AniFem Round-Up
Girl Power and Guinea Pigs: Pui Pui Molcar through the lens of feminist media tests
What happens when we apply the common metrics of feminist criticism to a silly show about felt guinea-cars? What does it tell us about the tests themselves?
How women in The Apothecary Diaries navigate patriarchy and class
At its heart, this is a story about how women survive in a world that reduces them to objects, whether that’s by attempting to beat the system or step outside it.
Chatty AF 223: Magic Knight Rayearth Rewatchalong – Part 2
Caitlin returns with special guests Colleen and Megan to dive into the second season, a host of new characters, and dramatic departures from the manga.
What’s your favorite change that an anime made from its source material?
Besides the one we’re all picturing already,
March 2025 Patron Newsletter and Recommendations
Check in with what the team’s been up to and get some new shoujo to read.
Beyond AniFem
INTERVIEW With Independent VTubers: Chiaki Mitama (Yatta-Tachi, Lucas DeRuyter)
Did you know our very own Chiaki is also a VTuber cat?
What are the biggest issues in the VTubing space right now and, subsequently, how can the VTubing space improve?
I think there’s an elephant in the room with VTubing spaces, namely queer representation. Much like queerbaiting in mainstream media, VTubers often interact in seemingly-queer environments owed to Japanese idol-culture influences that emphasize a parasocial connection with fans. The assumed heteronormativity of male fans with female idols requires talents to not indicate heterosexual relationships in their lives to keep alive a dream that perhaps, one day, a presumed male fan would have a chance with the female talent. That, of course, then means much of the closest and most affectionate relationships VTubers are allowed to show online are their relationships to other same-gender VTubers, leading to shipping between them. Though these depictions are popular, it’s important to note that corporate rules and guidelines often require suppression of actual and genuine queer relationships.
This environment creates the appearance of a queer space, but in reality often denies opportunities for true inclusion. Corporate spaces cash in on that perception but would never allow true inclusion, because doing so would likely invite backlash and a financial burden. Hence, you can probably understand why there are so few openly trans corporate VTubers, and those who are, often operate under the radar.
And this is all not even mentioning the issue with racial diversity either, as corporate outfits now expand into the English sphere trying to emulate East Asian idol culture, where melanin is often a missing element in character designs by default.
Improving these issues would require a radical moment of self-reflection from corporations that will likely never happen. So the second best way to address this would be the recognition of the broader queer and BIPOC streaming community that is out there and recognizing that their work is just as entertaining and important than one with backing from a major talent agency.
Wheels & Roses Fundraiser (Donor Box)
The roller-derby-meets-magical-girl title is looking to transform their initial short into a full-length pilot.
Throughout the series, we’ll see how each of our characters learns how to build meaningful relationships and explore who they are as individuals. While most of the show will take place in arenas where bouts (AKA games) will be held, we’d also like to show our characters’ lives, to get a better sense of their different lived experiences. This show is unapologetically queer! Unapologetically soft! As well as unapologetically tough– ’cause duh, roller derby!
Orange Blossom’s ultimate goal is to make a fully animated series with 22-minute episodes! We have received initial funding via Kickstarter for its pilot episode and depending on how much we fundraise, Orange Blossom may end up creating more episodes, an animated short film, and/or even a graphic novel! The more we fundraise, the more independent animation we can make! We hope you’ll be a part of this journey to bring this story to life.
4th high court rules same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional (The Asahi Shimbun, Kyoka Watanabe and Toshinari Takahashi)
Four of the five courts where lawsuits were filed declared the ban unconstitutional; the last court has not yet ruled.
Presiding Judge Nobuhiro Katada, citing the first paragraph of Article 14 and the second paragraph of Article 24 in the Constitution, said, “Excluding same-sex couples from legal marriage lacks a reasonable basis and constitutes unlawful discrimination.”
The declaration comes after a same-sex couple in Aichi Prefecture sued the government, seeking compensation.
However, the high court did not find the government liable for compensation.
It defined the essence of marriage as “two individuals living together with the aim of forming a lasting psychological connection” and concluded that “same-sex couples are equally capable of this.”
The court said that preventing same-sex couples from accessing legal marriage constitutes legal discrimination based on sexual orientation.
It cited the first paragraph of Article 14 that stipulates equality under the law, and the second paragraph of Article 24 covering laws regarding marriage and family.
