Global Courant 2023-05-31 07:05:00
SEOUL – Ms. Jeong Se-ah is happy to see Tanaka, a Japanese character from the early 2000s created by a South Korean comedian, as he revives her teenage memories of watching animations from the neighboring country.
The 24-year-old office worker is among a growing number of young South Koreans who are drawn to Japan’s products and culture and come to see it more as a friend than an enemy who colonized the country 70 years ago, unlike previous generations .
Dressed in a Japanese-inspired retro costume and manga accessories among a crowd waiting for Tanaka to start a concert near Seoul, the capital, Ms. Jeong sang a tune from a Japanese rock group the entertainer idolizes, X Japan .
“I love Tanaka more than his real self,” she said. “There’s something very charming and touching about him, and I’ve never seen an artist try so hard to make eye contact and communicate with every single fan.”
The character’s easy talk about Japan and its culture built on that allure, she added. “There was a social environment that kind of encouraged boycotting Japanese culture, but people seem to naturally accept it,” Ms. Jeong said.
Mr. Kim Kyung-wook, a once-forgotten comedian who transformed the character into one of South Korea’s most popular YouTube stars and entertainers, said his appeal to the youth was more important than the reason for it.
“I think for young people it’s not about why, it’s just about liking something,” said Kim, who became fascinated with Japanese culture as a teenager. scene.
And his infectious way of speaking, wolf haircut, retro outfits and mastery of old Japanese and K-pop songs contributed to that success.
Now Mr. Kim illustrates the changing attitudes of young Koreans as ties with Japan thaw.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, whose visit to Seoul in May was the first by a Japanese leader in 12 years, offered his unprecedented personal condolences to war victims.
Today’s enthusiasm for Tanaka, with nearly 800,000 YouTube followers, following performances with famous K-pop stars, such as Bigbang’s Taeyang, and a national tour that saw concerts sell out in minutes, is very different from the reaction to his debut in 2018 .
Back then, with fights over their shared war history between Seoul and Tokyo, Tanaka was hardly popular.
Relations had fallen to their lowest level in decades after arguments over the neighbors’ history escalated into trade disputes in 2019, casting a cloud over US-led efforts to counter North Korea’s growing military threat.
