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A Manga That Reflects Troubling Financial Times - Yamikin Ushijima-Kun
Our world is faced with debt. We owe somebody something. Hell, our lives almost involve some level of debt. The important thing is to not let that debt spiral out of control. However, what if your financial situation got so bad that you have to resort to the shady world of loan sharks & the black market? This scenario is explored in the critically-acclaimed seinen manga by Shohei Manabe, Yamikin Ushijima-Kun (also known as “Ushijima the Loan Shark”). If you think your debt situation is bad, wait until you check out this series.
The story revolves around the lower class of Japan and their struggles to survive. The main character, Ushijima Kaoru, is a loan shark who is the head of Kaukau Finance, a black market group that lends money to those struggling & charges high interest on its loans. Although Ushijima is the protagonist, he is not a good guy. He is very ruthless when it comes to money and will resort to tricks to get what he wants. Even most, if not all, of his clients aren’t the greatest of people. They all have some sort of vice (gambling, drugs, etc.) that they want to feed. Yamikin Ushijima-Kun is arguably one of the most realistic depictions of Japanese society today. The series has gone on to have a TV drama adaptation in 2010 and will have a live-action movie in 2012.
I remember someone wrote about how debt is considered to be a “rite of passage” in order to become an adult. Having debt teaches responsibility, enables you to create a credit score, & forces you to make wise decisions. You can’t succeed without some sort of debt. At the same time, things can go horribly wrong & people end up borrowing more than they can chew. In Ushijima, our “hero” wants to put an end to those who decide to keep fooling around with money by charging insane interest rates (as much as 50% every 10 days) & forcing people to do unpleasant things for money.
Why does the lower class of society tend to be the ones in debt the most? It could come down to the belief that money is the source of all happiness. Those on the lower end may believe that having money makes themselves worthy of praise. They can’t seem to see past that belief. Those individuals tend to have low self-esteem. Money, in their eyes, determines what kind of person they really are. Another big issue is that they simply do not know how to deal with debt when they take it. Sometimes, people underestimate making payments and rather deal with them when the time comes. By not planning now, they end up kicking themselves even more than they need to.
The manga also presents an interesting dilemma: can a loan shark be a blessing in disguise? Loan sharks are technically terrible people to deal with and you really don’t want to be caught under their web. They will give money to ANYONE, including criminals if need be. The protagonist, Ushijima, says that those in debt are complete morons and need to be taught a lesson. That is his reasoning for being extremely evil towards his clients and have them perform unfavorable jobs to come up with cash. Ushijima is quite the character and he really makes you question whether we should be sympathetic to those in debt. The manga also makes you think about how we need to deal with a bigger issue: poverty. What changes do societies need to take in order to ensure that the poor don’t stay that way forever? How do we prevent those who are financially stable from falling down to poverty levels?
Yamikin Ushijima-Kun is truly a thought-provoking manga that gets you thinking about the power & temptation of money. It also could be telling us that we should have some responsibility in educating others that money isn’t the true source of happiness.
This is a title that is worthy of being put on JManga (which the manga should be on). If you want a hard-nosed, gritty, no-nonsense, & realistic manga, Ushijima’s tense adventures will beat their way into your brain and leave you floored. Who ever thought evil can actually do some good?
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Gintama vs. the Tokyo Youth Ordinance Bill
For those who’ve seen Gintama Episode 215 (or read Chapters 310-311, Volume 36 of the manga), you may have noticed that there was a little jab at the Tokyo Youth Ordinance Bill that went into full effect on July 1, 2011. What’s interesting was the commentary said by the character Takechi Henpeita.
“We oppose the Greater Edo Youth Ordinance Bill! Before you try to regulate free speech, you should learn to regulate your own heart! Pedophilia predates manga & anime! Is it not our goal to foster a culture of acceptance?!”
Although the character in question saying all this is a pedophile himself (or feminist as Takechi calls himself), it does make you wonder how power drives people to do things that they feel are right. This also is not the first time the mangaka, Hideaki Sorachi, has made a crack at the bill. He makes another reference to the bill being passed earlier this year in Chapter 337, Volume 39 of the manga. An English translation of the dialogue in that specific chapter can be read here.
It comes to show that even if you come into power with good intentions, chances are you can be swayed into doing things that are unpopular. Even though Tokyo governor Shintaro Ishihara made the bill, the Tokyo government could’ve prevented it from happening. But, they didn’t. There’s also the non-assertiveness that the Japanese culture tends to be fond of. As noted by John of the AnimeNation blog, Japanese people traditionally don’t like to say “No”. Another issue to address is how it is supposed to be alright to have real child pornography in Japan, but not animated/drawn depictions of child pornography. (Disgusting, right?)
I also believe that Sorachi’s commentary is not just a reflection of the issue of freedom of expression in manga/anime, but what’s happening around us. We have governments trying to ban Internet usage & ban streaming video on the Internet. People of power seem to fear what they don’t understand. Or are they afraid of regular folks gaining knowledge & possibly be smarter than them? Is it a play to protect their own interests per say?
You can argue the main issue lies with those who have reached a high status and are able to dictate things however they please. However, it’s more of the work environment. If the environment is insanely corrupt, then that person will be corrupted too because they will do what it takes to stay in a high position. This is possibly why people need to “regulate their hearts”. They have to face themselves & ponder what is it they really want.
Gintama is perhaps the only Shonen Jump title that could be targeted heavily by Bill 156 because of its constant dirty humor. However, it represents something that some Japanese people do not have: courage. Think about it. The title is a play off the word “Kintama” (Japanese for “testicles”). Hell, the pronunciation even comes off as that to some people! Sorachi has the balls (no pun intended) to create a title that pokes fun at many things in Japanese culture & promotes a feeling that you don’t need government to dictate how you should live.
Let’s hope the rest of Japan follows up on Sorachi’s words towards the Tokyo government.
