So, as I've shown ya'll in "General Chat", my favorite series of all time is "Hetalia", in which each country is a character, and they go about world history in an extremely comedic manner. But if ya' were lookin' forward to seeing South Korea in the show...yer' out of luck. They actually threatened to file a lawsuit against the company who made it because they found their character "insulting".
Uhhh...They're the only country saying that...Even though every country's stereotypes are blatantly expressed. I mean, even though he's a total idiot, I love America the character! And Italy, the main character, practically has fluff and Valentine candies for a brain. Heck, Sweden calls Finland his wife! Finland is a guy! Poland is a valley girl! We all deal.
South Korea, though...Well, I found a vid expressing their complaints. It's in Korean, though, so here's the English translation:
At a diplomacy council of South Korean Congress, a congresswoman Jeong Mi-Kyeong stated that Japanese animation Hetalia was considered to be a crime on a private level.
----translation----
A: ruling party legislator B: foreign ministry official
A: Have you ever heard a Japanese anime Hetalia?
B: Yes, I have.
A: Do you know what the anime is?
B: I've heard some media say it is insulting S.Korea.
A: Hetalia is a comedy manga in WWII-era setting in which the countries are represented by anthropomorphic characters. In this manga, the Korean character is supremely looked down. He loves the national flag of Japan and always keeps it. He depends on the US and always imitates Japan. Moreover, He calls China big brother. He always shouts "uri(our) nara(country) manse(great )". He always insists everything belong to him. He touches Japan's chest (never fear, Japan's a guy XD) and shouts "your chest represents Dokdo!(a disputed island)". I'm worried some people mistakenly think that Koreans are looking down Dokdo ourselves. Netizens in our country have already collected 10,000 signatures in a short period of time to pull Hetalia insulting Korean race off the air. The problem is Hetalia is going to be aired on a cable TV station from the 24th of this month and Japanese children will watch this anime. This is a big problem. In my view, Japan is insulting Korea, actually, this is a diplomatic problem between Korea and Japan. Some people strongly insist that we must make Hetalia a diplomatic issue and friction, I'm sure it is important that our government should take some measures. You don't have to stir up this problem. But, Don't stay on the sidelines. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and trade(MOFAT) have to take measures against this problem in all kinds of different ways. What measures are you trying to take?
B: I'm aware of the problem, but I guess there is not much i can do because the matter is caused by a private company not by Japanese government. However, It is the fact that this manga have a bad reputation, so I'll consider what we MOFAT can do.
A: I think this is a crime against Koreans. In other word, in person to person relations, isn't this problem the same as a crime, a contempt? Then this is a illegal and insulting act. We have to force them to understand those points. "the problem is not related to Japanese government, so MOFAT is not related to it." This is not a good atitude. I think Korean citizens have to prepare to draft a law against this problem. I know there are limits to what you can do. It is important to consider what we should do about this problem on a private level.
Ahem. Okay, that's their argument, it's out there. My turn! Here's a few examples of other countries gettin' bashed:
Italy: Northern Italy is adorable, but he lives in a different world from everyone else. Southern Italy is a crude backcountry-esque Mafia tomato-lover.
Spain: He's got no backbone when it comes to Turkey, and he turns to mush around toddler Romano (Southern Italy).
Turkey: He looks like the Phantom of the Opera, and he goes around kidnapping small children. Well, he goes around kidnapping Romano. On an elephant.
England: He can't cook. He hates France. And sometimes America. And sometimes everyone. He has imaginary friends (like Tinkerbell and Minty Green the Unicorn). 'Nuff said.
Russia: He's the devil personified. He goes around saying, "Don't worry. All will become one with Russia."
America: He eats while speaking (gotta love cheeseburgers and milkshakes), he can't keep anything a secret, he's none too bright, and his motto is "I'm the hero!".
Sweden: As I said before, he's feelin' the love for Mr.Finland. No idea where that came from. An alliance, maybe?
Poland: He's a valley girl who loves skate-boarding and says what he wants to say before hiding behind Estonia (a country he apparently occupied).
Germany: He's somewhat racist and his favorite drink is beer. Aw, but we love Mr.Germany anyway...
Actually, if anybody, England should be complainin'. He tries to place a spell on a chair, chanting something along the lines of "Santa reeting mayto mato ringo jonah tito merlin *breath* jaque letoya janette michael dumbledora the explorah". Oh...Oh my...it's actually "Flying Mint Bunny"...XD And those eyebrows of his...! Okay, okay, that's beside the point, but really, they were overreactin', and I never got to see Mr.South Korea because of that! Awwwie...
~Tobi~
~Oh, but Canada's got it bad too. He's invisible, carries a mean teddy bear, and has an obsession with maple leaves. XD~
Subject: Was South Korea Overreacting When They Banned Their Character From Hetalia? 
