Have you ever heard this question before, "Is Tite Kubo racist?"

[Wingstofly]

Do you think he is racist, can you point out anything you've seen in his work that makes you think he could be racist?

My brother said he found it suspicious that Kubo felt the need to turn Kaname an awesome black character into a flie.

[Shanny8]

Though I cant guarantee that he's not, I dont think or feel that he is...I thought it was kinda garbage-y as well, but Kubo has put quite a few Black/dark skinned characters into his story, which is more than I can say for a lot of other mangaka out there. I havent read or seen any interviews with him so like I was saying earlier, I cant fully say "no he's not".

[Katzalcoatl]

No. This just tells me two things your brother didn't watch the series and your brother didn't investigate what that form actually is.

It is not a fly it is a cricket. Suzumushi Hyakushiki is the name of the form. It is a hollow like cricket in which the head resembles a cricket.

I know your brother probably meant nothing by it but the whole question made me mad. I really can't take how someone insulted one of my favorite bleach characters and the author just because they lacked information.

P.S. There is a reason why Kaname turned into a Bell Cricket. It has to do with his powers and what a Bell Cricket represents..... grrrr....

[darthmongoose]

I feel like Tite Kubo is, like a lot of people in Japan, fairly ignorant of the racial politics of overseas counties, and so perhaps not even aware of the trope of "Black characters getting turned into creatures" often discussed in American media. People get turned into stuff a lot in Bleach, and I think he genuinely didn't really think this was any different.

If anything, Kubo seems more willing than a lot of mangaka to both put PoC characters in his work in major roles, and to not ignore the impact of that, like making Chad mixed race, and exploring how his darker skin and larger build causes people to perceive and treat him in Japanese society. One of the strengths of early Bleach, that really drew people to the series originally, was that all the characters are outcasts from Japanese society or don't even fit manga archetypes in some way. Ichigo looks and talks like a punk, but he's a kind older brother, Chad is the "big scary dark skinned guy" but a gentle, spiritual person with perfect manners, Ishida is the "cool rival guy" but he loves to sew pretty, lacy things, Orihime is the "perfect anime love interest" in voice and looks...but she's very weird, inappropriate and bad at the sort of home-making skills an anime heroine would usually excel at.

So, I feel like he does genuinely care about making interesting characters, and respecting them by avoiding stereotypes or using demeaning tropes. He just lacks some of the broader context of how something might be read outside his country (Especially if the person misses something themselves and reads what's intended to be a cricket as a fly).

[Katzalcoatl]

Edit: I greatly misunderstood @darthmongoose but I will leave the following post as context for the next 3 messages. Go ahead and enjoy the little drama I created for being silly and misreading.

He just lacks some of the broader context of how something might be read outside his country (Especially if the person misses something themselves and reads what's intended to be a cricket as a fly).

I disagree for 3 reasons. 2 are fairly obvious. The first when bleach came out many things were different even in america. The second Bleach was never meant to be a global phenomena it was purely made with japanese audience in mind. The internet and ilegal distribution of translations made the big 3 gain way more traction making anime and manga what it is today. And lastly the name of the transformation has the literal meaning of Bell Cricket.

Even the zanpakuto of kaname is named Suzumushi (cricket/bell bug) since the start of the series. Bell Crickets' songs are said to signify the voice of Buddha. There is way more behind that character than "simply transforming into an insect".

Sorry about being so defensive/possibly hostile but as an author who takes so much time investigating and trying to honor my culture with my character designs I can't simply let this go.

The way I see it is like if I had created a character with Quetzalcoatl for a name and when he transforms someone says I discriminate others for transforming my character into a worm....

Calling Quetzalcoatl a worm would be a huge disrespect for me. I would understand it if the reference wasn't in the name... but if you let your audience know since the start I would certainly not like it.

[darthmongoose]

I'm not sure what you're arguing against.

Firstly, I have never seen the manga panel that was posted...meaning this is clearly fairly late Bleach, made at the point where Bleach was past the point of being a global hit (which coincided with the time I was personally living in Japan, around 2005). Kubo would have known when drawing this panel, that his work had an international audience.
And also... I've read his recent follow-up comic, the one set in "England". It's pretty clear that Kubo, even when he knows his work will be seen internationally, isn't super-bothered about researching other cultures. Because...er... yeah, it's...er...very clear he set a comic in England (even if it is a sort of alternate universe magic England) basing it very much on "What Japanese people think England might be like if they've just seen/read other Japanese stuff about England, but have never been there".

