Have you ever run across something that’s become so incredibly popular that, no matter how much praise is heaped upon it, you are determined to hate it?
Some years ago, I ran across a webcomic, that, overnight, became the toast of the town in both online and print circles. It was mentioned in trade magazines and newspapers. They style was heavily reminiscent of Japanese manga, despite the fact that its creators were American.
At the time, I was an avid anime and manga junkie. Readers on this site who’ve followed me from the defunct Guthwulf.com know that most of my reviews there were about anime series, from Martian Successor Nadesico to His & Her Circumstances to RahXephon. And while my fellow dorks were embracing this new comic, I felt betrayed. Two fellow Americans encroaching on an ineffably Japanese style? How uncreative! Couldn’t these jokers come up with their own style?
Then I heard about the plot: two Americans get stranded in Japan and have to deal with life in a foreign country. That sounded like a misguided otaku fantasy to me. It seemed like it was created by giddy fanboys who think Japan is the greatest country on Earth, refuse to watch any anime unless it’s dubbed, and show up to social events with a wooden katana strapped on their back. I may have been a borderline otaku back in the day, but even then, I knew hardcore otakus were at the very bottom of the geek hierarchy.
Then came the clincher: my little brother liked it. Oh, he’s a cool guy now, but back then he was one of the dorkiest kids imaginable. (He once tried to program his own dating sim until the creepy requests for, um, intimate illustrations of the female protagonists was too much, even for him.)
So that settled it. Under no circumstances was I ever going to read Megatokyo.
