WARNING!! NEW LAW: ANTI-YAOI!

[Hiyoshimaru]

Here's the sad news... I heard a ″rumor″on baka-manga's website that a new law is more than likely taking place in April 2011. Basically it states that all comics/anime/animation/manga that contain the following:
- violence
- blood/gore
- sex & pornographic content
- [male] homosexuality (sorry, to all the other fujoshi [including me]!!)
- incest and other taboo themes

So, technically that sums up every fan-favorite manga/anime out there (no more Ayano Yamane's Viewfinder or Haruka Minami smut!)

I also find it funny that the government official himself writes schoolgirl rape novels. I sure hope this law doesn't take place. Popular manga, anime and novel publisher/anime studio, Kadokawa Shôten Inc. is fighting against the law though...

Anyway, thats the bad news...

～Hiyoshimaru

[Senyoru-Chan]

I heard the law will only pass on "rape" content.

[Senyoru-Chan]

Also ( Sorry couldn't change last post for some reason ) I don't think the law will hold very long. They'll have to put millions people in jail otherwise. I dunno if you mentioned this is only in Japan though. I can understand if shota and loli gets illegal, it already is in many countries. This must be the most retarded law ever. They have been trying to make pornography content illegal in many places before and nobody ever cared so they removed the laws. Why they even came up with this is basically cause they think kids might pick the books up I mean come on. The parents are gonna have to do some of the work to. Not everything needs laws for you to stay away from it. Even if drugs were NOT illegal I'd never ever do them. Yes Japan have some crazy stuff but it's proven that most of them time people do NOT go nuts becuase of it and mimic in real life. In Japan that is. In worst case they can always move over seas. That would still suck though. I think the government should suck it up. You can't suddenly pretend like your so pure and angelic now. It's too late. I've already been to Akihabara 454754 times and seen all of Japan's "stuff". Can I haz my "Kichiku megane" now please? It's impossible to continue the manga without rape.

[Noon]

I still do not know what is going to happen to BL as the bill statement was quite vague to me. I read some mentions of homosexuality and so but we don't know how far they will go. I mean, will all these BL works suddenly vanish? I don't think so but my guess is that the manga artists would have to tone it down a bit. I don't really mind that as long as I continue to get my BL fix.

The thing is, none of the BL mangakas mentioned anything about this and they are still working on their next year's schedule, so does this say anything? I don't know. I don't want speculations. I WANT answers! Hopefully all this will be cleared soon.

I would be so, so disappointed if this happened especially that Youka Nitta just made a comeback and she is finally making manga again. Also, I don't want to imagine not seeing more of Jyunjyo Romantica and Seikaiichi Hatsukoi - Onodera Ritsu no Baai especially that the latter is finally coming out in English in July!

[Senyoru-Chan]

I hope they'll eventually just dump the law. I want my hardcore yaoi!

[mo2468]

If this is about the "youth" bill in the Tokyo metropolitan government, it already passed and will take effect this spring, however, it doesn't actually ban anything, what it does is restrict access to adult content from minors in the Tokyo metropolitan area (which an existing, unenforced set of laws already governed). Many of the really unfortunate aspects of this new law are non-binding, meaning they're more "suggestions" to the industry, rather than imposing them to censor themselves or their content.

While I do not support this law in any way, I do understand the feelings behind it and the troublesome aspects of adult content's availability in Japan. Japan basically has two age ratings: Adult Only and Everything Else, meaning only clearly defined pornography is currently rated for adults only, and everything else, from G-rated all the way through R-rated content is not restricted. What prompted this law in Tokyo is indeed its hypocritical, sexist, xenophobic governor, but also a general unrest about the anime/manga industry's pushing of the limits of what is acceptable content, in particular in publications that are not age-rated, but are targetted towards a certain age group demographic.

This does clearly affect, if not target, BL, but the immediate effects probably won't be too severe. There'll be more ID checking in manga shops in Akihabara, and stuff that might have squeaked by in a YA magazine will be shifted to one targetted to an older audience. In the long term I don't see a law like this having any real teeth, considering it is one thing to establish culturally restrictive laws, and another entirely to enforce them. The general public that was either indifferent or supportive of the law was made to believe some half-truths about it and as the real truth about it comes out, there will more than likely be enough backlash to get the at least the worst parts of it repealed. What the industry really should do, though, is adopt a better age-rating system like most of the rest of the world already has.

[Senyoru-Chan]

Oh really? Just that they'll check for ID's? Then it's no problem. Well I get the point. I've been shopping BL in Akihabara since I was 14 but I'll be 20 soon so it's okay. Haha...When I was 14 they didn't check for ID...and I had my mom with me anyway so...not even when I went alone they checked for ID. However, I sometimes had credit card and kids usually don't have those...It will be interesting to see what has changed next time I go there. Last time you could come over anime porno game previews on TV screens kinda public...not that I mind if those are gone, they never showed any BL on those anyway.

[phoenix4045]

Ugh! I hate Censorship!
Still hopefully this law will get over turned if it effects the industry as harshly as many anticipate!

[Shroud]

Actually, no, they are not "just" checking ages. They have now had to remove the manga mags and manga that carry this "obscene" material (which can include things such as panty flashes or even mild shonen or shoujo ai with hs students in) to the porn section with hentai and reg porn type mags. A customer went into a convenience store and photographed this, its up on Sanaku. Of course, it only is in efect for Tokyo, so people can still go elsewhere to buy their stash, or do mail order if going into those areas is too embarassing for them.

[Senyoru-Chan]

There place I usually go to have it's own BL section. I assume they'll just put a 18 sign on the door or something. Like they have done to the B floor that holds the hardcore hentai.