Ask John: Is the Moé Boom Really Dying?

Question:
What do you think of Ken Akamatsu’s recent comment saying that moé and harem anime are dead/nearly dead?

Answer:
The argument that Japan’s moé phenomenon is slowly exhausting is a complex and debatable one. It’s also a perspective which I think is mistaken. Earlier this month the Japanese Teikoku Databank research firm reported that income for Japanese based animation studios was down in 2010. The Teikoku Databank also claimed that the anime boom based on moé shows was losing steam. Shortly later the Japanese Media Development Research Institute issued its own report also stating that Japanese anime production companies were earning less, but anime sales in 2010 were actually up, and the number of animated shows released in Japan in 2010 was up compared to 2009. Around the same time, Negima creator and industry observer Ken Akamatsu published a public blog post in which he claimed that the moé and harem anime boom is finished. Seemingly to support his claim that the harem anime genre is dead, Akamatsu pointed out that there are few contemporary harem anime – few anime starring male characters with an active attraction to the opposite sex for viewers to empathize with. Seemingly to support his claim that the moé boom is dying, Akamatsu cited that it’s now Japanese women, not men, who are buying the most anime. And Akamatsu noted that Japanese male otaku have developed an increased ability to respect female anime characters without perceiving them as sex objects, and that trend is likely to continue. He the tremendous popularity of K-ON as an example. Personally, I find it difficult to accept the argument that an increasing male viewer interest in shows like K-On is a sign that moé anime is dying. On the contrary, an increased male viewer interest in shows like K-ON and Sora no Woto suggests to me that the popularity of moé is far from dying; it’s just evolving into a different from that we don’t immediately recognize right now because it’s different from the moé of the past five years.

Akamatsu argues that male otaku feeling minimal sexual attraction toward anime girls is a sign of decreased moé. But it was also Akamatsu himself that wrote in 2005, “Moé is being calmed/soothed by watching from afar. It is not an object of sexual action.” Seemingly according to Akamatsu’s own definition and observation, moé is increasing, not dying. However, the sort of moé that otaku have become familiar with over the past five years does seem to be diminishing. An observation of this year’s anime reveals that harem shows and shows with a prominent harem component include Mayoi Neko Overrun!, Amagami SS, Asobi ni Ikuyo!, High School of the Dead, Sekirei ~Pure Engagement~, and Shukufuku no Campanella. The harem anime genre isn’t extinct, but it’s not as high profile as it once was. Several of these shows employ characteristics of harem anime but don’t revolve around the concept of providing a male protagonist for viewers to vicariously live through. Furthermore, the prominence of titles including Omamori Himari, Ladies vs Butlers!, Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu, B-Gata H-Kei, Kiss x Sis, and Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakama-tachi suggest that the anime trend is moving away from 90s and 00s harem style and returning to 80’s style romantic comedy.

I would argue that 2010 anime including Sora no Woto, K-On!!, Shin Koihime Musou ~Otome Tairan~, and Strike Witches 2 are all moé shows. But they’re different from the variety of moé associated with Futakoi, Rozen Maiden, Sister Princess, Moetan, and Lucky Star. The moé boom was associated with wanting Konata be be “my wife.” The moé of 2005-2009 was a posessive type. The new moé attitude of 2010 seems like a return to the origins of the phenomena and the sense of wanting to cheer for Sakura Kinomoto or be a classmate with Ayumu “Osaka” Kasuga and Chiyo Mihama, not to own them like Shinku or Konata. And as I’ve previously noticed, moé seems to be encompassing more boys now. Otokonoko characters and characters like BakaTest’s Hideyoshi and Heroman’s Joey were not moé six years ago, but they are now, suggesting that moé isn’t actually dying; it’s just changing its focus.

Now we don’t see Lolicon anime like Moetan, Ichigo Marshmallow, Petopeto-san, and Kodomo no Jikan that premiered during the height of the moé boom. Seemingly like a revival of the 80s, shows including Queen’s Blade, Kanokon, Ladies vs Butlers, Sekirei, and High School of the Dead have made older teen and adult women sexy again. In effect, the undercurrent of sexual attraction that ran through moé anime from 2005 to 2009 has either shifted its attention onto cute boys or has evaporated entirely, leaving viewers with moé shows like K-On!!, Sora no Woto, Angel Beats, and Seitokai Yakuindomo that attract male viewers but don’t engender sexual attraction. In fact, by Ken Akamatsu’s own 2005 definition, that’s closer to the true nature of moé than the characteristics that typified the height of the 2008 moé boom. I think that close and comprehensive observation reveals that harem and moé anime aren’t dying; they’re simply changing into a new variety that hasn’t become entrenched enough yet to be easily and immediately recognizable.