Amazon Primes Joins Funimation in Removing Controversial NSFW Anime

When it comes to anime and censorship, things can get testy with fans fast. The medium has all sorts of genres housed under it from action to romance and comedy. Of course, there are also anime which lean towards the NSFW side of things, but fans of those shows do demand representation. That is why the fandom is rising up against the removal of Interspecies Reviewers from Funimation… but that was just the start.

Yes, you did read that right. Yet another service has taken down Interspecies Reviewers and it is the biggest platform yet because it is operated by Amazon.

Not long ago, Amazon Prime took down its catalog of Interspecies Reviewers. Both the English dub and original dub were removed from the U.S. site. While the listings do exist for both shows, the anime itself is no longer viewable which makes Amazon Prime the second streaming service to take down Interspecies Reviewers.

For those unaware of this ongoing controversy, it began after Funimation announced it would no longer be streaming the naughty show. Rather than alter the show’s lewd content, Funimation said the series “falls outside” of its standards and would be removing it from its catalog. Now, Amazon Prime has followed suit. It seems this ecchi series did not sit well with these major brands, but other sites have chosen to continue their streams.

So far, AnimeLab did confirm it will continue airing. The show in Australia and New Zealand, but future episodes will be adjusted for content. Wakanim will also continue streaming the show for viewers in France, but the company’s Nordic branch did decide to pull the show.

As for what made this show such a hot button for removal, well – it comes down to its sexual content. Interspecies Reviewers takes place in a fantasy realm where three wanderers decide to write a guide on their world’s sex trade. The world is filled with so many brothels that these men decide to sleep with as many sex workers as possible to review in their book, so you can see why this content would be controversial. While hentai may be huge amongst fans, brands like Amazon Prime tend to stay clear of such content, and so it seems even ecchi series like Interspecies Reviewers aren’t allowed in its catalog.

What do you make of this recent controversy? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!