I Looked at That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime Through a Politically Correct Lens—and Found It Surprisingly Hard to Argue Back

When watching videos online, I often come across politically correct criticism of Japanese anime.

“There are no Black characters.” “Women are portrayed in a biased way.” “There is not enough diversity.”

Whenever this topic comes up, Japanese anime fans predictably push back.

“Do not impose foreign values on Japanese works.”

I basically agree. There is no need to impose racial or gender quotas on every creative work.

But that does not necessarily mean that every argument made by the critics is wrong.

So this time, I decided to deliberately adopt their perspective and take another look at Japanese anime.

My subject was That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, often shortened in Japanese to Tensura, a series I love.

Japanese Culture Thrives in a Western Fantasy World

The world of Tensura is fundamentally a fantasy setting modeled on medieval Europe.

There are castles, knights, and demon lords. Elves and dwarves appear as well.

The protagonist, Rimuru, however, is the reincarnation of a Japanese man.

As a result, more and more elements of Japanese culture appear as the story progresses.

Hot springs, Japanese food, kimono, and Japanese supernatural beings such as oni and tengu.

Japanese culture enters a Western fantasy world and is portrayed as something attractive.

For a Japanese viewer, it is great fun.

But let us shift our perspective slightly.

Why is it always Europe and Japan?

What Happened to African and Middle Eastern Cultures?

The world contains many cultures beyond Europe and Japan.

Africa, the Middle East, South America, and South Asia.

Each has its own architecture, clothing, cuisine, and mythology.

Yet Japanese otherworld fantasy routinely follows the same pattern: introducing Japanese culture into a European-style setting.

The attractive men and women who appear are also mainly fair-skinned and Western-looking, or have the familiar appearance of Japanese anime characters.

It would not be particularly surprising if, for example, a viewer from Africa wondered why their own culture was almost entirely absent.

And this imbalance may also reflect the values of Japanese people themselves.

Perhaps these works unconsciously express the feeling that “Western worlds are cool, and of course Japanese culture has value, but we are not very interested in other cultures.”

When you think about it, Japan’s modern history itself has been a history of admiring and imitating the West.

Since the Meiji Restoration, Japan has eagerly adopted Western institutions, technology, and culture. After World War II, it also came under the strong influence of American culture.

At the same time, Japanese people remain deeply attached to their own culture.

So when Japanese culture appears in a Western-style world, we naturally enjoy it.

But we do not particularly expect African or Middle Eastern cultures to appear there in the first place.

Given Japan’s modern history, perhaps this outcome was inevitable.

The world of Tensura may, surprisingly, be a direct reflection of the world map inside the Japanese mind.

This Does Not Mean “Add Black Characters”

But this is where the real issue begins.

Pointing out that a work contains a cultural bias and demanding that the work be changed because of it are entirely different things.

Tensura is not an educational resource created to introduce the world’s cultures fairly.

It is a work of entertainment created by a Japanese author for Japanese readers.

The author combined the European-style fantasy they knew with Japanese culture.

It became popular because that combination was entertaining.

If people then start demanding “more African culture,” “more Middle Eastern elements,” or “a corrected ratio of skin colors,” the work ceases to be creative expression and becomes a staffing plan.

No one has an obligation to represent every culture in the world equally in the first place.

Understanding Another Perspective Is Not the Same as Accepting Its Demands

By deliberately examining Tensura from a politically correct perspective, I noticed something.

Even a work I normally enjoy without question does indeed contain a cultural bias.

And I can understand, to some extent, what the people pointing out that bias find troubling.

That does not mean I believe the work needs to change.

What matters is not confusing an understanding of someone’s argument with an obligation to accept their demands.

“I see. So that is how it looks to you.”

I can understand that much.

But if they say:

“Therefore, remake the work I love.”

That is a different matter.

Looking at a work through politically correct glasses can be quite interesting.

But there is no need to let the person wearing those glasses write the anime’s script.