I do agree but a lot of it unfortunately is just japanese âcultureâ and ignorance when it comes to LGBTQ+ topics, especially when it comes to trans people. Even amongst LGBTQ+ people themselves in Japan thereâs this thick layer of ignorance both towards others and themselves, which, tbh, is not even their fault because theyâre just treated by the society this way, so they kind of start belittling themselves too. Not making excuses for the author, by the way, just saying that itâs a major-scale issue.
I kind of disagree about Takatsuki, though. While, yeah, itâs disappointing to see the only seemingly trans masc person turn out to be not trans (Iâd say âdetransitioningâ is a bit of a wrong term to use here since itâs typically referred to medical detransitioning and not social detransitioning), itâs low-key some good representation of people searching for their identity, showing that itâs alright to change your mind later on and you donât really owe anyone anything. Takatsuki might discover that theyâre non binary or choose to identify as a woman or realise that theyâre a trans-man, after all; and all of the listed options are absolutely fine, itâs a long process and it really shouldnât be anyoneâs business besides the person in question and medical professionals, really.
But otherwise yeah, I do agree that the author doesnât have a very in-depth understanding of trans issues and even the portrayal of Takatsuki was kind of dookie, they coulda gone more into it tbh.
I agree that on it's face Takatsukis exploration of gender would be an interesting topic in itself and could be a relatable representation, however them being the only instance of macs identity(while the mangas full of trans fem rep) creates this narrative that trans masc people will just "grow out of it" even if they go though the exact same experience trans masc people usually go which is extremely prevalent in the anti-trans circles. I think it could be very easily mitigated by adding another adult trans character that's masculine, it'd also help the whole "all trans adults are predators" background framing that forms due to the only adult trans character that shows up being a predator. I think the issues aren't really with the representation itself, but the bigger picture of the manga itself, which due to the specific characters and stories chosen ends up with harmful ideas. This author doesn't really have good track record with trans and gay identities, often conflating the two, so I do think that's mostly due to how they actually see trans people. I know it's just due to authors ignorance but my disappointment in the topic is due to this manga being hailed as the holy grail of trans representation, when it clearly propagates unfortunate and harmful ideas about trans identities.
I wholeheartedly agree. I think with trans masc characters in particular, as youâve mentioned, itâs kind of either belittling in its nature or creates this notion that âoh, they will grow out of itâ, which is obviously harmful, given how many stories like this there are.
chiba and her multiple attempts at a gaslighting into detransition speedrun
ngl I'm disappointed at how transphobia is framed in this manga, it's depicted as this completely natural response, especially since multiple positive characters still propagate it, and it's only condemned when it's a part of bullying.
The only adult trans person is a predator, and has a predator for a boyfriend
This author has an issue with confusing gender identity and sexual orientation(having trans women call themselves "gay" because they like men, or "becoming" women because they're gay) and it seems to be a bit better in this one, even if there's the whole part about Yuki becoming a woman FOR shii-chan(and not for herself) that I found strange.
Having the only existing trans masc character detransition later on was also weird, especially since Takatsuki had gender dysphoria even before puberty, which only intensified during it, so their experience was closer to a typical trans masc person than a typical detransitioner.
Overall while there were some relatable moments, taking in the whole manga made it feel like the person writing it only kind of heard about the experience from other people and didn't really try that much to properly understand it making it feel very half-assed