And The fact that it's a bell cricket wasn't what I was talking about. It was the trope of "Black people turning into animals", which Kubo is ignorant of because it's not really something Japanese media discusses much. I'm not saying he's necessarily a bad person or badly racist for being ignorant.... but it is an angle that is read a certain way by an international audience, that he couldn't have forseen because he lacks that cultural context. He is ignorant of it. He clearly didn't intend for it to be read as "Black man turns into a fly", he intended it as "This character turns into a bell cricket, which will be meaningful to a Japanese audience who knows what that means culturally".

It's a cultural misunderstanding caused by a creator making something for his own culture, and a reader who doesn't know that culture misinterpreting it as something potentially insulting to their own culture. Arguably there isn't a lot he could have done. It's the same as a nice Indian granny decorating her house with manji and then inviting a white european around and them freaking out because her house is full of swastikas. You can put the blame for igorance on either side, or say either side is wrong to be upset or is being insensitive, (depending on perspective) but it's just a misunderstanding really.

[Katzalcoatl]

(post withdrawn by author, will be automatically deleted in 24 hours unless flagged)

[darthmongoose]

We both have different views I can't say mine is correct regardless of my arguments since we are both humans.

I still don't understand what your argument is.

You don't think Kubo was being racist and that it was a cultural misunderstanding.
I also don't think Kubo was being racist and that it was a cultural misunderstanding.

I don't understand why you're so passionately framing it as though we have a disagreement, or I'm arguing against you. I don't think Kubo really did anything wrong. I don't think there are changes he could have made to avoid this. He IS ignorant of other cultures, but I don't know if knowing that "Black people getting turned into creatures" is a trope in American media would have changed anything, or really if he should have avoided it based on that knowledge, since it's not really exactly that trope.

[Katzalcoatl]

I think I probably misunderstood you. It seems we were on 2 different pages. I feel silly. Let me erase my last comment.

After reading your comment written as 1+ 1 = 2. It finally hit me I was fighting a ghost of something that never existed. The shame. Ooh well it happens. Sorry about that and thanks for being a good sports about it.

[NickRowler]

I know I haven’t read Bleach in ages and I never finished it.

But, I do remember that Hollows are creatures that sometimes have shadowy black bodies with a mask on their face. Kaname is not being singled out with this design, it’s the lore of the series.

[Nabel-Mabel]

he's not, this transformation is very thematic ! He went from a noble soul reaper to an abomination! It's actually very clever design !
And the fact he was an awesome black character to begin with proves he's not a racist, or he would have been lame from the start.
This manga has Yoruichi who's one the prettiest and powerful characters of the series while being a story set in japan! If anything, he's one of the least racist mangaka i know

[RedLenai]

To be honest is the first time I hear it.

I consider your brother is either:
A- Someone that did not watch/read Bleach and only saw that scene, in his prejudgement thinks that the treatment the character received is only applied to those with dark skin (As if this was the typical 2000 yankee movies where black people were killed in horror movies)

B- Someone that is used that nowadays whenever a black character is on media, it just... doesn't get much involvement in situations like this, be it transformations, death or negative scenarios all together due to all the backlash and quick accusations of racism that happens especially at dumpster fires like Twitter.

Kubo, like most japanese people may not be that aware of whatever is going on in Western countries or at least not to the same level as the very same westerns, the same goes for other japanese mangaka or people in general that don't have this type of culture regarding skintone... like... kinda logical if there is not much immigration in the first place. Let's not forget that he is 45, there has been a lot of societal changes, movements and more through these past years that were quite quickly, he won't be like the new young mangaka debuting that probably knows a few gaijins and has seen more halfs than these older mangakas through their entire lives and is more open or simply more informed about western culture.

Kubo still, if I recall correctly is married. And considering his interest over Spanish language and culture, and there is a lot of speculation that it may be because his wife could probably be "hafu" or from mexican heritage.

Not to mention that characters in Bleach, regardless of skintone are being transformed into monsters, unlocking new forms, having badass powers or similar. All of them are being treated the same and not necessarily leaving a trope to only one type of character based on the skintone. There are Characters like Chad who address the fact of being half and how people bullied him for his skin but like the great badass he is he said "No, I take pride on who I am" and basically motivates Ichigo to be stronger too if I recall correctly.

Is been a while since I've watched Bleach, I would get spoiles from time to time from elementary school classmates about what was going on in the manga, and to be honest, as a latinamerican dark skinned gal I damn right loved Yoruichi and Chad who were already incredible in the series first seasons.