Elon Musk Angers Popular Anime Creator
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Elon Musk has become a fairly polarizing figure on the internet in recent years. What began as one of the world’s wealthiest men appealing to internet humor to appear relatable has taken a strange turn. Several events from Musk’s relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell to the origins of his wealth in apartheid South Africa have brought negative attention to the billionaire. His recent acquisition and handling of Twitter have brought equal scrutiny. And now his Twitter account has come under fire from a popular manga writer and anime creator over in Japan.
Musk & Manga
Musk recently shared a meme on his Twitter profile that utilizes one of the more popular meme formats of recent years. The format shows a crying woman that manga fans may recognize from the popular manga and anime Magical Girl Site. The popularity of the meme across the web in recent years has resulted in many being unaware of the origins of the woman. But it appears that the manga’s author, Kentaro Sato, is trying to bring more credit to his original work through Musk.
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This is what Sato said (Translated into English from Japanese):
“Elon Musk, the new CEO of Twitter, has reprinted my picture on Twitter without permission. So please give me one billion for the usage fee. In dollars.”
It’s understandable that Sato would want to capitalize on the widespread usage of an image from his creation. One billion dollars may be a bit much, though. Not that Elon Musk doesn’t have it, given that Forbes pins his current net worth at just under two hundred billion. The one billion dollar price point is likely just a bit of playful teasing on Sato’s part, though. The meme in question is a bit ridiculous and it’s far from the first time this image from Magical Girl Site has been thrown around on the internet without the creator’s permission.
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Magical Girl Site
Magical Girl Site has been done for years now. The manga’s run ended in 2019 and the anime had just one season in 2018. Still, its relevance can still be felt through the virality of this meme format. The anime is available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video in the US. Although many fans of the IP say the manga is far superior in quality. Whether Elon Musk has seen the anime or not, and whether he’s planning on paying a billion dollars for sharing a meme, we’ve yet to see.