Ask John: Why are Anime and Manga Girls so Slim?

Question:
I’ve seen many, many anime and manga and not one of them have a chubby girl. Is there any real reason behind this?

Answer:
When it comes to thin anime girls, nothing beats the fatimas of Five Star Stories, who are little more than bones wrapped in expensive clothing, but the Fatimas aren’t natural humans, so their appearance can be explained. The dearth of large Japanese girls in anime is mainly accounted for by a reflection of Japanese society. The stereotype about Asian people being “small,” isn’t entirely myth. While Japanese people certainly aren’t midgets, there are few Japanese that would be classified as “tall” or “fat,” by American standards. Obesity is relatively uncommon in Japan. This is probably accounted for by a multitude of factors including genetic metabolism, the fact that most Japanese eat much less than the average Westerner does, and the fact that contemporary Japanese daily activity includes quite a bit of walking since walking and public transportation are the most common forms of transport for most Japanese citizens.

That’s not to say that there are no large anime girls. The Master Mosquiton TV series, for example, does feature a rather large Japanese girl in its cast. Unfortunately, she is the butt of a running joke throughout the series. She is the only character that finds herself attractive in the series. Other large female characters do appear in anime including Yawara and Kaze Makase Tsukikage Ran, but these female characters are almost always Westerners.

While anime is increasingly popular worldwide, it is still produced almost exclusively for Japanese audiences; therefore, in this respect, anime is a reasonably accurate depiction of Japanese society.