This article discusses sensitive topics, such as war and violence.
Aespa’s Karina apologized for speaking positively about My Hero Academia.
Karina, a member of the four-member K-Pop group Aespa, recently faced backlash from fans after she talked about watching My Hero Academia. Her social media platforms were immediately flooded with fans, especially those of Chinese descent, for mentioning My Hero Academia, as one of the anime characters was named after one of the crimes. worst war crimes of the Second World War. Karina has since apologized.
In her apology, translated by Koreaboo, Karina explained that she was unaware of the history behind the name because the character’s name was changed. “I don’t recommend it with any intention, so I hope there [are] no misunderstanding,” she said. “In the future, I will become a more careful Karina so that I can share more useful information with MYs [Aespa’s fandom name].”
The character in question is Dr. Kyudai Garaki, the evil scientist from the Criminal Alliance who experimented on humans and turned them into Nomus. His original alias was Maruta Shiga, which means reverse “log”. The term is a codename referring to the frequently dehumanized and experimental victims of Unit 371, a biological and chemical warfare unit of the Japanese military during World War II. It has been considered one of the most heinous and gruesome war crimes committed by the Japanese military. Unit 371 and its related programs killed about half a million people and left no survivors, most of them Chinese victims and a few Russian, Mongolian, and Korean victims. . As a result, China banned the My Hero Academia manga and anime.
Shōnen Jump, the publisher of the My Hero Academia manga, issued an apology on February 3, 2020, saying that they would be changing the character’s name. Since then, the series has changed the doctor’s name to Daruma Ujiko, and his name has been updated in digital and physical releases. Mangaka Kōhei Horikoshi also issued an apology on her social media account.
“Many people have pointed out that the character name Shiga Maruta in this week’s Jump chapter evokes memories of actions done in the past,” Horikoshi’s statement, via translation by Audrey (@/aitaikimochi) . “I had no intention of letting that name be associated like that. I take this matter very seriously and will change my name.”
Source: TikTok