Worlds Within Worlds...

You know, as someone into this stuff for some years now, a quote like this really blows my mind:

Manga does not appeal just to teen girls.

I mean, seriously, stop and think about that. How far have things really flip-flopped that a news article could have a quote like that? It doesn't say that manga isn't just giant robots and graphic violence and sex... it doesn't say that manga isn't just for kids. It says manga isn't just for teen girls. It is a mindblowing shift not just from normal comic perceptions, but anime/manga perceptions. Even anime tends to have some sensationalistic aspects left over from fandom of the past in writeups (like bringing up Akira or La Blue Girl), but manga has managed to really diversify before being exposed to the public, side-stepping a lot of those issues, putting it in a very good position.

I mean, all Tokyopop needs to say in an interview is "unlike the superheroes of western comics" and all kinds of assumptions automatically come to their aid. US comics really do have an uphill battle for publicity when it comes to terminology and "framing" of the issue...