Tag: Ecchi

Lolis in Anime

Lolis in Anime

An Introduction to Lolis

On May 11, 2020, I vowed to write my “Loli Thesis” once I was caught up on all my anime reviews. I’ve just scrolled through my list, and it looks like everything I’ve watched has been reviewed at this point. So today is the day I make good on my promise and finally write about lolis in anime.

If you’ve watched anime or read manga or light novels, you’ve likely come across a character whom many viewers or readers would refer to as a loli. This character is going to be a young girl, or in the case of a “legal loli,” a girl who appears young, but is actually at or above the legal age of adulthood.

As I’ll explain more later on, a legal loli is a misnomer, not something that actually exists.

Illya von Einzbern and Miyu Edelfelt from the anime series Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya
Illya von Einzbern and Miyu Edelfelt from Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya

But, why do lolis matter? Why am I writing about young, female characters in anime? Because lolis are one of the most divisive aspects of anime — probably more so than the inclusion of ecchi elements, which I’ve previously written about as well.

There are two main camps when it comes to the topic of lolis. There are those who like them and there are those who do not. However, it’s probably more apt to say that there are those who love them and there are those who hate them.

From Lolita to Loli

What many people may not realize is that loli isn’t even really a Japanese term. If it was, then I wouldn’t be using “lolis” as the plural, I would simply be using “loli.” The term actually comes from the word, or rather name, Lolita, which in turn comes from a 1955 American novel by the same name.

That’s right, you can thank America for lolis in anime.

Lolita is a story about a professor who becomes sexually obsessed and involved with his 12-year-old stepdaughter. The girl’s name is Dolores, and the nickname she’s given by her stepfather is Lolita.

Sagiri Izumi from the anime series Eromanga Sensei
Sagiri Izumi from Eromanga Sensei

So the term loli is actually just a shortened version of the nickname Lolita and is used to describe characters who are similar to Lolita in the novel. We then also get the term lolicon, which refers to someone who is attracted to a character that would fall under the loli label.

When a character is referred to as a loli, what we’re really saying is that they’re Lolitaesque; they have the traits of Lolita.

I’ll also mention that there’s a male version of a loli known as a shōta. Unlike loli, the term shōta does have it’s origins in Japanese culture. Shōta is simply a shortened version of the name Shōtarō, the protagonist of the 1956 manga “Tetsujin 28-gō.” There’s also the term shōtacon, which refers to someone who is attracted to a character under the shōta label.

What is a Loli?

With all that history out of the way, it’s time to answer the main question when it comes to lolis: What counts as a loli?

There are a few different answers to this question depending on who you ask. Some people would say that any female character in anime who’s under the age of 18 counts as a loli. Others say that it refers to a more specific age range. And then there’s the answer I’ll be backing, which is a bit more complicated.

The true definition of a loli is a young (prepubescent) girl who’s either sexually promiscuous or viewed as such.

By using this definition, we can already see that a so-called “legal loli” is a misnomer. Since loli refers to girls who have not gone through puberty yet, you’re unlikely to have one over the age of 18. A woman who is of legal age but looks like a loli character is just petite, not a loli.

Hina Kawamoto from the anime series March comes in like a lion
Hina Kawamoto from March comes in like a lion

The second part of that definition is how we can start narrowing down what a loli truly is. There needs to be an aspect of sexual promiscuity, either real or imposed upon the character.

An example of a young, female character who would not be considered a loli is Hina from March comes in like a lion. She’s 14 years old, which puts her in the required age range, but she lacks any of the sexually promiscuous traits. She’s not doing anything lewd and nobody is imagining that she does.

A true depiction of a loli would be any of the three main girls from Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya. I think Illya, Chloe, and Miyu are all supposed to be 12 years old, but despite this, they’re depicted in more sexually explicit ways and even do sexually suggestive things.

So basically, a loli is a very specific character archetype — much like a tsundere. And yes, you can combine archetypes to have a tsundere loli.

In Defense of Lolis in Anime

Everything up to this point has been based on sources, history, and facts. But now it’s time to get into the opinion portion of the discussion. Is it okay to include lolis in anime?

The people who are against the loli archetype will say that lolis should not be included in anime because it promotes the sexualization of children. And although I don’t agree with that, I’ll admit that it’s a fair point to bring up because it’s a serious subject and that argument should be considered.

However, the way I see it, the inclusion of loli characters doesn’t promote the exploitation of minors any more than violence in games and movies promotes violence against real people. And despite what some (generally older) people will say, there’s no evidence to back that up.

