One the most difficult things that anime, or any medium aimed at the teenager age range, has a hard time handling in a mature way is sex -- and any sexual topics for that matter. Anything of this nature ends up getting dumbed down to scenes that focus on the racier bits that society tends to flock onto, rather than actually talking about sexuality like it is, in fact, something that is apart of life.
When we talk about something that is also considered "mature", like violent for example, there are many instances where it get simplified to the point of created its own genre -- shounen comes to mind -- and there other cases where violence is mature; with its many different takes on how violence can be used for good, bad, and neutrally: protect something you care for, harming others, and using it for means to an end, shows that it isn't something that is viewed as two-dimensional. However, for sexuality, it isn't a subject that get talked about enough to not just put in a box with fancy wrapping and a bow, then say that the outer appearance is what it actually is and never actually opening its contents.
And all this stigma is attached to the very straight and narrow types of sex. When you deviate from that idealized picture of what is "capital s" Sex, we enter an even more generalized topic that skims over the details and either demonizes or misrepresents what that fetish might be. To me, these types of uninformed views is what most mediums, like anime and manga, should be used to provide some starting point to where people understand each other's view more clearly. Fortunately, I've found a manga that does something I've been describing and actually wanted to share it with the sekijitsu readers for those interesting in such topics. Be warned that some of the content from this point on will be less appropriate for some, which is why it is label NSFW, so be wary of the content below.
The manga that I was hinting at, and ended up finishing in three days or so, is called Nozoki Ana. The translation of "Nozoki Ana", that being "A Peephole", is what the subject matter of the manga is based on; however, if you went in expected nothing by some type of fapfest, you are sadly mistaken. On the surface, the relationship of Kido and Emiru started with Kido finding out that Emiru has been peeping on him in her apartment next door. Soon, a contract between the two is formed based on the leverage Emiru got over Kido. This whole voyeurism subject gets explored in a way that ties well into the story itself and becomes more and more obvious why this certain type of fetish was chosen.
Since you are peeping in on the life of someone, they tend to do things they normally wouldn't when someone else is around. As a result, it is pretty much taking a peek at someones true nature free from all the masks, walls, and armor they put up to protect or hide away from the people they interact with. It certainly is an interesting way to think about the act considering on average, we only really see what other people want to present to the world and never really what is actually there -- it's like seeing a projection of them self rather than a reflection.
The other side of voyeurism that actually worked out well to help Kido grow, but still I would consider the worse side of the act, of voyeurism, was Emiru using Kido's weaknesses to blackmail him. I mentioned in the description of Nozoki Ana that Emiru used some leverage over Kido, so that she can continue to peep in on Kido; well that was essentially blackmailing him into following the alternation of peeping where they both got three days a week to use the hole in their rooms to peep, and Sunday was a break day.
I even thought the blackmail coming from Emiru was devious enough to make her the hated women in this series. The use of weakness and wanting to see others true self formed a compelling relationship between Emiru and Kido. The things that Kido experience, that would normal be a private matter, ended up being shared to Emiru and vice versa. So it's like a shared secret that puts both of them on journey that has its ups and downs while continuing to connect them by that initial blackmail via an exploitation of weakness. I ended up liking Emiru pretty early on, but some might have a different experience, which why I like these types of explorations into sexual content.
Beside the act of voyeurism, the depiction of sex in Nozoki Ana is a much wider range of something similar to how violence gets depicted in action. That is to say, sex is more than a two-sided topic; sure there are the darker sides to sex, and the much brighter as well, but more acts of sexuality tend to fall in the grey. As far as sexual topics, they range from having sex for that deep connection with your partner to depictions of attempted rape -- and those are the extremes. The more grey things are usually sex purely for pleasure or just a way to achieve a goal.
On the same note, the way sex is portrayed it expresses the difference of what is and isn't consent. The attempted rape scene is one of the more clear cases of someone not consented to sex, but sometimes a disagreement to an act can be more than just a vocal dissent. Body language is something that get ignored, and that is also something that gets ignored if someone says yes but doesn't look too thrilled to be participating. It's all about the yes being said enthusiastically and really, nothing is sexier than that kind of consent.
There are quite a few things that can be connected with the use of voyeurism, but one of the top things that stuck out is it something Emiru holds dear. A lot of events that happen in this manga aren't for the faint of heart, and as a result there are people in the manga that end up getting in between this secret held by Kido and Emiru. Sometimes it is appropriate to keep holding on to those things you deem precious, and that is when you need to fight for it. Of course there are also times when you need to let them go because they are no long worth fighting for; and it is all about context, whether you fight or let go, it is important to know when an action makes sense.
Nozoki Ana has pushing and pulling feel in a drama that is just enough to keep you interested for the majority of the series. And the good thing is there is a constant amount of turmoils to never make the viewer desensitized, only just enough pressure to pierce a hole in that wall of protection you've grown so comfortable with. It really was an enjoyable experience to go though. For me, I'm fine with feeling that anxiousness throughout, it is what make me know I care for the world and characters within a story. Despite the story revolving around a sexual fetish, I'm glad to have found something that didn't do any pandering to its audience. It's nice to feel like the aim was to tell a story that included sex, and the assumption toward the reader was that you can handle this type of content.
As a side note, I did find out there was an OVA for this. Unfortunately, with the fact that it is a single close to an hour episode, most of the detail in the manga gets glossed over. The most glaring case is the reason Emiru likes to peep at others; it changed from wanting to see a persons true self, or naked self, to simple liking naked body. It made Emiru seem merely like a deviant who was out to screw over Kido. And that one change shifted the focus and overall feeling of the OVA to be more about how wonderful it is to peep in on Kido just because she can and not the actual see a person in their most vulnerable state, with all their weaknesses shown bare.
Really, if you just want a simple blackmailing story involving voyeurism, the OVA is the way to go. And considering it is only an hour, that is good way to get that fix pretty quickly. I wouldn't say that the OVA was bad, it reminded me of the events in the manga and that was fun for me; however, I would say read the manga if anything, and if you just want a compressed version of about two volumes worth of Nozoki Ana, then watching the OVA. Either way, the manga is something I recommend reading for a story that is mature and also features sexual content quite frequently.
Orginally posted to the now shutdown sekijitsu.com: Archived Page