So far the anime Magical Destroyers has done nothing except destroy my brain, but episode four actually brought an interesting topic to the table. While still played mostly for laughs, the anime (for a second) touched on the idea of the generational divide between younger and older otaku. In the episode the two generations need to team up to stop another attack from the anti-otaku government but struggle to do so. The older otaku look down on the younger ones as they claim otaku today didn’t have to work hard or face discrimination because of their hobbies. While obviously comedic the way they portrayed it, I do think this is a familiar and real belief that  some older weebs over here in the West have too.

I went through my anime awakening right in the middle of the big shift. Show up to school with a Zatch Bell! spellbook and you’re going to be trying to remember how to spell your own name after that ass beating you received. Only Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Naruto, and DBZ were permitted. They had so much popularity and clout that even the cool kids would talk about those franchises and wear clothes that showed off their interest. Later on in my last two years of high school it was deemed acceptable to wear anime shirts of great ones outside of massive appeal like Death Note, Stein’s Gate, etc. At some point someone opened up the floodgates and I saw everyone wearing anime shit constantly through college. Jujutsu Kaisen and Demon Slayer are doing huge in theaters. American theaters, I mean. Outside of wearing a hentai jacket in public or something, anime has risen to mainstream interest where it’s usually more common for someone younger to have a favorite than have no answer at all. Hell I even see My Hero Academia shirts being worn by gym bros when I go. Over time the stigma has slowly eroded away.

It was a harsher time.

Back in my day you could face some bullying for liking obscure anime, but I can’t imagine what it was like for people who enjoyed Japanese media that grew up in the 90’s. I assume back then you would be gay as hell for even mentioning the name “Evangelion”. One part of me understands the frustration. “I had to endure ridicule to enjoy my hobby and keep that shit a secret, and kids today just advertise their favorite anime willy-nilly? Bah humbug!” However, society is always changing and I’m happy that most kids today can freely experience the joy of anime without fearing for their social standing. Were you ever bullied for liking anime or anime-related media? Have times changed in the past two decades regarding the public’s perception of anime? Do you understand where the older otaku depicted in the episode were coming from? Boot up Windows XP, hide your anime collection when your friends come over, and get berated by the older generation for having it too easy in the comments below!