Nadeko Sengoku from the anime series Nisemonogatari
Nadeko Sengoku from Nisemonogatari

Next, we also have to remember that loli characters are both drawings and fictional representations. Just because someone likes a loli character does not mean they’re attracted to real children. There’s a difference between the concept of something and the real thing.

If you still don’t understand my point, let’s use sheep as an example. If you were to present me with an anime-style drawing of a sheep, I would probably think it’s cute. But I don’t think real sheep are cute. I think they’re gross and weird and I don’t want them near me.

So in summary, I don’t mind loli characters. I don’t care if they’re “legal lolis,” 500-year-old vampire lolis, or legit 12-year-old lolis. Just be prepared to be called a lolicon.

I’d also like to mention that the only true loli in the Monogatari series is Nadeko. Despite Mayoi, Shinobu, and Yotsugi being dubbed the “loli trio,” they don’t possess the sexual promiscuity aspect as Nadeko does. Shinobu is never sexualized as a child, even when naked. And Mayoi and Yotsugi’s harassment is simply used to joke that Koyomi is a lolicon.

Conclusion

What are your thoughts on loli characters in anime? And more importantly, who’s your favorite loli? Let me know in the comments. I’m not sure who my favorite loli would be. Nadeko is definitely high-tier, but Illya’s up there too. There are also probably a lot I’m forgetting about.

If you enjoyed this discussion, remember to click the like button down below. Also, follow me over on Twitter @DoubleSama so you don’t miss out on any future content.

Finally, I’d like to thank HeavyROMAN for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

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3 Best Ecchi Anime

3 Best Ecchi Anime

Ecchi Anime

Last year for Valentine’s Day I wrote about 3 Wholesome Romance Anime, so it’s only fair that I write something to celebrate Single’s Awareness Day this year. Also, I didn’t want to write about “3 More Wholesome Romance Anime” and didn’t know what else to write.

But let’s be honest, that’s probably going to be next year’s Valentine’s Day post.

So, if you don’t already know what ecchi is, I suggest you check out this article on ecchi in anime first, then come back here. But today we’re not merely discussing ecchi as it’s used in anime. No, today we’re discussing three of my highest rated anime which focus on ecchi.

A lot of series have ecchi in them, but an ecchi series puts the ecchi front and center — it’s the reason you’d watch these series in the first place. So no, the Monogatari series will not be featured in this post. Yes, it has ecchi, but no, it’s not an ecchi anime.

Also, as one final note before we get into the list, the anime on this list are all censored. Uncensored ecchi series do exist, but those fall into a gray area between ecchi and hentai, so they’re not included.

1. Kiss x Sis

This may come as a bit of a surprise, but Kiss x Sis is the best ecchi anime I’ve watched so far. The reason for this, however, is because there’s actually sort of two Kiss x Sis anime. There’s the TV series, which is good in its own right, and there’s the OVA series which is much better.

But, it’s not as if these two anime are separate entities. They’re actually intertwined, much like Non Non Biyori and Non Non Biyori Repeat. If you plan to watch this series in the chronological order, you’ll be switching back and forth between the two anime every few episodes.

And if you’re interested in the watch order for Kiss x Sis, it can be found over in my full review of the series.

Riko Suminoe in a leopard cosplay from the anime series Kiss x Sis
Riko Suminoe in a leopard cosplay

So, what makes Kiss x Sis the best ecchi I’ve seen? For starters, it simply has the best ecchi scenes. They may not always be the most revealing scenes, but they’re potentially the most suggestive. The third entry on this list might have more suggestive scenes, but that one also includes comedy in the scenes, so they aren’t straight ecchi.

The other reason Kiss x Sis is the best is because it has the best girls. Although I’m definitely on #TeamRiko, both Ako and Riko are pretty great “heroines” if you can even call them that. And just about all the side characters are good too.

I don’t really think you can go wrong picking any of the girls as your favorite, but I’ll definitely judge you more depending on who you choose.

2. Miru Tights

Miru Tights is definitely the niche entry on this list, but hear me out — who doesn’t like a cute girl in tights? And in this series we get three of them (and their teacher who is low key the best character).

Now, I know some of you might be thinking that Miru Tights doesn’t really count as an ecchi because it isn’t as sexually suggestive as something like Kiss x Sis, but that doesn’t actually take away from the series. Yes, the girls are important, but the main focus of this series is really on the tights.

Also, as a bonus, if you’re into nice art, and occasionally really nice animation, then you might like this series even more. The picture below doesn’t really give this series justice, so just know that when it wants to look really nice, it does.

