Why were adult-oriented media free? 'Because erotica guaranteed a minimum product value' ⇒ 'Because it was a market where minimum demand was guaranteed, allowing both editorial departments and creators to tolerate failure' *The art is amazing, but the story is a bit confusing... well, it's erotic, so I'll buy it!

The argument presented in this summary is quite valid from a historical perspective. However, rather than saying it was free 'because it was erotic,' it is closer to the essence to say that 'it was a profitable market, so there was room to allow for experimentation.'

Conclusion

This phenomenon is

a structure that has been repeated many times in the creative industry.

In other words, it was not erotica itself that nurtured talent, but an environment where

• there are always a certain number of readers

• profitability is predictable

• editors can tolerate some failure

which enabled free creation.

Humanity is a species that supports adventure with 'things that sell' and intends to recoup with 'art,' but sometimes the adventure itself becomes a masterpiece.

Why were adult-oriented media free?

The structure is like this.

エロ要素が最低限の商品価値になる
        ↓
読者はまず購入する
        ↓
作品内容で多少冒険しても赤字になりにくい
        ↓
編集も新人に自由を与えられる
        ↓
変な才能が集まる

In a regular boys' magazine, it becomes

it becomes this.

However, in adult magazines,

was easier to establish.

Erotic manga magazines

From the 90s to around the 2000s,

• fine arts

• design

• doujin creators

• avant-garde artists

and others used this as an entry point for their commercial debuts.

The story mentioned in the summary about

is,

while quite a liberal editorial decision for the time, not impossible.

In fact, looking at the pages,

• watercolor

• heavy impasto

• collage

• photo manipulation

and other experimental works were not uncommon.

The eroge industry

was even more notable from the 90s to the early 2000s.

The reason is

• the rapid growth of the PC game market

• A large number of small-scale manufacturers existed

• Small development teams

• Few restrictions

That is why.

Because of that,

• philosophy

• SF

• psycho-horror

• metafiction

• literary works

were all released as standard.

Erotica was the gateway, and there were many works where the content made you wonder, 'What is this?'

It is the same with movies.

Nikkatsu Roman Porno is often cited as an example.

Roman Porno had

a commercial requirement to 'include sex scenes at regular intervals,'

but other than that, it had a relatively high degree of freedom, and many young directors and staff gained experience there.

Also, independent pink films functioned as a practical training ground for young filmmakers despite their low budgets, and many directors, screenwriters, and cinematographers built their careers from there.

In other words,

条件だけ守る
↓
あとは好きに撮る

that was the structure.

Why have they decreased now?

Since the late 2000s,

the environment has changed significantly.

1. Market contraction

Print media has rapidly declined.

There is no longer any room for risk-taking.

2. Lower production costs

When profit margins drop, editors can only choose 'safe bets'.

3. The internet age

In the past, there was only

出版社
↓
雑誌
↓
読者

that.

Now, there are

• SNS

• Web manga

• Doujinshi

• Individual sales

• Videos

and other ways to publish.

Therefore, 'adult magazines are no longer the only experimental grounds'.

The reason Kouta Hirano is often cited as an example

Kohta Hirano worked on adult-oriented works when he first made his commercial debut.

After that,

• unique dialogue style

• black humor

• excessive staging

• references to film, military, and historical trivia

He demonstrated these individual traits in general-audience works as well, and he is sometimes cited as an example of how adult-oriented media served as a cradle for talent.

Of course, he was not the only one who was special.

There have been a great many manga artists, illustrators, and game character designers who moved from adult-oriented works to general-interest magazines.

The perspective that a 'cradle' nurtures culture

The most interesting point in this summary is not

but rather

is the point.

Looking back at history,

• pulp magazines

• science fiction magazines

• mystery novel magazines

• adult magazines

• Indie games

• Doujinshi

• Web novels

and the like have served as 'experimental grounds' in their respective eras.

What is needed for creation is not just 'complete freedom.' Only when both a 'market where one can at least make a living' and 'a certain degree of freedom' are present does it become easier for new expressions to be born.

Today, part of that role is dispersed among doujin platforms, personal streaming, and the indie game market. In other words, it is closer to reality to think that the 'receptacle' did not disappear, but changed its form with the times.

The volume on the paradise of freedom becoming just a lawless zone

It was like an Unidentified Flying Object (UFO) that suddenly appeared in the vast atmosphere known as the Japanese manga world. About a quarter of a century ago, in the chaotic night of the early 2000s, a young genius artist left the massive state power known as major publishing houses and knocked on the door of a dim underground organization.

'Hey, if it's here, will you let me express avant-garde art that no one has ever seen before, pouring my entire soul into it...?'

The ruler of the underground (the editor), while puffing on a cigarette, gave a fearless, sly smile and said:

'Yeah, of course. There's only one rule. As long as you include some hanky-panky (erotica) between adult men and women somewhere on the page, you can do whatever you like—whether you paint it in oil, have tanks running around, or start a hardcore superpower battle. This is an absolute freedom zone for expression.'

At that moment, a fanfare for a great revolution that would shake the world rang out in the young man's brain. This was the sanctuary for young talents resisting the stifling modern society.

The young man trembled with joy. 'Alright! Then I'll pour all the techniques I learned at art school into it, and submit a masterpiece that will go down in history, painted thick with real 'oil paint' on a size 10 canvas!'

The craftsmen at the printing house also rolled up their sleeves, shouting, 'Bring on the oil painting submissions!', fueling their passionate craftsmanship. The opening color pages of the magazine completed in this way were filled with the scent of noble art that would even turn the Louvre Museum upside down.

'With this, I'll surely be listed in textbooks as an artist at the cutting edge of the era!'

Expecting great acclaim from those around him, the young man waited for the magazine's release date with his chest puffed out. However, the moment he picked up the book that was finally lined up in bookstores, a reality so pathetic it would make the whole nation cry descended mercilessly upon his head.

Here, I would like to throw a stone at common sense. The serious rule that 'manga must compete from the start solely on the interest of the story and characters' might actually be a huge mistake when it comes to nurturing geniuses.

If it weren't for this gentle indulgence, like an oasis in the desert, that says 'As long as it contains erotica, I'll buy it 100% no matter what's inside,' many of the world's geniuses would have been bounced back by the wall of strict screening and would have just become 'middle-aged shut-ins who are good at drawing' by now.

"The art is amazing, but the story is a bit nonsensical... well, it's erotic, so I'll buy it!"

This is the surprisingly generous, mature kindness of the reader. One must say that this was the ultimate, crazy 'nurturing system' that helped young talent grow, just as the Nikkatsu Roman Porno and pink films of the past produced legendary directors.

The artistic work, into which a young person poured all their passion, reeking of oil paint as it came off the press. Staring at the large title dancing on the cover, he quietly rolled his eyes back in his head.

What was written there was neither 'World Art Exhibition' nor 'Satire on Modern Society.' It was simply the four characters for 'Adult Erotic Manga Magazine.'

No matter how beautiful the oil painting, no matter how intense the battle, it was a book destined to be tightly bound with vinyl string, forbidden to those under 18, and lined up at the very edge of a convenience store shelf. It was a legendary cradle that accepted the runaway impulses of young creators and sent numerous geniuses out into the world.

That's right. It was just an 'erotic book'—the kind that would make a high-minded museum curator faint, yet one packed to the brim with the dreams and passion of young people.