The court further noted that the lack of access to legal marriage could cause serious issues for the life, health and well-being of children being raised by same-sex couples, particularly in medical situations since only legally recognized family members can accompany or visit patients in certain cases.It also pointed out that using alternative systems, such as partnership certificates, instead of extending the right to legal marriage carries the risk of privacy violations, as it may force individuals to disclose their sexual orientation.
Japanese hospitals evolving to meet diverse needs of LGBTQ+ community (The Mainichi, Satoe Matsumoto)
Several hospitals across the country have begun developing strategies to further inclusive practices.
A 2019 survey of 10,000 sexual minorities conducted by Yasuharu Hidaka, a professor at Takarazuka University, found that 8.3 percent of respondents had not visited a medical facility for fear of discrimination due to sexual orientation or other reasons.
This was particularly true among transgender men and women in Japan, with ratios of 38.8 percent and 51.2 percent, respectively.
Among reasons given in the survey for declining to seek hospital treatment, some said they had been “flatly turned down” for medical care because of their sexual orientation or gender identity or had doctors who used discriminatory expressions when speaking with them.
Hidaka said there are many people who suffer from mental health issues, and the connection with medical facilities is crucial. “Hospitals need to change to eliminate people’s reluctance to see doctors,” he said.
Last year, Hidaka published an LGBTQ+ book that aims to show hospitals how to conceptualize the problems facing sexual minorities and help them come up with ways to improve medical care.
Collaboration among hospitals has also started to address the issue.
Disabled women in Japan still left far behind in employment (The Asahi Shimbun, Yuki Nikaido)
Experts have noted that current policies don’t take intersectional concerns into account.
Since fiscal 2008, the ministry has also done surveys at five-year intervals regarding the employment of the disabled at companies with at least five employees.
It then calculated the ratio of female employees classified by disability.
In fiscal 2023, it found that among workers with physical disabilities, 26.3 percent were women, a 6.3 percentage point increase over fiscal 2008.
Likewise, of workers with mental disabilities, 31.8 percent were women, an increase of 8.5 percentage points, while among workers with psychiatric problems, 32.8 percent were women, an increase of 1.4 percentage points.
While there has been an increase of women workers in all three categories, they only represent about 30 percent of all workers with such disabilities.
Another labor ministry study found that there is almost no difference in the gender ratio for those with disabilities.
Also, a gender gap still exists in terms of average wages, even for those without disabilities. Men get paid more, no matter what.
The number of disabled women in the work force has increased annually for 21 straight years, which is taken as tangible proof of steps implemented by the government to provide equal opportunity regardless of whether an individual has a disability.
Job-hunting students continue to face sexual harassment in Japan (The Mainichi)
The majority, though not all, of the complaints were made by female university students.
In a 2024 study conducted by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, one in three students who have engaged in job hunting or an internship said they experienced sexual harassment.
The government is planning to submit a bill to amend the equal employment opportunity law during the ongoing ordinary Diet session to require companies to take measures to prevent harassment of students and establish a way for victims to lodge complaints.
“Meetings between students and alumni employees have increased as companies seek opportunities to meet students amid intense competition for talent,” an official from a university in Tokyo said. “Students can be targeted due to their vulnerable position.”
Multiple cases of sexual harassment during job hunting came to light in 2019, leading to some companies banning nighttime meetings and prohibiting employees from exchanging personal contact details with students.
VIDEO: Blackwashing and Hypocrisy in Fan Art (A Discussion).
VIDEO: Snow White with the Red Hair Manga Discussion (Part 1).
VIDEO: Queer Anime That Define Me (Coming Out).
VIDEO: Autistic Player Accessibility in Video Games.
AniFem Community
Y’know what? It’s nice to talk more about how adaptations making changes can be good.
Adding Meiling to Cardcaptor Sakura
— Stephanie (@firefaerie81.bsky.social) March 10, 2025 at 9:35 PM
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I’ll keep beating this drum because the anime is severely overlooked and (seems to be) infinitely better than its source if the Kure-nai manga is in fact closer to the novels, it is total junk that the anime turns into a stirring child-raising, coming of age and redemption tale with great action.
— AngelsArcanum/NabariNoBro (@angelsarcanum.bsky.social) March 11, 2025 at 6:22 AM
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