Yua Nakabeni in a maid cosplay from the anime series Miru Tights
Yua Nakabeni in a maid cosplay

Miru Tights also has an OVA which I actually just watched before writing this post. The original plan was to do a review solely on the single episode of the OVA today, but after watching it I realized there just wasn’t enough content to go off of.

Oh, and the reason for that, if you aren’t already aware, is that Miru Tights episodes are only 4 minutes long. That’s right, this is an ecchi series you can finish (including the OVA) in under an hour.

3. To LOVE-Ru

I think a lot of people probably expected To LOVE-Ru to be in first position on this list, and that’s a fair expectation. To LOVE-Ru is definitely a good ecchi series, and it has some great comedy as well if that’s something you’re looking for.

However, I’ve actually only seen the first season of the series, which is why it’s not farther up. I hear that the third season is the best one, and from the little I’ve seen of it that sounds accurate. But the first season wasn’t great, it was just good.

And although it’s more sexually suggestive than Kiss x Sis at times, as I mentioned, it uses a lot of comedy in those scenes as well. So while it is a heavily ecchi series, the ecchi is used more for comedic purposes than anything else.

Momo Belia Deviluke eating a popscicle from the anime series To LOVE-Ru Darkness
Momo Belia Deviluke eating a popscicle

Also, since I’ve only seen the first season, I think I have to say Lala is the best girl by default. I don’t actually remember the other girls from this series aside from Darkness, but Darkness doesn’t do much in season 1. Momo is clearly a high tier girl as well, but she only comes into the series later on.

Who knows, maybe by Valentine’s 2021 I’ll have seen the second and third seasons of To LOVE-Ru and I’ll have more to say about it then.

Conclusion

Have you seen these three ecchi anime already? If so, how would you rank them? And what’s your favorite ecchi anime not featured on this list? Based on my site’s analytics, I know a lot of you like Why the hell are you here, Teacher?!, but I have to say that one is pretty average — especially considering the censored version basically censors the entire screen.

If you enjoyed this post, or just because today is Valentine’s Day, click the like button ❤ down below. Also follow me over on Twitter @DoubleSama so you don’t miss out on any future content. And, come join our Discord server if you’re interested in discussing anime with other members of the community.

Finally, I’d like to thank HeavyROMAN for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

Ecchi in Anime

Ecchi in Anime

Introduction

While browsing questions on Quora as I tend to do to come up with new topics to write on, I found one asking what people thought about the use of ecchi in anime as long as it isn’t the entirety of the story and doesn’t take over the story.

Before I get into this question, however, I should explain what “ecchi” is to those who may not be aware. Ecchi is essentially soft-core pornography used as “fan service.” This is not the same as “hentai” which is simply anime pornography.

Ecchi could be anything from nude characters (excluding anything that would officially make it 18+) to suggestive situations or phrases. However, the key thing to think about is typically entertainment value.

By this, I mean that if there’s a sex scene in an anime that’s taken seriously and is actually meant to show some sort of development of the characters involved (and isn’t 18+) then that’s not ecchi, that’s just storytelling through mature content.

An example of that would be any of the sex scenes involving Misato (I think there are two) from Neon Genesis Evangelion. Those aren’t there for fan service, but rather to tell something to the viewer about her character in a mature way.

So back to the original question, what do [I] think of ecchi in anime as long as it isn’t the entirety of the story and doesn’t take it over? Well that’s the wrong question to be asking in the first place because it’s already assuming ecchi has no real place in anime.

Instead, we’ll be looking at the question, “how does ecchi fit into and affect the narrative of an anime?” To do this, I’ll be breaking my answer up into two main sections: when ecchi works, and when it doesn’t.

When Does Ecchi Work?

There are two main ways in which ecchi works effectively in anime, as a comedic device and as a storytelling device. These two ways of effectively using ecchi are not mutually exclusive.

For Comedic Purposes

Although some people may try to disagree with this statement, Monster Musume is an example of ecchi used for comedic purposes (as depicted in the gif below). However, there are a lot of other anime which do this too, but are less explicitly ecchi.

Some other examples of anime which do this are Eromanga Sensei, KonoSuba, Is This A Zombie?, No Game No Life, My Mental Choices Are Completely Interfering With My School Romantic Comedy, Saekano, and Trinity Seven. Each of these does this with varying amounts of success.

While in an anime like Monster Musume it may be easy to forget that the ecchi is being used for comedy due to the ecchi being the main draw of the show, it does in fact belong to this category. A better example, however, is Is This A Zombie? which adds ecchi to an already outrageous cast of characters and situations.

