Ask John: Is the Battle Vixens Manga Hentai?

Question:
I was in a book store the other day and saw a new TOKYOPOP manga title on the shelf. Since I more or less expected typical TOKYOPOP manga and I’m not familiar at all with the “Battle Vixens” manga/Ikki Tousen anime, I picked it up with just a quick look at the summary on the back. Much to my surprise, the manga had a panel near the end showing oral sex. The rating on the back cover was 16+. How do you decide if a manga/anime is hentai and at what point is it simply in bad taste? There were kids in the 9-14 year age group paging through manga on the same shelf where Battle Vixens was kept. I don’t have any objections to limited nudity or fan service, but this seemed a bit much to me.

Answer:
Whether or not Ikkitousen is “hentai” depends on how you define hentai. In the literal Japanese sense of “hentai” meaning perverted, yes, the Ikkitousen manga may be slightly hentai. In the more commonly used “hentai means pornography” sense, Ikkitousen is not hentai because it’s not intended to primarily create or enhance sexual stimulation. It includes scenes of sex and nudity to arguably establish a tone of maturity and sexual tension within the context of its setting and situations. Doubtlessly the manga also includes its risque content to provide some degree of titillation, but since the manga is not primarily pornographic, it’s not hentai.

I believe this is a prime example of the fact that mainstream America is still not as informed about manga and anime as necessary, even though manga is extremely popular and mainstream in America now. Not all manga and anime is suitable for all readers or viewers. The fact that it’s a comic book doesn’t mean that it’s intended for children. And it’s not uncommon for non-pornographic manga to occasionally include adult situations and content as a reflection of similar circumstances in the real life that manga reflects.

Suggested age recommendations on manga and parental supervision should be enough to keep impressionable readers away from manga that contains adult content like Ikkitousen. Unfortunately mainstream parents and consumers and bookstore employees still aren’t aware that manga includes differing strata of content for different age groups. The common American presumption is that if it’s a comic book, it’s suitable for children.

While it’s not my intention to argue the debatable quality of the Ikkitousen manga series, I do believe in its right to include adult content. Ikkitousen is not “hentai.” It merely includes occasional hentai sequences. If there’s blame to be placed, I fault uninformed & ignorant consumers that ignore or overlook age suitability guidelines published on manga covers and mainstream consumers that approach imported Japanese manga and animation with the same preconceived expectations that they apply to American comics and cartoons.