Yu-Gi-Oh Creator Apologizes Following Controversial Political Post
With each headline that passes, netizens around the world are finding themselves inundated by [...]
With each headline that passes, netizens around the world are finding themselves inundated by political messages. As more people become in invested in their home country's future, it is becoming more commonplace to see celebrities backing their go-to political partners in public. But for one manga artist, it seems their political push was met with just enough pushback to warrant an apology.
Recently, it was the creator of Yu-Gi-Oh who made headlines when they posted a piece of artwork online. The artist Kazuki Takahashi hit up fans on Instagram to promote his upcoming art book, but things took a turn when he posted a political sketch instead urging the public to vote.
"The current administration really is betraying the country, and I'm worried about the future of Japan! It's terrible," the artist wrote.
Continuing, Takahashi pushed forward his plea with fans. Japan is slated to hold a big election on July 21 which will decide a whopping 124 members of the House of Councillors. As the higher of Japan's two legislative houses, the House's additions are being spoken about quiet often, and Takahashi used Atem and others to rally the vote.
"All duelists," the character is seen saying. "Now is the time to be ready to vote for justice!"
While such outspoken words may be expected in the U.S., Japan has a much quieter political climate where sharing is kept to a minimum. Takahashi's direct plea against the current Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took many by surprise, so the Yu-Gi-Oh artist did make an apology.
"It seems I caused a commotion. I've considered the various points of view, and I deeply apologize to all of the series' fans for having the characters make political statements."
While the artist may not be backing down from his political stance, he is apologizing for forcing them upon his famous characters. Currently, the original controversial post is still up on Instagram, so Takahashi is not willing to forgo his opinions for the sake of politeness. Now, it is up for Yu-Gi-Oh fans in Japan to band together and show how they feel about Takahashi's stirring message at the polls later this month.
So, what do you think about this surprising piece of Yu-Gi-Oh drama? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!
Yu-Gi-Oh! was originally created by Kazuki Takahashi for Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine, and ran from September 1996 to March 2004. The series follows Yugi Mutou, a young boy who solves an ancient puzzle and is possessed by the spirit of the Egyptian pharoah. Being skilled at deadly games, the Pharoah goes on to create and solve problems for Yugi based on deadly games of chance.