When ecchi is used in this way, it doesn’t detract from the story being told, and can even improve it by lightening the mood. Due to this, the use of ecchi for comedic purposes is one of the most numerous and successful ways to use it.

Miia from the anime series Monster Musume
Miia (Monster Musume)

As a Storytelling Device

The other effective use for ecchi is as a storytelling device, although this can go hand in hand with it being used comically. Unlike the previous section, here I’m only going to use one example: the Monogatari series.

While this series does, in fact, use ecchi as a source of comedy at times, it also uses it as a way to express concepts and thoughts. While the infamous toothbrush scene (partially depicted below) doesn’t really add much to the plot, it, and other scenes like it, can tell us a lot about the characters involved.

One thing to keep in mind about this series is that most of it is seen from the perspective of the protagonist, an 18-year-old male. This influences how we see things.

If we’re supposed to see the world as Koyomi sees it, then it makes sense for ecchi scenes to be in the series because we’re seeing the world through the eyes of an 18-year-old who is known to be interested in things such as adult magazines.

There are two arcs which don’t follow Koyomi, Nekomonogari White and Hanamonogatari which follow Hanekawa and Kanbaru respectively. In these arcs there is less ecchi involved because we’re no longer seeing things through the eyes of Koyomi.

While less ecchi makes sense when following Hanekawa’s story, it doesn’t exactly match up with how we know Kanbaru acts when Koyomi is involved. Because of this, we can infer that the way Koyomi sees her isn’t how she always acts, thus adding another dimension to her character.

It’s in ways like this that ecchi, or the lack of ecchi, can be used to tell a story or tell the viewers something about a character or characters.

Koyomi and Karen Araragi from the Monogatari series anime (Nisemonogatari)
Koyomi and Karen Araragi (Nisemonogatari)

When Doesn’t Ecchi Work?

It wouldn’t be fair of me to write about ecchi in anime and only talk about examples of it working. There’s one major reason why ecchi can fail in an anime and that’s if it doesn’t add anything to the series and so is completely out of place.

My example of an anime which failed to use ecchi effectively is Koihime Musou (a scene of which is pictured below for reference). This anime took what could have been a decent historical fantasy story and turned it into a yuri, ecchi, historical fantasy story, and spoiler: it’s not good.

I honestly couldn’t tell you what the scene depicted in the gif below has anything to do with the overall story of the series, but it happened anyway. It’s mindless uses of ecchi like this which are really what give the genre a bad name (and Monster Musume even though it uses ecchi as intended)

Ganryou from the anime Koihime Musou
Ganryou (Koihime Musou)

To further illustrate this point that throwing random ecchi scenes into an anime that has no need for them, let’s use some examples of great anime which don’t include any ecchi at all. Madoka Magica and Violet Evergarden are my other favorite series besides the Monogatari series.

Madoka Magica is a magical girl anime in which ecchi doesn’t, and shouldn’t play a part. You may think that the magical girl genre is a weird place for ecchi to be present anyway, but it’s been done fairly effectively before such as in Prisma Illya.

The story of Madoka Magica is a dark one with a lot of heavy subject matter such as depression and death. If there was any ecchi in this series whatsoever, it wouldn’t have the same tone and effectiveness.

My other example, Violet Evergarden, is a drama about a girl who lost both her arms in the Great War and is now trying to learn how to live a normal life. This anime is aiming to make you cry every episode, so any ecchi would clearly ruin the mood of the series.

Remember, ecchi is used to lighten the tone of a series, and this isn’t what Madoka Magica or Violet Evergarden want.

Conclusion

So, does ecchi have a place in anime? Clearly it does or we wouldn’t be seeing it at all. However, there’s a time and a place for ecchi if it’s to be used effectively, using it without reason will simply detract from the rest of the series.

I also feel the need to mention ecchi as a way to sell merchandise. Fan service, by definition, is material added into a story with the express purpose of making the audience like something. This is then used to sell merchandise.

While ecchi isn’t the only form of fan service, it’s generally what people mean when they talk about fan service in anime. To use an example from something I reviewed recently, why do you think Schwi from No Game No Life: Zero is wearing an animal hoodie? It’s to make her cute and therefore marketable.

I’m even an example of this marketing tactic in effect because I own figures of Kyouko Sakura, Megumin, and Aqua. I probably wouldn’t have been compelled to buy these figures if the characters weren’t given appealing traits or characteristics.

So what are your thoughts on ecchi in anime? And if you’re interested in what I think are the best ecchi anime around, there’s a post for that.