Foreigner says he wants to learn Japanese because he loves manga, real reason is what he hates

Heartbreaking encounter spells the end of foreign fan relying on translations.

Once upon a time, it was pretty much a given that any serious anime/manga fan would at least wish they could speak and read Japanese. The overseas anime market was small, and every year there were cool-looking series that were hits in Japan, but which never came out in professionally translated form.

Things are a little different these days, though. Now that anime has built up a worldwide fanbase, all but the most obscure Japanese animation and comics get licensed for international release, so as long as you’re patient, you’re probably not going to miss out on any content.

But while patience is usually a virtue, sometimes it can cause problems too, which is why a foreign friend of Japanese Twitter user @manndamm started studying Japanese.

日本語を勉強し始めたキッカケが漫画だったというポーランド人、良くある話かと思いきや、「日本人と好きな漫画の話をした際、単行本が年単位で先に出てる彼女の口から壮大なネタバレを聞いてしまい、好きな作品は絶対に日本語でリアタイしなきゃ駄目だと悟った」という執着と怨念の賜物だった。

—
まんだむ (@manndamm) May 29, 2019

“I was talking to a Polish person who started studying Japanese because he wanted to read manga. I think there are a lot of people like that, but his story was one of both obsession and resentment. He told me:

‘I was talking to a Japanese girl about a manga we both like, but the Japanese version is a year ahead of the overseas release, and so she ended up giving away some gigantic spoilers. That’s when I realized the only thing for me to do is to read my favorite manga in real-time as they get published in Japanese.’”

You’ve got to admit, it’s a healthier way of dealing with spoilers than beating the person to a pulp, like Avengers fans did in Hong Kong, and a more educational way than the Japanese judicial system’s campaign against manga “spoiler sites.” And even if the Polish fan’s primary motivation is to be able to keep up with the latest adventures of fictional characters, learning the language will help him make connections with real-world Japanese people too, broadening his cultural horizons.

Source: Twitter/@manndamm
Top image: Pakutaso
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

Credit: