The Netflix and Mappa Partnership has me Worried…

Article at a glance:

• Netflix’s involvement in production is the real concern. Not exclusivity, not originals, but the fact that Netflix wants a hand in shaping the writing and direction.
• Anime’s appeal comes from cultural difference, not global appeal. Targeting a “western audience” risks sanding down the very things that make anime distinct in the first place.
• This partnership raises red flags for both quality and labor. Netflix’s track record with creative dilution, combined with MAPPA’s already notorious working conditions, doesn’t inspire confidence.

You are free to say that I am overreacting. Maybe I am. But do so after at least hearing out my concerns about this new Netflix Mappa partnership. I’ll just come out and say it: I do not like Netflix, I do not like the way they operate, and I do not like their content strategy. They’ve very openly said that they purposefully dumb down their movies so that people on phones still understand what’s going on. And that is a mentality I just can’t get behind. Don’t even get me started on the whole WB fiasco and how they’re really looking to end movie theatres too now.

But a lot of that is beyond the scope of this article. I am only telling you all that to make my biases clear going into this article. So welcome to another article, and today, we are talking about the Netflix Mappa partnership. Let’s get started.

Why does this Partnership have me worried?

First off, let’s go over what the partnership even entails. Basically, it is an agreement that Mappa will produce more original content for Netflix, with multiple projects already planned, and these projects will specifically target a “western audience.” So, of course, this means that Netflix will play a part in the writing and production as well. That right there is the biggest red flag to me in this whole thing. Exclusivity and more original products, I don’t really care about.

But Netflix playing a part in the production is and always will be a huge red flag to me. Things rarely go well when Netflix plays a part in the writing. Just give Mappa money and let them do whatever they want. Hot take: anime is popular because it comes from a different culture. If it came from the same Western culture, what would separate Japanese animation from Western animation?

I hope you see what I am trying to say here. There is a merit to Western culture, and there is a merit to Japanese culture. If we merge both, what is the point of watching something from a different culture?

Look, I really don’t want some out-of-touch billion-dollar company like Netflix coming into something they don’t understand and diluting the market with mediocre anime as they’ve done with web shows and movies. God forbid, as if we need any more of that. Mappa is famous for overworking their staff as is; I cannot see how this could possibly better their working environment.

That is all for now

But yeah, either, rant over. I really despise Netflix and everything they stand for. They are responsible for so much enshitification is media, I do not want them to ruin anime too. Am I being a bit too hyperbolic? Maybe. But still, my concerns are real and fair. With that said, though, I will take my leave here. See ya.

Check out my thoughts on Hell’s Paradise Season 2 here!