should actually be critical of it so that the bad parts will be gone and we can all enjoy a fully balanced, not-racist show.

 

 

 

yes, i am deeply sorry for everything my nationality has done (that's different for every nation though). i don't even mention historical events around my friends or family, i don't want to cause an uproar.

 

and the every little thing, i'm not limiting to hetalia. it's basically any series. i was aiming to talk to the people who posted above you. but i didn't get to read those because i was reading yours (meaning that in the least offensive way, please don't take it the wrong way!).

 

i would change the show, if i could. make it less racist, but it's not up to me. i don't take the stereotypes seriously. i do find them rude, but i can't help but giggle at the ones america portrays. even england, and of other ones. but i never take them seriously. mabye if the creator didn't get his ideas from websites that throw out racist stuff all the time people wouldn't take it as offensive as they do now. of course when their history is mentioned, that's a different situation.

i really am sorry about how it makes you feel, because of the stereotypes. i hope people actually recommend that to himaryu, so they at least have a say on how their nation is portrayed in the anime. i wouldn't change america though, because he's hilarious. but that's just me.

 

 

 

[Rosedamai]

i hope people actually recommend that to himaryu, so they at least have a say on how their nation is portrayed in the anime.

They did. He didn't change it.

[NightLovesFantasies]

They did. He didn't change it.

he really should have. mabye in the future, hopefully, he decides that stereotyping like that and not even listening to peoples suggestions will lead to even more anger..

Edited August 12, 2012 by NightLovesFantasies

[Rosedamai]

he really should have. mabye in the future, hopefully, he decides that stereotyping like that and not even listening to peoples suggestions will lead to even more anger..

You bet.

[velkie]

New season has to come out NOW.

 

 

I like England because he has 5-6 eyebrows.

 

Dead serious. 5-6.

 

 

 

It's horribly stereotypical but I can't help but laugh on some parts. Its sad.

Edited September 16, 2012 by Chlochlocola

[KyokoYei2]

Whhat. How did I not find this sooner? I really like Hetalia. >:]

[granoith]

i really love hetalia!

my favourite character is England! arthur kirkland

and followed with sealand and nordic countries!

 

and why i like england?

i don't know i found him really funny with his tsundere personality

[Bacon_Strips]

I was recently recommended Hetalia by my cousin (who's a girl) and her friends. I watched the first 9 episodes with her, and then I kinda took a break.

 

A few days later, I decided to watch it again, starting with episode 10. I've become hopelessly addicted to watching it (even though I've only been able to watch the first 30 so far, I watch them in groups of five). I love the whole thing! The chibi characters are adorable, and the characters are hilarious!

 

I took a test which said I am most like Germany, which I sort of agree with.

 

My favorite character so far is China. (USA: Go! China!)

 

Edit: It is very stereotypical, but I don't mind. Unless it were sending a hateful message towards any of the countries, I don't view it as harmful.

Edited July 25, 2013 by Bacon_Strips