Slaves are just slaves in this anime, but you can’t kidnap people.

In a modern world where the idea of slavery is extremely distasteful and outright considered morally wrong, I find it interesting that another anime is willing to tackle the subject. From time to time I see the idea used in anime story telling. I worry at times that this might lead to bigger backlash against the anime community and the medium in general. While there has been growing acceptance of anime overall in the west, there are still strong anti-anime reactions that can flare up. 

But looking at recent social media posts regarding Mushoku Tensei, the idea of Rudeus and company buying a slave doesn’t even matter or make a dent. Other than people saying that the new property acquisition is cute. More people are concerned with Rudeus’s behavior given his inherent sexually deviant nature. Good news, the anime is niche enough to go largely unnoticed and not attract too much attention to itself. It’s nice to have a place to explore different ideas without Western projections ruining it for everyone. 

That being said, an article I wrote as click bait back in March 2021 about whether Rudeus being a pedophile or not remains my most viewed article (I just wish other much better ideas in my opinion warranted as much attention). 

It turns out that writing about a fictional character’s sexual tendencies is more interesting than the idea of owning another person and them being your property. Buying a cute slave is really water under the bridge. But kidnapping two animal girls is the bridge that goes too far for people. How dare Rudeus do that! It strikes a nerve with certain fans who are otherwise happy with the anime itself. And it only really strikes a nerve when Rudeus specifically is doing it, who is our main character, who should have a sense of modern virtues. 

Why are fans ok with Rudeus buying a slave and not when he kidnaps other students? 

While I obviously could not speak specifically for all fans, I feel like the idea of Rudeus being kind to Juliette (or Julie, the slave girl Rudeus buys for his friend) more or less absolves Rudeus of his sins in that instance. He shows good judgment and kindness when purchasing the slave and generally treats her very well. In a way they don’t even consider her a slave, I am hoping that nothing changes in that situation. For me it is concerning that Rudeus would rather buy a slave for a friend, rather than just make figurines for his friend. I feel as long as supply and demand are met it more or less resolves the situation. While I could ruminate further the exercise would be largely pointless.  After all, it’s something the larger audience does not care about. 

The nerve that seems to be struck is the sexual encounters of Rudeus after kidnapping the animal girls. His treatment of women is the big problem, but I wonder if Rudeus is judged by the audience because he is male or if it’s because he is a male from the modern era? I may never get an answer to that question. Either way it’s irrelevant because a modern audience will judge him for his actions regardless. 

It’s hard to imagine any would-be Rudeus defenders willing to stick their neck out for him in this scenario. What might not bother some viewers, may really bother others and that is fine. After all everyone is allowed to have their own idea about the situation. After all, mature subject matter affects everyone differently. Fiction is the safe place for everyone to explore the idea and decide for themselves without it affecting anyone else. 

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation – Is Rudeus a Pedophile?

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation – Is Paul in the Wrong?

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation – Restoring Confidence