According to the famed mangaka, Ken Akamatsu, behind such titles as Love Hina and Negima, has come forth claiming that the world once he knew as a beloved harem fans, has crumbled and is no more.
This announcement does not however come as a surprise, as the industry has shifted leaving moe and several other genres behind, whilst also acknowledging that the majority of buyers are now female more than males, also developing their market surrounding that entire change, leaving male heroes shorthanded and more and more female ones are appearing, something Ken Akamatsu himself tells more about:
Certainly, the moe boom is finished, and from last year on I think we’re seeing the following phenomena:
1. Male protagonists are absent
Many anime are now nothing but girls, and the role of the “male character being excited by female characters for viewers to empathise with” has disappeared.
2. Male buying power has reduced
Now women buyers of both anime and manga are predominant. Oricon comic rankings show most of the top titles are women-oriented.
3. Male viewers can now empathise with female characters
The number of male fans who simply don’t view female characters as objects of sexual desire at all is increasing, even in titles like “K-ON!”. No more are they just thinking “I want to be part of that circle,” now they are getting into the characters themselves.
A friend of mine was saying “this will be the year of yuri!” thanks to number 3, but unfortunately I get the feeling the popularity of yuri is not quite that great…
