There are so many different anime out there created by many different creatives. Authors, artists, directors visionaries. The list goes on. They all collaborate to create this story. These stories are read and watched by us consumers and internally or externally critiqued. Some stories will inevitably rise or fall. We grow attached to certain stories that may ring true to ourselves or sparks a certain emotion due to character appearances, actions or story driven ideas. What happens when we find a story that we get attached to and then find out that someone involved in making this story did something against the law, or has an idea or opinion that is different from your own? Does that change your opinion of the story that they took part in creating? Do you stop reading, watching or consuming their content that they were involved in? In this article, I’m going to look at some people who are content creators who broke the law or have an opinion that has sparked controversy.

The manga, Act-Age is about a high school girl who want to become an actress. The author Tatsuya Matsuki was charged in 2020 of an indecent act with a underage female. The police report said that Matsuki came up behind a female minor and touched her chest. He then left and did it again to a different person. This resulted in the publisher, Shueisha, suspended sales of the manga. Weekly Shonen Jump is a magazine published by Shueisha which halted publication of Act-Age. While I have not read this story, due to what happened I don’t want to support the author and try to read or get a hold of this material. While the author Matsuki did something against the law others are hurt in the process. Shiro Usazaki was the artist who teamed up with Matsuki. While her work got cancelled, she now has to rebuild her career.

Another case is against author Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro. Already in the manga insdustry, in 2002 Shimabukuro was convicted of paying underage females for sex. This story could be perceived as a little different as it was consensual for both parties but it was still against the law. Weekly Shonen Jump cancelled Shimabukuro’s current project at the time. However, after he served his sentence, Weekly Shonen Jump hired him back a few years later for a new show called Ring. Shimabukuro created his most popular show in 2008 called Toriko. I have watched all of Toriko and thought it was a pretty good show. In 2017, Shimabukuro revealed that he has a long time friendship with Eiichiro Oda through a comic. Oda is the creator of my favorite show One Piece.

Daisuke Umezu writes under the pen name Mamare Touno. He is the author of Log Horizon among other shows and also has been convicted of tax evasion in 2015 for not filing one million dollars in royalties. Log Horizon is a really good show about fantasy isekai similar to Sword Art Online.

Perhaps one of the more well known stories in this vein of anime is author Nobuhiro Watsuki who is author of the anime Rurouni Kenshin. In 2017, Watsuki was arrested for having possession of child pornography. He has confessed to being attracted to young girls in elementary and middle school. Viz Media is the American publisher of Weekly Shonen Jump cancelled the new arc of Rurouni Kenshin but has keep the old arc available. Weekly Shonen Jump has also rehired Watsuki and used him to train Oda among other artist.

I would also like to bring up one more author although she is not an anime creator. Joanne Rowling more known by most by her pen name JK Rowling is the author of the Harry Potter series. while she has not been convicted of a crime yet, she has recently stated some ideas that have stirred up a bit of a controversy. While this topic is a bit more ambiguous, it seems that Rowling believes in the definitive birth rite of determining one’s sex vs. transgender.

These are just some examples of industry creators doing something against the law or taking a side and creating controversy. All the people I listed here are authors as they usually come to the forefront of the stage. Authors can create a narrative that can move the mind and make the body do things that others might not be able to do. But, this topic could be about anyone including artists, directors, actors, voice actors and any other person in the business.

As a consumer, what do you do in these situations? Do you stop consuming their product as a moral choice? Is their fan base so large that you feel that you would not even be able to make a difference? Can you separate the person from the world that they have created if it is something that you enjoy? If convicted, can the author turn their lives around or are they doomed to the stigma that they created for themselves? Should Weekly Shonen Jump not have hired them back now knowing that they have a criminal background? Did they do the right thing? Was Oda at the wrong place at the wrong time? Does he share the same beliefs that some once did or has he put their past behind them and recognize them for who they are now?

These could or could not be hard questions to answer. I feel like we all did stupid things at one point or another and hopefully we have learned from our mistakes. But, I feel that most of us have not gone as far as some of these people have gone. So what do we do? For me, some of these situations are a bit more obvious then others. In the case of Act-Age, I have not heard about the manga so I just won’t read Matsuki’s material. I am also glad that Usazaki is continuing on for her passion of art. In Watsuki’s situation, I have decided that I will not read or watch Rurouni Kenshin anymore even though I know it was a pretty good show. For me, the rest of the stories are a bit more uncertain. Umezu should have reported all his money for taxes but aren’t we all trying to make a bit more. I also feel that perhaps he just made a mistake on his taxes as that is a lot to deal with, though if you are overwhelmed with taxes perhaps you should hire someone to do it for you at that point. I don’t think I would stop watching Log Horizon. In Shimaukuro’s case, it was breaking the law but it was also consensual. I’m not saying that it was wrong but perhaps it was less wrong then other crimes. I don’t know. Toriko was a good show but it was also not a great show and with so many anime out there. I might watch a show or two but I’m not planning to rewatch all of Toriko anytime soon. In Oda’s case, I’m not going to stop watching One Piece just yet. Being in the industry, of course you are going to find yourself surrounded by other creators also in the industry. If forgiveness is not an option, then a lot of us all would probably not make it. But, if they continue to do what they did and you turn a blind eye or agree with what they do, then I think there is a problem. Finally, there is Rowling. Still not really sure what to make out of it.

What are your thoughts on this subject? What would you do? Comment below.