Interest
Kinnikuman Creator Disappointed by New Anime's Lack of Overseas Popularity
posted on by Ken Iikura-Gross
One of the most popular manga and anime series in the 1980s was undoubtedly Yudetamago's Kinnikuman. While the franchise has waned in popularity over the past 40 years, it has maintained a dedicated following to the point that a new anime Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc (Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Hen, or literally, Kinnikuman Perfect Chо̄jin/Superhuman Origin Arc) aired this past summer. Unfortunately, the new anime went under the radar for many fans, especially abroad. Yudetamago ruminated over Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc's recent 47th placing on MyAnimeList.
Yudetamago commented on Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc's 47th spot in a recent MyAnimeList ranking on X (formerly Twitter) on October 20, “I don't really get it, maybe I should quit being a manga creator.” Yudetamago also linked to an article from President Online via Yahoo! News Japan: “The Number of Overseas Fans Is Rapidly Growing, Beyond Oshi no Ko… What Is This Unique 'Light Novel Anime' Set in a Japanese High School?”
アニメ『キン肉マン完璧超人始祖編』が47位、、、よくわからない、漫画家辞めようかな😭😭😭「推しの子」を超す勢いで海外のファンが急増中…日本の高校を舞台にした異色の「ラノベ発アニメ」とは(プレジデントオンライン)#Yahooニュースhttps://t.co/mjGErpsojT
— ゆでたまご嶋田 (@yude_shimada) October 20, 2024
Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc is ranked 47th… I don't really get it, maybe I should quit being a manga creator😭😭😭 The number of overseas fans is rapidly increasing, surpassing that of Oshi no Ko… What is this unique "light novel anime" set in a Japanese high school? (President Online)
Yudetamago further elaborated his thoughts regarding the low MyAnimeList ranking in a follow-up post, noting noted how Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc performed well on TV in Japan and on Netflix, but doesn't understand the low ranking.
『キン肉マン完璧超人始祖編』地上波の視聴率もいい
— ゆでたまご嶋田 (@yude_shimada) October 20, 2024
Netflixの評判もいい 何を指して47位なのかを伺いたい？ほかのマンガが、商品売れてるのか、ミュージアムがあるのか。
Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc got good ratings on terrestrial TV
It also has a good reputation on Netflix. I would like to know why it is ranked 47th? Are there other manga that are selling well, or is there a museum?
The manga creator's concern is warranted as the President Online article did not elaborate the methodology used for the rankings. The article also failed to link to any rankings on MyAnimeList that it was citing. On top of this, the President Online article spoke about Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc in its section about school anime. Granted, the author of the article was speaking about revival anime series in the paragraph the series was mentioned.
It's doubtful Yudetamago will get his answer to Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Arc's low ranking in MyAnimeList as presented by President Online. As to his comments about retiring, Yudetamago also clarified that he isn't retiring quite yet on October 20.
ゆでたまごは潔く良いから引退する時は引退するよ。高橋陽一くんも引退したし鳥山さんも、亡くなったし。しかし1番上質のエンターテインメントはお届けしている自負はある。
— ゆでたまご嶋田 (@yude_shimada) October 20, 2024
Yudetamago is pure, so when it's time to retire, I'll retire. Yōichi Takahashi has retired, and Toriyama-san has passed away. But I'm proud I'm delivering the highest quality entertainment.
The Kinnikuman: Perfect Origin Hen anime premiered on July 7 on CBC, TBS, and 26 affiliates with episode 0, which recaps older scenes with new animation. The first season ran in a new "Agaru Anime" programming block, which airs every Sunday at 11:30 p.m. (10:30 a.m. EDT) with the theme of presenting anime from Nagoya to the rest of Japan and the world. Pony Canyon describes it as a "12-part" series. Netflix started streaming the series on July 7 (or July 8, depending on region). The series will get a second season in January 2025.
Sources: Yudetamago's X/Twitter account (link 2, link 3, link 4), President Online via Yahoo! Japan News, Hachima Kikо̄
