Akira Kanai, renowned manga editor known for his work in Vinland Saga, Ajin: Demi-Humanand Planetstook a firm stance against allowing political correctness to influence its editorial decisions.

This was revealed during your interview with Manga Passionwhere he was asked about his approach to ensuring the manga's international success.

“I do not allow myself to be influenced by the so-called political correctness abroad and I design the works accordingly.”, declared Kanai.

The editor-in-chief elaborated on his approach, stating that he follows several content codes relating to violence, nudity and religious depictions. However, these considerations are based on general content standards rather than specific international sensitivities.

According to him, interesting stories “will generally be understood, regardless of whether you come from Africa, Chile or Greenland”.

Kanai argued that fundamental human experiences and emotions are universally relatable, and so stopping a work just because it deals with a very Japanese issue didn't make sense to him.

“I don't think there are any fundamental differences in the population in terms of what they consider important – whether in Japan, Germany, China or South Korea.,” he said. “Stopping a job because it deals with a very Japanese problem, or specifying to do something – this almost never happens“.

Kanai also questioned the notion of creating content that aims to balance local and global appeal, suggesting that such an approach may not be effective.

He illustrated his argument using the example of Skip and Moccasina manga about a girl from the Japanese countryside who moves to Tokyo to study.

“I don't think it's possible to create works that are exactly in the middle, nor would such works really appeal anywhere. Take Skip and Loafer, for example, which is about a girl who comes from the Japanese countryside and moves alone to the Japanese city of Tokyo to study at a good high school. I think people all over the world will certainly understand her feelings of insecurity in the same way. That's why such works tend to appeal to an international audience.“

Despite his reluctance to adhere to political correctness, Kanai believed that global exchange was crucial to a medium like manga.

However, he rejected the notion that Japan's push to expand its manga market overseas was due to the country's declining birth rate.

“I believe that the birth rate – except in Africa and India – is declining globally. I think it is shameful to expand abroad because the domestic market is shrinking,” he said. “But thanks to advances in digital technology, people living overseas can now easily read manga from Japan.”

He also criticized the idea that Japanese publishers would suffer financially if they did not expand internationally.

Instead, he hoped that the manga community would grow with more and more people being able to read and enjoy manga.

“The mentality that Japanese publishers will become increasingly poorer if they do not expand overseas is pathetic and should be abandoned. Now that it is possible to read and draw manga overseas, I hope that the manga fan community itself will grow. No matter where they come from or what religion they belong to.”, said Kanai. “So when it comes to the question of whether I think globalization is important, I can say that it's much more fun this way.“

Kanai also addressed the issue of piracy when discussing the globalization of manga. He acknowledged that while it would be preferable for fans not to read pirated copies of manga, he understood that some fans might not have the financial means to purchase official copies.

“But if they don't have money and there are a lot of pirated copies, I think the pirated copy is fine for now,” he commented, jokingly adding that Kodansha board members could “beat him to death” for saying that.

Akira Kanai is a prominent figure in the manga industry, currently serving as editor-in-chief of Kodansha's Monthly Afternoon magazine, known for the seinen titles it publishes.

Kanai began his career at Kodansha in 1994, one of Japan's largest publishers. Before being promoted to his current position as editor-in-chief, he worked in the editorial departments of Morning magazine and Weekly Shonen Magazine.